Meet with a few other parents at your child's school who you believe will be interested in developing a parent teacher organization. These can be a few parents in your neighborhood, or parents who are involved with extracurricular activities such as scouts or athletics. Have a casual dinner or meet-and-greet, where you can discuss the benefits of implementing an organization and brainstorm the goals that all of you would like to achieve.
Invite teachers and faculty members to assist in planning a few social activities to gain interest in the PTO. PTOToday.com suggests spaghetti dinners, ice cream socials, or a movie night. This will give parents and teachers a chance to interact with one another in an informal setting, and provide a gauge for the level of interest in starting an organization.
Start developing plans to raise money. Traditional routes include bake sales, product sales (think giftwrap, pizza, or candles), and dinner nights at restaurants that will give the organization a portion of the proceeds received that evening. Do not be afraid to make exploratory phone calls and do preliminary research in order to be prepared once you are ready to hold fundraisers.
Document your plans. Work with other parents to create policies and bylaws, financial controls of money raised, assignment of officers and titles, and minutes from all planning meetings held thus far. According to Jennifer Schleupner, president of the Middle River Middle School Parent Teacher Student Association in Middle River, Maryland, having a properly documented plan is the key element in creating a successful organization.
Meet with the principal or administrator at your child's school. Make sure that you are properly prepared with your documented plans. Show how the PTO will complement the structure of the school's administration and enhance the educational environment. It is of utmost importance that the principal and administration work in conjunction with the PTO in order to create a more successful school.
Take care of preliminary business issues. Get an employer identification number (EIN) by going to the IRS website (www.irs.gov) and filling out the SS-4 form (it's simple and free). Then, using your EIN, go to your local bank and open a checking account.
Send a kickoff letter to all of the parents and teachers in the school to let them know that the PTO is up and running. Advertise within the school by displaying posters in the halls. If your school has an automated calling tree system for weekly announcements and updates, ask your principal to add it to his agenda. Let parents know the date and time of the first school-wide meeting, and encourage all to attend.
Encourage feedback from parents, teachers and administrators. Consider forming an email group, creating surveys, or starting a Facebook page in order to accomplish this. Continue building the momentum of the organization, and making a positive impact on your child's school.