School district seeks to educate fathers

The amount of money Arcelio Perez makes is not enough to allow him to take days off from work to spend extra time with his children. His job as a construction worker helps provide for him and his family. But the 33-year-old Perez is not alone. There are other working fathers who don't get involved in their children's education as often as they want, which is why officials at Esther Walter Elementary School want to change that. "We know that many fathers work hard and have physically demanding jobs," said Principal Susan Smith. "But we want to find ways to make them feel connected to the school." Waleska Hernandez, PTA president, along with Racheal Davis, a Magnolia School District counselor, coordinated their first Fathers Night last Tuesday, to reach out to dads and help them get involved in their children's education. The event included speakers Matthew Morrison, a fifth-sixth grade combination teacher, Deputy David Rios from the Orange County Sheriffs Department, and Ralph Figueroa, a community service specialist from Project SAY, who touched on topics from financial help for college to community services available to them. Hernandez and Davis, who both want to see more father involvement, spearheaded the idea and decided to focus only on dads. " I just noticed how it was mostly the women who would attend parent meetings or conferences," Hernandez said. "Even when I would make phone calls to homes and the fathers answered the phone, they would still say, 'hold on speak to my wife," she said. Davis said she wanted to give fathers general information. Davis, who has worked as a district counselor for two years, said children have approached her with various problems, including issues on domestic violence, incarcerated parents and substance abuse at home. "We want the fathers to know that what they do at home affects their children," Davis said, which is why the night included other topics. During the session, Figuero a told the men to watch their alcohol intake around the children. "Sometimes you even involve your children in alcohol," he said. "You tell them go fetch me a beer without realizing the culture you're creating around you." For the coordinators of the event, the night was a success even if only 30 fathers showed up. At the end of the session, fathers were polled to see what they thought about the event. Perez, Juan Manuel Figueroa and Octavio Gamez said the evening was great. "I really liked the information that the sheriff gave us about the city, the financial aid available to children," Juan Manuel said. "I learned a lot and I'm grateful that they did this for us," Perez said. If the fathers gave a positive review, the coordinators will hold more informational sessions.