The basic gist is to get groups to put on a movie night at their school (either Bolt or Twilight) during a 4-week window in May. That sounds good. Sounds a lot like a certain, long-running school Family Movie Night program I've heard about, but that's OK.
But the stuff I question is in the fine print of the FAQs of the PTA program. First of all, why is the PTA requiring that groups charge parents or kids an entry fee for a family event at school? I can see making it optional (some groups still struggling getting past the concept that it's OK to invest in increased parent involvement and community), but requiring an entry fee just seems opposite to best involvement practices. And the PTA frequently touts (usually rightfully so) its leadership in parent involvement.
Now, it gets even more questionable when you realize that the PTA is making groups collect the entrance fee, and the groups don't even get to keep the entrance fee. It has to go in to HP and/or the national PTA (they're the partners in this effort). Groups even have to pay in advance just to get the kit. It just seems odd and opposite of how most groups work an event like this. Even when groups do charge (which we don't recommend), it's almost always at the door.
I'll be interested in a response (and welcome PTA folks to explain to me where my analysis is wrong here -- I frankly hope it is and will provide the mea culpa, if so). I imagine one response will be that: "yeah, but for that $5 every attendee gets a $5 gift card to something called "PTAdigital" (an opening-soon online store, which is also a partnership of PTA and HP). But that doesn't pass the smell test. If you have 200 attendees (as PTA says they had at fall events), then that's $1000 to National PTA/HP (zero to local unit) and 200 people with $5 gift cards (that they were forced to buy) to a PTA/HP store.
You do get the performance license (a $150 or $75 value, depending on different factors) and the free movie (which you could rent for $3 -- and then have your choice of any movie). I'll be interested to hear what folks think of this. It just doesn't feel all that well thought out to me. I know the parents at my school would find a $5 price tag for a family movie night to be steep. And if we did collect it, I know they'd expect it at least to be going toward our school and our kids.
I have a feeling PTA is going to need to re-think this one. Your thoughts?
