![]() Does someone in your PTA deserve a shout out? WSPTA has a formal volunteer award recognition program allowing local PTAs to award honors for outstanding educator, advocate, student advocate, and volunteer (Golden Acorn), as well as the honorary life membership award. Awards are a great way for PTAs to show their community how much they appreciate them and to celebrate the dedication of those who support your PTA's mission and goals! Local PTAs should appoint an awards committee who will gather nominations, review them, and choose the award recipients. This can be done during a meeting or some PTAs even choose to have the previous year's award recipients chair this committee. Check your Standing Rules as it may say who is on the committee. When the awards committee advertises for nomination submissions, it can be done via social media, newsletters, website, email, or even school flyers. To make it even easier for members to submit nominations, the awards committee can create an online submission form using tools like Google Forms or Survey Monkey. For recognizing the award recipients, your PTA can hold a volunteer recognition event or take time during a Membership Meeting to celebrate them. WSPTA offers a variety of items your PTA can order online to celebrate your award recipients including certificates, pins, plaques, and even yard signs! Local PTAs may award the following within their local community:
On November 17th, 2022 Northshore Council PTSA held its second General Membership meeting of the school year.
We would like to say thank you to all of the local leaders from across the district, as well as community and school partners for taking the time to join us! Continue reading below for a recap of the meeting. Meeting Recap: Council Business: After reviewing and approving the meeting minutes from our September General Membership meeting, Council Treasurer Serena Xu presented the October 2022 financial report for review, as well as requesting volunteers for the Mid-Year Financial Review Committee. Please email Serena Xu if interested in serving on the committee. Next on the agenda, Communications VP Jenn Snyder proposed changes to our social media policy by adding Instagram, as well as removing our inactive YouTube account, which were then approved by vote. Co-President Mary Khouzam asked for volunteers to serve on the Nominating Committee. If you would like to serve on the Nominating Committee, please email the Council Co-Presidents at before December 16th. The election of the Nominating Committee will take place at the January 19 General Membership meeting. Community Partners:
Thank you community partners for joining us! Council Committee Updates:
Before adjourning the meeting, Co-President Mary Khouzam gave a thank you to those who planned and coordinated the Presidents and Principals Event, and reminded everyone to complete and submit the Presidents and Principals Event survey. Mary also shared that Council is looking for someone to volunteer as VP of Events, and another volunteer is needed to serve as Council’s Family and Community and Engagement (F.A.C.E.) Chair. If you are interested in volunteering, please email the Co-Presidents as soon as possible. After adjourning our meeting, attendees were given an opportunity to join two training sessions (“Volunteers and How to Find Them”, and “Roles and Responsibilities of the Board”). Please join us for our next General Membership Meeting on January 19th at 7pm via Zoom!
Council meetings will build your PTA knowledge, give you the opportunity to network with other PTA, school district and community leaders, and they can be a lot of fun, too. Each PTA may send up to 4 voting representatives - but we encourage ALL who are interested to attend. We look forward to seeing you there!
*A meeting passcode is required to join. It will be sent to local leaders via email prior to the meeting. You can also request the passcode by emailing Council PTSA Communications VP, Jenn Snyder.
![]() Northshore Council PTSA is proud to announce the recipient of our first round of Educational Speakers & Community Events Grants for 2022-2023! Woodin Elementary PTA Adult English Language Learner (ELL) Series Tuesdays at 5:30pm January 24 to March 28, 2023 Registration fee: $10.00 Limited to 40 adults For more information or to register, please contact info@nlwoodin.org. Local PTAs/PTSAs interested in partnering with Northshore Council PTSA to host speakers or events are invited to apply for a Northshore Council PTSA Educational Speakers and Community Events Grant. 2022-2023 grants are offered on a first-come, first-serve basis and applications are reviewed by the Northshore Council PTSA. The submission deadline for the next round of Educational Speakers & Community Events Grants is November 25, 2022. For more information about the grants program, visit our Educational Speakers and Community Events Grant Program page. 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:
Common Scams
Protecting Your PTA There are a few things you and your board should be doing in order to protect your PTA:
Money Handling Policy
Need some help putting your money handling policies together or updating them? Council's money handling policies is available for you to use as a sample. Still have questions? Contact Council Treasurer, Serena Xu. More Online Safety Tips & How to Report Internet Fraud US.gov Online Safety 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! The goal is to have 5,000 members from across Washington State sign-up on October 26. This is a great day to invite your local community (local business leaders, community members, school board members, alumni of your school, and of course, your school’s family members) to join your PTA. This contest aims to grow knowledge and build membership by spreading the word about PTA, who we are, what we do, and why we do it as well as the knowledge that anyone can be a member of a PTA. How to Participate:
Update 10/17/22 Get ready to frame your ASK for The Great PTA Sign-Up Day (from WSPTA website)
Membership in a local PTA helps build community, gives each member a voice and vote in important matters, and counts towards our state membership numbers that we can use to show our strength when we advocate in Olympia on behalf of all children! Updating Online Join Links: All of WSPTA's communications will direct people to the Find Your PTA webpage, so please double-check to ensure that your PTA’s online join link is listed and correct. If your link isn’t listed or needs to be updated, you can email support@wastatepta.org with the correct information or complete this form. This is also a good time to verify that Council has your updated links on their Northshore PTA/PTSAs webpage. Email VP of Communications, Jenn Snyder to have your links updated with Council. Visit WSPTA for more information about the Great Sign-Up Day. Membership Resources: Visit Council's Membership page for more tips and links to past articles. Questions? Contact Council's Membership Chair, Kimberly Ortiz.
We have reached 2,512 PTA members from across Northshore PTA/PTSAs as of September 18th!
Did you know that your PTA can earn monthly membership growth awards from WSPTA? Achieve bronze, silver, gold, or platinum level based on your member percentages.
Need some help with memberplanet? Check out the WSPTA Membership Database page for helpful how-to videos as well as answers to frequently asked questions. Membership Resources:
Visit Council's Membership page for more tips and links to past articles. Questions? Contact Council's Membership Chair, Kimberly Ortiz.
![]() A retreat is more than just a regular meeting; it is an opportunity to:
There are many things to consider when planning for your retreat. While board retreats can take place in person, many PTAs may find it best to plan a virtual retreat, which adds a few more items to that list.
![]() Great retreats also include a few key social elements that serve as ways to allow board members to connect, bond, and get to know each other, all of which work to help build a more cohesive team:
The extended nature of a retreat means that a board can have time for conversations and discussions with more breadth and depth. Consider some of the following discussion areas and questions as you build your board retreat agenda:
Finally, remember that some of the most important work will happen after the retreat ends as ideas are put into action. Take time through the year to reflect and check-in with one another regarding discussions, action items, and progress toward goals. ![]() Additional Resources:
As always, Council is here to help your PTA have a successful year! If you ever have questions, you can reach out to us anytime via email. Find a list of Council Contacts here. |
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