It is a private school, and to the best of my knowledge, there is no governing body as this school is not affiliated with a church or other organization including national PTA.

The thing that seems to bother me the most about the whole situation doesn't really have to do with money...it's just more the thought that this group seems to have thrown up its hands in disgust and walked away from their responsibilities to join parents, teachers, and administration in an effort to advance teaching and the teaching environment.

Thanks for the thoughts, everyone. Maybe I'll sit and watch it happen for a year before I dive in.

i've been off the boards for a while (husband had surgery) but since I saw my name here a few times... [img]smile.gif[/img]
Glad there was some discussion time there though and now for my two cents as a parent group leader.

First off, are there bylaws and if so, what do they say about how often the meetings are to be held? I understand that if there is low attendance at the meetings that it might seem pointless to hold them but at the same time, meetings allow for people to wander in, not necessarily volunteer right off the bat but get their feet wet so to speak with no real commitment. Even if there are only 5-6 people there at a time, there has to be some work to be done throughout the year too and no one will ever quietly jump into your e-mails or whatever to observe.
I too was confused by you calling it a PTO and then PTA. True, these problems plague both groups but there is a hierarchy of leadership, so to speak in PTA. If you address an issue locally and still get unsatisfactory answers, you are not forced to stop there. There is County/Council, region sometimes, State or lastly National to vent your grievances. No guarantees that this will correct all your issues but sometimes all they are needing is a little training and perhaps if they are not an actual PTA, then you can direct them to a PTA convention or a PTO conference to get some. (It is my understanding that like the PTA conventions, the conferences are also open to all groups)
As for them calling themselves PTA, they won't get in trouble for it but it is misleading to people who are familiar with the traditional PTA with a state and National connection. Have you asked why they call themselves PTA? Are they in NYC?

$25 seems pretty steep for any membership. Is this a private school? We have one PTA unit that is a private school and they do collect dues of $20 which astounded me but it works for them. $4.00 of it goes to our state/national but the other $16.00 stays there and the parents appear to be okay with it, but again, they are already paying for their children to attend the school so perhaps that is the logic behind it.

The school supplies fundraiser, too seems steep but more so the fact that it is not an option to participate or not.

I agree that you shouldn't go in both barrels blazing but feel it appropriate to ask some questions. Find out if they have some legit reasons for their actions or if they were just waiting for someone with some know how to help them out.

While monthly meetings may not be appropriate, some meetings should be held. Again, it invites those that "lurk" to get involved without commitment. A no meeting policy seems very restrictive.

Thanks for the welcome...I'm not really new around here, though I've done an awful lot of reading and not a lot of posting :oX <----that's me with my mouth shut.


This group calls themselves a PTA, but they don't pay PTA dues, which will probably get them into trouble eventually. Because of my involvement with my children's old school, the new school's public relations director took me to meet the board nearly immediately. I offered my help, but I've been hanging back just a little because I'm thinking about going back to work for pay this year --1500 hours volunteer service to the kids' school last year earned me a few awards and some GREAT friends...but little extra money after that private school tuition!
but I digress...

It's good advice to hang back and not dive in wanting to change everything. I've just seen that a PTO can be so much more and want the best for my kids.

I love this place. I think I'll hang out awhile and maybe open my big mouth more often.

Paige

Our family did the same six years ago. We moved from a PTA in a public school to a PTO in a charter school and was amazed (at the time) to see the same issues of low attendance etc. The PTA asked $12 membership and had the "we'll call ya when we need ya." No dues in our PTO but my phones (or e-mail) is busy!

I went to the first meeting and listened...by the 3rd, 4th meeting they were asking about me and what I can do to help.

I was too amazed at the low attendance but grew to understand Monday nights and football (in Denver anyway) go hand in hand, unless the game is on Sunday . Little things you learn.

Most important....thank you for caring, thank you for wanting to help and before you jump, make sure you see how deep the water is .

I actually don't think this is a PTA or PTO question at all. In fact, RAF's using them interchangeably is a great example of how the acronym doesn't matter to the average parent. RAF just wants there to be a great group to get involved with.

And this particular affliction ("send us your money and don't bother us") of a parent group strikes both PTOs and PTAs.

While it certainly sounds like your group has some issues, I agree with JHB that the best next step is to approach the group open-mindedly and get involved. Don't go in guns-a-blazin' and demand change or insinuating that things are terrible. Cook some spaghetti or man the PTO booth at Open House a bit first. Your efforts to enact change -- if change is warranted -- will be more well-received and much more effective this way.

There's also merit in quietly finding folks who have a similar vision to you. A team carefully enacting change has far greater odds of success than one person.

Good luck,

Tim

I have the same questions as Metzy - PTO or PTA - because if you're a PTA MichelleB is the one who would know about the PTA angle. Your situation sounds AWFUL (I actually cringe thinking someone has it worse than me!), but definitely the no meeting thing is WAY out of line - HOW is anyone else supposed to have any input? Though I suppose this is a GREAT way to keep any meddling know-it-alls out!

If you have enough people who agree with you, I'd go to the pres/board first, and if you don't get it remedied that way, to the principal to share your concerns.

And YES $72 is WAY too much! We toyed with have offering packages, but realized it wouldn't fly here when you can go to any Walmart, Target or discount store and get things like book sox for a dollar on sale! And $25 for membership?!?! How many members do you have, and what the hell are they doing with the money? PTOs/PTAs are to my knowledge voluntary associations by nature (unless you're in a Catholic school), so how does paying $25 exactly entice people into being involved?

BTW - Welcome to the boards!

[ 08-19-2004, 09:15 AM: Message edited by: kmamom ]