Why We Must Work Together to Reimagine Education
Education is not just what happens in the classroom, it’s a community effort. Yet teachers, families, and students each face barriers that make it difficult to reach our shared goal: helping every child thrive.
Teachers Face:
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Overwhelming workloads and limited resources that leave little time for creativity or relationship-building.
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Burnout from constantly having to balance academic expectations, behavioral challenges, and social-emotional needs.
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Systemic pressures such as standardized testing and rigid policies that often conflict with what they know their students truly need.
Families Face:
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Barriers to access, including language differences, work schedules, transportation, and limited childcare.
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A lack of trust or belonging within schools, where families sometimes feel unheard or dismissed.
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Complex systems that are hard to navigate, leaving parents unsure how to best support their children.
Students Face:
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Academic inequities, with many not reading or performing at grade level.
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Behavioral and social pressures, including bullying, vaping, and increased conflict on school grounds.
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Mental health struggles, including anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation, often compounded by a lack of supportive resources.
The Path Forward
Reimagining education requires all of us (educators, families, and students) to come together as partners. By listening to one another, sharing responsibility, and designing practices that value every voice, we can build a system that nurtures the whole child and strengthens the entire community.
Together, we can transform schools into spaces where everyone feels seen, supported, and empowered to succeed.
Mission
CPLAN is a parent- led advocacy organization that seeks to inform, inspire, & empower parents to advocate for a more equitable education for their children.
Vision
Our vision is for all students to have access to a high quality education that prepares them for college, career, and civic life.
Core Beliefs
Relationships
Build Power
Trust & collaboration between families, educators, and communities are the foundation for lasting change in schools.
We create space for honest dialogue through community forums, school site councils, and partnerships built on trust;
Not tokenism.
Wellness Is Essential for Learning
Emotional safety and belonging are foundational for academic success.
Learn how we support wellness in schools→
Our Reshaping Community Wellness Initiative helps families and schools understand how healing, emotional intelligence, and mental health shape learning and school climate.
Parents Are
Leaders
Parents bring expertise, lived experience, and leadership to education. It is essential that they co-lead with schools to build a learning environment that fosters a sense of identity, safety, and belonging with purpose and direction.
We support parents with multilingual workshops, coaching, and leadership opportunities so they can step into decision-making spaces with confidence.
Decision-Making Should Be Shared
Family and community voice should guide school policies, ensuring they shape the systems their children depend on.
We support families to lead and participate in School Site Councils, advisory boards, and hiring committees, ensuring decisions are made with, not for, the community.
Our History
2016
The Collaborative Parent Leadership Advocacy Network (CPLAN) is a nonprofit organization and statewide coalition committed to empowering parent leaders in education across Massachusetts. Grounded in principles of educational equity and mental health awareness, we endeavor to cultivate an inclusive, informed, and collaborative educational environment that uplifts students, families, and the broader school community.
Formed in 2016 by Julia Mejia and a dedicated group of parents, CPLAN empowers families to work as partners with schools in achieving equitable access to high-quality education for all students.
Since then, CPLAN has grown into a statewide coalition of over 1,000 dedicated stakeholders in education, including: parents, educators, school leadership, and policymakers.
