Over the many years I've compiled a dcoument containing lots of gread starter ideas to create a themes for the upcoming membership chairmen.
If you are interested in obtaining a copy of that compilation of themes for your planning, you are welcome to email me personally, cuz I don't get back here very often (PTA days are dwindling down:) so I don't mind your email request.
Dinee This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
e ! One quick note...by the way THere are four "new " faces that have been very active this year....those four faces were parents who tried the PTA on numerous occasions and after ahalf of year of seeing the different approach they are now involved.Sad part is two of them their kids are moving onto middle school in the fall. I also managed to get the old PTA co-president involved again !She loves helping but not being in charge and we have had NO problems at all !
[ 02-17-2003: Message edited by: pals ]</p>
"When you stop learning you stop growing."
Hi e !
Wow you sound like where I was exactly a year ago. Our PTA had been dissolved by the principal after the membership got down to four members who turned away new help. After the principal asked me to run the PTO i knew what the parents didn't like so I did the opposite. First I wrote a letter about the group being new, new ideas, new out look. I stayed away from name calling because that's what turned parents away in the first place! I then started a montly flyer listing everything that was being planned, and other topics that came up. Any one who came to a meeting receives a hand wriiten THank You And to this day I still do that. They need to know that they are appreciated ! I also would stay in contact with parents between meetings, making myself available ! every meeting I try to do a fun thing which each person does a piece and all the pieces make the big picture...so they can see that they are needed for the picture !
After events They get a small thankyou gift (magnets, ornaments, goody bag) that is labeled with the event name. I use to get discourage because I could get people to volunteer but not come to the meetings..however that changed this year > Yes its alot of work but they need to feel needed , appreciated and let down your guard so they can get to know the real group. I went through this with the teachers also ! I could go on forever with this but i hope these tips give you something to go by. Other things i did was make the name known on every event, set up info tables at all schhol events, and talked at k-orientation. The over all line was the last pTA meeting had 4 people ,last year I averaged 10 parents at the meetings. it's only been a year and a half, this year we are averaging 19, but at events we are averaging 31 volunteers. We have brought back events that havent happen in years...some 20 years ! Good Luck ..it will happen and remember rome wasn't built in a day ! It can be done...I know that from experience!
"When you stop learning you stop growing."
go through the archives and older threads to read other posters' ventings on this topic and the advice they were given.
In a nutshell, there are membership drives you can run in the beginning of the year to catch parents when they are most interested. Then keep communication going all year - newsletters, letters about programs, hold family events, and be sure to keep your faculty involved as well...."Outreach"....ask for ideas from parents (i.e. surveys) on ways to get them in - what do they want from the group and get the teachers' thoughts on it as well. Remember, their needs are a lot differents from, say, a stay-at-home mom, but their input is just as important.
Also...It is easy to fall into a lull and rely simply on the "faithful", but you've probably got a hidden treasure trove of eager volunteers who just don't know where to begin or who to ask. That is why open lines of communication are so important.
There are lots of ways to make meetings "interesting", but face it, you're never going to get 100% involvement and participation, no matter what you do.
Accept what help you can get in the name of "participation" in your group and help advocate for greater "involvement" in education, because the fact is, the two are not synonymous. If you only get 15 or 20 people out to one of your meetings, but can get 75 to 100 families to one of your family events, don't consider yourself a failure - meetings aren't for everyone, but that doesn't mean they don't care about their children's educations or don't want to be "involved".
I am a new PTO president this year. In fact I walked into my very first mtg and walked out as president...I am still trying to figure out how that happened! I am at a loss as to how to get people to sign up for PTO and then how to keep them involoved. We had a drawing for gift certificates for anyone who signed up, and got a lot of "new members". Since then though, our active membership has declined. At our last mtg we only had 6 people show up and that includes all of the officers. We have had alot of people comment that they were offended by some of the officers last year and did not want to participate because of this. Most of these people (former officers) will be leaving this year, but I am not sure how to get the word out that PTO is "under new management" without offending anyone. I would like to get a great start next year with lots of members...any ideas?
