  Happy Fall PTA Units, As we “fall” into the harvest season, there are a few reminders for your units. Please remember, that in order for your unit to be in good standing with the NCPTA, you must do the following:
We have had many units who are struggling with the governance of their PTAs. Please do not hesitate to reach out to the council. We are here to guide you and help where we can. Please remember, it is crucial that you read and understand the NCPTA by-laws. Many of your questions/issues can be answered/resolved by reading the bylaws. We are working on trying to coordinate more trainings to assist you; but it does take time and planning. In the meantime, again, PLEASE reach out to us if you are struggling. Thank you ALL for your time, your efforts and your commitment to PTA. Together we can make every child’s potential a reality!! Advocating always, Kassandra ADVOCACY Advocacy Chairs - be sure that you have joined the Advocacy Hub on WCPTA's MemberHub site. Lots of great discussion and support have been going on during the election season, and there is still so much work to do! Election Day - This Tuesday! You can find the list of candidates, sample ballot, polling places, and more at www.wakegov.com/elections. Bond 2018 - Capital Improvement Program The Wake County Board of Education and the Wake County Board of Commissioners developed a $543 million bond package of new school construction and major renovations. The new schools and renovations will create safe and healthy learning environments for children and will help to retain and recruit the best teachers. Each school in Wake County will receive funds for classroom technology and school security upgrades improving student and teacher safety. Bond financing is the most cost-effective and fairest way to pay for new schools and renovations because new businesses and new residents share the cost of repaying the bonds over the 20 years. The bond will pay for construction and design of 7 new schools and major renovations to 11 additional schools. The 7 new schools include one high school, one middle school and five elementary schools. The 11 renovation projects include one high school, three middle schools and seven elementary schools. You can find information on the capital improvement program at the following website: www.wcpss.net/2018bond School Board Elections & County Commission Elections There’s a lot on the ballot this year including Wake County school board and county commissioners. The school board makes decisions about issues such as school assignment, bell schedules and instructional programs. County Commissioners provide funding for our schools, including capital funding for building our school facilities. It matters who holds these local offices! These local elections are critically important, please communicate to your PTA membership the importance of voting the whole ballot. All 9 districts (or seats) of the Wake school board are on the ballot November 6th. The General Assembly made changes to Wake school board elections in 2013, mandating all 9 districts to run at the same time. Historically, these elections have taken place in odd numbered years and the seats were staggered. Candidates for commissioner run in districts but the elections are county-wide. This means every Wake County voter can vote for one candidate in each race. There are 7 elected members of the county commission. All candidates for Wake county commission are listed below in alphabetical order. Commissioners run county-wide and are voted on by all voters. All commissioner districts are listed on your ballot and you can vote for one candidate in each of these races (districts). FINANCE From our friend and PTA Leader in all things - Gary Lewis: Local PTA units are eligible for discounted software for non-profits through techsoup.org Once you qualify for TechSoup, you can also sign up for Google for Non-Profits – which will allow you to get Gmail accounts using your own domain (i.e. president@wakepta.org is created from this). Once you have Google for Non-profits, you can request GSuite for Non-profits, you can purchase a domain from Google (if you don’t already have one) or use a domain you already own and it will be set-up to allow Google User IDs that are linked to your domain (as many as you want). There is a control panel that let’s an admin fully control all of them (so past Board members can’t refuse to turn them over to new Board Members). Gary is happy to discuss and/or help units interested in setting up GSuite for non-profits. You can contact him at glewis1@nc.rr.com There are also 2 great deals being offered for Quickbooks – $50 per year for Quickbooks Online Plus (this is a substantial savings and can be renewed annually) or $50 for Quickbooks Pro (select the non-profit version) which you would then own to use on any laptop or Mac. GRANTS Engage, Support, Improve, Increase, Celebrate Throughout the year, National PTA offers awards or grants to honor or support PTAs as they: engage families, support student success, improve the health and safety of students and families, increase access to arts education or celebrate advocacy and diversity. National PTA Grant Opportunities - Due 11/11 National PTA is committed to promoting and encouraging many types of diversity and inclusion as part of our commitment to every child. In addition to evaluating the merits of each application, we may also consider geography, need, and other criteria to ensure a robust and diverse pool of grantees. HEALTH AND WELLNESS November is Healthy Lifestyles Month National PTA and GOYA-Move have teamed up to encourage schools to advocate for healthy lifestyles by awarding 15 PTAs with a $1,000 grant to host a “Get Off Your Apps” Physical Activity Event at their elementary and middle schools during the month of November. These grants are part of the healthy lifestyles initiative that provides PTAs with education and tools to partner with schools and advocate for healthy changes in nutrition and physical activity. In addition, a social media challenge will be open to families and schools throughout the month of November where they can participate in some form of physical activity, then share it on social media by including the hashtag #GoyaMoveDay! This will conclude with a “Get Off Your Apps” Day on Nov. 29. In celebration of Healthy Lifestyles Month, schools who did not receive a grant can still participate by downloading the National PTA Healthy Lifestyles Month Planning Toolkit to have a "Get Off Your Apps" Physical Activity Event at their school to promote health and wellness. For more information about the Goya-Move event and to access the toolkit, visit: PTA.org/CelebrateHealthyLifestyles.  Come and see award-winning, must-see 60-minute film Resilience: The Biology of Stress & The Science of Hope! Tuesday, November 13th, 6:00-8:00 Crossroads II 110 Corning Road Cary, NC 27518 Room 1400 (See more about film here - http://kpjrfilms.co/resilience/) (Spanish subtitles are available.) The screening is co-hosted by the WCPSS Office of Equity Affairs & Office of Counseling and Student Services, the Wake NCAE, the Wake PTA Council, and Public Schools First NC. This limited release documentary examines how abuse, neglect and other adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) affect children's development & health outcomes in adulthood. Research shows ACEs are common, they affect all income levels, and their impact on health and well-being is significant. "The child may not remember, but the body remembers." Schools have a critical role to play in promoting the great childhoods that children deserve. One great takeaway from Resilience is that there is always hope! Science shows the effects of ACEs do not have to be permanent. The film highlights how communities working together can build resilience in kids to overcome the impact of ACEs. Come see this highly acclaimed film to learn more about ACEs, how they increase the likelihood of disease and illness, and how together we as a community can mitigate the impact of ACEs for Wake County children. There will be short commentary/discussion following the film. Come and learn what Wake Co. Public School System is doing to help create trauma-informed school environments and to help our students build social and emotional learning skills to help them be successful in school and in life. THIS FILM IS INTENDED FOR ADULT AUDIENCES. This powerful movie is a conversation-starter and a perspective-changer. THIS IS FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. Tickets are not required. RSVPs are appreciated at info@publicschoolsfirstnc.org. You can find more information on ACEs at Advocates for Health in Action, and resilience related resources at Public Schools First.  The Poe Center has partnered with SAS Software through Curriculum Pathways to provide FREE health education lessons online! These lessons are designed to complement the Poe Center's health education curriculum, and they are available at no cost to teachers across North Carolina. Programs and online content align with the NC DPI Healthful Living and Science Essential Standards. The lessons have been created with a free, open resource called Crio, which puts audio, text, images, video, and interactive content into the hands of educators. Teachers can easily drag & drop to transform lessons into interactive online resources. Teachers: get started today! Click the link below to create a Curriculum Pathways account, and then search for "Poe Health" in the search box. https://www.curriculumpathways.com/portal/ LEADERSHIP We've had 112 local units pay their dues to WCPTA this year. It's not too late to join! The role of the Council is to inform, advise, guide, instruct, provide customer service, encourage leaders of local units, and be responsive to their needs for membership recruitment and retention, leadership training and coordination of efforts of every PTA unit in Wake County. The Wake County PTA Council:
NATIONAL PTA National PTA Statement on the Shooting Death at Butler High School National PTA President Jim Accomando issued the following statement on the shooting at Butler High School in Matthews, N.C.: “While we don’t know the specific circumstances of this tragedy, our hearts and minds are with the parents, students, families and educators at Butler High School. “Any act of violence at a school or involving children and youth is intolerable. Every student deserves to learn and grow in a safe environment. And no parent should fear for the safety of their child every time they leave home for school. This is yet another call for action to prevent gun violence in the United States of America. School safety is a critical priority for all parents, educators, students and community members that cannot be taken for granted. We must make every attempt to reduce violence, especially incidents that involve firearms. “It remains a top priority of PTA to promote safety for children and youth and improve education. PTA has a strong history of supporting and advocating for policies in the areas of gun safety and violence prevention, juvenile justice, mental health and students’ overall well-being. “PTA is also committed to supporting students, families, schools and communities in coping with and preventing violence. We offer a variety of resources at PTA.org/SchoolSafety.” NCPTA Fostering Positive Relationships with Administration and Resolving Conflict in your PTA: November 12, 2018 at 7:30 p.m. What does it mean for the PTA and the Principal to work as partners? What do you do when conflict take ahold of your board? Join us as 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. NCPTA is currently matching schools in need with schools that would like to support them.
Additionally, FAST NC (Florence Aid to Students and Teachers of North Carolina) is an effort led by a bipartisan group of current and former North Carolina education leaders to help the state’s public schools as students and educators struggle to return to normal following Hurricane Florence and its impact. For more information and to donate, click here. REFLECTIONS Reflection Chairs or Committee members, please share your questions or suggestions via wake-pta-reflections@discuss.memberhub.com Your post will be shared with all PTAs participating in Reflections this year.  SPECIAL EDUCATION INCLUSION COMMITTEE SEIC is a committee of the Wake PTA Council that promotes awareness and inclusion of students with special needs.
GOALS & TIPS 1) Support PTA Programs: Offer ideas that facilitate the inclusion of students with special needs. TIP: Many PTA's have created "Quiet Zones" during hectic PTA events (such as festivals, carnivals, science fairs, literacy evenings, etc) as a safe space where anyone can regroup. Join SEIC on MemberHub and look for examples from other PTA’s in the Bulletin Board -“Quiet Zone: A refuge during hectic PTA events.” 2) Provide Information: Serve as a link to special education and related community services. TIP: SEIC has its own Facebook page. If your PTA uses Facebook as a communication tool, you can share events directly from this page. Facebook: Wake-SEIC Comments are closed.
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February 2019
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