PTO Today

Quick tip this week based on my belief that if your parent group isn’t fun, you are going to struggle mightily to get lots of parents and families connected. Therefore, three fun ideas:

1. Don’t be afraid of a post-event or post-meeting cocktail or social. Head down to Applebee’s or Starbucks (and open the invitation broadly — not just to your insiders) and add some downtime to your hard work. It can pay off.
2. Add some life to your newsletter. Photos of kids and families having fun. A random volunteer of the month. Baby pictures of your teachers. Steal some newsletter ideas from our File Exchange and try to make your newsletter 20 percent better than it now is (and 75 percent more fun). Your newsletter can really set a tone for your whole group.
3. Buy some pink flamingos and “flock” some folks. Use them to surprise an officer. Use them to surprise a volunteer who did a great job. Use them to decorate the school front lawn someday. They’re just goofy enough to always bring a smile.

Why did the chicken cross the road? Because this side of the road was boring! Good luck livening things up.

It was wonderful to hear about your teacher appreciation programs this past week. Well done! Think it’s fair to say that you made your teacher’s week!

Before long, you’ll be thinking about what to do for your end-of-year volunteer appreciation. No rest for the weary! In this video Tim talks about what to avoid this spring when you execute your volunteer appreciation program.

What is your PTO or PTA board doing for volunteer appreciation this year? Share your best ideas with other leaders below in the comments.

First of all, happy teacher appreciation day. Wednesday was officially National Teacher Day, and if you need any last-minute ideas, check out these simple ways to say thanks to teachers and staff.

I’m writing this on the way back from a really neat night put on by Common Sense Media regarding digital literacy and keeping our kids safe online.

It’s such a key topic (and often an intimidating one) for all parents, and we’re seeing more and more PTOs and PTAs playing a role in getting good information out to parents. I thought I’d highlight a few resources for you here:

1. Have you looked at hosting an Internet Safety Night for your parents? With the help of our friends at Trend Micro, we have a free kit that makes putting on a night like this easier than ever. Definitely worth considering.
2. You might also think about using your PTO or PTA website or email list to share the following very cool winning videos from Trend Micro’s recent “What’s your Story?” contest, which asked folks to create their own videos about Internet Safety. You have to check these out (and hopefully share them). They’re really great:
   • The grand-prize winning video is “Where Are You?“
   • And check out this cute runner-up video from some 3rd graders: “Be Respectful…Keep Your Comments to Yourself“

I hope these help. Look for more from us around these topics (and cyberbullying) in the months to come.

We’d love to hear what your school or parent group is doing related to Internet safety. Please share on our Facebook page.

It’s that time of year: new board member election time! This week’s featured question from our Ask a Question section touches on the problem of vacant board slots.

Anonymous question:

We sent home nomination forms and nobody has volunteered for any positions, all of the current board is leaving, do we dissolve or wait until school starts and try to recruit again? Anyone have ideas?

Craig writes:

Honestly, sending home nomination forms rarely works. The best way to recruit new officers is to talk to them individually. People need to know the scope of the job, they need to know the time commitment, and they need to feel comfortable that they’ll be able to handle the job. Target people who have already been involved by volunteering regularly or chairing committees. These are the people who are most likely to be interested in taking the next step. Talk to them, tell them about the job, tell them why you think they are a great fit, and let them know that they won’t be left out on an island — someone will be their to guide them or at least you’ll have a binder of information compiled to help make things easier. Consider splitting positions among co-officers if that’s what it takes to make people feel comfortable. You definitely shouldn’t dissolve, especially if you have a volunteer base but just no one to take the leadership reins. Make these personal contacts first, then look for creative solutions. I bet you can figure out a way to keep things going. And by the way, have you recruited among parents whose children will be entering the school next year? Sometimes you can find someone with PTO experience at the previous grade level (preschool if you’re an elementary). Good luck.

Links related to officer recruitment and elections:

http://www.ptotoday.com/pto-today-articles/article/995-find-the-right-person-for-the-job

http://www.ptotoday.com/pto-today-articles/article/181-officer-transition-planning-ahead

http://www.ptotoday.com/pto-today-articles/article/137-7-steps-to-grow-involvement

http://www.ptotoday.com/pto-today-articles/article/419-dont-say-it

http://www.ptotoday.com/pto-today-articles/article/399-involvement-matters-what-to-tell-parents

http://www.ptotoday.com/pto-today-articles/article/287-recruiting-preschool-parents

http://www.ptotoday.com/transitionkit

Most groups, at one time or another, have positions they have trouble filling at the end of the school year. What has worked for your PTO or PTA for filling these empty positions?

Is your group making its fall fundraising plans right now? Perhaps considering early signing bonuses or cookie dough vs. gift wrap vs. a catalog sale?

It’s certainly good to plan early, so let me provide you with three key thoughts to guide your decisions. (If you want to read about these in more detail, check out the link below each section.)

1. Don’t mess with a good thing. Have you run a good sale with good profits and excellent customer service the past few years? If so, stick with it. Fundraising isn’t about the next new product; it’s about results that fund all of your good work. If you have good results, repeat the steps that made you succeed. And be thankful.
   Rate Your Fundraiser
2. Do not get caught in the profit percentage trap. It’s about how much you make in total and how positive an experience your group, your volunteers, and your parents have. It’s easy to increase the profit percentage with too-high prices or lower-quality products or poor service. Don’t fall for that. Look for a track record of real success.
   Good Fundraising Is More Than Just Profit
3. Fundraise less, but fundraise better. It’s preferable on every level to do fewer fundraisers but to execute those you do run more effectively. Eight different “hit the parents up for cash” efforts per year is just way too many. Instead, run two or three or — maybe — four, but do a better job marketing and a better job organizing and emphasize your good work more. And then get back to focusing on all that good work with all the time you save.
   What I Know About Fundraising

Good luck!

With Earth Day coming up this Friday (April 22), the focus is on environmental awareness. There are lots of things your PTO or PTA can do to help students think more about the environment and to make your school more green. Some of my favorite ideas:

Walk to School Day: Have volunteer chaperones meet groups of children at predetermined spots, then walk together to school. It’s healthy, it’s fun, and it cuts down on traffic.

No-Waste Lunch Week: See if you can keep the trash barrels empty by recycling, composting, and reusing.

Go Green Night: Hold a family night that teaches kids about energy conservation, recycling, and more. Our free Go Green Night kit has lots of fun and informative activities.

Here are a few other links from ptotoday.com with green ideas:

• One group’s innovative green programs
• Making your PTO green
• More on making your school green

Best wishes and happy Earth Day!

“A good teacher is like a candle – it consumes itself to light the way for others.”  ~Author Unknown

Teacher appreciation is top of mind for PTOs and PTAs this time of year. Year after year, we are amazed by the energy and creativity that groups put into thanking their teachers.  This is why we are so excited to tell you that we’ve teamed up with Febreze for a teacher appreciation give-away.

To celebrate National Teacher Appreciation Week, parents have the chance to nominate the teachers who have inspired their children now through May 6th. After National Teacher Appreciation Week (May 2 – May 6), one teacher will be chosen as a winner and receive the “Teacher of the Year” title and a $5,000 cash prize to put toward classroom supplies or a classroom makeover!

Here’s how you can spread the word to your friends and other parents at your school to encourage families to nominate their favorite teacher for the Febreze Teacher of the Year:

• Download the Febreze Teacher of the Year Award flyer to send home to moms at your school.
• Download the Teacher of the Year Award web graphic and post it on your school or PTO website – be sure to link it to www.facebook.com/febreze.
• Cut and paste the following copy into your next newsletter, email, or to your website:

Nominate your child’s favorite teacher for the Febreze Teacher of the Year!

Help your children recognize their favorite teachers by nominating them for the first-ever Febreze Teacher of the Year Award! To celebrate National Teacher Appreciation Week, parents have the chance to nominate the teachers who have inspired their children. After National Teacher Appreciation Week (May 2 – May 6), one teacher will be chosen as a winner and receive the “Teacher of the Year” title and a $5,000 cash prize to put toward classroom supplies or even a classroom makeover! Nominate your favorite teacher at www.facebook.com/Febreze now through May 6th!

How cool would it be to see your child’s teacher or a teacher at your school win $5,000? Talk about a morale booster!

You can stream movies and TV shows online. Why not parent group meetings?

Parents at three Staten Island, N.Y., schools will soon be able to do just that. Thanks to a funding allocation from the area’s city council representative, the schools’ PTA meetings will be broadcast live and recorded for replay online. Parents won’t be able to participate in the meetings online, but they will be able to watch or replay them later.

If you volunteer at school long enough, I guarantee that you’ll run into volunteers who don’t do a good job. It’s not if but when, and how you deal with those volunteers can affect the culture and success of your group for years.

(Note: Have you experienced this already? Share your “bad volunteer” stories on the message boards.)

When I talk about “bad” volunteers, I’m referring to everything from gossips and folks with delusions of grandeur all the way through to those people who just can’t seem to keep their commitments or move projects along on time. All of them can be really frustrating to work with.

Of course, if there is a volunteer truly doing wrong (stealing from the group or hurting a child, for example), you need to take quick and formal action to end that. But most problem volunteers are more subtle. They have personalities that turn off others or they procrastinate too much or they criticize without offering solutions. How do you deal with them?

My advice is to do all you can to minimize the harm while avoiding formal processes. Officially removing a volunteer from her position could take weeks or months of difficult discussions, and it’ll distract your group from its good work. With summer, the holiday break, and school vacations, the PTO year is too short already to bring things to a halt.

A better solution is to manage around these folks. Get the procrastinator a co-leader who is on top of things. Communicate positively and frequently to counteract the gossip. Give the critic a job she can thrive in (kill her with kindness). That kind of thing. Even though your bylaws might provide the means to officially remove someone from office, avoid taking that step whenever possible.

You might also like these volunteer management resources from ptotoday.com:

• 25 Ways To Catch and Keep Volunteers
• Managing Personality Conflicts
• How To Deal With Difficult People

Soon after her children started going to Van Bokkelen Elementary in Severn, Md., Rhonda Ulmer learned that the school might be taken over by the state because of poor academic performance. In 2004, when Ulmer was PTA president, she formed the Van Bokkelen Family Network to connect parents with resources to help stabilize their families, such as food assistance and GED classes. In the next few years, students’ test scores and parent involvement at Van Bokkelen improved and the school was taken off the takeover list.

Ulmer expanded on the idea of the Family Network by starting a nonprofit organization called the University for Parents, which provides educational resources and parenting classes (throughout) Maryland. She offers ideas on how parent groups can help families at home, and ultimately, help them get more connected to school.

What was your involvement strategy at Van Bokkelen?

First, I sent out a survey to families to determine what challenges parents were facing. Some of the barriers to involvement I discovered were everyday hardships such as housing, food, utility bills, and unstable family situations, and the fact that some parents had not pursued a higher education due to working demands to provide for their families.

Our PTA partnered with the local YWCA, set up GED classes for parents, and arranged childcare and bus
transportation.… We also started a partnership with the Maryland Food Bank, which helped launch Van Bokkelen’s School Pantry Program. We provided family food baskets to parents who volunteered at the school.

What tips would you suggest to PTO and PTA leaders to help parents become more connected at school?

Survey your parents to determine what programs are needed to help parents and families be successful.
Host a PTO/PTA program or event at a local library, faith-based organization, or community center.

Don’t forget about the needs of working and single parents. Maybe you can offer programs that include the entire family—online, in the evenings, or on the weekends.

Partner with the school and local organizations, and offer meeting times that coincide with other community events. This eliminates parents having to make repeated trips to the school during the course of a week.

Be culturally aware of the diversity in your school community. Be ready to provide programs that meet the needs of all parents and families.

—Patty Catalano