​MISSION STATEMENT:

Deerfield Parent Network provides programs that:

•  SHARE resources, experiences and ideas of professionals

•  EDUCATE parents on strategies and tools for effective parenting
•  EMPOWER families, schools & our communities

History of DPN:

Deerfield Parent Network (DPN) was founded in the late 1990s by two local parents who wanted the best for their own children and the children of their community. It was originally an offshoot of National Family Partnership (NFP), an organization with similar goals that provided DPN with financial support.  A strong presence in the community, NFP is best known for its Red Ribbon Week, held each October.  From the beginning, DPN has been an independent, all-volunteer, parent-run organization, maintaining the same mission over the years:  To provide programs that share, educate and empower.

In its early years, DPN had representatives at each of the District 109 schools. As the years went by, it expanded to Deerfield High School and established a strong presence there as many of the original founders at that time had high-school aged children. Over time, DPN’s presence in District 109 schools diminished somewhat, but, starting around 2010, DPN broadened its outreach efforts to the elementary and middle schools with its programming and active board recruitment of District 109 parents. Today this outreach campaign extends beyond District 109 to include all K-8 schools that feed into District 113.

DPN receives widespread support from District 113, all District 109 PTOs as well as the parent organizations from Holy Cross School, Bannockburn School and Solomon Schechter Day School.  Representatives from each of the K-8 schools attend board meetings and serve as liaisons between their respective PTOs and DPN.  DPN has its own bylaws, conducts monthly meetings and offers community-wide as well as single-issue programming. DPN operates independently of the schools and their PTOs and has its own website:  deerfieldparentnetwork.org.

In 2008, DPN obtained a 501(c)3 status, which allows it to solicit corporate and community sponsors to help fund DPN programs. That same year, DPN introduced the popular prom “After Party,” an annual event that provides a fun and safe after prom activity for DHS seniors and their dates. Today, many DPN board members are also actively involved in Community. The Anti-Drug (formerly Parents. The Anti-Drug), a community based organization comprised of parents, local government, school officials, clergy and health providers whose mission is to generate conversation and provide accurate information about alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use among youth in our community.

We encourage any parent who resides in the Bannockburn, Deerfield, Highland Park, Riverwoods, Northbrook or Highwood communities to become a supporter of DPN.  There is no fee to attend any of our programs; however, we do rely solely on donations, our only source of income, to fund our guest speakers and valuable programming on a wide array of timely issues, facing all of us as parents.