Mrs. Keller would love some help shortly before, shortly after and during ESY cooking classes (10:45 – 11:35). Help would include prepping ingredients, cleaning up, monitoring students who are prepping, cooking or cleaning, or monitoring cooking. Sign up here.
Category Archives: Volunteering
ECS 5th Grade Winter Coat Drive
With holiday spirit and kindness in mind, fifth grade is collecting new or gently used coats, gloves, blankets, and comforters to donate to Free Store Wilkinsburg. We have talked a lot about gratitude, and are collecting in order to show kindness and share with our community. Our collection window is December 3-17 at the ECS Intermediate School.
Join the PCO Steering Committee!
The PCO is organized and operated by a Steering Committee. We are looking for new members to help shape the rest of this school year and beyond… to work together to plan and organize meetings, brainstorm ideas, spearhead fundraising efforts, plan fun events, and much more. We’d love to welcome some new faces to this friendly team. The Steering Committee currently has the following openings available:
Vice Chairs (one for each school building) – Work directly with the principals as a main point of contact between the school and the PCO and collaborate with the Chair and rest of the Steering Committee to ensure that all PCO initiatives are supported and successful. This position has the potential to become the PCO Chair in coming years.
Secretary – Record minutes of PCO Steering Committee meetings and PCO general meetings and oversee general PCO correspondence.
PCO Board Representative – Serve as a link between the PCO Steering Committee and ECS Board of Trustees by attending both PCO and Board of Trustees meetings each month and reporting about PCO/board activities at each meeting.
Committee Coordinators – These are new roles for the Steering Committee this year! Coordinators are expected to attend Steering Committee meetings and serve as a link between the Steering Committee and various PCO committees. Open Coordinator positions include Community Support Coordinator, Event Coordinator, Volunteer Coordinator.
This is an open, friendly, and welcoming team and we hope you will consider joining us as we continue our work in making ECS a great place for our kids, staff, and families.
More information about Steering Committee responsibilities.
If you are interested in pursuing any of these positions, or if you have questions, please contact parents@ecspco.org.
Volunteer during the 2019-2020 school year
It’s not too early to think about where you will spend your volunteering time with the ECS Parent Community Organization. Check out our sign-up form for committee openings and descriptions. Sign up today.
Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast
The PCO is so grateful to all families that donated their time this year to the school or a PCO event/fundraiser. We rely on each of you, and to show our gratitude we are hosting a light continental appreciation breakfast. Please stop by so that we may thank you in person! June 10th 8:15-9:15am, Upper School Cafe. Kindly RVSP here by June 7. Questions? Contact volunteer@ecspco.org.
Staff Appreciation Week: May 6-10
The PCO is planning a week of gratitude for everyone that works with our students. We will need support from our families to make the week a success!
SEND A NOTE – a simple thank you note from your family to your teacher can go a long way to make their day!
BREAKFAST We are starting the week off on Monday with a delicious breakfast for the staff at both schools. Sign up here to showcase that famous muffin recipe.
LUNCHEONS will be on May 9 at both schools. Sign up here.
CONTRIBUTE to the Staff Appreciation Fund ($10-15/student suggested). The Fund will cover gifts (ECS t-shirts), luncheon catering, snacks for the bus drivers and other treats to show our gratitude. Thanks for all of the generous contributions – we are not accepting any more at this time.
EMAIL Erika Bruce at staffappreciation@ecspco.org with questions.
SEND A NOTE – a simple thank you note from your family to your teacher can go a long way to make their day!
BREAKFAST We are starting the week off on Monday with a delicious breakfast for the staff at both schools. Sign up here to showcase that famous muffin recipe.
LUNCHEONS will be on May 9 at both schools. Sign up here.
CONTRIBUTE to the Staff Appreciation Fund ($10-15/student suggested). The Fund will cover gifts (ECS t-shirts), luncheon catering, snacks for the bus drivers and other treats to show our gratitude. Thanks for all of the generous contributions – we are not accepting any more at this time.
EMAIL Erika Bruce at staffappreciation@ecspco.org with questions.
Did You Know? Volunteering Facts
Did you know… ?
- We know everyone is busy – we all have kids! We appreciate any amount you can contribute. Many hands make for lighter work!
- Most committee work is short term
- Most of the work takes place via email
- Committee meetings are scheduled at a time that the committee members can meet. No one is excluded because they work during the school day. Grade level rep meetings and some staff appreciation are exceptions as they need to happen while staff is present.
- You can still be involved even if you can’t attend regular meetings.
- Lost and Found volunteers are always needed and are welcome to come in off-school hours to work.
- Volunteering is a great way to meet other families and become part of the community.
- There are tasks like data entry, baking, shopping, and making calls that you can do on your own time.
- When there are day of volunteers needed, a Sign Up Genius Sheet will be shared via the Monday Blast, room parents, Facebook and other communications. The specific shifts will be explained and you can find the ones that fit your schedule.
- There isn’t a way to “buy out” of volunteering because we can’t hire staff to run things. Helping hands are just a necessity.
- We welcome any time you can give!
Harvest Feast – November 20
Sign up to send in supplies, donate a pie or volunteer for the Upper School Harvest Feast on Tuesday, November 20.
Volunteer & Activity Fair
Thank you to everyone that came to the PCO’s first ever Volunteer and Activity Fair! It was great to see both new faces and really connect with all of the committees that make our school hum! I feel honored to work alongside so many dedicated volunteers! Thank you to ECS’s Ali Rendulic, Kristan Abeshouse and Aaron Coleman for taking the time to connect with us! Here are a few of the committees that didn’t get much or any love for you to consider:
Yearbook – would you like ECS to have a yearbook next year? If so, we need you! The school can help with some photo wrangling but they really need the PCO volunteers to put it all together. Work with the manufacturer, take orders, distribute… it will be a fun, year round project!
Bike ECS – come join the 6th grade on their bike rides every morning (except Wednesdays) from 10:15-11:15. Be an extra set of eyes to keep them safe! Email bikeECS@ecspgh.org to learn more and sign up!
Lost and Found – both schools. Help out when you can by sorting the massive collection of stuff, look for labeled items, return those items (with the help of our great office managers) and periodically display the non-labeled items for easy collection.
Grade Level Reps – k and middle school reps need. Meetings are held 9am-10:15am on the 1st Wed. of the month in the ECS US Cafe. Learn more here.
Winter Chill – Jan. 12. Looking for a few people to help plan the grown up only social event/ chili cook off event!
Edible School Yard – year round help on a weekly basis with grades 2 and 3. Contact Deirdre Keller to learn more!
Plant Sales – learn the ropes to keep these great plant sales running at ECS as our past chairs no longer have kiddos at ECS. Support will be readily available to help you succeed! We have one new chair and could use another!
Room Parents – these classes would like a co-room parent: 5A, 5C, 6A, 7A, 7B and 7C.
Book Fair – leaders needed! The school is looking to expand their available book selections for our middle schoolers and to do that they need volunteers to run a book fair! Sell books to make money for new books! Last year’s Scholastic book fair raised $1800. The date is November 6 (set up on the 5th) and would be held at the Upper School during conferences.
Full descriptions of all committees are available here.
There are a lot of other great committees at ECS that would love to have you! Please consider joining us!
Thanks,
Beth Lott, PCO Volunteer Coordinator
Volunteer Opportunities
There are many ways you can help enrich our children’s ECS experience. With the variety of volunteers we need, there are opportunities to fit everyone’s interests and schedules. Please fill out our volunteer form or e-mail volunteer@ecspco.org.
Join the PCO Steering Committee! The PCO is organized and operated by a Steering Committee. We are looking for new members to help shape this school year… to work together to plan and organize meetings, brainstorm ideas, spear-head fundraising efforts, plan fun events, and more. We’d love to welcome some new faces to this friendly team. Contact parents@ecspco.org.