Apparently the PTA everywhere BUT New Jersey can do playgrounds! For some reason, the New Jersey PTA has a few rules and regulations that set it apart from the rest. From what I heard, a number of lawsuits concerning playgrounds has made the PTA in Jersey unwilling to be involved. At first we were highly annonyed, but it turns out everything happens for a reason!

Hi!

I am a PTA treasurer. I would like you to know that a PTA can fundraise for playground equipment. We raised over 20,000 dollars for playground equipment last year. As for liability you would want the company that you purchase the equipment from to install it so you are not liable. Most playground equipment suppliers will come down in price so negotiate a lot.

Michelle B--You give me faith that not all PTA-ers are political women with self-esteem issues! If only you were in the PTA here! We're not at the point yet where we'll be contacting other PTAs, but it's good to know that we can when we need to. You're the best!

kmamom-
If you are still interested in connecting with other PTA's that have done what you are trying to do, please let me know. I have several schools in my district that have funded their playground (my son's own school is doing it now)
tryinghard-
As for the "rules" I couldn't say it any better than mum24, venz and Tim. Ditto to all of it.
As for your bully parents on a power trip, I'd say if you are up to it, take them down a notch. From what you describe, you'd likely have more supporters than opposers. People like that tend to leave a trail of enemies behind.
My biggest concern is the damage that they are doing and it should be stopped. It could be just as simple as contacting the state board. They could take it from there. The reason they continue to do this is because they've never been told not to and the longer it goes on the more powerful and dangerous they become. They're even pushing people out of the school.
I'd be more than happy to help you if you need contact information or any other resources.

trying hard--I am so sorry to hear how awful things are. I think everyone has had some sort of experience with people like that. It's amazing how just a few people can make it miserable for everyone. It's even worse when you feel powerless, or at least without support. But take heart in the saying, "what goes around comes around," because for the most part it's true. Think about it, these women don't sound as though they're making many friends! If you're going to stay in town, whether it's because you want to or just have no alternative, sit back, assess the situation and decide what exactly it is that you want. Then go about getting it. Don't feel powerless, because you aren't. There is support out there, you just have to find it. If those women are such PIAs. I should think the BOE would be a good place to start!

As far as our PTA situation here, that's pretty much what we did. We started out with a completely different frame of mind than we're in now, and a good deal of that is because of the info/opinions we read on these boards! We've come to realize the issue here isn't so much PTA in nature, but more personality-based. That's one reason we didn't push it further with them concerning the playground--it was a no-win situation, and would have created more hard feelings in the long-run than it was worth. We were afraid of getting drawn into a real power-struggle, and we realized that it wasn't so much power we were after, just a more balanced sense of it. We figured we'd pick our battles. It's just very frustrating, because our "personality-problems" have such a tight grip on who gets to do what, and most of the other moms are very intimidated by them. It's annoying to think I won't be too popular in certain circles, but I figure if that's the case these aren't people I would want as friends anyway! We got a wealth of information from another person in town who spear-headed her school's playground committee (ironically enough she's a PTA president!), so hopefully after we get the official OK from the superintendent we'll be able to move past this.

Thanks so much to venzmama and mum24kids;your input is valuable, especially when we'll be meeting with these women again in the future!

Finally found the wording that some PTAs use to argue that they shouldn't be fundraising for things like playgrounds.... It is not in the bylaws, although supporters argue that it is based in bylaws, specifically in what is usually the "purposes" section. No where is it listed in the purposes of the PTA to raise money to buy things for schools/students; it's all loftier stuff like "secure adequate laws for the care and protection of children and youth" and "develop between educators and the general public such united efforts as will secure for all children and youth the highest advantages in physical, mental, social, and spiritual education." And those people think that since the bylaws don't say you *can* fundraise for certain things, then you can't.

In the National PTA's "Money Matters" publication, a policy manual which addresses treasurers' reponsibilities and fundraising policies, there is this sentence:

A PTA renders a greater service by working to secure adequate funding for programs that have a more enduring benefit than purchasing equipment for schools.

I've seen this sentence paraphrased in a few different ways on several state websites, usually in a fundraising section.

BUT, to rely on this one sentence (which seems to be pretty common, as Tim notes) is to really take the thing out of context. PTA people should take a look at that whole "Standards for PTA Fund-Raising" section (page 16 of "Money Matters"--it's available on the PTA website), but I think it's pretty clear in there that individual PTAs still have quite a bit of leeway. It does say that "each PTA must decide what it will do."