Fundraising Committee
This committee is made up of 2 family members from each grade level, K1-6, who work together to lead fundraising efforts to provide engaging learning and enrichment opportunities for Bates students. Read more here.
Bates Outdoors Team
This team of families and teachers works to create and maintain a fun, beautiful and productive learning environment on the school grounds outside of the building. Read more here.
Family Council
We meet one evening a month, usually on Zoom, to surface community needs and plan events to bring the community together. Read more here.
School Site Council
An elected group of parents and teachers who meet with the principal each month to develop and approve school policy. Read more here.
Boston Citywide Councils
These are groups made up of families from schools across the city of Boston that come together to ensure all students get the support they deserve. Read more here.
We can only be as strong as our members. If you are interested in getting involved with any of these, please sign up here. For more information, please email batesfamilies@gmail.com.
Fundraising Committee
The Family Council is excited to launch a new initiative to bring new enrichment opportunities to the Bates!
Boston is filled with incredible resources for young people – from cultural activities and museums to non-profits who run programs in schools across the district – from woodworking to music to sports. The Bates does not have dedicated partnership funding nor significant resources for field trips or paid special events from the district, so we are hoping to raise money from the community to provide additional enrichment opportunities for our students.
We know that many Bates families have means to provide enrichment opportunities for their children outside of school. Our hope is that some of those means can be dedicated to providing similar opportunities through the school that are accessible to all students in our community.
For the first year we propose raising $4,500 ($300 per classroom) for each grade level teaching team to spend on field trips/special guests. To ensure equity, all funds will be split equally across classrooms.
To meet this opportunity we are forming a new fundraising committee, with at least one representative from each grade. The hope is that this committee can:
- Run an initial enrichment opportunities fundraising drive this summer for this classroom enrichment fund
- Work with the Family Council to bring structure to our yearly cycle of financial asks for the community
- Determine if there is capacity and interest to expand beyond field trips to bring new programming/partnerships to the school
If you are interested in joining the Fundraising Committee, please sign up here.
Bates Outdoors Team
While the district provides basic maintenance, we know that the outdoor space can be more welcoming, engaging, and useful for our students than it currently is. To meet this challenge, the school is inviting interested parents and staff to form a Bates Outdoor Team that can organize the Bates Community to improve the space together.
The Outdoor Team would be tasked with organizing a few initial projects over the summer and developing plans for future projects and ongoing upkeep. With a group organizing and planning, we believe that many others would come out to support the work!
Ideas for the first projects:
- Design and construct a DIY outdoor classroom/learning space in the K0/K1 side yard
- Design and implement beautification features for the hard surfaces and chain link fences
- Design and install structures and materials to improve the usability of the playground/play yard.
If you are interested in joining the Outdoor Team, please sign up here.
Councils
What is the Family Council?
The “voice” of ALL the families and caretakers in the school community, the Family Council organizes the Bates community to work and celebrate together. Please join us in creating our Bates school culture together.
Elected Positions:
- Co-Chair: Plan meetings, organize work of the council, connect with SSC
- Treasurer: Track the council budget, manage accounts, make payments
- Secretary: Take notes at meetings, create flyers, support communication
If you are interested in joining the Family Council, please sign up here.
What is the School Site Council?
- SSC is an elected group of parents and teachers who meet with the principal each month to develop and approve school policy. This team makes decisions that inform the direction of our school. From the budget to hiring to curriculum, this is a great way to be involved in decision-making as a parent.
- Meets once per month, Tuesday evenings
- 5-6 representatives from the Family Council are needed to attend SSC meetings
If you are interested in joining the School Site Council, please sign up here.
What are the Citywide Councils?
- BPS Citywide Parent Council (CPC)
- An umbrella organization with elected representatives from each of Boston’s 125 schools that advocates as one voice for all of our students and their families.
- BPS Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SpEdPAC)
- Works with the Boston Public Schools system to ensure that children get the services and support they need to develop to their full potential.
- BPS District English Learner Advisory Committee (DELAC)
- A multicultural and multiethnic, parent-led committee comprised of English Learner (EL) parents and community members who provide recommendations to school and district officials in regards to services provided to EL students.
If you are interested in representing the Bates on one of the Citywide Councils, please sign up here.
Phineas Bates Elementary School 