The Demopolis Elementary Schools Parent-Teacher Association is having a membership drive, and is seeking parents to join the school assistance organization.

PTA president Pam McKinley said there are many things the PTA does to help schools, things that are easily seen and many things that are not easily seen.

“You see the fence around the playground at Westside, you see the fence around U.S. Jones and the new playground equipment,” she said, “but there are things that you don’t see that PTA does. We feed the teachers during Teacher Appreciation Week. We provide book fair prizes. We have people making copies for teachers.

“There are a lot of behind-the-scenes things that you don’t know is the PTA, but it is the PTA. We do a lot of work, and every child benefits.”

McKinley said more parents need to be involved with PTA to help with its projects.

“Parents need to get more involved, and PTA is where you start,” she said. “The more involved the parent is, the more the child works out, and that’s with the straight-A student and the special needs student, from one extreme to the other. The more involved the parent is, the more successful the child is.”

The PTA membership fee is $5 for one child or $10 for a family, no matter how many children it has. Last year, the Demopolis Elementary PTA numbered 268 members, including every teacher at both schools.

“Half of that money stays with the Demopolis PTA, and half goes to the state PTA,” McKinley said. “The benefits of our state PTA are that it provides guidelines and insurance, and they are very beneficial with information, how to help with fund-raisers and so on.”

The first PTA meeting of the school year will be on Monday, Sept. 14, at 6 p.m. at the U.S. Jones Elementary School cafeteria.

For more information, contact Pam McKinley at 341-3233.