Room Parent Sign Up: Room Parent Sign Up
Room Parent Description: Responsibilities & Expectations
Room Parents play a key role at High Plains: not only are they a link between teachers and families, but they also foster a sense of belonging by helping families feel connected to one another. They create opportunities for parents to engage, build relationships, and find community with other like-minded families, strengthening the home-to-school connection for everyone.
At High Plains, each Room Parent is responsible for the following tasks:
- Communication & Connection:
- Introduce yourselves to your classroom families
- Serve as a resource for families
- Encourage collaboration and participation
- PTCO / Community Event Participation:
- Attend annual Hawk Fest (auction): As ambassadors of your classrooms, Room Parents are expected to participate in the annual auction.
- Volunteer in one additional PTCO event: Foster connection through participation and support, uniting classroom families to strengthen the High Plains community as a whole.
- Party Planning:
- Plan, attend, and run the classroom’s Winter Party
- Plan, attend, and run the classroom’s Valentine’s Party
- Teacher Birthday Celebrations:
- Decorate Teacher’s classroom door, with participation from students
- Inform families of the celebration
Room Parent Jobs by Classroom
Introductory Email: Each classroom creates and distributes an introductory email, announcing to your class who you are and your roles as Room Parents. Include who your kids are and any other details you’d like to share. This is a great opportunity to extend yourselves as a resource (e.g., if a new family has questions about after-school clubs, what fundraisers HP offers, or event times). Including a group photo of yourselves can be super helpful!
PTCO / Community Events Liaison: Each classroom needs to identify one Room Parent to serve as their classroom’s PTCO/Community Events Liaison. This parent serves as a link connecting Room Parents, classroom families, and High Plains PTCO. Liaisons work directly with the PTCO—including the Auction Committee and the Community Events Committee—providing additional support when needed, relaying important communication, and encouraging family participation.
Room Parent Jobs by Grade Level
Each grade level will need a Communications Parent, a Parent Liaison, and a Treasurer. Responsibilities are as follows:
Communications Parent: Puts together information Room Parents want relayed to classroom families—they write the emails meant for families! This includes introductory emails, Party Sign-Up Genius links, promotion of upcoming Community and Fundraising events, and volunteer requests. Messages are sent to the Parent Liaison to forward to the Teacher Liaison. They also send party Sign-Up Genius links to the Classroom Communications Manager (Kristin Furfari) for posting on the PTCO website.
Parent Liaison: Serves as the main contact communicating with the Teacher Liaison. (Each grade level team chooses a Teacher Liaison, announced at the training meeting.) Any information to communicate to families flows from the Parent Liaison to the Teacher Liaison (except for teacher birthdays). The Teacher Liaison coordinates with the grade-level teachers to email updates to their classes. Parent Liaisons also coordinate party approvals, special requests, and tips with the Teacher Liaison.
Treasurer: One per grade level. Responsible for tracking expenditures and submitting receipts via the Expense Reimbursement link to the PTCO treasurer. The PTCO will not reimburse amounts exceeding the designated budget per grade, and receipts must be submitted no later than thirty (30) days after the party.
Please indicate your grade and attach photos of original receipts via the form: Access Expense Reimbursement Form Here.
Party Particulars
Facilitating the Party: As a room parent, it is your job to run and facilitate your classroom party! If you cannot attend, you MUST designate a volunteer replacement. It is not the teacher’s job to facilitate the party; this is their opportunity to relax and enjoy their students.
Meeting in Advance: Grade-level room parents should meet 4–5 weeks prior to each party to organize helpers, coordinate donation requests, and confirm approvals with teachers.
Day-of Party Lead Parent (1 per classroom): This parent leads the party activities and explains crafts/games to the kids so the teacher can remain off duty. All Room Parents are encouraged to attend—it takes at least two people to run each party smoothly!
Budget: Each grade can receive up to $100 total for the entire school year from the PTCO to support both parties combined. Please use Sign-Up Genius to request as many food and craft donations from parents as possible.
Grade-Level Consistency: While room parents have creative flexibility, all parties within a grade level must follow the same plan (same theme, treats, games, etc.) to ensure fairness and prevent hurt feelings.
Hawks with Heart: Winter Parties include the Hawks with Heart service initiative. Instead of take-home crafts, students participate in a community-focused giving project. Grade-level room parents choose the specific project and recipient organization together.
Treats: Focus on a few specific donated items (e.g., "Goldfish crackers" rather than "salty snack") and check with teachers regarding classroom allergies. Ensure enough snacks are available for students, siblings, teachers, and aides. Individually wrapped treats are strongly recommended.
Helpers: Coordinate parent volunteers to assist during the party. We recommend at least three helpers per classroom. Parents and younger siblings are welcome, provided disruptions are minimized.
Games & Crafts: Popular options include BINGO and Minute-to-Win-It games. Confirm all game choices with your Teacher Liaison. If including crafts, ensure supplies fit the budget, require short completion times, and minimize mess (stickers are preferred over wet glue; glitter is strongly discouraged).
Teacher Birthday Celebrations
Teacher birth dates will be shared at training and reminded ahead of time. To keep celebrations inclusive and low-cost, Room Parents will decorate the teacher’s classroom door and coordinate a giant birthday card created by the students (drawings, messages, and signatures).
Communicating with Classroom Families
Due to privacy policies, room parents cannot email classroom families directly. All official messages are coordinated through our Classroom Communications Manager or sent to your grade’s Teacher Liaison to be included directly in their weekly classroom newsletters.
