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Florida PTA e-News October 2019
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Florida PTA President Linda Kearschner with a video message:
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Follow us on social media!
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Anna King Leadership Spotlight
Name:
Anna King
What is your current role with PTA?
National PTA President Elect
What was your first PTA volunteer position?
I sold popcorn every other Friday for Edgemere Elementary PTA in 1997-98.
On the path to your current role, what was the most challenging obstacle that you encountered?
Working with people who did not value me or thought I couldn't do the job because I hadn't been in PTA long enough or looked the part.
How did you overcome this obstacle?
Having my family's support was very important and always treating people the way I wanted to be treated. I think it's important we value each persons’ opinions no matter who they are, where they come from or how long they have been in PTA. We all bring something unique and special to our wonderful association.
To continue reading about Anna's PTA journey,
click here
.
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Election Season is Heating Up
As registered 501 c(3)s, PTAs cannot endorse candidates, but there are plenty of other ways to get involved! Before election day, consider hosting
a nonpartisan forum
so your members can meet your local candidates, or host
a voter registration drive
to make sure every voice in your community is heard! You can find step-by-step info in our
Election Guides
.
See you at the polls! #PTAVotes
PTA Endorses the Elementary and Secondary School Counseling Act
Introduced
in the Senate
by Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and
in the House
by Representative Katherine M. Clark (D-MA-05), this bill would establish grant programs to better staff schools with mental health services providers and counselors. The recommended student-to-counselor ratio is 250 students per counselor, but the national average is 464:1 and continues to rise.
PTA believes
that federal policymakers should prioritize access to school and community-based mental health personnel and services.
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From The Florida Department of Education
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Florida Department of Education Announces Florida Standards Listening Tour
~ Releases revised draft of standards available for public comment ~
TALLAHASSEE, Fla., October 1, 2019 –
Today, Commissioner Richard Corcoran announced the Florida Standards Listening Tour dates and locations. The department also released the second draft of the revised standards for public input. The revised draft was crafted based on feedback the Department of Education received over the last several months from Florida teacher experts, national experts and the education community. In addition to the listening tour, the public can submit feedback on each of the second draft standards individually at
www.floridastandardsreview.org
or email at
standardsreview@fldoe.org
.
Please
click here
to read the full press release and see the dates/locations for the Listening Tour.
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Florida PTA has been in full swing with educating our members about the importance of data! Data from state, district, and school report cards is an important tool that can be used to advocate for our children. Interpreting data can help answer many questions you might have, and also create new questions that need to be asked. Take a look at our video below highlighting the different counties and how we brought #Data4Good to everyone.
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The new school year is already roaring and our membership efforts are no exception! On behalf of the Membership Committee, I’d like to thank you for your hard work already this year. We are receiving reports from around the state that local units have already exceeded their end-of-the-year totals from last year!
This year your committee is laser-focused on helping you achieve your goals. If you participated in the September Membership Challenge, you have a leg up! The membership team is committed to working with each of you that shared your goal. You can count on us to be there when you need us! If you missed out on the September Challenge, don’t fret! By popular demand, we will be extending enrollment into the Membership Mentorship program through the end of October, so get those goals in. You can email your goal to
membership@floridapta.org. If you need help setting a goal for the year, let us know. We would be happy to go through your historic data and help you choose a goal that works for your school community.
The Monthly Membership Roundup challenges are a ton of fun and designed to help you achieve your goals! This month, our challenge to our PTAs is to add the most new grandparents! For our PTSAs, we challenge you to add the most new student members. Please email the number of new members from the challenge group during the month of October to
membership@floridapta.org no later than November 5th. Everyone that participates in the challenge will be entered to win awesome prizes! Winners will be drawn on Facebook Live each month!
If you haven’t had a chance, please take a moment to join the Florida PTA Membership group on Facebook. This group is for all PTA leaders around the state, not just membership chairs and VPs. It is a great place to share ideas and get inspired to move the membership needle forward! We share lots of information here, including challenge information and tips for adding members and overcoming hurdles. You’ll also find training pieces and the quick, personal support you need to keep up the momentum, so join today! Already a member? Invite your PTA besties to join the Madness (Membership Madness, that is)!
If you need any support in your membership efforts this year, we are here to help! Remember, we need your voice, and the voices of all our families as we stand for ALL CHILDREN!
Naomi Frierson
Membership Chair
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Now is the time to consider PTA Awards!
Hopefully you have reviewed the Awards that are available through the Florida PTA Awards program. Take a look at the variety of Awards and their criteria on the website:
https://floridapta.org/florida-pta-awards/
Your
PTA/PTSA or County Council
may have already completed programs to
engage families
and
celebrate diversity
, or to
support student success
and
improve health and wellness
, or programs that
advocate for underserved students and families
in your community. Consider applying for Awards as programs are completed - why wait until spring? Beginning now assures that there is time to apply for all the awards that your PTA may qualify for.
Be sure to see the two new Awards available this year, the
Humanitarian Award
, and the
Special Needs Students with Unique Abilities Award
. Florida PTA hopes to recognize all programs that celebrate our diverse membership.
Awards are a great opportunity to
increase awareness and participation
in your PTA/PTSA programs, to show that your
PTA remains relevant
in your community, and to
recognize and thank
those who support the work of your PTA/PTSA or County Council in your community.
Consider applying for Florida PTA Awards now!
Katie Burris
FLPTA Awards Chair
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We hope your local unit is already promoting the Reflections program. All forms, rules, and due dates are on our website. You can also find the newest Theme Search entry form on our website too!
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The Florida PTA Scholarship Application is now open! Please visit our
website to find out about the great scholarship opportunities available to graduating seniors.
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TIME IS RUNNING OUT!
National PTA School of Excellence is a recognition program that supports and celebrates partnerships between PTAs and schools to enrich the educational experience and overall well-being for all students.
Your School of Excellence designation will help attract new, action-oriented PTA members who want to focus on the issues that affect our children the most. Being a National PTA School of Excellence will open the door to other honors and opportunities for your school.
Florida PTA
encourages
ALL
local units to participate in this program. Please take the first step and register before the extended deadline of October 15
th
. Once you’ve registered, you will be on your way to winning one of the National PTA honorable awards for not only your school, but for your community.
Feel free to reach out to your Family Community & Engagement Committee at
family.community@floridapta.org
for assistance or any questions you may have about the process. We are here to help you achieve this award and become a National PTA School of Excellence winner!
Burton Miller
Chair, Family and Community Engagement Committee
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Throwback to our July Leadership Convention! Enjoy this video, showcasing some of the highlights!
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Welcome to Fall!
If you enjoyed the workshops offered during Leadership Convention 2019, here’s your opportunity to be a part of the magic that will take place during our 2020 Leadership Convention.
One of our most important responsibilities as a state organization is ensuring that we have provided enough and appropriate training for our members and our board of directors. Our goal for 2020 is to create a weekend of personal and professional development training opportunities that will engage, inspire and empower PTA members to be effective leaders and advocates! We need your help in order to accomplish this task!
Have you developed a workshop that you would like to present? Is there a panel or roundtable session that you would like to organize and lead? Have you attended a workshop that you think would be a great addition to our convention? If so, please use
this link
to complete our workshop proposal form. Deadline for submissions is October 31, 2019.
I can’t wait to see what you propose!
Carolyn Nelson-Goedert
Florida PTA VP for Leadership Development
#FPTACultivatingLeaders
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Save The Date - LegCon 2020
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Legislative Conference 2020
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Save the Date! Florida PTA’s Legislative Conference will be held on January 26-28 in Tallahassee, FL. This annual event will once again take place during Children’s Week at The Capitol. This year’s LegCon will be redesigned with a different format you won’t want to miss! Registration will open in November so be ready to take advantage of the ear
ly
bird registration price of $55. See you there!
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Thank You To Our Sponsors
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