Schools including Woodgrove have an organization called the PTSO, the Parent, Teacher, and Student Organization. The PTSO is a group of students, parents, and teachers. Woodgrove students may have heard of this organization, but they may not know what it really is or what the organization does.
Woodgrove’s PTSO has over 200 members. They fundraise to support students and student groups like Social Science Teacher Mr. Matthew Talboo’s Global Ambassadors, the Special Education department, and the senior events such as the senior breakfast on PSAT Day. They also get together once a month and plan fundraising and community building events for the school. A few of the staff members and the student representatives attend. Their meetings last for an hour, and they are where everyone shares updates on what they are working on. They also have a national calendar for different appreciation months and days.
Special Education Teacher Assistant Ms. Angelique McLaughlin is the PTSO’S Teacher Representative. She comes to meetings and takes notes. Once she has done that, she reports to the staff and lets them know the kind of things that they are doing.
Nathalie Metzler, the president of the PTSO, explained her role. “I keep us organized and make sure that we stick to our mission, which would be building community and supporting our school and our staff,” she said. She also sends out an agenda before the monthly meetings.
Metzler shared an important message for the local communities, saying, “I would love for [people] to know that we really are a partnership between students, parents, and teachers, and that we’re here to support them and to build communities. So if people have needs, they come to us and ask, if they have ideas, that they come and share them…We are here to serve, but we need to know what those needs are as well.”
For anyone who is interested in learning about the organization and signing up, visit the Woodgrove PTSO website, woodgroveptso.org. For parents and staff, Woodgrove PTSO has a Facebook page and a Facebook group that are a great way to stay connected and up to date with the PTSO. Their volunteer opportunities and fundraisers go on their Facebook page right away.