Welcome to the Parent Teacher Organization (PTO)

What is the PTO?

Every parent, guardian, and teacher at PS9 is automatically a member of the PTO so – if that's you – welcome!

PS9's Parent Teacher Organization has historically been - and continues to be - very active. A public school of our size has many needs, from on-the-ground volunteering to financial support.

Together we can –and often do – realize many of the ideals that we aspire to as residents of this incredible city. Reaching those ideals takes work and engagement, and we need your ideas and contributions. Any talent, hobby, connection, or career that you may wonder if it could be of use  — it probably can! From our diversity and our varied needs and abilities comes our unique strength.

What We Do

We aim to foster and encourage family participation to create a vibrant, engaged community. We make connections to strengthen the relationships between our school’s families, teachers, and staff, and we provide opportunities and support for community members to participate in decisions impacting our students. 

How We Do It

Together.

The PTO relies on our families to volunteer time, make donations, and participate in fundraising events. The vast majority of the PTO’s income is from family donations. Our events are staffed by PS9 families, and you will see volunteer sign-ups throughout the year...so thank you in advance!

Some of Our Favorite Things

Community events like the Welcome Back BBQ and the One Love Caribbean Culture Festival

Enjoying our beautiful garden

Advocating for our students and our school

Supporting our wonderful teachers with celebrations, classroom grants and whatever else we possibly can

 

  • Three happy PS9 moms smile for the camera at an event in the PS9 play yard
  • Four men playing instruments in front of the school mural
  • Two young boys seated in the PS9 garden holding pumpkins
  • A group of young children holding posters protesting school budget cuts
  • A woman, visible from behind, taking a portrait photograph of a mother and her two children
  • A woman applying butterfly face paint to a young girl
  • Five volunteers happy to be helping at the grill at a PS9 event
  • A man collecting tickets from a line of children eager to enter a bouncy house
  • A laughing young girl slides out of an inflatable bouncy house

Current Projects We're Excited About

Supplies

Since 2021 we have purchased, in bulk, classroom supplies so our families do not need to scramble to buy and lug supplies to school! To do that, we need money. Please consider donating to the PTO the money you would have spent on supplies.

Improved Communication and Connection

In 2020 our PTO launched Konstella. Not only did it serve the intended purpose of condensing multiple streams of communication into one place, the serendipitous timing ended up giving our community a way to stay connected through the pandemic. We continue to fund and administrate Konstella and the conversations and connections that it facilitates.

In 2022 the PTO approved a contract with eChalk to upgrade our website. This new and improved site offers a simple and beautiful way for us to stay up to date and to make everything we love about PS9 accessible to the wider community — including those users who may have impaired vision or movement. 

School Day Enrichment Residencies

Once again, the PTO is bringing wonderful enrichment programming to every grade during the school day. We have made some adjustments in response to feedback from last year’s programming and are so excited for another year of art, music, theater, science, technology, and gardening for our students!

Additional Recess Coaches

This year, the PTO is paying for recess coaches. This additional support helps reduce behavioral issues and visits to the nurse's office during recess, and also helps our students improve focus, manage stress, increase their resilience, and have fun.