Maintaining Continuity for Your PTA for the Next School Year

Summertime means a break for everyone: teachers, students, and our favorite PTO parents. But as the school year winds down, it’s time to start looking back at the work the club has done and decide what worked, what didn’t, and what needs a few tweaks to do even better next time. 

It’s also a time to look forward and start planning for the new volunteers, new events, and new students that will bring all new energy and excitement to the PTO’s favorite events. 

Below is a list of things for the PTA to consider when transitioning from one school year to the next. Use the following steps as a guide to set yourself, your club, and your community up for success over the course of the summer and going into the new year!

Reassess Your Budget

Take a look at your fundraising books to decide how far your current budget will stretch into the next few events. If you have a few ideas of what events your club would like to host at the beginning of the school year or over the upcoming summer, price out whether you’ll be able to do them with the current budget.

See also:

• Fundraising with FutureFund
• Our fundraising ideas blog

Assess Leadership Position Availability

Check in with your current volunteers to see who plans to volunteer again the following school year. 

Students graduating from one phase of life to the next will undoubtedly result in a shuffle of parent volunteers. This can mean that some of your most beloved and seasoned volunteers will be transitioning out of the schools PTO program. 

The best way to go into the next school year with no surprises is to take an inventory of who will be returning to their positions the following year and which positions will be in need of replacements. 

One way to smooth the transition from one leader to another one is for either the current position holder or the PTO/PTA secretary to record a short list of responsibilities that go along with each position. That way, when a new person moves into that role, there’s a list of expectations and responsibilities to go along with it. 

See also:

• How FutureFund supports PTA volunteers

Schedule Your First Fundraiser for the School Year (Plus a Few Easy Ones for the Summer)

After examining your books, you’ll have a better estimate of when you’ll need to get the ball rolling on your first event. 

Whatever you do, don’t overlook summer availability while planning your next big fundraiser! Tired parents will be looking for ways to entertain their little ones. It’s also the perfect opportunity to remind the community families of the good that the PTO/PTA does for the school on a regular basis and keep an eye out for some parents that may be interested in stepping into available positions.

See also:

• Fundraising with FutureFund

Prepare Parent Resources/Check for Parent and Kid Freebies

Put together a calendar and a packet of summer activities and community hours to keep little ones entertained, engaged, and learning during the summer. Include information for parenting groups, recreational facilities, and library hours with the activities. 

This is also the perfect time to include any PTO/PTA meet ups, events, and activities to the calendar to keep everyone engaged in the PTO. Also, check with local restaurants to see if they have any coupons or special items to include

Survey Parents & Meet with School Board/Administration

The end of the year is the perfect time to check in with the school parents and ask them to take a survey about the PTO/PTA’s previous year of activities and events. 

It’s always validating to hear kind things about your passion projects but the most important part of any survey is the “ways to improve” list. Hearing directly from the parents whose kids experienced the activities will give invaluable insight into how the club can make activities even better the following year.

Now that the school year is winding down, pull together an event to meet with the school board and the administration. This meeting will give you time to make sure that the club, the board, and the administration are all on the same page when it comes to financial goals, specific needs, necessary changes, and volunteer gaps for the upcoming year. The activity can be as casual as a barbeque or a coffee meet up or as formal as a sit down dinner paid for by the club.