Providence will offer free classes for parents under a new initiative aimed at improving city schools. The district is partnering with the Paul Cuffee Charter School on the project, which is called the Parent Academy.
The idea is to teach parents to be better partners in their children’s education. Maria Monteiro from the Paul Cuffee School said multiple workshops will be offered, including one with a focus on social media.
“The kids are so advanced and are on social media all the time that the parents are just catching up,” Monteiro said, adding the workshop will show parents how social media “impacts day-to-day, and especially the implications for what the students are posting.”
Modeled after similar programs in Westerly and Springfiled, Massachusetts, the Providence Parent Academy will offer tutorials on a range of topics including college financial aid, early childhood education, and immigration rights. It will also offer classes in English as a second language.