Flyers should go out on Mondays. To be included in Monday backpacks home, please have the flyer copied and in the mailboxes anytime after 2pm on Friday or before 9:45am Monday.Please give a master (white) copy to the office for their records.
Approval for Flyers
In an effort to cut down on paper use and expense, please consider if an email can reach your population in place of a flyer. A flyer can always follow if you do not receive enough response.
When considering flyer distribution, please contact the PTO co-chairs (cochairs@douglasschoolpto.org) to let them know before drafting the flyer. They will either put the flyer date on the PTO calendar or recommend an alternate form of communication. Once the flyer is drafted, send it to the PTO cochairs with 24-48 hours notice. They will get approval from the Douglas office (including Dr Whitbeck) and will get back to you with any edits and the go-ahead to make copies.
Distributing Flyers
After copies have been made (see instructions below), put them in the teachers’ mailboxes in the office for distribution. Once again, please give a master (white) copy to the office for their records.
Making Copies
The PTO paper supply is located in the cabinets in the teachers’ lounge along the wall. The PTO cochairs will replenish stock when needed. Look for the blue binder with a log sheet with the paper supply. Please indicate on the log sheet your event, paper color chosen, number of copies made (for example, one per family, one per student, or first and second grade families, etc) and distribution date. We try to keep track of paper use for ordering purposes next year. You will find the plastic PTO Supplies Box with paper clips, markers, name tags, etc. located on the counter in the teachers’ lounge.
The “big job” copy machine is across from the school office and should be used for complicated jobs only, such as those with multiple pages, those that need collating, staples, etc. Single sheets, and single double-sided sheets, should be done on the smaller copiers in the hall near the classrooms. (lower level near the kindergarten classrooms, or upper level near the fifth grade classrooms.) These copiers are more efficient at double-sided copies, and using these machines ensures that the “big job” copier does not have people lined up waiting for it.
For the “big job” copier across from the office, you need to enter the 4-digit PTO code before you can do any copying:
Please contact the PTO cochairs for this code.
All copying for the PTO on this machine needs to have this code entered. Most importantly, when you finish copying, clear the code. If you just walk away from the copier without clearing the code, subsequent copies will go under OUR code, so please be careful about this.
Using the “big” copier
- White paper goes in drawer #1, and colored paper goes into drawer #2 ONLY…no colored paper in drawer #1.
- When you go to the machine, type in PTO 4 Digit Code
- Do all copying
- Once copying is complete, 2 buttons need to be pressed at the same time: CLEAR MODES and CLEAR STOP. Then the screen on the copier will return to the screen where you entered in your code.
Note that it does not say “enter code” where you need to enter it; it is just a blank screen waiting for copying. When you type in the numbers, you will see the code going in.
To save paper, we have a system so that only one copy of each flyer goes to each family. There is a basket in the cabinets with small pieces of paper that say One Per Family. Grab 21 of these. Fill out one for each classroom. There is a list of how many copies to make for each class as well as the total # of copies with the log sheet (and by each copy machine). Once you make your copies please count them out for each class. Secure each group with a sheet that says One Per Family. If you do not see the one per family/one per student breakdown list, check in the office and they will give you a copy to use.
Flyer notes about collecting money
If your flyer includes the collection of money (via backpack), please mention on your flyer that parents should make the check to “Douglas School PTO,” and say what the money is for on the check memo line (e.g., Lowell Spinners). Event coordinators should ask parents to send event money directly to them by putting their name on the envelope. (Let the office know who to send envelopes to, in case parents just put the name of the event on the envelope.)