Parent Teacher Organization

A Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) is a formal organization that consists of parents, teachers and school staff. The organization's goals may vary from organization to organization, but essentially the goals include volunteerism of parents, encouragement of teachers and students, community involvement, and welfare of students and families. It is not affiliated with Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) or Parent-Teacher-Student Association (PTSA.) PTA is a national association of millions of members and thousands of local units that provides leadership training and staff support.

Goals and/or mission statement

Individual organizations typically establish goals and/or a mission statement. Here is a sample PTO Mission Statement from the New Franklin School PTO:

The New Franklin School PTO is a nonprofit parent/teacher organization whose membership includes all parents, legal guardians and staff at New Franklin Elementary School.

The PTO's mission is to promote open communication and understanding between parents and staff of the New Franklin Elementary School. Our efforts serve to enhance and maximize the education of every child while aiding them in achieving their highest potential.

Parent-Teacher Association

A parent-teacher association (PTA) or parent-teacher-student association (PTSA) is a formal organization composed of parents, teachers and staff that is intended to facilitate parental participation in a school.

PTAs in the United States

In the U.S., groups which use the PTA acronym are part of the National Parent Teacher Association (National PTA), a non-profit organization based in Alexandria, Virginia. It is the largest and oldest volunteer organization working exclusively on behalf of children and youth.

PTA’s commitment to unified advocacy on behalf of all the nation’s children is best reflected in its motto: Every child. One voice. The overall purpose of PTA is to make every child’s potential a reality by engaging and empowering families and communities to advocate for all children. Groups going by the PTA acronym at the local level are linked to the state PTA and the national PTA organization (National PTA), with the entire PTA network working on behalf of all children and youth. Every person who joins a local PTA automatically becomes a member of both the state and National PTAs, and PTA membership—including the number of affiliated units and of individual members—is close to 5 million.