Category: Local PTAs

Wrapping up the PTA year and Setting Up for a Great PTA Fall!

5/27/2025

As the 2024-2025 school year comes to an end, here are some tips and reminders for PTA leaders to help wrap up your school year and prepare for a great start in the fall!

At your last PTA meetings......

Be sure to recognize and thank your volunteers.
Survey your members and review your 2024-2025 goals.
Approve next year's budget and approve any changes to the standing rules. 
Recruit candidates for non-elected PTA board of directors and chair positions.
Give your team a deadline for submitting their reimbursable expenses to the treasurer so that books can be closed on June 30th.
Appoint your end of year Financial Review team. A financial review is required by your PTA insurance and should be completed soon after books close on June 30th. The PTA President needs to appoint 3 or more members of your PTA who were non-signers on your bank account for the period being reviewed. WSPTA has a financial review checklist to help guide the team. Visit the "Leadership Guides" section of the WSPTA website, scroll to "Board Resources" and click on "Finance" (ask your current PTA leadership for the username and password to access these resources!)

Bookkeeping tasks......

Make sure your two legal binders and/or digital folders are updated with all of the most recent documents.
Enter your 2025-2026 officers into Givebacks.
Download a PDF or print out a year-end membership roster for the 2024-2025 year. This should be done before the fiscal year closes on June 30th!
Register your new PTA leaders with Council (complete form HERE!)

Plan for a NEW team......

Hold transition meetings for outgoing and incoming board members and chairs.
Give new leaders access to digital or hard-copy files. Be sure to reset your passwords on July 1st.
Set dates for your summer retreat. Learn more below!
Review and update policies. Check out Council’s policies here.
Plan your fall membership drive.
Encourage new officers to take training over the summer. Consider attending the August Leadership Launch event hosted by WSPTA. This virtual event is a great way to get some training on board before the new school year starts!
Share all the ways the incoming board can connect with Council .
Plan your NSD facility use requests for 2025-2026. Designate one board of directors member as your PTA/PTSA contact for facilities.

What to Plan for your Summer Retreat.....

Schedule ahead so that people know when it is going to be. Prioritize having the whole team there.
Make it fun. A game? A picnic? Whatever seems fun to your board and would help you get to know each other! There are a ton of team-building activities like 2 Truths and a Lie that can help you all get to know each other a little better.
Give out some homework. To save time, ask everyone to read or fill out a few documents in advance. Examples might include:
1. Contact information (including preferences)
2. Your PTA's Standing Rules
3. Your PTA's Budget
4. Your PTA Standards of Conduct
5. Your PTA Money Handling Policy
6. Your PTA Social Media Policy
Create an agenda. Although you don’t have to take minutes at a Retreat (since you are not voting on anything), it’s good to have a schedule and try to stick to it.

What Should be on your Retreat Agenda.......
Create your calendar as best you can. Get down your meetings and some of your bigger events.
Review the Budget and Standing Rules.
Discuss your team’s communication norms and individual expectations.
Brainstorm new ideas for Membership, Advocacy, Family Engagement, programs and events.

More about Communication Norms.....

Sharing the floor at meetings to get everyone’s ideas.
How to use email. What response time am I expecting? Should I reply all?
When to use the phone. How late is it okay to call?
What is confidential and what is not.
Text message usage. Texting is a great resource when someone forgot the ice on the way to the Back- to-School fair. Texting is NOT a great place to: Discuss other board members\students\ families\or staff members, conduct PTA Business, make committee decisions when there are other committee members not on the text message thread, settle disagreements or blow off steam. It’s best to keep business communications and your friendship communication separate.
When are you ‘off’ work.
Who posts on social media.

Need more retreat ideas?
Check out this great blog from 2021: Summer Board Retreat - Northshore Council PTSA 6.10!

Mid-Year Leader Meet-Up

1/20/2025

Join us for coffee and conversations as we head into the second half of the school year.

Council's VPs of Support are here for you as you start preparing for your end of year programing, elections, awards, and transitions. Come ask us your questions or just stop by to socialize with other local PTA leaders from across the district!

Date: Friday, February 7th, 2025
Time: 11:30am - 1pm
Location: The Texan Cafe & Coffee Shop
22522 29th Dr SE UNIT 106 • Bothell, WA 98021
**NOTE: WEATHER UPDATE!
If schools have delayed opening, this event will still take place at the scheduled time. If school is cancelled, this event will also be cancelled.

Questions that just can't wait? Email your VP's of Support!
Sorenson, NFP, and Elementary PTAs: Jennifer Drury and Jenn Snyder
NSEC & Secondary PTAs: Rachel Fitzgerald

Online Meeting Hosting Available to Local PTAs

6/27/2024

Northshore Council will provide Online Meeting Hosting for local PTAs/PTSAs this 2024 - 2025 school year!

Online Meeting Hosting can be used by any local PTA/PTSA that wants Council to host a Zoom meeting for them. Please note that max number of attendees is 100 and that this service is offered on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Here is how it works:

Complete an online form to request a meeting date.
Council Zoom host(s) will receive a notification upon submission. Host(s) will verify there is availability for the requested date/time including confirmation that a Council representative can stay for the duration of the meeting.
Once a determination is made, the PTA/PTSA requesting will be contacted with either confirmation (and zoom info) or notice that the date/time is unavailable.
Three (3) weeks prior to meeting, Council Zoom Host will send an email to reconfirm date and timeas requested. You will need to respond to this email at least two (2) weeks prior to your meeting or you risk having your meeting time cancelled.

At the time of the meeting, a Council Zoom host will start the meeting and then pass host privileges to whomever the local PTA/PTSA designates. If at any point during the meeting there is an issue and the meeting needs to be restarted, the local PTA/PTSA representative will have access to text or message the Council Zoom host to have the meeting restarted.

Questions? Contact us!

August 2024 Office Hours - Virtual

6/27/2024

You are welcome to attend one or all sessions!
Bonus: They are virtual so you can stay by the pool or join from the comfort of your home.

Monday, August, 12, 2024
10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
🏝
Thursday, August 29, 2024
Topic: Changes to Standing Rules
7:00 PM - 8:00 PM
**Office Hours on Thursday, August 29th, will be focused on Standing Rule Changes due to recently voted in WSPTA Bylaws.**

Register for Zoom Link:
https://bit.ly/NCPTSAOfficeHours

Stay Tuned: Council will be hosting a Givebacks Roundtable before school starts. Information will be updated here and on our calendar when details are finalized.

Office Hours are the perfect time to connect with Council, ask questions, or even just stop in to say hello! This time is designed to support our local PTA/PTSA leaders as you begin to navigate membership, programs, and managing your organization for the upcoming year. We hope you will join us!

If you have questions and need to connect with Council prior to this, please visit our Contact Page for a list Council Officers and their emails.

Verify & Update Your PTA's Online Join Links, Websites, and Social Media Pages

6/27/2024

Please take a few minutes to check the links for your PTA.
Need to update a link? Email [email protected]

With the transition from memberplanet to Givebacks we know some of our local PTAs will be making changes to their websites. Please verify Council has your PTA's most up-to-date online join link, website, and social media pages listed on our website. Council will be promoting membership this coming year by including all Northshore PTAs online join links on our website here!

An online join link is a valuable tool for PTAs to use to help people easily become members of PTA. Make your join link clear, and easy to find on the front page of your website.

BONUS: We'll be promoting online join for all Northshore PTAs/PTSAs at the upcoming
NSD Back to School Resource Fair in August at Pop Keeney.

Tips for Filling Open Board Positions

6/11/2024

Q: What do you do if you cannot find a candidate for a position?

A: Here are a couple of ideas to broaden your reach when searching for candidates:

Be sure to market your PTA! Let your community know what your PTA is doing to support them, the school and the students. The more they know about you, the more likely they will want to join your awesome team.
Reach out to incoming families! If you are a secondary school, reach out to your feeder school PTA’s to put the word out that you are looking for recommendations for nominations. If you are an elementary school, consider reaching out to families of incoming kindergarteners. Consider hosting Kindergarten Summer Playdates to get to know new families.There’s no better way to get to know a school and its administration than volunteering for a PTA position!
Hold an “Open House” type event. Whether virtual or in-person, this type of event is great for introducing people to your PTA and answering questions about PTA elected positions and their functions.
Make a personal ask. Do you know someone who you think would be great? Reach out to them and have a one to one conversation about why you think they would be the perfect fit.
Advertise your search for candidates EVERYWHERE! Put it on your website, put it in your newsletter, post about it on all your social media channels (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, etc.), send an email directly to your members, or even send snail mail (like a postcard) to your members. If you are looking for a school directory to help you connect to the families in your school, contact Council's Secretary to request one.

What if you STILL can’t find a candidate for a position?

If there is an open position on your slate of candidates, you can leave that position vacant. At an in-person meeting, the president will ask if there are any nominations from the floor. In the case of a virtual election, there will be a period of time allowed for self nominations prior to the membership meeting that mimic the function of “nominations from the floor”. Someone may step forward.
Consider whether you have enough time to continue your search. Can you send out another call for recommendations for nominations?
If a position remains open, it is possible, depending on what is stated in your Standing Rules, for your Board of Directors to appoint a person into that position in the interim. The search for a candidate can continue with the hopes that someone can be elected at the next membership meeting.
If you have some officers willing to stay on as interim, try again at the beginning of the next school year. People may be willing to jump into something new in September than at the end of a long school year when they’re looking forward to summer break.

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Wrapping up the PTA year and Setting Up for a Great PTA Fall!

As the 2024-2025 school year comes to an end, here are some tips and reminders for PTA leaders to help wrap up your school year and prepare for a great start in the fall!

Mid-Year Leader Meet-Up

Online Meeting Hosting Available to Local PTAs

Northshore Council will provide Online Meeting Hosting for local PTAs/PTSAs this 2024 - 2025 school year!

August 2024 Office Hours - Virtual

You are welcome to attend one or all sessions!
Bonus: They are virtual so you can stay by the pool or join from the comfort of your home.

Verify & Update Your PTA's Online Join Links, Websites, and Social Media Pages

Tips for Filling Open Board Positions

Q: What do you do if you cannot find a candidate for a position?

Archives

Categories

Wrapping up the PTA year and Setting Up for a Great PTA Fall!

As the 2024-2025 school year comes to an end, here are some tips and reminders for PTA leaders to help wrap up your school year and prepare for a great start in the fall!

Mid-Year Leader Meet-Up

Online Meeting Hosting Available to Local PTAs

Northshore Council will provide Online Meeting Hosting for local PTAs/PTSAs this 2024 - 2025 school year!

August 2024 Office Hours - Virtual

You are welcome to attend one or all sessions! Bonus: They are virtual so you can stay by the pool or join from the comfort of your home.

Verify & Update Your PTA's Online Join Links, Websites, and Social Media Pages

Tips for Filling Open Board Positions

​Q: What do you do if you cannot find a candidate for a position?

Archives

Categories

You are welcome to attend one or all sessions!
Bonus: They are virtual so you can stay by the pool or join from the comfort of your home.

Q: What do you do if you cannot find a candidate for a position?