If your answer is no to any of those, then you have a major involvement challenge. Light and fun work. Heavy and too serious do not. (Chime in on our message boards to add your best fun PTO ideas and read what other groups are doing to keep things more light.)

In many ways, you're selling involvement -- you're hoping parents will choose your group and your school as the place to give their time. If that involvement is boring, or worse yet, painful or stress-inducing, most parents will choose a different option. You're not only competing with other volunteer options; you're also competing with American Idol, Survivor, and Dancing With the Stars.

I'm looking forward to hearing about all the ways you're making volunteering more fun. Your efforts on that front may be your best investment for increasing involvement at your school.