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Massachusetts Governor Pronounces on "Parents Who Don't Get Really Involved with Their Child"

Ohanian Comment: Notice the governor's outrageous words: "those parents who don't get really involved with their child. . ." The governor seems to define such children as the offspring of poor people.

Gov. Mitt Romney is scaling back plans to force moms and dads of preschoolers in low-performing school districts to take parenting classes, saying yesterday only those receiving state-subsidized day care will need the lessons.

Those parents would see their current biannual sit-downs with counselors expand by a half-hour for the parenting how-to.

``I want to get those parents who don't get really involved with their child to get more involved in their education,'' Romney said before an assembly of kids at Lawrence's Arlington School.

The governor's original plan was to pay for full-day kindergarten in 10 percent of the lowest performing school districts, and make that state aid hinge on parents in those cities and towns taking the classes.

He told reporters yesterday he made the switch after realizing most of the big cities that make up the bottom 10 percent already had full-day kindergarten.

The governor's proposal to add $9.7 million in state aid for full-day kindergarten would remain.

The parenting classes would be led by counselors trained in child development for parents of kids up to age 5. The administration could not immediately say how many would qualify for the $1.7 million program but noted that 70 percent of the eligible parents live in the 29 lowest performing districts.

Romney called the move an early step designed to teach parents things like the ``importance of education in our society,'' the need to read to young kids and the importance of homework.

Romney called a $1 billion plan supported by House Speaker Thomas Finneran to offer universal pre-school was something worth looking into, but said, ``I don't want to wait until we have a billion dollars to start having an effect on those kids.''

Romney also wants to set aside $2 million for grants in local school districts to encourage parental involvement. The governor is rolling out details of his education plan this week, with Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey to speak today in Revere about discipline.




— Kevin Rothstein
Parent classes cut back as gov learns kindergarten lesson
Boston Herald
2004-01-22
http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/localRegional.bg?articleid=1397

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