Please note that most PTO slate positions involve a two-year commitment. Most jobs have a junior role (year one) and a senior role (year two). It is expected that the junior person will move into the senior role to ensure continuity. New committee volunteers are welcome each year.
AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM
Coordinate the after school programs which run from October through May in 2 to 3 different sessions
Responsibilities include deciding on programs, booking instructors, registration, coordination, etc.
This position requires a fairly large time commitment multiple times throughout the year
ART ROOM
Assist the Art Room teachers in identifying and hanging students’ artwork on the bulletin boards around the school throughout the year
Assist the Art teachers in getting student art work onto the teachers’ websites
Scheduling is flexible depending on time commitments
BACKPACK INFORMATION DISTRIBUTION
Responsible for setting up the limited distribution lists for notices going home in the backpacks at the beginning of the school year so that one child per family brings notices home
Requirements include attention to detail and good organizational skills
Reports to School Communications Chair
BEAUTIFICATION
Coordinate the outside plantings, keep the school entrance “seasonal” and help improve the courtyards
Coordinate volunteer schedule
Report to Vice-Chair
BOOK FAIR
Coordinate two Ox Ridge book fairs, one in the fall and one in the spring
Responsibilities include selecting the vendor, designing and publicizing the fair
Get volunteers to set up, work the cash registers during the sale, and break down the fairs
Report to Fundraising
BULLETIN BOARDS
Ox Ridge’s bulletin boards reflect our children's accomplishments and creations
Update the two main hall bulletin boards monthly to reflect the seasons, holidays and important Ox Ridge activities.
The time commitment is flexible-- approximately 1 or 2 hours a month
Coordinate volunteers
CHILD/ PARKING LOT SAFETY/KINDERBUSSES
Prior to the first week of school, organize parent volunteers to ride the kindergarten busses during the first week of school
Work with Mr. Rechi and the PTO on other safety issues as they come up (e.g. parking lot safety)
CDSP BUDGET REP
Serves as Ox Ridge’s advocate during the annual school budget process
Attend regular CDSP (Children of Darien School Parents) meetings the first Thursday of each month
Attend regular Board of Education meetings as well as any Special Meetings of the Board of Education during the school budget season (meetings are held in the evening)
Works with budget reps from the other elementary schools to write and/or deliver a speech or speeches in support of the priority initiatives of our schools.
Serve as liaison between our school principal and CDSP during the budget season, ensuring that issues, concern and priorities are communicated and acted upon.
DARIEN ENVIRONMENTAL GROUP
Coordinate four presentations for students throughout the year
Recruit parent volunteers to present materials supplied by Connie Melvin of the DEG. These materials include instructional videos and outlines for the parents to follow.
Timing for presentations is: Kindergarten - October/November; Second Grade – October/November; First Grade in January/February; and Fourth Grade in April/May.
DIRECTORY (3 year position, 1st year as apprentice with minimal requirements)
Responsible for editing, publishing and distributing the Ox Ridge Directory in September.
Work with Administration to update School Handbook, informational pages, class lists and contact information
Work with school families to update contact information including phone and email addresses
Most of the work for the position takes place in mid-August to mid- September
General comfort working with computers and spreadsheets is a plus.
E-MAIL BLAST/THE HOOT
Maintain and update all Ox Ridge family e-mail addresses
On a weekly basis, gather information via e-mail and hard copy, consolidate information, and send it out to all Ox Ridge families
Occasionally, send more than one e-mail blast per week
Job requires computer skills and a weekly time commitment as well as late summer/early September organizational efforts
In an emergency, you may be asked to send additional emails
ENCOURAGEMENT
Coordinate two staff appreciation lunches during conference week, usually during November/December and March (includes soliciting food donations, set up, clean up and hosting the events)
Purchase, wrap and distribute birthday gifts for the staff on a monthly basis as well as other special notes and treats as deemed necessary.
Coordinate volunteers to bring in treats.
Report to Vice-Chair
FUND RAISING
Member of the Executive PTO Board
Research, develop and implement new and existing ideas for fundraising
In the past, funds have been raised through wrapping paper or note card sales, adult social events and direct contributions
This position requires a fairly large time commitment that varies based on the fund raisers selected
FIFTH GRADE COORDINATOR (one year position)
Oversee 5th Grade Activities which include Bake Sale, breakfast, picnic, slideshow, t-shirts and class gift to Ox Ridge.
Coordinate efforts of Room Mothers to facilitate each of the above activities.
GRADE LEVEL ENRICHMENT
Work with teachers to develop and identify quality programs that are specific to the curriculum
Responsible for the implementation of enrichment activities for each individual grade throughout the year as well and tracking budgets for each grade
Other tasks include recruiting committee members at the beginning of school to facilitate each grade
Reports to School Education Chair
GINGERBREAD HOUSES
Order gingerbread houses and icing from local bakery
Order and sort candy from vendor, purchase all necessary supplies
Coordinate volunteers for each decorating day
Assist children in decorating houses
Organize publicity, registration of children, and facility use
HOSPITALITY
Coordinate Staff luncheon on the day before school opens
Supplies coffee and snacks for the class coffees and new family coffee at the beginning of the year
Provides coffee and snacks at PTO meetings throughout the year
Hostess approximately two teacher/staff breakfasts during the year
Report to Vice-Chair
JUNIOR GREAT BOOKS
The Junior Great Books (JGB) coordinator runs the JGB program, which is available to grades 2-5. Classes meet weekly from January through March.
In the early fall, the coordinator identifies parent volunteers to teach the classes and arranges for these volunteers to attend a training session
Flyers for classes need to be completed before Christmas break so that books may be ordered in time
KID’S CARE CLUB COORDINATOR
Work with volunteers to implement community service projects
The goal is to work with the Ox Ridge students to get the children involved with community service projects throughout the year
Organize fundraising to support Kid’s Care initiatives (ie. Bake sales)
LEVEL BOOK ROOM
Coordinate with designated teacher/staff volunteers to: identify and categorize reading levels for books, maintain a master list of books in room (by title, author, genre, level) and number of copies available, provide teachers with tools and systems to check out and return books, update as needed to include new additions to the inventory, and establish a schedule to maintain the room.
LIBRARY
Coordinate parent volunteers to work in the library throughout the school year and for library “clean-up” in January and June
Most of the work involves scheduling and takes place in September
Coordinate with librarian on any ad-hoc support (author visits, etc)
Report to School Education Chair
MUSIC FOR YOUTH - OX RIDGE REPRESENTATIVE
Collect donations, deposit them and writes thank you notes to donors over $100
Meet the performers one hour before to help set up, take photos and provide food or drinks, as needed
Report to Community Relations Chair
MUSIC ROOM
Assist the Music teacher with any typing or video support he may need
This job is very flexible and no musical talent is needed
NOMINATING
Member of the Executive PTO Board
Responsible for filling up to 80 positions on the Ox Ridge PTO Board
Slating process begins in December and carries through to March
Responsible for the Volunteer Fair, which takes place in January
OX RIDGE OUTFITTERS
Select and order all appropriate merchandise to bear “Ox Ridge” name
Sell merchandise to recipients at class coffees and family picnic
Distribute merchandise to recipients
Starts in the summer with the selection of merchandise and ends in the late fall
Reports to Fundraising Chairs
PARENT AWARENESS
Act as a liaison between Ox Ridge and the YWCA Parent Awareness Board and attend monthly meetings
Report monthly at the PTO meetings on upcoming parent focused programs/developments
Attend and promote Parent Awareness programs and assist in the set-up and coordination, especially if Ox Ridge is hosting
Participate in Parent Awareness fund raising activities and liaise with the PTO treasurer
PTO WEBSITE COORDINATOR
•Coordinator is responsible for the design and maintenance of the Ox Ridge PTO website.
• Website coordinator relies on the various PTO committees and/or the Co-Chairs for the actual content, which includes calendars of events, school flyers, important announcements, and PTO minutes.
• Once approved, this information is sent to the coordinator for posting.
PORTRAITS OF AMERICA (4th Grade- one year position)
∙ This program ties into the 4th grade social studies program.
∙ Coordinate parent volunteers to present artwork from a region of the country the children are currently
studying. There are five presentations each year in each class- 2 parents do each presentation.
∙ Provide presentation materials and an overview of the artwork prior to each round of presentations.
∙ Potentially investigate adding to artwork in various regions.
PHOTOGRAPHY
Take pictures for our school yearbook
The yearbook is submitted to the publisher before Christmas; Yearbooks are distributed in the spring.
PUBLICITY
Coordinate volunteers to promote the great happenings at Ox Ridge School
Articles and photos are be submitted to the local newspapers on a regular basis
Job includes a little writing and some photography
Reports to Community Relations Chair
ROOM MOTHER (one year position)
Coordinate volunteers to serve the classroom needs of the teacher, attend PTO meetings and disseminate PTO information.
Serve as the class coordinators for the PTO – room mothers will be called upon as needed
Position includes a "co-room mother" to work with you throughout the year
Overseen by Vice-Chair
SECRETARY
Member of the Executive Board
Records and distributes minutes of all Executive PTO meetings as well as regular PTO meetings
Responsible for distributing all PTO related mail to appropriate committee heads
SCHOOL-WIDE ENRICHMENT
Design and execute programs to enrich and enhance students’ academic experience (e.g. Math Olympics, Bookworm Project, etc.).
Generally theme based Science, Math, Geography, etc.
Some degree of creativity is necessary, but work done via committee.
Programs are designed to use parent volunteers to complement curriculum without putting an undue burden on teachers or taking away from classroom time.
Work closely with Principal and teachers to implement programs in and out of the classroom throughout the school year.
Report to School Education Chair
SOCIAL
Volunteers are needed to help plan and execute school wide social events throughout the school year
Some past events include a school picnic, talent show, DJ event, magician, bingo night, etc.
Send flyers, get responses, plan, get volunteers, order food and activities, etc.
Report to Vice-Chair
SOS COMMITTEE
This committee is designed to help families in need by delivering meals, driving, and carpooling
The time commitment is difficult to predict as you are on-call all year,
Maintain a list of volunteers so if there is a need, you can contact volunteers and create a schedule of suitable helpers
Reports to Community Relations Chair
TLC REPRESENTATIVE
The TLC Representative serves as a liaison between the TLC parents and the Ox Ridge School PTO
Represents the TLC as it relates to the greater Ox Ridge School community
Duties include monthly attendance at Executive Board meetings and general PTO meetings and dissemination of PTO information to TLC parents, as necessary
TREASURER
This two year position does not require a financial background but great attention to detail
Responsibilities include maintaining the PTO accounts via Quicken, providing funds to the various PTO committees as needed, assisting with the mid year appropriations of PTO funds and with the budgeting process at the end of the year
This position has a fairly large time commitment
The Treasurer is a member of the PTO Executive Board and is expected to attend all meetings
ASSISTANT TREASURER
This two year position does not require a financial background but must be detail-oriented and have good organizational skills
Primary responsibilities are receiving all monies for deposit from the various committees, confirming the deposit amount with both the specific committee head as well as the Treasurer, and depositing the funds into the PTO checking account
The Assistant Treasurer is a member of the PTO Executive Board and is expected to move into the Treasurer position after fulfilling this job
UNICEF
The Ox Ridge representative distributes teacher information on UNICEF and orange UNICEF boxes.
After Halloween, collect boxes and deposit funds
Run the Boo Gram sales with the help of the student council
Job requires time commitment in the Fall
WELCOME DESK/KID CALL COORDINATOR
Coordinate and manage the list of volunteers who man the Welcome Desk/Kid Call at the front of the school
Send out weekly email reminders to volunteers and weekly sign in sheet to school secretary
Good organizational skills and an interest in getting to know many parent volunteers are necessary
WELCOME DESK/KID CALL
Man the welcome desk and/or Kid Call(during 1st shift only) to welcome and monitor visitors to our school
Kid Call –only required during 1st shift of Welcome Desk. Receive and record the absence phone calls and make sure they match the actual reported absences.
Shifts are 1½ hours long and are scheduled on a five-week rotation
WELCOMING COMMITTEE
Welcome new families to Ox Ridge by making phone calls, attending new family coffee in September, and organizing a informational town resource welcome packet
Contact new families that move in throughout the school year to welcome them and deliver a welcome packet to them
Report to School Communications Chair
YEARBOOK
Coordinate the design, production and sales of the annual Ox Ridge Yearbook
Volunteers are needed to coordinate taking candid pictures for each class and information to be sent for publication in January or February
Job requires computer skills; comfort with photography/photo layout and graphic design a plus
Report to School Communications Chair
If you have any questions, please call Victoria Bieler (656-3096) or Jill Stute (655-8274).









Ox Ridge PTO
Description of Volunteer Opportunities 2010-2011

