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Survey Results

A huge thank you to parents and staff who participated in our PTO Funding Priorities Survey! Your feedback is invaluable in helping us decide how to best spend fundraising dollars.

Report

Survey Overview: 89 Total Respondents (82 Parents/Guardians, 7 Staff/Teachers) – January 2026

Top 3 priorities

Based on the frequency of selection and weighted importance, the community has clearly defined these three pillars as the primary focus for PTO funds:

  • Campus Improvements & Infrastructure: "Playground improvements" received the highest volume of high-priority ratings. Specific requests for shade structures and playground equipment upgrades were frequent.
  • Arts, Music & STEM Enrichment: There is overwhelming support for funding "Arts and Music" and "Academic Enrichment." Parents view these as critical value-adds that the standard curriculum may lack.
  • The School Garden: In the open-ended comments, a "School Garden" was the single most requested specific item. It is viewed as both an educational tool and a campus beautification effort.

Feedback on PTO funding

  • Satisfaction Levels: The majority of respondents feel the PTO is currently addressing the needs of the school.
  • Shift from Essentials to Enrichment: Less on classroom supplies, more on programs and long-term investments.
  • Transparency: A small but vocal group expressed uncertainty, requesting more transparency regarding the current bank balance and allocation breakdown.
  • Accountability: Several comments suggested a desire to shift PTO funding away from "basic classroom supplies" (viewed as a district responsibility) and toward "true enrichment" and "experiences" (Field Trips, Arts).
  • Collaboration: Interest in networking with neighboring PTOs to share best practices.

Community & engagement

  • Families want more field trips, student leadership roles, recess support, and community events.
  • While financial support is high, time availability is low. Most respondents declined leadership roles. However, some individuals expressed interest in Board or Chair positions and there is a high willingness to volunteer when opportunities are clear and accessible.

Key takeaways

  • The "Garden" is a mandate: The frequency of this request suggests it should be a primary project for the upcoming year.
  • Playground fatigue: Low ratings for the current playground state paired with high priority for improvements suggests this is a major pain point for families.

Events are appreciated but not the financial priority: While families enjoy events (Harvest Festival, Snowflake Festival etc.), they prefer funds be spent on student enrichment and facilities rather than the events themselves.

Principal's response

Thank you to everyone who took time to complete the recent PTO survey and share your thoughts and questions. A few families expressed concern that the school and FCUSD may not be providing enough funding for basic classroom supplies, so I’d like to offer some clarification about how school funding works and how our PTO’s generous support fits in.

Our school operates with two main budgets:

  1. General Fund – covers essential operational costs, staffing, and basic instructional materials.
  2. Site Supplemental Budget – approximately $50,000 per year, which is specifically targeted to support reading, writing, and math achievement.

Most of our Site Supplemental funds go directly toward personnel and instructional support. This provides funding for a general education paraeducator, covers extra teacher collaboration time, and access to professional development. Our budgets take care of the basics like paper, pencils, glue, and construction paper, but it doesn’t stretch far enough for the “extras” teachers use to make lessons creative, interactive, and fun.

That’s where our PTO makes an incredible difference. PTO funds allow teachers access to materials and tools that go far beyond the basics by providing access to items that enrich lessons, foster creativity, and make learning more hands-on and engaging. Perhaps we can think of it as a distinction between “basic supplies” and “enrichment supplies”.

  • Basic supplies come from our general and site supplemental budgets.
  • Enrichment supplies, like Lakeshore learning games, flexible seating options, art materials, STEAM tools, classroom storage supplies, books, seasonal supplies etc. are made possible through PTO funding.

In previous years, Folsom schools benefited from a partnership with Intel that provided thousands of dollars in additional support. That partnership no longer exists, which has made our PTO’s role even more vital.

In summary, while the district provides the foundation for classroom instruction, your PTO funding bridges the gap by ensuring teachers have access to the tools that enrich learning, inspire creativity, and promote student engagement. On behalf of our entire staff, thank you for making it possible for our teachers to focus on teaching, not on where supplies will come from. Your continued support truly impacts every classroom and every student.

— Mrs. Christierson

Survey data

Student enrichment

  • Classroom supplies: 3.97/5
  • Educational field trips: 4.15/5
  • Assemblies / guest speakers: 3.33/5
  • STEM programs: 4.16/5
  • Performing arts / music: 4.28/5
  • Library resources: 3.82/5
  • After-school clubs: 3.25/5

School environment

  • Playground improvements: 4.09/5
  • Campus beautification (plants, murals, clean-up): 3.36/5

Teacher & staff support

  • Teacher classroom grants: 4.07/5
  • Staff appreciation events: 3.75/5

Community building

  • Family events (e.g. Snowflake Festival, Bingo Night, etc.): 4.07/5
  • Parent education workshops: 2.58/5
  • Multicultural events (e.g. Diwali): 3.51/5

Top priorities (max 3 votes per respondent)

  • Academic enrichment: 63.3%
  • Arts and music: 56.7%
  • Playground / campus improvements: 56.7%
  • Field trips: 41.1%
  • Teacher grants: 32.2%
  • Community events: 28.9%
  • Other:
    • School garden: 4.4%
    • Other priorities: 1.1%

PTO spending

The PTO spending is currently addressing the needs of the school:

  • Yes: 60%
  • Somewhat: 22.2%
  • Not sure: 16.7%
  • No: 1.1%

Supporting PTO fundraising efforts next year:

  • Very likely: 63.3%
  • Likely: 26.7%
  • Unsure: 5.6%
  • Not likely: 4.4%

Engagement

Interested in a board or chair position:

  • No: 87.8%
  • Chair position: 4.4%
  • Board position: 2.2%
  • Other
    • Maybe: 2.2%
    • Specific position: 1.1%
    • Other responses: 2.2%