Not only is the risograph faster but it is far less expensive to run than a xerox or copier and saves the school money.
Honestly, while I am able to access the copiers after school hours, the mailboxes which are located in the office, is locked when the last of the staff leaves. I have never attempted to access this room after normal school hours unless it is during our PTA meetings which our principal attends. At our former school, the office was locked at 4pm every day and no one was allowed in afterwards.
While I am normally on your side with these things, I'd have to say that this time, it's not an unreasonable request if it is for ALL people and groups. If, say your PTA, is still allowed in at 8pm but you are not, then I'd take issue but if the rule has been put in place for all to follow, then I'd say pick your battles. Also, by coming into the school after hours, and asking a custodian to be present, they are being paid to clean the school, not babysit the volunteers. Just playing devil's advocate here so please don't take offense.
A risograph is a high speed copying workhorse. It is something like 80 times faster than a regular copy machine, even xerox's best...lol... We have 3 Xerox machines and one risograph machine. If you are making less than 75 copies, a regular machine is used. If you are making 75 or more copies, it is cheaper to use the riso. The riso works like copiers of old... it doesn't make double sided copies with the touch of a button, you feed one side through and then refeed the papers for a double sided copy. Thing is, you can do 200 double sided copies on a riso in the same time it takes to do 20 double sided on a regular machine...
As for flyers: I have made up all of the flyers and newsletters for our group each year that I've served with the group. I made up the flyers for Site Council when I served on that board. I usually handle any mass flyers for fundraisers as well, even if they are not for the group (we recently had a fundraising drive for a teacher... long story... another time... but one of the teachers and I did the flyers for that). While not 'a must', I do run all flyers through our wonderful office manager (for proof reading and suggestions) and then through our principal (respectful of her position, and honestly she needs to know what we're doing. Put those facts with the fact that she is my friend and I just think it's the right and fair thing to do...). I usually do the flyers at home and then once I have approval, I run them on the riso machine and distribute them...
I am truly blessed with our set up right now. I am not even a "real" group. There is just me that is doing fundraising stuff (and have been given complete control over that!). We only have 9 classes, so I just take the flyers, etc to each teacher in their class. And for right now, I don't have to get anything ok'd first. In January, I am going to form an "official" parent/student activiities group, but for right now there is just me. And I do have my own mail box in the office. Although I don't think the secretary likes it, since she refuses to put anything in there and makes me search her out to get things from her. But oh well, it isn't worth fighting with her about it....right now at least!
Our mailboxes are all in the main office, just outside the principal's and vice's offices, and are also right next to a door leading into the hallway, which is left open 99% of the time, so really anyone could duck in there and grab stuff.
I realize I'm making a mountain out of a mole hill, but it's just that this was NEVER an issue in the forty odd years the school has been in existence. Until we came along, that is. It's the trust thing that bothers me.
Metz--I'm jealous! Not only does your group get a box, but you do as well! We weren't allowed a mail slot ("not enough room" YEAH, right), and we had to BEG to get our mail bin, which I provided, on a storage shelf below the mailboxes. Which of course, never gets filled- generally our stuff gets dumped into the PTA mailbox. Thank God I happen to hold a chair position, so I don't get too much flak for being seen in it. (Yes--the principal and Vice principal have interrogated me about what I was doing in there. Mind you I've seen KIDS rifling through there with them not ten feet away).
BTW--what is a risograph, and how do you handle your fliers (approval for and handing out)?
Like Metzy, I have lost count how mant times I have been asked if I work at the school! We have a box in the front office for PTO mail and I am allowed in the lounge to distribute mail but not without approval like you kma.
I also run the copies for the PTO and recieve the bulk of flyers that need to go home so it is nice to have that level of comfort to do "offical Hogwarts Business" ( a group of middle school kids call my work that).
I truely appricate this level of comfort though. Took a long time to achieve!
Our group has a box. I have my own box. We all have access the same as the teachers. I often do flyers before and after school. Thing is, I do the risograph for the school (there is actually a small group of us who do this: my best friend, myself, and my husband. We do the riso for the whole school), so it wouldn't be cool if we didn't have access to the boxes at any given hour. I've been known to run an evening event and put the Thank You cards in the boxes before I leave, and that sometimes means 9:00 p.m.! Trust has never been an issue between the school and our group (even after the embezzlement), and I am thought of as staff considering I put in as many hours a week as they do...lol... and I'm not kidding...
