Osseo Area Schools ISD 279: National African American Parent Involvement Day At Garden City Elementary School

Press release from the Osseo Area Schools ISD 279:

February 16, 2022

The Million Man March of 1995 brought more than 400,000 people to Washington, D.C. to promote African American unity and family values. In recognition of these values, Garden City Elementary School invited families to participate in National African American Parent Involvement Day on Feb. 14.

“Black families who sometimes feel marginalized by the school system need to feel welcomed and supported. They need to know they are a part of a school community to work together to foster student growth, learning and happiness at school,” said principal David Branch.

For the past eight years, Garden City Elementary School has held a breakfast to celebrate, and families have been able to stay on site with their students. Due to COVID-19, some of these plans changed. However, 40 students and family members were able to participate in the celebration.

Additionally, Felicia Phillips, educational support professional and author, talked about her new books “Coping with Covid for Kids” and “Dear Black Girl, You Can.” She wrote these books to explain challenging concepts and to encourage young people to take action in their lives. After reading “Dear Black Girl, You Can,” signed copies of both books were given away as raffle prizes.

The books were well received and at least 10 copies were distributed. Branch encourages teachers to use their talents to dig into difficult topics, so scholars can grow and families of all backgrounds feel valued.

“We are an incredibly diverse school. When I interview teachers, one of the first things I do is let them know about our student population and make sure they understand that the expectation is we are not going to shy away from conversations about race, culture, and ethnicity. We work hard to meet the needs of diverse learners,” Branch went on.

This press release was produced by the Osseo Area Schools ISD 279. The views expressed here are the author’s own.