Parenting magazine has launched its third annual search for one outstanding parent advocate from every state to attend the Mom Congress on Education and Learning conference in Washington, D.C., April 29-May 1.

You can enter at Parenting.com/MomCongress from Jan. 3-Feb. 15.

Have you devoted countless hours of your time at school board meetings, or talking with teachers and other school officials to help make your school as good as it can be? Do you know a mom who has fought tirelessly to protect your school from budget cuts? Or a parent who stood up to school policy when it didn’t make sense for families?

Celebrate the achievements of parents who have made a difference in their schools by nominating them to represent your state at Parenting magazine’s third annual Mom Congress on Education and Learning conference in Washington, D.C. Parenting will select one parent from every state and the District of Columbia to attend the conference. Participants will receive round-trip airfare, a two-night hotel stay, and the opportunity to connect with national leaders in education, Parenting editors, and past Mom Congress delegates from across the country to share success stories, challenges, and concerns as they work to improve our nation’s schools.

The theme of the 2012 conference, “Teach Me Something New,” is dedicated to fostering the crucially important relationship between parents and their children’s teachers. Last year, delegates had the opportunity to hear from speakers including U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, celebrity chef and school nutrition advocate Jamie Oliver, and leaders from over 40 prominent education and children’s advocacy organizations including Save the Children, First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! campaign, StudentsFirst.org, Reach Out and Read, National PTA, National Education Association, National Head Start Association, PBS, Jumpstart, and NBC Learn.

Empowered and inspired by attending the conference, past Mom Congress delegates have returned to their states to create significant change in their school systems, affecting the lives of thousands of children nationwide. In 2010, delegates worked with Parenting editors at the conference to create the “Lesson Plan for Change”, a blueprint to empower parents to get more involved in their children’s education that appeared in Parenting School Years magazine and the bestselling companion guide to the documentary "Waiting for Superman."  

The 2011 class of Mom Congress delegates’ accomplishments include the creation of a nationwide book drive in support of early literacy, Books Make it Better; recognition through The White House “Champions of Change” program; the improvement of several school lunch programs across the country; and the development of new educational resources and programs in nearly every state, from early science education workshops in Florida to a new parental advocacy program, Camp Educate, in California. 

Parenting magazine launched the Mom Congress initiative in 2009 to celebrate and connect parents working to improve our nation’s schools. Each month, Parenting and Parenting.com give readers and the 25,000+ Mom Congress members updated educational news and resources to help them make a difference and bring about positive changes for students.

Meet the 2011 Mom Congress delegates: http://www.parenting.com/blogs/mom-congress/kathryn-young-thompson/meet-2011-mom-congress-delegates

Meet the 2010 Mom Congress delegates: http://www.parenting.com/gallery/Mom/Meet-the-51-Mom-Congress-Delegates

Meet the Mom Congress Advisory Board: http://www.parenting.com/mom-congress-advisory-board-members

Visit Mom Congress on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/MomCongress.