   Happy March my fellow advocates, MARCH MADNESS begins!! This is a busy month! Hopefully you have been having discussions about potential nominees to fill your board positions for next year. On Monday, March 9th, NCPTA will offer a webinar on the responsibilities of the nominating committee and navigating elections. If you have any questions or concerns about this process, this is the webinar for you. Join NCPTA to learn how to work effectively as a nominating committee and learn the steps to holding elections. Register here. CALL TO SERVE! The Wake County PTA Council is seeking nominations for the following positions: President, VP of Leadership, VP Communications, Secretary, and Treasurer. We are also looking for leaders to serve as members-at-large. Please contact us if you are interested at president@wakepta.org. Thank you in advance. The NCPTA Winter Symposium was held on Saturday, February 29th at the Durham Public Schools (DPS) Staff Development Center. PTA representatives from all over NC were in attendance, as well as, members from the community, teachers and principals. We enjoyed a Superhero partnership breakfast where the school report card data was shared. We discussed the Leandro Report with a principal from Halifax County, violence in the community and racial injustice. The 2020 NCPTA Annual Awards are open. Winners will be recognized at the NCPTA Convention on May 16th. If you are a PTA unit in good standing you are eligible to apply. You must apply online. Please go online and nominate an outstanding teacher, principal, school administrator, volunteer or even your PTA unit. We encourage you all to nominate someone but especially your own PTA units. If you need assistance with this, please contact the NCPTA office or office@ncpta.org. NCPTA Annual Convention Annual Convention is coming May 14-16, 2020 in Durham. Click here for the details. Is your unit struggling with memberships, operations, disagreements, any other issues/concerns? Please contact us. Our mission is to unify, promote and strengthen PTA units across Wake County. Thank YOU for all that you do!! Your time and efforts are appreciated!!! Kassandra CONGRATULATIONS TO THE 2019-20 GOLD Key Winners: The Gold Key Award acknowledges teams who received the Blue Key Award for 2019-2020 and added at least 25 new members by January 15.
  Find out all you need to know about the March 3rd Super Tuesday. Especially important to Wake voters are the district changes. Find your sample ballot, and vote!  Is your PTA in compliance with NCPTA Bylaws? Section 11.5 Checks. All bills of this local PTA shall be paid by check. Checks must be signed by two of no more than four officers authorized by the board of directors to sign checks, except that none of these officers so authorized shall be related, and at least one of these authorized officers shall be the Treasurer. The signing of blank checks is prohibited. No school employee should have signature authority on PTA checks unless they are a duly elected PTA officer. The PTA can’t give ‘money to the school or any person or organization without a specific use for the money. The IRS and your members hold the PTA accountable for the use of that money. Failure to comply with NCPTA bylaws could result in a loss of your PTA Charter and 501(C)3 status.   Join us as the Poe Center, the Wake County Public School System, Wake County Human Services, and the American Heart Association continue to move the needle and make a healthy difference in the lives of Wake County residents. At the first Tobacco-Free Community Forum, the Triangle community imagined the possibilities of a tobacco-free community. We invite all to the second Tobacco-Free Community Forum. The purpose of the forum is to educate, empower, and engage. Join us as we:
Where: Southeast Raleigh Magnet High School, 2600 Rock Quarry Rd, Raleigh, NC 27610 When: March 21st, 2020, 9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Questions? Contact Virginia Johnson at v.johnson@poehealth.org. Click Here to Register: www.poehealth.org/events/tobacco-free-community-forum-2020/
 March is:
#YouthCulture – A Workshop Series for Parents The Poe Center’s #YouthCulture workshop series is designed to empower parents/guardians by providing up-to-date information on substance use prevention, internet safety, and relationships to support healthy choices. The adult program series is for adults only. During each session there will also be a separate Youth Program that complements adult workshop. The youth series is for youths only. All sessions are located at the Poe Center for Health Education, 224 Sunnybrook Rd, Raleigh, NC, 27610. Feel free to attend any and all workshops. There will be light snacks and door prizes!resources. CLICK TO REGISTER: www.poehealth.org/events/youthculture-workshop-series-at-the-poe-center-2020/  Start planning ahead for April:
 Did you remember to nominate your PTA's Star Volunteer to be recognized at a the Wake County PTA Council's Night of Stars on April 30th? No worries - the deadline for nominations has been extended to March 7th. Click HERE for the nomination form. We can't wait to see you and celebrate! WCPTA’s Night of Stars - FAQs   The Parents’ Guides to Student Success were developed by teachers, parents and education experts in response to the Common Core State Standards that more than 45 states have adopted. Created for grades K-8 and high school English, language arts/literacy and mathematics, the guides provide clear, consistent expectations for what students should be learning at each grade in order to be prepared for college and career. Guides for grades K-High School are available in both English and Spanish.   Responsibilities of the Nominating Committee and Navigating Elections: March 9, 2020 at 7:30 p.m. Do you have questions about the duties and responsibilities of the Nominating Committee? Do you want to know how to create a slate of officers for your elections? Do you need help on how to hold elections? Join NCPTA to learn how to work effectively as a nominating committee and learn the steps to holding elections. Register here.  All students who participated in the Reflections contest are invited! The deadline for nominations has been extended to March 7th. Click HERE for the nomination form. We can't wait to see you and celebrate!
ReflectionsCongratulations to all our WCPTA Reflections Artists! You can see the winners on the Reflections page. The Wake County Reflections Celebration will be announced shortly. All 1st Place Winners will be moving onto the State level for judging, along with all Special Artists entries. State winners will be announced in late March 2020. Wake PTAAre you interested in taking your PTA skills to the next level? Wake PTA is looking for passionate public school advocates to join our board. Meetings are held the third Wednesday of the month at 6:30pm at WCPSS Crossroads II. Come for a visit to see what we are doing on behalf of students and PTAs in Wake County. Contact president@wcpta.org or communications@wcpta.org for more information.
Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, Seasons Greetings, Feliz Navidad, Happy Hanukkah: I hope everyone had a wonderful, relaxing Thanksgiving and enjoyed time being thankful with your family and friends. As the year comes to an end, I want to say “THANK YOU” to all units who have joined the council and have offered your input on how we can better serve ALL PTAs/PTSAs across our district. Please remember to reach out if you need guidance on any PTA issues. I wish you all a safe and wonderful holiday season!! Thank you for doing what you do and for being a part of America’s oldest & largest child advocacy association. Enjoy your holidays, take a well-deserved rest, enjoy family and friends, and reflect on the spirit of the season. We will see you in 2020!! Advocating always, Kassandra CONGRATULATIONS NCPTA 2019-2020 HONOR ROLL RECIPIENTS PTAs who sent in dues by Nov. 15 and had total number of members equal to or greater than last year’s membership.
 Join us March 10-12 for the 2020 National PTA Legislative Conference (LegCon) to network with fellow PTA advocates, meet with policymakers, hear PTA advocacy success stories and learn how to shape public policy on Capitol Hill and at home. Register by January 3, 2020 to take advantage of the Early Bird registration rate of $295. After January 3, the registration cost will increase to $325.  Do you know someone doing great advocacy work? National PTA is now accepting nominations for the 2020 Advocacy Awards through Dec. 18, 2019! If you know of an outstanding youth or individual PTA advocate, or a local unit or state PTA that has done great advocacy work, nominate them to receive an award for their efforts from National PTA at the 2020 Legislative Conference. You can also nominate yourself! Please follow this link for the description and nomination requirements for each award as well as the link to the nomination form.  Fostering Positive Relationships with Administration and Resolving Conflict in your PTA: January 13, 2020 at 7:30pm What does it mean for the PTA and the Principal to work as partners? What do you do when conflict takes ahold of your board? Join us for this two-part discussion as we talk about the important roles PTAs and Principals play for each other and how to handle discord among board members. Register here. This would be a great webinar for all units to attend! Please sign up! SAVE THE DATE: JANUARY 18TH – NCPTA Leadership Conference Durham, NC
TBD Message from the PresidentGreetings PTA Family: I hope that everyone is doing well and your PTA is functioning and operating in full force. We have had a busy first quarter of this PTA year. There are several units that are struggling and in need of assistance. We all struggle with finding enough volunteers. So if you have an awesome way of recruiting volunteers for your PTA, PLEASE SHARE!! Send your ideas and strategies to our WCPTA FB page and to MemberHub so that all can benefit!! In addition, we ask you to join the Council so that we can offer much more than just the summer leadership conference. A strong council helps maintain strong units. If you have questions with regards to membership in the council, fees, etc., please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. Send an email to president@wakepta.organd copy treasurer@wakepta.org. Please remember if you are sending in your membership dues, to include your invoice with all pertinent information, as well as, your check with TWO (2) signatures. Sadly, we have noticed that many of our units are not following the NCPTA Uniform Bylaws and many are just “winging” it. PLEASE DO NOT jeopardize your 501 (c) 3 status by not being compliant and not following the simple bylaws. If you have any questions or concerns PLEASEreach out to us, that is why we are here. We want ALL of our units to be successful!! Whether you are struggling with operational issues, financial issues, board issues, whatever, PLEASEdo not hesitate to reach out. Do NOT wait until it gets worse. We are a small team, but we will do all that we can to assist you. COMMUNICATION IS KEY!! PHISHING EMAIL SCAM: There has been a rash of phishing email scams. Please be diligent when reading emails that seem to be from someone you know. Often times the scammer will have a generic greeting and will ask for an account number or a payment. Before you even respond, contact the person that it claims to be from to verify. REMEMBER, according to the NCPTA Uniform Bylaws: Section 11.5 – Checks. All bills of this local PTA shall be paid by check. Checks must be signed by two of no more than four officers authorized by the board of directors to sign checks, except that none of these officers so authorized shall be related, and at least one of these authorized officers shall be the Treasurer. The signing of blank checks is prohibited. Section 11.6 – Expenditures and fund availability. All expenditures of this local PTA must be consistent with the approved budget and based on actual fund availability. All reimbursements for expenditures will be contingent upon actual fund availability. Also, you should have documentation to justify why you are dispersing funds. Most banks do not require two (2) signatures; however, PTA DOES REQUIRE THIS!! To be compliant, I would suggest that each unit add a caveat to their standing rules to indicate that “regardless to the bank rules, we must comply with NCPTA bylaws and require two (2) signatures on all checks” (or however you want to word it). For further information on phishing, please go to the Federal Trade Commission’s website: https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/how-recognize-and-avoid-phishing-scams. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: National PTA website is home to a lot of useful resources for units. If you have not yet registered for the PTA Boot Camp, register at www.PTAKit.org. Once you are registered, your PTA Boot Camp will be launched. As a PTA Boot Camp member, you will be invited to join NEW “PTA Leaders Only” closed group on Facebook. It is a great page with a variety of topics posted by units from across the country/world. Try it…. Thanks again for all that you do to advocate on behalf of children everywhere. At the end of the day, remember “why you PTA”! I close with this Facebook post from Stacy Bateman, a regional 9 Director at the Utah PTA and a member representative of the National PTA Board of Directors: “PTA has a wide range of leaders. Some have been involved longer than I have been alive, others have been around for 20 years and some are just starting. Wherever you are in your journey, you matter and you make a difference. Today I want to reach out to those of you who may be in a new or different role than you are used to. In the last month I have talked to so many people who are finding their footing in new positions or at a different level. Some feel lost, some are unsure and it may even feel like a little bit of an identity crisis. One volunteer told me she feels like everything she did and worked so hard for is being undone. She asked if I ever felt like that. I told her I understood better than she knew. It is hard to work for years and then watch things change. Especially when you know things you and your board did were successful and loved. It’s also hard to be in a new school or new position when you gave so much of yourself to one place. If this is you right now, I feel you and I get it. Transition is hard. Especially in this organization where we give so much of our time and heart. I chose this picture (courtesy of Google) because it’s a great temperature check for me. No matter where I am or what capacity I serve in, I want to always remember my why. So if you find yourself in this odd space of transition and aren’t sure whether to hold on or step away, remember your why. Think about all the kids who need an advocate. Think about all the places your talents and skills can be utilized. Find someone to mentor who could use your knowledge and experience. Build them so they can build others. Then remember one of the best things this organization has to offer… you belong to one of the biggest and most supportive families in the world.” So when you begin to get frustrated or want to give up and walk away, “ALWAYS REMEMBER YOUR WHY”!! Advocating always, Kassandra ADVOCACYThe November 14th WCPTA Advocacy Committee meeting will focus on vaping. Join us to hear guest speaker, Michelle Mulvihill, Public Health Educator/Tobacco Prevention and Control Manager from the Wake County Health Department. You can learn about Michelle's work here. She will be talking about vaping, specifically what we can do as advocates to address policy issues that can make an impact and parent messaging. The meeting space is being donated by a church in Cary, and if you need to bring children, it is a large enough room where they could read/screen time/etc without being an issue. Because this is a hot topic, especially among high schools, if parents or other PTA folks outside of Advocacy are interested in joining, that would be fine. To view the National PTA stance on vaping, please go here. Wake PTA Advocacy Meeting November 14th at 7:00 pm Location: Good Shepherd UCC 1050 NW Maynard Road Cary NC 27519 (Near the Corner of Maynard and High House) Building Resilience in Your Children/Having a Trauma-Informed PTA November 14th 7:00 - 8:30 PM Crossroads II 110 Corning Road, Cary Room 1400 This 90 minute session is based on the film Resilience about toxic stress and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and how children can survive stress by learning to be resilient. This workshop is designed for those who have seen the film and want to take the next step by implementing trauma-informed strategies in their school, classroom, or home. Designed for parents/guardians and PTA members, this presentation is grounded in research on strategies that help build Resilience in children. When kids have the skills and the confidence to confront and work through their problems, they can learn that they have what it takes to confront difficult issues. Includes discussion about how parents can work to ensure that programs and policies implemented by PTAs support a trauma-informed learning environment for all students. Thoughtful, empathetic volunteers are a vital link between home and school and should be using trauma-informed/sensitive guidelines in their policies, programs, and when communicating with parents or guardians. NCPTANCPTAPTA President-Leading Your PTA:
November 4, 2019 7:30 p.m. You have been elected PTA President – now what? Join NCPTA as we discuss the role and responsibility of PTA President. Register here  PRESIDENT'S MESSAGEHappy Fall Wake County PTA Family!! The school year is under full swing now and I hope that everyone has had a great year thus far!! We know that some of our PTAs have struggled operationally and have been in the need of a little assistance. Please do not hesitate to contact us if your unit is in need of some assistance from our council. Some of you are not fully aware of what a council is….. A council is an organized group of three or more local PTA units affiliated with NCPTA for the purpose of promoting conferences, communications, leadership development, and coordination of the efforts of such local PTA units. The PTA council’s main purpose is to promote the welfare of children and youth. The Wake County PTA Council provides unity, strength and promotes all PTA units in the communities of Wake County. We are committed to serving, empowering and encouraging all of our members by being an integral part of the National PTA, NCPTA, our school board, superintendent, administration, teachers & staff, parents, businesses and especially our children. We are trustworthy advocates who want to ensure that all Wake County families are engaged in every child’s success. Due to our large district (191 schools), this year, we are hoping to have regional representatives from our nine (9) district areas. You will see more about this from our VP of Leadership & Training. With this new aspect of the council, along with all of the training we would like to bring to our units we would like to see 100% unit membership this year. Currently we are at 39% membership. If you have any questions on council membership, please reach out to myself at president@wakepta.org or our treasurer, Sonya Reid at treasurer@wakepta.org. In the subject line, please put “Council Membership”. We will respond as soon as possible. A big “thank-you” to all of our units who have joined. For those who have not yet joined, you can find the WCPTA Invoice here. We are hoping to have more training this year in different locations in order to meet the needs of all of our units. If you know of locations in your area that offer free meeting spaces in the evenings, please be sure to let us know. Also, we are planning to have more online (webinars) type of trainings, as well, to also be able to accommodate our vast district. Remember that NCPTA has a Lifeline for Leader webinar on every 2nd Monday of the month. This month’s topic is “PTA Financial Basics” on Monday, October 7, 2019 at 7:30 p.m. Go to ncpta.org and register. In addition, National PTA has numerous resources to assist your unit with any topic. Thank you to all of you for all that you do to ensure that every child’s potential becomes a reality!! Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us if you have issues, concerns, or questions. TOGETHER WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!! Wishing you all a happy fall and a successful PTA year!! Advocating for you, Kassandra 2019-2020 WCPSS PRINCIPAL OF THE YEAR/ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL OF THE YEAR Each year, Wake County PTA Council has the honor and the privilege of being a part of the interview process for the WCPSS Principal and Assistant Principal of the Year. For the past two years, I have had that honor and that privilege. I am just totally amazed at the wealth of knowledge, experience, and attitude of servant leadership that each one of these leaders exemplifies. The Wake County PTA Council would like to acknowledge and honor the finalists for this year’s celebration: Principals: Dr. Elena Ashburn – Broughton Magnet High Gretta Dula – Sanderson High Bob Grant – Washington Magnet Elementary *Dr. Ruth Steidinger – Olive Chapel Elementary Dr. Annice Williams – Poe Magnet Elementary Assistant Principals: Leslie Blake – Millbrook Magnet Elementary *Catie Burnette – Hilburn Academy Kenya Moore-Kerr – Vandora Springs Elementary Dena Nealy – East Millbrook Magnet Middle Monica Sawyer – Enloe Magnet High *2019-20 POY – Dr. Ruth Steidinger *2019-20 APOY – Catie Burnette CONGRATULATIONS TO THESE AMAZING FINALISTS!! ADVOCACY  City of Raleigh and Town of Cary Municipal Elections VOTE October 8th Municipal Elections for Angier, Apex, Durham, Fuquay-Varina, Garner, Holly Springs, Knightdale, Morrisville, Rolesville, Wake Forest, Wendell, and Zebulon VOTE November 5th More information on upcoming elections can be found here Elementary and Secondary School Counseling Act On Sept. 18, 2019, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Rep. Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) introduced the Elementary and Secondary School Counseling Act (ESSCP) to provide dedicated funding to states to lower the staffing ratios for school counselors, school psychologists and school social workers. Contact your members of Congress to ask them to become a co-sponsor of this bill. FINANCEGood Standing Requirements A local PTA unit must comply with the following NCPTA requirements in order to maintain its charter and 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status:
Visit NCPTA's website to find more information about good standing requirements. HEALTH AND WELLNESS October is National Bullying Prevention Month Here are some tips and ideas from StompOutBullying.org on how students can celebrate National Bullying Prevention Month. Visit StompOutBullying.org to learn more and download the toolkit.
Bullying Prevention: Changing our Language, Modeling Empathy Rebecca Wenrich Wheeler – MA, MEd, CSAPC Preventing bullying behavior among youth begins with adults. Recognizing the impact of language, school climate, and adult modeling are foundational to bullying prevention. Language describing bullying behavior influences our perceptions on the preventable nature of bullying. The term anti-bullying is often misused when someone actually means bullying prevention. While, yes, we are against bullying, the term anti-bullying is reactive, as if bullying behavior is inevitable and unable to be prevented. All we can do is react when it happens. Prevention involves a shift in mindset, moving from reactive to proactive thinking. READ MORE October 10th is World Mental Health Day Every 40 seconds, someone loses their life to suicide. Join us, on 10 October, in “40 seconds of action” to raise awareness of the scale of suicide around the world and the role that each of us can play to help prevent it. Find out more at WHO - Suicide Prevention E-Cigarettes/Vaping Resources Although traditional cigarette smoking is on the decline, electronic cigarette use among teens has increased more than 900%.. Electronic cigarettes, often referred to as, e-cigarettes, e-cigs, or vapes, are electronic devices that heat a liquid containing nicotine and special flavors to produce an aerosol that is breathed into the lungs. The aerosol can also be inhaled by bystanders. They come in lots of shapes and sizes. Testing on long-term health effects are still being conducted, however we already know that e-cigarettes are not safe, contain chemicals that damage lungs, and are harmful on the adolescent developing brain. Most e-cigarettes contain nicotine, the same highly addictive drug found in traditional cigarettes. For more information on electronic cigarettes and teens, download the Talk with Your Teens About E-cigarettes: A Tip Sheet for Parents provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Office on Smoking and Health. Questions about the impacts of nicotine on adolescents? Questions about effects of e-cigarettes? Contact the WCPTA Health And Wellness Committee to schedule a program for your PTA. PoeFest Community Festival 2019 You are invited to our FREE community festival to celebrate healthy choices! Please join us for fun, food, prizes, special guests, interactive theaters and great local entertainment. Date: Saturday, October 12, 2019 Time: 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM Location: 224 Sunnybrook Road, Raleigh NC 27610 The Wake County PTA Council will be distributing dental hygiene kits including toothbrushes, timers, tooth paste and more during PoeFest. Download the informational flyer here.   For more information, contact Triangle Area Dyslexic Advocacy. #TADA-NC is a parent-led grassroots movement across the state of North Carolina determined to advocate for appropriate literacy education for all students, especially those with dyslexia and related difficulties. LEADERSHIP ONLINE Q&A FOR LEADERS
Join WCPTA for our first online Q&A of the year! We’ll be checking in to see if you have everything in order to get your PTA year going and stay in compliance – Board positions, required committees, membership & dues, insurance, reporting data to NCPTA, and any other questions you have. Topic: BEGINNING OF THE YEAR OPERATIONS Time: Oct 17, 2019 7:00 – 7:40 PM Join Zoom Meeting – click on this link to join the meeting (no downloads needed) Dial in by phone: +1 646 558 8656 REGIONAL REPS NEEDED FOR WAKE PTA Did you know that WCPSS has 191 schools this year?? That is A LOT of local PTA units! It is getting more challenging for us to hold trainings and provide support for such a large school system, so WCPTA has the goal this year of working more closely with schools by region. We are always looking for ways to provide more training and support, and we appreciate the feedback we’ve received from all of you. One thing we’ve heard many times over is that PTA leaders are looking for community, support, and ideas from each other. We are hoping to foster all of this for local units by providing more accessible opportunities closer to home. We are also looking for a PTA President from each of the nine WCPSS regions to be a representative to Wake PTA Council. Superintendent Moore attends our monthly meetings and shares important updates on what is happening in our schools - this is a great way to find out what’s going on in schools and advocacy work across the county. Regional representatives will be able to report this important information back to local units in your area. If you are interested or would like more information, please contact Amy Jones, leadership@wakepta.org and Kassandra Watson, president@wakepta.org Please be on the lookout for a separate email with additional details!  PRESIDENT'S MESSAGEGreetings PTA Family, The school year has officially kicked off!! The Wake County PTA Council hosted its annual Summer Leadership Conference on Thursday, August 29that Crossroads II. Thanks to all who came out and participated!! Slide presentations for sessions on Advocacy, Communications, Financial Management, Health and Wellness, and Reflections can be found on the WCPTA website. Wake PTA Council welcomes the new executive leadership team at the NCPTA. The new executive director for NCPTA is Mari Urness and the NCPTA president is Harold Dixon. Find out more about them here. Remember, to reach out to us with any questions or issues that you may have. If we don’t know the answer, we will seek the answer and follow up. Wishing you all a great and successful school year. Together we can do so much more!!! Kindly, Kassandra L. Watson ADVOCACY Early voting begins September 18, do you know where to go? Find out at wakevotesearly.com Check out this video from the Wake County Board of Elections, explaining the importance of the upcoming local elections! Find out more about the October 8th and November 5th elections and polling places Are you interested in hosting a voting drive as part of your fall PTA activities? Contact You Can Vote, they will work with you to make setting one up easy! Have a student turning 18 by Election Day? Make sure you’re #VoteReady by registering to vote at NationalVoterRegistrationDay.org! #NationalVoterRegistrationDay is Sept 24  FINANCEDon't forget to pay your Wake County PTA Council Dues of $50 by October 31, 2019 (invoice) This one time payment provides you access to:
HEALTH AND WELLNESS September is National Suicide Prevention Month #BeThe1To Ask the tough question When somebody you know is in emotional pain, ask them directly: “Are you thinking about killing yourself?” #BeThe1To Keep Them Safe Is your friend thinking about suicide? Ask if they’ve thought about how they would do it and separate them from anything they could use to hurt themselves. #BeThe1To Be There If your friend is thinking about suicide, Listen to their reasons for feeling hopeless and in pain. Listen with compassion and empathy and without dismissing or judging. #BeThe1To Help Them Connect Help your friend connect to a support system, whether it’s 800-273- TALK(8255), family, friends, clergy, coaches, co-workers or therapists, so they have a network to reach out to for help. #BeThe1To Follow Up Check in with the person you care about on a regular basis. Making contact with a friend in the days and weeks after a crisis can make a difference in keeping them alive.  Throughout the year, WCPTA, in collaboration with Public Schools First NC and Wake NCAE, will be hosting screenings of Resilience: The Biology of Stress and the Science of Hope, as well as workshops on how to put the information you learn from the film into action. Film Screening and Discussion Thursday, September 12, 2019 at 7 PM – 8:30 PM Crossroads II 110 Corning Road Cary, NC 27518 Room 1400 Strategies for Creating Trauma-Informed Schools Thursday, September 12, 2019 at 7 PM – 8:30 PM Crossroads II 110 Corning Road Cary, NC 27518 Room 1400 This 90-minute session is based on the film Resilience about toxic stress and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and how students can survive trauma by learning to be resilient. Designed for administrators/school level leadership, this presentation is grounded in research on how to foster resilient learners by cultivating a trauma-informed learning environment in your school. Discussion will focus on helping your staff build relationships that allow their students to grow, thrive, and be successful academically. School leaders will be provided resources to share with their school leadership team. #BeTraumaInformed  Check out these 6 Tips for Getting More Fruits & Veggies into your day! The 6 Basics
LEADERSHIPThank you to everyone who came to the WCPTA Summer Leadership Conference on August 29! We hope that you went home with valuable information and that you feel empowered to have a great year as a PTA leader. We are posting slides from the workshop presentations on our WCPTA website so that you can go back and reference the material that was covered. If you do not see the presentation you are looking for, please check back soon. We are always looking for ways to make training more helpful and relevant, and we value your feedback! For those who attended SLC, please look for an email with a brief survey. You can also send suggestions and feedback to leadership@wakepta.org. NATIONAL PTA Enrollment for the 2019-20 program is now open. Enroll your PTA now to start the process and gain access to our online toolkit. What Does it Take to Become a National PTA School of Excellence?By enrolling in this program, your PTA and school administrators are making a year-long commitment in identifying and implementing an action plan for school improvement based on PTA's National Standards for Family-School Partnerships. NCPTA Let’s Talk Membership: September 9 at 7:30pm A thriving membership is a critical component of a successful PTA. We’ll share how to use NCPTA tools to help increase your membership and create a vibrant community. Register now! REFLECTIONS Reflections is a 50+ year old National program that encourages the students to explore their creativity through 6 DIFFERENT CATEGORIES:  This year we are happy to announce Reflections is going digital. The process for Reflections has been made simpler for students and reflection chairs. In addition, we have been fortunate to have PTA Presidents and WCPSS Art/Music teachers signed up as Reflection Chairs. Please DO NOT LET THIS WONDERFUL ART OPPORTUNITY pass you by!! It is not too late to register, email Manjri Lall, WCPTA Reflections Chair at reflections@wcpta.org Wake County Submission deadline for artwork: November 8TH 11:59PM We are here to guide you and assist you at every step. Find more information on our website. SEICPlease welcome our new chair, Beth Chartrand. You can reach her at seic@wakepta.org
Dear PTA Leaders, Welcome to the 2019-2020 school year! The Wake County PTA Council thanks you for your commitment to your children, the children of your school, and the children of Wake County. Please know that we are here to help you with any questions or challenges and to share and celebrate your successes as a PTA (PTSA). The mission of Wake County PTA Council is to unify, promote, and strengthen PTA units in Wake County, North Carolina. As a part of our mission, the Council models and educates local units in the best practices of a PTA. We are an all-volunteer organization that provides training, networking opportunities, county-wide events, and support to PTA units across the county. In this packet you will find:
WCPTA 2019/20 Welcome Packet |
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