NEW FAMILY NETWORK: This committee helps the families of students transferring in during the school year to acclimate to the school and community. Welcome events are organized for the parents of transfer students and an International Breakfast is held for foreign exchange students and their host families. Parents can also be assigned a Parent Ambassador to help them on an individual basis if they wish. This committee works closely with the student Ambassadors Club.
BOOK GRANT: A committee composed of board members who determine the recipients of a Book Grant scholarship. These awards go to college bound senior students demonstrating a financial need. Students fill out an application which includes a recommendation from their guidance counselor. The Book Grant is funded through public donations, and a portion of the profits from the sale of the student directory.
BOOKMONTH:Coordinate volunteers to staff tables at HCHS Book Month to help families register to be a member of the PTO and sign up to be in the directory.
CHARACTERCOUNTSLIAISON: A PTO member acts as a liaison to several committees within the Character Counts initiative at Hinsdale Central and reports back to the PTO any information or special requests for PTO support.
CLASSREPRESENTATIVE: A PTO member acts as a liaison between the PTO and the student class. This representative assists class officers in various fundraising efforts, like prom. A representative is needed for the Freshmen, Sophomore, Junior, and Senior classes.
COMMUNICATIONAND E-NEWS: This committee sends out all the pertinent news and information regarding PTO activities and other activities going on at school
DIRECTORY: Responsible for reviewing and editing the information collected online and overseeing the printing. Timetable for the committee is June through October.
DIRECTORY ADVERTISING: This committee is responsible for obtaining sponsorship advertising in the PTO Student Directory.
8th GRADE PARENT COFFEE: This is an information coffee held in the spring for incoming freshman parents.
FAMILIES HELPING FAMILIES: This committee acts at the behest of the Hinsdale Central Social Work Department to help Central students and families in crisis; often on short notice, this philanthropic group may need to supply specific items or financial aid.
FRESHMAN PARENT PARTIES: This committee is comprised of volunteers responsible for planning, organizing and implementing the parties for parents of incoming freshman. The primary focus of these informal social gatherings is to make connections with other freshman parents.
HOLIDAY BREAKFAST: This committee plans, and coordinates, a Faculty and Staff appreciation breakfast held in December. This is an elegant catered breakfast, with homemade baked goods, prepared by the parents and the PTO board.
HOSPITALITY: This committee coordinates the refreshments at each PTO monthly meeting.
INTERVIEWING SKILLS WORKSHOP: This committee coordinates, and staffs, a half day workshop for juniors and seniors.This workshop teaches students effective skills when interviewing for college.
MAKE A DIFFERENCE: A committee of PTO members determines the quarterly awards to faculty and staff based on nominations written by students, parents, staff or teachers. This award recognizes the outstanding efforts made by faculty and staff in making a difference in our school community.
MIDDLE SCHOOL REPRESENTATIVE: These volunteers report (to the PTO) any pertinent information from the various middle schools. Parents with a connection to one of the feeder schools and having a high school student are ideal to fill this position.
PARENTS EMPOWERING PARENTS: Speakers are invited to discuss topics pertinent for high school parents, often with an open forum for discussion afterwards.Past topics have included drug and alcohol use, peer pressure, and bullying. Parents are free to attend the group at anytime throughout the year.
PROGRAMMING: This position is responsible for establishing a schedule for “Conversations with Principal”. This committee plans monthly topics pertinent to the Hinsdale Central Community.
PUBLICITY: This committee coordinates PTO promotional information as directed by the PTO Board for their programs and activities. Involves contacting local newspapers and, where appropriate, news media.
READING ROCKS: This committee acts as the liaison between the PTO and the Hinsdale Central Library teachers and staff. These volunteers provide support for library sponsored programs and events such as One Book-One School, Read Across America Week, Gaming Day, and author visits.
SAFETY AND DISCIPLINE COMMITTEE: This committee meets four times a year. The committee reviews and discusses school safety and discipline procedures as well as making recommendations to the principal for changes, if deemed necessary.
SCHOOL BOARD LIAISON: A PTO member acts as a liaison to the District 86 school board. This position attends the D86 BOE meetings and reports back during the PTO meetings about issues before and discussions of interest at the school board level.
SPECIAL EDUCATION:This committee strives to provide an open and vibrant network for stakeholders to share opportunities, promote constructive ideas, and, where needed, express concerns, so that our students maximize their education experience.We help parents gain insights to the special education system at Hinsdale Central High School and enable their students to gain the most from their experience as citizens of our communities. We share information that affects our students as consumers of the special education program at Hinsdale Central.
TEACHER APPRECIATION: This committee acts as a liaison with the teachers association and is responsible for creating programs that recognize our appreciation of teachers. Responsibilities include activities to remember teachers during Teacher Appreciation Week, providing coffee and goodies for teachers at Parent/Teacher conferences, and remembering them on holidays. This committee is also responsible for the Teacher Appreciation Breakfast in the spring.
VOLUNTEERS: The chairperson(s) works with a list of volunteers who are emailed regularly throughout the school year for any event or a specific list of volunteers corresponding to particular interest. Events include: homecoming coat check, general school needs volunteers, screening, PTO mailings, etc.