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Parent Portal connects parents with schools
by Toni Randolph, Minnesota Public Radio
December 8, 2003

Teacher Julie Woodman trains David Niles on the Parent Portal while she talks to his daughter, Alicia, who's in 7th-grade at the Capitol Hill Magnet School. (MPR Photo/Toni Randolph)

Parents in St.Paul can go online to see what's happening in their kids' classroom. The district has unveiled the Parent Portal to give parents new insight to their child's school day.

St. Paul, Minn. — At the Capitol Hill Magnet School it's conference night and parents are meeting with their children's teachers. But they're also getting a lesson themselves. Teacher Julie Woodman is training them to use the Parent Portal.

	Kimberly Viegel and her son Kyle.

"You have the capability of looking at everything from lunch money, discipline. When I first attended training, they told us what it would do is open up the door to school so you can see what's going on without being here. That's pretty much what it does," she said.

Woodman says parents can also see their child's schedule, grades, attendance and homework assignments. She says it's not meant to replace conferences and monthly progress reports, but to give parents another tool to keep up with their kid's schoolwork.

"But this is a way for those people who want to check in all the time. And for those who don't have that access, we can make phone calls. But it's a way of giving us more time to deal with the people who don't have the access," she said.

David Niles and his wife, Laurie, watched the demonstration of the Parent Portal at Capitol Hill. Niles says the portal will help the couple keep up with their 7th-grader's school work as the family balances its busy schedule.

"For us it will probably be a lot nicer to be able to keep track of our kid's homework. If you happen to forget the planner in school, we'll actually be able to pull it up on-line and say this was due two days ago, or it's due tomorrow. Then that's what we need to work," he said.

Parent Deon Hollins, who also has a 7th-grader at Capitol Hill, began using the portal right when it went online last month. She says it's long overdue.

They should have had it years ago. The information is right there. - Parent Deon Hollins

"They should have had it years ago. The information is right there. If you child is tardy, going to class, you know how their grades are instantly. You don't have to wait until conference time. If there's a problem you can catch that stuff right away. Assignments are out there. Even if you're just curious if your child is doing their homework, you know because the assignments are right there for you to view," she said.

Hollins says the Parent Portal has already helped her have better conversations with her children about school. And school officials say that's the point -- to allow parents to enhance their involvement. Parent Kimberly Veigel is hoping for the same experience with her son Kyle. He's an 8th-grader at Battle Creek Middle School and he's been behind on some of his homework assignments. In the past, Veigel says she'd call the school and leave messages for Kyle's teachers to discuss his schoolwork.

"When they had time, they'd call me back. It was kind of inconvenient because it would be days, sometimes, if they'd call at all. Then we'd find out he's six or seven assignments behind. This way we can keep tabs on it stay ahead of it so he's not behind," she said.

Kyle was with his mother when she was trained to use the Parent Portal. Through clenched teeth, with a forced smile, a hint of sarcasm and his mother chuckling in the background, Kyle says the portal will help his mother help him keep up with his studies.

"It's just great. It's just the best thing that ever happened to me. I love it so much," he said.

The portal is in eight middle and senior high schools on a pilot basis this year. It's part of a larger online system called St. Paul Learns which offers a Six-Year Plan for high school students to help them prepare for graduation and the first two years of college. St. Paul Learns is available to all parents and school officials say they plan to have the Parent Portal available to all parents within the next three years. There is some concern among parent leaders that the portal isn't accessible to all parents…for example, those who don't have a computer at home. But school officials say parents can use computers at the public library. And some principals are allowing parents to use a computer at the school.

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