PTO Today

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.

Sometimes we take for granted just how tough (and important) a job it is to do this school parent group leader thing.  Makes it even nicer when a paper reminds us with a glowing profile of a rather typical leader.  Passionate. Generous. Accomplished.  Yup — that covers it pretty well.

Every year we talk about the excitement and energy at our PTO expos. Of course when you put hundreds of parent group leaders in a room full of ideas and information great things are bound to happen. I sure had fun at our New Jersey show. And from the looks of it, so did these 80 folks from the Newark school district.

I hope the gang in the pic below are feeling strong. Conference tote bags always end up jammed with information and samples. Lots of stuff to take back and discuss with the whole group.

And of course the entertainment is always fun. Here a couple of Harlem Wizards get ready to show what they can do.

Two more shows to go this year – Chicago and Denver. If you’re attending be sure to stop by the PTO Today booth and say hi!

Here’s a twist on the traditional schoolyard carnival. This PA PTO combined their fair with a classic car show and not only added some fun and interest to their day but made some nice extra bucks, too.  Great work!

Was such a fun day Wednesday that I thought I’d add another picture. Great crowd, and this photo really captures it. That big blue ball is actually the earth from “Earth Balloon“. You can also see (through all the people) booths for Innisbrook Fundraising and Primary School Supplies.

So we’re 2-for-2 on weather issues this year for our Expos. Hopefully, that means New Jersey, Chicago and Denver are due for bright skies and warm temps, right? Even with some slick roads (those darn weathermen were predicting way worse, which kept some folks away), more than 400 leaders joined us for a great day.

A couple of quick snapshots with a note or two:

That’s Doug Willett from Cherrydale Farms fundraising presenting our Early Bird raffle winners with their award. Funny note: Dimitria Sullivan of Dedham, MA is in the middle accepting the award from Doug. She told me her “biggest dream is to get into PTO Today magazine.” 1. She needs to work on her dreams a bit 2. Hope the PTO Today Blog counts.

A fun photo that captures the energy and excitement that’s so palpable at the Expos. It’s tons of vendors, yes. But it’s entertainers and demos and tons of prizes and PTO Today expert presentations and more. Basically, if you put several hundred PTO and PTA leader types into one big room and … well.. let’s just say Exxon and Mobil are currently researching ways to tap into the energy!

Not too late to join us in Jersey, Chicago or Denver for our next expos.

I don’t get surprised too often, but this one is new to me.  And I love it!

A bunch of dads (and even some moms!) got hairy when this Washingon state PTA held a mustache-a-thon. 

What’s the big deal?  It’s the creativity and fun.  I’d wager this fundraiser will do good/fine (not great). But think what it’s doing for the groups’ PR.  I’m betting that the kind of buzz and laughs thios is creating around school and town is a great antidote for a boring or same-ol’ reputation.  What a great way to re-energize things.  What’s your mustache-a-thon?

Fair warning:  this is not for the faint of heart.  If you’re easily offended, you might want to skip this blog entry… 

For me, I’m trying to decide if I’d a) love to have this volunteer’s smarts and energy in my group; or b) be really afraid of having this volunteer’s writing ability and blog habits in my group.  Yikes.

Either way, here’s a PTA mom’s blog of her struggles getting involved. She’s definitely (how shall we say?) … strongly opinionated.  But wouldn’t you know it?  After all her struggles — she was just named president. Figures. 

Will have to keep reading….

Ever wonder what the gang from “Friends” might be doing now? Courteney Cox imagines that her very Type A character Monica took over the PTA after moving to the suburbs with Chandler and the kids. While it’s easy to imagine Monica heading up a bake sale or chairing a committee, I can’t help but wonder what kind of crazy situations she’d get into. What do you think — what kind of parent group leader would Monica make?

Just for fun, here’s an item from the Hollywood gossip mill about the Baywatch star stopping traffic at her children’s school. It’s not the first time Pam has done crossing guard duty; she talked about the gig while promoting a film at Cannes earlier this year. You gotta hand it to her–she doesn’t let a crazy work schedule, a turbulent love life, or even the California wildfires keep her from pitching in at school.