The Parents’ Association in Ballyellis N.S was re-formed in its current format only four years ago, and is affiliated to the National Parents’ Council (Primary).
The NPC Policy Document Education for Tomorrow – The Parents’ Vision can be downloaded here.
Mary O’Neill was the chairperson and along with Linda Black (secretary) and Vivienne Byrne (treasurer) successfully made the P.A. effective once more. They served 2 years in office before being replaced by Joe Kenny (Chair), Sandra Mackey (sec) and Maura Doran (treas) in 2010.
The primary function of the P.A. is to assist the efficient running of the school through fund-raising in order to provide the facilities necessary to enable this. Each year the major fund-raiser has been the field day which takes place on the first Sunday in June after the patron in Askamore.
Added to this there are usually a couple of raffles both at Christmas and again at the end of the school year. The proceeds from these fundraisers are ploughed straight back into the school with the most notable acquisition to date being interactive white boards for each classroom. These make life a lot easier for the teachers and also for the pupils.
Other purchases include encyclopedias, as well as warning lights on the road to make traffic aware they are approaching the school. Any funds accumulated more recently are going to be put towards the future development of the grounds. An extension to the building is imminent as the numbers attending the school are continuing to rise.
The officers elected for the coming year are as follows:
Chairperson: Sandra Mackey
Asst. Chair: Joe Kenny
Secretary: Mary Cahill
Asst Sec: Jo McLellan
Joint Treasurers: Eliz Doran and Maura Doran
Askamore Community Website 