Comments about ‘Parents clash over school access bill’

All of this bickering is harming our school children. There is nothing more important to the future of this Country than making sure that the education system teaches our children the old fashioned values that made this the best nation on earth: honesty, loyalty, and self-sacrifice. These competing parties should stop arguing and should come together for the benefit of the children.

The schools will never teach old fashioned values. That is not their purpose. Under 'education reform' the purpose is to make good little socialist - athiests out of your children without your permission.

Mosiah 23:14 And also trust no one to be your teacher nor your minister, except he be a man of God, walking in his ways and keeping his commandments.

Mosiah 24 talks about the Lamonites school system where they gave them a secular education but would not teach them anything about God, the Law of Moses, etc.

Ever since the supreme court ruling prohibiting prayer in school, public schools are against the LDS religion if you believe Mosiah.

It is time the PTA learn to put children first instead of being the playground bully - Is it about having parental help at school or just making sure the PTA is the big kid and gets its way?

Let's put kids first!

what does PTO stand for? What is the difference between the two?

Shouldn't our legislature be focusing on more important things? In my view this shouldn't even be an issue that is on the table right now. I'm disgusted at our legislature!

A "PTO" is a Parent Teacher Organization. A "PTA" is a Parent Teacher Association, and if in a secondary school is a "PTSA" or Parent Teacher Student Association.

The difference lies in the PTA being part of a State and National Organization. The PTA is able to work not just within one school but, with many schools and these schools are able to meet together and exchange ideas and help solve problems or share what works. The PTA is able to provide training for the leaders, especially financial training, support, and help in filing the required forms for the IRS.

A PTO is not part of an organization and work within one school. They do not, usually, meet with any other schools and do not receive training, support, and help from a State or National orgainization.

A PTA charges a membership fee, but it is only required of Board Members and those wishing to vote for or against Board Members and the PTA Budget. There is no membership requirement to be involved or volunteer in the school.

A PTO may or may not charge membership fees.

One more difference between PTA and PTO: Utah PTA took on the Federal Government and won in regards to Trust Lands. Without Utah PTA your School Community Councils would not have Trust Lands monies to spend each year.

A School Community Council is not a PTA-run entity, it is legislated by the State Legislature and the local school districts. The SCC is made up of parents and school employees with one more parent then school employee. SCCs are to use the money given them to help all students and be academic in nature.

SO, all parents and students in a public school should be thanking Utah PTA for standing up to the government.

The PTA is just an arm of the UEA. When is the last time they had a substantive disagreement? Children would be better off without either of them!

they only represent stay at home moms. they dont have meetings when working people can go to them and they dont care about issues that effect familys that both parents work. Oh and why do you talk about values? that indicates a gain or worth not an ideal. Ideals are what we should be teaching our kids not gain. you can teach ideals without god coming into the education. Like being a good person.

I think a one size fits all approach is just not going to work anymore with education. PTO PTA same diff just different titles. Everyone has become so me me me focused. It really comes down to money and who gets to control it. Less selfishness would lead to less bickering and more time money and focus on solutions. Education is broken lets start looking for solutions and that means ONE size wont fit all solutions so lets play nice in the sandbox and share!

It sounds like the legislature is going to turn our schools into places where every single parent lobby group will need to be granted an audience. The point of this whole bill is to break the back of the well-organized PTA (150,000 parents belong) so they can have another shot at vouchers. This isn't about equal access. Parents can already volunteer in our schools and can even volunteer to help the PTA regardless of the paltry $5 membership. I actually find it refreshing to see the a parent group being attacked by the legislature. This just shows how much to the extreme right the Republican legislature has gone and this will hopefully speed the demise of the right wing agenda in this state. I've been a Republican my whole life, but I think the Democrats are right when they say Rush Limbaugh is head of the Republican Party. The Republicans are betraying the party itself by insisting that America is still the same as 20 years ago. They need to adapt to the year 2009 or we are going to unfortunately have Democratic Party rule in this country for a long, long time.

Come on Bramble, leave the parent volunteers alone. They are the parents that bother to help out at schools.

All this crap over a $5 membership fee?

On the other hand $5 is a good tip for a pizza driver.

Imagine a school having forty parent groups of one or two memmbers and the Principal and having to meet with them each monoth becasue he/she meets with the PTA. Come on folks get real. There is no need for PTO's. The legislature required all schools to have community involvement, they even require more parents on the council than employees. If we keep adding chiefs to the tribe nobody will know what they are doing. Have a little common sense please...

The PTA has had a strangle hold on schools for way too long. I think it's time to do away with the PTA and any other organized parental groups direct involvement with our schools.

I never could see the need to be involved with the PTA to support my children's school, I could still volunteer to help and support many activities with the bureaucracy of a "Parent's association". Robert is correct on the UEA and the PTA association, they are one int he same.

1. The PTA and the UEA are only joined together in the minds of those who listen to 3 hours of Hannity a day. In reality, they are completely separate and have only recently been linked together in the minds of misguided Conservatives over the Voucher issue.
2. Education is NOT broken. Regular Public Schools in Utah are performing miracles everyday. Education is only "broken" to those who want to economically gain from the privatization of education.
3. This is nothing more than the Legislature seeking revenge on the harmless PTA over the failed voucher issue. They are running the game plan of Parents for Choice in Education who are gearing up for "Vouchers Part II" and yet many people are too blind to see that reality.
4. Support your Regular Public Schools. Support your PTA. They are not sinister or evil. They are educating our future!

As a teacher I think it should be a local decision within disctricts and/or even as tight as schools themselves. The state running this decision is not ideal for anyone. Plus, why are they even debating this when the budget for education is still on the line? I might not be getting a raise this year because Utah Legislature members don't want to lose their money for personal spending, but they should cut mine because all I'm doing is teaching their kids how to live in the future.

PTO: Why would it be a bad thing to allow them access? huh? Do they feel bad about being denied access somewhow?

Are you kidding me?! This should not have to be legislated at all. Who would care if two parent groups operated in one school? Most secondary schools don't have either PTA or PTO...because of parent apathy.

Every school wants parents in their schools. Do we really need to legislate groups?

It's funny that here the PTA wants the legislature out of this, while in other states (when the PTA can get the ear of a legislator and where the PTA is losing membership rapidly), the PTA is trying to use these same exact tactics in its own favor.

The PTA is about the PTA. If given the choice between a great school with successful kids and no PTA and a mediocre school with struggling kids and a fully-joined PTA, I'm afraid too many PTA lifers would choose number 2. It's become "save the organization no matter what" rather than what it was all about originally.

Maybe this is the PTA's last stand. Utah is only state with mostly PTAs.

Being lost in all these squablling political party groups, PTA, UEA, and PTO the parents are being left out of the education of their children. Who is the legislators passing laws for, the citizens, or these private and independent political activist who think they should be controling schools and parent involvement? The PTA is not our voice in education and its needs, we the parents and taxpayers are the voice of education. It is time to shut down the PTA, UEA, NEA, and its political activist once and for all. They are not our elected officials and do not represent anyone but themselves.