Volunteer with the YHS PTA

The Advisory Council on Teaching & Learning is made up of representatives from each school and certain community organizations to assist in reviewing the system‐wide curriculum and instructional program and in developing recommendations for improvement. This group meets once or twice a month. Yorktown has two representatives who serve a two‐year term.

The chairperson of the Student Art Show recruits and organizes volunteers to staff the art rooms during the show, which is usually held in June and lasts three to four days. The art show is coordinated by an YHS art teacher, and is set up by the students and art teachers. The chairperson solicits volunteers through YHS PTA emails and the list of art department volunteers. During the show, teachers bring classes through to view the artwork, so volunteers are there to ensure that nothing is touched or damaged. There is no expense involved.

The goal of the CCPTA is to provide leadership, to serve, to assist and to act as a resource for local PTAs. The CCPTA meets once a month. YHS PTA has one representative who attends the monthly CCPTA meeting and reports back to the membership on matters of interest.

The Family Network chairs bring in speakers or programs of interest to the PTA membership. Recent popular events include College Funding and programs on mental health and well-being. The chairs work with PTA leadership and YHS administration to ensure approval of programs and coordination with YHS. The program has a budget line item.

The Fundraising Chair is responsible for promoting and managing the “No Frills” check-writing fundraiser. Advertise the fundraiser to parents using the PTA email newsletter. Write short blurbs highlighting the way PTA funds benefit Yorktown students. Work in conjunction with the executive board to determine timing for the fundraiser. Assist the Treasurer with tracking the proceeds from the fundraiser and provide advice to the PTA board and membership on the use of funds raised.

These chairpersons will plan and organize the Graduation Party. It is a night to celebrate the milestone of graduating from high school and bidding farewell to classmates and friends. The Graduation Party Chairs will plan the event, which includes decorating, entertainment, dancing, food, games and prizes.

This volunteer updates the registration forms/flyer to include in 1^st Day packets and updates messages to be included in PTA emails. They usually attend beginning of the year functions with flyers to encourage and remind families to sign up. They will also manually input parent information for those who can’t register/renew online. They are the contact person for store coordinators. Store coordinators are helpful with information about special promotions, contests, etc.

This committee schedules Homecoming chaperones. They are needed in three areas: coat check, refreshment table and roving monitors. Parent chaperones are not responsible for reprimanding or disciplinary action. Teachers, as well as the principal, also participate as chaperones and they will deal with any behavioral issues.

The membership chair works with the treasurer to create a list of PTA members at the beginning of the school year. Membership forms are sent in with checks so coordination with the Treasurer is essential.

The parent representatives maintain communications with the teacher who is assigned as the Class Advisor and with the Student Class President to learn about activities and how the PTA can provide support. They let PTA leadership know about ideas or activities that the class may do so that PTA membership is informed, and if appropriate, can support.  For example, a class may decide to do a food drive or some other fundraiser, or may need chaperones for an activity — the Class Parent can help get the information out and help recruit volunteers.

The parent representatives also help with any activity for that class overall. There are not many of these activities and they vary with each year. For example, volunteers are needed to help with the 10th grade vision exam. The main activity for the junior Class Parent is to work with Kaplan Testing Service to schedule and promote the practice ACT/SAT session offered each January as a fundraiser for the junior class. Perhaps the freshman Class Parent could help inform freshman families about the study-skills and test-taking sessions offered only to freshman by the counseling department. The senior Class Parent might help inform senior families about the senior class picnic, cap/gown pick-up, etc.

Lastly, the parent representatives assist various members of the administration — such as the assigned assistant principal to the class, Student Activities office, counseling team — with providing information to the parents of that class. That could mean forwarding information to the PTA listserv manager for distribution to that class list or writing up a blurb about something the families of that class should know about.The work for this volunteer position will be sporadic and can be as much or as little as the parents involved would like.

The chairpersons of this committee will work to facilitate Yorktown’s participation in the National PTA’s Reflections program. The work generally occurs October- January. The Northern Virginia District PTA website has more information, including instructions and forms: http://www.vapta.org/members-only/student-programs/reflections

This should be the parent of a Junior. The SAT and ACT Prep Tests are not PTA events; they are fundraisers for the Junior class to help them raise money for prom. The chair works with the class advisor and the test representative to reserve dates for the tests. It has been done by Kaplan in January but other companies have expressed interest in doing a test. The funds raised are deposited in the Junior account.

This person is responsible for finding and organizing volunteer judges for Yorktown’s annual Science Fair. The push for volunteers usually starts in November (requests are sent out via the weekly PTA email) and the Science Fair is usually held in late January. The Hospitality Committee provides a breakfast for the judges.

Description coming soon

This position is the PTA point person for school social workers should a community need arise (e.g., students in need of winter coats).  The liaison is also responsible for checking in periodically with social workers to see where the PTA can help.

This person works to sell YHS gear. All products are ordered online. There is a link on the YHS PTA web page. The PTA then gets a percentage of all sales. A table is set up at Back to School night to show samples of what is available online. The purpose is to promote school spirit; sales proceeds are not a significant fundraiser.

The committee hosts three events during the year: a back to school breakfast, a holiday snack and an end of year luncheon (usually around Teacher Appreciation Week). The staff lounge is located pretty far from the front doors making drop off of food items difficult. The last luncheon was catered.

Education Grants are the largest outlay of PTA funds and represent a strong partnership between the school and the parents. Requirements are that they:

• Relate to or extend Yorktown’s academic mission;
• Benefit a significant number of students within a specific team or program;
• Provide a benefit not otherwise funded by Arlington Public Schools or Yorktown school funds;
• Be requested by one or more Yorktown faculty or staff members.

There is one round of grant approvals in the fall. After that, if there are available funds and unexpected opportunities, grants can be approved if recommended by the principal the PTA President.

Grant forms are distributed in the fall. The grants committee reviews them. The grants chair then reviews them with the principal and they are approved and then reported at the October or November PTA meeting.

Work usually begins in December. APS will send out a packet with requirements. Co-chairs will reach out to members of the Yorktown community – teachers, students, parents, etc. to submit letters of recommendation for Teacher of the Year. Requests can be posted on the PTA website and in weekly emails. The school news can also be helpful getting the word out. After the due date, recommendations are reviewed and a short list is provided to the principal. When a decision is made, a submission packet is sent to the Central Office before the January due date. The winner is announced to the school and the PTA has, in the past, donated a $100 gift card.

The chairperson organizes the hearing and vision screening schedule by working with the school nurse and volunteer coordinator. The chair contacts the school nurse early in the school year to pin down the date. The volunteer coordinator compiles a list of volunteers for the event, based on First Day Packet responses. That list will be given to the Vision and Hearing Screening chair so she/he can organize volunteers who will attend and assist during the one day of screenings.

The Volunteer Coordinator makes sure all chair positions are filled. Usually starting in the spring, the chairperson identifies which positions will need to be filled for the following school year and works to get the word out via PTA emails and word of mouth. The volunteer coordinator works to provide information about positions to new volunteers and relevant contact data to each committee chair.

The PTA website posts PTA meeting calendars, PTA communications, opportunities to get involved and support the PTA, and administrative information. The volunteer should have some knowledge of WordPress and HTML to keep the content up‐to‐date based on requests by PTA officers and committee chairs. The Website volunteer works in conjunction with the weekly email volunteer to ensure website links are accurate. Estimate 1‐2 hours per week.