volunteering and sponsored committees

Contacts

Brenda Kienan
Middle School Parent at Large

Jen Wideman
Lower School Parent at Large   

Or contact the RDSPGA Board.

Volunteering and Sponsored Committees

Find out about more opportunities for giving.

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Volunteers on these Parents' and Guardian's Association (PGA) committees support the school during the day, on a weekend, or even in a few minutes during the morning.

How committee chairs are nominated
Art
Book Fair
Caring
Faculty & Staff Appreciation
Fall Festival/Picnic
Generations Day
Green
Governance
Hospitality
Library
Lice Busters
Prism (Diversity)
Speakers Series
Room/Grade-Level Parents

Art
Parent volunteers on this committee assist the school’s art teachers. For lower school art, the main focus is on supporting students with class activities; volunteers are typically scheduled to assist with their own child’s class every few weeks. For both the lower school and middle school, art committee volunteers also provide support as needed for special activities such as the annual art shows (usually in the spring). Chair: Reven Suess

Book Fair
During the annual Book Fair (typically one week in November), shoppers can buy books for themselves, for the library, and for classroom use. Parent volunteer opportunities include setting up book and merchandise displays (or breaking them down); promoting Book Fair events; decorating; cashiering; and organizing, staffing, or providing snacks for associated activities such as a middle school party, author visit, or teacher previews. Learn more about the Book Fair. Chairs: Anne Cook and Sarah Wessel

Caring
Caring committee volunteers help out when a family/member of the Redwood Day School community is in transition or crisis and needs extra support such as meals, carpooling, grocery shopping, and so on. Responsibilities are shared throughout the year and the committee reaches out to the parent body for volunteers so the amount of support can be large without any one person being overburdened. Chairs: Liz Owens and Erin Newman

Faculty & Staff Appreciation
The Faculty Appreciation committee provides snacks for faculty and staff and organizes monthly luncheons. The committee provides faculty and staff with birthday cards, gift certificates and tickets to local cultural events. Jennifer Edmister and Jennifer Wineman

Fall Festival
The Fall Festival, an annual one-day social event, takes place at the beginning of the school year. Parent volunteer activities include event planning, publicity, setting up and cleaning up, organizing food and games, and so on. Chairs: Amy Briggs and Alicia Fenrick

Generations Day
For this annual celebration typically held on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, parent volunteers may help set up, greet guests, serve food and beverages, take pictures, clean up, or offer other assistance as needed and as available. Generations Day is managed by the development office and volunteers are coordinated by the school’s development staff. Chairs: Deborah Hamilton and Ryan Helton

Governance
The Governance committee is tasked with recommending improvements to the operations, conduct, and systems of the Parents' Association and Parents' Association executive board. Chair: Bill Pate

Green
The Green committee promotes sound environmental practices both within
and beyond the Redwood Day School community. Specific parent volunteer
activities depend on individual interests, and may include gathering
information, organizing, communicating, or staffing specific
initiatives. Activities are ongoing throughout the year. Chair: Abby Brown

Hospitality
The Hospitality committee coordinates with the Parents’ Association, admissions director, and head of school’s office for the hosting of events. Parent volunteers may set up and clean up snacks or food and beverages for events such as open houses, back-to-school nights, art shows, science fairs, and meetings of the Parents’ Association board where the general membership is expected to attend. Chairs: Marylou Karp and Erica Kisch

Library
Under the guidance of the school librarian, volunteers on this committee assist students with library activities on a scheduled basis (usually during their child’s library hours) throughout the year. Library committee volunteers also may be asked to help maintain library materials. Chairs: Sheila Dicinson and Marcilie Smith Boyle

Lice Busters
The Lice Busters committee works to reduce lice exposure at Redwood Day School by providing information to parents and to shorten the duration of outbreaks by conducting grade-level inspections at school. Volunteers are scheduled on a case-by-case basis (depending on availability) when lice checks are needed. Chairs: Monica Lent and Lori Wheeley

• Lice Tip Sheet
• Lice FAQs

Prism (Diversity)
Prism, the diversity committee, is open to all members of the Parents’ Association. Prism hosts forums and activities on matters of diversity as relevant to Redwood Day School and society at large. Prism events promote positive dialogue, increase understanding, enhance the richness of differences, celebrate multi-cultural activities, and bring the community together. Specific Prism activities are varied and may include discussions, training/educational opportunities, participation in school events, and distribution of information to faculty, students, and parents. Find out about Prism news and events. Chairs: David Gunderman, Leah Hoskin, and Shari Unitan

Speaker Series (Parent University)
This committee organizes and hosts focused programs, talks, or discussions geared toward parenting children at various ages and grade levels. Programs, talks, or discussions may take place throughout the year or in a single event such as a conference. Opportunities for being involved include planning events, scheduling speakers, publicity, record keeping, set up, clean up, and checking in attendees. Discover Parent University. Chair: Helena Weiss-Duman

Room/Grade-Level Parents
Room parents (in the lower school) and grade-level parents (in the middle school) coordinate with their child’s individual classroom teachers or grade-level advisors for specific class events such as field trips and parties. Activities for these events can include planning activities or organizing snacks or transportation, for example. Room parents and grade-level parents also forward communications from the Parents’ Association regarding school-wide events and information as requested and within the Parents’ Association’s communications guidelines. There are generally 2-5 room parents or grade-level parents per class or grade.