ROSSVILLE – Cathy Forrester wants to unite Ridgeland High School alumni, parents and the community in the common goals of supporting students and improving the school.
Forrester, a parent of students at Ridgeland since 1991 and the school’s new parent involvement specialist, said the school can prosper from the support of a developing Parent Teacher Organization.
“I’m trying to divide and conquer in small group meetings,” she said.
IF YOU GO The first meeting of “Panther Parents on the Move” is Monday in the Ridgeland High School Theater at 7 p.m. for members of the Ridgeland High, Rossville Middle and Chattanooga Valley Middle schools’ volleyball and softball teams, their parents and coaches. Anyone can attend. To find out more, call the school at 706-820-9063, ext. 1151.
Forrester wants to start out with parents of students involved in school-linked activities and organizations and build on those contacts. Usually, parents of students in clubs, band or athletics already are involved with the school, and joining the PTO is a logical next step, she said.
She also wants to reach out to Ridgeland feeder schools – Rossville and Chattanooga Valley middle schools – to tap future Ridgeland parents and students.
The second round of efforts is an active alumni association, Forrester said. Twenty-one years’ worth of graduating classes could create an enormous foundation of support, she said.
Ridgeland was formed by combining Rossville High and Chattanooga Valley High, both schools with long, proud traditions, said Forrester, a Chattanooga Valley graduate and Flintstone, Ga., native.
But Ridgeland never has seemed to gain the same level of support without an active PTO and community involvement, she said.
Principal Robert Smith said Forrester’s efforts will fill a void at the school.
“All good schools have a lot of parent involvement, and we’ve kind of been lacking that,” Smith said.
He said “Project Synergy” – a program launched last year that combines education, community and government goals into a project that fits into the school curriculum – helped “make some in-roads” with the community, but Forrester’s long involvement with the school and in the community should connect more with supporters.
“I think her background will go a long way toward forging some trust out there in the community to try to build the support we so desperately need,” he said.
Forrester’s post is part of funded initiatives stemming from a grant to the school last year that also funds a coach to train teachers in new technology and a dropout prevention coach, officials said.
Contact Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/BenBenton.