Re: Scouting and the PTA
Bev Beard (angelbev@JUNO.COM)
Thu, 9 Apr 1998 19:18:36 EDT
I was very invloved in PTA prior to my Scouting years...........what I
rember is a vague story about a lawsuit instituted against a PTA as a
Charter organization......don't know if that is true or not but here's
some food for thought......
a PTA is an all volunteer organization just like the Boy Scouts.........
PTA's are separate non-profit corporations accountable to the IRS for all
funds brought in and spent.................we all know how hard it is to
get volunteers for Scouting events???...........well, keep in mind that
Scouting is a program that inloves only those who willingly choose to
join.............PTA serves all members of a school whether they are PTA
members or not....and many parents *join*(in otherwords send in their
money) to show support for the school, without understanding that a PTA
is a totally separate organization from the school.............there may
be what appears to be a bigger base of volunteers for PTA but in
acutallity it is smaller becasue of the population that is being
served......................for example in my grade school of 550 kids,
we usually had only 125 PTA members...........now keep in mind that if we
have 5550 kids, we should have 1100 parents to draw
from...............just as in Scouting, when decisions need to be made,
only members may *vote*.............and when an event is planned (such as
a carnival) how can you say *This is a PTA event so only PTA parents and
their children may attend"........this defeats the purpose of most PTA's
which try to be all inclusive regardless of gender or religious
preference.............and I haven't begun on the financial
end.........PTA's not only *compete* with Scouting for fundraisers, but
the same spoerts groups, and other special interst groiups that Scouting
competes against..........and we have to account to the IRS for every
penny we bring in...........fundraising is NOT easy, and it's not a
matter of not wanting to share.....
so even though it may seem to make sense to ask a PTA to charter a Troop
or Pack, the reality is that very few PTA's have the resources to support
a separate group in any real way...........if you are to the point of
asking a PTA to Ccharter you, then think about having your parents
charter you as *Parents of Troop ---*..................it's actually
easier and much less confusing than using a separate all volunteer group.
Bev
**********************************************************************
On Wed, 8 Apr 1998 21:10:36 -0500 Keith Tilley <redcoat@NETSTEP.NET>
writes:
>Could someone please enlighten me on the reasoning behind the National
>PTA's policy of prohibiting local units from chartering Scouting
>units?
>My PTO is being asked to consider PTA affiliation, and when I posed
>that
>question to the State PTA representatives, I got a non-answer.
>
>Thanks,
> Keith Tilley
>
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