Can we talk about the PTA?

What do they do exactly?
How do you join?
Any special "perks" for joining?
Are they really catty/cliquey?

TIA!

Re: Can we talk about the PTA?

My DD's school sent a notice the first week of school. You had to send in $8 if you wanted to join. The only perk in our school i that you must be a PTA member to be a class parent. They plan a lot of events (i.e. kindergarten breakfast, mother/daughter brunch, father/daughter dance, v-day party). They also do fundraisers which helps pay for school trips.

I joined and am a class parent for my daughter. We only have 5 meetings a year and I like to go because you hear everything first.

and YES it is very catty and cliquey.

Re: Can we talk about the PTA?

We got a notice at the beginning of the year with what the dues are and just sent that in with DD one day. They have meetings roughly once a month, they alternate between evenings and mornings so that working families can participate as well. The school might have gotten some kind of financial incentive from national if a certain percentage of families joined. I can't remember exactly.

I don't think there are really any perks, maybe you're more likely to get picked as a class mom if they know who you are but that's about all I've seen.

I don't find them to be especially catty or cliquey, but this is just my first year. Anything I've been to everyone's been really nice.

Re: Can we talk about the PTA?

The PTA is a major presence in the school. They do a lot of fundraising and activities for your children during the year.

In the beginning of the year they will send out info. If you are a new parent for kindergarten, I am sure they will have something I. Your welcome packet.


I think the only perk is that to become a class parent you have to join the PTA. In my school, it is $10 to join. I am the class parent this year for Jacob's class. I did it to be involved with him and for the teachers to know who I am. I volunteer on many committees so the more I do the more likely I will be class parent again. It is also nice when I walk into the school, the front office knows my face already..

It could be... You make it what it is.


You get involved as much as you want to be.....

Re: Can we talk about the PTA?

It is absolutely catty and clique-y and when I did try to get involved they shot down my ideas and treated me like a second-class citizen since I was an outsider.

I never went back.

Re: Can we talk about the PTA?

My friend is the opposite of cliquey and is in the PTA. She says this year is not at all cliquey, like years before. So I guess it can depend on leadership.

I just get annoyed bc only 2 meetings a year are at night and one of those was joint and was about older kids

Re: Can we talk about the PTA?

Thanks, I think I'm going to give it a try.

What does the class parent do?

Re: Can we talk about the PTA?

Re: Can we talk about the PTA?

every PTA is different, this is my 2nd year on the PTA... and my 1st year was for a school he went to last year (he is special needs so he went at 2 yeas of age)

at that school, none of the board members wanted to give up power or hear about new ideas, i went to every meeting, but i also knew my DS was not going to go back next year, so i ignored the cattiness.

this year my DS is BOCES and the PTA is WONDERFUL.

the board has no problem sharing responsibilities, hearing out new ideas and following through with them.

the only thing is to try it out and see if you like it.

i am extremely involved and it shows... teachers, the principal, VP, secretaries, everyone gets to know you, and they do notice when they see you at the school helping out at events.

for me i want to be as involved as i can... also because AJ is autistic, but also because this is where my child may end up until he is 9 if he doesnt get mainstreamed, so i want to see the ins and outs of everything, i want my voice to be heard.

sorry for the babble

Re: Can we talk about the PTA?

What do they do exactly?
They do a lot of stuff...fundraisers, breakfasts, collections, etc

How do you join?
I got a letter home from school at the beginning of the year. Being a working parent, I joined...but it's difficult to keep up sometimes with involvement. I am chairing Grandparent's Day in April and I am a little nervous because I have been traveling so much with work

Any special "perks" for joining? Not sure.

Are they really catty/cliquey? Very cliquey. I am working harder than I would like to make sure I get better face time with some of the moms because I am not usually home for pick-up and that's when a lot of the chatting goes down. Don't want Bella to lose out because we are working parents.