By Shelby Stewart-Soldan
Staff Writer
OXFORD TWP. — Parent University is a series of workshops, seminars, talks and resources in Oxford Community Schools to help parents tackle things from bullying, cyber safety, understanding math and much more.
“We launched it this school year, but really the work started, the vision started, right before the pandemic struck,” said Anita Qonja-Collins, assistant superintendent of elementary instruction. “We were able to bring it back at the right time, I think an even more essential time. Parent University is a model that is used across the nation, really. And we’ve learned a lot in collaboration with our neighbors in Lake Orion. They have been really helpful in helping us to launch ours.”
The workshops and sources all have various audiences in mind, such as parents of elementary students, parents of teens, or parents of any students.
“It’s a series of workshops, it could be videos, just one page resources, but essentially opportunities for parents and caregivers and sometimes students to help them learn about various educational topics essentially to be able to help their child navigate school and life,” said Qonja-Collins. “The current offerings are based on our current needs. We really focused ours on what our district needs at this time, and they will continue to be updated.”
“The goals of the Parent University is to maximize our student outcomes,” she said. “So when our families are feeling equipped and knowledgeable about how to help their kids navigate school or certain situations that can impact school, their outcomes will be better.”
The other goals of Parent University are to increase an understanding of teaching and learning as well as provide an opportunity for families to connect with one another and learn from each other.”
Any caregiver to a student in the district can attend, and the website will be updated as more workshops are scheduled. There are currently plans for a workshop about bullying, a five-session course of Parenting the Love and Logic Way, a math help workshop, one to help understand an Individualized Education Plan, and more.
For a current list of offerings at no cost, visit oxfordschools.org/departments/curriculum___instruction/parent_university.