Parents Step Ahead Kicks Off 2012 Successfully!

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• Latin America - español

DALLAS, Jan. 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The parent education event, organized by Parents Step Ahead and Irving Independent School District, was held on January 12, 2012 at J.O. Davis in Irving, Texas. The focus of the program was teaching parents to understand bullying and the basics of family finances.

"Education is a triangle, one corner is our students, one corner is our school, and the third corner is our parents," said John Ringhauser, principal at J.O. Davis Elementary. "Parent involvement is important because together we have to make that triangle strong." The school had 68 teacher ambassadors, all of which actively pursued parents to attend the seminar by personally making phone calls, writing letters and assisting on the night of the event with child care and registration.

McDonald's, an early supporter of Parents Step Ahead, served more than 600 meals to families who attended the program. "It is truly inspiring and motivating to see so many parents come together for the sole purpose of learning to help their children succeed," said Lupita Colmenero, founder and chair of Parents Step Ahead. "Thanks to their commitment and dedication the event at J.O. Davis was a total success!"

Twenty community organizations such as the Boy Scouts, Irving YMCA, Dallas Baptist University, Parkland Hospital and Medicaid came to support the program as exhibitors for the parent resource fair. At the end of the event Soledad Maldonado, a parent at J.O. Davis Elementary, won a free desktop computer for her and her family.  Parents Step Ahead will be visiting six more schools during the spring semester in the districts of Richardson, Dallas, Garland, and Birdville. For parent program information and dates, visit www.parentsstepahead.org.

About Parents Step Ahead
Parents Step Ahead is a 501-C3 nonprofit organization with a mission "to recognize, educate, enable and empower parents to take a proactive role in the educational and personal development of their children." The organization works in partnership with corporations and community organizations to offer a series of programs for parents to demonstrate the importance of parental involvement. Programs are free and include dinner, childcare, and the raffle of prizes and culminate with the raffle of a desktop computer.

SOURCE Parents Step Ahead