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

FOR RELEASE: 9 a.m. PST 
January 20, 1995 
 
Contact:  David Frank (202) 401-3100
Rick Miller 1-800-SKYGRAM #211-9840

Business Role Vital In Support Of Family Involvement In Learning, Deputy Education Secretary Says

ROSEMEAD, Calif., JAN. 20 -- U.S. Deputy Secretary of Education Madeleine M. Kunin visited Southern California Edison today to emphasize the role business can play in helping families get involved in their children's education.

"When parents are able to meet their responsibilities to their families and to their jobs, they are more likely to be satisfied at work," Kunin said. "When families are engaged with their children's learning, student achievement increases".

"Corporations that connect families to the learning process are in a better position to recruit and retain today's work force and to help prepare the work force of tomorrow."

Kunin appeared with Edison CEO John Bryson, parents and employees participating in Edison programs, the Vice President of G.T. Water Products, Debra Tash, and other business and education leaders.

Edison provides innovative programs for its employees and its customers in parent education and assistance, including support of the Parent Institute for Quality Education, which offers a series of courses for parents of at-risk students. G.T. Water Products of Moorpark, Calif., runs a school on-site for the children of its employees.

Noting that Edison has 17,000 employees and G.T. Water Products about 25, Kunin said, "it is clear that both large and small companies are finding creative, effective ways to support family involvement in learning."

In September, U.S. Secretary of Education Richard Riley announced a Family Involvement Partnership for Learning, with more than 100 sponsoring organizations, to encourage and support the critical role of caring adults in the success of children. A recently released report, commissioned by the partnership, details "family friendly practices" that businesses can use to help parents get more involved in children's learning. Among the ideas suggested in the report, Employers, Families, and Education: Promoting Family Involvement in Learning, are:

• Flextime, allowing employee parents to tailor their on-the-job hours to fit the needs of their children and their school activities;
• Lunchtime flex so that parents can visit their children during the noon hour;
• Time off for volunteering in schools, attending teacher conferences and participating in other education activities;
• Job sharing, compressed work weeks, and work-at-home arrangements;
• Lunchtime parenting seminars;
• Parent hotlines, support groups and newsletters;
• On-site or consortium childcare facilities;
• School-employee partnerships and volunteer programs;
• Child care resource and referral services;
• Child care vouchers and discounts;
• Donations or consulting to schools and child care centers.

Kunin cited as an additional resource, a publication from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, On Target: Effective Parent Involvement Programs, which focuses on what businesses, including Southern California Edison and G.T. Water Products, are doing to support family involvement in schools and communities.

The Deputy Secretary also pointed to the importance of publications providing information to parents. For example, Southern California Edison and four other organizations, John Hancock, the Merck Institute for Science Education, J.C. Penney, and TRW, have given support to help produce the Parent Involvement Handbook. The guide, written by Education Today magazine, offers numerous tips on how parents can meet the learning needs of children from birth through college.