Illinois PTA has a new membership recognition program to honor PTAs, PTA Councils, and Regions that grow and support PTA membership. The tiered program will recognize membership growth not just in the 2021-2022 school year, but is also structured for PTAs to build on their success year after year.

Rewards

Recognition will be awarded based on the level of membership growth a PTA has attained (more details on that below). The rewards are as follows:

  • Bronze Star: Digital awards identifying the PTA as a “Bronze Star PTA” sized for use on social media and websites, physical recognition certificate that can be displayed at school, recognition on the Illinois PTA website.
  • Silver Star: All of the Bronze Star rewards plus recognition in the Illinois PTA Convention Program.
  • Gold Star: All of the Silver Star rewards plus recognition during the Illinois PTA Convention Awards event.
  • Platinum Star: All of the Gold Star rewards plus a vinyl recognition banner with reinforced grommets that can be displayed at the school or at PTA events with the year of recognition included.

Elgibility

In order to earn these reward levels, a PTA must meet the following requirements:

  • Must be an active PTA for more than three fiscal years (so a baseline membership can be calculated—see below).
  • Must have met the minimum membership requirements in the Illinois PTA bylaws for the current and previous three fiscal years.
  • Must be a unit in good standing.

For the 2021-2022 School Year

The program recognizes membership growth from a baseline, with higher levels of growth receiving greater recognition. The levels are:

  • Bronze Star: Increase membership by at least 1 member over the baseline.
  • Silver Star: Increase membership by at least 1.25 over the baseline.
  • Gold Star: Increase membership by at least 1.50 over the baseline.
  • Platinum Star: Increase membership by at least 1.75 over the baseline.

Illinois PTA will handle the calculation of the baseline membership numbers and the target membership for each level for each PTA. Membership totals for the 2021-2022 school year for the purpose of recognition at the Illinois PTA convention will be based on paid memberships as of February 28, 2022; however, PTAs can continue to sign up members beyond that date and the total paid memberships for the year will be used to determine the level the PTA has attained and the rewards it has earned.

During this initial year of the program, Illinois PTA will use as the baseline for membership growth the average membership either from the three previous years (2018, 2019, and 2020 school years) or from the two school years starting in 2018 and 2019, whichever is lower. The reason for these two options is due to many PTAs seeing a significant membership loss during the 2020-2021 pandemic year. However, some PTAs did see increases in membership despite the challenges of the pandemic, and Illinois PTA did not want to disadvantage those PTAs for exceptional membership performance in a difficult period.

2022-2023 and Beyond

Starting with the 2022-2023 school year and going forward, the baseline membership number for each PTA that has not earned a reward level this year will be the average of its membership for the three previous years. 

Continuing Levels

Once a unit has earned a reward level, their rewards in the following year are based off of the previous year’s membership only (not the three-year average). Units with an increase in membership can rise up to three levels:

  • Membership growth <10% from the previous year: maintain current reward level.
  • Membership growth 10% to 24% from the previous year: go up one reward level.
  • Membership growth 25% to 49% from the previous year: go up two reward levels.
  • Membership growth 50% or more from the previous year: go up three reward levels.

The highest reward level remains Platinum Star, so a PTA at the Gold Star level that increases membership by 30% still only goes up one level to Platinum Star.

Units that see a decrease in membership from the previous year may drop one or more levels:

  • Membership decrease <10% from the previous year: maintain current reward level.
  • Membership decrease 10% to 19% from the previous year: go down one reward level.
  • Membership decrease 20% to 29% from the previous year: go down two reward levels.
  • Membership decrease 30% or more from the previous year: go down three reward levels.

Units that drop below the Bronze Star level will go back to using the average membership for the three previous years in determining their reward level the following year. Units at the Platinum Star level can maintain their status by having their membership not see a decrease of 10% or more.

For units that earn the Platinum Star level for a second time, a sticker with the year will be provided that can be attached to the vinyl banner. The vinyl banner will have space for ten different year stickers. A PTA unit will receive a new vinyl banner when they reach the Platinum level for an eleventh time (and 21st time, etc.). PTAs will be able to display their Platinum Star status much like sports teams display their championships on banners.

PTA Councils & Regions

For PTA Councils and Regions, the program is identical to that for local PTA units; however, their membership baseline, target, or previous year numbers are calculated based on the total for all of their constituent units. The continuing level process would also work similarly to that for local PTA units.

Early Results

The following units and councils have already reached these reward levels as of payments processed through October 11, 2021. Remember that the deadline for recognition at the Illinois PTA Convention (for Silver and above) is February 28, 2022, and the reward levels for 2021-2022 will be calculated based on paid membership on June 30, 2022. All units currently below the Platinum level still have time to grow their membership to reach any of the reward tiers.

Platinum Star Reward PTAs

Council Addison PTA – Addison

Ardmore Campus PTA – Addison

Dorn PTA – Hickory Hills

Fullerton School PTA – Addison

Indian Trail PTA – Addison

Lincoln Middle School – Brookfield

Gold Star Reward PTAs

Freeman PTA – Aurora  

John F Kennedy Middle School PTA – Plainfield 

Lake Park PTA – Addison

Silver Star Reward PTAs

Barkstall PTA – Champaign

Blaine Elementary School PTA – Chicago

Charles Reed PTA – Plainfield

Columbia PTA, Inc – Columbia

Emerson PTA – Elmhurst

Hampton School PTA – Hampton 

Hawthorne PTA – Chicago

Hufford Junior High PTA – Joliet

Indian Prairie Project Arrow PTA – Naperville

Kenwood PTA – Champaign

McDade PTA – Chicago

Memorial PTA, Inc – Tinley Park

Stone PTA – Addison

Sutherland PTA – Chicago

Virginia Lake PTA, Inc – Palatine  

Bronze Star Reward PTAs

Ames PTA – Riverside

Ardmore PTA – Villa Park

Benjamin Franklin Elementary PTA, Inc – Park Ridge

Bottomfield PTA – Champaign

Brookdale PTA – Naperville 

Churchhill School PTA – Glen Ellyn

Churchville Middle School PTA – Elmhurst

Colona PTA – Colona 

Dirksen PTA – Schaumburg

Enders-Salk PTA, Inc – Schaumburg

Fry PTA, Inc – Naperville

Glenbrook PTA – Streamwood 

Grande Park PTA – Plainfield 

Hawthorne PTA – Elmhurst

Henking Hoffman PTA, Inc – Glenview 

Homestead PTA – Aurora 

Jefferson PTA, Inc – Elmhurst

Kendall PTA, Inc – Naperville

Lorena Ave PTA – Wood River

Park View PTA – Lombard

Peterson PTA – Naperville

Westgate PTA, Inc – Arlington Heights

W A Johnson – Bensenville