I bet your child is doing very well. Congratulations! You are among a sizeable group of Indian parents whose kids are raking in accolades from teachers and researchers alike.

Indian kids do appear to be achieving desired results in schools. Proof? Excellent grades, enviable scholastic aptitude scores, acceptance in Ivy League and other nationally recognized citadels of higher learning, and more than their share of science, math and spelling bee awards.

So what is the secret of such successes? Obviously, our kids study hard, do their homework and do their best to meet or exceed their goals and aspirations. The credit belongs to them.

But there is more. By all accounts, the essential ingredient are the parents who, after an exhaustive day at work, manage to spend hours with their children, helping them with homework and guiding them through unwelcome peer pressures. A recent study by the New School’s Milano Graduate School puts it this way: “When it comes to education, parent involvement is widely recognized as a fundamental component of a child’s success.”

Until recently, Indian Americans were not very visible in school affairs and parent-teacher organizations. We were just too preoccupied with jobs and businesses in a strange land. As recent immigrants we were working like dogs to earn enough not only to feed and support our families, we also had additional responsibilities of lending a helping hand to our parents and other immediate family members back home.

After satisfying basic needs of our family, as enunciated by the psychologist A.H.Maslow, we began to compete with other Rams and Rahims from India (and with Jones, I might add), collecting all the latest gadgets and toys, luxury cars, Gucci handbags and Brooks Brothers suits, while staying focused on children’s grades at school.

But then something must have clicked. Some Indian parents apparently perceived a need to get involved in schools, not just to follow their children’s progress but to concentrate on the overall education system and how it educates, or fails to educate, all children. I guess we became Americanized along the way. We became stakeholders in America. We seem to have recognized that for our adopted country to maintain its preeminent position in the world, one of the basic founding stones of its greatness has to remain rock solid—the education system. At least that was my observation until I read ‘Newcomers Left Behind: Immigrant Parents Lack Equal Access to New York City Schools,’ written by Mira Lipsit of New School University.

The report criticizes the Department of Education (DOE), formerly known as the Board of Education, for not implementing its own policies “meant to address the special needs of immigrant students—and particularly English Language Learners (ELLs)—and their parents.”

The report said that immigrant parents had problems communicating with school staff and teachers; they had no input in grade assignments for first-time enrollees; immigrant students experienced discriminatory treatment; and options for children were not explained in “home” language. The report, as I understand it, appears to be overly critical of the DOE, a mammoth organization with a Herculean mission of educating 1.1 million students, coming from all parts of the globe and speaking all tongues currently being spoken in near and far corners of the planet.

Nevertheless, “a school system driven by community—and, especially—parents,” as the report said, “can go a long way toward the Department of Education’s goal of a world-class system.” A community driven system means just one thing: parental participation. Luckily, those inclined to get involved in improving the quality of education are currently at the right place and at the right time.

The school system is now being reorganized, and under the revamping plan every school has been authorized to hire a parent coordinator. Interested in volunteering? Start as the parent coordinator. Another area for parental engagement is the schools’ parent-teacher association. PTAs do very good work. Further, schools always seem to be scrounging for funds for supplies, extracurricular activities and other needs.

A good fund-raiser is always in demand. Tutors and big brother/sister programs are also in short supply. One word of caution, though. Dealing with a huge bureaucracy and its written policies and procedures can often seem daunting.

So, are you proud of your child’s performance in school? Of course, you are one of the lucky ones. Go ahead, pat yourself on the back. Are you involved in school’s affairs, though?

The writer served the city for 32 years in NYC’s Departments of Environmental Protection, Sanitation, and, Parks and Recreation, in positions ranging from junior engineer to deputy commissioner.