Principals Offer Advice for High School Students' Families.

Family communication with teachers, counselors and principals is a vital element in the success of high school students, according to a recent poll of high school principals. Nearly 350 principals representing 21 states responded to The Principals' Partnership 2006 Poll conducted by The Principals'

Principals enrolled in The Partnership were asked to answer the following open-ended question: "As the 2006-2007 school year begins, what are the three most important actions a family should take to assure success for its high school student?"

Of the respondents, 62 percent said "Maintain regular communication with teachers and school administrators." This includes talking or emailing monthly with teachers and school counselors, participating in open houses and parent-teacher conferences, and reading and responding to school communications.

"Within a few weeks of the first day of school, parents should email or call all of their child's teachers, introduce themselves and invite the teacher to make contact with them if there is ever an issue," said Jon Swett, principal of Lewis and Clark High School in Spokane, Wash. "For parents to make contact with their child's school every few weeks is responsible parenting."

Other action items principals cited include: "Talk with your student about school activities and friends" (22.4 percent); "Establish a time and place for homework" (18 percent); "Have a positive attitude about education, high expectations for school" (16 percent); and "Assure attendance at school" (10 percent).

The Principals' Partnership, the signature giving program of the Union Pacific Foundation, is one of America's premier business and education partnerships. The Partnership supports a network of 1,000 public high school principals in 21 states. A team of nationally recognized educators facilitates the exchange of knowledge, best practices and resources across the network, benefiting all member principals and their schools. Team members also develop a customized program for each principal, working with principals on key issues they have identified as areas of concern in their schools. There is no cost to principals or school districts for Partnership activities.

In addition, The Partnership maintains a public Web site (www.principalspartnership.com) featuring research briefs and case studies useful to all educators. It is estimated that The Partnership, through the participating principals, will reach approximately 71,000 teachers and 1 million students this year.