Why Parenting Adults Are the Heart of Oak Grove

Involvement here is not about obligation or checking a box. It is an invitation to bring your time, your care, and your particular gifts into the life of the school, in whatever way fits your family and your season of life. When parenting adults show up, students feel it, and our whole community thrives because of it.

GET INVOLVED

Oak Grove is a place where students learn to look closely at themselves, at each other, and at the world.

That kind of learning does not happen in a classroom alone. It happens in a community, and our community is strongest when the parenting adults in our students’ lives are genuinely present, on campus, in the classroom, and behind the scenes of the events that make Oak Grove feel like home.

Ready to jump in? Sign up for volunteer opportunities and we will help match you with something that fits your schedule, your interests, and how much time you have to give.

Class Representative

One of two parenting adults per class who help coordinate communication and connection for their child’s classroom community.

Event chair or co-chair

School-wide events, such as Pumpkin Decorating, Staff Appreciation, or the Spring Soiree, and leading a small team to bring it to life.

Hosting Campus gatherings

such as a potluck, a music night where parenting adults play together, or another community get-together.

Volunteering to drive

Carpool for away games and off-campus trips (please see the mandated reporter training note below).

Lending a skill

…or a few hours where it is needed, from event set-up to classroom support to helping behind the scenes.

Parent Council meetings

Attend meetings, even if only when your schedule allows. (described below)

Schools do not thrive because families are enrolled. They thrive because families are engaged.

Your Involvement Matters

When parenting adults volunteer, lead, and show up together, students see that the adults in their lives value this community as much as they do. Bonds form between families that carry students through hard days and celebrate them on good ones. Traditions stay alive because someone chose to carry them forward. And the sense of belonging that makes Oak Grove feel different from other schools is built, quite literally, by the people who choose to be part of it.

Every hour a parenting adult gives, whether it is an afternoon carving pumpkins, a season of driving carpool, or a single meeting popped into on a Wednesday morning, adds up to a school where students, families, and staff feel known, supported, and connected.

Many Ways to Show Up

There is no single way to be involved at Oak Grove, and no expectation that you do it all

Some families find their place in an ongoing role, others prefer to help with a few events a year. Both matter equally. A few of the ways parenting adults get involved include:

Pumpkin Decorating

Each fall, our campus fills with color and creativity as our Gecko through 2nd grade students and their families gather to decorate pumpkins together. It is a beloved tradition, made possible each year by parenting adults who step up to plan, prepare, and run the day. In advance of the decorating, we also hold a schoolwide pumpkin sale to raise funds for Parent Council events throughout the year. Stop by the Main House in October to pick out your pumpkin!

Staff Appreciation

Throughout the year, we look for ways to show our staff just how much they’re valued, and that happens because parenting adults volunteer to make it happen. This includes organizing our staff-only holiday party, taking place this year in January 2027, and our spring Staff Appreciation Day, when we come together to express our gratitude and provide a lunch for the people who care for our students every day.

Spring Soiree

Our Spring Soiree is the Parent Council’s major fundraising event of the year, an adult-only evening that brings the wider community together to celebrate the school while raising vital support for our activities. From planning to decorating to hosting, the Soiree comes together through the efforts of parenting adults who choose to lead, and every role, large or small, makes the evening possible. This year’s Spring Soiree will take place on Saturday, March 13, 2027.

Parent Council

Parent Council is made up of the Class Representatives, two parenting adults per class, and meets once a month on Wednesdays from 8:30 to 9:15 a.m. in the Main House. Meetings are a chance to connect across classrooms, share what is happening in the community, and help shape how families support the school throughout the year. Every parenting adult is welcome to pop in whenever your schedule allows, you do not need to be a Class Representative to attend!

Upcoming

Parent Council Meeting Dates

1. Wednesday, Sept 23rd – First Meeting!
2. Wednesday, Oct 14th
3. Wednesday, Nov 11th OGS is honoring Veteran’s Day on Mon 11/9
4. Wednesday, Dec 9th
5. Wednesday, Jan 20th
6. Wednesday, Feb 10th
7. Wednesday, Mar 3rd
8. Wednesday, April 14th
9. Wednesday, May 12th – Final Meeting!

Mandated Reporter Training

A New Step for All Volunteers

California law recently expanded who is required to complete mandated reporter training, and that change now includes school volunteers. This is new for many of us, and for some families it may come as a surprise: even volunteering for tasks that seem simple, like driving students to an away game, now requires completing a two-hour, online mandated reporter training before you can volunteer. This is a statewide requirement, not something specific to Oak Grove, and it reflects a broader commitment to student safety that we fully support.

We know this adds a step, and we appreciate your patience as our whole community adjusts to it together. Because the training takes a little time, we encourage every parenting adult to complete it early in the year, well before you plan to volunteer for a specific event, so you are ready whenever the opportunity comes up.

You can access the training here: Mandated Reporter Training. If you have questions about the requirement or need help completing it, please reach out and we are glad to help.

Your Involvement Matters

However You Choose to Be Involved

There is a place for every parenting adult in this community, whether you have an hour a year or a few hours a month to give. Our students and our community thrive when you are part of it. Sign up here to let us know how you would like to be involved, and we will take it from there.