New PTO President Starter Kit
Stepping up to serve as PTO President or passing the torch to the next lucky leader? You could say we had a little too much fun pulling together this fairly accurate list of what a new PTO President could really use (LOL).
If you're new to the PTO, thanks for stepping up to serve in this very important role at the school! Here at PTO Today, we try to make filling every PTO board member role as easy as possible by providing the best ideas, tips, free guides, Canva templates, and resources. We also like to provide a little levity in the form of comic relief—because as any veteran PTO'er will tell you, a sense of humor is an absolute must! So, yep, you could say we had a little too much fun coming up with a list of real and imaginary items that we'd include in a New PTO President Starter Kit. Inspired by ideas shared in our private Facebook group for PTO leaders, we'd say this is a pretty accurate description of everything you'll need to transition seamlessly into a well-prepared PTO President. The question is...will it all fit in your giant PTO bag?!?
New PTO President Starter Kit
We've rounded up a list that includes both fun and practical gift ideas for a new PTO President below. What would you add? Tag us on social @ptotoday to share!
- Travel-size hand sanitizer that's also a moisturizer (Target)
- Voluntold shirt for your spouse, who is about to become super helpful in ways they could have never imagined, like building a human fruit slot machine for the school carnival over summer break
- A good PTO planner with (wait for it...) all the school staff appreciation days and fun national holidays and treat days already included (psst: this PTO planner is free)
- Paper Mate Flair pens
- Caffeine or energy drinks: coffee, tea, Bloom, Coca Cola...you name it, chances are, we probably need it
- "In my PTO mom era" coffee mug (Etsy)
- A "No" button for those times you'll have a hard time saying no, but have to
- Adult beverage(s) of choice
- Balloon arch kit
- Robert's Rules of Order book for meetings; there's also this shorter, user-friendly "cliff notes" style edition
- A copy of Mel Robbin's book, The Let Them Theory, for dealing with all the personalities
- Electrolyte drink mix
- Volunteers...so naturally, these tiny hands finger puppets from Amazon
- A PTO insurance policy (chances are, your PTO isn't covered by your school or district policy)
- Travel-size Tylenol
- Pay Day or 100 Grand candy bar
- Extra gum or breath mints
- A magic wand for every board member; here's a set of magic wands in bulk from Amazon
- Megaphone
- Clipboard
- Expandable accordion file...but make it cute 🤌 (we love this one from Target)
- A good tote bag for lugging around all your PTO stuff (we love the subtle messaging on this "Bag of Tricks" tote from Etsy)
- Heavy duty mounting tape
- Tape of all kinds...Scotch tape, masking tape, duct tape, glow in the dark gaffer tape for glow dances
- A boatload of patience
- "In my PTO era" coffee mug or wineglass
- Stanley tumbler to stay hydrated during meetings and events
- Ask me how to join the PTO shirt
- Ear plugs
- Gavel to keep meetings on track, obvs
- High quality stapler
- The latest issue of PTO Today Magazine
- A list of every school staff appreciation day and fun national holiday, like National Pretzel Day, National Coffee Day, and National Rubber Ducky Day
- A handy list of volunteers and their contact info
Looking for a gift for a departing PTO or PTA President? We love this funny "Smells like PTA president off duty" candle from Etsy!
Get more ideas in the ultimate list of must-haves (and splurges) for parent groups
Ideas, templates and more for back-to-school 👉
