A Circle of
Susan Zimmerman-Orozco
© Jim DanDy/theiSpot
Barely 20 minutes into the first Hispanic parent meeting of the new school year, principal Nora Dietz blinks away tears as she listens to
Ana Paniagua, the mother of a new
kindergarten student. Mrs. Paniagua’s
voice breaks as she relates the physical
and emotional toll of leaving her life
in El Salvador, the anguished goodbyes between her little boy Daniel and
his beloved grandparents, and the
wrenching uncertainty of ever seeing
them all together again. It was a sacrifice, she admits, as many in the group
nod empathetically, but one that she
and her husband felt obligated to make
to ensure that Daniel would grow up
to be happy, with a good job so that
he could be a source of support to his
family and his community.
When Mrs. Paniagua sits down,
Mrs. Dietz acknowledges, through an
interpreter, that her story is the story of
mothers everywhere.
I raised six children of my own, and I
know how it is to have dreams and hopes
for your children. That’s why I thank you
for coming to this meeting. So that you
can tell me your dreams. . . . so that you
can tell me how your school can help
make those dreams come true.
At Captain James E. Daly Elementary
School in Germantown, Maryland,
where I serve as assistant principal,
meetings like this one let our parents
know that we are approachable and
accessible in spite of language and
cultural barriers. There is no dearth
of research documenting how such
conversations build strong relation-
ships between parents and schools that
lead to improved school readiness,
higher student achievement, and
better social skills and behavior. 1 But
for us, reaching out to our Hispanic
population is more than a matter
of research-based practice; it’s an
expression of our core belief in Daly as
a school of and for the community.
