About Virginia PTA
Virginia Parent Teacher Association (PTA) is the largest and oldest non-partisan volunteer child advocacy association in Virginia with more than 175,000 members across more than 950 of Virginia’s schools
Chartered by the National PTA in 1921, the primary goal of the Virginia PTA is to strengthen our schools and communities through parent and family involvement and to advocate for resources and funding to enable the academic success, health and well-being of ALL children in the Commonwealth. PTA recognizes parents as the first educators in the home and works to promote parents as partners in school in order to create a critical bridge between home and school.
As the leader in supporting local school parent groups, the Virginia PTA supports more than 6,000 volunteer PTA Officers with leadership training, family engagement toolkits, student recognition, advocacy resources, parent education resources and non-profit governance oversight. Virginia PTA is managed by an all volunteer Board of Directors of parents, grandparents and caregivers who are elected by our membership and live in communities across Virginia. Our work empowers parents, enables student success, reduces volunteer workload, and fosters a network of support that builds strong family-school partnerships.
Virginia PTA’s parent volunteers participate in coalitions and workgroups to bring parent voices and perspectives to the table and advocate for policies that foster family engagement in school to directly benefit children and youth. Virignia PTA’s Council PTAs foster communication between and among PTAs within a single school division to share best practices, respond to common concerns, be a voice for parents, provide parent educational resources, and advocate at the School Board level for policies and resources that improve family engagement and student success.
Who Can Join?
Membership is open to anyone who believes in and supports the mission and purposes of National PTA. PTA is committed to being inclusive in its efforts to represent and assist all who nurture and educate children and who seek to promote collaboration among families, schools, and the community at large. You can join the PTA through your local school or you can join at the state level as an Honorary Commonwealth Member. Every person who joins a local school PTA automatically becomes a member of Virginia PTA and National PTA. Annual membership dues are determined by the members of each local school PTA and include Virginia PTA dues of $1.50 and National PTA dues of $2.25 which are collected and paid by your school PTA.
Want to Start a PTA at Your School?
As a member of the PTA, your school’s volunteers will have a strong support system and network of resources to benefit the families and students at your school while also retaining autonomy to decide how best to support the unique needs and interests of your local school community. All PTAs are noncommercial, nonsectarian, nonpartisan and organized exclusively for charitable, scientific, literary or educational purposes under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Service code. The PTA provides access to programs, event toolkits, and grants that your volunteers can use to help build school spirit, create new traditions and celebrate student accomplishments to get families and communities excited about learning together. Best practices and governance from a nation-wide support network ensures compliance with non-profit law and personalized support when your community encounters a problem. Contact us to get started!
