NOW’S THE TIME TO VOLUNTEER IN 2010-2011!
There are many PTA programs that need chairs and committee volunteers for 2010-2011. Some programs require time during the school day, some in the evening and some on the weekend. There is something for everyone so please volunteer. See below for descriptions of all of the PTA committees. Note: chair positions require a 2 year commitment. Please contact Vicki Alcott, PTA Volunteer Coordinator, with what you'd like to volunteer for, and indicate if you wish to be a chair or a committee volunteer.
AFTER SCHOOL CLUBS (ASC) -- ASC meet for 8 weeks in the fall and in the spring.
Chairs: Three co-chairs manage the program whose responsibilities are divided as follows: Database Management/Administrative, Parent Contact, and Instructor Contact. Time commitment: Database management is heaviest during application/enrollment period prior to the start of each session; Parent contact required on periodic basis -- provide club communication to parents through Tiger Talk, Murray Minute and directly to discuss enrollment issues; Instructor contact heaviest in weeks prior to start of clubs primarily to set up clubs and ensure contracts and proper paperwork are in order, submit facility forms to Main office to ensure space availability for clubs.
ART APPRECIATION -- Help children see and respond to art by teaching them about renowned artists during in-class presentations with hands-on projects. No art experience necessary!
Chairs: Select artists; develop and present to parent volunteers a classroom talk and project for each artist; purchase project materials; organize volunteers.
Committee Volunteers: Attend up to 3 artist presentations, then spend 1-1 ½ hours to share that information with your child’s class for each artist.
BAKE SALE -- Bake and sell treats to children and visiting parents during our annual Fall bake sale.
Chairs: Promote and run our Annual Fall Bake Sale. Schedule volunteers. Time Commitment: 2-3 organizational meetings prior to event and full day of bake sale.
Committee Volunteers: A one-time commitment of 1-2 hours helping sell baked goods on Visiting Day in the fall.
BEAUTIFICATION/GARDEN
Chairs: Organize Murray Beautification Day, 5th grade bulb planting and create new programs. Time Commitment: 15-20 hours. Planning and coordination of two events can be done at anytime; at least one of the chairs must be present during the events.
Committee Volunteers: Help with Murray Beautification Day, planting flowers and cleaning up the grounds. A one-time commitment of 1-2 hours in May after school. Kids welcome.
BOOK FAIR -- A wonderful way for a parent to get involved with the school during this 4-day fundraiser in the fall, while helping kids get excited about reading and raising money for the PTA.
Chairs: Organize this event by selecting books, scheduling class visits and volunteers. Time Commitment: attend short weekly meetings in Sept- Nov with flexible time commitment for preparations prior to fair plus heavy 1 week commitment to set up and man fair in mid November.
Committee Volunteers: Help kids write their wish lists, assist shoppers and help restock tables. Or help with publicity and set-up to make this popular fundraiser a big success. Time commitment: pre-event planning flexible and/or a one-time commitment of 2 hours at the fair in November.
BOX TOPS FOR EDUCATION
Chairs: Maintain Box Tops collection box in school lobby, and bundle and mail Box Tops twice a year. Time Commitment: Pick up box tops from lobby one to two times a month, plus 3 to 4 hours twice a year for packaging/mailing.
BUDGET VOTE
Chairs: Encourage voting on budget by publicizing and initiating phone chains in the weeks prior to the annual vote in May.
BUILDING BRIDGES. Fun way to participate in a meaningful program that will increase students' knowledge and understanding of people with different abilities. Allow students to experience through simulation activities what it is like to live with these differences. Reinforce the idea that all people have the same social needs and feelings. Building Bridges happens over one week at the end of Feb, beginning of March.
Chairs: Three chairs are needed: One organizes volunteers, another coordinates speakers, and another manages the supplies for the simulation activities. Time commitment: Attend short weekly meetings in Dec - Feb, with flexible time commitment for preparations prior to Building Bridges week, plus heavy one week commitment to supervise activities during Building Bridges week.
Attend training session (1 ½ hours), and then help teacher lead simulation exercises in your child's classroom to help students understand what it feels like to live with a disability (1 hour).
CLASS PHOTOGRAPHS
Chairs: Set-up, schedule and staff 2 days of photography in late September and make-ups in December. Publicize class photo information through Tiger Talk and Murray Minute, and serve as contact for parent questions.
Committee Volunteers: Help keep smiles bright, sweaters straight, and generally assist photographers in making class picture day a pleasant experience for everyone. Time commitment: 2 - 2 1/2 hours on photography day in September.
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
Chairs: Coordinate and implement school-wide and grade specific community service programs. Time Commitment: Varies depending on number of outreach programs coordinated. Planning of programs can be done at anytime.
Committee Volunteers: Help implement school-wide and grade-specific community service programs. Time commitment: flexible.
CULTURAL ARTS
Chairs: Select, schedule and oversee cultural enrichment programs. Work with administration, teachers and artists-in-residence.
DAYMON TERRACE DROP-OFF
Committee Volunteers: Assist children out of cars on Daymon Terrace so morning drop-off runs smoothly and safely. We need lots of adults for this important role. Time commitment: 8:20-8:50 am. You can volunteer as rarely or as often as you like (once a week, once a month or once a year).
DIRECTORY
Chair: Coordinate and produce this essential publication which includes class lists and a student directory. Provided to all families in the fall. Time commitment: about 20 hours in Spring/Summer and 20 hours in the fall; work can be done at any time. Familiarity with database program is required.
FALL SOCIAL
Chairs: Plan and orchestrate a festive fall social event for teachers and Murray families in the large playground. Design and distribute invitations, and coordinate food and beverages. Time Commitment: one planning meeting in early summer and one in late summer, with flexible time commitments for preparations prior to event, which usually takes place in early September.
Committee Volunteers: Help at Fall Social, setting up, distributing food, and cleaning up.
FIFTH GRADE ACTIVITIES
Chairs: Organize the Fifth Grade Activities including Graduation, Class Gift, Square Dance, T-shirt, Video, etc. Time commitment: Varies depending on event. This is a one year commitment.
Committee Volunteers: Participate on a committee for one of the many ways in which Fifth Graders celebrate their last year at Murray: Graduation, Class Gift, Square Dance, T-Shirt, Video, etc. Time commitment: Varies depending on event. This is a one year commitment.
GRADE LEVEL. Be a voice for parent concerns for individual grade levels during monthly meetings with Principal, Assistant Principal and PTA Co-Presidents. Organize grade level discussion meetings and other opportunities as they arise. One rep is needed for each grade K-4. Three reps are needed for 5th grade to coordinate activities including graduation. Time Commitment: Must be available for monthly meetings on Wednesday mornings (some Tuesdays) for 1 ½ - 2 hours. One year term.
GREEN TIGERS
Chairs: Develop, promote and organize environmental awareness and education programs for the Murray community, including writing “tips” for Tiger Talk and coordinating with other PTA committees to incorporate a “green” element in PTA programs and events. Time Commitment: Flexible. Responsibilities include planning events, researching green issues and attending the local “Green Link” meetings, which occur 3-4 times per year.
Committee Volunteers: Help implement various environmental awareness programs aimed at educating and involving the whole Murray community in the preservation of our environment. Time commitment: Flexible.
HEALTHY HAIR Help prevent lice outbreaks in our school.
Chairs: Recruit and coordinate volunteers for healthy hair checks. Time Commitment: 20-25 hours/year -12-15 hours at school and the rest flexible. The chairs must be able to be at school for the 2 hours -- 4 times a year when the checks are being preformed. All other work can be done from home/office at any time and consists mostly of emails.
Committee Volunteers: Check your child’s class during the first week of school and after vacations. Instruction provided. Volunteers will be required to sign a confidentiality agreement per school district policy. Time commitment: 30 minutes per class per check. You can help with one check or all four/year.
IN-COMING KINDERGARTEN
Chairs: Coordinate and attend orientation meetings, distribute mailings to local nursery schools for children entering kindergarten, and publicize pre-registration meetings throughout the community. Time Commitment: 10-15 hours.
LOST AND FOUND
Chair: Keep items sorted. Call owners of labeled items. Publicize existence of Lost and Found. Donate unclaimed items.
LUNCHTIME ACTIVITIES
Chairs: Plan with school administration to provide optimal indoor lunch recess activities for all students, including both grade-wide activities and small group activities (e.g., Bingo). Coordinate volunteers for Bingo for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd graders or other activities as needed. Help select appropriate videos for indoor recess, when necessary. Organize materials such as games, puzzles, and coloring and art supplies for students in all grades to use during indoor lunch recess.
Committee Volunteers: Help with Bingo including running the game and handing out prizes to the children.
MAMARONECK SCHOOLS/GRANTS LIAISON
Chairs: Assist teachers/staff with developing ideas for and writing Grant Applications to be submitted to the Mamaroneck Schools Foundation. Time Commitment: depends on the number of grants to be submitted -- approximately 10-20 hours but time is flexible, mostly during late October and November, leading to grants submission in early Dec.
MEMBERSHIP -- Organize PTA membership drive to collect dues on Back-To-School Nights in fall
Chairs: Organize collection of PTA dues prior to and at Back-to-School Nights. Send follow-up reminders to families and staff. Encourage 100% participation. Forward membership paperwork and dues to NYS PTA. Knowledge of Excel helpful. Most work occurs 2 weeks before and 2 weeks after Back to School Nights in the fall. At least one of the chairs needs to be present at each Back-to-School Night to distribute packets and collect the money.
MURRAY ARTS FESTIVAL
Chairs: Collaborate with the Art, Band and Orchestra teachers on the annual Murray Arts Festival held in mid-May. Promote the event and organize the outdoor portion of the evening.
Committee Volunteers: Help plan, coordinate and publicize this fun evening event for the family in mid-May.
MURRAY MEMORIES YEARBOOK
Chairs: Work with publishing company to create, print and distribute a lasting memory for all students. Involves digital photography of school events and candids; word processing; photo editing and layout; budgeting and sales. Time Commitment: Sept-June, varies depending on task. (Heaviest workload in Feb/Mar). Fourth and fifth grade parents needed.
Committee Volunteers: Assist with photographs of children at various school-wide activities. Help in layout and distribution of yearbook.
MURRAY MINUTE (E-MAIL NEWSLETTER)
Chair: Prepare and distribute the PTA’s occasional e-mail newsletter. Access to computer required. Time Commitment: 1 hour per week; 24-hour turnaround typical.
NUTRITION & WELLNESS
Chairs: At the beginning of the school year, initial program planning begins in order to plan out the Healthy Bites that appear in Tiger Talk on a monthly basis. In the late winter and early spring, plan for events that take place throughout March, nutrition month. Organize educational activities and programs during March, and raise awareness regarding good nutrition and healthy habits throughout the school year. Some time in school is necessary during 2 lunch hours during the month of March. Aside from the time in school in March, work can be done from home/office, and mostly consists of emails and telephone calls. Time Commitment: varies depending on the number of programs coordinated.
Committee Volunteers: Help create programming ideas, assist chair as needed. Time commitment: varies depending on the number of programs offered.
ORAL HISTORY PROGRAM (5th GRADE) -- Join your 5th Grader and his/her classmates while they interview senior citizens about childhood and life experiences.
Chairs: One 4th grade parent and one 5th grade parent needed as co-chairs. Organize a mock interview for the students (1 hour during school day) and Oral History program (2 hours during the afternoon of school day) which consists of welcome for guests, interview break-out sessions with students and guest historians, and short closing reception in cafeteria. This event takes place in May. All 5th grade students and teachers participate. Time Commitment: 10-12 hours.
Committee Volunteers: Escort senior citizens around the building and moderate interview sessions. Help host a celebration for students, teachers and seniors to conclude the program. Time commitment: 1-3 hours in May.
PARP (PARENTS AS READING PARTNERS)
Chairs: Organize Murray’s annual PARP program held in November. Work with teacher coordinators, Linda DeLasho, Pam Tanenbaum, and a committee of teachers to implement the annual PARP program. Develop a theme, coordinate with faculty committee on implementation of the program, liaise with Book Fair committee to develop synergistic programs, coordinate parent readers in classroom, manage the program daily during its two – three week run, and organize end-of-program Celebration. Time Commitment: 15-20 hours of planning during September and October; approximately 1 hour/day during the run of PARP program in November.
Committee Volunteers: Attend 1 hour planning meeting with coordinators in the fall, and help organize additional volunteers for end of program celebration. Time Commitment: 8-10 hours throughout the PARP program. Much of the organization and preparation can be done at home with a few hours needed in school throughout the PARP month.
PARENT/FACULTY PROGRAMS
Chairs: Plan, coordinate and publicize speaker programs designed to explore child development and educational issues, and enhance parenting skills for 2-3 meetings/seminars over the course of the year. Meetings dates set by school calendar. Planning time is flexible. Time Commitment: 20-25 hours.
PUBLICITY
Chairs: Share Murray PTA programs and events with the Larchmont-Mamaroneck community. Prepare articles, photos and press releases, and distribute them to local print and online publications. Time Commitment varies: on average, 2-4 hours per article. Availability to attend in-school events helpful but not necessary.
Committee Volunteers: Help tell the Larchmont-Mamaroneck community about the great academic and PTA activities at Murray. Take photographs, write articles, liaison with local media. Time commitment: Flexible.
PUBLISHING CENTER
Chairs: Facilitate parent-run center that enables students to publish their own books. Run volunteer training sessions once a month for 20 minutes, maintain supplies as needed, and publicize center to teachers. Time commitment: 1-3 hours per month.
ROOM REP
Coordinators: Direct room rep activities. Secure 2 room reps for each class during late summer (no need to be in Larchmont). During the fall, chair the room rep meetings to discuss responsibilities and organize the teacher/room rep breakfast. Assist year long in execution of PTA related email and phone chains. One Room Rep Coordinator must be available for monthly Grade Level meetings on Wednesday mornings (some Tuesdays) for 1 ½ - 2 hours.
Room Reps: Help your teacher with activities including field trips, class parties and special events. Serve as the information liaison between the PTA, your child’s teacher and classroom parents. Send e-mails to parents regarding PTA business, including, but not limited to, PTA events and district information. Staff class Spring Fair booth and healthy hair checks. E-mail capabilities useful. Each class has two Room Reps (aka class parents). Time Commitment: Flexible, depending on teacher needs.
STUDENT SCHOOL SUPPLIES
Chairs: Help organize this school initiative that saves parents money and time! Coordinate the development of the student school supply lists with teachers/administration and the vendor. Interact with class reps, committee volunteers and parents. Time commitment: Mostly flexible during the school year -- sign vendor contracts in the fall, coordinate development of supply lists in the winter, and take student orders in the spring. Chairs will need to manage delivery/distribution of the supply kits to the classrooms the week before school starts.
Committee Volunteers: Help organize, sort and distribute pre-ordered school supplies to the classrooms the week before school starts. Time commitment 3-6 hours. Must be available during the week before school begins.
SCIENCE FAIR
Chairs: Organize Murray’s annual Science Fair. Distribute, review and confirm project proposals, promote fair, schedule volunteers and class visits. Organize Franklin Institute assembly in February and Fair in early June. Plan to be available during set up day, the night of the fair and the following day of class visits.
Committee Volunteers: Help plan this annual event featuring kids’ projects. No science experience necessary. Time commitment: pre-event planning (January –June) varies; and/or one-time commitment of 2 hours on days of fair in June.
SCHOOL SPIRIT
Chairs: Coordinate with VP of Fundraising to determine when and what Murray merchandise should be sold. Help design the merchandise and implement the selling structure. Coordinate with the imprinter for timely delivery. Organize any leftover merchandise to be sold at a later date.
SPRING FAIR
Chairs: Raise fun and funds when you plan, organize and produce one of our most popular events, held the Saturday before Mother’s Day in May. Time commitment: monthly planning meetings starting in Sept through February, March/April heavy commitment, and May 1st until Fair date daily commitment.
Committee Volunteers: Help organize and run a Major Booth at the Fair. Time Commitment: Organizational meeting prior to Fair, attend Pre-Fair meeting and oversee booth entire day of the Fair.
STAFF LUNCHEON
Chairs: Organize Staff Appreciation Luncheon during the last week of school. Time commitment: 10-15 hours. Planning and coordination to be done anytime in May/June. Both chairs must be present at the luncheon.
THEATRE ARTS
Chairs: Organize the school musical for students in 2nd-5th grade! Interface with production company that will do the casting, direction, music and choreography and coordinate parent volunteers to help with registration, cast coordination, costumes (no major sewing involved), ticket sales, concession stand sales, programs, lighting & sound, photography & video and rehearsal "chaperones". Time Commitment: will include some organizational meetings throughout the year with follow up work done on your own time. Workload will be heavy during the 2 week January period of rehearsals and performances.
Committee Volunteers: Help with registration, cast coordination, costumes (no major sewing involved), ticket sales, concession stand sales, programs, lighting & sound, photography & video and rehearsal “chaperones”. Time commitment depends on the position and can be flexible, but will be heavy during the 2-week period of rehearsals and performances.
TIGER TALK IN-DEPTH
Chairs: Edit, write for and/or lay out the 3x year (August, December and May) PTA newsletter mailed to all Murray families. Each issue requires two 1 1/2 –hour meetings for Editor and Designer. Editor spends about 10-12 hours on each issue. Designer spends about 8 hours per issue; access to a computer and familiarity with a publishing program is required. Both Editor and Designer are busiest in 2 weeks prior to printing.
Committee Volunteers: Conduct interviews, write articles or photograph school events for newsletter serving the Murray community. For Writers, longer articles require 2-4 hours of research/writing. Daytime availability not necessary. Published three times a year.
TURN OFF TV WEEK
Chairs: Plan and organize a week of after-school activities that encourage children to keep their televisions turned off in April. Time Commitment: Flexible, largely in the late winter and early spring, organizing & booking the events, coordinating with other schools’ committees, soliciting vendors, & creating all of the publicity for the Week’s events. Plus 6-8 hours during TOTW facilitating after-school events. Aside from the time in school during April, work can be done from home/office; mostly emails and telephone calls.
WALK TO SCHOOL
Chairs: Organize and promote monthly school wide Walking Wednesdays (includes coming up with monthly themes, TT announcements, flyers, volunteers if needed). For the Walking School Bus program, promote creation of "buses," organize kick off event (with photos), keep track on a weekly basis of buses with photos and stickers, develop ways to recognize walking milestones throughout the year, plan end of the year celebration. Time commitment: Work begins prior to school's start in the fall in order to prepare for WTSW and Walking Buses which begin in October; some weekly work (getting photos up/down and handing out stickers), additional time needed for the monthly Walking Wednesday.
Committee Volunteers: Help with Walk to School weeks, Walking Wednesday program or any Walk to School events. Time Commitment: flexible.
WINTER WHIRL This parents’ night out in January is designed to raise money for the school while providing a social evening get-together for parents.
Chairs: Recruit and coordinate parent volunteers to run grown ups-only evening event with silent auction, raffles, refreshments, and music. One organizational meeting with all volunteers in the fall; heaviest workload Dec-Jan. Event takes place in late January.
Committee Volunteers: Solicit donations from local businesses for auction items and balloon chances. Help Chairs coordinate the purchasing of food and beverages for the event, set up before event (decorating, setting up displays, filling up balloons), work the event (check-in/out, sell balloon chances) and break down.
WEB SITE
Chairs: Post information and update the Murray PTA website as needed. Access to computer, familiarity with Web page design and maintenance required; webmaster experience helpful but not required. Time commitment is variable, although news-type postings tend to be time-sensitive and can require 24 hour turnaround by a member of the team -- 2-4 hrs/week is typical.
WELCOME COMMITTEE
Chairs: Serve as a resource and contact for families new to Murray and the community. The goal of this committee is to help new families transition to Murray Avenue School and to the community at large. Time commitment: Late August -- mailing to incoming kindergarten & new families, attend welcome coffee in Sept; follow up time commitment is very flexible -- update welcome packages and check in at office every 6-8 weeks.