Goals
PLTI has these goals:
- Help parents become the leaders they would like to be for children and families;
- Expand the capacity of parents as change agents for children and families;
- Develop communities of parents within regions of the state that will support one another in skills development and successful parent action for children;
- Facilitate systems change for parental involvement with increased utilization of parents in policy and process decisions; and
- Increase parent-child interactions and improve child outcomes through parent involvement.
The Course
Parents are offered leadership training that includes:
- retreat to develop group communication;
- 10 weeks of classes on self and perception of leadership;
- 10 weeks on practicing democracy skills; and
- a community project based upon the student’s personal passions.
The course ends with a local graduation and a statewide graduation where participants receive diplomas from the Secretary of the State.
The 20-week course also includes instruction on:
- Understanding personal history and its impact on perceptions of leadership
- Thriving and working with diversity
- Assessing and defining problems – thinking critically
- Using the media
- Public speaking
- Using benchmarks and outcome measures
- Forming useful coalitions and building community
- Working with and how to engage the opposition
- Understanding policy and municipal budgets
- Becoming familiar with city, state and federal law.
Sanford Community PLTI 