Volunteering

Justice Page Middle School values volunteers immensely. Volunteers allow our school to provide great opportunities and run smoothly. JPS is committed to making our parent volunteers' time valuable. Staff will have structures in place for you to succeed. Staff will communicate well in advance when needing volunteers. Volunteers will feel welcome and appreciated when volunteering at/with JPS. Volunteer opportunities will have a job description which clearly lays out what the volunteer will be doing, where, when and for how long they will be needed.

If you are interested in volunteering we recommend that you follow the district volunteering policies and procedures. Also, if you are volunteering at school during the day, you will need to sign in to the main office when you arrive at the school.

Signing Up

Membership Toolkit is the electronic signup website JPS uses for its volunteer opportunities. Usually there is a link to Membership Toolkit whenever a volunteer opportunity is advertised on the Page website, and/or in the "Around the Horn" newsletter. The PTA website also has a link to current opportunities. You'll be able to sign up for the volunteer opportunities that interest you and you will receive an email reminder when your event draws near. You will need an email address to use Membership Toolkit.

Volunteer opportunities with the school include: field trips; Intersession; 6th grade Math Competition; History Day; Potlucks; Orientation; Retreats; etc.

Volunteer Needs

On-going opportunities:

• Spirit Wear: sold during special events; concerts; open house; pot-luck; etc.
• Landscape: pots by 50th Street door (changed seasonally); garden beds around the school.
• Morning greeters/music: morning greeters volunteer mornings from 9:00-9:30 at one of the two doors the kids use to enter the school (Nicollet and 49th Street). They welcome the kids with a cheery "good morning" and "have a great day!". The musicians volunteer mornings from 9:15-9:30. This is an acoustic gig for local musicians be they Justice Page students, parents, teachers, friends or community members.
• Teacher Treat Day: the first Wednesday of the month; bring in a treat or a snack to say "thank you" to our hard working teachers: fruit and veggies highly recommended. 
• Space Improvement and Building Displays
• PTA officers: Co-Chairs; Treasurer; Secretary; Fundraising Lead.

One-time opportunities: see the JPS calendar (http://page.mpls.k12.mn.us/calendar.html), "Around the Horn", and/or the PTA website for a variety of opportunities that arise throughout the year. Check back on Membership Toolkit  often for a list of open volunteer needs.

Site Council

All Minneapolis Public Schools have Site Councils to support site-based decision making to increase academic outcomes for our students. MPS values family and community members as active partners in reviewing funding, policies, practices and programs at our schools. Site Councils are a way that parents and community members can learn what is happening in their school and influence decisions.

It is important for Site Councils to reflect the student population of the schools to ensure a diversity of ideas and input. These are some common activities that Site Councils do to increase student achievement:

• Advise the school principal or site administrator on school based decisions.
• Review and advise the school staff on the School Improvement Plans (SIP) which outlines specific goals the school will achieve to increase academic outcomes for students.
• Review and help develop the Family Involvement Plan (FIP)
• Review and provide guidance on the use of Title I funds and Compensatory Revenue to ensure it is being used as intended and in a way that increases outcomes.
• Advise the principal on the use of the school budget to ensure that the goals outlined in the SIP are achieved.
• Communicate with the school community about what is happening at Site Council an other things affecting the school.
• Host a meeting with the full school community about what is happening at the school and taking in advice and ideas on how to continue to improve outcomes for all students.

PTA

The mission of the Justice Page Middle School Parent Teacher Association (PTA) is to provide support and financial resources to enrich the quality of education for all JPMS students and to foster relationships among the school, families and the community. To this end, the PTA coordinates fundraising efforts at the school and chairs several committees to support teachers and staff.

PTA meets once a month (usually the first Tuesday of every month) from 6:30-8:00 PM in the Media Center. All parents are welcome and encouraged to attend. We value your insights, time and ideas.

More information on the Justice Page Middle School PTA can be found on the PTA website.

Fundraising

The Justice Page Middle School PTA coordinates all fundraising at JPS. Fundraising is done to supplement programming that is not funded by the state, district or federal government. It is not a way to purchase programming/staff positions that are funded through the state or the district. The Justice Page Middle School PTA has a fundraising philosophy: your kids are busy enough with school, sports, music, friends...just being a kid. We'd rather they didn't spend their time going door-to-door selling candy, magazines, popcorn, wrapping paper...you get the idea. The fundraising opportunities you will be seeing over the course of the year focus more on parent and community involvement and support. Help us maintain and build a vital, community-based middle school at JPS and watch your children thrive!

• Stand-Alone Events: Fundraising is done through stand-alone events such as Give the the Max, Battle of the Bands, and Page Parties. Page Parties are social fundraising events that are hosted and run by volunteers. Anyone can volunteer to host an event and the skies are the limit in terms of creativity. Of course, attending a Page Party is also a great way to donate your time and money to a great cause!
• "Passive" Fundraising: The following options are available to help JPMS raise money:
  • Kowalski's: drop your receipt into the Justice Page Middle School box
  • box tops: clip box tops and have your students drop them off in the box near the office. JPMS receives $.10 for each box top donated.

Where does the money go? Money raised goes to supplement programming, events, individual teacher classrooms, arts, sports, student activity scholarships, etc. Teachers who are needing funds must fill out a PTA Fund Request Form and go through the PTA fund request process.