Why 2 intense years as PTO President was worth it

I’ve stepped out of my position as PTO President after two very intense and devoted years. While it took a lot of sacrifice, my time as PTO President taught me a lot about leadership and the power of working with others and believing in what you set out to accomplish. As a PTO, with more than 35 truly dedicated parents who I had the pleasure of working alongside, we raised over $230,000 for the school during my two years as PTO President, which helped us receive matching grants of another $100,00. For those of you who may not know, California ranks 49th out of 50 states in terms of school funding, and our schools have been consistently losing in the state budget crises for several years. Without significant fundraising, our schools would be devastated, so these funds have helped keep our children continue to receive quality, well-rounded education in the midst of a true crisis for public education.

But my dedication was to much more than fundraising, it was about building community and improving upon the system in place for parents to get involved with the school. Our PTO created and pulled off two new amazing events this spring – a Cinco de Mayo Festival and Tamale Cookoff, and a Barnyard BBQ & Hoedown. I’ve never truly pictured myself as an event planner, but putting together these two events was quite a lot of fun, and allowed all of the organizers the thrill of pulling off a successful event that not only raised much needed funds for Sonoma schools, but also helped enliven the school community and Sonoma community as well.

Leading the PTO also helped awakened my interest in giving back, and hooked me on how fulfilling it can be to do something with a strong sense of purpose.