ICS was founded in 1997 by parents and teachers who worked long and hard together to create a new kind of learning environment for our students. This spirit of working together built a solid foundation of mutual support between staff and parents and is interal to the success of the school and our children's education. From inception, the long range intent was to carry forward this same community spirit to support and enrich the student's education by requiring family involvement in the form of an annual volunteer hour commitment.
Your Commitment
The ICS 30 hour per year volunteer commitment per family is meant to be fair and equitable. This commitment was affirmed when your student entered ICS. Parent participation is an essential ingredient of ICS programs and of your child's education. Volunteers must be flexible to help where needed, as there is no guarantee of facilitating a specific opportunity. The 30 hours is set as the minimum commitment, and many families volunteer many more hours.
How to Earn Your Hours
The annual volunteer hour requirement at ICS can be met by engaging in activities which meet one or more of the following criteria which directly benefit ICS:
support teacher activities
support student academics
steering committee work
support ICS or ICS PTSA sponsored clubs or activities
ICS community building activities
enrich the learning environment
support the physical environment and facilities
promote the image of the school
PTSA committee work
activities that help with financial support of the school
ICS PTSA Committee List - Opportunites for Volunteering
You can serve on the PTSA Board of Directors, be a committee chair, serve on a committee, or volunteer for various events as the needs arise throughout the year.
View the list of committees we have with PTSA.
Things to Remember
Questions requarding qualifying hours should be directed to the Volunteer Hours Reporting Coordinator and are at his/her discretion. For assistance finding volunteer activities to fulfill your annual requirement, please contact the Volunteer Coordinator. Check the ICS Directory for contact information for current coordinators.
Volunteer hours cannot be carried from year to year.
If the volunteer hours commitment is not met for a given school year, students may be excluded from enrollment at ICS the following year.
Exceptions to volunteer hour requirements may be granted in the case of extenuating circumstances, but are unusual. Please email the Principal,
Dr. Matthew Livingston, regarding these requests.
It is best to plan ahead to fulfill your commitment. Do not wait until the end fo the school year when volunteer opportunities may become scarce. The PTSA Volunteer Coordinator can help you find an opportunity to fill your hours if you need help.
Student Hours: A maximum of 10 hours per family can be earned by the student(s) toward the annual 30 hour requirement. Student hours for community service completed as part of a club activity, senior project, or outside school activity do not count as volunteer hours for ICS. Student hours spent on tutoring, yearbook, etc., do not count. Student hours worked at the Site Committee Campus Cleanup do count toward total hours, if the student attends the activity with their parent.
Chaperones earn 16 hours per day when chaperoning over night trips (like focus week, out-of-town competitions).
Non-PTSA sponsored or non-school sponsored activities cannot be submitted as volunteer hours.
Time spent attending PTSA Parent Meetings does not count towards volunteer hour time. Families are expected to attend these meetings monthly to remain informed about school and PTSA issues.
For questions about what qualifies toward volunteer hours or for volunteer opportunites, contact the Volunteer Coordinator
Anne James.