PTA asked teachers to pay for student breakfast: unreasonable?

[Anonymous]

Oh hell no.

[Anonymous]

I'm a former private school teacher and not surprised some rich people would be that clueless, but demanding you spend extra money and time is inappropriate. This is the sort of thing teachers can decide to do if they want, and often do, but it's not okay for parents on PTA to position themselves as your boss and tell you what to do with your time and money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:Is your principal aware of this? I would speak to them and have them deal with the PTA. This is either a huge miscommunication or the PTA has lost its marbles.

This. Our PTA doesn't ask for any funds from teachers except we do ask them to become real members. That costs $15/year. Of which a few dollars go to national PTA.

We stock the teachers' lounge with free food at appreciation events. And every teacher gets a $25 gift card at the winter holidays

So no teacher is out of pocket due to PTA.

As a teacher, I would much rather that my PTA pay my dues, than that they ask me to fork over $15, and then consider a $25 gift card (to where?) months later to be repayment.

We don't require anyone to join. It's a sign of support for the mission of the PTA (ours is actually a PTSA because high-school students can join).

There aren't any waivers of dues for anyone. I pay for my kid's student membership. The administrators pay. When you pay your dues you become eligible for other benefits like applying for national PTA grants and scholarships. And you fill in your own personal contact details and preferences.

I'm sure the teachers get more than $15 in free coffee, tea, snacks. Not hard at $2.50 for a Coke. The $25 gift card goes to all teachers and not just those who sign up for PTA. It's a gift funded by donors and the gift card drive is managed by PTA.

So you are the kind of person who would get petty about being out $15 for 3 months. OK. I spent $100 of my personal money on snacks for the teachers' lounge for beginning of the school year. I guess we don't share priorities.

Gift cards are usually teacher's choice and they are usually Target, grocery store, or gas cards for our local stations. Not useless stuff.

LOL. I love it when people get huffy when teachers aren't "grateful enough"
--not a teacher

I had the same thought.

You continue to miss my point and seem like the kind of person that is not interested in either PTA or its attempts to improve the school environment.

As a fairly unsentimental businessperson, I struggle with how much our teachers seem to actually enjoy (as shown on their faces) these small gifts of food, complimentary snacks, home food catering, etc. I have repeatedly asked myself is this work meaningful to take time to do. And the answer always comes up yes. It's very much liked in my local area - I call it "casserole culture". Same impulse as "meal trains". Our teachers would like to be gifted bagel trays to feel appreciated. I, in turn, would like to know whether the teachers care at all if PTA exists. Because I could also find other things to do with my time and money. I do PTA because it seems to make the school environment better. So I don't like people complaining about $15. Even when I made minimum wage (and I did) if somebody asked me for an hour's worth of pay for a workplace initiative, I would not have felt put upon.

As far as comping people on dues, we do have various mechanisms for making sure students are covered financially if necessary for PTA-sponsored events. I don't know if anyone has ever contemplated joining the PTA who does not have $15. If someone mentioned it was an issue we would cover it. But the meetings are public and open. As is volunteering. So I don't know why anyone would bother to ask. Unless they really wanted to vote on motions. They are welcome anyway. Only a handful of non-officers ever show up.

My posts are not in response to teachers concerned about their pocketbook overall. It's about claiming that $15 is a big deal and saying that I expect gratitude. I don't. I want to know that the effort matters/the time spent is not wasted. That's different from gratitude.

Membership orgs are also like political parties. It does mean something to pay dues. Fine with me if you don't support the goals and don't want to pay dues. But if you support the goals, advocacy groups use statistics like paid membership counts to explain to legislators why their policy positions have merit. That's politics 101.

[Anonymous]

Wow that is absurd. Please push back.

[Anonymous]

I've been a room mom at our kids' three private schools and have NEVER heard of something like this. And if I knew about it, I would tell the HOS and say it's ridiculous. I wouldn't even ask the teachers to serve the students unless they wanted to, and I could see that being a sweet opportunity at the end of the year so I don't have a problem with that as much, but asking the teachers to acquire and pay for the food? Absolutely not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PTA needs to provide. And NOT ask you to come in early. Jeezus. Rich people are the cheapest, most clueless mofos. Private school teachers are mostly already underpaid as it is.

So thoughtful of 11:11 to illustrate your point

[Anonymous]

WHAT? No, do not go along with this, OP. My kid doesn't need to be gifted breakfast, and if the school organizes a morning social, then I would absolutely refuse that teachers pay for it. How incredibly rude of school leadership!!! How brain-addled are they???

[Anonymous]

No, you are right.

The principal or Union rep should say this is unacceptable and will not happen.

[Anonymous]

A high school seniors family will have been shaken down for 100’s of dollars in the last four years for you (higher at private school) for your breakfasts and your lunches and your baskets and your holiday card. $30.00 for a milestone doesn’t seem like a big deal to me.

[Anonymous]

That is nuts. If I were a teacher, I's be talking with head of my division or HoS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This has to be a mistake; it is so laughably inappropriate.

Can you reply all to the google doc and sincerely ask if this was sent to the wrong people?!

This. Can’t imagine how anyone in the pta thought it was a good idea.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That is nuts. If I were a teacher, I's be talking with head of my division or HoS.

As long as you’d be good with the parents reacting this way every time the PTA shook them down foe more than their tuition to fund a teacher breakfast or holiday gift. One reciprocal gesture from teachers to graduating seniors isn’t insane.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PTA needs to provide. And NOT ask you to come in early. Jeezus. Rich people are the cheapest, most clueless mofos. Private school teachers are mostly already underpaid as it is.

So thoughtful of 11:11 to illustrate your point

I bet you're richer than me. And probably never donated a dime to anything at the school. Or lifted a finger.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That is nuts. If I were a teacher, I's be talking with head of my division or HoS.

As long as you’d be good with the parents reacting this way every time the PTA shook them down foe more than their tuition to fund a teacher breakfast or holiday gift. One reciprocal gesture from teachers to graduating seniors isn’t insane.

The PTA is an organization of parents. If they are shaking down each other for something teachers did not ask for that’s not on the teachers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is this a public school? Please encourage one of the senior teachers to say something to the PTA. I've never heard of anything like this and I think most parents would be horrified by this request. Speaking as a public school parent although I assume the same is true for privates.

The first sentence of the post says she’s at a private.

The parents at our private always provided the food and labor