The 2023-2024 Reflections state finalists list is here! Congratulations to the 2024 statewide Reflections finalists. Over two dozen judges evaluated nearly 700 entries and were blown away by the incredible talents demonstrated by Washington students. Those awarded Outstanding Interpretation will move on to National. View list of WSPTA Finalists. Congratulations to the following Northshore Students: Dance Choreography Intermediate (Grades 3-5)
Literature High School (Grades 9-12)
Music Composition Primary (Pre-K -Grade 2)
Visual Arts
Special Artist (all grades)
To highlight the importance of membership growth, Washington State PTA recognizes local PTAs for enrolling more members than they did in the previous year. As PTAs achieve incremental increases in membership growth, they are recognized for each milestone they reach. Membership Growth Awards are calculated monthly (no application needed). List of WSPTA Membership Growth Award Recipients (as of 12/31/23). Below is the list of Northshore PTAs that have received a growth membership award as of December 31, 2023. Congratulations on your membership achievement!
PlatinumFernwood Elementary PTSA
Kokanee Elementary PTA Northshore Middle School PTSA Ruby Bridges Elementary PTSA The Platinum Award recognizes local PTAs, in good standing, for enrolling PTA members equaling at least 120% of their previous year’s total membership. WSPTA Membership Contests: It's never too late to grow your PTA membership. WSPTA has a few membership contests coming up to incentivize membership.
Additional Membership Resources: Council's Membership page - Find more tips and links to past articles. WSPTA Membership page - Membership resources and leadership guides available. Questions? Contact Council's Membership Co-Chairs, Kimberly Ortiz and Allison Torgesen
What is the Standards of Affiliation (SOA)? It is a checklist of 13 items that every PTA should do annually. Completing this checklist will help local PTAs ensure their independent nonprofit business remains current with all IRS, state, insurance, and PTA requirements. We encourage you to include your entire board of directors in this work, to keep your membership up to date with your progress, and to record progress in meeting minutes.
Questions? Email vpsupportel@northshorecouncilptsa.org Congratulations to all the students who made it to the Council Level for judging!! CONGRATULATIONS to all our talented Northshore artists who participated in Reflections this year! The students demonstrated creativity and passion while keeping with the 2023-24 theme of "I am Hopeful Because..." Judging Results: There were 51 State Qualifiers who continued on to Washington State PTA for further judging. There were also 9 pieces that received the honorable Judge's Choice Award. SAVE THE DATE:
2024 Reflections Reception Thursday, March 14, 2024
Hi Reflection Chairs and PTA Presidents, Thank you for your enthusiastic participation in this year's Reflections program! We appreciate your dedication and the incredible effort students have put into the art submissions, each reflecting this year's theme: "I am hopeful because..." We are excited to announce that we will be hosting an in-person celebration for all the submissions received on March 14th, 2024. This will be our first in-person celebration since the onset of the pandemic, and we are looking forward to sharing this special event with you. More details will be coming out soon. Stay tuned! If you haven't already done so, please collect the original artwork from the students. To ensure that your artwork is displayed beautifully, please follow these submission guidelines: Visual Arts
Drop off instructions
The Great PTA Sign-Up Day is January 31, 2024! Northshore Council's goal is to grow our membership by 100 members in a single day!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. By joining a local PTA (find yours here), a member becomes part of the Washington State PTA, the largest volunteer and child advocacy organization in the state. Our future leaders, innovators, and citizens are our children, and our children are given their best chances to succeed when we all work together. Members of the PTA provide a powerful and effective voice for all children. Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime, can join PTA! Additional Membership Resources: Council's Membership page - Find more tips and links to past articles. WSPTA Membership page - Membership resources and leadership guides available. Questions? Contact Council's Membership Co-Chairs, Kimberly Ortiz and Allison Torgesen Wondering how you can make a difference in school funding? Join Council's Co-VPs of Advocacy, Terra Droney and Holly Muenchow to learn about Focus Week (Jan. 15-19) and discuss how to advocate for school funding at the state level. Join Us for Focus on Advocacy Day - Monday, January 15, 2024 in Olympia! Register and find more information here.
Questions? Email Council's Co-VPs of Advocacy, Terra Droney and Holly Muenchow at advocacy@northshorecouncilptsa.org. Actions You Can Do Now:
SAVE THE DATE:
WSPTA members and students are invited to put on their "PTA Blue" and join us IN PERSON in Olympia to advocate for children and schools with elected officials. Gather in the Columbia room with us to network and hear speakers. We will also be offering docent-led tours of the Capitol grounds. The event is from 9:00 am – 2:30 pm. The agenda with speakers listed will be added here in Eventbrite and in the Focus on Advocacy newsletter when it is available. More details and information can be found on the Focus on Advocacy webpage. More on Advocacy:
Reflections Update: Save Entries, Join the Reception Planning Committee, and Theme Winners Announced12/5/2023
Important Notice: Save Your Entries Thank you for submitting all the entries! We loved witnessing the beautiful interpretations of the theme from the students. Please take note that we will be hosting an in-person celebration on March 14, 2024, and we kindly request participants save all their entries. This is especially crucial for visual art and photography submissions. More details about the mounting of the artwork and printing requirements will be shared soon to ensure we can display all the wonderful creations. Stay tuned for further information! * Save the Date: Reflections Reception * Thursday, March 14, 2024 - In-Person Celebration! Join our Reflections Reception Planning Committee (Meetings will start in January 2024) Be part of the excitement - our first Reflections Reception in person since 2019! We'll need lots of hands in organizing this very special event to honor our Northshore School District Artists. Email Council's VP of Events, Melissa Quinonez Bennett, at vpevents@northshorecouncilptsa.org to be included in the Zoom meeting email. Message from WSPTA Reflections WSPTA Reflections Theme Search Winners This year WSPTA had over 45 Reflections theme search entries. The judges selected the following students' theme ideas to advance to the National level for a chance at being the winner of the 2025-26 Reflections theme.
Resources:
Northshore Council PTSA Reflections Co-Chairs: Jasmine Lee Fry and Foram Shah
Washington's Superintendent of Public Instruction, Chris Reykdal, opened by sharing many of the challenges facing our schools this year and next, especially budget shortfalls. We also heard from OSPI and superintendents across the state how challenging it is to get school buildings funded, built, and updated with the latest safety features. And of course, we added and updated the WSPTA platform for legislative issues and resolutions on topics including:
Updated 2023 - 2024 Legislative Priorities
October 2023 Important Advocacy Dates:New or Amended Resolutions for Consideration Deadline: The deadline to submit new or amended resolutions for consideration at the business meeting held in May during convention is noon on November 15, 2023. Find more information and the submission form on the WSPTA Resolutions webpage. Upcoming Advocacy Dates: December 13, 2023 Legislative Session Preview – Legislator Panel January 3, 2024 What to Expect in the 2024 Legislative Session – Marie Sullivan, WSPTA Legislative Consultant January 15, 2024 Focus Day in Olympia (kids welcome!) January 15 – 19, 2024 Advocacy Week (virtual) Please note Focus on Advocacy is happening a month earlier this year. Visit WSPTA Focus on Advocacy page for more information and an advocacy toolkit. More on Advocacy:
This is a busy time of year for PTA Leaders with so many things to get done in order to run your PTA, plan programming for students, and provide support to your school community. Here at Council, we want to make sure a few key "to-do" items don't get overlooked so we've created the checklist below. We've included links and resources for these items, but remember, Council is always here to help and support our local Northshore PTA Leaders! Visit our Contact Page to connect with a Council officer. PTA Back-to-School Checklist for 2023-2024
Complete Council’s Contact Form
Update Leaders in memberplanet
Enter 25 Members into memberplanet by October 31, 2023
Update your PTA’s Website
Hold a General Membership Meeting
Connect with Council
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