| Meetings Our PTA must hold at least three general meetings during a school year. Traditionally we hold our first general meeting at Back to School Night, where we ask our members to vote in that year's PTA budget. Our second meeting is held in January or February, and the final meeting is held at the volunteer luncheon in May. We submit the names of the nominees for the upcoming executive board for vote at the May general meeting. The PTA board (the "skeleton" of the PTA unit) meets each month (this year the 2nd Tuesday of the month) to discuss ongoing PTA issues, correspondence, fundraising, programs, etc. Members are allowed to attend these meetings. If a member wishes to address the board about an issue, that member should contact the PTA secretary to add the issue to the agenda, as we often have many things to go over. Our board positions are limited to two years. Board members may take another position on the board after two years, but cannot continue in the same position after that term length. Having a position on the PTA board gives you a tremendous amount of insight into the school and to PTA activities, and gives you a voice within the school community to advocate for the students and their needs. / |
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| Committees Our activities are supported by committees. Committee chairs volunteer for the upcoming year and fill that position for a year, or longer if they choose. Committee chairpersons are the "muscle" of our PTA. They give their time and efforts to produce great products and/or activities for the students, parents, and teachers. And they bring in the "fun" to our organization! Volunteers to assist with the committees are found through the signing up at the beginning of the school year. We send out two sign-up volunteer forms - one for the school and classroom, and one for PTA committees. When you sign up to assist with PTA committees, your name will be submitted to the committee chairs. Some committees are ongoing (like our baking brigade), and some work for a single event (like the Fall Festival). When the committee chair starts planning, you will be contacted to assist. Volunteering to be a committee chair or assist with a committee is a fantastic way to get involved and learn more about the school! And the children love to see their parents working at or for the school. For working parents, there are many opportunities to do work at home or after hours for our events. |
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| Communication The CMES PTA communicates with parents in a variety of ways. In the fall of 2009, we've partnered with the school to bring Find Out First to parents on a school level. We will send updates and reminders through Find Out First. Flyers that require signing up for an activity will come home either electronically or by paper in the Thursday folder (we are working towards becoming as paperless as possible). A monthly newsletter has traditionally been sent home and will likely take electronic form with Find Out First. Most importantly, we have our cmespta.com website which has our calendar, useful information, forms, contact information, etc. You can also visit our parter website http://www.tlcgraduatecredits.com// |
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| Fundraising As a non-profit organization, PTA uses fundraising only to raise funds to support its activities, as laid out in the yearly budget. Our PTA typically holds one large fundraising drive either in the Fall or Spring. We have other fundraising events through the year which are often combined with activities or provide benefits to the school community, such as the Scholastic Book Fair and our annual 5k Run/Walk. The work we do for the school community and our members is made possible by parents participating in our fundraisers. Just some of our programs are: cultural arts assemblies throughout the year, agendas for each student, our extremely popular Fall Festival, the student directory, staff appreciation activities, the variety show, field trip costs for each student, and our extremely popular after school enrichment programs. / |
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| Calendar The website has a calendar that is constantly updated and will become a valuable tool for you. There are activities and school functions which are held approximately the same time each year. They are: Membership Drive - Sept.; Fall Festival - October; Holiday Store - mid-December; Reflections - Fall; Science Fair - Fall; Book Fairs - held during the Fall and Spring conference weeks; Dance - Jan/Feb.; Variety Show - Spring; and Staff Appreciation - late Spring. |
