The relevance of this study is determined by the growing attention of educational research and practice to school–family partnerships in contemporary education and the need to understand the historical prerequisites of this phenomenon. Without grasping the path already taken, it is difficult to build effective collaboration in the present. The aim of the article is to provide a comprehensive historical overview of the evolution of parental participation in school governance in Russia, with particular focus on the emergence and development of the parental committee institution, an analysis of its structure and functions. The leading methodological approach is historical-pedagogical analysis, drawing on a review of Russian and international scholarly literature on school-family interaction. The empirical foundation of the study consists of archival reports on the activities of parental committees at gymnasia and technical schools (1905–1917), collected and analysed by the author using content analysis and historical comparison. The study finds that forms of parental participation underwent significant transformation: from personal and private guardianship to the establishment of elected parent bodies and contemporary partnership models. The structure and functions of the first parental committees are reconstructed: educational and upbringing work, social support and charitable activity, sanitary and facilities management, cultural and extracurricular activities. The author analysed their achievements – improved learning conditions, social protection of students in need, and organisation of extracurricular life – as well as their challenges – low engagement among the majority of parents, limited authority of committees, and cautious attitudes from school administrations. A comparative analysis of historical and contemporary patterns of parental participation reveals that key tendencies: parents' aspiration to influence learning conditions alongside their dependence on the school and the voluntary-enthusiast character of participation persist to this day. The theoretical significance of the study lies in expanding understanding of the history of public participation in education and refining the periodisation of parent committee development in Russia. The practical significance lies in the fact that drawing on the historical experience of parent committees can support more effective school-family collaboration built on genuine partnership.