As an added incentive, participants’ names will be entered in raffle drawings to win wireless PC tablets, gift cards and other prizes. Drawings will be held for each site at the end of the winter session on March 1.

Parents of students attending Cleveland’s public schools will attend school themselves from Jan. 9 through March 1 in Cleveland Metropolitan School District’s first session of “Parent University,” offered at eight schools on the East Side and West Side.

Parents and caregivers of CMSD students that enroll in classes will be better equipped to assist children with math, reading, computer skills, test preparation and study skills through classes designed to help parents become partners in their children’s school experience, said Tracy Hill, executive director of CMSD’s Family and Community Engagement (F.A.C.E.).

“Technology, teaching methods and nutritional standards have all changed since the days when many of our parents were students,” Hill said. “Parent University will bridge the gap that makes it difficult for today’s parents to help their children with unfamiliar concepts or coursework and with ever-changing technology.”

In cooperation with the Neighborhood Leadership Institute, F.A.C.E. launched Parent University to help students succeed in school and prepare for education beyond high school.

“Most students are more technologically advanced than their parents,” said Hill, whose staff is devoted to engaging CMSD families in all aspects of their children’s education. “Our students are learning techniques in math that didn’t exist when their parents attended school,” Hill said. “If we want our students to be successful, we need to show their parents how to help them.”

Information about ACT and SAT exams, financial aid and college applications can be overwhelming, said Hill, who noted that Parent University will simplify test preparation and the college application process in ways that will benefit all families.

Hill said she is encouraged by calls she is already receiving from parents eager to enroll in Parent University’s first session on Jan. 9.

“As soon as we began promoting Parent University, people were already asking how to sign up for the first session,” said Hill, whose work in Cleveland was inspired by similar programs in Baltimore, Boston and Philadelphia.

Parent University offers 19 workshops that are scheduled in afternoons and evenings on weekdays to accommodate parents’ schedules. Topics focus on education and partnering with the schools, basic computer skills, college applications, financial aid and promoting reading. There are even two cooking classes that promote healthy food preparation at home.

To ensure uninterrupted workshop training for parents, the Neighborhood Leadership Institute is providing recreational activities for children ages 5 to 18. Dinner for families attending evening workshops will also be provided.

As an added incentive, participants’ names will be entered in raffle drawings to win wireless PC tablets, gift cards and other prizes. Drawings will be held for each site at the end of the winter session on March 1.

Only parents and caregivers of CMSD students may register for the free classes, scheduled at eight schools. Registration information, mailed to all Cleveland households at the end of December, is also available on the CMSD website and at the F.A.C.E. office (216) 858-0117.

Winter Workshop Sites:

Collinwood * 15210 St. Clair Ave., Cleveland 44110

East Tech * 2439 East 55th St., Cleveland 44104

James Ford Rhodes * 5100 Biddulph Ave., Cleveland 44144

John Adams * 3817 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Cleveland 44105

John F. Kennedy * 17100 Harvard Ave., Cleveland 44128

John Marshall * 3952 West 140th St., Cleveland 44111

Lincoln-West * 3202 West 30th St., Cleveland 44109

Sunbeam * 11731 Mt. Overlook Ave., Cleveland 44120

Parent University Partner Agencies:

Case Western Reserve University

Cleveland Housing Network Community Training Center

College Now!

Educational Service Center of Cuyahoga County

Esperanza

Focus On Education

Help Me Grow

Neighborhood Leadership Institute

Prevention Research Center for Healthy Neighborhoods

Sisters of Charity Health System - Building Healthy Communities

Starting Point