Parent_Educators_Graduation

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CSUCL Parent Educators Institute graduates Class of 2009
(6/10/09)

The CSUCL’s Rutgers/LEAP Parents Academy for School Reform recognized the achievement of 20 parents on June 3rd who became the Certified Parent Educators Institute’s Class of 2009. These graduates completed 24 weeks of intensive parent training and professional development delivered by the CSUCL and are now certified parent educators.

The 2009 ceremony was held at the Waterfront Technology Center in Camden, where members of the Rutgers/LEAP community gathered to celebrate the past, present, and future of the Parents Academy. Several representatives from the Parents Academy’s original Class of 1996 returned for the event. 1996 alumni Vilma Ruiz, Candida Colon, Lissette Munoz, Carmen Ubarry-Rivera and Ana Rivera watched the latest group of parent graduates receive certificates from CSUCL Director Gloria Bonilla-Santiago.

“The 2009 Parent Educator Certificate Institute graduation was a celebration of 16 years of hard work and dedication by the members of the Camden community and the CSUCL,” said Stephanie Weaver-Rogers, Program Coordinator for the Parents Academy. “This event marks a new direction for the Academy that will incorporate its past success and bring about new programs and curriculums to address new issues and areas for the Camden community.”

This year’s ceremony also marked a first in the history of the Academy: Class of 2009 graduate Victoria McKie joined her mother Antoinette McKie and grandmother Fatima Dorsey as the Parent Educator Institute’s first three-generational family of graduates. Both Antoinette and Fatima graduated from the Parent Educators Institute in 2007.

When asked to describe their experience with the Institute the women said: “The class was fun, exciting and we made lifetime friendships. The instructors were well informed, professional, and extremely thorough. The experience was both challenging and rewarding, we walked away changed for life, empowered to help change others.”

The Parents Academy for School Reform is one of the CSUCL’s Centers of Excellence and focuses on school involvement, leadership, and empowerment in order to improve education in Camden City. The Academy’s parent training sessions help residents become better parents, better leaders in their communities, and more effective advocates for their children’s education.

Center for Strategic Urban Community Leadership 321 Cooper Street, Camden, NJ 08102 Phone:. 856-225-6348 Fax: 856-225-6500