I expressed my concern with the Spring pictures in light of the fact that the district already has fall pictures. I became aware of this 2 years ago when my son came home with a picture package when I had not ordered any pictures. I had him return the pictures and found out after inquiring with his principal and PTA president that the Spring pictures are a fundraiser.
Each child is photographed and the PTA makes $3/child whether or not they purchase any pictures. I expressed that I thought this was a misuse of academic instructional time and an abuse of the children as they are used to push the purchase of these pictures on their parents. I alerted the district to its board policy regarding fundraising and how it is not supposed to interfere with academic instruction. I suggested the board reevaluate how decisions are made regarding activities that take time away from academic instruction.
The price put on my son's head and that of all the other students is only $3 to disrupt their day and force them to take a photograph their parents did not order. For an elementary school the size of my son's, that amounts to approximately $1,500. The PTA president provided me with a list of items purchased by the PTA supposedly for the benefit of the students: "NEW TECHNOLOGY (SMART BOARDS/ELMOS), ASSEMBLIES, PARENT UNIVERSITY, ARTWORKS, FIELD TRIPS, GEOSPACE, YOUNG AUTHOR'S NIGHT, BOOK CLUB NIGHT, AND ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONAL MONIES..." In spite of these "benefits", too many of the children still can't read or do math on grade level.
In light of the academic achievement gap, limited time for academic instruction, availability to take school portraits offered in the fall, and the ubiquitous nature of digital photography, student's time could be better spent in the classroom receiving the academic instruction which is what their parents send them to school for.
Children grow like weeds, and many parents chronicle their growth by taking pictures. Before digital photography became accessible to the population as a whole, school pictures captured a niche market.
But today, great quality digital photography is accessible to anyone, making it easier and more efficient for individuals to capture their children's growth. Cameras are even embedded in cell phones. Easy to use computer software and social networking allow freshly snapped photos to be transmitted in almost real time to friends and loved ones all over the world.
If anything, I would expect to see a decline in the old model of school picture day in which a day or several days of academic instruction are disrupted to allow students to take pictures. But just the opposite has occurred at my son's school.
LifeTouch Inc., the largest employee-owned company in the photography business specializing in school portraits, had revenues of $1+Billion in 2008 and employs over 10,000 people. LifeTouch Inc's cozy relationship with public schools is probably why part of their business strategy with public schools involves fundraising and aggressive push marketing.
(In response to my remarks at the previous meeting, for the first time, the agenda at this meeting reflected the board policy of limiting public comments to 4 minutes or less. I took more than 4 minutes to deliver my remarks at the March 23 meeting)
