Most people are by now aware of No Child Left Behind but America is also leaving no parent behind with, "Project Appleseed."

The national campaign is for public school improvement and involves National Parental Involvement Day which was started in 1994 and provides parents with the opportunity to volunteer their time and efforts to their local public schools.

Five million parents in 3500 school districts are currently involved in this nation-wide effort that is celebrating its 12th year on November 17.

Parents and caregivers sign the Parental Involvement Pledge which represents the dedication and commitment to be involved in a child's education. The pledge is the most widely distributed learning compact in the United States and is observed coast-to-coast.

The Parental Involvement Pledge contains information relating to the adults commitment to the school and the community's children, helping them to "achieve a truly independent future." It states that the adult declares a responsibility and commitment toward his or her public schools and describes five self-evident truths as spoken by President Woodrow Wilson which include, as Americans we are the owners of the public school system, as owners we bear a responsibility to participate in the system, accountability for our schools, their safety, employees and funding rests with us, our children's future depends on the improvement of the public schools, and this improvement depends on our participation.

By signing the pledge, the adult takes personal responsibility for their child's safety and education and of the children within their community. They also pledge to volunteer a minimum of five hours of personal time to the public school system each semester and to spend a minimum of fifteen minutes each school night reading with their child or working together on homework and enrichment activities.

Project Appleseed is working with schools, families, employers and community organizations to develop local partnerships that support a safe school environment where students learn to challenge standards. The organization feels that to get the best results from parental involvement efforts, schools like those in Dunklin County and surrounding areas should join the nation-wide movement to "plant the seeds of school improvement in their local schools."

"Our school has always had excellent parental involvement and most recently we have added our ABC Pals group and LIFE meetings which involve parents and our students in promoting education," said Masterson Elementary principal Laurie McAtee.

McAtee said that they have yet to get directly involved with Project Appleseed's Parental Involvement Pledge but that they do recognize National Parental Involvement Day and they will be holding the kindergarten LIFE meeting at the Methodist Church Life Center on Thursday.

The events will bring parents, students, and faculty together for reading games, food, songs, and much more increasing each child's educational potential.

According to Project Appleseed, "When parents are involved in children's learning, at school and at home, schools work better and students learn more."