Weaving a community: A spotlight on Blair’s PTSA

As AfterProm has just concluded, it is important to note the helpers that have made the event a success. The Montgomery Blair High School Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) has worked hard over the past few months so that students can get the best experience. This isn’t the only event that Blair’s PTSA contributes to, though. In fact, a lot of its impact and structure often goes unnoticed by the majority of students. 

AfterProm Arch

Photo: PTSA parent volunteers worked hard to create props for AfterProm, including this arch.

PTSA parent volunteers worked hard to create props for AfterProm, including this arch. Photo courtesy of Heidi Anderson.

For those that may be unfamiliar, the PTSA is a recognizable symbol of American education, being prominently featured in different forms of media, including movies and books. With 54 state congresses and over 20,000 local units, the PTSA aims to support students through community involvement. 

PTSA Structure 

Blair’s PTSA has created a structure that enforces this goal by making general meetings, which are held once a month, welcome to everybody. Members in leadership positions also have additional meetings that are, at minimum, once a month. 

In general meetings, the first 10-15 minutes are usually reserved for announcements and reminders. After, they try to have a presentation from a notable speaker. In a previous PTSA meeting, Montgomery County Council member and Blair alum Kristen Mink was invited to be a guest speaker. 

Sometimes, members of the community or teachers reach out to the PTSA if they have a topic that they would like to emphasize in the meetings. If not, then the PTSA decides a topic that they believe is relevant to the attendees. “If no one reaches us, we have to then figure out what would be a good topic, what people are interested in,” Anderson says. “So it’s sort of a group leadership decision on what to present.” 

Montgomery County Council of PTSAs 

Blair’s PTSA is also involved in the Montgomery County Council of PTSAs (MCCPTSA), which holds monthly meetings with delegates from each of the schools to present and discuss important issues for the county. 

One of Blair’s MCCPTSA delegates is Sharyn Rosenberg. Rosenberg is tasked with communicating key information to the Blair PTSA from county meetings and sending Blair’s input to the county. “I’m basically like a liaison,” Rosenberg explains. “I will tell the Blair PTSA and administration some of the things that [are] happening at the county level…or sometimes there’s an issue where they want to know input for individual schools, [so] I will [ask] for feedback.” 

Rosenberg plays an important role, as she connects the MCCPTSA to Blair’s PTSA and ensures that Blair’s voice is heard at the county level. Before Rosenberg volunteered to be a delegate, no one had held the position in a few years, which meant that Blair was often unrepresented in key county discussions. Rosenberg felt that it was important for Blair’s voice to be heard in county meetings and offered to help. “I felt [as] the largest school, not only in the county, but in the state of Maryland, I found it important to make sure that Blair was represented. So I volunteered to do it,” she states. 

A crucial part of MCCPTSA are their committees, which often have a specialized focus, such as curriculum. MCCPTSA committees are open to all, giving everybody in schools the opportunity to make a change in something that they feel strongly about. 

Membership

Membership in Blair’s PTSA has always been a struggle because many essential positions are often hard to fill. For example, Heidi Anderson, Blair’s current president, stepped up after the previous PTSA president had extended her term from the typical two-year limit to three years due to the lack of leadership. “The past president, Ayo Atterbury, had been president for three years. The term is supposed to only be for two years, but no one stepped up and in the absence of leadership, she did it for a third year,” she states. “So I knew that there was no way she could do it for a fourth year, and she needed help.” 

Her decision to become president was aided by the fact that she had extra time, as she was working part-time. Anderson also had some experience, being the treasurer of an elementary school PTSA for two years. Although the experience was often helpful, Anderson believes that parents don’t need experience to contribute to the PTSA at Blair. “You don’t necessarily need those experiences,” she states. “And I say that because if [a parent] comes to Blair and has never served in the PTSA leadership in the past, there’s still so much that they can give here at Blair.”  

Anderson Photo with Blazer

Photo: Anderson poses with Blair's mascot during Blair Fair.

Anderson poses with Blair's mascot during Blair Fair. Photo courtesy of Heidi Anderson.

However, with the busy schedules of parents, joining the PTSA is often hard for parents who feel like they may not have enough time. This makes having a large, diverse leadership hard. “We really need and want a diverse leadership team,” Anderson states. “And so it doesn’t help for me to say to my friend, hey, come join the PTSA, because that’s not [necessarily] diverse.” 

In hopes of finding a solution, Blair’s PTSA is working on eliminating barriers to entry. For example, Blair’s PTSA has no membership fee so that anybody can join the PTSA. However, there are still several factors that can make it harder for parents to join, such as communication. “We can always do better getting the word out. We can always do better trying to communicate in different languages. It’s always a struggle,” Anderson says. 

Another way that Blair’s PTSA is working on eliminating barriers to entry is through the creation of the Latinx branch of the PTSA named Los Padres. The Latinx branch is a step in the right direction, as it allows the PTSA to become more inclusive and potentially increase its membership. 

Why volunteer? 

Membership is essential in making the events of Blair’s PTSA successful, such as helping with staff appreciation and funding. The PTSA can also help in times of emergencies so that the school functions smoothly. 

One example is when the main office was out, leading to a staffing shortage that day. Blair’s PTSA was able to create a rotation of volunteers to fill in roles and ensure that the school day ran smoothly. “There was a time, a day in the fall, where for whatever reason, the entire main office staff was out,” Anderson says. “I was able to get a rotation of volunteers to fill the gap that day.” 

Volunteering in the PTSA, even if it’s just for an hour, can help the school immensely. Parents can also spread the word and stay plugged in to increase their awareness of volunteer opportunities. 

Parents of high school students only have a couple of years before they graduate and become adults. Anderson believes that being an active participant in the PTSA can allow parents to strengthen their connection with their children by staying in touch. “If you want to try to maintain a connection with you and your child and what’s going on in your child’s life, PTSA is definitely a great way to do that,” she says. 

Whether it’s making a financial contribution to AfterProm or attending general meetings, there are several ways that parents can be active in their community through the PTSA. If interested, parents and community members can learn more about Blair’s PTSA by heading to their website.