Our School Board offers a county wide PTO meeting about every other month. All the PTO's PTA's are invited. I find that some of the meetings are very helpful. They usually have a guest speaker (fundraising rep, or grant writer) and then it is time for everyone to break off into groups and brainstorm and exchange stories. (like what fundraiser did or didnt work and why) It is neat to be able to meet other Family Group Presidents...

We did this and it was really helpful. We have 3 elementary schools in our district and I invited all the officers to come to a meeting and bring anything that they'd like to share- budgets, meeting minutes, cool fundraising ideas, etc. We talked about everything under the sun and all got new ideas. We've met a few times. Unfortunately, no one except me takes the time to organize it so we just meet whenever I can pull it together. We have also done two joint events - a candidates forum for people running for the school board and a fundraiser fair (15 vendors - from direct sales to the wrap and candy companies) that was open to all kinds of fundraising groups. I wish we could do more things like that.

In our district the officers from 5 elementary schools have met together on and off for 3 years. we have all met with the superintendent. We have been meeting with him every other month for the last year. and it works out well. he hears what is on our minds and we get to ask him for up to date info. It has cut thru a ton of red tape and wasted meeting time. And sometimes your principal can't help you-you need to talk to the boss.

Meeting with the other schools gives you a new perspective. every school PTO does things a little differently and you may learn something. The first year we met together, we shared concerns about a field trip all the 4th graders in the district take. By sharing ideas we helped 2 schools save $500 for buses.

It is also good to be able to talk with someone who shares the same problems and frustrations. Someone who understands when you complain and knows you don't mean all of it.

Meet with the other schools! We do this in our district and it's very productive. It also makes your school district realize that the PTO members have a say on various issues within the district. Our superidentent is present at our meetings and he is always eager to know what is going on in the community and what concerns the parents may have. We have clarified misconceptions and voiced our opinions on major issues. It's good to know our district cares. It makes all the volunteering much more rewarding for us and allows us to serve our individual schools better. Good luck!

Our district has 5 elementary schools and 2 middle schools. All the PTO Presidents meet with the Superintendent of Schools about every 6 weeks... we have the District Community Relations person come in, the Asst. Superintendent of Curriculum come in to talk, etc... We chat about different approaches to fundraising (what worked/what didn't), safety issues, community-wide issues, etc... This has worked for the past 7 years or so. It's a great way to "compare notes" and "stuff," supposedly on a higher order. At our last meeting we talked about what everyone is doing with all the money they're making (the elementary schools) from fundraisers... and why we raise as much as we do (I told 'em to give it to the middle schools, we don't do fundraising)... and to tackle the question: "what really is the purpose/mission of a PTO?" (This from one of our new Presidents.)

We used to have a group called the PTC ... the Parent Teacher Council. Quite similar to the above, but maybe on a bit of a lower/more detailed level. Great concept... lousy execution. The idea was to have a parent and teacher rep from each school in the District along with a couple School Board members. It fell apart because the teachers wouldn't show up and the School Board members were always over committed.

I guess it’s like anything else... so much is dependent upon s/he who's the top authority figure of the group. Without that personal interest and commitment, it's next to impossible get it from everyone else.

We tried this a couple of years ago in our district, just an informal lunch with the PTO officers, and it was a great way to exchange ideas. The only drawback was that we tried to meet once a month, and that was too much. This year our School Board President is arranging 2 or 3 meetings with the officers because he wants to see better communication between the Board, the PTOs and the administration.

I think this is something that could work very well for you. It's a great source of new ideas and you can probably work out a solution to all those fundraisers at the same time that will benefit all the schools. Good luck!