Scarsdale High School PTA

Our first SHS PTA meeting is September 23, 2009 at 7pm in the Little Theatre on the third floor of SHS.  We will have a welcome reception for new families to the district and SHS's new dean, Nancy Costa.  The business portion of the PTA meeting will start at 7:30pm. 

 We have a very exciting program planned for the evening.  Our guest speaker will be Dr. Suniya Luthar, Professor of Psychology and Education at Columbia University's Teachers College. Her talk is entitled, “Overdrive: How Too Much Ambition Can Harm Kids.”  Dr. Luthar observes that all parents want the best for their children, but many could be putting their kids in harm’s way as a result. Whether from an affluent background or just struggling to get by, parents today want the most for their children and often sacrifice a great deal to provide what they believe is the "ticket to success."  Pediatricians and psychologists report more and more kids, many of them from affluent families, coming to them stressed-out, fatigued, and overwhelmed. The kids are under increasing pressure from their parents to be perfect; excelling in school, sports, and other extracurricular activities.  Dr. Suniya Luthar found that parental and societal expectations of perfection are driving behavioral problems--including substance abuse--in wealthy suburban children, as well as in other populations. According to Luthar, "For many of us, I don't think we're aware of many of the risks and pressures that can arise, paradoxically, from trying to do the best for our children.” Join us as we hear more about this unique challenge affecting today’s families. Dr. Luthar will present us with her research, and give us practical ways to shift the tide in our own families.