Room Parents

Volunteer  

- One or two parents can share responsibilities, with one person as the main point of contact for the teacher.

- Volunteer for only one classroom if you have children across grades or classes.

- Two class parties are held in October and December. 

- Room Parents purchase supplies upfront for reimbursement and lead the party in the classroom.

- The Room Parent coordinator for 2022-2023 is Bridget Wright.

- 6th grade has activities leaders instead of Room Parents and participate separately from this process. 

Guidelines

Please read and follow Mercer's and the district's guidelines for teacher and parent communications, reimbursement processes, and safety measures. Masks are not required in school at this time. Visitors must check in with Mercer's front office.

FHSD Volunteer Policies and Background Checks

Mercer's Room Parent Guidelines for 2022-2023

FHSD Food Guidelines 2022-2023

Examples of Safe Pre-packaged Snacks

Purchases and reimbursements

- Room Parent budgets are communicated in early October by the Room Parent Coordinator. 

- Classroom expenses are paid out of pocket by Room Parents and later reimbursed by the PTO.

- PTO purchases are eligible to waive sales tax when using the Tax Exemption Form at retailers/vendors. 

- Keep receipts and supporting documents to accompany the Check Request Form for reimbursement from the PTO Treasurer. The PTO does not reimburse sales tax if it is paid. Receipts can be mailed via USPS or scanned and sent via email within two weeks of the event.

- Follow Amazon's Instructions for Tax Exemption if purchasing supplies there

Teachers' gifts and wish lists

The Room Parent budget is not to be used for holiday gifts for teachers. Teacher gifts are funded by holiday gift contributions during PTO registration. Parents may want to purchase gifts or classroom supplies instead of or in addition to this fund. Please direct them to teachers' favorite things and classroom wish lists on the PTO's website. If your teacher's favorite things and wish lists are not listed on the website, please request them using a Teacher Info Sheet and send to PTO VP-Marketing.