March 2017 – Agenda Notes

March Agenda
February Draft Minutes
February Treasurer Report
Golden Acorn Reception Invitation

Outreach Donation Ask for Council meeting:  New or gently used books for Lunch for the Break.

This is the time to get your 2017-2018 budget committee together and work on your budget for next year. Survey your program chairs and officers to see if they need/want adjustments to their budgets. Council Dues and fees should likely stay the same.  Your interim budget must be approved by your General Membership before the end of the school year. Let Laila know if you need any help.

The Issaquah PTSA Council will be awarding the Council Golden Acorn and Outstanding Advocate Awards at this meeting. Congratulations to all the nominees and award winners for the 2016-2017 school year. What an outstanding bunch of volunteers we have here in Issaquah!  The PTSA Council district reception honoring all of the Award winners will be Tuesday, April 4th 6:30-7:30pm at Issaquah Middle School. Paper invitations will be handed out to PTA Presidents to distribute to their PTA Award winners and Principal.

Two major events happened in the legislature on March 8th! 

1. SB 5023 was brought to the floor of the Senate (this is the Senate version of the bill that would delay the levy cliff, and companion bill to HB 1059). The Senate voted and passed the bill! It will be sent to the House for consideration tomorrow.
2. The Senate passed a Para-educator Bill! This bill (SB 5070) will require standards for para-educators, professional development, a career ladder, a more accessible path to teacher certification, and training for teachers who supervise para-educators. This aligns with one of the Top 5 priorities on this year’s WSPTA legislative platform.

March Action Items:

Below are 3 action items for this month. Email addresses for your local legislators are listed at the bottom of this email. So many of you have already sent in emails and blue postcards. Please keep them coming! Thank you all so much for all you do!

1. Contact your Senator re: bringing House Bill 1059 (Levy Cliff Extension Bill) to a vote. 

The House passed the levy cliff delay bill nearly a month ago and the Senate has rejected two attempts to bring it to the floor for a vote. This is top priority for Issaquah!

Sample subject line: Urgent – Please Pass the Levy Cliff Extension bill HB 1059

Sample email: I urge you to support HB 1059. Students are counting on you to keep teachers in classrooms next year. Our schools are trying to devise an operating budget for next year before April 1st. They are faced with the stress of uncertainty, and the possibility of having to RIF teachers. Levy dollars are voter approved. We cannot afford to lose teachers or funding in our schools. Thank you for taking care of our students and voting to pass HB 1059. (Please give your name and address in the body of the email.)

 

2. Ask your Representatives to identify new progressive revenue sources to amply fund public education.

The House passed the Democrats’ Education Plan (HB 1843), but they have not yet announced how the state would pay for it.

3. Attend the Education Funding Forum for the 5th and 41st Legislative Districts! 

Join local legislators in a conversation about education funding.

Saturday, March 11, 2017

1:00-3:00pm

Tyee Middle School in Bellevue

More info here: https://www.facebook.com/events/416104822058567/

Contacts:

5th Leg. District

Sen. Mark Mullet – Mark.Mullet@leg.wa.gov

Rep. Paul Graves – PaulGraves@leg.wa.gov

Rep. Jay Rodne – JayRodne@leg.wa.gov

41st Leg. District

Sen. Lisa Wellman – Lisa.Wellman@leg.wa.gov

Rep. Judy Clibborn – JudyClibborn@leg.wa.gov

Rep. Tana Senn – Tana.Senn@leg.wa.gov

Thank you again for your dedication!

Portions of the above are from the Washington’s Paramount Duty website. 

Best Practices Checklist

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State of Mind Conferences. Flyers: JPG | PDF

• Saturday, March 11, Liberty High School in Renton | PROGRAM
• Saturday, April 29, Issaquah High School in Issaquah

All Events will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Influence the Choice Video Contest is up and running. Deadline to submit is March 10th at 5pm.

High School Flyer: JPG | PDF
Middle School Flyer: JPG | PDF

JUDGES NEEDED! Flyer
Judging for the Influence the Choice video contest will take place on Monday, April 3. Middle and high school students, parents and community members are eligible. Each judge reviews a set of inspiring student videos and then meets with other judges on April 3rd to make final award decisions.  To volunteer, contact John Carney at john@isfdn.org.

Hidden In Plain Sight

Influence the Choice, with the support of seven community organizations, is hosting the first “Hidden In Plain Sight” parents-only event on Tuesday, March 28, 6:30 p.m. at Liberty High School.  This event helps parents spot signs of at-risk behaviors using an interactive display of a teenager’s bedroom. After walking through the display, participants will learn more about adolescent development and common signs of substance use provided by professionals in treatment, law enforcement, substance abuse prevention and other parents.  Event Flyer

Suicide Prevention Forums

Healthy Youth Initiative, in partnership with Friends of Youth, will present a Youth Suicide Prevention Forum on Thursday, March 30, 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the Issaquah Police Station Eagle Room.  The event is free, and open to middle school and high school students, parents, school staff and community members.  A second forum will be held on Thursday, April 13, 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. at Beaver Lake Lodge in Sammamish.  Join us for a candid conversation about youth suicide, including warning signs, at-risk factors, prevention strategies, and tips on supporting teen healthy mental health development.  Event Flyer.

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Washington State PTA Membership Leadership Guide

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Outreach Notes – This page is kept current as needs or programs change.

This month’s Outreach Ask for Council meeting:    New or gently used books for Lunch for the Break. Thank you!

Lunch for the Break seeking donations and volunteers.

Congratulations to the Lunch for the Break crew, who delivered 415 boxes of food to Issaquah School District students in need for the mid-winter break.  As of this year, Lunch for the Break is serving every school in the district.  A special thanks goes to Rebecca Rayner, Issaquah Food and Clothing Bank, for her leadership.  The next, and final, Lunch for the Break collection and distribution dates are Wednesday, April 5 and Thursday, April 6.  Donations and volunteers are always welcome.  To learn more, go to https://www.lunchforthebreak.com/.

FREE SAT practice exam at the Issaquah Library on May 20th. FLYER.

ParentWiser’s district-wide parent ed in an ongoing success this year!  Thank you for your continued support!

1. For 2017-18, please continue your budget for at least $250 Council fees for ParentWiser/Parent Ed (same as current year).
2. Keep a Parent Ed Rep on your committee reports.  The Parent Ed Rep is your liaison between your specific school community and ParentWiser.  We rely on the input and volunteer help of parent ed reps at each school to run our speaker program.

Here is our recommended job description for Parent Ed Rep at your local PTSA:

• Advertize all parent ed offerings forwarded to you by Parentwiser (Issaquah PTSA Council) at your school via flyers, school ENews, PTSA news, and any social media accounts linked to your school and/or PTSA), approx monthly
• Use FEDEX PTSA discount code for printed materials:  052 088 2103
• Attend quarterly ParentWiser committee meetings to provide input/planning for future speakers/events.
• Act as liaison between your local school community and ParentWiser at the district level
• Volunteer to assist at least 1 ParentWiser event per year, SignupGenius for pre/post-event volunteer needs go out 1-2 weeks prior to each event.
• Organize/host any additional local speaker(s) at your school community, if desired by your PTSA.

1. If open to other parents in the district, please forward details at least 3 weeks prior to parentwiser@issaquahptsa.org
2. For suggestions for local speakers/topics, contact parentwiser@issaquahptsa.org
3. Turn-in receipts/expenses to your local PTSA unit for reimbursement

• Encourage your school community to attend parent ed events or watch online at http://ParentWiser.org
• ParentWiser parent education is FREE for Issaquah School District PTSA members only, non-members pay $. Encourage your PTSA membership with this tangible benefit!

3. Below are the communications for March events.  This was sent to presidents, parent ed reps, and communications chairs on March 6^th.  Please ensure they are advertized at your school.

For ENews:

ParentWiser presents…

March 15^th Disciplina Positiva para Padres (Positive Discipline, in Spanish), 6-8pm at Issaquah Valley Elementary.  A special invitation for our Spanish-speaking families, join parent educator Lupita Zamora for an informative 6-class series in positive discipline, in your native Spanish language.  This first session is FREE, where you can sign up for the 5 remaining classes at $40 per person. For parents of K-12, childcare provided if needed.

March 28th Hidden in Plain Sight, 6:30-8:30pm at Liberty High School Commons.   Come to a “Hidden in Plain Sight” exhibit of a youth bedroom, and learn what signs of substance use to look for, and what to do if you find something.  Includes expert Q&A forum, and a brief professional talk on communicating with youth about at-risk behavior.  This is a PARENT ONLY event.

April 25^th The Gift of Failure: Fostering Intrinsic Motivation and Resilience in Kids by national keynote and author, Jessica Lahey, motivational talk and book signing at 10am or 7pm!  In today’s culture, do we coddle our kids enough?  Too much?  Jessica Lahey summarizes the current research on autonomy-supportive parenting and teaching, competence, rewards, praise, and failure, and gives us advice on how to allow students to succeed over the long term.  Join our community book read of Gift of Failure to prepare for a cultural change!  For parents of K-12. FLYER.

New – WATCH ONLINE!  Did you miss Amy Lang’s talk on Birds+Bees+Kids?  That event, plus 28 additional high caliber online parent ed talks from NextGenEd,  are now available on ParentWiser.org/watch-online! With a click, enjoy parent ed on a variety of current topics from the convenience of your home, anytime.  Audio downloads are included to listen on-the-go.  ParentWiser is thrilled to offer these FREE with your PTSA membership to any Issaquah district school.  Enjoy!

We value your input for ParentWiser!  Please take a moment before March 22nd to help select parent ed speakers or topics for next year that are relevant to your parenting needs. Thank you!

ParentWiser Logo.

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