PP is delusional. I've given to PTAs, PTOs, and booster clubs. The further that you move away from PTAs, the more directly your money funds the programs that you want it to fund. PTOs have no trouble raising money. I'm guessing that most parents would prefer to donate to an organization that keeps 100% of donations at the school rather than paying dues |
How do you get $ at the beginning of the year? Our PTA did away with gift cards years ago due to MCPS rules if I remember correctly. Teachers submit receipts for reimbursement up to a certain amount. Plenty of teachers don't submit receipts, and I am at a lower resourced school. I think it is fine to tell your PTA board that teachers don't need money for supplies, but, I don't think it is appropriate to try and dictate that the money be sent to other schools. The money wasn't collected for that purpose, and they would likely need a membership vote to change the budget and to spend money that way. MCPS has a $3 billion budget yet it is the job of your school's parents to pay for basic supplies at other schools? GTFO. |
A PTO is a non-profit organization just like any other non-profit. The PTA you have to pay local, state and federal dues plus insurance (and website and other expenses). With a PTO you just have to pay insurance, website and other expenses so MORE money actually goes to the school. PTA has power by numbers but MCCPTA doesn't lobby for all schools and have all schools best interests at heart nor are they inclusive of all schools and programs. I'm not sure how it's a personal power grab? PTA's cost a huge amount just to run with the dues alone. PTO's cut out the middle man and just work directly with the school. |
It's a nice thing to do to help other schools. We've reached out to other PTA's and got no response for help even though they advertise a way to request help on their website. Those of us with schools without a lot of PTA/PTO funds find other ways to make it work. It's funny the schools with more money are the ones complaing the most. |
Our principal tries to fund as much as they can via school funds and then comes to us. So, they mainly want staff appreciation from us, which we are happy to do. I think it's great that some principals work hard to fund the needs/requests of their teachers. |
If the MCPS Central Office can't properly fund schools with a $3 billion dollar budget, they ALL need to be fired. End of story. |
Define "properly". |
They should be and at a minimum heavily audited regularly. |
MCPS wastes millions yet neglects providing basic supplies to teachers so that they're begging parents (according to the posts on this board)? If that is true, and if there is a single teacher in MCPS without basic school supplies, and MCPS has 1.6M to waste (ex. on "Leader in Me", 2M on discrimination training, who knows how many millions on Kid Museum, etc.), then the MCPS Central Office is completely incompetent and should all be fired. Especially at a Title I school that already receives more funding than others. End of story. |
Some see waste. Some see need. Who gets to decide? |
So, you think we should fund a museum in Bethesda that the majority of kids will never use over a leaky roof or school supplies? |
Leaky roof gets fixed from CIP budget, which doesn't go to KID-Museum. At least know what you are talking about before ranting. Don't want to hear about bocci ball either, a no cut sport for special needs students. They deserve to play a HS sport too |
So, my kid can not get speech therapy, but eligible for bocci ball. Funny thing, never seen the bocci ball and speech therapy is far more important. But, hey, these kids don’t need to be able to read, write or speak as long as they get no cut sports, which isn’t actually real at most schools. My kids have never been to the kids museum either. We tried to get a virtual trip but they wanted an insane amount of money for it. And, many schools need lots of repairs or replaced. But, enjoy your museum while the rest of us struggle to private pay for our kids needs. |
| Get an IEP that shows your child needs speech therapy, and assuming there are enough speech therapists, your child will have speech therapy. I suspect, like special ed teachers, the speech therapists have had it with the school system (expecting too much for too many students to for too little money), and there may not be any. Whe your child gets to HS, they too can participate in Bocci Ball. |
You’re a teacher telling another teacher to “GTFO” bc you don’t agree with them? You sound…. pleasant. We get a check in the beginning of the year from the PTA, it’s not really that difficult. Clearly the funds for each teacher are used specifically for that purpose, so no, it wasn’t the huge deal you’re making it out to be. In fact, they were on board but weren’t sure how to go about contacting other schools, so they just nixed it without trying. |