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The First Step
The first step in building your Parent
Association Website would be to reach out to your Parent Body or your
Parents & Teachers in the event of a PTA.
It is likely that you might have one or two parents that are familiar with
html coding or a WYSIWYG authoring program. Put together a technology
committee or utilize a current communications committee if you have
one. Read through our guidelines, check out some of our
links, and start formulating the information you'd like on your PA/PTA
website.
Your Domain Name/ Naming your Website
You should choose a domain name that is easily recognized and remembered
by your Association.
It should also be short and to the point so members can access it easily.
We recommend names such as PAISXXX.com or PTAPSXXX.com ( XXX = your school
number )
After you have chosen a name for your domain (website) you must check to see
if it's available and purchase it.
Purchasing Your Domain Name
One of the easier more organized, sites to use to purchase a domain name is www.directnic.com
, however, their price is $15.00 per year for domain names.
Another site, that is a little more cumbersome to use but less expensive is www.godaddy.com
They are only $ 8.95 per year.
If you are somewhat computer savvy and don't mind weeding through all the
clutter then by all means purchase your domain name at GoDaddy.com
You may pay online or pre-pay with a check. Any officer paying online
with their personal credit card is to be refunded by the association,
however the expense must be clearly defined for the records.
Financial Responsibility
As an association, you are financially responsible for your webspace.
It is recommended that you include an annual domain name renewal and hosting
fees in your budget.
Payment for Domain Names and Hosting Fees are done on an annual
basis. You will receive a reminder email from Directnic/GoDaddy
and Hostknight when it is time to renew. Please remember to pay in plenty of
time so as to give your check time to clear prior to the actual renewal
date. Domain names are not held past the renewal date and can be purchased
by someone else if you fail to renew on time.
Hosting Your Association Website
Presidents Council has negotiated Server Space With B.P. Knight
Company AkA - Hostknight
Full Contact Information for HostKnight
is:
The B. P. Knight Company
hostknight.com
13189 County Road 334
Abilene, Tx. 79601
Phone: 325-537-9532
All Parent Associations electing to have a website, will individually make payment to HostKnight
Services
If a Parent Association elects to host their site outside the HostKnight Server, they may do so, however, they must still follow the guidelines set forth in this document. Please keep in mind though, that remaining within one server allows for continuity, technical support and a better pricing structure to all sites.
Associations may not host their sites on free servers such as angelfire,
bravenet, etc.
Building & Publishing Your Website
Again, please become familiar with the guidelines prior to
designing and actually writing the code for your site.
Shortly we will have a link to instructions on how to access your
hosting control panel and publish your site up to the WWW.
If you already have an active PA/PTA website, please review these guidelines
to insure your site is in complience.
Guidelines
for Building a Parent Association Website.
In effort to provide District 21 Parents' Associations with an easy way to find information on upcoming events and contacts, Presidents' Council has developed this web page. In addition, Presidents' Council is encouraging all Parent Associations in D21 to do the same and be a part of a network where all schools are linked and accessible through the Presidents' Council Website.
This document provides guidance to insure high quality and consistent content, organization and presentation of information for Parents Association Sites on the World Wide Web. Please remember that anything you post up to the web is in the public eye.
Statement of Purpose
The content of all pages of a Parent Association site should be related to the function and mission of the association. It should have an educational or informational purposes for members. Each site should bring forth easy access and contact information to parents/members and encourage involvement in the educational and social atmosphere of the school.
Disclaimer
Presidents' Council is not responsible for information on links outside of our web page but strongly urge Parent Associations to carefully monitor information and links provided on their site. Each association should take caution with the information they provide and insure it remains within the guidelines set forth in the Chancellors Regulations and to applicable information in the Department of
Education's
Acceptable Use
Policy. Although it is not directly related to Parent Association Websites, items such as copyright, photography, and acceptable material should be followed.
Coordination
Presidents' Council Technology Committee shall be responsible for setting guidelines for Parent Association Websites and occasionally reviewing sites to insure proper content.
Creators of Parent Association Websites should be members of a Technology/Communication Sub-Committee within their school. The Chair of the committee should coordinate with Presidents' Council's Technology Committee to insure proper linkage with Presidents' Council and any Department of Education Sites.
Each Site shall include a disclaimer stating
"This is a Parent organization web page. Opinions expressed on this page shall not be attributed to the New York City Department of Education or Presidents' Council District 21.”
All Parent Association websites must provide a reciprocal link back to the Presidents' Council Website in order to maintain a network. Presidents' Council may coordinate a Webring within our network and each parent association site will display the webrings logo and linking capability. If a Parent Association elects to host their site outside the HostKnight Server, they may do so, however, they must still follow the guidelines set forth in this document.
Please keep in mind though, that remaining within one server allows for continuity, technical support and a better pricing structure to all sites.
Associations may not host their sites on free servers such as angelfire,
bravenet, etc.
Timelines
Information, particularly time-sensitive information such as meeting notices and upcoming fund-raising activities should be posted as promptly as possible. Out-of-date information should be removed or updated as soon as possible by each individual association. Presidents' Council is not responsible for updating information on individual association sites.
Accuracy
Before any website/page is made available to the public, spelling and syntax should be checked. All Links should be verified. Each school is responsible for their site, however, errors reflect on all of District 21 Parent Sites so please insure accuracy and keep a critical eye on any information posted.
Dead Links
Please verify and check all links on a continual basis. Inevitably, sites close or change content location, move or are deleted over time. Unfortunately, many domains with high volume that close are purchased by
Adult Entertainment sites, shocking the visitor upon arrival. Please insure that your outside links are appropriate and the original link intended.
Organization of Parent Pages
Each Parent Association Web Page should include the following:
~An indication that the PA/PTA is a part of Presidents' Council - District 21- Region 7.
~Mission Statement or purpose for the organization.
~Names of the Executive Board
~An Email Contact
~Disclaimer as stated above in Coordination
Any other content is determined by the Association.
Suggested information would be:
Scheduled Meeting Dates,
Upcoming Fundraiser dates
Community Event Dates
Commentary on fun events in the school
etc.
Links may include:
Child-friendly search engines
Educational & Family resources
Links to helpful sites on the DOE website ie:
Breakfast & Lunch Menu
Testing Schedule
Chancellors Regulations
etc.
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