Category Archives: PTO Officers

PTO Needs Talent

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That is right, your PTO needs you!

“But….I don’t think I’m the PTO-type” you said? Well, We are here to tell you that this might be one of those rare time when you think wrong. Whatever your skill, whatever your talent, the chance is we probably need it to achieve our goal in making our kids educational experience that much more enjoyable, exciting and memorable. Help us do even more great things for our school! Find your type and raise your hand – or nominate somebody you think is a great fit for the role:

“I’m the leader of the pack” type

PTO wants you to be our next President! One or two of you can lead all the fun we have going on throughout the school year. We need your participation to carry on the torch of leading our pack to make sure that our cubs get the best experience they can get. Get involve now and we’ll train you so you will be ready when the time comes. We promise there will be no 4AM wake up calls with horn during the training period.

“I’m Robin, not Batman” type:

Well, it takes falling to the bat cave and not to mention – practice time, to become Batman. Maybe you just don’t like the spotlight and want to run things behind the scene? We get the perfect spot (without so much light) for you: The Vice President position. You’ll be working alongside our fearless leader(s), take part of the decision making process, be the leader’s stunt double from time to time. But don’t worry, you only need to wear the cape when your kid insist.

“I got all the pages in my child’s baby book filled out and a stack of Thank you notes always handy” type:

You just love to document everything, from your kids’ first steps to what you eat yesterday. You never miss sending Thank You notes for the people who come to your kids birthday party. You are good at multi tasking  – especially for listening and writing/typing at the same time. You were the star of the typing class and took stenography for fun in College (this one kind of reveal my age, doesn’t it?) The point is: we have the perfect role for you: The Secretary. You’ll get to put your stellar record-keeping skills and attention to detail to good use.

“I got all the function in Excel memorized and never need an overdraft protection from my bank” type:

If your guilty pleasure is to categorize expenses and you are sub-consciously do not like the color red because it doesn’t feel right to have it associated with numbers that is titled “Balance”, then you have what it takes to be our Treasurer. Bonus points if you still have receipt from your purchases back in College.

“I live to blog, I can put any situation on writing” type:

Joomla, Drupal, Magento, Edublog, WordPress, Smores….if you know of and have used more than 2 of those, have the passion to write about events in an informative, fun and family friendly tone, know the difference between G, PG, PG-13, R, and NC-17 content ratings are AND most importantly can stick to G/PG, then we need you to fill in the big shoes of being our PTO Blog WebMaster or Blog Contributors.

“I just love throwing party” type:

Do your neighbors, friends and family come to you for advice in how to organize for their kids’ birthday party? If so, you are needed to serve as our Event Coordinator/Committee Chair. As you know, one of the perks of having a PTO at school is we get to have tons of activities and events for our kids and the school communities in general. Events like Fall Festival, Enchanted Dance, Family Fun Nights, Staff Appreciation all need to have that one or two person(s) to lead and organize. Not to worry, you will not have to do the whole thing yourself, we have other wonderful parent volunteers who are always ready to help, you’ll just be the ones keeping all the puzzle pieces together. 

“Give me a comb and a shampoo and have me sell it to a Buddhist monk” type:

Not afraid to strike up a conversation with a stranger, yet understand that other parents have many time constraint and that PTO do not work on commission? We’re looking for a Volunteer Coordinator to recruit and organize helpers for PTO programs and events. You can help other parents find the best way to plug in to our school community with whatever talent or resources they have.

Join the team or nominate someone by filling out our nomination form here.

One Dad’s Look Back…

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My adult daughter, now a mother of 3, asked me why I was involved in the PTO when she was in elementary school.  What a great question, but I did not have to think very long about it.

I knew that kids did better in school when their parents were involved, and I wanted to participate at the school to help make our daughter’s learning experience the best possible.  My wife and I were eager volunteers there for 8 years overlapping our two daughters’ elementary years.  

As we considered ways we could help and be involved we decided to divide and concur.  Sure we both were there for key events like field day, Halloween, concerts and special events, but we each prioritized other times we could help on a consistent basis.  My wife could make time at work to be at the school on a weekly basis during the day when she volunteered to listen and help younger kids as they learned to read.  She also brought snacks and helped in the class room for parties and special events as needed.  My schedule was more challenging so I joined the PTO which met in the evenings.  

We had great experiences and made many family friends over time. We were also able to observe classroom dynamics which equipped us to better support our child at home and understand periodic issues and concerns.  Our participation also help open communications with teachers and staff over the years when there were issues in learning, behavior and social interactions between kids.

I know that some parents may say they do not have the time, we found that we could make the time.  It was important to set boundaries which we did.   Generally one or two hours a week was all that was required to make a difference.  In our case, the staff and other volunteers supported any commitment, even as small as an hour a week or month.

I have also heard that some parents do not feel comfortable or welcome in the school. We did not have that experience, just the opposite.  Teachers and staff understand the importance of parental participation and go out of their way to ensure that volunteers are welcome – always within the safety and security guidelines of the school.

Lastly, I also found that some parents with serious time restrictions just could not regularly participate in school activities or volunteer in the school.  In today’s world and even during our experience there were always activities that could be performed primarily at home or outside of the school.  I remember counting money after the school carnival on a Saturday evening and addressing envelopes (maybe email notices today) at home in the evening on several occasions.

I can sum it up simply.  Volunteering in support of our children’s school and being involved in the classroom or in school activities outside the classroom was one of the most important family decisions we made and I believe it still is today.

D. Stull

Interested in doing more for your child’s education?

Interested in joining the PTO community?

Now is your chance! The next PTO meeting is April 20th at 2:30 PM. We’ll be taking nominations for PTO Officers and Committee Chairs for next year.

Need to know more about the positions and what they do? Check out the official information here.