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Mostly Cloudy Creating a new civic voice
Five Towns Hispanic Association aims to educate and be involved
With the mission of creating an involved constituency and informing Spanish-speaking parents about a range of topics, the revitalized Five Towns Hispanic Association has begun to add its voice to a growing number of discussions in the Lawrence School District.
On its Facebook page, the civic group is calling for residents to stand up for the community and its schools and support their teachers: “Speak up and address our issues.”
“The group existed before, but it was left up in the air, and we need to get it going,” said Saul Cisneros, 37, an Inwood resident who has three children in the district. “We need to get information from the school district to our community so they are informed.”
Meeting once a month in the Inwood Senior Center section of the Five Towns Community Center in Lawrence, the organization conducts much of the meeting in Spanish to make sure its leaders are communicating effectively with the parents from Cedarhurst, Inwood and Lawrence who attend. The group also created an informational pamphlet, mostly in Spanish, that includes a list of school district phone numbers.
“In the U.S., it’s important to be involved and know about school events,” said Jose Serrano, 42, a Lawrence resident and father of four. Three of his children attend Lawrence schools; the youngest is in day care. “We want to tell them about how to join the PTA. Many parents don’t have a lot of time. They work and are tired. We’re telling them that this is important.”
Serrano, a wedding photographer who has his own business in Garden City, understands the importance of education. When he attended Lawrence High School more than 20 years ago, he and fellow Spanish-speaking students had a teacher, Gladys Singer, who taught them English. To those students, Singer was much more than a teacher.
“She made a major difference for everyone, and not just teaching English,” Serrano said. “She helped get students jobs and helped if they had a problem understanding a contract with a [fitness] gym. She was willing to help anyone.”
Serrano credits Singer for inspiring him to succeed, and that is one reason why the association is vocally supporting the Lawrence Teachers Association, which has not had a new contract in five years. “We need experienced teachers,” Cisneros said. “They make a difference. We can’t have new teachers coming in the middle of the school year. Students get used to the teachers.”
Monday’s meeting, which lasted about 90 minutes, covered several topics, including members’ efforts to join the PTA, school uniforms, charter schools, the courses that are available to high school students and having a translator at Board of Education meetings.
Inwood resident Rose Palma said that the group is advocating for improvements for the children and the district. “We want to be more involved and support the teachers,” said Palma, a mother of two middle school students. “I want to try to join the PTA.”
In order for their children to succeed, access to the system is vital, Cisneros said. “We have to stay on top of our kids for their future to be bright,” he said.
The next Five Towns Hispanic Association meeting is scheduled for Monday, July 11, at 6:30 p.m., at the Five Towns Community Center, at 270 Lawrence Ave. in Lawrence. The next Lawrence Board of Education meeting is July 5, at 8 p.m., at Lawrence Middle School, at 195 Broadway.
What concerns you about your community and school district? Send your letter to the editor to jbessen@liherald.com.
