Our Mission: Project Appleseed is a major educational resource and advocate for parents and families engaged in the pursuit of life, liberty and happiness in America’s public schools. This organization is a catalyst in the implementation of effective, research based, model parent and community involvement programs that increase social capital, improves the lives of families and revitalizes schools and communities across the United States.
Our Three Purposes: To positively impact public education, we promote quality improvement in learning, wellness, and school facilities to aid educators in meeting the needs of the whole child through three purposes:
1. Increasing student achievement by mobilizing parent, family and community volunteers inside and outside schools.
2. Strengthening fitness & nutrition by supporting family participation in physical activities and healthy eating.
3. Enhancing the learning environment by utilizing alumni and community giving – as universities do - to finance the rebuilding public schools as green buildings.
1. Increasing student achievement by mobilizing parent, family and community volunteers inside and outside schools.
The core of Project Appleseed's national award winning work to promote parent involvement is our learning compact called the Parental Involvement Pledge. Based on the words of President Woodrow Wilson, the Parental Involvement Pledge is the most widely distributed compact in the United States. By signing the Pledge, parents agree to "take personal responsibility" for their children's education by promising to help their children with homework fifteen minutes each school night and to volunteer at their local school at least five hours each semester. Project Appleseed recruits and organizes parent help and support in local schools and school districts by providing schools with Project Appleseed's Parental Involvement Toolbox through this web site. Schools and organizations can order a complete plan, the Parental Involvement Toolbox, for mobilizing parents to volunteer in schools. Included in the toolbox is the Parental Involvement Pledge, Parental Involvement Report Card, a ten-step recruitment plan, parent organizing software and more!
Primary Program Activity - www.projectappleseed.org
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2. Strengthening fitness & nutrition by supporting family participation in physical activities and healthy eating.
Join parents, grandparents & caring adults who have pledged to support their children's participation in physical activities and healthy eating, to be active role models, and to include healthy eating and physical activity in family events. Take the Fitness & Nutrition Parental Involvement Pledge! In the fight against childhood obesity, parental involvement has received a good deal of attention because of its potential to influence a large number of school-aged children and their families. A new federal mandate went into affect in 2007 that requires school districts throughout the United States to reach out to parents and implement local wellness policies to improve the eating and physical habits of students. This mandate represents a unique way in which parents can work closely with local school administrators, parents, students, staff, fitness & allied health professionals to create and implement wellness policies in schools.
Primary Program Activity - www.projectappleseed.org/fitnessnutrition.html
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3. Enhancing the learning environment by utilizing alumni and community giving – as universities do - to finance the rebuilding public schools as green buildings.
Primary Program Activity - www.projectappleseed.org/capitalcampaign.html
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Project Appleseed's leadership is among the Top 10 in American education. Our organization was one of the first nonprofits in America to utilize the Internet to build social capital. We engage parent leaders and educators to participate in the improvement of our public schools. Project Appleseed educates parents on how to take advantage of the uniquely democratic nature of America's public schools.
"Cyberspace has tied America's parents together in a way that is transforming our 18-month-old grassroots movement into an effective and potent network for the parent constituency in America."
Kevin Walker, February 17, 1994 Project Appleseed's founder and president The DAILY REPORT CARD The National Update on America's Education GoalsClick here for NPR audio interview with Project Appleseed's president and founder
Top Ten People In American Education during the 1990's. According to the September 1999 issue of Teacher Magazine, "Don't look at the two 'education presidents', the dozen or so 'education governors', or other typical powers that be," say the editors of Teacher Magazine (publishers of Education Week). "To identify the real heroes in education look behind the dominant trends of the '90s--the advance of technology, curriculum wars and teacher quality, for example--to find out who truly shaped education in the decade." Among the hundreds of innovators and activists they identified, only ten were tapped as "the most influential Americans who shaped education in the last decade of the 20th century." Named as one of those exceptional leaders of the 1990's is St. Louis parent and activist Kevin Walker.
Recipient of Parenting Magazine's Parenting Leader Award, March 2000. Parenting's 7th annual awards honoring seven men and women who are working to improve the lives of children, recognized Mr. Walker and his efforts to improve public education in the United States. Mr. Walker shares the award with United States Senator, Barbara Boxer, and tennis great, Andre Agassi.
Recipient of the 2001 Focus St. Louis "What's Right With The Region" award in the category of Creating Quality Educational Opportunities. The Focus St. Louis Award recognizes organizations, individuals, and initiatives that have made a significant impact on St. Louis.
Advised the White House Office for Domestic Policy on the parental involvement provisions of Section 1118 of the reauthorization of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Schools Act (Improving America's Schools Act of 1994). Passed into law by the United States Congress in 1994 - with bipartisan support - and renewed by Congress in 2002 under No Child Left Behind.
Organized over five million parents in 3,500 school districts to become involved in their public schools.
Proposed and passed legislation in Missouri that requires schools to publish school performance data or 'Report Card' annually (Senate Bill 380 passed into law by the Missouri Legislature 1993).
Received the endorsement of the national presidents and executive directors of the National Education Association, National Head Start Association, Parents As Teachers, and National Drop Out Prevention Center.
Successfully raised millions in funds and maintained personal relationships with the chief executive officers of Fortune 500 companies for the purpose of organizing parents to improve their public schools.
Mr. Walker has been quoted and featured in a braod range of local and national media publications and broadcast news shows such as NBC's TODAY Show, CBS Radio, National Public Radio, Education Week, Parenting magazine, Teacher magazine, USA Today, the New York Times, New York Newsday, Atlanta Constitution, Des Monies Register, Kansas City Star, KSDK News Channel Five, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Riverfront Times - among many, many more.
2002 AAAA rating from Education World. "The award-winning Project Appleseed program focuses on parental involvement as a means for improving public schools. It provides parents with the information and resources necessary to become committed to school improvement."
Project Appleseed is the #1 source for 'parental involvement in public schools' in ALL the leading Internet search engines. Click on image!
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520 Melville / St. Louis, Missouri / 63130-4506 / Voice: (615) 686-2195 / Fax: (314) 725-2319 / headquarters@projectappleseed.org
