HOUSTON
– Spring ISD is looking for volunteers to help knock on doors in the
neighborhoods surrounding Dekaney, Spring and Westfield high schools
during the annual Reach Out to Dropouts Walk from 7:30 a.m. to noon
Saturday, Sept. 11.
“It
is a very simple, efficient program where volunteers, community leaders
and school personnel personally knock on the doors of students who have
not returned to school in the fall in an effort to change their minds,”
said Ruthie Foreman, Spring ISD area superintendent.
Volunteers
who have passed a school background check will meet at the three
campuses for a 30-minute training at 7:30 a.m. the morning of the walk.
Participants equipped with handouts, door hangers and a map of the
students’ residences will canvass the neighborhoods while others make
phone calls to students. A $1,000 Expectation Graduation grant from the
Mayor of Houston’s office will be used to purchase T-shirts that will
identify the volunteers.
“We
want these young people to know there are people who care about them
and it is not too late to come back to school. We understand there are
circumstances that may have caused them to not return, but there are
people who want to help them and alternative educational opportunities
as well,” Foreman said.
Foreman
said Westfield successfully piloted the program last year, and the
district is hoping for even greater success this year with support from
the community. To volunteer or for more information, call the
principals at Dekaney, Spring or Westfield high schools or contact
Foreman at 281-891-6033.
