These are my memories of the history of parent involvement in promoting educational improvement in our district. I have gone through my old "day planners" to assure a certain degree of accuracy, but my memory is far from perfect. Any who read this and have something to add or change, please email or call!

When I first arrived in the Rim district (1976) and entered my son in kindergarten at LAE, I became aware of parents who were trying to work with the administration to improve education for their children. The PTA was the formal arm of the parents. The original facilities Bond passed and there were high hopes for the future of the district. Prop 13 and the Serrano-Priest court decision had not yet had the effect of changing Rim of the World from a well-funded, locally controlled district to a "low-wealth district" reliant on the legislature in Sacramento for every General Fund penny. My son's kindergarten class had 21 students, one wonderful teacher, and a full-time aide who possessed a teaching credential. I was one of five parent classroom volunteers. Kindergarten was great!

There were concerns that the level of academic focus needed to be raised at the high school. The outstanding chemistry teacher, a leader in the science department, decided to leave us for another district and students and parents were upset. My teenage baby-sitters told stories of a contrast between good academic classes and lightweight classes. There was an Asian Studies class and a variety of choices of English courses but the content taught varied widely with the instructor. Sports for girls were few. One of my concerns was that the primary grades, I think through 3rd grade, were only half-day. I was told by administrators that this was a conscious plan based on the best educational research. After much investigation, I recognized that the "plan" was in reality, based more on the district's need to stretch the transportation system. Parents met informally with the superintendent to express their concerns.

I moved back east and returned a few years later, in 1982. Site Councils had been instituted in California and the active parents participated in these as well as PTA. Class sizes had increased to the high 20's and low 30's. Money was becoming a major stumbling block for all efforts to improve the schools. There was still concern about the academic program and the need to recruit well-qualified teachers in the upper grades. There was a new superintendent. Due to state requirements the primary grade hours were changed to extend their day but the unfortunate result was the bus schedule forced MPH to start and end later in the day.

Despite the legislature's intent that Site Councils would be the avenue for parents and employees to have a strong voice for improvement a local schools, Site Council parents often felt that the organizations were merely rubber stamps for school principals. The high school Site Council in particular was ruled by a tyrannical chairwoman who carefully controlled discussion. New parents and teachers were elected to the Council and the long battle to replace the chair began. Courses at the high school were becoming less flexible as the state added requirements which had the result of limiting options for creative curriculum. Many high school teachers seemed discouraged that their input and creativity were not appreciated. But, girls' sports had grown and there was now a girls' tennis team and both girls' and boys' soccer had been added. There were also new lights for the football field making Friday night games possible.

Parents and teachers began to talk informally about the need for a concerted effort to voice their concerns to the superintendent and the school board. The superintendent initiated a monthly "Sounding Board" meeting. It was attended by anyone who had suggestions or questions, usually representatives from Site Councils and PTAs. The superintendent presided but school board members frequently attended. It was very successful and resulted in parents feeling that their voices were heard and taken into consideration by the administration.

A parent/teacher group formed and called itself Partners in Excellence. The group also included many parents who later became teachers in our district. Math and science were major concerns. Parents wanted an expansion of Foreign Language instruction, including to the elementary level. MPH had a Spanish program but it was divided into two years and only provided one year of high school credit. Two of the involved parents were Gary Leal and Kerry Sieh who were professors at CalTech. They brought a depth of knowledge of the preparation needed for success at the higher levels of math and science, as well as for success in the working world. Bob Stein, the math department chair at Cal State San Bernardino, also was a great resource and participant. He was involved at the state level in developing standards and assessments and at the national level in AP Calculus exam development. Laurie Watson, now a high school Spanish teacher was a strong voice for improving the Foreign language offerings. Gary Tompkins, (who had formerly taught at the US Air Force Academy) and who is currently teaching history and coaching our Academic Decathlon team at Rim High School, was one of the spokespersons for the group. Presentations were made at School Board meetings and immediate results included recruiting of new teachers and the addition of French and additional AP courses to the curriculum at the high school. Unfortunately this was followed by the elimination of the high school German program and the MPH Spanish program a few years later when teachers retired.

Another area of concern was the lack of counseling available on the mountain for students and families with serious problems. There was a group formed which later resulted in a major fundraising effort to establish a Personal Counseling Center at the high school. Pete Shaw, Don Rose, Shirley Snow, Steve Shore and many others were able to bring the mountain communities together to form the beginnings of what we now know as Rim Family Services.

Partners in Excellence Parents recognized that college and career information was not readily available to students and started the College Corner in the high school library. Later this became institutionalized as the College and Career Center and is now staffed by two full-time employees. SATs were not offered at the Rim campus. Rim students had to travel to Valley College to take the tests. Parents met with ETS and facilitated the bringing of the testing services to Rim.

Parents also had concerns about the supervision at the high school. A few parents investigated and learned that droves of students were cutting classes with no apparent consequences. There was an effort to encourage the administration to tighten the "closed campus". Site Council at the high school took leadership in trying to remedy the security problems.

Twice, due to population pressure, the district moved to a Year-round School Program. The first experience in the '70's allowed a wonderful "intersession program" for students including such things as ice skating, skiing, art classes and even equestrian training to be offered. Measure V building programs eliminated the need for "Year-round" and the continued cost-cutting in response to ever shrinking state education budgets, meant that the "intersession program" also had to be cut. Parents and teachers worked together, however, to provide a smooth transition in and out of these schedule and facility changes. Parents were key in the district's Measure V passage which allowed for the facilities improvements and expansions through 2001. Lake Gregory Elementary School is an example of the building which was made possible by Measure V.

In summary, as I recount these changes over the years, I realize the critical role of the concerned parent in the promotion of a successful educational program. Working in concert with our dedicated staff, we have had many successes, but there are slays challenges. I hope that Rim Education Partners will be the beginning of new efforts for great improvements for our district. We can always be better!

Jane St.John