PTC Resources

Birthday Parties/School Sponsored PTC Events/Classroom Parties/Gifts for Teacher Life Events

In-School Party Celebrations
All in-school party celebrations do not include food.

PTC Sponsored Gatherings and Birthday Guidelines
We love that Bernard Zell brings together a diverse community of Jewish backgrounds, affiliations, and religious practice. We all share a commitment to Judaism and to our broader school community. To help ensure that parties are welcoming and inclusive of all members of our community, we ask that you remember the following expectations when planning parties.

If you choose to host a celebration outside of school, it should not take place on non-working Jewish holidays including Shabbat (sundown on Friday until sundown on Saturday). We believe in inclusivity and this will allow families who celebrate holidays traditionally, to be able to participate in all parties.
For the 2025-26 school year, we ask that you do not plan birthday parties on the non-working Jewish Holidays listed below:
- Rosh Hashanah -Sundown to sundown of 9/22-9/24/25
- Yom Kippur – Sundown to sundown of 10/1-10/2/25
- First Days of Sukkot – Sundown to sundown of 10/6-10/8/25
- Shemini Atzeret/Simchat Torah – Sundown to sundown of 10/13-10/15/25
- First Days of Pesach – Sundown to sundown of 4/1-4/3/26
- Last Days of Pesach – Sundown to sundown of 4/7-4/9/26
- Shavuot – Sundown to sundown of 5/21-5/23/26
  - Please give families time to get home before candle lighting. The schedule can be found here.
- Parties should adhere to ingredient kosher dietary rules which means all provided food should have a Kosher certification or be dairy/vegetarian food without a Kosher certification. This policy is intended to ensure that all members of our pluralistic community will be able to eat comfortably and feel included. Non-kosher meat should not be served.
- If at least half the students from any group (such as a grade, class, or gender within a grade or class) are invited to a party, please ensure a welcoming environment by inviting all members of that group. We realize not every student identifies within traditional gender groups. We ask that you use your best judgment to make each birthday celebration a positive, inclusive experience for all children. Remember to include the birthday student in the count of invited guests.

Committee List and Descriptions

Click below to see full committee descriptions and list for 2025-26.

If you would like to join a committee at any point during the year, please reach out to PTC@bernardzell.org.

Be Innovative Grant (BIG) Committee

Support the PTC Be Innovative Grant (BIG) that funds innovative faculty and staff projects and ideas that otherwise wouldn't be funded.

Time Commitment: Year-round, work before/during/after school hours.

Concessions: Sell snacks, drinks and Bernard Zell swag at school events including sporting, operetta and theatrical performances. Your child does not need to be on the team/in play or musical to volunteer as a member of this committee.

Fundraising: Develop creative fundraising opportunities to support BIG.

Spirit Shop: Oversee school's spirit shop and develop new Bernard Zell merchandise.

School Supply Sales: Manage annual school-wide supply sale that takes place in Spring 2026 and distribution at end of Summer 2026.

B'nai Mitzvah Date Keeper

This appointed position will work with all families within the grade and the representatives from local synagogues to ensure a dedicated date/time for each family to celebrate their child’s bar and bat mitzvah. This position will not be in charge of selecting dates but rather helping to keep everyone organized. This is a four year position and will be appointed by the PTC President. Volunteering here will express your interest in being considered for the role. We are looking for parents with children in third and fourth grade.

Time Commitment: This is a remote position.

BZ Bald Eagles

Challah Committee

Support the weekly Challah delivery program that raises money for the Be Innovative Grant (BIG).

Co-Chair: Manage order forms, place orders, promote participation, and coordinate distribution.

Committee Member: Help label and distribute challahs to classrooms (typically Fridays, 8 - 8:30 a.m.). Volunteers can bring child/ren to help with deliveries. Support promotion of challah ordering at the beginning of the year.

Time Commitment: Fridays from 8 - 8:30 a.m. and any additional one off support needs.

Chesed (Community Support) Committee

Provide support to community members during times of joy or sadness which include writing letters and sending meals.

Chair: Organize summer meeting, distribute appropriate materials, ensure work completion.

Committee: Distribute information on how to support families and send congratulations/condolences/get well cards.

Time Commitment: There will be one in-person meeting over the summer and the rest of the work is remote.

Community Engagement

New for the '25-26 School Year. This committee will assist the PTC Community Engagement Officer with preparation and execution of school/division wide community programs. Examples include Carline/Lunchroom Challenge, families with young eagles' event, and last day of school celebration.

Time Commitment: The planning for this can be done during whatever hours work for the committee members.

Faculty and Staff Appreciation Committee

Plan and execute events to recognize and thank our teachers, administrators and staff throughout the year. In addition, this committee coordinates the semi-annual teacher gift card program and the end-of-year gift.

Co-Chair: multiple meetings throughout the year, both in-person and online, during the school day.

Committee Member: Assist with day of coordination and support co-chair in all appreciation activities.

Time Commitment: multiple meetings throughout the year, both in-person and online, during the school day.

Grade Coordinators

Grade Coordinators are the link between their classroom, parents and the PTC. They are also responsible for helping to create a sense of community within their own grades.

Responsibilities include:

Attending the Grade Coordinator Training Session (in-person).
Disseminating grade specific information to families, and school related information as needed.
Serving as a liaison between PTC and classroom parents.
Managing grade-wide events to build community (e.g., grade dinners, parent night-outs, field trip volunteers).
Coordinating school involvement opportunities during the year.
Helping to create a sense of community within the grade.

Time Commitment: Year round

Jewish Experiences for Families Committee (JEFF)

JEFF supports the Jewish Studies Department by programming Jewish experiences for both adults and students outside of school or assisting with any in-school needs.

Co-Chair: Create Jewish programming opportunities, promote and execute activities.

Committee Member: Help execute programs by determining needs, promoting events, and managing logistics.

Time Commitment: Both in-person and virtual. Events are typically during or immediately after the school day has ended and typically revolves around any major holidays.

PALS Program

Parent Education Committee

Co-Chair: You will work with school administration to brainstorm potential programs and invite speakers to school to address a range of topics related to personal, professional, and parenting life.

Parent Ed. Committee Member: You will help promote Parent Education events and help with any day-of event needs.

Time Commitment: This committee meets both in-person and virtual. Events are held both during the day and evening but you do not need to attend each event.

Yad B’Yad Committee (“Hand in Hand” - Our Community Outreach Committee)

Directory of Bernard Zell Alumni Babysitters

Grade Coordinators

Nursery – Class of 2036
Sara Brodsky and Jen Dorfman

JK – Class of 2035
Ashley Silver and Emma Weiss

SK – Class of 2034
Sara Berman and Sarah Sager

First Grade – Class of 2033
Hillary Grey and Jodi Strauss

Second Grade – Class of 2032
Rebecca Bass and Ashley Wayne

Third Grade – Class of 2031
Katie Berger and Terri Bormaster

Fourth Grade – Class of 2030
Deena Goldstein and Michelle Ronay

Fifth Grade – Class of 2029
Talia Margolis and Rachel Sandler

Sixth Grade – Class of 2028
Emily Hoffman and Diane Welbel

Seventh Grade – Class of 2027
Emily Grossman and Jodi Gruber

Signup.com Link

There are so many ways to volunteer your time at Bernard Zell and new this year, we’ve streamlined the sign up process to make it as easy as possible.

Sign up for carline greeting, lunchroom, challah delivery and much more - all in one place!

Bookmark this link to our centralized volunteer hub as it will be updated through the year.

Thank you for helping us BE Organized!

Ways to Support Faculty and Staff through PTC Offerings

Here are some ways to support BZ faculty and staff as all of the proceeds made by these programs go directly towards the Be Innovative Grant which gives funds faculty and staff to help implement new programs or initiatives in their classrooms and around school.

Thanks for supporting!

Purchase Spirit Gear from the BZ Spirit Store!

Click here to order weekly Challah delivery.

Click here to purchase Mabels Labels.

Click here to order photos & gifts from Minted. Use the code: FUNDRAISEBZAEDAY

Join us for BIG Bites, our monthly after-school treat sale!

Volunteer 101: new updates and how to get involved

Volunteering continues to be an important part of our community and we want to ensure your experience is meaningful.This year, the PTC Volunteer Committee wants to try something new with you: volunteer how you want, when you want. We ask that each parent volunteers a minimum of 2.5 hours during the school year through our centralized portal.

To help make this more doable and more fun, we’ve made some changes:

Assigned parking spots when you are volunteering for challah delivery, carline, and lunch. Let the officer at the gate know you’re here to volunteer and they will direct you.
Lunchroom will be will only be one hour instead of two. Fun idea - sign up for lunch duty on your kids’ bday, and/or invite a grandparent to join you!
Volunteer at carline with your 1st-4th grader. You will be able to open the carline doors, while your Lower School student escorts Early Childhood students to their classrooms.
There will be a single signup link for all volunteering opportunities and monthly “asks” but feel free to sign up as far in advance as you like.
We’ll be instituting fun (optional) themes for volunteers throughout the year - e.g., 80s month, dress up as Torah characters for holidays, etc.
We’ll be sprinkling in some volunteer appreciation and maybe some friendly grade-level competition.

For those new to volunteering at BZ, below is an overview of the ways you can get involved. You can also visit the PTC Resources page for a full list of the volunteer committees and descriptions:

Carline Helpers: Weekdays from 8:00 - 8.30 a.m.
- Help keep the carline moving each morning by opening car doors, helping students get out of the car and walking the younger ones to their classrooms.
Lunchroom Helpers: Monday - Thursday 12:00 - 1:00 p.m.
- Spend one hour either cutting fruit or serving soup for SK through 5th grade students.
Challah Delivery: Primarily Fridays from 8:00 - 8.30 a.m.
- Spend Shabbat mornings delivering challah—bring your EC student(s) or younger siblings to help..
Library Reshelving: Do you like volunteering in a quiet space? Help reshelve books that students have checked out, while seeing what the library has to offer (Details forthcoming).
One-off Volunteering: Finally, there will be additional opportunities during the year such as the Book Fair, Book Swap, Special Friends’ Day, and more. We will communicate those opportunities to the entire school community as they become available.