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Advocacy |
Community Concerns |
Convention |
Education |
Finance |
Health | Leadership |
Membership |
Parenting | Parliamentarian |
Programs (Reflections/Red Ribbon Week) |
Scholarships and Grants

Special Founders Day Message from Past President
Diane Bynum
In February
we celebrate the founding of PTA 110 years ago on February 17 by Alice
McLellan Birney and Phoebe Apperson Hearst. If not for these women and their
vision and determination, there would not be a PTA.
The
organization that these women began more than a century ago to provide
support, information and resources to families focused on the health and
education of children has flourished to become the largest child advocacy
organization in the nation.
If you look
back at the accomplishments of the PTA, you will see that the list is long
and varied. Too long to cover in this brief time slot, but well worth
reviewing and including major issues like child labor laws and the national
school lunch program; if you have not done so already, I suggest you take
the time to read the National PTA Timeline on the National PTA website.
Once you do, you’ll have a better understanding of the legacy of the
dedicated PTA volunteers who came before us.
It is easy to
think of the National PTA as some distant organization. But it is
powered by volunteers who once served at the local levels just like us.
And, in actuality, the National PTA’s strength comes from the strength of
its local organizations.
I know that we
are all busy people, and sometimes the idea of taking on a project of
magnitude is a daunting prospect, but ask yourself, “What are you doing to
create a lasting legacy for your PTA?” Are you working on programs and
projects that will benefit not only the current students and families of
your school and community, but also future ones? If someone were to
ask you to give them just two examples of work that your PTA has done with
long lasting affects could you do so? I can:
1.
While serving as president of my children’s elementary school PTA, we formed
a committee to do a study of traffic safety around the school. At the
time, our young city did not have a traffic engineer on staff, so we worked
with the consultant they had on contract to analyze the safety issues and
create an action plan to address them. There were times that us
parents sat on the street corners in our camping chairs counting cars so
that the data could be used in our advocacy efforts to lobby the city for a
stop sign and a crosswalk. After many months, many meetings, and many
phone calls, the city installed a stop sign, a crosswalk, and painted some
of the curbs red, and the school instituted a new drop off loop. Both
city and school administration told us that it was directly because of our
efforts that these changes were made. For many years we have been able
to drive by the school and know that we contributed to the safety of
students for years to come. In time, the stop sign was replaced by a
traffic light, and we know that PTA paved the way.
2. While
serving as the council president of my children’s school district, we took
on retail giant Rite-aid when they built a store adjacent to a sports park
and within 300 feet of a middle school. We had no problem with the
store itself, but we did have a problem with the fact that the store planned
to sell alcohol in such close proximity to the children. We organized
a letter writing campaign to the Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) protesting
the issuance of a liquor license. We also lobbied the city council to
enforce their own ordinance prohibiting the sale of alcohol in such close
proximity to parks and schools. At many city council meetings it was
us “PTA parents” voicing our opposition going up against Rite-aid’s legal
team. There were times we felt out of our league, but in the end, our
grass roots advocacy efforts paid off and the liquor license was denied.
The store opened in that location and seems to do a booming business without
the sale of alcohol.
At the unit
level our advocacy efforts did not replace our on-campus programs such as
family nights; parent education events; book fairs, student education
programs, etc. At the council level they did not replace the
priorities of training and mentoring unit PTAs—instead, they were an added
component; our PTAs identified health risks to the children and took action.
There were definitely times when some of us felt out of our league; however,
what I hope you noticed in both those examples was that the projects were
not taken on by one or two individuals, but by committees made up of
parents, school administration and/or staff, and community members.
These were collective efforts that prove what can be accomplished over time
with a committed group of caring adults.
Founders Day
is a reminder of the substantial role that PTA has played locally,
regionally, and nationally in supporting parent involvement and working on
behalf of children and families. It is a time to reflect and take pride in
our many accomplishments, and to renew our commitment to be a powerful voice
for all children, a relevant resource for parents, and a strong advocate for
public education.
In closing, I
would like to remind you of the words of Forest E. Witcraft, an author,
scholar, teacher, and Boy Scout administrator: “A hundred years from now
it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in,
or the kind of car I drove...but the world may be different because I was
important in the life of a child.”
Thank you, for
being important in the lives of many children!
ADDITIONAL ADVOCACY SUCCESSES
In the early
1990s, the Murrieta Council PTA board and the Murrieta Valley Unified School
District Board of Education partnered together in creating a Parent Center,
a place to house resources as well as a learning center where workshops are
offered on a variety of topics important to parents on the education and
well being of their children. Modeling the Parent Center after a
successful Long Beach area program, and after a year of effort, the PTA and
the school district eventually brought the parent center to fruition.
The school district, seeing the long term benefits of such a center, took on
the commitment of housing and staffing it with some funding assistance from
community sources. In addition to becoming an important resource for
parents, the center also serves the school community by offering speakers
for PTA meetings and teacher in-service and offering court mandated
parenting workshops.
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Community Concerns
2-1-1 Riverside County
The mission of 2-1-1 Riverside County is to
provide accurate, timely, effective and comprehensive access to information
and referral for the residents of Riverside County. The 2-1-1 system in
Riverside County is a toll free single point of access, universally
available countywide, servicing everyone who needs information and referral
services.
A program of the Riverside County Volunteer
Center that links the community with services, 2-1-1 Riverside is a
comprehensive Information and Referral agency consisting of a
comprehensive database and call center managed by trained staff, most of
whom are certified and bilingual. Free telephone access to this service is
available by dialing 1-800-464-1123.
2-1-1 services help Riverside County citizens
identify and access community services by combining state-of-the-art
technology with human services expertise.
2-1-1 services harness the power of people and
technology to provide service by telephone, Internet and information
products in both electronic and print versions.
2-1-1 works with the community to increase
service availability to address unmet and emerging human service needs.
Visit the web site of the
Volunteer Center of Riverside County
and click on 211 Riverside County.
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Convention
California State PTA 110th
Annual Convention
April 30 - May 3, 2009 San
Jose
Click
here for the convention dinner reservation form
Registration: February 2 – April 20th, 2009
Early registration fee, February 2 through March 31 - $140
-
Name badges and
workshop/event tickets will be mailed to you in April. When you arrive at
convention, stop at registration at your convenience to pick up your
voting card, badge holder and tote. Save money and avoid the long lines.
Registration fee, April 1
through April 20 - $180
●
Online registration closes
April 20
Onsite Registration required after April 20th
Onsite registration fee - $200
-
You can register: Online
–
www.capta.org Payments by credit card ONLY.
Mail – SMART-REG
International. Pay by check, money order or credit card.
-
Convention Registration
Booklets mailed to all Unit and Council Presidents. If you have not
received one and would like to have one, they are available for download
at
www.capta.org.
-
There is a required $25.00
District fee to be paid directly to 23rd District PTA.
-
23rd District
PTA will have a Hospitality Suite at the Hilton San Jose and Towers.
-
23rd District
delegates are encouraged to stay at the Hilton which is conveniently
located at one end of the Convention Center. All reservations must be
made through the “San Jose Convention & Visitors Bureau”. You can reserve
your hotel room beginning February 2nd by mail, fax or online at
www.capta.org (Click Convention, there will be a link for housing
reservations). Reserve early as the hotels will fill up quickly.
-
California State PTA has
awarded each PTA District a $1000.00 Emerging Leadership Grant to assist
Units and Councils to attend Convention. Scholarship applications are
available through 23rd District PTA and on their website at
www.23rdpta.org. Scholarship deadline is March 20, 2009.
-
23rd District
Convention Dinner will be Friday night, May 1st. Information on the
price, time and location will be forthcoming.
-
23rd District
Convention Orientation will be Thursday Night, April 16th, 7:00pm at RCOE.
All delegates are encouraged to attend.
-
California State PTA has
planned an informative, empowering and enjoyable convention for you this
year in San Jose. Please plan on attending and register early!
Convention Scholarship Application for Councils
PDF file to download.
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Education
The EAP: An Assessment of Students’ Readiness
for College
In collaboration with the California Department
of Education and the State Board of Education, the California State
University developed the Early Assessment Program (EAP) to provide
students, their families, and high schools the opportunity to assess 11th
grade student readiness for college-level English and mathematics.
These are skills that students who choose either to enter college or the
workforce directly out of high school will need to be successful.
The EAP consists of questions from the 11th
grade California Standards Test (CST) in English/Language Arts, Algebra II,
and Summative High School Mathematics plus fifteen additional objective
questions and a written essay. The spring 2006 administration
represents the third year that the EAP will be available to all students
enrolled in 11th grade who are eligible to take the 11th
grade CST in English and mathematics.
While the EAP questions are voluntary for 11th
grade students, the response to the EAP has been overwhelming. For
spring 2005, 69 percent of all 11th grade students eligible to
take the CST in Algebra II/Summative High School Mathematics completed the
state-mandated CST plus the optional EAP questions. A total of 46 percent of
all 11th grade students eligible to take the CST in
English/Language Arts completed the state-mandated CST plus the optional EAP
questions in addition the EAP written essay.
The California Department of Education and
the California State University encourage all 11th grade students
to participate in the EAP because it:
-
Provides valuable information to the high
school and to the student about student readiness for college-level
English and mathematics.
-
The EAP report enables the student, family,
and high school to identify the student’s need for additional preparation
in English and mathematics while still enrolled in high school.
-
Working with high school counselors and
teachers, students have the opportunity to enroll in mathematics classes
in 12th grade or web-based mathematics, interactive tutorials
and to enroll in English classes that include additional instruction in
critical reading and writing,
-
These are essential skills that high school
teachers have identified as necessary for success not only in English but
also across the curriculum.
The EAP not only provides an opportunity to high
schools to identify students, who need additional work in English and
mathematics in 12th grade,
-
It also provides an additional benefit to
students who attend any of the California State University’s twenty-three
campuses.
-
Students who are determined to be
college-ready on the basis of the EAP are exempt from taking the
California State University’s placement tests in English and mathematics
and move directly into baccalaureate-level classes upon enrollment.
-
Students who are not college-ready at the end
of 11th grade have the opportunity to strengthen those skills
in 12th grade, which will help to increase their mastery of the
subjects and ability to demonstrate proficiency on the California State
University’s English and mathematics placement tests.
The Early Assessment Program (EAP) is free
for all 11th graders, who take the California Standards Test
(CST)
Via the EAP (an extension to tests that 11th
graders must already take) students and their families can learn more about
students’ readiness for higher education. Most importantly,
students and their schools have access to this feedback in time make
modifications to their educational plans for the 12th grade.
Research and common sense both indicate that a
challenging and appropriate Senior Year is one the best ways to prepare for
success in college. The Early Assessment Program (EAP) helps students
to plan for the most beneficial Senior Year.
For more information:
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Health
Early Physical Education Is a Parent Priority
One-third of all children 6-19 years old are
considered obese or at risk for obesity. Childhood obesity can cause Type II
diabetes, high blood pressure, and low self-esteem.
Physical education classes are extremely important in helping children avoid
these risks. Not only do they provide the children energy for the rest of
their classes, but also they improve general health and well-being.
Unfortunately, the vast majority of elementary schools do not provide daily
physical education classes. Good habits regarding exercise need to be formed
early, in elementary school, and continued throughout a child's school days
and beyond.
You can help by promoting physical education in your school! First, check
out National PTA's
Health and Wellness parent resources online. Then, contact your school's
principal and teachers and work with them to start and maintain a regular
physical education program for children.
Wellness Policy and Health-e Living™
Are you aware that all school districts must have a
wellness policy and a committee that should include parents? Do you
know the nutritional value of what your child is eating at school?
Check out the
Health-e Living web site for more information and an interactive
web site that can assist you in determining how well your child
eats.
Make Family Fitness a Priority
As gym classes get scaled back and sedentary pursuits like video
games become ever more popular, children are getting less and less
daily physical exercise. Here are some tips from National PTA to
help you make sure your kids are exercising daily:
-
Expose your children to a variety of sports and activities. Often
children are not active because they have not found something that
interests them.
-
Encourage noncompetitive, individual, or team activities that can
become part of a lifelong physical fitness regimen. (Read about
competition and kids at
www.pta.org/parentinvolvement/helpchild/competition.asp.)
-
Make physical activity a part of the family routine. Walk after
dinner or plan hiking trips with the whole family.
-
Set a good example for your children. Teach your children that being
active is not just for athletes. It's for anyone who wants to have
fun!
These tips are available in English and Spanish at www.pta.org/parentinvolvement/helpchild/bhc/pdf/tip2.PDF.
For more tips from National PTA about keeping kids healthy, visit
www.pta.org/parentinvolvement/helpchild/hc_apple_day.asp and
http://www.pta.org/members/partea/helpchild/physicalfamily.asp.
The President's Challenge, a program of the President's Council on
Physical Fitness and Sports, offers another way for parents to teach
children the importance of being physically fit and engaging in
physical activity. The Active Lifestyle Program is a plan to help
adults get active at least 30 minutes a day (youths under 18 should
get active at least 60 minutes a day), 5 days a week; while the
Presidential Champions Program challenges adults and youths who are
already active to raise their activity and fitness levels. Through
these programs and others, the President's Challenge gives children,
educators, parents, communities--anyone--the opportunity and
motivation to be more physically active.
For details about the President's Challenge programs and how to get
involved, visit
www.presidentschallenge.org/.
"Challenge USA," a free promotional DVD, explains how to take part
in the President's Challenge at home, at school, at work, and in the
community. Request a DVD by calling (800) 258-8146, or by visiting
www.presidentschallenge.org/. To request printed information
about the President's Challenge, send an e-mail to
preschal@indiana.edu.
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Programs
Reflections
The theme for this
year’s Reflections program is “Wow”. Please pass this information onto the
unit and Council Reflections’ chairs:
¨
Artist
statements are mandatory this year and must be filled out by the student on
the entry form;
¨
Due date
that all councils have to turn in their award of excellence entries is
December 4-no exceptions-we cannot accept late entries due to the
Christmas and New Years holidays and the Judges’ schedules
¨
Form A’s
must be turned in with the award of excellence entries-no exceptions
¨
CD’s for
the music entries and DVDs for the Film/Video production and Dance
Choreography must be used this year—if a council receives cassettes or VHS
tapes they are to have the entry copied onto a DVD—it is becoming
increasingly difficult for judges to have access to VHS or cassette players
-
The 23rd
District Awards Ceremony will be March 18 at Great Oak High School-more
details to follow
-
Please make sure
the units and councils have all had their awards ceremonies prior to 23rd
Districts—there was confusion last year when councils did not have their
awards ceremonies until after 23rd Districts
-
VERY IMPORTANT:
Each council should only be forwarding at the most 24 entries-the award of
excellence entry. If a
council does not have a High school music entry,
for example, but has entries in all of the other 23 categories then only
23 entries will be forwarded. Councils cannot substitute an entry in
another category to fill a category slot—if you have any questions please
feel free to call me at (951) 526-8501
If a council has
award of excellence entries in all categories then what they
advance to the next level should be the following:
-
Music: 1 High
school, 1 Middle, 1 Intermediate, 1 Primary
-
Visual Arts:
1 High school, 1 Middle, 1 Intermediate, 1 Primary
-
Dance
Choreography: 1 High school, 1 Middle, 1 Intermediate, 1 Primary
-
Photography: 1
High school, 1 Middle, 1 Intermediate, 1 Primary
-
Literature: 1
High school, 1 Middle, 1 Intermediate, 1 Primary
-
Film/video
production: 1 High school, 1 Middle, 1 Intermediate, 1 Primary
Council Reflections entries are due to
District on December 4th.
Reflections 2007-08 PDF Forms
Entry Form |
General Rules |
FAQs |
Dance |
Film |
Literature |
Music |
Photography |
Visual Arts
Form
A Unit |
Form A Council |
Theme Search 2009-2010
Spanish:
Reglas Generales 2007-08 |
Preguntas
frecuentes 2007-08 |
Formulario oficial de inscripción 2007-08
For
more information go to the
California
State PTA Reflections Webpage
or
the National PTA Web site
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Red Ribbon
Week: “Drug Free I Have the POWER”
At 2 pm on
Thursday, February 7, 1985, Enrique (Kiki) Camarena, A Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA) Special Agent, headed for a luncheon date with his
wife, Mika. Kiki had been stationed in Mexico for four and a half years on
the trail of Mexico’s marijuana and cocaine barons. He was dangerously
close to unlocking a multi-billion dollar drug pipeline.
Before Kiki could enter his truck, five men
appeared at the agent’s side and shoved him into a beige Volkswagen
Atlantic, threw a jacket over his head and sped away. That was the last
time anyone but the kidnappers would see him alive.
Special Agent Camarena’s death touched the nation
deeply. Americans felt outraged and frustrated that more could not be done
to end the brutal violence of the drug war. They felt that Camarena’s
sacrifice should not be forgotten. To show their respect for his courage
and their commitment to take a stand against drug abuse, millions of
Americans began to wear red ribbons.
As this red ribbon tribute began to spread across
the nation in 1985, the Virginia Federation of Parents and the Illinois Drug
Education Alliance called on members of grassroots organizations across the
country to wear a red ribbon during the last week of October as a symbol of
their commitment to make America drug free.
The red ribbon became the symbol to eliminate the
demand for drugs, and the Red Ribbon Campaign became the annual catalyst to
show intolerance for drugs in our schools, work places, and communities.
Red Ribbon Weeks were celebrated throughout the nation. In 1988, the
National Federation of Parents for Drug Free Youth coordinated the first
National Red Ribbon Week, an eight-day celebration proclaimed by the United
States Congress, with President and Mrs. Reagan serving as honorary
chairpersons.
Today, millions of Americans across the nation and
around the world proudly wear a red ribbon between October 23rd
and 30th to declare their commitment to suffer no more the loss
of even one of our citizens—not a youngster, or a loved one, or another
Enrique Camarena—to drugs.
Hopefully, your PTA is planning for an awesome Red
Ribbon Celebration. This year’s theme is “Drug Free I have the POWER.”
Get everyone involved, not only at the elementary level. Visit your
local Police department and see how they can help you start a tradition in
your community. Have parent education nights, invite speakers to your
school, and get your Police Chief involved...they are willing to help. It
is a big help to them if you start educating kids at a young age. Remember,
Prevention is Preparing; Prevention is Parenting.
The following will help you find free resources to
use with your students:
Take an active role during National Red Ribbon
Week. If you have any questions, please contact the Safe Schools Unit at
(951) 826-6246.
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Scholarships & Grants
23rd District PTA High
School Senior Scholarship Application
(Click to
open/download pdf file)
Scholarships Change Lives
Give a motivated person that extra financial boost they need
to continue their education and that gift will impact their entire future.
The California State PTA offers just this opportunity through an excellent
grant and scholarship program that supports people who are PTA members and
would like to pursue their dreams of continued education.
These grants and scholarships are available to units,
councils, district and individual members. Application forms are now
available on the California State PTA website at www.capta.org.
Deadlines for many scholarships and grants are NOW:
|
Type |
Purpose |
Eligibility |
Deadline |
|
PTA Volunteers |
Enables PTA
volunteers to continue their education |
Must be a
current member of a PTA/PTSA unit in good standing.
Has given
three years’ volunteer service to PTA |
November 15 |
|
Credentialed Classroom Teachers
& Counselors |
Continuing
education |
Must be a
current member of a PTA/PTSA unit in good standing.
Must be in
position at that PTA/PTSA school |
November 15 |
|
School Nurses |
Continuing
education |
Must be a
current member of a PTA/PTSA unit in good standing.
Must be a
licensed registered nurse; minimum three years’ experience in public
schools; possess contract for current year. |
November 15 |
|
High School Graduating Seniors
(Click for a link to the
application on the CA State PTA Web Site.) |
Acknowledge
achievement of high school seniors of volunteer work in the school &
community.
Scholarships
are for use during fall semester/quarter following high school
graduation. |
Must be a
current member of a PTA/PTSA unit in good standing.
Applicant
must have volunteered in school and community.
Must be
graduating from California public school that has a PTA in good
standing. |
February 1 |
|
Type |
Purpose |
Eligibility |
Deadline |
|
Parent Education |
Parent
education projects & programs |
Must be a
unit, council, or district PTA in good standing |
November 15 |
|
Outreach
Translation |
Provides
written/verbal translation of PTA materials |
Must be a
unit, council, or district PTA in good standing. |
November 15 |
|
Cultural Arts |
Implement
student-centered cultural arts programs & projects; focus is on
expanding student’s awareness & appreciation of cultural arts. |
Must be a
unit, council, or district PTA in good standing. |
November 15 |
|
Leadership
Development |
Supports an
individual PTA members first time attendance at California State PTA
Convention |
Selected by
district PTA |
May 31(Refer
to submission requirements) |
Keep the dream of a college education alive for America’s young people.
Submit completed applications to the California State PTA via mail on or
before the above stated due dates.
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