Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, November 4, 1995                   TAG: 9511060030
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-1   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: LISA APPLEGATE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG                                LENGTH: Medium

MONTGOMERY SCHOOL CHIEF, BOOSTERS AT ODDS OVER MEMO

"This is one of the worst fiascoes I've seen," said School Board member Dick Edwards.

Superintendent Herman Bartlett says that it was at the request of the board that he sent a memo Tuesday asking principals to identify all fund-raising groups within their schools. Parent-teacher associations, athletic booster clubs and other groups were to report what fund-raising activities they perform and where that money is going.

Some volunteers took the inquiry as a sign of mistrust.

But what it was actually meant to do, School Board members said, was to identify whether the board needed to designate more of its budget to extra-curricular activities.

Jim Johnson, president of the Montgomery County Council of PTAs, said Bartlett requested unnecessary information without informing the volunteers of the process.

"It's kind of like nonappreciation of volunteers week," Johnson said.

Bartlett said he was simply following the board's request.

"It was all in good spirit. The board wanted to see if they couldn't fund some of these programs," he said.

At a recent School Board meeting, member Edwards suggested that the board look into how much money groups must raise to keep school programs going. Edwards, who also is a member of the Blacksburg Booster Club, said the memo sent to principals distorted his request.

"What I was concerned with was this: If the county wants to have athletic programs, what does the county provide in the school budget?"

Fund-raising groups like boosters clubs should provide special items that heighten team spirit, not fundamentals essential to continuing the programs, he said. Quite often, booster clubs purchase equipment and uniforms and cover travel expenses for trips.

After checking with the state PTA, Johnson advised local associations not to provide the administration with fund-raising information.

Bartlett said he warned the School Board that people might feel threatened by the inquiry, but said he believed he had a clear understanding of what the board wanted to do.

Edwards said Bartlett should have cleared the memo with the School Board.

"All I wanted to know was what the county actually pays for," he said. "I think it's gotten way out of hand."

Tuesday, during the public address portion of the School Board meeting, PTA representatives will speak to the board about repealing this request, Johnson said.