Children whose parents are involved in their formal education, among other things, have better grades, test scores, and long-term academic achievement than those with disinterested mothers and fathers. Tutoring is probably the best way for parents to participate in public education, but parental attitudes and expectations toward academic achievement can be as important as explicit teaching activities. The term "at-risk" is not synonymous with minority student, student in poverty, or student in single parent or restructured household; however, some family characteristics do inhibit academic achievement. The design of a program that allows parents to interact with school professionals as colleagues or peers would be a positive way to foster parental involvement in education. Further, to stimulate parental participation, administrators can hire staff sympathetic to parent involvement, alert parents to home education's advantages, and use signed parent/teacher education contracts. (10 references) (KM)