Superintendent Linda McCulloch Launches Webpage for Montana Parents

State Superintendent Linda McCulloch today launches a new webpage to help
Montana parents with their children’s education.

"Parents are children’s first and most important teacher,° says Linda
McCulloch. "For Montana’s children to be successful students, a strong
school and family partnership is essential. OPI’s new webpage for parents
can help."

OPI’s Parents Page (http://www.opi.state.mt.us/parents) is created to help parents
more easily find information about K-12 public education in Montana.

"The evidence is clear, family involvement in schools matters," emphasizes
McCulloch. "And the OPI Parents webpage helps communicate with parents
about public education in Montana."

"Ten thousand kindergartners began school this year. And that means not
only students began their public education career °V but for many parents
this was their first child entering school, too," notes McCulloch. "It’s an
exciting time, but it may also be a bit confusing. The Parents Page is full
of useful information."

The types of information available to parents on the OPI website are:

* A section to help your child Getting Started in school.

* Many children have Special Needs and parents need to know resources
and
organizations that can help.

* Health and safety is always front and center for parents and
schools.

* No Child Left Behind can often leave parents with more questions
than answers.
This section helps guide parents on the Federal law and Montana
implementation.

* Testing guidelines and tips for students that may calm both parent
and student
fears.

* Reading is fundamental for students to be successful and this
section offers
resources and tips for parents and students to read together.

* The Homework section offers a hotline for that assignment that seems
impossible to do.

* Resources, Resources, Resources°K Not sure who to call at OPI, or
where to
find information about public education? This section summarizes some handy
websites that can help.

* The Career and College section offers links to Montana and national
resources
to help high school students think about their future.

"The purpose of this website is to be responsive to the issues that are
important to parents and their students. If you don’t find what you need,
please let me know," adds McCulloch.