Our PTO charges $5.00/per family per year. We have the same amount of families joining as we ever did. We have about 650 students only 50 to 75 families join. Yes, we treat each family as if they were a member of PTO they just don't have a vote in issues. If they want to vote then they must join. There is a theme for every year. One year we had reaching for the starts and you put a big star for every teacher (with there name on it) then as families join you add a star with the child's name this serves as a visual reminder. We usually do membership drive the 1st two months of school. Another year we had a ice-cream theme and we put a cone with the teachers names and had ice cream scoops cut out with each child's name. Another year there were cookies jars and cookies were cut-out with the childs name. Then there is one for staff members as well, if there is 100% membership they get to have a party as well. We just starting doing them for the last 4 years.

Last year I served as VP for our group. My main responsibilities were to set the agenda for general membership meetings and line up a special program, if I chose to go that route. in the past we averaged approx. 12-20 members in attendance (that included the mandatory attendance by our teachers). I wanted desperately to change that. For starters, I met with the principal of our school to brainstorm on program topics and incentives to help people attend. We decided to: offer free childcare (1 teacher to supervise and junior high students to help), offer a meal prior to the meeting (served by our 8th grade students for a small donation--they go to DC every year as a class trip and used the funds to help defray the cost of the trip), to keep our meeting time under 1 hour, and to offer a special program that "hit home" with our families. Our first general membership meeting approx. 80 members attended to hear a presentation offered by our local police on school violence and bullies. At this same meeting, I made sure every person received a folder with a copy of our constitution/bylaws, treasury report, fundraising news, agenda, and a short survey. By having everything available at one time we were able to keep our meetings "short & sweet" and get to the program. The survey gave parents the opportunity to "grade" the program and offer suggestions for future programs. What a huge change!! Attendance has stayed up and I have received regular praises from our teachers and parents expressing their appreciation. It became apparent the our parents needed to feel that our group had something special to offer them. Our lives are busy but we manage to find a few extra minutes in our day when we feel the cause is worthy of our attention.

Also, our annual dues are much more ($25.00 per year) but all the money collected goes directly to our teachers. They use the money to purchase extra supplies, etc. that the school can not. All school families are considered members in good standing regardless of whether they pay their dues or not.

Hope this helps.

We are also a Title 1 school. Our PTSO had only 40 people pay the $1 in dues last year. Pretty sad. We started a major overhaul. First we eliminated dues and made everyone an automatic member. That didn't solve the problem of why only on average 8 people showed up at a meeting.

We decided to focus our efforts on getting people involved and not necessarily to meetings. Our incentives will be connected to the event. Bingo helpers will get a free card. Book Fair helpers get a book credit, etc, etc.

In an effort to get Teachers involved, we plan to request they come to at least one event per year to get their $30 teacher fund each.

In sounds almost like a bribe, but whatever works. Since this will be our first year of doing this, stay tuned!

In the past we also charged $5.00 per member, and had a pretty good success at getting nearly 100% membership every year - some years better than others.

The theme idea can be fun, for those that like to have enthusiasium, and such. Especially if the theme is carried out beyond just the membership - like into the carnival, and the holidays, and the spring fun (like a sock hop or such).

If you don't get into the fun, but just want the business aspect then a theme is not for you - and if you are the leader of the organization, they will catch onto what kink of fun or business direction you are going with.

I have been reading about the incentives (like pizza parties for 100% participation) and themes (like the ice cream cone) to get more families to join PTO. But do they really work? And dont you have any parents who feel "snowed". I feel like this would make some parents feel guilty, especially if they could not afford it. I am the incoming Pres. for a Title 1 school. I agree that the teachers would probably pick up the tab for the ones who could not afford it, defeating the purpose... I am all for trying new things but do not want to step on too many toes...

Right now we charge $5.00 per family. Is this too much?

Please give me any feedback you can on your experiences with this problem!!