Parent Center Opens at Hollenbeck School

Dozens of students and parents turned out Wednesday to celebrate the opening of a permanent parent center at Hollenbeck Middle School, one of 30 new centers that have opened in Los Angeles schools the last year.

After at least a year of planning, the school transformed an abandoned metal shop classroom into a carpeted center that will house classes for parents in English, child discipline and college preparation, as well as provide information about health care and how to prepare students for standardized tests.

Parents will also use the room to coordinate an aggressive attendance recovery program.

“My belief is that the school is a community,” said James Person, a counselor at the school who coordinates the parent program. “We need to open it to parents so they take more stake in school itself. The more parents we get, the more volunteers we have.”

District Supt. Ruben Zacarias, who attended Wednesday’s opening, applauded the center as a way to keep parents connected to their children’s education.