Loaner Volunteers
In Chattanooga, Tenn., a school with an abundance of volunteers offered to lend a few hands to another school that had hit a rough patch and had less than a dozen members in its parent group. Not only did loaners from the Ganns Middle Valley Elementary PTA help out at the other school’s events, they also provided some support and coaching to the smaller PTA to help it rebuild.

Network of Leaders
In Burlington County in southern New Jersey, one PTO leader thought parent groups within her community could benefit from sharing resources. She reached out to other leaders in the region and set up the Association of Parent Leaders at Elementary Schools. The group began meeting in fall 2011. It doesn’t have a list of specific goals but rather is set up to brainstorm and exchange information.

Coordinated Fundraising
In DeSoto County, Miss., a new policy requires that school fundraising groups coordinate with their principals to avoid piling up on parents with too many requests for funds. With this approach, PTOs and other groups must get approval from their principals for fundraisers and the district will compile a calendar of fundraisers from all schools. “We decided to get the principals together—they all know what they need...and come up with a schedule, so they won’t be overlapping,” says Thomas Spencer, an associate superintendent.