moorea;132458 wrote: Maybe I shouldn't be offended??

To answer the first part, we have a budget line item for what we call "Warm and Fuzzy". From a food standpoint, a lot of parents bake for it. We spend the line item dollars on additional things like plates/napkins/coffee/etc plus a couple times a year we get a little gift for each teacher ... a mug with coffee in it, a small box of chocolates, just something to say thanks, doesn't need to be big.

On the getting offended part ... I have a strong opinion on that so forgive me. Understanding that you can't be at the meetings to provide your input, there's nothing wrong with contacting a board member directly and voicing your concern and the reasons for it. I've found in my few years being on our board that parents just aren't informed about why or how we do what we do. Give them the chance to explain the choices they have made ... if they are like us, they will be more than happy to do it. As president, I've made very clear to our board, teachers, etc. that we have nothing to hide and are available to answer any questions, show our budget, etc.

If they can't come up with a good reason for something, then perhaps you have some more discussion on the topic.

We budget the money every year. We do 2 breakfast and 2 luncheons a year, including Teacher Appriciation Week.

We do the same, funding it from the general funds raised via the fundraisers throughout the year. This past year we ended up doing a bit more for the teachers as we had many changes. In December we purchased the staff new polo-shirts with our new school mascot logo, and then all of the things we did during Teacher Appreciation week. Overall we spent around $2000, but normally it would be more like $1000.

regards,
PresidentJim

Staff appreciation is a line item in our budget. We host the food on conference nights and have a big BBQ at the end of the year. We do ask for food donations throughout the week of TA celebrating a different segment of the staff each day, ie office, support, teachers, custodial etc.

We also fund it from our general budget...and ask for donations for salads...we do something each week usually.

If the 2 dollars is strictly for TA then I'd probably question it as well...
d

We do some by the budget but not alot...then for desert day we do ask for volunteers to make desserts. The budget line is around $700.00 for the year but we do small but meaningful things, the only big thing we do are planners.