The Parent Leadership Institute (PLI) builds the capacity of parents to improve their local public schools and school districts for the benefit of all children. The Institute begins with six days of rigorous training that build skills from basic to advanced and strives to improve the competency and confidence of parents to identify and take action on a specific data-driven academic project. The PLI requires a minimum two-year school improvement project for each participant. The PLI training sessions help parents through the process of project development, which includes identifying school needs based on data and designing and implementing a sustainable project that involves other parents.

The Jackson chapter of PPS conducted the first Mississippi PLI in 2004. Since then, over 300 parents have become certified parent leaders and have completed a variety of school improvement projects. For more information on the work of the Jackson Chapter of PPS, visit their website at LINK.

Schoolhouse to Statehouse is expanding the PLI network across Mississippi. 2011 institutes are:

Delta: Cleveland; Dates coming soon

East Central MS: Meridian; February 3-4; March 2-3; April 13-14, 2012

NE Mississippi: Tupelo; Dates coming soon

Pine Belt: Hattiesburg; Dates coming soon

Gulf Coast MS: Pascagoula; September 23-24; October 28-29; December 2-3, 2011