Blogs

April 28, 2014

Why is a printed school directory more insecure than a mobile and online directory?

Auctioning off a 2006-2007 Hale/Field school directory… #WHSassassins pic.twitter.com/gkYqJzP0so Sarah Petersen, April 23, 2014 The print school directories is a valuable tool for parents who want to connect with other parents in their school community.  However, these print directories also represent a security risk since they can be readily transferred to anyone outside of the intended school community.  An extreme misuse of the directory and its contents is illustrated by an example of an ongoing online auction of school directory to the highest bidder. Please show your strong disapproval of this directory auction posting.  A collective request to remove this posting will prevent similar postings in the future.
November 7, 2013

Top Ten Fundraisers for PTAs and PTOs

10. Offer your PTA Members year-round activities for a membership fee that will help them come together as a community. 9. A Silent auction is a great way to raise funds through items donated by the families in the school community. 8. Find a cause that is relevant to your community and have members rally around it. 7. Having a fun walk or 5K run for a cause will help raise funds for the PTA and the school. 6. A Family Fair that is held on a weekend is a great fund raiser during the winter months. 5. A Bingo night with basket raffles is a a great fund raiser 4. Holiday gift sales with a markup on gifts bought in bulk with online discounts. 3. Bake Sales and Cake walks with cakes donated by families in the school is a great targeted fund raiser. 2. Partnering with food companies, […]
August 18, 2013

PTA/PTO Directory Chair’s critical role

You care deeply about your child’s school and PTA/PTO activities. You are dedicated, have organizational skills and you want to make a difference. That is why you volunteered to become Directory Chair, taking on the responsibility of compiling this year’s school directory. Now, you have a headache, because the process is tedious, wrought with inefficiencies, and demanding. Here are a few sources of headaches for any parent involved in the directory creation process.   1. Collecting Information from Families Some parents never send in their forms. You can’t blame them, though, considering the multitude of forms they are asked to fill out every year by the school. The Directory Chair goes after each parent/family to collect the forms. 2. Typing, Formatting, Editing, Checking all the Information The pile of filled-out address forms is sitting on your desk. Now it’s time for you and your team of dedicated volunteers to type […]
March 2, 2013

School Directory Production

School Directory Production can be a torturous process I was talking to the “PTA ex-Directory Chair” in one of the Elementary Schools about the school directory process in her district. She told me that after three years of producing the school directory for her elementary school, she was “BURNED OUT” and stepped down last year. Let me call her Mrs. Directory Chair. Mrs. Directory Chair was very frustrated about the problems she faced in the school. They used archaic systems to collect the information, namely paper forms. Although the district collected the information, they would not give her the updates she needed for the existing parents. This was in part due to the “privacy policy”. Each time she would walk into the office to get some information, they would ask her for all her details ALL OVER again. And she was visiting them three to four times a week! Although […]