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Parent councils that are meant to serve as watchdogs over public school districts continue to be so understaffed that the Manhattan borough president is recruiting volunteers online.

A member of Scott Stringer’s staff contacted GothamSchools today to ask for help finding volunteers to fill two slots on Manhattan Community Education Councils. Those councils were created in 2002 by the same state law that gave control of the city’s schools to the mayor, to ensure a forum for parent input in the new governance structure. The law gives CECs oversight of districts’ academic and financial performance, zoning, and education and capital plans.

Finding volunteers could be difficult. In 2007, Stringer himself released a report, titled “Parents Dismissed” (pdf), that cataloged council members’ dissatisfaction with the level of training and support offered by the Department of Education. A survey conducted by his office found that 71 percent of council members had seen a colleague resign during the school year out of frustration.

That frustration has persisted through changes in the DOE’s parent outreach initiatives: Right now, 26 of the city’s 34 councils currently have vacancies, according to the DOE’s press office. Altogether, there are currently 66 openings for parents who want to get involved. Thirteen of those vacancies must be filled by borough presidents, and the Public Advocate has another slot to fill. (Borough presidents are actually permitted to appoint people who are not public school parents, the only way non-parents can join the councils.)

Interested in joining a CEC? Contact your district’s council for information. Below the jump, information from Stringer’s office on how to apply for the Manhattan spots. (more…)