InClass

Parents want to be involved. But oftentimes, they don’t know how.

Desert Oasis Elementary School teacher Audra Damron is changing that through Family Learning Nights. This series of eight engaging workshops helps sets parents up with simple, take-home activities following power standards for preschool.

Throughout the year, Damron says she’s built strong relationships with parents. Sitting in the room during a Family Learning Night, one can feel there is a newfound sense of support and understanding. Families feel at home in the school library, where they spend about an hour and a half eating a nutritious meal, asking questions, and practicing with instructional materials to guide their child’s learning.

Damron says she hopes the program might expand throughout the Tolleson Elementary School District. Even greater, she would love to see the Parent Empowerment become an example for other schools within the community.

“I hope teacher leadership is contagious. You’re in your classroom and doing the small things that you know are best for your students and you turn them into big things because you realize that they make a huge impact,” Damron says. “Teacher leadership is doing what we’re doing and making it known.”

Learn more about her journey in community leadership here.