 As we spend our final months of the school year still under stay-at-home orders, and our children realize they will not be in a classroom again before fall, it’s easy to lose track of the year-end stuff our PTAs still need to take care of-- the things we have to accomplish as well as all those things that it would be nice to be able to do. Must Dos: There are two things a PTA must do before the end of the year: approve the budget for next year and elect new officers. Elections Hopefully by now you have seen the guidelines for holding an election virtually. If not, there are more details in this article on the WSPTA website as well as some resources on our website. Once you have elected your 2020-21 officers, be sure to email all of your officer information to support@wastatepta.org. For each officer (new and returning) they will need:
Budgets: Everyone’s Favorite Topic We need to look at our budgets differently than we would have two months ago. Depending on if you had a spring fundraiser you could no longer hold and on how many budgeted expenses you no longer have (Field Day is probably giving us all a nice budget buffer this year), you are most likely ending the year with a final bank balance much different than originally expected. With that in mind you should expect fall fundraising efforts to bring in less funds than usual. You may also want to modify some of your fall events to more community-based, lower cost or even virtual events. Look at ways to tweak your expenses for next year to lower them if possible. If it looks like you will start off the year with a stronger account balance than usual, you may also want to consider increasing scholarship lines since there will probably be more aid requests next year as our state continues to have record unemployment levels. Finally, since economic and health standards are constantly changing in 2020, remember that there will be opportunity over the summer for the new board to make adjustments to the budget if it looks like circumstances will change drastically by the fall. Remember: Budget decisions you make now will not bind you for the whole next year. Other Stuff (things you don't have to do, but may want to consider) Staff Appreciation This week (May 4-8) is Staff Appreciation Week and there have already been a lot of wonderful online thank yous to school and district staff, admin and teachers. Please encourage your families to keep the appreciation going all week long and use the hashtag #ThankATeacher in all appreciation posts. Some suggestions compiled by National PTA include:
Awards: to do or not to do We have seen lots of debate over whether or not to do awards (Golden Acorn, Outstanding Educator, Outstanding Advocate, etc) this year, and most of the PTAs in our area have decided to do move forward with them. Our recognition ceremonies will definitely look different this year, but there are two big reasons to do award this year: something happy and positive is always a good thing in “emotionally down” times like now, and we are seeing some amazing volunteers stand out with all they are doing to help during this crisis. With so many great options of people to recognize, why not take advantage of it? Plus, the award fees go to the State PTA scholarship fund—a win win situation! Council is looking forward to seeing what kind of creative ways our PTAs will recognize their award recipients this year. Year-end “Graduation” Celebrations (5th, 8th, 12th grades) Year-end “Moving On” Celebrations for kids on their last year at their school is another big thing on many PTA minds. By now, most of our high school seniors have received house signs recognizing them as 2020 grads. Some parents have also ordered signs from local sign companies for 8th grade graduates moving up to high school and 5th grade graduates moving up to middle school. If this is not already under way in your school, this is a great thing for PTAs to help coordinate and share the purchase info with your school communities. For more celebratory planning, PTA celebration chairs should meet with school admin to see how you can collaborate on this. Thank you all for all that you do. I am constantly impressed by the amazing ways I am seeing our Northshore PTAs adapt to this new normal, support their school communities, and keep their kids engaged. I’m sure some of you are already a step ahead of these suggestions, but we wanted to compile some of the key takeaways from our weekly roundtables in one place. We will continue to hold our weekly roundtables on Tuesdays at 12:00 through the end of the school year. If you haven’t joined us yet, please do!
Local PTAs may award the following within their local community:
Northshore Council PTSA Awards: Similar to how you celebrate outstanding service in your PTA community, Northshore Council PTSA also celebrates amazing people. Please help us and nominate someone who you feel has made a difference! Award nominations are due by May 1, 2020. To nominate, you can either fill out the online nomination form or email Jane Chiodo. Visit our Council Awards page to learn more about Council awards and past recipients.
 Please join us for a special general membership meeting on Monday, March 30th at 12:00pm (noon) via Zoom. In addition to regular business reports and updates, we will consider and vote on a proposed 2020-2021 budget as well as changes to our Standing Rules (including allowances for online elections). Each PTA may send up to 4 voting representatives-- but we encourage ALL who are interested to attend. Topic: Northshore Council PTSA General Meeting Time: Mar 30, 2020 12:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada) Join Zoom Meeting https://zoom.us/j/344951006?pwd=MWhDRTBTMERYT3o1cmg2VE8zbXpNQT09 Meeting ID: 344 951 006 Password: 000920 One tap mobile +13462487799,,344951006# US (Houston) +16699009128,,344951006# US (San Jose) Dial by your location +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) +1 669 900 9128 US (San Jose) +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 646 558 8656 US (New York) +1 253 215 8782 US +1 301 715 8592 US Meeting ID: 344 951 006 Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/abIsmu6rb Supporting Documents: We look forward to seeing you there! If you have questions, please contact President Grace Jurado.
*NEW* (4/13): meeting password now is required to join. It will be sent to local leaders via email. You can also request the password by emailing communications@northshorecouncilptsa.org. Topic: Northshore Council PTSA Weekly Roundtable Time: This is a recurring meeting Join Zoom Meeting https://zoom.us/j/614808778?pwd=MFhla0wweSt2MExUcFF6YWlnZWgvQT09 Meeting ID: 614 808 778 Password: available upon request One tap mobile +13462487799,,614808778# US (Houston) +16699009128,,614808778# US (San Jose) Dial by your location +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) +1 669 900 9128 US (San Jose) +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 646 558 8656 US (New York) +1 253 215 8782 US +1 301 715 8592 US Meeting ID: 614 808 778 Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/abIsmu6rb If you have questions or suggested topics you would like to see addressed in the discussion, email Grace Jurado. We hope to see you there!
Did you miss this online roundtable? Listen to the audio recording of the 3/17 discussion on Soundcloud. Topic: Northshore Council PTSA Roundtable, part 2 Time: Mar 17, 2020 12:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada) Join Zoom Meeting https://zoom.us/j/374661835?pwd=SUNsV2N4L3FDUFhyV2hERnc5cXI5Zz09 Meeting ID: 374 661 835 Password: 011244 One tap mobile +16699009128,,374661835# US (San Jose) +13462487799,,374661835# 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: 374 661 835 Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/abIsmu6rb If you have questions or suggested topics you would like to see addressed in the discussion, email Grace Jurado. We hope to see you there!
 Join us this Wednesday, March 11th at 7pm for an online discussion about PTAs and Coronavirus: How to Deal. We want to bring Northshore PTA leaders together to share ideas and innovations, ask questions and voice concerns, and work together to find ways to better serve our school communities (and beyond!) through the COVID-19 crisis. Let's support each other! Did you miss this online roundtable? Listen to the audio recording of the 3/11 discussion on Soundcloud. Join Zoom Meeting https://zoom.us/j/597074496?pwd=ZGR1eDRLWU1vUkphVUM2RHEvM1FaUT09 Meeting ID: 597 074 496 Password: 531283 One tap mobile +16699009128,,597074496# US (San Jose) +16465588656,,597074496# US (New York) Dial by your location +1 669 900 9128 US (San Jose) +1 646 558 8656 US (New York) Meeting ID: 597 074 496 Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/abIsmu6rb If you have questions or suggested topics you would like to see addressed in the discussion, email Grace Jurado. We hope to see you there!
 An important update about our educational speaker event scheduled for Wednesday, March 11th!!!
Presenter Amy Lang has graciously offered to present "Birds & Bees & The Online World: Sex, Tech & Kids" as an online webinar due to school closure!
Your child will be online — sometimes safely and, frankly, sometimes not. This will influence how they think and learn about sex, love and relationships. In this class you will learn how to make sure you (and not the internet!) are their go-to birds and the bees expert! To participate in this FREE webinar, join the meeting use the following link: The meeting will open at 7:45pm with the presentation scheduled to begin at 8:00pm. It is an hour-and-a-half in length.
Questions? Contact Theresa Ahdieh. 
Join us on Wednesday, March 11, 2020, for a special presentation by award-winning author and speaker Amy Lang, "Birds & Bees & the Online World: Sex, Tech & Kids," at the Canyon Park Middle School Little Theatre from 7-8:30pm. Topics will include:
We hope you will join us for this FREE parent education event sponsored by Canyon Park Middle School PTSA and Northshore Council PTSA! Questions? Contact Theresa Ahdieh. Please consider sharing this event with your PTA/PTSA community! Facebook event: www.facebook.com/events/505601360375969/   Parents and caregivers are invited to participate in the "Hidden in Plain Sight" experience on Wednesday, February 26th from 6:30 - 8:30pm at Northshore Middle School (12101 NE 160th St, Bothell, WA 98011). Space is limited, so reserve your FREE ticket today! The “Hidden In Plain Sight” initiative 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. This exhibit educates and empowers parents to communicate with their children about at-risk behavior that could lead to substance use disorders. A strong parent-teen relationship is the most effective tool to prevent youth substance use. Looks can be very deceiving - Especially if you don’t know what to look for. Come to a “Hidden in Plain Sight” exhibit and learn what to look for and what to do if you do find something. Please consider sharing this event with your PTA/PTSA community!
  Kenmore Elementary PTA and Northshore Council PTSA are working together to present the movie "Angst." This movie is for parents and caregivers to help us navigate anxiety in our students and ourselves. It provides hope and help! This FREE film screening and discussion event will be on Tuesday, February 11th, from 6 – 8 p.m. in the Kenmore Elementary Gym (19121 71st Ave NE, Kenmore, WA 98028). The movie is 55 minutes and will be followed by a moderated panel discussion afterwards. The YMCA will be providing child care on campus for children ages 3 and up. If you are interested in attending, please reserve your tickets through Eventbrite to help us plan (please include a note in your reservation if childcare is needed): https://www.eventbrite.com/e/angst-movie-screening-tickets-88561470743 To learn more about the movie, visit: https://angstmovie.com/ Please consider sharing this event with your PTA/PTSA community! Kenmore Elementary PTA Event Info: kenmorepta.org/free-angst-film-screening-and-discussion-february-11th/ Facebook Event: www.facebook.com/events/577550536166745 Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/angst-movie-screening-tickets-88561470743   Congratulations to our Northshore PTA/PTSAs that have earned WSPTA Membership Growth Awards so far in 2019-2020!!! Keep up the amazing work and continue to build upon your success! As of January 1, 2020, Northshore Council PTSA has 7,303 members. This is about 90% of our total from last year. We have lots of room to grow and we can still make our goal of 8,400 members across Northshore! Keep reminding your community about the value of PTA membership and the work you do within your school community and beyond!!! Membership Growth Awards are automatically calculated and awarded to local PTAs and councils that reach the required criteria levels for Bronze, Silver, Gold or Platinum recognition. Your PTA can focus on the important work of enrolling members while the WSPTA Membership Committee determines your eligibility and recognizes your PTA or council for its membership growth. Awards are typically calculated on a monthly basis and can be earned all the way through June. Visit the WSPTA website for more information about WSPTA Membership Awards.
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