While I have no research on the topic, I am of the opinion that people who are involved in PTO are also involved in other civic organizations. I dont not, however, think that PTO is the only catalyst (unless there is a specific education related issue). It's sort of like asking which came first, the chicken or the egg. IMO, it's the personality type that gets someone involved in PTO to begin with, and that same personality type would be involved with civic issues and volunteer organizations not related to PTO. Now, I do believe that PTO can serve to motivate people (we hold voter registration drives during election years, established a major donation drive to help hurricane victims, etc) so for those who participate on the periphery, the PTO can provide an outlet. But, for those who are your "hard core" volunteers and community activists, they would be involved regardless of a PTO's existance (in fact, if there wasn't a PTO, they would be the ones organizing a new group). -- If any of this makes sense --
I am trying to find out if membership in a PTO/PTA makes people more likely to participate in other civic groups. Does PTO membership make someone more likely to vote in an election? Members seem to be active in many facets of society, so, are members more likely to be involved in civic participation than parents of school-age children who are not involved in PTO? Thanks for any help,
Weylan This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
