At MLK Montessori, we strongly believe that parent involvement is the key to our students’ success and, for this reason, offer numerous opportunities for families to participate in the life of the school. One way that families may choose to engage with their students’ learning is by joining our Parent Advisory Council or PAC. Our PAC meets regularly with MLK staff to conceive, plan, and implement family engagement activities—activities like our school’s much anticipated Summer Carnival. The carnival, which takes place in June, after the start of our Summer Program, is a fantastic opportunity to celebrate the students’ hard work and for staff, students, and family to simply have fun.
This year, thanks Ms. Keba (a parent of twins who attend MLK and our school’s PAC President) and Ms. Lindsay (our Family Engagement Specialist), our Summer Carnival was a tremendous success! It included 25 stations—with activities as varied as a photo booth, ring toss, hopscotch, and face painting—and loads of fun prizes for all students. There were even pinatas! Our school has always benefited from community volunteerism, and we are so thankful to the students of South Side High School and the MLK parents who volunteered at our carnival to make the event run smoothly.
Ms. Keba told us that seeing the excitement on the students’ faces as they moved from station to station was well worth the hard work that went into planning the carnival. In fact, Ms. Keba is so passionate about her work with the PAC and about MLK Montessori in general that—even though her sons will be moving on to their next school this fall—she is going to stick around to help train the next PAC President and also help find ways to involve even more parents in the group. Ms. Keba told us, “It’s so inspiring to be able to pass on what I’ve learned to someone else.” We are very grateful to Ms. Keba for her service and dedication and are already looking forward to all of the exciting events that the PAC will help to organize next year, including the ever-popular Summer Carnival!
