CER Press Release
Washington, D.C.
September 17, 2012
Movie Inspires Parent Power Index©
Real Parents Deserve a Hollywood Ending
Many parents seeing the upcoming movie Won’t Back Down will no doubt leave the theater inspired to take up the same fight as the dedicated moms in the film. But, they may also wonder whether they have the power available to them to make the same kind of change in their children’s education, or if such power is just a Hollywood invention. Now they can find out with the new Parent Power Index© (PPI) from the Center for Education Reform (CER) which ranks the United States based on how much power parents have over their children’s education.
The PPI is an interactive, web-based tool that – based on an evaluation of state policies – measures the ability in each state of a parent to exercise choices, engage with their local school board, and have a voice in the systems that surround their child. States that ranked the highest offer a high degree of options to parents and engage them more directly in school decisions.
“Parents want and deserve power over their child’s education and most states do a poor job of providing it.” said CER President Jeanne Allen. “The Parent Power Index represents the first time someone has quantified for parents how much power they do or don’t have over their child’s education. And just as important, PPI educates parents on how to use the power they do have as well as how to get more. It’s vital information that’s been missing from their arsenal – until now,” Allen continued.
“Parent power in education is not only a matter of public interest, but it’s a matter of public right. It’s also the only thing that is going to fix our educational and economic problems for good.” Allen said.
PPI is the latest effort from CER this fall to educate parents and the general public about what real education reform is and how they can help get those reforms enacted. For more information see The Field Guide to Education Reform: How to Spot a Real Reformerand Educationfifty.com, a voter’s guide to gubernatorial and state education candidates.