Love to see good results from a program we played a (small) role in. Here’s a great result ($10,000 grant) from this past year’s Love Your Veggies school grant program, sponsored by Hidden Valley. PTO Today — through our connection with so many schools — helped manage the back-end of this program for Hidden Valley.
Check out the Love Your Veggies program for your school next year. Nice dollars and nice, healthy cause.
Today is National Teacher Day.
Don’t worry if the holiday snuck up on you. The NEA has some cool electronic greeting cards your kids can email to their teachers. As an added bonus, the teacher’s name will be included on what’s being called the nation’s largest teacher thank-you card. (You can snail mail your own cards to be incorporated into the giant card, too.)
Today’s also a good time to think about ways your parent group can appreciate teachers all year long. Be sure to check out our article on this topic, Teacher Appreciation Done Right, which has great ideas on how to do just that.
I don’t know if Ana Markowski has been reading PTO Today and our parent involvement pages, but — man-oh-man — does she ever get this stuff! I just loved reading this comprehensive piece in Minneapolis Star-Trib detailing how Markowski and her PTO have involved more and more parents by getting creative, being fun, and *serving* parents — those are the key ingredients for every group.
This one’s well worth the read for all leaders. Have you (or can you?) been instituting any of these habits at your school?
Here’s a new twist (and I bet it will be the first of many of these). Talented volunteer puts together a video selling the importance of volunteering at school. Professional editing and a soundtrack make it really slick. Love it! I feel like I’m watching Oprah:
We’ve always said that if announcing: “Meeting next Tuesday at 7PM” is your main involvement-building strategy, then you’re in trouble. These guys clearly get that.
This California (where else?) school and its PTA put together a great, comprehensive all-school event around the environment and healthy habits and fun. Check out their Eco-Extravaganza here.
Especially neat, in my opinion, because these guys really went all-out. Goes with a column I wrote a year or two back saying Go Big or Don’t Go at All. Basically, I think PTOs and PTAs do far better when they do fewer things in a big way than a lot of things in a so-so way. You agree?
I just got the heads up that our editorial team posted 2 new articles…just in time for elections & transition season!
What Every Secretary Should Know
A few other sections that are useful for new board members (and those you’re encouraging to join the board!)
Just a little link to a calendar item about a school hosting a Get Movin’ Night this weekend. I’ve been to a couple of these, and they’re a great mix of fun and physical activity (even if your school doesn’t have its own pool!). You can check out our Get Movin’ Night here and all of our School Family Nights here .
Thought I’d give a quick heads-up that my favorite new tool on the site — our File Exchange — has been redesigned and upgraded. Better than ever.
You can check out the File Exchange here.
What’s the File Exchange? Think of it as a treasure box for PTOs and PTAs. If you’ve written a great letter on getting involved or created a great flyer for teacher appreciation — load it to the File Exchange so others can use it, too. And next time you’re sitting down to create a brochure or flyer or letter for this project or that — get a head start with a visit to the File Exchange first.
Have anything to share???
At each of our expos, Patty Catalano (PTO Today staffer) puts on her white doctors coat and helps leaders diagnose and find solutions to their most pressing parent group challenges. After our last expo in New Jersey I asked Patty to share some of the most common/interesting questions she’s addressed so far. Here’s what she had to say…
Q: What can/should we do about the fact that involvement at the middle school wanes?
A: The wane here is typical-not uncommon. Teachers don’t need parents “hands-on” etc. in the classroom, (kids don’t want ‘em hanging around either!) Involvement here tends to be more event focused, i.e. helping out at talent shows, jogathons, chaperoning dances, open gym nights, etc. Competition typed events work great here too, i.e. trivia nights, spelling bees, basketball game/shootouts etc. When planning teams, consider holding teams of students to participate AGAINST their parents. (They love to be on a team with their friends at this age instead of being teamed up WITH their parents. They are just so like, OMG, uncool. ; p )
Q: We have one parent (i.e. steamroller type) who tries to take over every committee and goes right to the principal (overstepping PTO) to make changes to our activities /plans without our knowledge. How do we address this?
A: I suggested the two leaders first sit down with principal and then the steamroller. Need to chat with principal about how your group is trying to be more orderly/structured and that it has procedures in place for chairs and volunteers and no one should side step PTO board. Tell her that you would appreciate that parents come to the board with ideas/proposals for PTO related activities. Process should be that all PTO events and programs are put on an agenda, voted, and approved. Things should not be changed haphazardly after they are voted on.
Also, the steamroller needs to be put in her place. Stand up to her and make sure she’s following documented procedures. Let her know you would LOVE her help; you just want to make sure she’s going through the right channels so that help can be put to the best possible use.
Q: How do we get teachers to come to our events/become more involved in our PTO?
A: Teacher’s job is to teach, job of parent group leaders is to provide support to make that teaching environment a positive one. Also, don’t take it personally, the 800+ kids at school are all very cute, but frankly by 2:00 p.m. the teachers have seen enough of them. (LOL)
It’s important to understand that they have other essential/more important things (family/kids/a life!) to deal with outside the school. They might not want to come to a book fair, or spaghetti night or some other PTO fun filled night just for that reason. Also, some teachers fear that parents will hunt them down and want to talk shop (so why did Johnny get an F last month on that test??)
If they show up for an event count your blessings, but don’t hold it against them if they don’t.
Other things that might help them to show up to at least one event during the year: put individual/personalized invitations to the event in their mailbox (versus the collective “Attention Teachers! Come One Come All” flyer posted on the copier room wall!)
Also, if you really really have to have their help for an event, recruiting teachers is not unlike recruiting parent volunteers…. You just need to ask for SPECIFIC help based on their skills/background, i.e. hello Mrs Smith (art teacher), can you help us make a back drop for the talent show? Hello, Mr. Smith (gym teacher) can you help us recruit some teachers to play basketball against the kids at our Get Movin’ night?
You get the picture…
If you’re attending the Chicago or Denver show be sure to stop by and see Patty…she’s the one in the white coat 
Need to build excitement for your auction? Consider the example of the Hollis (N.H.) Elementary Schools’ PTA, which secured a one-of-a-kind donation for its online auction–a rocket payload valued at $25,000. The chance to send an object into space stirred the imagination of kids and parents alike, and attracted media attention for the group’s online and live auctions.
 Tim Sullivan |
 Kathryn Lagden |
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