For too many groups, the plan is a nice Open House speech followed by a sign-up sheet that winds up in the back of a file somewhere. Two months later, the leaders of those groups are frustrated by a lack of volunteers and a whole bunch of parents are wondering why the cliquey PTO doesn't call. Ugh.
With that in mind, here are two tips this week -- both regarding getting and keeping lots of new volunteers.
- Do you have a well-done volunteer interest sheet for your parents? More than just "can you help," a well-done survey asks about interest areas and best times. We have a sample volunteer interest form in our File Exchange area that you're free to use as is or customize.
- Have you looked at our PTO Manager volunteer software service for keeping track of all your parents, managing volunteers for events, and communicating with parents? It really does make a difference for those groups that take advantage.
Many parents will help if the opportunity and timing and commitment are all right. You have to ask -- sometimes several times, and always nicely -- and you need a system for keeping track of the interest. It's not as hard as it sounds, and it's well worth the effort.
