What is Advocacy?
As the new Jeffco PTA Legislative/Advocacy Chair, I’m excited about the opportunity to make a difference for our Jeffco PTA, its members, and Jeffco kids and families.
While I was preparing this post (and looking for just the right inspiration), I decided to Google the word Advocacy. What popped up was a variety of definitions and sources that provide definitions, synonyms, and how to use the word. But there was this very interesting link to an organization based in the UK (SEAP.org – Support, Empower, Advocate, Promote) that advocates for veterans, people seeking help for various human services, etc., and I believe they framed it perfectly:
“Advocacy in all its forms seeks to ensure that people, particularly those who are most vulnerable in society, are able to:
- Have their voice heard on issues that are important to them
- Defend and safeguard their rights
- Have their views and wishes genuinely considered when decisions are being made about their lives.”
“Advocacy is a process of supporting and enabling people to:
- Express their views and concerns
- Access information and services
- Defend and promote their rights and responsibilities
- Explore choices and options”
As PTA, when we “Advocate”, we do any number of these exact things. Sometimes we do all of them, and sometimes just one or two. The point is,
We are Advocates – when we
- Recruit parents and community volunteers for events at our school
- Collaborate with our principal and staff to provide safe “Hug and Go” zones
- Lobby for healthy options in the cafeteria, or longer lunch times
- Promote an anti-bullying program in school
- Promote PTA’s Reflections program so we can highlight our students, and the district’s incredible art teachers and programs
- Lobby for later school start times
- Work to get the school a safer playground or updated equipment
- Lobby for more mental health professionals in our school buildings
It’s what we do as parents (& teachers) every day.
Unfortunately, all too often PTAs get mischaracterized as being political because, to accomplish many of these things listed above, it means we have to work to change something at the school district level; or the city, county, state or federal level. But, we aren’t being political, we are being Advocates!
If having a safer intersection where our school is located requires asking the city or county to do a study, and/or add a traffic light, we aren’t being political. We are advocating for the safety of our child and all of the children attending our school, as well as staff and parents who may be helping with crossguard duty. We don’t see this as being political. We are being Advocates.
Sometimes the changes we seek on behalf of our children requires more than addressing our school board, or city or county council meetings. Sometimes it means we have to go to the state legislature and request a change in a state law or statute. When we do this, we aren’t being political, we are being Advocates.
And sometimes, we find the state has no control over an issue, but instead it’s something determined at the federal level, which means we have to phone or email our representatives at the federal level. When we send out those emails or make those phone calls, we aren’t being political, we are being Advocates.
A true Advocate comes in many shapes, sizes, color, religious and ethnic background; because the best Advocates for our children are their parents. As parents, we know the back story. We’ve lived the problem with our child. And besides our child, we have the most at stake, and we have the greatest credibility.
I hope you will join me in being a strong advocate for your child and for all of our children. It’s what PTA does.
You can contact Legislative Chair at advocacy@jeffcopta.org.