Let graduation season begin!

Congratulations to all who received their diplomas today at the FAVOR Parent Leadership Training Statewide Dual Capacity Training Graduation. The event, held at the Pond House Café in West Hartford, included food, music (courtesy of Lara Herscovitch), and lots of smiles.

PLTI grad wins funds for her school

PLTI graduate Regan Allan recently entered her children's school, the Julia A. Stark Elementary School in Stamford, in the Build a Bright Future promotion run by Saputo Cheese USA. She just received word that Stark is one of seven schools receiving a $1,000 prize, making it automatically eligible for a top prize of $10,000.

To participate, Regan had to submit an essay describing how Stark Elementary would use the $10,000 prize to "build a bright future." Regan’s idea is to enlist parents, teachers, student council members, and the schools' Girl Scout troops in preparing backpacks full of food that needy students can bring home to their families for the weekend. She noted that 62 percent of Stark students receive free or reduced-price meals at school. You can read Regan’s essay here. Since the $10,000 is awarded to the top online vote-getter, you may also cast a vote there. You may vote once a day until October 31.

Bloomfield PLTI grad's op-ed article published

Monica Stellmacher, a 2015 graduate of  Bloomfield PLTI, has written an op-ed article for CT News Junkie that takes note of recent layoff notices in state government and offers some advice for everyone on how to conduct a job hunt. Monica has some expertise on this subject, since her community project for PLTI was the creation of the a support group called K.U.D.O.S. Cafe, short for Keeping the Unemployed Determined Optimistic and Sane.

PLTI and Parent SEE statewide graduation ceremonies

Go to the Commission on Children website for multi-media coverage of the 2015 statewide PLTI and Parent SEE graduation ceremonies, held June 17 at the Legislative Office Building in Hartford. You'll find:

• complete video of the event, courtesy of the Connecticut Network (CT-N);
• more than 50 photos;
• the graduation program;
• a press release;
• news media coverage;
• and more.

See other posts in this blog for photos from the local graduation ceremonies.

Congrats to all the new parent leaders!

Isabella Pinto sang the National Anthem at the start of the evening.

A rockin' tribute to West Hartford PLTI

West Hartford's PLTI Class of 2015 got a wonderful gift from classmate Aariyan Googe in the form of a photo montage set to the Simple Minds song "Don't You (Forget About Me.)" Now you can enjoy it too:

Celebration time for Bridgeport PLTI, TLI classes

The parent leaders of the Bridgeport PLTI Class of 2015 received their diplomas Tuesday night, as did the young leaders in this year's class of the Teen Leadership Institute.

With People's United Bank graciously providing the setting, the newly minted graduates celebrated with their families, facilitators, and classmates. Mayor Bill Finch marked the occasion by proclaiming Tuesday "Bridgeport Parent and Teen Leadership Day."

Feds want your input on child support services

The federal Office of Child Support Enforcement has asked a few groups with strong connection to parents--including PLTI--to seek feedback on its current child support program. The Office is very interested to learn how well the program performs and where it can be improved.

You're invited to take five minutes to fill out the survey, in English or in Spanish. Your comments and ideas will be summarized and offered to the federal government for improvements in law. The survey is anonymous but still ensures that your opinions are heard.