We had our Back to School breakfast for the teachers yesterday, it really is a nice thing that the PTO Presidents do and the teachers do appreciate it. It is a good way to get started on the right foot, becuase in years past...it hasnt been such a great relationship.
My idea to "bridge the gap" between teachers and PTO is to introduce a "TIP"- Teachers Incentice Program - I will cut and paste below. What do you think?
School 27 Teacher Incentive Program - The PTO wants to offer monthly drawings for school and classroom supplies, gift cards and other fun items for all teachers.
Teachers “earn” tickets by boosting teacher and student involvement in PTO events.
Teachers may earn tickets these ways –
One ticket for your paid membership in the PTO.
One ticket for every student who brings in a paid PTO membership.
One ticket for every student who returns a paid fundraiser order
* school 27 activewear, fall fundraiser, kidstuff/parkway press, book fair, etc.
One ticket for every PTO meeting you attend.
Tickets will be placed in the TIP jar and drawings are held on the last day of each month. Any suggestions for specific prizes? Please contact Julie or Patty.
We are doing a welcome back lunch with all the teachers and staff the week before school starts. That way I can meet all the teachers and we can ask them for their support.
One of the things that helped us was simply wearing nametags while in the building.
Our core officers spent a lot of time at school. But sometimes we might only know a few of the teachers (especially at first). Always wearing a large, easy-to-read namebadge with our PTO branding, name, and officer title really helped break the ice and emphasize our presence as a PTO role.
Now, many schools have nametags as part of their security precautions. Even so, I wouldn't necessarily give up on the idea of PTO namebadge. It's one thing to be seen as a familiar-looking parent up at school for whatever reason. Another to be wandering the halls as "PTO President".
We printed the conference style 3"x4" badges. Yes, people took them home and they got lost. But I use these a lot for work, so printing a new batch or replacements was no big deal for me.
