June, 2001
Parent organizations have long played an important part in providing resources and support to the efforts of educators to provide quality education in a safe and comfortable setting. At the urging of the State Department of Education, patron's leagues in Rockingham County were formed during the first decades of the twentieth century. In the smaller one-room schools parent and community support was informal and largely based on the relationship between the teacher and the families that sent children to the school. As schools grew larger, more organized Patron's Leagues, with highly developed support programs, began to appear. An early example was the Patron's League at Pleasant Valley, a four-room school, which was formed in December of 1912. These Patron's Leagues, or School Leagues, as they came to be known, were generally affiliated with the Cooperative Education Association of Virginia, which was formed to coordinate the activities of various Patron's Leagues throughout the Commonwealth. School Leagues paid annual dues of $1 for one or two teacher schools and $2 annually for larger schools. School Leagues were encouraged to become "Banner Leagues" which required that Leagues met regularly, observed six special meetings: Better School (Patron's) Day), Better Roads or Streets Meeting, Health Meeting, Better Farms and Gardening Meeting, Better Church and Sunday School Day, and Community or May Day Meeting. and encouraged members to subscribe to the newsletter, "Community League News".
An example of the organization and types of activities provided was included in the organization and activities report of the Bridgewater School Improvement League:
"The Bridgewater School Improvement League was organized on December 11, 1914. The enrollment is over 50. We've four officers: President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer. There are no dues. Collections are taken at the meeting, which are held the third Friday of the month. Four visitors are appointed each month to visit the school. The League has been instrumental in keeping water out of the basement and in doing some other work there.
Town water has been put into the schoolhouse. There are three drinking fountains and a lavatory. The total cost of putting in the water system exceeded $150. Trees have been planted on school grounds. Solicitors raised $18.43. Business houses and churches gave. Trees were boxed. Grass has been sown and weeds cut. Schoolhouse has been cleaned, some whitewashing done, and floors oiled. Waste paper baskets and thermometers were put into the classroom where there were none. $20 is to be paid on a cement crossing near the schoolhouse. Eight maps in a case costing $12.50 were ordered last winter. A head has been put on the drum. Floor mat and floor oiler have been purchased.
Last winter a letter was written to our representatives in Richmond asking them to vote for an increase in school funds.
The League helped pay for a fence between the school grounds and an adjoining lot. An electric bell has been installed for the High School. The library ordered this fall has not be received as yet. It was at the League's suggestion that the school have a fire drill.
We've two things on hand now - a box supper and the selling or Red Cross seals. Our money has been raised in various ways. Entertainments have helped a good deal. The Chatauqua guarantors of 1915 gave $31.54 and those of 1916, $66.92. $71.47 was cleared at a lawn party in June 1915 and in August, 1916 another was held at which time $60.00 was cleared. Last winter $22.40 was made on candy sold by the pupils."
The early School Leagues were the forerunners of the modern PTAs and in a day when state and county-wide support for schools was meager, played an important part in providing the resources needed to provide a quality education for the students they served.