You said in a previous post that you didn't think she would be voted onthe board. So now that she has apoligized, and assuming she still wants to be involved, how can you involve her and let her use the talents she has? Maybe with some training on the number of phone calls and the amount of notes sent home, she would be a great asset to your group, regardless of ebing on the board or not. It sounds as though she truely wants to be involved, and some of the problems she has caused have been from being dfensive about not being involved. The true test of you and your group will be how to over come this situation and be able to work with her. ultimately, the true goal of any group is the parental involvement factor. Some groups would say their main goal is to raise money for this or for that, but ultimately it is all about raising academic preformance. Research has shown that parental involvement is the true key to a great school and academic achievement. Students whose families are actively involved tend to have higher grades, better attendacnce, higher graduation rates, along with greater behavior. hence encourging family support and involvement is a critical part of the educational process that has astronomical benefits.--direct quote from the GA Journal of Reading. My point to all of this is that it is critical you include ALL the families you possibly can. Are they all easy to work with? NO. But people are lookign at you and how you handle this situation. Be the link that encourages involvement--even from those you may not particulary like.
I am the volunteer person for my group. A couple of people in my group are not happy with me this week. We have some teachers who are not actively involved in PTO functions. one is a shy teacher and the other is dating the shy teacher. We held a breakfast with Santa this morning and I had asked these two teachers to volunteer their time to help, since they don't have children and it would be only one morning. I was told by the president of my group that she was not going to work with them. On an emotional moment, I went and told these teachers that we had enough help and they would not be needed. I have regretted doing that ever since. I feel it is my position to try to include everyone I can--regardless of whether I like them or not. these are teachers in our school and should be involved. My point in telling this is to say to make the right decision and not the emotional one. Do what is best for the school and remember that people are watching you.
If the gal who was like that here last year wasn't still here, i would SWEAR it was the same woman! It sounds like there are mental health issues involved, ( albeit minor ones) and that's tough because her stability will always be a question. The gal we have can be like night and day.. confrontational and irrational one day, and sweet as pie the next....
If anything, these experiences teach us to be more understanding and compassionate, and it teaches us to be better people managers. As long as you continue to take the high road, stay professional, and keep it factual and all business, you will ALWAYS be respected, and no one can ever speak poorly of you.
And.. as much as you may want to, rise above the catty gossip and teach your board that while she isn't like you all, you have to respect her different opinion ( even though inside you want to SCREAM). and.. NEVER EVER say anything about anyone in an email! You have no control of your words once you hit SEND.. and people can cut/paste, edit, delete and forward.. and make a mess of things for you! [img]smile.gif[/img]
We met yesterday and it did not go well. The lady was not happy with anything. The principle was on our side and that made her mad. Her true self showed through and she looked crazy.
The principle called later and said that this lady had written us all apology notes. I will have to wait until Monday to read.
wow. I have read all the posts in this thread,and if it was the week AFTER Christmas, I would indulge myself to say much more. But, in short, you have a wingnut with a confrontational attitude. She would make me very mad, too. My guess is that she has an offensive personality, which is why all her calls make people mad. BY her making all the calls, makes it SEEM to the rest of the school that she represents, and is the voice of the PTO.. and if she makes people mad, then that means some GREAT potential NEW people may be turned off by her, and what they think is the PTO.
( we had one of these people last year.. and it was POISON for a year)
Lastly, I also would not tolerate 15 kids running around in my meeting. It is a business meeting, and should be run like one. Yes, it's their school, but Gillette Stadium is also the Patriots' home playing field, but I wouldn't expect them to be running through a meeting, if their board had a meeting down on the 50 yard line. [img]smile.gif[/img]
Bayshore - I hope your meeting went well today. I'm anxious to hear the outcome. It sounds like maybe emotions were running high and this meeting could be a good chance for everyone to get together and see that you all have the same goal.
I think I've been through nearly every phase of parent group participation from overzealous newcomer to slightly burned out veteran, at-large volunteer to president and every spot in between. Each role comes with its own challenges and rewards.
Congratulations to you and your team for working toward a positive resolution that allows everyone to be involved!
What is up with the 7 page letter demanding certain information? I find that odd in itself, what is her motivation? There seems to be a huge conflict with someone wanting to help and yet writing 7 page letter demanding speific PTO information, who is she the PTO police? She is a new parent, why does she not go to meetings, get used to the PTO and help out when commitee chair positions become avaliable? Is it too much to ask someone to play by the rules?
