PACs get ready for another busy season of fundraising
Posted September 3, 2015 11:12 pm.
Last Updated September 3, 2015 11:20 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Parents whose kids are entering the public school system for the first time next week might be encountering the word ‘PAC’ for the very first time.
The role of the ‘Parent Advisory Council’ has evolved in the last few years.
PACs were originally designed to give a voice to parents on how the school is run and what its aspirations are.
But PACS are increasingly pre-occupied with fundraising, to pay for everything from playground equipment to sexual health courses, the items cash-strapped school districts no longer cover.
Nicole Makohoniuk with the BC Confederation of Parent Advisory Councils says parents could be forgiven for thinking the school’s PAC is a money making machine.
“It’s typical to hear 60 to 80 per cent of the PAC meeting is about raising money for the school. Has that changed over the years? Sure. But is that our mandate? No, it’s not. We’re mandated to be the voice of parents and families.”
She doesn’t think parents are fed up with fundraising.
“I think I see a shift in fundraising. We are no longer selling chocolate bars. We are creating more community events. The shift towards community events is building community in the school and making people want to attend and want to spend money.”
She stresses parents who aren’t interested in fundraising can volunteer at the school and still be considered an active member of the PAC.
