Parents Are Important Conference at Lansing Eastern High School

By Julie Vandenboom

 

The inaugural “Parents Are Important” conference took place at Lansing School District’s (LSD) Eastern High School on Saturday, April 16th. Organized by Eastern’s Family and Community Liaison, Rosa Killips, the event brought Eastern parents and staff together with presenters and representatives from Michigan State University (MSU), CASE Credit Union, the Lansing School District and local community organizations. The event was the first of what organizers plan to be a yearly event.

 

The conference opened with commentary by the principal,  Mrs. Donna Pohl.  She spoke about the importance of connecting with school administrators during  coffee hours that are held early in the morning several times during the school year.  She also spoke about creating a positive school culture and climate. 

 

 

Killips felt that the conference was well-received. “I am so excited about the positive responses we got from parents and presenters,” she said. “We plan to do the Parents are Important conference annually but will move it to October so that parents can get the benefit of what they learn earlier in the school year.”

 

MSU Extension Program Instructor for Social and Emotional Health and Nutrition, Emily Compton, worked with parents on handling arguments productively. Her workshop provided tips for listening and for conflict resolution, focusing on some of the reasons why people don’t listen to each other, and some of the more specific reasons why children may not listen. Compton also discussed the “WIN” approach (using the framework of W – “when you do that,” I – “I feel…” N – “I need…”) as a constructive way to disagree. 

 

Jerome Vierling of City Life Lansing discussed the need for parents to communicate effectively with their teens, especially when children don’t seem to be listening.  Some of the strategies he shared include asking the right questions, looking for clues in the responses, and knowing who your teen is spending time with.

 

Another MSU speaker, family therapist and PhD candidate Megan Lachmar, presented “Improving Your Child’s Self-Esteem”. Lachmar stressed that a child’s wellness is interactive with the wellness of the parent and the family. The first step a parent can take toward fostering family wellness is self-care – making sure his or her physical, emotional/mental, spiritual, and social needs are met. Lachmar also discussed the importance to a child’s well-being of having family traditions – which don’t need to be complex, but could be as simple as an inside joke. 

 

Precious Gist, parent to an Eastern student, who attended the conference with her husband, Dwayne Gist, counted the self-esteem presentation among her favorites. “It was very educational,” said Gist. “It allowed us to interact with other parents. The workshop was amazing. We learned a lot today and really enjoyed ourselves. It felt good to be around other parents going through some of the same things we are.”

 

 

Information about future events at Eastern can be found on the school’s website at http://www.lansingschools.net/schools/high-schools/eastern/. 

 

The district will be also be offering exciting summer learning opportunities for its K-12 students from June 13th to August 11th.    Many of the opportunities will be held at community partner sites.

For more information, log on to www.lansingschools.net/academic-choices/summer-extended-learning.

 

Julie Vandenboom is parent to a student at Eastern High School.