​A yearly financial review completed in July is necessary to ensure that your PTA board of directors has engaged in responsible fiscal oversight and that good financial practices have been followed. It is a formal examination of the financial books and records of your PTA and serves to certify that receipts and expenditures, as authorized in the minutes, conform with bylaws, standing rules, and budget limitations. An annual financial review is also a PTA/PTSA insurance requirement.
Additionally, completing a mid-year review in January can make the year-end review easier to process and allows your PTA to catch any problems early on so that they are addressed as soon as possible.
​
As a treasurer, you want to make sure your review committee can easily access all documents. As the review committee, you want to stay organized and have a good system for including all committee members in the process.
​
Did you know that financial reviews can be done in-person or virtually over a video call? Offering a digital option allows for more flexibility in how volunteers meet and can even make it more accessible with tools such as closed captioning during video calls.  Below, you will find pointers for both treasurers and financial review committees on how to organize, prepare, and complete an online financial review. Following the guidance below will help treasurers feel confident when handing over the books for review and help empower the financial committee members to fulfill their duties.

Who Can Serve on the Financial Review Committee:
The financial review committee shall consist of no fewer than three members appointed by the president.

The financial review committee shall not include officers with signatory authority or individuals living within the same household as those authorized to sign on the bank account for the period being reviewed.
Further information about financial reviews may be found in the Managing Your Nonprofit PTA Handbook (located under Board Resources/Finance. These leadership guides are password protected. Ask Council for the password!)

FINANCIAL REVIEW COMMITTEE MEMBERS
If you’ve volunteered to be a part of your PTA’s Financial Review Committee and are not sure where to begin, check out these 3 steps:
​

1. Set Yourself up for Success
   Each committee member should have a copy of the WSPTA Financial Review Checklist (under Board Resources/Finance) to follow along. One person should be in charge of notetaking. You will want to make notes on a draft and then sign the final draft to submit to the board.
   
   While working remotely, it’s helpful for each team member to take ownership of one section of documents: Meeting Minutes, Standing Rules, any additional Policies (such as money handling, password updates, etc.), Bank Statements, Reconciliation Reports, Treasurer’s Reports, Expenses Reports, Deposit Reports, Grant Documents, Budget, etc.
   
   
2. Understand the Financial Review Form
   Check out the example below for notes on what documents to reference for each question. Click here to print the PDF of this document. *NOTE: This example is of an old form from 2019-2020. Most of the same questions are asked on the newer form with a few additions to account for allowing PTAs to have debit or secured credit cards.
   
   
3. Use the Comment Section
   As you work through the checklist, make note of any exceptions in the comments. If you cannot answer a question based on the information and files that you have, note this and move on to the next question.
   
   ​The final page will require signatures from all parties of the Financial Review Committee as well as any feedback and recommendations for the board of directors to take under advisement. This is also a great place to provide positive feedback!

​As a non-profit association, PTA can be vulnerable to cybercrimes. As a PTA leader, you are a person most likely to receive these types of emails. 

Scam Emails and Spoofing
The senders email may appear to come from another officer in your PTA such as the President or Treasurer, your bank or one of your vendors to help make the request look legitimate, but the email address is spoofed. There are things you can check for:

• Confirm the actual "from" address of the sender - don't rely only on the name that is shown.
• Does this email look and sound like other emails you have received from this person or institution?
• Does this email ask you to do something that is not in alignment with current financial or money handling policies?
• Often these emails will state the sender is unavailable in a meeting, or out of town, and sending money is an urgent matter. 
• Text or call the sender using an already established contact to verify the authenticity of the request. Do not call the number provided in the email. 

​Common Scams

• Asking for gift cards. Remember gift cards are the equivalent of cash and if the email is acted upon, there is likely no recourse to get the money back.
• Requesting a wire transfer usually through peer to peer (P2P) digital money transfer services such as PayPal, Zelle, Venmo, CashApp, ApplePay, etc. Wire transfers and P2P digital services are not recommended for PTAs. Instead you should have a clear funds disbursement procedure that is well documented for your records.​
• The email message may direct you to a spoofed website or otherwise get you to divulge private information such as bank account information or account passwords. The perpetrators then use this private information to commit identity theft or trick you to send money usually through peer to peer digital money transfer services. 
  • Note that the scammers are getting more convincing especially since the introduction of AI bots (Artificial Intelligence). In the past these emails could easily be spotted with the large number of spelling errors and poor grammar. Now scammers are relying on AI to get the wording (and the spelling) spot on! 
    
    

Protecting Your PTA
There are a few things you and your board should be doing in order to protect your PTA:

• If you get an email from a fellow PTA officer asking to transfer funds, do not send money. Verify the authenticity of the request by phoning the officer using a phone number already established in your contacts.
• Establish clear lines of communication between board members.
• Do not let anyone rush you into making a decision because it needs to be done now. Scammers will use the sense of urgency to get you to bypass best practices. 
• Make your entire board including chairs aware of these type of scams and remind the board of money handling best practices. 
• Know your budget well. The best indicator of a potential fraudulent activity is a request that is made for something outside of your PTAs member-approved budget.
• Make sure your board of directors is well trained! View upcoming trainings here.
• Make sure you have well documented procedures and processes for money disbursement. (See below)
• Do not click any links or download any attachments in the suspicious email.
• Inform your board that Washington State PTA and Northshore Council will not ask you to transfer money, provide personal information, or provide banking information over email.
• Verify the identity of anyone who requests your personal information by using reliable, independent means.
• Never provide banking or confidential financial or personal information in response to a suspicious email or an unverified website or form.

Step to Take If Your PTA is Victim of Fraud
​In the unfortunate event that a scammer is successful, here are are some steps your PTA should follow if funds came from your PTA account:

1. Contact your bank and put a hold on the account and stop payment on the scam payment. 
2. Call an emergency board meeting (Wait time can be waived if agreed upon by Board.) 
3. Email [email protected]
4. Call AIM to confirm insurance, etc.
5. Decide as a board if filing a police report. 

​More Online Safety Tips & How to Report Internet Fraud

• Spoofing and Phishing - FBI 
• How to Recognize and Avoid Phishing Scams - FTC Consumer Advice
• Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) - FBI
  

How To Report Phishing
If you got a phishing email or text message, report it. The information you give helps fight scammers.

• If you got a phishing email, forward it to the Anti-Phishing Working Group at [email protected].
• If you got a phishing text message, forward it to SPAM (7726).
• Report the phishing attempt to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

​Remember to review coverage with your board before paying the premium.
Please note that premium payments are due before the end of November.

WSPTA Recommendations for Insurance include:

• General liability (covers your PTA),
• Officers’ liability (covers the board of directors, who make the decisions),
• Property if you own anything (short-term coverage is available for cookie dough or other physical items PTA holds during sales), and
• Fidelity bond to cover the PTA assets for loss due to fraud and embezzlement.

You may also want to consider social media insurance if you have active social media accounts.

Also be sure to add Northshore School District as an additional insured and request the endorsement from AIM when you renew - they do not automatically send that each year. NSD requires an updated copy of the form each year by December. If your PTA does not submit the updated endorsement, you risk cancellation of existing facility reservations and will be unable to make new requests until they have updated insurance paperwork.

Meeting Recap:

The General Membership meeting began with the reading of a Land Acknowledgement, a small but important step in showing respect and honor for the Indigenous Peoples of the land that we work and live on, and their truth, stories, and histories, which we commit to protecting and preserving from erasure. 

Claudine Miller was presented as the nominee for Council’s Secretary, and was then elected into the role after a vote was taken. Region 6’s Area VP, Liz Nord, then officially installed the Council officers for the 2022-2023 school year. Thank you, Council officers, for your commitment to serving our local PTAs and our students! 

Interim Superintendent Michael Tolley took some time to share with us what his and Northshore Schools’ focuses will be going forward into the 2022-2023 school year. NSD’s mission of “strengthening our community through excellence in education by focusing on our school communities, school climate and welfare, and school systems” will be hopefully be achieved by strategic initiatives such increasing inclusionary practices, and determining the measures that will tell us what we are going to do to help our students be successful in their education. To hear more about these strategic initiatives, and to share your hopes, concerns, and questions with Mr. Tolley, please consider attending a Listen and Learn session. More information can be found at https://www.nsd.org/our-district/leadership/interim-superintendent/listen-and-learn . 

Council Business: 

• After the minutes for the August 2022 Board meeting were presented for review, Council Treasurer, Serena Xu, presented the 2021-2022 Financial Review, the July 2022 Treasurer Report, the 2021-2022 End of Year report, and the proposed 2022-2023 Council Budget, which was then approved by vote. 
• Council Co-Chair, Rachel Fitzgerald, then presented proposed edits to the Council Standing Rules and Policies to keep our Council compliant with changes made by National PTA regarding Nominating Committees and membership. Proposed edits were accepted by vote. 
• Council Co-Chair, Rachel Fitzgerald, also presented the Council's Mission Statement and the Goals & Objectives which were approved by vote. 

District and Community Partners:

• School Board member Amy Cast gave a brief update on capital bond and levy projects, as well as letting us know that projects will be broken down into phases.
• NSD Community Partnerships and Volunteer Coordinator, Marco Garcia, shared that religious and medical exemptions will now be available for people interested in volunteering in our schools who are not fully vaccinated against the COVID virus. For more information on how to sign up to volunteer, as well as how to apply for a religious or medical exemption, please visit https://www.nsd.org/get-involved/volunteer/become-a-volunteer . Background checks are also currently experiencing delays, so get your volunteer application in as soon as possible! Lastly, Marco was excited to share that he was invited by the NSD Racial and Educational Justice department to share his story as a Black Latino, in honor of Hispanic and Latino/a/x Heritage Month. To watch a recording of Marco’s presentation, and to learn more about Hispanic and Latino/a/x Heritage Month, please visit https://www.nsd.org/our-district/who-we-are/racial-educational-justice/monthly-observances/post/~board/observance/post/hispanic-heritage-month
• Carson Sanderson joined us as a representative of the NSD Hi-Cap Parents Council, and shared with us the mission and focus of the Hi-Cap Parents Council, as well as how they are advocating on behalf of the Hi-Cap students in our schools. To learn more about the NSD Hi-Cap Parents Council, visit https://hcparents.blogspot.com/p/join-list-make-sure-you-stay-informed.html
• Carmin Dalziel with the Northshore Schools Foundation shared with us some of the work that the Foundation is doing to support our NSD students. Some of the work includes providing grants programs, classroom grants, and grants for PTAs (which are currently available), the Skills4Life Podcast, which is a weekly short podcast for parents and guardians of high school teens, and the Foundation Works program that serves and supports NSD families and students experiencing hardships with one-time grants. For more information about Northshore Schools Foundation, visit https://www.northshoreschoolsfoundation.org/who-we-are . 

Lastly, our Council chairs gave us updates on the important work that they are doing to advocate for and support our NSD students and local PTAs. We are very excited for all that they are doing, and we hope that you will join us this school year in advocating for all of our NSD students! Thank you to all who joined us for the first General Membership meeting of 2022-2023, and we hope that you will continue to attend our meetings!​

Council Business:

• November 15th, 2021 meeting minutes were accepted as presented.
• Serena Xu, Northshore Council PTSA Treasurer, reported that the mid year financial review will take place on Monday January 24th.
• The Nominating Committee was elected and includes: Diana Christiansen, Jasmine Fry, and Cherry Holmes. Click here to learn more about serving on Council in the 2022-2023 school year or to make a nomination.

Bond & Levies Support/Opposition Vote:
Council's Board of Directors put forward the issue of supporting the bond and levies that are on the February ballot.
During this meeting, both the pro and con positions on the issue were presented before calling for a motion to determine our PTSA’s support of or opposition to the bond and levies. Council would like to announce that the motion to support the Northshore School District Bond & Levies on the February 8th Ballot was passed unanimously. Learn more...

District Updates:

• We heard form NSD Partnerships & Volunteer Coordinator Marco Garcia who discussed how he organized a COVID testing clinic and food donations packages.
• NSD School Board Updates were provided by Director Amy Cast which included reviewing the monitoring report and the budget.

Council Committee Reports:

• Advocacy: Diana Christiansen & Jen Drury provided updates regarding the recent Focus on Advocacy Week as well as information on signing up for the action alerts which can be found here: https://actionnetwork.org/forms/subscribe-to-wsptas-action-network-group
• Educational Speakers and Community Events Grants Program: Mary Khouzam, Grants Committee Chair, reminded us that there was still time to submit grant applications for the Jan 21st deadline. She also announced that the date may be pushed but that this decision is still pending. If you have further questions, please reach out to the Grants Committee.
• Reflections: Jasmine Lee Fry, Reflections Chair, reported that the online showcase will be up and running at a later date as it is still be worked on. Council's Reflections Results now available!
• Mental Health Committee: Melissa Kline, Co-Chair for the Mental Health Committee, provided an update regarding what the committee has been working on including advocating for more resources, putting out articles, and working with counselors on flyers and communication materials. The committee also put out a call for action - asking local PTA leaders to check how accessible mental health resources were at their school. Learn more about that here.
• Membership: Co-Chairs, Hanisha Bakshani and Melissa Kline, provided an update that we have 5181 members across the district with many of our local PTAs already earning a WSPTA Membership Growth Award. The more members we have the stronger our voice is in the district!
• Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: DEI Chair, Cherry Holmes, hosted a DEI roundtable meeting early in the school year. Cherry asked for feedback on "What does DEI mean in your PTSA/School?" - send your response here.
• PTA Support: VP of Elementary Support, Grace Jurado, asked that you please reach out with any questions or concerns or if you need any help. VP of Secondary Support, Brenae Brix, discussed that families are looking for more information on preparing around college and a local parent has volunteered to provide this information. This parent is partnering with Council to provide an info night on March 16th about preparing for college. More information will be coming soon. Middle school career days are being worked on at several middle schools. It will be a half day and presented within the students classroom.
• Emergency Preparedness: Co-Chairs, Tracy Jokisch and Robin McKenzie, reported to us that an additional 117 Stop the Bleed! kits were obtained this round. That is a total of 862 kits in the district. The next meeting for E-Prep is Feb 1st at 11am and the guest speaker will be Deb Fuller. Learn more...
• Special Education: Laura Staneff will soon be joining council as our new Special Education Chair.

We hope you will join us for our next General Membership Meeting on March 21st, 2022 @ 7pm.
For a full list of our upcoming meetings and events, check out our Calendar.

PTAs are often the target of scammers. It's important for PTA officers to know the red flags to look out for to help keep your PTA safe.

Scam Emails
Some scams may spoof the email of another officer to help make the request look legitimate. But there are things to check for before you reply:

• Confirm the actual "from" address of the sender - don't just rely on the name that is shown.
• Does this email look and sound like other emails you have received from this person?
• Does this email ask you to do something that is not in alignment with current financial or money handling policies?
• If there is any question about an email, pick up the phone and talk to the person to double check on the message.

Common Scams

• Asking for gift cards. Remember gift cards are the equivalent of cash and if the email is acted upon, there is likely no recourse to get the money back.
• Requesting a wire transfer. Wire transfers are not recommended for PTAs. Instead you should have a clear funds disbursement procedure that is well documented for your records.

Protecting Your PTA
There are a few things you and your board should be doing in order to protect your PTA:

• Establish clear lines of communication between board members.
• Know your budget well. The best indicator of a potential fraudulent activity is a request that is made for something outside of your PTAs member-approved budget.
• Make sure your board of directors is well trained! View upcoming trainings here.
• Make sure you have well documented procedures and processes for money disbursement. (See below)

Money Handling Policy
Does your PTA have a money handling policy? Has your PTA updated their policy to include online banking?
Money handling policies are important to have so that it is very clear how your members and board are handling the funds of the PTA. Having these policies written out, communicated, and followed helps safeguard your PTA from scammers, and mishandled money.  They should include how you handle your cash, checks, deposits, withdrawals, any online money access, and more.  

Need some help putting your money handling policies together or updating them? Council recently updated their own money handling policies, and it is available for you to use as a sample. Still have questions? Contact Council Treasurer, Serena Xu.

Remember: There is nothing more urgent for your PTA than to follow best practices and policies to ensure you don't get caught in a scam!

Thank you to all that attended our fourth membership meeting of the school year! Each general meeting provides us with an opportunity to connect with our wonderful local PTA leaders and community partners and learn more about the great things happening across our district.

A little bit of fun:
We started off our meeting with a 30 minute “social” time. We invited all to join us to chat with Council and other local PTA leaders. We had great conversations and learned that “Flight” was the most desired superhero power in our fun poll!

Guest Speaker:
Our guest speaker this month was Superintendent Dr. Michelle Reid who graciously answered questions regarding the upcoming shift to hybrid learning in NSD. A great range of questions were asked including but not limited to: how PTAs can support the return to classrooms, the thinking behind the hybrid model, vaccination progress for teachers, when the learning model will be decided for Fall, what hybrid will look like for those 100% remote, and the latest updates on SBAC testing. We thank Dr. Reid for taking the time to join us during such a busy and stressful time.

Council Business:
After approving our minutes from our January general meeting, we moved on to hearing the Treasurer Report for the month of February. We then moved on to learning about our 2021-2022 preliminary budget. Our budget committee worked along with our Treasurer, Liz Nord, to evaluate what our needs would be for next year taking into consideration the decrease in memberships that we had experienced in 2020-2021 possibly continuing next year. A few changes were recommended, such as lowering our income expectations and cutting costs where we could (obtaining a smaller PO Box, lowering line items such as hospitality, grants, office supplies, etc.). We also added line items for our new DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion) position and our new Mental Health committee. The preliminary 2021-2022 budget was approved by a unanimous voice vote.

Next up on the agenda was electing our 2021-2022 officers! Thank you to our hardworking Nominating Committee, Grace Jurado and Liz Nord, for putting together a rocking slate for next year! Liz Nord read the Nominating Report. The self-nomination period was held with no others submitting their names for nomination. The election script was followed with a reading from the WSPTA bylaws. A motion was cast to accept the slate as presented, seconded, and unanimously approved by a voice vote.

Congratulations to our incoming 2021-2022 officers!!

• For the Office of President: Jane Chiodo
• For the Office of First Vice President: Mary Khouzam
• For the Office of Co-Secretary: Pauline Wray
• For the Office of Co-Secretary: Cheri Hardin
• For the Office of Treasurer: Serena Xu
• For the Office of VP of Events: Karrie Palis
• For the Office of Co-VP of Advocacy: Diana Christiansen
• For the Office of Co-VP of Advocacy: Jennifer Drury
• For the Office of VP of Communications: Rachel Fitzgerald
• For the Office of VP of Elementary Support: Grace Jurado
• For the Office of VP of Secondary Support: Brenae Brix

Council Reports:
Tracy Jokisch, our Emergency Prep and Safety Co-Chair, gave us an update regarding the bulk purchase of Stop the Bleed kits for district schools. There will most likely be over 500 kits ordered in total, which will include 2 kits per school contributed by Council. In conjunction with the Stop the Bleed effort, Clark Combs, district Eprep specialist on the district Safety and Security team, has been offering virtual ACT training to staff.

Diana Christiansen, our Council Vice President of Advocacy, gave us an update regarding the exceptional attendance by WA State PTA members at this years National PTA Legislative Conference. It was great to see big representation especially at “Hill Day” when attendees met directly with legislators and their staffers. Check out our NPTA LegCon recap here!

We got an update on the Reflections program. 55 pieces were forwarded to the state competition and we were waiting to hear results. (Results now in - check them out here!) The Council Reflections Celebration website was a big hit allowing many families – as well as family and friends around the country! - to experience all the works of art from artists all over the district. Next year’s theme was announced as, “I Will Change the World By…”.

Diana Christiansen and Karrie Palis announced that our Council Recognition Awards Nominations were open. They are looking for nominations for the following awards: Outstanding Educator, Outstanding Advocate, Outstanding Student Advocate, Outstanding Service, Golden Acorn, Honorary Life Membership. They are also looking for members to join their committee to review nominations and select winners.

Melissa Kline gave an update regarding membership. Three (3) PTAs had reached 100% staff membership and, in total, we have reached 4,826 members which is 62% of last year’s number. Melissa also gave an update about the newly formed Mental Health Committee. The committee had their first meeting recently, at which they discussed goals and things they would like to work on which included communicating about mental health awareness programs.

Lauren Lewis, our Council F.A.C.E. (Family and Community Engagement) Chair, talked about the Equity Inventory Committee, which was established to assess where our Council stood in regards to equity and diversity. The goal of the committee was to look at all facets of our operation through a DEI lens and then to make suggestions on areas that we could improve on. Lauren was also working on finding a presentation about how to navigate the US high school system that could be offered to families in our district that speak other languages or who have moved here from other countries. Natalie Campbell, the District Partnerships and Volunteer Coordinator, said that we could partner with her and Elizabeth Meza to bring something like this to the district. It was also noted that through the Council Educational Speaker and Community Events Grants program, Woodin Elementary was offering "Guide to Helping Your Children Succeed in Elementary and Beyond", presented by Sistema Escolar, USA, to district parents.

District and Community Reports:
School Board Director David Cogan presented an update in regards to Northshore School District that included, but was not limited to:

• NSD would be live streaming athletic games so all could watch from home
• The lock update project at all schools was complete
• A district Math program was adopted
• The Capital Bonds Planning Task Force is underway

Natalie Campbell, NSD Partnerships and Volunteer Coordinator, reported the following:

• Following up on the Mental Health Committee Update, Natalie said that the district was drafting a mental health webpage that was more robust and easier to navigate
• She had been working on childcare options for families during hybrid learning
• She reminded us to check out the Safety Protocol document as well as the English/Spanish videos on the district website
• As of right now, volunteers are not allowed on school campuses

Carmin Dalziel of the Northshore Schools Foundation gave updates regarding her organization and their work to support NSD:

• Each school in the district has a “Care Team” to help families that have helped at least 261 families since October
• Because kids will be returning to school, backpacks will start to be provided for those that need them
• NSF and volunteers have found homes for some 18,000 donated books!
• NSF was partnering with all district middle school PTA’s to bring a Career Day to all middle schools
• The Foundation’s “All In For Kids” fundraising event was be moving forward as a virtual event

Our last guest was Patsy Treece of the Citizens for Northshore Schools group to talk about Bond and Levy support. Her group’s purpose is to give citizens information about the bond and levies on the ballot and to urge them to vote. Bond and levy votes only happen every four years. Bonds need 60% to pass and levies need 50%. She was looking for volunteers to serve the group and was particularly interested in adding diversity so that all voices could be heard. She also asked if PTAs could add a line item to their budgets to help support the Citizens group. Learn more about Citizens for Northshore School here.

Our next membership meeting will be held on Monday, June 7th. We hope to see you there!

TREASURERS
You want to make sure you are continuing to maintain your physical binder, while putting together a digital binder that allows you to share it with your review committee. There are many different ways to create a digital binder, depending on your skill set. A super simple way is to use a program like Google Drive, Drop Box, or One Drive to create folders to store your digital documents. Below are steps you can take to create a simple and easy to use online binder:

1. ​Choose your online program. It should be simple to upload files to and you should be able to easily share it with the financial review committee.
2. Create a folder specifically for your financial review. You may already be keeping digital files, but keep in mind that the best way to keep files for you to find, may not be the best way for your review team to locate those files.
3. Set up folders for each section. There is a Financial Review Checklist found on the WA State PTA website. Section 4 will not need a folder as that is for the review committees comments and signatures.
4. Fill each section’s folder with digital copies of these documents. Each section has a list of documents needed to answer questions in that section. To make it easier for your committee to locate documents, if an item is needed for more than one section, put a copy of that document in both sections. To help organize each section folder, create folders within the folder to group items together. For instance, create a folder for each month where you can put your expenses and deposits for that month.
5. Clearly label all digital documents. Keep in mind, what will the review committee be looking for when naming it. In section 2, they ask for minutes where specific things were done (budget approval, elections, etc…) consider labeling those minutes with that title (Budget Approval Minutes). When labeling expenses, consider using the check number (7623 Reimburse Chambers), this puts your expenses in number order.
6. Go through the review questions. Once you have all your documents uploaded to your financial review folder, walk through answering each question and make sure you have all the needed documents. 

Following these steps will help you to feel confident when handing over your books to be reviewed. Before you hand over your binder, make sure you remove anything you store in it that shouldn’t be shared such as passwords. When it is time for the review, give the entire team access to your digital files. Also, if it is at all possible, give at least one person on your review team viewing access to your financial software.

FINANCIAL REVIEW COMMITTEE

Setting Yourself up for Success:

• Each committee member should have a copy of the Financial Review Checklist to follow along. One person should be in charge of note-taking. You will want to make notes on a draft and then sign the final draft to submit to the board.
• While working remotely, it’s helpful for each team member to take ownership of one section of documents: Meeting Minutes, Standing Rules, any additional Policies (such as money handling, password updates, etc.), Bank Statements, Reconciliation Reports, Treasurer’s Reports, Expenses Reports, Deposit Reports, Grant Documents, Budget, etc.

Quick Tips:

• As you work through the checklist, make note of any exceptions in the comments. If you are unable to answer a question based on what you have in hand, make a note of this and move on to the next question.
• The final page will require signatures from all parties of the Financial Review Committee as well as any feedback and recommendations for the board of directors to take under advisement. This is also a great place to provide positive feedback, too!

​
Financial Review Questions:
For notes on what documents to reference for each individual question check out this helpful document below. Click here to print the PDF of this document.

It was great to see so many local PTA leaders in attendance for our 2nd meeting of the 20-21 school year!

The meeting kicked off with a Q and A led by our Superintendent, Dr. Michelle Reid.  In addition to mentioning that the current plan with online schooling is to stay the course, she also answered many questions regarding topics such as homework, updates on the NSD curriculum resource web page, communication strategies for teachers and parents and building access for PTA’s.  There was also a discussion regarding ideas for the district to provide some morale boosting activities for students and families to help with community building while we are still isolating at home for online learning. Dr. Reid welcomed ideas from the group and will investigate how to best provide some community building activities in the district.  

During the Council Business portion of the meeting, the membership elected Grace Jurado, Liz Nord and Jane Chiodo as the 20-21 Nominating Committee.  Next on the agenda was a financial report given by Council Treasurer, Liz Nord.  Her report included the Treasurer’s Reports for both September and October, presentation of the newly adopted money handling policy and an update regarding the fulfillment of the Standards of Affiliation.  Liz noted that any PTA that needs to create or update their current money handling policy is welcome to use the council’s as a template found here.  
Lastly, there was an update regarding council goals which involved renaming the goal previously called Leading and Developing our Northshore PTAs and Leaders to Communicating with our Northshore Local PTAs and Leaders.  Grace Jurado, Nancy Chamberlain and Melissa Kline worked together to create a new title and verbiage surrounding the elements of the action items in effort to create goals that are concrete and attainable.   The membership unanimously voted to update the proposed changes to the council goals as presented.

During this meeting we also heard from Northshore Nourishing Network (NNN) Director Sue Freeman.  She shared information and tips for PTAs looking to start a successful food drive for their local units.  Sue noted that the Northshore Senior Center needs canned vegetables, tuna and chicken for those looking to donate. It was suggested by a member that coordination for a food drive combined with school supply pick up days or porch pick up to gather food donations.  Sue also shared that she has created helpful documents for suggested items to donate as well as how to start a free pantry.  Learn more about NNN here.

We then heard from community leaders including School Board Director Jacqueline McGourty, NSD Partnerships and Volunteer Coordinator Natalie Campbell and the Northshore Schools Foundation Executive Director Carmin Dalziel.

• Director McGourty reported that the school board just finished up the last round of ongoing discussions with our legislators, presenting them with their list of priorities.  The most prominent priority right now is digital equity.  She also shared that the board has started the refresh of their five year strategic plan.  Director McGourty mentioned that the board has also resumed school visits and that being able to see what is happening the classroom as well as with the principals and admins has been refreshing!  
• Natalie Campbell spoke about the decision to pilot the Peach Jar flyer distribution program for one year.  As well as mentioning that there is continued support for the Art Docent program.  She noted that NSD is finishing their pilot with 6 Crickets and they are looking for input based on if they should continue the program, retool it or decide its not needed.  Natalie is continuing to work on an update to the PTA Resource Guide.  The guide will include reminders with regards to communications, what can be published on the website, accessibility standards, resources for translation and more. This will be especially helpful to those new PTA leaders in our district.
• Carmin Dalziel reported that the Northshore Schools Foundation’s classroom grant process is now open.  PTA leaders are welcome to request grants for their schools. They will be sending out postcards to teachers.  Right now there is a big focus on high school seniors.  NSF is currently offering classes on things like financial aid among other things for seniors and their families to take advantage of. Carmin shared that all though last year when COVID hit they gifted $200 gift cards for families from their Basic Needs Aid program.  Now that COVID is more of a normal situation the Basic Needs Aid fund will be reserved for emergencies.  NSF is working with the district to make sure that there is a CARE team at each school for students and families in need.  In total they have donated $94K towards the success of this program. For more frequent NSF updates please refer the NSF blog.

​Lastly on the agenda was Council updates on Advocacy, Membership and F.A.C.E. as well as an update from our First Vice President, Jane Chiodo, regarding the WSPTA awards and the Speaker and Events Grants.

• VP of Advocacy, Diana Christiansen shared the top five legislative priorities and the WSPTA supported issues for 20-21.  Diana also wanted to share thanks for the candidates that participated in the candidates forum.  She also shared a PDF for how to share a pitch with legislators.  Reminder that Focus Day is January 18th, and that week will be Focus on Advocacy Week.  Check out our Advocacy page for more legislative updates including a link to sign up for the WSPTA Action Network.
  
• Membership Chair, Melissa Kline, shared that as a whole our district is at 52% for membership. There are 5 PTAs that have 75% of last years membership! She also explained how the 100% Staff Membership award is calculated and how to apply for it.  Melissa reminded members that personal connection is the best way to gain members.  More tips and suggestions are posted on our Membership webpage in the Membership Facebook group.
• F.A.C.E. Chair, Lauren Lewis, encouraged all to join the new F.A.C.E. and DEI Facebook group.  The group is for F.A.C.E. (Family and Community Engagement) & DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) Chairs or anyone interested about learning and sharing more on these topics.  Lauren is working on putting together at least on event that is open for all PTAs to attend.  The biggest asks have been surrounding mental health and internet safety.  It was also highlighted that NSD has a strategic plan for inclusion – there is an inventory for all parent groups for a self-assessment.  The district spent time putting together these documents and there are clear takeaways.
  
• First VP Jane Chiodo shared that the next Educational Speakers and Community Events Grant application deadline is November 27th.  The final deadline will be January 22nd, 2021.  For more information click here.  Lastly, Jane spoke about the WSPTA Awards of Excellence program.  PTAs are encouraged to check out the different categories to look at the criteria for the award and which ones your PTA might be interested in.  Some examples of awards include the Standards of Excellence, Communications, Significant Actions, Newsletter and Outstanding Website.  Applications for awards are due by March 15, 2021.

​Council meetings are a great way to reach other PTA leaders and learn about what is happening in the district and PTA. We hope you will join us for our next general membership meeting on Thursday, January 21st!