Sometimes students’ success in school takes more than them showing up and paying attention. Sometimes it takes their mom, dad, or other parental guardian showing up and paying attention.

When work and other parts of life prevent adults from getting involved at their children’s school, sometimes the school packs up and goes to the parents. That’s what happened this week when the principal, guidance counselors, teachers and others from Crestwood Elementary School rode a school bus and drove their personal vehicles to Good Shepherd Ministries in the Valley Road area.

“We’re here trying to get parents involved and talk about literacy and math,” said Leslie Jenkins, a guidance counselor at Crestwood Elementary.

The inaugural event of taking the school to the parents by setting up for an evening at a neighborhood location involved providing door prizes, free books, math puzzles and information about parenting classes and other resources for parents looking to encourage their children to succeed in school.

Parents at the event said they welcomed the opportunity to drive closer to home to connect with their children’s teachers, principal and others from Crestwood. Michelle Irving has a fifth grader, Briceson, and a third grader, Braylon, who attend the school. She said connecting with her children’s teachers has helped her find better strategies to help her favorite students at home.

“It gave me resources on how to understand how they’re teaching in the classroom,” Irving said. “It’s so different from when I was in the classroom.”

A few dozen parents and students attended the community and academic gathering Wednesday, providing a chance for families to interact with school leaders and teachers in a relaxed setting. Crestwood Principal Rosalind Operton said she planned to hold a community movie night in the future and hoped parents who saw the evening as valuable would tell others to attend similar events in the future.

“We want parents to put things on Facebook about what we’re doing,” she said. “It’s about building relationships and partnering with parents.”

Working to connect with parents in any way possible to help establish a partnership between parents and teachers has many benefits, said Brandi Sumrall, an instructor of special education at Mississippi State University-Meridian. Education research shows parental involvement in their children’s school helps increase grades and test scores, improves social skills and behavior and reduces absenteeism.

“It’s like a seesaw,” Sumrall said. “You need to have a good balance of good teaching and parental support. I tell students all the time education is a team sport.”

Meridian Public School District Superintendent Amy Carter said she and others in the school system will continue to make efforts to encourage more parents to join the team to educate youth in the community. Outreach in communities throughout Meridian helps provide another tool to connect with families.

“We have to go to our families to connect in different ways,” Carter said this week. “We have to let them know we have their children’s best intentions at heart but need them involved.”

Parent and grandparent April Newell appreciated the Crestwood Elementary event in the community. She said it had value on multiple levels, including an opportunity to choose free books for her children. 

“I really appreciate the books,” she said. “We have to do reading every night.”