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We keep you informed throughout the year with poignant posts and informative articles.
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BLOG
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We keep you informed throughout the year with poignant posts and informative articles.
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ME PTSA is affiliated and in good standing with the Washington State PTA and National PTA organizations. These organizations are first and foremost advocacy organizations dedicated to bettering the lives of every child focusing on education, health, and safety. You can read more about the history and many successes of the PTA here. There is no commitment required to join ME PTSA, other than the membership fee. Your membership alone helps to create a powerful voice to advocate for every child in our school, district, community, state, and nation. Membership fees provide a very small portion of the ME PTSA budget, the majority of our budget comes from generous donors who support our annual fundraiser. The ME PTSA budget funds programs that benefit every M.E. student, including all materials for the art docent program, as well as grants for every classroom and specialist. ME PTSA also funds and coordinates many great events and initiatives that build up our community and students, like the Reflections Art Program, the Pumpkin Party, Multicultural Night, STEAM Night. Our budget is completely donation-based, and our organization is completely run by volunteers. All of our efforts need helping hands to be successful. The backside of the Membership Form has a little more info on volunteering for a typical year's programs, but our most urgent and important needs look a little different this year. Please read on for a little more about each need, and let us know how you would like to get involved! Just email [email protected] for more info! Co-President Erin needs help!! Basic commitment includes attending two meetings a month, the General Membership meeting and Exec Committee meeting one week prior. Vice President - Communications Update websites and social media, send out weekly newsletter. Attend two meetings a month, General Membership meeting and Exec Committee meeting one week prior. Art Docent Chair/Co-chair Basic duties include coordinating Art Docent program and volunteers, making sure art docent supplies are maintained, organized, and replenished (shopping for art supplies is fun!!). Bonus duties include coordinating projects for teachers or take-home while volunteers are not permitted on campus, and helping with creation of curriculum and lessons. Reflections Chair/Co-chair Coordinate student participation in National/State PTA arts contest. In typical years, we’ve held an after school art workshop where kids could make art using materials belonging to the Reflections committee, and organized a gallery night to display and enjoy all the student artwork. This year, art will all be submitted digitally again, so we just need someone to facilitate that and help promote the program. Virtual workshops may also be an option. Advocacy Chair Keep ME PTSA updated on state and national advocacy efforts. Attend Washington State PTA Legislative Assembly, recruit other voting delegates. Work with WSPTA contacts on state and local advocacy opportunities. MultiCultural Night & Committee Co-Chair In normal years, we have a Multicultural Night where families can host a table to share their cultural with our school community. It is one of our most fun events and we have some great ideas for our next in-person Multicultural Night. Last year, we did a virtual Multicultural celebration, where kids and families submitted videos of their favorite aspects and elements of their cultures and traditions. In the past few years, we have tried to highlight Multicultural events like Black History Month and Asian-American Pacific Islander History Month, but would love to have a committee of multicultural volunteers to help us represent and celebrate the many cultures and religions in our community! Talent Show
In the past, we have held an in-person Talent Show. The past two years, we did virtual, and would love to continue including a virtual/video element even when we can return to in-person. We need a Committee Chair/Co-Chair to help with this event, including auditions for an in-person event, rehearsals, and/or coordinating virtual submissions. National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month is observed through the month of September, but especially on September 10th and the week surrounding that day. Throughout this month, we will be sharing information and resources to help raise awareness about suicide prevention, especially material that grown-ups can use to address the issues with their students. We will continue to update this post with additional links and resources. For immediate support, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255, or start a chat. The Depression Project has good information and resources. Read Dawn Krivanek's article in Parent Map Magazine: Why You Need to Talk to Your Child About Suicide Now, and find more helpful resources. The "A Kids Book About" series covers some really important topics, including depression, anxiety, mindfulness, and suicide. Some of these titles are available in the M.E. school library, and hopefully we'll be able to find them at the public library soon as well.
One of Washington State PTA's Legislative Priorities this session is to Prevent and Reduce Gun Violence & Suicide. Learn more about the WSPTA Legislative Priorities and advocacy and read the handout here. |
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April 2024
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