Room Parent Job Description Thank you for agreeing to take on this very important role as a Hanna Fenichel Center Room Parent. The Room Parent is the primary contact of Goodwill Ambassador between parents, teachers, the director, and the school community. On behalf of the staff and school director, we are happy to have you join us in ensuring that the Hanna families get the information and support they need this school year. Room Parent Duties include: Meet with the Center director to map out the school year s activities Meet with your co room parent(s) and coordinate tasks and responsibilities Introduce yourself to the parents in your class personally and with a formal letter of introduction (see sample letter Addendum 1) and encourage parent participation in classroom and/or school wide events Meet with your classroom teachers to determine where, when, and how they can best use your support Assist with field trips by organizing snacks, parents to help with driving, walking and/or supervision (5 Day only) Communicate with parents in your class regarding specific events (classroom or school wide) Organize occasional out of school get togethers, i.e. Moms Night Out, parent breakfast after drop off, Dads Night Out Manage Class Budget to support classroom activities, teacher holiday/year end gifts and other class incidentals (see Budget addendum 2) Set up collection of funds and manage throughout the year Teacher/Staff Gifts: Room Parents are encouraged to determine how to honor their teachers for birthdays, holiday and year end gifts (whether individually or by the class as a whole). Room Parents communicate the arrangement and collect the necessary funds (See Addendum 3 for the Room Parent Teacher Form) Hanna Teacher Birthday Tradition: Room Parents purchase a birthday card and either ask that all parents sign the card individually or the room parent may sign on behalf of the class as a whole. Additionally, each child is asked to bring a flower or small bouquet from their garden to form a large birthday bouquet Classroom Contact List: In an effort to practice greener and smarter methods of distributing class information, all official school rosters will be available by download on the website: www.hannafenichel.com/roster (this is password protected) Room Parents have the option of asking parents to join in a private Facebook Class Group Page. This is optional depending on the interest level of parents and the participants actively using this social platform
Welcome New Families: We ask that Room Parents extend an extra hand to welcome our new families and to make sure they feel welcome to our Hanna Community. Typically, Room Parents purchase a small gift to welcome these new families Raise Awareness and Participation: We rely on the Room Parents to raise awareness that Hanna s success is directly correlated to the participation and volunteering by parents Occasionally, committee chairs will reach out directly to Room Parents to assist with support for school activities. Room Parents are expected to help these committees to further the goals of the campaign, event, or function Room Parents are encouraged to lead by example Important Dates: Please see our Google Calendar for a list of important Hanna events. Please see the dates below to use as a Quick Reference: Pancake Breakfast: September 10th Wine & Cheese Party: October 8th Annual Giving: October 10th November 4th School Pictures: October 11th Staff Development Day (No School): October 21st Parent/Teacher Conferences: October 24th 26th Family Feast: November 18th Art Show: March 24th Spring Fling Fundraiser: March 25th Teacher Appreciation Week: May 1st 5th Moving up Ceremony (5 Day Only): June 9th All School Picnic: June 9th Camp Hanna: June 26th July 27th Thank you for your participation this year! Your role as a room parent is vital to the success of Hanna events and to growing the sense of community that makes Hanna special. Thank you! Julie Brackbill Director julie@hannafenichel.com
Addendum 1 Date Hello <Program Name, Class Name> Parents, Our names are <Insert Name(s)> and we are happy/please/excited to be the co room parents for the <Name the program, Rm #, Classroom Name> for this year. <Program/Class> is filled with wonderful parents and children and we look forward to an awesome year! The Hanna teachers provide our children with a rich environment filled with many opportunities for discovery and learning. Our children are very fortunate to have such dedicated teachers! Our job as Room Parents is to support you, the teachers, Julie and the Hanna community. We will be meeting with the teachers to determine when, where and how they can use our help and will share that information with you, as needed. Stay tuned for more information about classroom events such as Moms and/or Dads Nights Out, playdates at <Insert Place> and family picnics and get togethers. Anyone interested in hosting a <Halloween or Holiday Party> for our class? To simplify the holiday and year end teacher gift giving process and the requests for various donations, we have set a classroom budget to cover all expenses throughout the year. We are asking that each family donate <$100.> This requested donation will cover the cost of acknowledging the teachers during the Winter Holiday, birthdays, end of the year, and other incidentals throughout the school year. You are welcome to honor the teachers in addition, but this ONE time donation should cover all gifts for our teachers. Please download our Google Calendar and mark you calendars and join us for the following events at Hanna: Pancake Breakfast: September 10th Wine & Cheese Party: October 8th School Pictures: October 11th Parent/Teacher Conferences: October 24th 26th Family Feast: November 18th Art Show: March 24th & Spring Fling Fundraiser: March 25th Teacher Appreciation Week: May 1st 5th Moving up Ceremony (5 Day Only): June 9th All School Picnic: June 9th Thank you in advance for your participation and support! We are looking forward to a great year. Please feel free to email us or join our Facebook group to send questions, ideas, or ways that you would like to support our class! Sincerely, Name, Phone, Email, Parent to Child Name Name, Phone, Email, Parent to Child Name
Addendum 2 Sample Budget Program Date Number of Teachers Suggested Amount Total Amount Event/Expense Holiday Gifts Cash, Gift Card, Individual Gift 3 $100.00 $300.00 Music Teacher 1 $25.00 $25.00 Garden Teacher (Francie) 1 $25.00 $25.00 Teacher Appreciation Week May 1 5 Flowers, Wine, Gift Card (manicures, card, etc) 3 $50.00 $150.00 Incidentals Birthday Cards, Wrapping, Extras $50.00 $50.00 Year End Gifts Gift Cards, Individual Gifts, etc 3 $100.00 $300.00 Total $850.00 This equates to $85.00 per family based on 10 children in the class. This is an example only and will differ by class depending on the number of families per class and number of teachers assigned to each class. Please see below for a suggested breakdown by class.
Addendum 2 (cont) Parent Tot: $70 per family 2 Teachers: Patti & Pauline Intern Teacher: TBD Transition: $80 per family 3 Teachers: Rm1 Amanda, Kari & Pauline, Rm2 Emily, Marissa & Patti Garden Teacher, Francie 3 Day AM/PM: $80 per family 2 Teachers: Rm1 Kari & Pauline; Rm2 Emily & Marissa (3 Day AM & PM teachers) Garden Teacher, Francie 5 Day: $95 per family 2 Teachers: Rm3 Bre & Bianca; Rm4 Eva & Jeanine Garden Teacher, Francie *Legacy Gift to School Suggested gift amounts are as follows: $100 ($150 for 5 day teachers) per teacher for holiday gift and end of year gifts (feel free to beef up end of year gifts with extra class funds) $20 Francie per class for holiday and end of year gifts $25 Birthdays $25 Per Teacher for Teacher Appreciation Week (flowers, cards, favorite coffee, etc.) **Director gifts at class discretion **Kindly, we request that you refrain from gifting sugary treats to teachers.**
Addendum 3 Room Parent Confidential Dear <Teacher> As your Room Parent, we want to get to know you! Kindly, we ask that you complete this short survey and return as soon as you can! Thank you! Your Room Parents 1. What is your favorite color? 2. What is your favorite flower? 3. What do you prefer coffee or tea? Which way? Don t do either then what? 4. What is your favorite beverage? 5. Where do you love to shop? Favorite store? 6. What is your favorite restaurant? 7. What is your favorite meal? 8. What do you do in your spare time? 9. If you could get a special treat, what would it be? Or use this link here to transform these questions into a Google Form to submit to teachers electronically. Ideas for Teacher Gifts include: A Gift from You: A heartfelt, handwritten note goes a long way! Involve the Kids: A personal note, drawing, or photo Involve the Classroom: A week of pampering, take turns bringing in a treat in the morning, delivering lunch, etc!