In an effort to get a handle on copying costs, our school district implemented a program under which each teacher is given a code for the copier(it has a built in program for this)and they are then allotted so many copies per month. It keeps people from just copying anything they want and forces them to look for ways to conserve(like double-sided copies or using an overhead to display the information and having the students write answers on notebook paper). The PTO pays the school district a per year sum to cover our copies and often times we supply our own paper because we like to send items home on colored paper so it gets people's attention. As you can see there are ways to save money in this area. I agree with the above posts that it's a lot to ask of the PTO to cover this cost and that the problem will just be forgotten and become a regular PTO budget item. That's a lot of money that could be going for programs and materials that will truly improve educational opportunities for the children!

This issue of what the school should supply vs. what the PTO should supply comes up so often in our meetings...here's my two cents worth. I understand that this is a case by case situation, and that some PTO's choose to add money to the general fund through fundraising, but I personally don't like this. Why? What happens if you your fundraiser isn't as profitable as the year prior? What if you supply one salary this year and next year the district cuts another salary? Are you expected to pick that one up too? When did the PTO become a financial source first and foremost instead of a group of volunteers helping in the classrooms? I realize that I'm in a unique situation with my children's education, but instead of rolling with the punches maybe we, as voters, should be mad enough to step up and demand changes. Where do our tax dollars go? Where are all these budget cuts coming from and why are the schools taking the brunt of it? Or help the school be more creative in their funding...maybe that money being budgeted for new technology can come from a grant or a position could be part-time shared with another school. Put this back on the school board and make them spend our tax dollars more wisely! Just my two cents! :cool:

After reading what JHB and Critter posted, it also made me think to add this thought:

What happens if your group were to disband (knock on wood, but you know what I mean... read on...) or if they have a bad fundraising year, or something equally disasterous? The school would have become dependent upon those funds, all the while budgets cuts were taking place... I think it is better to let the school handle filling the gaping hole aka budget cut. And there is always the question of how long to keep doing it. We made a 3 year committment (several years ago) to put up $10K each year towards a computer lab. Is your group ready to make a multi year committment? Now, that doesn't mean that a little bit of creative financing isn't in order, ala Critter's idea. I think that 'paying' the school to use the copy machine, paper, actually any and all supplies used by PTO's is a great idea. I'm looking at the other idea (500 ways to support your school) as a real possibility at our own school. I'm going to bring that up to our principal tomorrow. What a great idea!

Just as a last note: I really want to point out that as long as PTO's 'give' schools the money that districts cut out of the budget, the budgets will continue to get cut because on the districts bottom line, there is no distinction about how the school made up the difference. Only that it survived just fine without the district funds. I think that eventually, schools may have to start going bankrupt before the budgets quit getting cut. I'm saying it very badly, but I think you will get the gist of what I mean. Hopefully...

I'll focus on the specific point of copier paper, though the bigger issue of how far a PTO should go in supporting the school's budget is an important question indeed...

Our PTO pays the school $400 per year for the privilege of using the school's copier. We don't pay "per copy" and no one does an accounting on the number of copies we make, we just settled on $400 a few years ago and that keeps everyone happy. At $3 per ream of paper, the school could buy 133 reams. I'm not sure how fast that would be consumed, but it's more than zero reams!

We also have proposed a small fundraiser to help offset paper costs specifically. Our parents would pay $3 per ream (a 500 page package of paper) to write a note on the outside of the ream wrapper to their child, their child's teacher, the principal, whomever. When the ream of paper is finally opened and used, the teacher's aid cuts the note off the wrapper and sends it to the proper recipient. It sounds a little silly, but we've called it "Sponsor a Ream, 500 Ways to Support Your School". We would promote the program with a mini-education on the amount of paper the school uses/week, the costs, etc. Our proposal is to take orders at our upcoming family night, so the parents would write the notes themselves and we save having to use yet another piece of paper for an order form. We haven't tried this yet, just an idea.

TheMetzyMom has a good point. Our school has two sale type fundraisers a year. Years ago, they belonged to the school. For the last 10+ years they belonged to the PTO. Two years ago, the district auditor advised the Principal to take one back. This year, it was decided at the district level that the school will own all sales-type fundraisers. (The PTO has Spring Event and other activities.)

The point is, when the school owns the fundraiser, they can do what they need to with the money. It's still not great to have to supplement the budget with student raised funds - but at least it keeps the responsibility within the school.

As for us - the process changes very little regardless of who "owns" it. Our same parents have input as to the type of sale, volunteer, count funds, distribute product. And we are fine with it. The big difference is that the Principal signs the contract with the company and funds get deposited in the school account.

The PTO can do anything it believes assists in its mission (well, within reason, the law, etc.).

This is a tough one, but my own opinion is that you don't want to supply PTO funds to cover basic supplies and operations. That's a bandaid approach that doesn't help in the long run.

Once the school budget starts counting on supplemental funds from the PTO, it's hard to go back. If more funds open up, they probably won't be allocated back to this area. This area will no longer be the crisis of the day. Any extra funds will go to the most desperate issue on the table at the time. (And there are so many to choose from!)

I know many districts are hit hard and many PTOs are supplementing all kinds of school programs - even saleries in some cases. My personal opinion is that the school/district has to be able to deliver the core programs, services, supplies without depending on the PTO.

By no means am I saying that what the PTO provides is fluff. PTO's offer valuable programs.

But my personal opinion would be, "no", the PTO should not pay for the school's copy paper.