Common school council myths
- Myth: The School Council is really for stay at home parents.
The School Council is for all interested parents!! Today, school councils work best with a diverse group of volunteers who represent all facets of the community. Whether a member is a homemaker, lawyer, accountant, designer or factory worker, the experience and input they bring to the council is vital to working to improve the educational experience of all students at the school. - Myth: The School Council has all the help they need.
Sometimes people feel better about not volunteering by telling themselves that the council has all the help they need. In fact, the more parents/volunteers the better. In fact, most councils are in great need for parents to volunteer, if not at meetings than assisting with events and fundraising initiatives. - Myth: Volunteering for the School Council takes too much time.
If a parent can give a couple of hours a month to attend meetings, or a few hours each school year to help at an event. Any time that you can give is appreciated by the council and will help them achieve their goals. - Myth: School Council members need to be at the school during the day.
There are some volunteer positions which may take some time during the day, for instance if volunteer works on the nutrition program or supervises a field trip. However, members who are part of the council attend meetings in the evening or help out at events which take place outside school hours. - Myth: The School Council has the same members year after year and they are all friends.
School Councils are more successful when they recruit new members on an ongoing basis to bring new ideas to their group. Making new members feel welcome and encouraging them to have a voice at the table will help the council meet it’s goals. The Welcome Mat is out — — all volunteers welcome!!! - Myth: The School Council, from the last school year, has already planned their activities and events for this year.
Every year is a new opportunity to plan exciting events and activities for the students and to develop new ideas on how the council can support them to reach their goals. There may be events which were very successful the previous year or a fundraising initiative that would be beneficial to continue i.e. fundraising for a new playground, however, the new council will have the opportunity to vote on the events and strategies for the upcoming school year.
Shatter those school council myths!
Get the word out to your school community on what great work your council is doing. Don’t forget to acknowledge your triumphs and pitfalls. Remember to recognize those who have helped, no matter how great or little every bit counts. Always communicate and advertise all the work that your council does! These two items will help to dispel the many school council myths above.
Still have more questions?
If your parent council needs help or are looking for some guidance in tackling some of these obstacles, there are lots of resources on the Parents Engaged in Education website. If you can’t find the information in one of our blogs/articles be sure to reach out to other parents and parent council members via our parent engagement forum.
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