There’s a joke in some school PTAs that it’s always STP: the same ten people. It’s true that in most schools a core group of people does the bulk of the work, from fundraisers to field days.
And some of those people are burned out. Frustrated mom Tasha Irvine wrote an op-ed in the Seattle Times last year lamenting the fact that PTAs have taken over work that should be done by professionals. Some tired parents have given up volunteering altogether.
With parents sometimes working more than one job and others taking on responsibilities with churches, sports leagues, and scout troops, parents are spread thin. But many Seattle-area school volunteers say they’ve never been discouraged enough to quit.
“If I were talking to someone who felt overworked or burned out, I would remind them that the good work they’re doing outweighs the challenges they face,” says Washington State PTA President Michelle Nims. “They’re making a difference for kids they don’t even know.”
Nims admits she has had moments of frustration in her twelve years as a PTA volunteer, and at times she has been disappointed when she’s had to cancel or scale back events because not enough people signed up to help. But her commitment has never wavered, and there have been far more successes than disappointments. One success that stands out is the Science Day she and others worked to start at her daughters’ new elementary school a decade ago. That event continues today, benefiting thousands of kids long after hers moved on from the school.
Caroline Toy, a Burien mom of two sons, says that seeing results inspires her to stay involved at their school, Gregory Heights Elementary. She spearheaded the construction of a track built around the school’s playfield, raising $10,000 for supplies and spending a summer month with her family installing the track.
On top of working five hours a day as a paraeducator at the school, she co-chaired its auction and annual fundraising fun run, events that helped pay for $60,000 worth of new playground equipment. She also writes the PTA e-newsletter and updates the school’s Facebook page and website. Last year she received the school’s Golden Acorn Award, which recognizes outstanding volunteers.
“No matter how exhausted you are, if we can have huge successes that benefit all the kids, it motivates me,” Toy says. “Every single day I get to see that my hard work has paid off.”
Nims knows that not all parents have that much time to give but acknowledges that volunteers like her and Toy could use more help.
“I don’t think there’s a simple answer to getting more people involved. It’s another thing in a very busy life,” she says. “People want to help, and they want to make a difference. We just have to find a way to make it work.”
Among her suggestions: ask parents to put in a small chunk of time at big events, or take on a small task that’s meaningful to them.
Irvine, who founded the student food pantry at Washington Middle School in Seattle and served on the PTA boards at Thurgood Marshall and Montlake elementary schools, says that finding more parent volunteers is not the solution. In her Seattle Times piece Irvine argues that tasks now done by volunteers, like tutoring children and painting buildings, should really be the responsibility of the district and state.
“Frankly, my take is not to get more volunteers involved, but to get schools better funded so volunteers aren’t doing mission critical work,” Irvine says.
School funding is an ongoing problem, even with the state Supreme Court’s McCleary ruling that the legislature must fully fund education, and the focus of many PTAs is raising money. Some schools with fewer resources and higher needs do end up funding things like technology, supplies, or even staff pay with money raised by the PTA.
Nims understands the frustration that parents feel about lack of funding and volunteers, but she and other PTA boosters encourage parents to maintain their momentum to help their schools in a variety of ways. She points out that PTAs also organize important outreach like food banks, giving trees, and toiletry drives for homeless or low-income students who otherwise might not have such help, as well as events that give all families the chance to participate no matter how much time or money they have.
“The work we do through the PTA impacts our entire community,” she says.
