The same thing is happening at our school. You would not reserve the sets for whites only, Christians only, men only etc. so how can we allow them to be reserved for rich only? I have no problem with the school auctioning off special experiences such as tour with a custodian but once they are auctioning off things that belong to all students (the right for their parent to sit in the front row regardless of their income) it crosses the line. I think it's okay to do this at a private school. I don't like it but you are choosing to participate in a private organization which can make up its own rules. Public schools however have the legal right to offer equal services to all and be stewards of their resources. For example they can auction off extras school desks if they have already given every child a desk. They can't auction off desks and make some students to stand. It's such a fine distinction that I know it seems picky but if you allow public schools to give items that equally belong to all students any to a private organization, you are probably in violation of the law and at a minimum the taxpayer covanant.
I see where you're coming from. But how would one get a front-row seat normally? Just by coming early, right? And you could come early and reserve 4 seats for your family. So, I guess it's sort of like the PTA president is coming early and reserving 20 seats for a big family.
It might make more sense to reserve only half the front row, so that those people who have more time than money (can get there early and camp out) can benefit.
Regarding point 2, you can certainly put "reserved" cards on the chairs.
I am the former PTA president at our local elementary school. I've been "less active" for awhile so I missed the opportunity to challenge this concept in it's preparatory stage. Up front, this is very disturbing to me because the group that I led for those years does not resemble the one in front of me now at all.
The scoop is this. We have an upcoming Silent Auction. The PTA intends to auction off front row/choice seating to upcoming school concerts and the 5th Grade "graduation" event. There are so many ways in which this could go wrong - all of which making the PTA look bad - but nobody seems to want to hear it. Here are some reasons why I think this is a bad idea:
1. The "haves" vs. the "have nots". "My parents are too poor to sit in the front"
2. What happens when someone walks in the door for these events that is unaware of this and is displeased for any reason?
3. What about all of the special scenarios that the band/choral director has to cope with (wheelchair-bound family members, the lack of room in our cafetorium, etc.)?
4. Finally, I question the authority of the PTA to auction off property that isn't theirs to begin with - and I question the Principal's authority to offer the seats on the same point of view. It's a public, free event. We cannot charge admission for it so how can we "sell" seats that we don't own?
We are talking about the entire front row, 20+ seats, out of 250. Nobody will lose their ability to sit or to see their child. It's just that all of the above reasons make it a terrible concept in my view.
How do you all feel? (Please be nice...even if you disagree). If you have some factual points to bring to the table (i.e. PTA guidelines say no or Public School guidelines typically say yes), that'd be very helpful.
