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PTO raises funds for school supplies
- Published: July 16, 2024
Though summer vacation is still in full swing, the Mills Lawn Parent Teacher Organization, or PTO, is already preparing for the 2024–25 school year: This week, the PTO kicks off a fund drive that will help provide school supplies for local students.
The cost of school supplies can be a significant cost for families — particularly those with multiple children in the local schools. For more than a decade the PTO has taken on the task of raising money for and purchasing school supplies for some students.
PTO leaders Liz Hohl and Kristi Myers told the News last week that the PTO provided supplies for around 45 students — about 15% of the total student body at Mills Lawn — last year, and will likely provide for a similar number this year.
“We’re given a list of how many supplies are needed for each grade,” Myers said, adding that the students who will receive the supplies are identified by school administrators and remain anonymous to PTO members.
Families are contacted directly by the school to receive supplies, which this year will be delivered to students’ classrooms ahead of open house.
“We aren’t privy to exactly how [students are identified], but it’s a combination of historical data collected by the school,” Hohl said.
Last year’s total cost for supplies provided by the PTO was $1,841.46; this year, the PTO asks folks to consider donating $20 toward the purchase of a single set of supplies.
“But really, any amount will help,” Hohl said.
Outside of direct donations, supplies are paid for through PTO-launched fundraising initiatives, which include local business sponsorships, parking cars at the biannual Street Fairs and such annual PTO-sponsored events as Winterfest and Euchre Night. Funding also comes by way of corporate giving programs Kroger Community Rewards and Amazon Smile, which donate a portion of sale proceeds when a purchaser indicates Mills Lawn PTO as a beneficiary.
Last year, through these avenues, the PTO raised $24,000, enabling them to support both students and educators at Mills Lawn through a variety of programs. The PTO helped underwrite field trips, including visits to Muse Machine, COSI, the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery and Young’s Dairy, and provided winter gear for some students and meals, snacks and supply stipends for teachers, among many other things. The PTO also funded student and family events such as the newly initiated Grandfriends Day and Skate Night and the annual Bulldog Jog race and Bulldog Boogie dance.
This school year, the PTO will also provide water bottles to all students at Mills Lawn.
Any caregiver with students attending Mills Lawn is automatically considered a member of the PTO, but Myers and Hohl said there are currently around 15 active members working to plan events and raise funds.
“It’s definitely grown in the last few years,” Hohl said. “But we would like more, because we’ve found that, with more participation, we get more diverse ideas.”
She added: “I know that there’s often a sense of being at capacity for parents, and Americans in general, but there’s such a need for even small amounts of support, whether it’s an hour working at one of our events or joining our Slack [messaging] group to provide feedback.”
“And PTO is one place where you can have wins all the time,” Myers said. “Every meeting, we fund something or do something good. And that feels good, too.”
Myers and Hohl encouraged families who are in need of help with school supplies this year to reach out to Principal Megan Winston at 937-767-7217 or mwinston@ysschools.org.
Donations may be made to the Mills Lawn PTO for the school supply fund drive via Venmo, @MillsLawnPto-MillsLawnPto; checks may also be sent to Mills Lawn PTO, 200 S. Walnut St. Yellow Springs, OH, 45387. For more information on PTO, including how to become an active member, go to http://www.millslawnpto.com.
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