{"id":29976,"date":"2021-07-04T16:27:34","date_gmt":"2021-07-04T20:27:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/?p=29976"},"modified":"2024-08-31T07:38:42","modified_gmt":"2024-08-31T11:38:42","slug":"how-a-pto-connected-students-with-community-during-covid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/how-a-pto-connected-students-with-community-during-covid\/","title":{"rendered":"How a PTO connected students with community during COVID"},"content":{"rendered":"

Like so many students this past year, the 7th and 8th students at Crossett Brook Middle School in Duxbury, Vermont, were in a hybrid mode of learning due to Covid restrictions in their school.\u00a0 They spent two days in the school building in small group pods and three days learning remotely from home. The three days at home were extra challenging, as only one of those days they had zoom class with their classmates, while two whole days were alone at home with email based assignments.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

When my 7th grader left school at 2:30pm on Tuesdays, he did not return to the normalcy of school and friends till the following Monday at 7:30am. That is a long time for a 7th and 8th grader to stay self motivated and positive.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Eventually, something had to be done. I was part of a group of parents connected to our Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) who worked together to provide opportunities for students in our community.<\/p>\n

Let’s get organized<\/h2>\n

The fall of 2020 wasn\u2019t too hard.\u00a0 The weather was tolerable for outside masked activities and everyone was still adjusting to this new schedule. But when the days grew dark and the temperatures dropped, many middle school parents began to report concerning behaviors for their children. <\/span><\/p>\n

Some kids were finding refuge in their rooms playing video games and not changing out of their pajamas. Others reported that their kids were less engaged with daily activities, not wanting to talk as much to family or friends. <\/span><\/p>\n

And even more started to share their concerns about depression, complacency, and substance abuse.\u00a0 Students were even caught sneaking out, smoking pot, and sexting.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

By the end of February, parents were reaching out to other parents for support.\u00a0 What was normal? What should we do?\u00a0 How can we help our kids?\u00a0 Do we need to seek counseling?\u00a0 Local organizations began to report a marked increase in requests for counseling and therapy services for our youth. <\/span><\/p>\n

And a small group of parents connected to the PTO decided we had to do something.<\/span><\/p>\n

After a one hour call on a Sunday morning in early March, this small group had developed an action plan. We would organize, fundraise, and communicate an engagement plan for these middle school students based on the ideas that we all know \u201cCovid Sucks\u201d\u00a0 so let\u2019s do something.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Making it happen<\/h2>\n

“Get Out! Get Creative! And Get Involved!” These kids needed to play outside with friends, help our community with service projects, and use their artistic minds to create, and so this group made it happen. And it was inspiring!\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In two weeks, this PTO group raised over $3,000, got multiple community organizations involved, and launched the program.\u00a0 It was a simple yet effective grassroots effort.\u00a0 The program plan was as follows:<\/span><\/p>\n

Every 7th and 8th grader got a short Google slideshow<\/a> every Monday morning for 4 weeks.\u00a0 That slide show linked them to 3 different activities\/challenges happening that week.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n