With King County Public Health’s COVID-19 recommendations to avoid large gatherings of 10 or more persons, PTAs may be wondering how to continue conducting business. Washington State PTA has provided guidance on virtual meetings.
Here are video-conferencing tools that may be beneficial for PTAs looking to hold virtual meetings. This is provided as information and should not be considered an endorsement of any product.
Free Video Conferencing Tools
Hangouts Meet – Google announced all G Suite users will have free access to advanced Hangouts Meet video-conference capabilities including 250-person meetings, recording and Google Drive meeting backups until July 1st, 2020. See Google’s announcement. Note: Google Suite is available for free for nonprofit organizations.
Microsoft Teams – Microsoft announced a freemium version of Teams valid through January 2021. This includes video meetings for 250 participants, recording and screen sharing and also chat. See Microsoft’s announcement and FAQ. Note: Office 365 nonprofit has a free plan for small nonprofit organizations.
Video and Audio Conferencing Tools
GoToMeeting – Does not offer free version or non-profit pricing but does have 14 day free trial.
WebEx – Offers a free personal plan with up to 100 participants.
Zoom – Offers a limited free plan. The free plan limits meetings to 40 minutes and 100 participants.
If you have questions, please contact your Area Vice President or any member of the LWPTSA Council Board.