Record-Journal (Meriden, CT)

“Their kids learn English much faster than they do,” said Stephen Knight, a board member for the Spanish Community of Wallingford. “If I lived in Bogota, Colombia, I would feel the same way about their schools. That puts them at a huge disadvantage.”

Some parents rely on their children not only to translate for them, but to keep them informed about matters at school. This works fine in some cases; in others, not so well.

Some students who are translating for mom and dad grow adept at manipulating the information, sometimes giving their parents misleading or incomplete reports about their progress.

SCOW specializes in providing translation services, in addition to English as a Second Language and homework tutoring. Program leaders learned about this specific problem through successful former students, Knight said.

Last year, the Wallingford public schools and SCOW teamed up to find ways to better bridge the gap between home, school and community.

School Superintendent Salvatore Menzo saw the need for more parent involvement with Hispanic students to bolster their overall success in school. To help find solutions, he and other administrative leaders added SCOW to the school district’s strategic plan.

“In our day and age, we have to be cognizant of all different types of people,” Menzo said. “We hope to have greater success in this area.” About 7 percent of the district’s schoolchildren are Hispanic, with varying degrees of English ability and parental involvement, Knight said.

In addition to its translation services and classes, SCOW also has an after-school program called Adelante, which works to keep students focused on their schoolwork. It was through conversations with students that SCOW learned of the need to get more Hispanic parents involved in the schools.

SCOW had hoped to hire a facilitator to work with the schools and parents to make conferences more comfortable and encourage dialogue. But the nonprofit agency didn’t have the $30,000 necessary to hire someone, and it remains on the wish list.

But the district is doing what it can and hopes to do more. Menzo, who did much of his doctoral research on encouraging parental involvement, recognized the need for more visits on a parent’s turf, either in the home or the workplace.

He met with human resource representatives from Ulbrich Stainless Steels & Special Metals and Cytec Industries to let them know about some of the barriers preventing their employees from becoming more involved in their children’s academic success.

The human resources departments responded positively and Menzo said access to workplaces is part of the district’s outreach program.

It is also looking for employers to participate in school-tocareer workshops. “We wanted to know, ‘How could those professionals assist us?’ ” he said. And all the schools are reaching out to parents, Menzo said. A recent discussion at the Wallingford Public Library about the transition students make from middle school to high school was well-attended, he said.

“It was good to get started,” Menzo said. “I’m looking forward to implementing the strategic plan and hope we have greater success in this area.”

mgodin@record-journal.com (203) 317-2255

Copyright 2011, Record-Journal, All Rights Reserved.