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How can we increase participation at PTA meetings?
Nov 2008
Hi, I'm not sure if this question is best for the advice list or the schools list but i'll start here... Our wonderful oakland public school has lots of parent involvement but our PTA meetings have very low attendance. We're trying to get more folks out and for some reason we're having a hard time. I'm looking for some feedback on how other ptas conduct their meetings... Do you have board meetings separate from general pta meetings? Do you combine them? Are there any schools out there with some great ideas on how to get parents out? We've tried providing childcare, lectures, dinner but nothing is really sticking. Thanks in advance for your tips! anon
I am a 2nd year PTA President and I used to worry about this. Now I think small meetings are a blessing, depending on who shows up. If people are showing up because they want to be involved and want to support the group, it's great. However, sometimes folks show up who want to stir the pot and/or vent about stuff that bores/irritates the rest of the parents. Unfortunately, some parents can be quite negative and hypercritical. I'm not sure they realize how they sound to others.
If you are not getting a quorum to do business, that is a problem. One suggestion is to take each of your board members aside and explain to them why it's important to be able to do PTA business at meetings. Also, your teacher rep (if you have one) and your principal can cast votes too.
I think separate board meetings are important so the entire group doesn't feel obliged to approve the specific language in contracts, develop/evaluate programs, or craft the budget. That's really the board's role because they have the big picture of what the needs are, how much money you have raised or plan to raise to support the programs, and whether it's realistic to implement something given the number of active volunteers you have.
You can also try the following:
-remind people ''in person'' or via phone call to come on the day of the meeting. Sometimes busy parents just forget.
PTA mom
That's always a challenge. We've tried different things at our Berkeley elementary school and at one meeting had over 100 people show up! Generally, though, it's around 40-50. There are 300 families at our school all-told.
We jump-started the process by paying a teacher from each grade to attend the first annual PTA meeting. Each teacher led a break-out group of grade-level parents. The principal gave the keynote presentation explaining the direction of the school. We made sure the meeting was well organized, engaging, informative, and participatory. By paying teachers, we also had them call all the parents in their class to invite them to the meeting. It worked!
Once we broke the barrier and got people to experience a PTA meeting, as long as we kept meeting topics relevant and meetings participatory and well-executed, people kept coming back. PTA meetings that involve the minutia of planning events kill the energy, though some of that is necessary and can be fun.
There always need to be a draw, though. It's even good to have at least one annual meeting with no business. One year that meeting was with a speaker who presented on discipline skills and methods. Another year it was a speaker presenting a film and facilitating a discussion on race issues. Both were very well attended, very well received, and kept PTA participation high.
Our executive board meetings are always separate. By following the PTA by-laws, we realized we needed to add the principal, a teacher liaison (a teacher), and a Parliamentarian to our board. Those additions have also made a huge difference! Hope this helps. Good luck! Anon, former PTA president
You might start by trying to figure out why people aren't coming to the meetings. Is it lack of interest? transportation issues? safety concerns? not enough publicity? work schedules? Once you can identify the barrier(s) to participation, you can start to take steps to address them.
Personal outreach in general is the most effective engagement tool. If your school has room parents, try having each room parent personally reach out to other parents in their class at drop off and pick up, or make phone calls about the meetings. Advertise widely. Send home flyers, put up posters, have an 'auto-call' go out to all the households. If your school has significant non-English speaking populations make sure you are doing outreach in other languages and providing translation. You might rotate the time of day the meetings occur (alternate between day and evening to accommodate different schedules). If you have a core group of people who come, have each one of those people recruit additional parents to come with them. In other words, use the base of participation you have, and build upon it. Often people on the ''inside'' of the PTA can feel like martyrs, a few doing all the work. While people on the ''outside'' may not be clear on what is needed, how to engage, or why it is important.
I'm happy to talk through other ideas, if that would be helpful. Good luck! Abby
I missed your original post, so apologies if you're already doing this. Our PTA meetings are very well attended and I can tell you that one of the primary reasons I go and participate is because our PTA provides free childcare at the meetings (for kids who are potty trained). They hire a few sitters and a couple of parents and they feed the kids pizza. My kids actually look forward to going each month because they know they'll have a good time with their friends. Happy PTA participant
I would recommend starting by talking to the PTA president about your concerns. See if they share your concerns and can brainstorm ways to raise this with the school community. Perhaps you can do a presentation at a PTA meeting. Perhaps the school principal can be engaged. Consider ways to center the views and needs of families that are being dismissed and overlooked by wealthier parents. Thank you for recognizing this problem and best of luck in addressing it.
You could almost be describing my children's public school and I wouldn't be surprised if this is an issue across other Bay Area public schools located in neighborhoods that have been gentrified. I commend you for noticing and wanting to shift the tone, and I'd be curious to hear what others have to say. I have a few thoughts though: firstly, have you inquired with or looked at your school's PTA board to see if the PTA leadership have a similar condescending view or are they also cognizant of the offensive tone these newer parents haven taken on (I assume the PTA is the one doing the fundraising and would therefore be leading or at the very least, guiding/monitoring such discussions)? Or maybe this younger cohort of parents are in PTA leadership roles, in which case, YIKES! Secondly, as this isn't something that you should tackle alone (hopefully, there are others who've noticed what you've highlighted), I'd encourage you to bring it up with the principal. You mentioned the school leadership is amazing and committed so they can't be blind to what's been happening and may have a few thoughts as well. Also, does your school have a Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) parent group or something of this nature? If so, maybe you can inquire with them? Essentially, I'm encouraging you to seek out others who hold similar concerns so that you can come together to see what can be done.
So it sounds like your concerns are that (1) some parents want to stop distributing "unhealthy boxed snacks" in the after school program; (2) some parents want to offer cash bonuses to attract new teachers and (3) some parents want to encourage donations to the school by telling adjacent homeowners that those funds would improve the school. Your post uses terms like "poaching" that make these activities sound nefarious. I think these perceptions might be a little harsh. Some might think, for example, that parents who know that some children consume snacks as an evening meal have a moral responsibility to advocate that more nutritious snack food be distributed by the after school program.
How could you know whether "most parents" at the school have lived in integrated areas before or whether it is "likely" that they will not have further "experience with integration?" You are also concerned that these parents "congregate" at drop off, pick up, and school events and express their own opinions about how their children's school is run. How do you suppose the school authorities could put a stop to that?
Maybe the problem is that you are making unfair assumptions about parents with whom you disagree.
I hear you on the introvert part, but at the same time, it's important to be a voice where others more directly impacted by this shift may not have the time and space to speak up. Maybe start by hanging out with the group so you can naturally join in on the conversations as they happen, and redirect them to ask the difficult questions. Casually bring up the premise of what happened in Nice White Parents if they don't already know the story and inquire whether or not they want to be contributing to creating the same dynamic in Oakland, which is already happening. The idea of doing anything that increases property values in communities that are already unattainable to born-and-raised Oaklanders is tone deaf and colonial mentality (see recent Oaklandside article: https://oaklandside.org/2022/10/06/oakland-housing-market-affordable-li… ). People don't like being called on their s%$* and you'll likely receive some backlash, but you've got to develop a thicker skin and keep pushing, even if it's an uphill battle. I'm rooting for you!
I empathize with you because I was in a similar place with my child's school not that long ago. I am also white, but my son is mixed race, and his school is very diverse racially and socio-economically. I started to notice that many of the activities at the school (especially events hosted by the PTA) were exclusive to only families that could afford to pay a certain amount, which left out many. I stay quiet for a while and simmered, not wanting to rock the boat BUT that was not the right thing to do. This kind of thing is lingering just below the surface. I started to get involved in the school and the PTA. I started to slowly talk to more parents about my concerns and guess what? So many people had the same thoughts too! It took some time, but we now have open conversations about topics like this and things are shifting. The school staff is more aware and even the composition of the PTA has changed and become more inclusive. I know it probably seems daunting, especially as an introvert but just start by doing something little. Volunteer in your child's classroom or at an event or hang around for parent chat one day after drop off. Slowly start becoming friendly with others and have an opinion on what's going on. If others don't feel the same way as you, at least you are putting it out there and they are thinking about it. The word will spread and that's what you want to happen. I wish you the best of luck...I know this isn't easy!