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| Murv Enders, Board Chairman, Christel House Academy |
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October 2009
How business can improve education in Indianapolis
By Murv Enders, Board Chairman, Christel House Academy
By now, we all have heard the doom and gloom. Students aren’t graduating, teachers aren’t challenging students, parents aren’t holding children accountable and administrations chase the dollar. Now for the good news –we can fix it.
Business is not the problem, but it’s directly affected. If we don’t become more proactive, before long, if nothing changes, we could have the most uneducated, unemployable, and “un-everything” population in the country. This certainly won’t be the best candidate pool for successful business ventures. As people and as business leaders, we can improve education in our state – and we must. Here are some things we can all do:
Get involved at home – if you’re not already engaged in your child’s education, do so. Don’t just do the minimum parent-teacher conferences and report card check. Take them to school, observe their classes and talk to their friends. Show genuine interest in what your child is telling you – listen and then listen some more. Let them teach you something (even if it’s on Facebook). Engage in their learning, no matter the subject, and they will follow suit.
Get involved at school – go to PTA or school board meetings, join an Ad-Hoc committee. Volunteer to coach, supervise a field-trip, judge a talent show or Homecoming float. Help decorate for Prom, provide tools for a clean-up project, etc. Show you care about the school and your child’s experience – your child will see it, teachers and administrators will appreciate it, and you’ll be enlightened to what it takes to holistically educate a child.
Volunteer – even if you don’t have kids. Be a mentor for a child, coach a team, be a den mother or scout master. There are countless ways to get involved and rarely is actually having a child in a program a prerequisite.
Enable your employees to get involved – Allow flexible schedules so they can attend school events. Encourage them to engage with their kids and give them the freedom and tools to do so. Use your network and connect them to boards of schools or educational organizations that support the work of schools, provide mentors or other services to kids.
Take on interns – many schools will allow older students flexible schedules and busy students are forced to learn time management and often do better as a result. Provide meaningful roles where students quickly learn the value of their education.
Donate – Sponsor programs and organizations. Banks can fund and run financial literacy workshops or investment clubs. Real estate, law firms and just about any field can do the same. Smart philanthropic partnerships can make a big difference, add energy, get kids excited about something at school, provide extra-curricular activities, provide positive PR and more. Make supporting education a business goal. After all, you’re protecting and helping to develop your future labor force.
We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We have the power, the resources and the knowledge. Let’s get started.
Murv Enders is Board Chairman of the Christel House Academy, an award-winning charter school serving a high poverty population that has benefited from much of this thinking. He’s also a father of three and lives in Indianapolis.
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