PTO Today

Hi I'm new to this forum. Having lived in the Dallas area all my life I had never heard of a PTO until my family and I moved out of state for a while. Now we have moved back and I would like to have a PTO in place of the PTA at our school. How can I go about changing that? I mean where do I start? Do I bring it up at a PTA meeting? Do I try to generate intrest with flyers or meetings? Has anyone else started a movement to PTO from PTA? Any advice will be helpful. Thanks.

Hi penteco -

As a matter of fact, we have heard of that.
Roughly 75% of the K-8 parent g roups in the country are now independent of the PTA, so what you're thinking is not unusual at all.

Try doing some reading here:

http://www.ptotoday.com/ptovpta.html

...as a start. I think you want to get educated and then talk informally among the various leaders of your local group. If there's interest then, then it's time to look into more formal parts of the process.

One bit of homework? Find out how many members were officially in your PTA last year. From there you can figure out what your group is sending out in dues to council, state and national PTAs. You'll need that number if you do a cost-benefit analysis.

Tim

OK...Why? If the PTA is working, why change? If the PTA is not working, will the change help?
Identify your concerns first.

Then you can ask to address the PTA with your proposal. Then if more people agree with you the PTA can get information out on both PTA and PTO and the membership can decide.

Yes Tim; and in order to do a true cost/benifit analysis; figure in the "cost" of the training opportunities, resources, and programs offered by PTA.
And figure the benifit analysis of the work PTA does on NCLBA, IDEA, rescuing recess, healthy lifestyles, and in your state legislature.

Count ALL costs and [b]ALL[/b] benifits.

Hi Tim;
While 75% of K-8 schools are not affiliated with the National PTA, that does not mean that they chose to leave PTA!
And remember that the 75% figure included some schools that have No formal parent group at all.

Well, if you think it could work just as well [i]without[/i] spending $1200 or $1400 in dues, that would be a pretty good reason.

At the very least, you'd be up $1,000. If there was no change, you'd still have a disfunctional group, but you'd have an extra $1,000 with which to help your school. If it did work, even better. The original poster never said things weren't working, just that -- after experiencing a PTA and a PTO -- she believes that PTO is the better option for her school. Sounds like an informed opinion.

Tim

I do not want my money going to support political lobbyists. 100 years ago most folks did not have the level of access to communication lines that we now have. We don't need representation on a national level in that capacity. I don't need some group taking money away from my school to grease campaign funds for their agenda. Here in Texas we've been seeing problems with school funding. I want to see changes that are more central to local control over those funds. In my experience with talking to many parents I find that they suffer from the "Herd" mentality; they all follow but no one wonders why. Where is all the money going we are giving? Why are our kids taught to be "door to door salesmen" 8 times per year? And many more questions like these. Heck I can't tell you how many parent members of the PTA are unaware that there is a national level beyond the local level.

No one seems to ask questions anymore. They all presume that the other guy has their back. I didn't know until a few years ago that the PTA money didn't all go to the school. Why should it go to some national organization that does not have my school's best interests in mind?

That is my problem. I'm tired of hearing the educators complain about lack of funds and knowing tat the PTA is giving my money to somone I've never met and do not support. Every penny counts, whether the school has 250 kids or 2500 kids.

WOW..where do we start? As a 501 c(3) non-profit registered with the IRS PTA [b]CANNOT[/b] contribute to any political campaign!
National PTA dues are just $1.75, that's all.

National PTA [i]"lobies"[/i] on behalf of children and adaquate funding for education.

If you are happy that the Federal government provides less than 18% of the cost to comply with the IDEA (Although the original legislation in 1975 called for 40%, we've never gotten there yet)
Then by all means continue to believe that PTA's work in Washington dosen't affect you.

]

WOW 8 fundraisers a year! But that has nothing to do with PTA or PTO, it's your group's choice.
Where is all the money going? [B]Well, $1.75 goes to National PTA. [/b] Can't tell you where ALL the fundraising money goes, but it isn't to the Texas or National PTA

rockne-
If we are looking into possibly disbanning the PTA, how can we protect our funds? Can we set up a PTO account and transfer funds before disbanning?

Hi Oakey -

The easiest way to protect your funds is to spend them down to at/near zero as you move toward the final vote.

One way to do that is to start setting up the guts of your PTO (get an EIN number and a bank account, for example) while your moving the PTA toward disbandment. That way, you can run your fund*raisers* during that time period as PTO fundraisers. And you can have your fund*spenders* during that same time frame be courtesy of the PTA. That's perfectly acceptable.

Yes, you typically can transfer the PTA (501c3) funds to a new PTO, provided they new PTO is also a 501c3. You could also -- right toward the end of your PTA -- make purchases for your school/kids/teachers that spend down the whole treasury.

I've never seen a group (even groups that don't follow the above advice) lose a penny, though that is often listed by PTA types as a real possibility, when those types are trying to scare the local PTA out of making a move. That said, I still think it's best to avoid even the possibility of an issue by getting that budget down to near zero before formally disbanding. that way, there's nothing even to argue about.

Tim

Rockne,

Thanks for the information. You have been quite helpful.

Sheryl