The PTA Committee is a friendly group of people comprising parents and staff, and we work towards the common objectives of building community within the whole school, and creating a welcoming and vibrant school community by supporting new and existing families. In this way, we also support the school in its mission to provide a holistic nurturing environment for students, staff, parents and the wider community.
The PTA runs various events and activities which involve students, staff and families, which aim to strengthen our community ties. These events also create a welcoming and vibrant atmosphere, and lots of fun for all! One of the wonderful aspects is seeing the whole school family come together and enjoy themselves - as can be seen in the tug-of-war photos from the Spring Fair!
As your child is a student at the school, you are automatically a member of the PTA, and there are many ways you can get involved, in as little or as much as you want. You could join the PTA Committee, or be part of a sub-committee, be a Class or Year Group Rep, volunteer to help organise specific events, share your ideas and feedback, attend the parent socials, and support the PTA fundraising events.
Some of the PTA school events held over the years include the Back to School Social, Halloween, Christmas Bazaar, Staff Appreciation, Table Top Sale, Spring/Summer Fair, Parent Coffee Mornings, Parent Socials, Quiz Night, Year 6 Transition Coffee Morning and the popular Food Fair during International Week.
Some wonderful memories range from arranging all the yummy food donated by the parent body for the whole school teaching & non-teaching staff for Staff Appreciation Day, handing out chopped fruit to grateful hungry students during InterHouse Day, the dazzling array of food and beautiful costumes by parents to showcase the many cultures during International Week, watching the surprised faces on young children when they visited Santa at the Christmas Fair, amongst many others. We are hopeful that as restrictions ease we might be able to go back to holding some of these events in some form in the near future.
A certain amount of our PTA events have a fundraising element to them, and the funds raised are split between school and local charities. The school funds are split between the primary and secondary campus, and have been used to enrich school life. PTA funds have provided the Swimming pool scoreboards, Playground equipment and Treehouse at JB; and over at EP the Recycling Bins, Water Coolers, Table Tennis tables, Garden seating and Basketball scoreboards.
Our charity funds have provided support to local charities in various ways - from printed reading materials for literacy programmes, curriculum materials for refugee schools, rental support for children's homes, days out for orphans, and food supplies, to vocational training courses for refugees with job placement thereafter. So all funds raised are very well spent in supporting not only our school environment, but also the wider local community of which we are a part.
We have in recent years become more aware of environmental issues and sustainability, which gave rise to our more formalised second hand uniform initiative. This has proved very popular and just one of the ways in which we try to do our part, and keen to do more.
Being a member of a community - and feeling part of it - is a very genuine human need, and so important after the last 2 years of restrictions and isolation. The PTA aims to provide support to, and a network for, all families to engage and come together again and we look forward to reconnecting with the school community.
Authors: Sharianne Quirk and Taryn Yap, Former PTA co-chairs
Want to find out more about the PTA? Email the committee direct at pta@alice-smith.edu.my.