Parents launch Charlottesville Citywide PTO Fund with $100,000 first‑year goal

Parents and volunteers unveiled a new Charlottesville Citywide PTO Fund designed to raise and distribute philanthropic dollars across all city schools to reduce inequities among PTOs.

Organizer Gabe Schneider told the board the fund is hosted at the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation to make donations tax deductible and that the group has developed an allocation formula that factors schools’ percentages of economically disadvantaged students to distribute resources equitably. The launch group includes parents from multiple schools; Schneider specifically named Jill McKinley of Tall Oaks Elementary as a partner in the effort.

The organizers plan corporate and philanthropic outreach and set a first‑year fundraising target of $100,000. They announced a kickoff fundraiser on Thursday, Oct. 23 at Random Row Brewing, where a portion of sales will support the fund. The group also provided a website and contact email: cvillecitywideptofund.org and charlottesvilleptofund@gmail.com.

Board members thanked the organizers and administration staff who provided background information on an earlier, related fund.

Why this matters: The citywide PTO fund is intended to smooth disparities that arise when some PTOs can raise large sums and others cannot, using pooled philanthropic support and a needs‑based distribution model.