Community Involvement

A Community Involvement or Volunteer Coordinator is one of the most fun and versatile positions on the PTA/PTSA Board. The list of needs a volunteer can fill is endless. Every community has available talents and resources that benefit the public schools.

Ronda Rose
Community Involvement Commissioner
(801)261-3100
Email Ronda

Volunteering

A volunteer can be many things - a role model for the students, an extra pair of hands to help teachers and staff or a liaison between schools and the community.

Each school can make its own Volunteer Handbook," personalized for your own school. Using the "Guidelines for Volunteers Handbook," please add your own theme and/or school name to the cover page, add a welcome message from your principal on page 2, and list your schools and councils in their region on page 4.

PTA formed and working within a school is most beneficial to the individual child's growth and development when its actions and programs promote parental involvement and community interaction within the school. The old adage, "It takes a community to raise a child," is most evident in the local school environment.  PTA encourages all stakeholders withint the school to become involved.

DOWNLOADS:
> Guidelines for Volunteers Handbook
> Why We Volunteer-Lesson in Life

 

Community Involvement Commission and Focus
Utah PTA Community Involvement Areas of Focus are as follows:
 
Business Partnerships
Community/Public Relations
Educating Family and Community Groups
Education Foundations
Information/Communication Network Plans
Lifelong Education/Community Education
Minority Leadership/Involvement
Parent/Community Involvement Events
Teacher Appreciation
Volunteer Coordination
Volunteers
 
National Standards for Family-School Partnerships

A new way of leading: Building family-school partnerships for student success

When planning a program, look at each of these standards and see if your program uses each piece. If it does, then your chance of having a successful program will increase.

PTA’s National Standards for Family-School Partnerships

Standard 1: Welcoming all families into the school community —Families are active participants in the life of the school, and feel welcomed, valued, and connected to each other, to school staff, and to what students are learning and doing in class.

Standard 2: Communicating effectively —Families and school staff engage in regular, two-way, meaningful communication about student learning.

Standard 3: Supporting student success —Families and school staff continuously collaborate to support students’ learning and healthy development both at home and at school, and have regular opportunities to strengthen their knowledge and skills to do so effectively.

Standard 4: Speaking up for every child —Families are empowered to be advocates for their own and other children, to ensure that students are treated fairly and have access to learning opportunities that will support their success.

Standard 5: Sharing power —Families and school staff are equal partners in decisions that affect children and families and together inform, influence, and create policies, practices, and programs.

Standard 6: Collaborating with community —Families and school staff collaborate with community members to connect students, families, and staff to expanded learning opportunities, community services, and civic participation.

In the 2002 research review A New Wave of Evidence: The Impact of School, Family, and Community Connections on Student Achievement, Anne T. Henderson and Karen L. Mapp conclude that there is a positive and convincing relationship between family involvement and student success, regardless of race/ethnicity, class, or parents’ level of education. To put it another way, when families are involved in their children’s learning both at home and at school, their children do better in school. The report also points to specific types of involvement as being especially beneficial to children’s academic success.

Click here for the Findings that support the Standards.
DOWNLOADS:
> National Standards for Parent & Family Involvement Programs

Appreciating Your Volunteers

Click on the links to the right for different ways you can show recognition to your volunteers.


DOWNLOAD:
>"Golden Apple Award "Oustanding Volunteer
> Utah PTA "Spirit of PTA" Award Application Cover Sheets

>Utah PTA Advocacy Award Application Cover Sheet
> Utah PTA Involvement Award Application Cover Sheet


Teacher Appreciation Week
Since 1984, National PTA has encouraged all citizens to show their appreciation to teachers during the annual National PTA Teacher Appreciation Week. Each May, Teacher Appreciation Week offers the opportunity for citizens to reaffirm their commitment to parent-teacher partnerships. The following is a calendar of publicity and program ideas to prepare you for Teacher Appreciation Week and follow-up ideas to use after Teacher Appreciation Week.

DOWNLOADS:
> Teacher Appreciation Week Brochure
> Teacher Appreciation (sample letter)

LINK:
> National PTA Teacher Appreciation

Male Involvement
Click on the links to the right to get more information on how to increase male involvement with your PTA.
LINK:
> How to Increase Male Involvement

 

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