Parents encouraged to get involved in children's education

Family and school stories are what the education process should be all about.

That was some of the advice given Saturday during an education conference for teachers, parents and students focusing on how to successfully educate students — specifically ethnic minorities.

Theresa Martinez, assistant vice president for Academic Outreach at the University of Utah, was the keynote speaker for the several hundred who attended the event at West High School.

"In the end, nothing is as important as family," Martinez said.

To illustrate the importance of family stories, Martinez shared one of her own. Growing up in Albuquerque, she was the youngest of 12 children being raised by a single mother. The family eventually was able to move out of poverty, she said, and many of the children received an advanced education.

"My mom saw us through real poverty and racism," Martinez said. "I learned that people could hate you just from the culture you are in."

Despite that, Martinez said her mother taught her to "go with the things you love," and that you need an education to better help others. She loved reading, and that led to a career in sociology.

Her story, Martinez insisted, is not just another "pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps" tale. "My teaching is a direct response to my family," she said.

Because Martinez is involved with others, her students get involved, too, she said.

"Service is very important to students," Martinez said, adding that it becomes more meaningful than the letter grade they receive in her class. She also focuses on American minorities in her classes.

Christine Kearl, the governor's deputy for education, encouraged parents to become familiar with their children's schools and to have high expectations for their education.

"Your child will pay attention to what you pay attention to," Kearl said.

The key to success, she said, is education and determination.

"You don't have to be brilliant to get a bachelor's degree," Kearl told students. "You just have to want it."

Jesse M. Soriano, director of Utah's Office of Ethnic Affairs, also stressed that students do much better in school when their parents get involved.

Palmer DePaulis, executive director for the state Department of Community and Culture and former mayor of Salt Lake City, said educators need sensitivity.

"Education is the backbone of everything we do for our community," DePaulis said.

The conference included workshops taught in both English and Spanish. The event was sponsored by the Utah Office of Ethnic Affairs, Weber State University, Utah State Office of Education, and the Davis, Granite and Salt Lake City school districts.

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E-mail: lynn@desnews.com