Whatever Needed to Be Done, Cindy Abrams Did at Carpenter

Cindy Abrams’s philosophy about helping out at is simple: she will do whatever needs to be done. 

When she was asked to fill out a list of accomplishments and contributions she made to Carpenter for the award she is getting at the , she said it would be easier to ask what she hasn’t done.

The president was also on the first Governance Council, and she was on the committee to help create the charter.

“Of of the main goals of PFC is to pay for enrichment programs that we don’t get. We are getting music, PE, dance, art, media and science that you don’t see at other schools, and that’s what makes this school spectacular,” Abrams says. “We were able to institutionalize this so we could solidify what Carpenter stands for.”

So, if they get a new principal who isn’t sold, for example, on a music program, then the parents can point to their arts-focus and point out that when you come to Carpenter, you buy into a specific environment. Part of that environment is an active group of parents, like thoe honored in the Carpenter Honorees that Studio City Patch has compiles (CLICK HERE).

“That to me is the most wonderful thing,” Abrams says. “Our charter institutes a goal and show that we’re looking at the whole child. It’s more than learning, it’s learning how to express yourself creatively, learning hands on … all this is what makes the child.” 

Abrams moved to Studio City for the school. “People are moving here because a great public school and people want to support the school. When we hold a function at a restaurant and they see 100 Carpenter parents they know that it means something to be a Friend of Carpenter.”

It took a lot of years of innovation, and as Abrams notes, “Not every program we worked on was a success in the first year, some of them take a long time and years of innovation.”

Her first daughter started at the school in 2003. The CBS Radford Studios have pitched in with sponsorships and so have other programs to help with the media lab and other new program at the school.

“People are understanding that it is not LAUSD or the principal alone doing all these things, but a community, so everyone is a part of it,” Abrams explains.

WISHES FOR THE FUTURE OF CARPENTER? “People are realizing that we are stll affected by decisions made by LAUSD, but we are continuing to find innovative ways to solve problems. We work so closely with teachers. We also show that parents as a group can have an impact. They understand the power we can have as a group.”

With her first daughter, Kyle, already at Walter Reed Middle School, Abrams is already becoming active at a higher public school level. Her daughter Ryan will now be joining the middle school, and Abrams was pleased that her youngest recognized her mother’s contribution to the school.

“It’s a great honor to be among these being awarded,” Abrams says. “This school has been part of my life for nine years. Ryan said she would have been very upset if I didn’t get it, after all she’s lived it.”

FAVORITE MEMORY: “There are so many great memories, but I love Fifth Grade Career Day. I met some spectacular people here and I’ve enjoyed my time.”