 It was the first meeting of the year, and we were thrilled to (virtually) see over 25 attendees from across the district participate! The membership unanimously elected two new officers to the board: Kimberly Ortiz for the position of Secretary and Diana Christiansen for the position of Vice-President of Advocacy. Thank you to each of them for stepping up to help lead Northshore Council PTSA! In addition to elections, members revised new goals, approved Standing Rules, and voted on an updated budget. Membership Chair, Melissa Kline noted how local PTAs were quite creative in their membership drives this year, ensuring easy, online join options for members to renew their memberships. (Find your PTA/PTSA by clicking here.)
We’re happy to announce the continuation of our Educational Speakers and Community Events Grant Program. Local PTAs are encouraged to apply solo or in collaboration with another local PTA! Deadline for the 2nd round of applications is Nov. 27th. During this packed meeting, we also had the pleasure of hearing from community leaders, including School Board Director Jacqueline McGourty, NSD Partnerships and Volunteer Coordinator Natalie Campbell, each of whom shared updates and answered questions about recent projects and current initiatives, including exciting news about the ground breaking at the Northshore Concert Hall at Inglemoor High School and the opening of Ruby Bridges Elementary. Northshore Nourishing Network Director Sue Freeman shared information on the increasing food insecurity facing members of this community. Ms. Freeman has been collaborating with Skyview Middle School PTSA to create a food pantry, and shared a plan to disseminate helpful information for those wishing to donate to foodbanks. 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 Monday, November 16th!  The Washington State PTA Standards of Affiliation Agreement Checklist 2020-2021 is now available! This checklist is a tool to help your PTA keep up with its legal requirements, both as a non-profit and as a PTA. The requirements come from the IRS, the State of Washington, your insurance company, and WSPTA. What your PTA needs to do:
There have been a few updates this year to make the SOA even better, including an introduction page that has clear instructions, calls out what’s new to the checklists in 2020-21, and offers a number of resources to answer questions and give more detail on all requirements. This video from WSPTA offers a great overview of SOA and what it means for your PTA: In addition, WSPTA offers a number of tools to help support your PTA in completing the SOA checklist, including:
Remember that sharing the progress of your SOA with your members also lets others know about how your PTA operates and shows the work that goes on, often behind the scenes, to keep your PTA legal, safe and operating within the very best practices of our state. Questions? Council is here to help!
 Please join us for a special general membership meeting on Monday, April 20th at 700pm via Zoom. At this special meeting, we will be electing officers for 2020-2021. With self-nominations closed, the 2019-2020 Nominating Committee presents the final slate of candidates for the 2020-2021 year:
Each PTA may send up to 4 voting representatives-- but we encourage ALL who are interested to attend. This is a great opportunity to connect with Council and local PTA/PTSA leaders as we work to support one another by asking questions, discussing challenges and sharing ideas. Topic: Northshore Council PTSA General Meeting Time: Apr 20, 2020 07:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada) Join Zoom Meeting https://zoom.us/j/621990455?pwd=RytpUGdLSXA0cUMxQTVZTXpXVlJUQT09 Meeting ID: 621 990 455 Password: available upon request One tap mobile +16699009128,,621990455# US (San Jose) +13462487799,,621990455# US (Houston) Dial by your location +1 669 900 9128 US (San Jose) +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) +1 301 715 8592 US +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 646 558 8656 US (New York) +1 253 215 8782 US Meeting ID: 621 990 455 Password: 019838 Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/abIsmu6rb We look forward to seeing you there! If you have questions, please contact President Grace Jurado.
The Council is also currently taking nominations for Awards including Outstanding Educator, Outstanding Advocate, Outstanding Student Advocate, Golden Acorn and Honorary Life Member. It is important to continue honoring people even if the celebration and recognition will have to be different this year. We’re looking for creative new ways to do this virtually or at a safe physical distance. District Partnerships Coordinator Natalie Campbell reported that the district continues to offer, food, childcare, and devices for families. Please go to nsd.org as things change regularly according to needs and conditions. Natalie has also put together a page of community resources for employment, food, health and wellness. Live Stream Cabinet Meetings are now at 8 am weekdays. Carmin Dalziel, Executive Director of the Northshore Schools Foudnation, shared that the Foundation canceled its big fundraiser and is accepting donations to focus solely on the Community and District Response Fund which is currently funding gaps in childcare. NSF also has a Basic Need Aid grant for $200 for groceries. School principals are able to nominate a family for this grant. See the NSF website for information on their Children's Book Drive. PTSA will continue to host Roundtables on Zoom every Tuesday at Noon to discuss the needs and ideas of local PTAs. Local PTAs should consider getting a Post Office box as the district may decide to stop allowing PTA mail to be delivered to schools. It is an old policy that may be enforced next year. Finally, PTAs need to adopt a new budget for next year and elect next year’s officers. In order to hold elections, PTAs must vote to amend the standing rules to allow for electronic voting (if there are not already provisions for doing so). Also, it would be a great idea to start thinking about creative ways to celebrate Staff Appreciation Week in May.
The Northshore Council PTSA board is proposing the following change to its standing rules (to be voted on by membership on 3/30/2020): Should be nested under Section 5 - Meetings, Quorums & Voting If the president determines that a formidable challenge will prevent a scheduled membership meeting to happen in person, ballot voting, including the election of officers or nominating committee, may take place via electronic transmission. If ballot voting takes place by electronic transmission, the Northshore Council PTSA electronic voting policy and procedure will be followed. The new rule references an electronic voting policy. The draft policy is available for download below: DRAFT Electronic Voting (E-Voting) Policy:
For Local PTAs: Below are policy models designed to work for local PTAs in both .pdf format as well as Word (so that it is editable). Local PTAs are encouraged to use it and adapt it to fit their needs.
Frequently Asked Questions: Q: What is an election policy and procedure? A: Think of it as a how-to document. It should explain what the plan is (policy) and how it is going to be accomplished (procedure). So, in this case, the plan is to allow electronic voting in certain situations and have a clear procedure of how it is going to work. Having a written policy works to ensure clarity and transparency in the process for all involved. Q: Why is there not something my PTA can just copy and paste for this? A: Every PTA and every community is different-- so there isn't any one 'right' way to do it. Northshore Council is sharing its proposed standing rule and policy in part so it can serve as a sort of template for local PTAs who are considering adding electronic voting. Local PTAs are encouraged to use it and adapt it to fit their needs. Q: Does the policy have to be completed prior to voting? A: No. You don't need to have the policy ready at the time of the Standing Rules change. Q: Does the policy have to be voted on by membership? A: No. Membership does not need to vote on policy itself-- policy is within the purview of the board. Q: Does the policy need to be completed before electronic voting takes place? A: Yes. If policy is referenced in the standing rules, then it definitely be in place prior to any electronic voting. In essence: you gotta have a plan-- and it should be documented for both transparency and clarity. Remember: Council is here to help! If you have questions or want some additional guidance, contact your Northshore Council PTSA VP: Elementary Support (Cindy Jensen) or VP: Secondary Support (Melissa Kline). References: Here is a list of the key references Council used in formulating its proposed policy:
**Password protected resource. Find the login information in the latest issue of WSPTA Leadership News or by contacting your Northshore Council PTSA VP: Elementary Support or VP: Secondary Support. |
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