A r c h i v e d I n f o r m a t i o n

INNOVATIVE ACTIVITIES FROM AMERICA GOES BACK TO SCHOOL 1995

"As Secretary of the Navy, I have made education--and programs for expanded family participation in education--one of my top priorities. One of my favorite programs is 'America Goes Back to School: Get Involved!' I've participated in this wonderful program, and I think it's a great opportunity for Navy leaders to get personally involved in our schools. The Back To School initiative provides a chance for all of us to give an important contribution to the system that America counts on for our future leaders."
John H. Dalton
Secretary of the Navy

You will want to bring recognition to your local community for your America Goes Back to School: Get Involved! event. Last year many well-known participants were involved:

Both President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore traveled to classrooms and college campuses across America.
Sesame Street's Celina and the Cookie Monster visited P.S. 166 in Queens, New York where they told stories and held a dance/movement session.
R.L. Stine, author of the "Goose Bumps Mysteries" series, participated in an on-line event.
Astronaut Charles Bolden, a brigadier general in the Marine Corps, went back to school with U.S. Secretary of Education Richard Riley in Greenville, South Carolina. Other astronauts who participated in the back-to-school effort included Vance Brand, Blane Hammond, Gregory Harbraugh, Jim Lovell, and Carl Meade.
Actor Edward James Olmos visited Claremont College in California, and actress Barbara Bain read to children with U.S. Chief Economic Advisor Joe Stiglitz at Grape Elementary in Watts.
Spiderman, his creator Stan Lee, and artist John Romita visited an elementary school in Encinitas, California to encourage students to read more.
The National Reclaim Our Youth Crusade, an initiative of the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, encouraged parents in 50 cities nationwide to sign a pledge promising to support their children's efforts to learn.
Sports greats Cal Ripken, Jr. of the Baltimore Orioles, Keith Alias of the New York Giants, Olympic medalists Jeff Blatnick and Anita DeFrance, and Billy Ray Hobley of the Harlem Globetrotters supported America Goes Back to School.

"Autumn Rain"
Katherine Mertens, Cranford, NJ

Last year's effort also included many effective grassroots efforts:

Proclamations by mayors in Birmingham, Alabama; Anchorage, Alaska; Tempe, Arizona; Los Angeles, California; Washington, D.C.; Buffalo, New York; Boise, Idaho; Baltimore, Maryland; Boston, Massachusetts; Akron, Ohio; Portland, Oregon; Portsmouth, Virginia; Detroit, Michigan; and Seattle, Washington designating America Goes Back to School: A Place for Families and the Community Week in their cities.
An ice cream social thank you party for community volunteers in Terre Haute, Indiana.
A parade, picnic, and "back to school" night at the ballpark in New Orleans.
Performances and workshops with the Texas Institute for Arts in Education, a collaborative representing Houston's Ballet, Symphony, Grand Opera, Theater Under the Stars, Alley Theater, and International Festival.
Governors, mayors, and other elected officials around the country signed resolutions and proclamations in support of America Goes Back to School.

`State Resolutions`

Ask your state superintendent, state legislature, or governor to encourage family and community involvement in America Goes Back to School: Get Involved! events by issuing a resolution and, thereby, recognizing the importance of families, schools, communities, and employers developing partnerships to help children learn.

`Local Proclamations`

Ask a local official to issue a proclamation declaring an America Goes Back to School Month in your city or community. A sample proclamation from last year's campaign follows, as well as a school board resolution. By displaying your proclamation at America Goes Back to School events, you'll encourage other community members to get involved.

P R O C L A M A T I O N

TO THE PEOPLE OF AKRON:

Whereas: September 11, 1995, will kick off America Goes Back to School: A Place for Families and the Community. This effort is to encourage all Americans to support family and community involvement in learning; and

Whereas: America Goes Back to School, is sponsored by The [Partnership for Family Involvement in Education], a coalition of more than [700] family, community, religious and education organizations dedicated to improving children's learning through the development of family-school-community partnerships, in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Education; and

Whereas: Designed to foster grassroots support for schools by inviting individuals parents, grandparents, community leaders, professionals, people skilled in vocational trades, members of the arts community, religious leaders...all Americans--to rally around their local schools and make a commitment to support education improvement throughout the year; and

Whereas: I urge the citizens of Akron to use this week as a beginning in supporting children's learning, which can make a positive difference: a win/win situation for families, schools and communities across the nation.

Now, Therefore: I, Donald L. Plusquellic, Mayor of the City of Akron, Ohio, do hereby proclaim the week of September 11, 1995, as:

"AMERICA GOES BACK TO SCHOOL: A PLACE
FOR FAMILIES AND THE COMMUNITY WEEK"
In the City of Akron.

IN WITNESS WHERE OF:
I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the City of Akron, Ohio, to be affixed hereto this 10th day of August, 1995.

City of Akron, Ohio Official Seal
Donald L. Plusquellic
Mayor, City of Akron

Child's Underwater Photo of Girl With Goggles

untitled
Alison R. Trump, Pittsburgh, PA

Sample Resolution for a Local Board of Education

WHEREAS,

The board of education of the __________________________ school district, for its own part, rededicates itself to the engagement of families and the community in the life of our schools to enhance children's learning and positively influence each child.

Involving families and communities directly results in better student achievement and lower levels of safety and discipline infractions;

Involving families and schools in children's learning includes a broad range of activities and concerns to be addressed; and

Involving families and schools can enhance the morale and quality of the school environment; and it is the stated objective of the public school to prepare children for a productive role in our society; and

America Goes Back to School focuses on the theme Get Involved!; now,

be it resolved, that the board of education of _________________________ endorses the observance of America Goes Back to School Month as an opportunity to support the purposes and practices of family and community involvement in children's learning and encourages parents, students, teachers, employers, and all citizens to participate.

Better Education Is Everybody's Business

[ Table of Contents ]