Every Child in Focus—Suburban Child
In January, National PTA’s Every Child in Focus campaign centers on the Suburban Child. Using the PTA National Standard for Family-School Partnerships, we will explore ways PTAs can welcome and support suburban families in the school community.
We have created information and resources on the unique challenges suburban children face and ways PTAs can better support suburban families in achieving student success.
How Your PTA Can Better Support Suburban Children
- Register for the 7:00 p.m. EST, January 28 webinar on the unique challenges suburban children face and ways PTAs can better support suburban families in achieving student success. Hosted by National PTA, the special guest will be Elizabeth Kneebone from the Brookings Institution.
- Read our PTA One Voice Blog for PTA Success Stories and additional resources. You can also share your blog! We want to hear local and state PTA success stories on supporting children with special needs, how do you promote an environment that is welcoming to all children and parents. Use our blog share tool to tell us your story.
- Share the Parents' Guides to Student Success. These standards provide clear, consistent expectations for what students should be learning at each grade in order to be prepared for college and career.
- As of 1990, 14 percent of school districts are located in suburban areas, enrolling 36 percent of all students. (Source: National Center for Education Statistics)
- Over the last 20 years, suburban communities have experienced a rise in poverty and homelessness. (Source: Institute for Children, Poverty & Homelessness)
- Poverty in suburban communities has been growing at a faster rate than in urban areas. (Source: Institute for Children, Poverty & Homelessness)
- According to a U.S. Census Bureau report released in 2010, the country’s biggest population gains were in suburban areas, because of minority populations increasingly residing in these areas. (Source: U.S. Census Bureau)
- According to the 2010 Census Bureau report, more than a third of all 13.3 million new suburbanites were Hispanic, compared to 2.5 million African Americans and 2 million Asians. Caucasians accounted for a fifth of the suburban growth. (Source: U.S. Census Bureau)
About Every Child in Focus
National PTA’s Every Child in Focus is a campaign centered on strengthening family engagement in schools by celebrating important cultural distinctions and achievements, while highlighting solutions to potential educational issues.
Each month, National PTA will spotlight the educational issues surrounding a particular group, highlight their accomplishments and focus on ways to foster Family-School Partnerships. Follow our Every Child in Focus Calendar for materials to help families and PTAs learn more about each group.