the ohio pta voice may_june 2015 issue

The Ohio PTA Voice

Table of Contents:

Pg. 1- Presidents Message

Pg. 4- Advocacy

Pg. 6- Heritage Month

Pg. 7 Family School Partnership

Pg. 8 Special Needs Child

Pg. 9 Bylaws

Pg. 10 Membership Awards

Pg. 12 Healthy Lifestyles

Pg. 17 Education

Pg. 20 Standards of Affiliation

Pg. 21 End of Year Tools

Pg. 22- Treasurer Tools

Pg. 23- Reflections

Pg. 25 Convention Pictures

Pg. 26 Reports

Pg. 37 Board of Directors

Page 1 May 2015

Advertising in this newsletter does not imply endorsement by Ohio PTA

Note from the President...

Ohio PTA

40 Northwoods Blvd Ste A

Columbus, OH 43235-4718

(614) 781-6344

Fax: (614) 781-6349

[email protected]

A powerful voice for all children A relevant resource for families and communities

A strong advocate for the education and well-being of every child

Grand Finale

As I write my Grand Finale, my final article as your Ohio PTA President, I am

filled with so much emotion. I am so thankful for the opportunity to conduct Our

PTA Symphony. This has been such a wonderful experience!

The theme of my term, Our PTA Symphony: Bringing Harmony to Every Childs Life, was chosen because of my love for music and because of what music represents, and we focused on four movements or goals this term: Family

Engagement, Training, Advocacy, and Relevancy.

Ive enjoyed making musical analogies as it relates to PTA. Ive talked about the basics of music starting with the staff - a set of 5 lines with 4 spaces in between -

and how theres nothing particularly exciting about the staff, yet when other notation is added, it develops into music! When we start adding clefs, time

signatures, measures, and notes, it begins to develop into a beautiful symphony.

We have to understand that we need all of these components. We will never be

able to engage families, advocate for them, or be relevant if we are on a different

note, if we dont consider their notation in the symphony.

Ive talked about the beauty of Our PTA Symphony is that theres a part for everyone. Each part of music looks different, sounds different, but each has its

place to bring it together to make the PTA Symphony. Ive communicated about being instrumental in PTA and being in the right key. Ive shared about the composers of Our PTA Symphony, our founders. Resonating with our families and

being in true harmony have been focuses. And Ive spoken about the power of the sound of one voice. Symphony means agreement of sound one voice. Our PTA tagline is Every Child. One Voice. Last month I shared about the importance of memorizing our mission.

For some Ohio PTA Board of Directors, this is also their Grand Finale. We have

several board members leaving who have collectively served over 75 years to help

shape and direct PTA. Id like to take this opportunity to acknowledge them.

The Ohio PTA Voice Page 2 May 2015


Cathy Harless, our Vice President of Field Service - when I first came on the Board

of Directors as District 11 Advisor (half of Cuyahoga County), she was District 10

Advisor (Central Ohio). Cathy was an experienced District Advisor and I looked to

her as a type of mentor as I learned the ropes. She also served as Vice President of

Leadership and Director of Events.

Sharon Urig, our Secretary-Treasurer - when I decided to take a small step onto the

state level, I joined the Ohio PTA Membership Committee and Sharon was the

Director of Membership. She was a great source of inspiration to me. She also has

served as District 7 Advisor and Director of Bylaws and Standing Rules.

Lynn LaMore, our Director of Events - Lynn is the one you can blame for me being

your Ohio PTA President. When I was a Council President, she was my District 11

Advisor. After I completed my council presidency, she asked me to be the District 11

Membership Chairperson. Then unexpectedly, she approached me and asked if I

would be interested in filling her vacancy as District 11 Advisor as she desired to

move to Director of Programs. In addition, Lynn has served as Secretary-Treasurer.

Hazel Trinko, our District 18 Advisor - Hazel has probably attended every National

PTA Convention since she started on the board 17 year ago. We roomed together at a

couple of conventions and she was always my fashion policewoman. In all those

years, she has rarely missed a Board meeting or function. She has also been Director

of Education and District 13 Advisor.

Last, but not least, is Gloria Cazan, our Immediate Past President - Gloria was always

ready to greet me with open arms when I first came onto the board and she always

lent a listening ear when I had ideas. As she likes to say, we were connected at the

Id like to leave with you the lyrics of the song that was shared at my installation banquet entitled, What Good is a Song? by Quincy Jones.

Continued...



What good, what good is a song?

What good are the lyrics if they cant soothe you? If they cant ease a troubled mind

What good is the beat if it cant move you? It would be a waste of time

What good is the music if it cant please you? If it has no depth or height

What good is a rhyme if it cant relieve you? Or some problem in your life

What good is a song if it cant inspire? If it has no message to bring

If a song cannot send you higher

Then its not good enough to sing

You can hum a little song when youre hurting Then feel a reason for some laughter

Or whistle a melody while you work

It will make your day go faster

Songs have been known to lift the spirit

Songs has been known to touch the soul

But when no one ever needs to hear it

Then its not worth the title it owns

I hope that Our PTA Symphony is soothing, moving, pleasing, relieving, and

inspiring. I hope that it serves to ease troubled minds, has depth and height. I hope

that Our PTA Symphony is something that helps the hurting, brings some laughter

and happiness, lifts spirits, touches souls. I hope that it will always be hummed,

whistled, and sung. And I definitely hope that Our PTA Symphony is worth the title

that it owns, because we do have a message to bring.

As we do our work in PTA and play our parts in Our PTA Symphony, we should

always keep in mind that PTA has stood the test of time for 118 years, and is the

largest volunteer child advocacy organization in the nation, whose mission is to be a

powerful voice for all children, a relevant resource for families and communities,

and a strong advocate for public education. We want to make sure that this mission

We should celebrate the great impact that Our PTA Symphony is making in the

lives of families and communities in Ohio!

From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank you for embracing the vision of my

theme and helping to bring harmony to every childs life!

With great love and appreciation, I sign off for the last time as your Ohio PTA

Conductor. May Our PTA Symphony resound forever!

Ohio PTA President 2013-2015



Advocacy Makes a Difference!

On March 12, the Ohio Constitutional Modernization

Commissions Education, Public Institutions and Local Government Committee voted to preserve the current

language in Article VI, Sections 1 and 2, which contains the

thorough and efficient clause. Ohios responsibility to offer and support public schools shall be retained in this 164-year old phrase.

House passes community school accountability bill

The Ohio House recently passed HB 2, regarding community school

accountability, by a vote of 70-25. The bill is in the Ohio Senate for

consideration.

Senate passes mandate relief bill

The Ohio Senate passed SB 3, which would provide mandate relief in various

ways to local districts in the areas of extracurricular reporting, teacher

evaluations, testing, and non-licensured teachers. The bill is in the Ohio

House for consideration.

Ohio House continues work on budget bill

The Ohio House has set a target date of April 22 for finishing up their work

on House Bill (HB) 64, the biennial budget the bill, then sending it to the

Senate for consideration.

Senate Medicaid Committee

At the end of March, this committee heard sponsor testimony from Senator

Kevin Bacon (R-Minerva Park) and Peggy Lehner (R-Kettering) on SB 94.

This legislation deals with the Medicaid School Program (MSP) and provides

for the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) to receive at least 3.5% of the

federal matching funds the state receives for the MSP. It also requires various

reporting methods for federal fund collection, transportation and personal care

services for recipients, and eliminates the requirement that an MSP service be

provided in a school.



Advocacy in Action

We will be transitioning to a new board in the coming months, so thank you

to everyone who has helped Ohio PTA advocate on behalf of children in our

state and across the nation. Remember to keep your advocacy efforts going

over the summer and plan for a strong membership campaign by

incorporating PTA advocacy through candidate nights (school board elections

are this fall), monthly recognition of outstanding advocates in your school,

district or around your region, or by inviting elected officials to open houses

and PTA events.

Thank you for allowing me to serve as the Ohio PTA Director of Advocacy

for the past four years. It has been an honor.

Jackie Arendt

Director of Advocacy



May is Asian Pacific American

Heritage Month

2015 Theme:

Leadership to Meet the Challenge of a

Changing World

Asian Pacific Americans represent more than 50 ethnic groups and 100

languages. The Asian-Pacific encompasses the entire Asian continent and the

Pacific islands of Melanesia (Fiji, New Caledonia, New Guinea, the Solomon

Islands, and Vanuatu), Micronesia (Guam, Kiribati, Marianas, Marshall

Islands, Nauru, Palau, Wake Island, and the Federated States of Micronesia)

and Polynesia (American Samoa, Cook Islands, Easter Island, French

Polynesia, Hawaiian Islands, Midway Islands, New Zealand, Rotuma, Samoa,

Tonga, and Tuvalu).

Asian Pacific American Heritage Month celebrates the culture, traditions,

and history of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States. It

originally was a weeklong celebration during the first week of May, selected to

commemorate two important events: the arrival of the first Japanese

immigrants in America on May 7, 1843, and the completion of the

Transcontinental Railroad (by many Chinese laborers) on May 10, 1869. In

Here are some ideas on how to commemorate this month:

Contact local cultural clubs, centers, and organizations

Invite members from the community to share at your PTA meeting

Invite parents and families to share their experiences at your meeting or a

special event

Provide activities to help educate and give a better understanding

For activity suggestions and more information, please go to:

http://www.infoplease.com/asian-pacific-american-heritage-month/fun-

stuff.html



Promoting Family School Partnership

The National PTA School of Excellence enrollment period is open now until

October 1.

This program is a great way to showcase your school. Register today and re-

ceive a toolkit with step by step instructions on how to work towards receiv-

ing this award. When you support and celebrate partnership between your

PTA and school, you help to enhance all students educational experience and overall well-being!

Best wishes to the eleven schools in Ohio that are currently working toward

receiving their School of Excellence Award for this academic year. The next

deadline for submitting the report is June 1st.

Please encourage your unit to form their team and apply for this award! Go

to pta.org for details and to register.

Pam Bonnett

Director of Family-School Partnership



Preparing your Special Needs Child for

College

For many parents of children on the autism spectrum, we want our children to

be accepted, we dont want them to be labeled and we pray for them to have the same experiences as any child. As we guide them through their educational

challenges and struggles from pre-school to high school, many parents wonder

if college will be in our childs future.

According to Michael A. Noonan, a Special Education teacher in the Columbus

City Schools district, there is no reason children with any disability should not

continue their education after high school graduation. He not only teaches

children with special needs, but is also the parent of a child with special needs.

Like any family, Noonan says, preparation is the key to getting your child

ready for the next level of education. Nothing pains me more educationally speaking than to watch students wait until their senior year to become

concerned about their future, especially going to college. As a parent of a child

attending college and an educator of students with special needs, I cannot

emphasize enough the importance of starting early with preparing for college.

Noonan advices parents to check any special accommodations and services

their child may have offered to them. Columbus City Schools has partnered

with I Know I Can, a program that offers valuable services including

assistance completing required college forms for college admission, searching

for scholarships and help with Free Application for Federal Student Aid

(known as the FAFSA). Noonan suggests when searching for the college that

fits best for your child, make sure you know the colleges admission requirements, deadlines for forms, what they offer (extra-curricular activities,

classes) and, of course, costs. And I might add, says Noonan, many students in Special Education can and should go to college. These students need to

consider how the different colleges can be of assistance. When should a student

start their college search? The answer is simple: NOW!

For more information on colleges for children with special needs go to:

www.college-scholarships.com/learning_disabilities.htm

N. Michelle Sutton

Member, Ohio PTA Mosaic Committee



Update Your Bylaws in the Summer? Sure!

Summer is coming! Lots of questions to consider: Where to

vacation? What camps should we send the kids to? When and

where is Summer Leadership so I can get some great PTA

training? When should we start reviewing our bylaws?

Wait..what???

Bylaws sometimes scary intimidating boring.but ALWAYS necessary! And a great time of year to review them is summer.

Bylaws are an entity of PTA that has no beginning and no end. There are no

deadlines, such as in Membership, no definite start and no ending. Therefore, bylaws

can be done ANY time of year.

Bylaw revisions process isnt as hard as people make it out to be. It can be a little time consuming, but not difficult. There are six simple steps to revising our bylaws:

1) Obtain a copy of your current bylaws and a copy of the current sample bylaws

from the Ohio PTA Director of Bylaws.

2) Form a committee 3 people is good. 3) Meet and go over the current units bylaws and the sample bylaws. Make

comparisons.

4) Bring your revised bylaws back to your units PTA meeting for review and discussion.

5) At your next months unit meeting, ask for a vote to approve the new bylaws. 6) Email them to the Director of Bylaws and Standing Rules and I will check them

over and approve or send them back to you for a revision.

This whole process can take up to 3 months so plan ahead if you want to change something in your bylaws by a certain date or event, and doing this over the summer

will assure your unit that you will be ready for business in the fall.

So grab some people, pick someones house, kick back on the deck with some cold lemonade and have fun with it. Do it while life isnt so busy with schedules.

Good luck and have a great summer!!

Linda Read

Director of Bylaws and Standing Rules

CONGRATULATIONS!

AmandaJoy Pierce-Lotts provided the catalyst for our new e-newsletter name -

The Ohio PTA Voice. Pictured is President-Elect Sheila Ragland presenting

the $100 check to AmandaJoy for the winning contest submission.



The Ohio PTA 2015 Membership Awards

2015 Unit Awards

President Awards: Gold District 12 Big Creek Elementary PTA 189 Members Over Last Year Silver District 11 Lincoln Elementary PTA 200% Over Last Year Bronze District 12 N. Olmsted Early Child PTA Most Creative

Club Awards: 500 Club D6 Loveland Elem. PTA 502 Current Members D6 Nagel Middle School PTA 926 Current Members D12 N. Royalton Middle School PTA 531 Current Members D12 Falls Lenox Elementary PTA 625 Current Members 100 Club D6 Oak Hills High School PTA 174 Members Over Last Year D10 Huber Ridge Elementary PTA 109% Over Last Year D13 Streetsboro Community PTA 124 Members Over Last Year D13 Suffield Elementary PTA 128% Over Last Year D13 Echo Hills PTA 151 Members/105% Over Last Year D13 Dunbar Elementary PTA 109 Members Over Last Year D13 Wilcox Primary PTA 143 Members Over Last Year D17 Orchard Hollow Elementary PTA 128% Over Last Year D18 Boardman High School PTSA 116 Mem. Over Last Year

Buckeye Award Winners (All percentages are Over Last Year)

D4 Kettering Middle School PTA 91% D6 Amelia Elementary PTA 32% D6 William Henry Harrison Jr. Sr. PTA 28% D6 White Oak Middle PTA 77% D7 Keystone Elementary PTA 57% D7 North Ridgeville Early Child PTA 53% D10 Georgian Heights Elementary PTA 70% D10 Alton Hall Elementary PTA 54% D10 East Franklin Elementary PTA 58% D10 Norton Middle School PTSA 26% D10 South-Western Preschool PTA 29% D10 Stiles Elementary PTA 46% D10 Westland High School PTSA 55% D10 Liberty Elementary PTA 55% D10 Cherrington Elementary PTA 26% D10 Robert Frost Elementary PTA 61% D11 Central Primary PTA 45% D11 Roxboro Elementary PTA 38% D11 Chardon Hills Magnet PTA 45% D11 Euclid Central Middle PTA 43% D11 Euclid Senior PTSA 64%

D11 Gilles Sweet Elementary PTA 26% D11 Maple Leaf Elementary PTA 29% D11 Charles F. Brush Sr. PTSA 25% D11 Memorial Jr. PTA 53% D12 Maple Intermediate PTA 73% D12 Normandy Sr. PTA 38% D12 Renwood Elementary PTA 45% D12 Albion Middle School PTA 46% D13 Akron Early College High School PTA 87% D13 Cuyahoga Falls High School PTSA 26% D13 H.A. Preston Elementary PTA 33% D13 Nordonia Middle School PTA 29% D13 Fishcreek Elementary PTA 32% D13 Lakeview Intermediate PTA 28% D13 Tallmadge Middle School PTA 43% D13 Hillcrest Elementary PTA 29% D17 Dale R. Rice Elementary PTA 26% D18 LaCroft PTA 59% D18 Struthers Elementary PTA 47%

Continued...



Scarlet Carnation (All percentages are Over Last Year)

D6 Milford Jr. PTSA 18% D6 Colerain Elementary PTA 10% D6 Delhi Middle School PTA 11% D6 Finneytown Elementary PTA 10% D7 Avon PTA 11% D7 Eastview Elementary PTA 20% D7 Learwood Middle School PTA 20% D7 Elizabeth Wilcox Elem PTA 15% D7 Liberty Elementary PTA 13% D10 Devonshire Alt. Elem PTA 18% D10 Eastmoor Academy Sr. PTA 17% D10 Brookpark Middle School PTA 13% D10 Hayes Intermediate PTA 15% D10 Brookside Elementary PTA 18% D10 Sutter Park PTA 14% D10 Emerson Elem Magnet PTA 11% D10 Mark Twain Elementary PTA 11% D11 Monticello Middle School PTA 20% D11 Fairview Mid/High School PTA 15% D11 Grant Elementary PTA 12% D12 Bay Village Early Child PTA 17% D12 Bay Village Mid School PTSA 15%

D12 Olmsted Early Childhood PTA 16% D12 Parma Park Elementary PTA 14% D12 Ridge Brook Elementary PTA 18% D12 Rocky River Early Child PTA 16% D12 Rocky River Mid School PTA 22% D12 Chapman Elementary PTA 16% D12 Dover Intermediate PTA 13% D12 Lee Burneson Mid Sch PTA 16% D13 Manchester Sr. PTA 13% D13 Litchfield Middle School PTA 17% D13 Barberton Elem East PTA 23% D13 Barberton Elem West PTA 24% D13 Barberton Middle School PTA 18% D13 Ledgeview Elementary PTA 22% D13 Northfield Elementary PTA 14% D13 Riverview Elementary PTA 15% D13 Green Sr. PTSA 18% D13 Arrowhead Primary PTA 11% D13 George G. Dodge Inter PTA 10% D13 RBC & Twinsburg High PTA 20% D13 Samuel Bissell Elem PTA 17% D17 Brentmoor PTA 16%

CONGRATULATIONS FOR YOUR

HARD WORK THIS PAST YEAR!

2015 Council Awards

President Awards: Gold: District 13 Twinsburg City Schools Council PTA 227 Member Increase Over Last Year

Current # of Members: 916 Last Yr. # of Members: 689 Silver: District 12 Olmsted Falls Council of PTAs 37% Increase OLY Current # of Members: 1,842 Last Yr. # of Members: 1,776

Golden Acorn (5% or more increase with a 50 member Minimum)

D13 Barberton Council PTA 13% Increase OLY D13 Stow-Munroe Falls PTA Council 6% Increase OLY D13 Tallmadge Council PTA 11% Increase OLY



The Healthy Lifestyles program provides family-centered education and tools that connect them with schools and

advocate for healthy changes in nutrition and physical activity. In a healthy school:

All foods, beverages and snacks sold or served meet National School Nutrition Standards.

All students have opportunities to be physically active on a

regular basis.

All students have access to regular physical education.

Districtwide wellness policies are developed, implemented and

evaluated with input from students, parents, staff and interested community members.

What PTAs Can Do Advocate to:

Improve student nutrition Increase physical activity and physical education

Establish School Wellness Policies

Model positive health behaviors

Participate in family-oriented programs:

Improving Energy Balance Toolkit: Provides local PTAs

with tools and resources to use in partnering with schools and engaging families in addressing an everyday healthy lifestyle

practice known as energy balance balancing what we eat with exercise.

Healthy Lifestyles Month: Learn about National PTAs Healthy Lifestyles Month, ideas for celebrating and best

practices for integrating healthy lifestyles into your school. Fire Up Your Feet: A healthy fundraising option available to

all schools and PTAs that encourages families to walk more to and from schooland in daily lifewhile keeping track of their steps. Healthy Lifestyles Energy Balance 101 Grants: National PTA

offers $2,000 grant for PTAs in grades K-5 with tools and resources to use in partnering with schools to improve energy

balance and provide families with nutrition and physical

activity education.

Deadline: June 19. Learn more

Healthy Lifestyles



Learn More Healthy Schools Program (Alliance for a Healthier

Generation): An evidence-based initiative that will help schools improve physical education, health education, and

nutrition. HealthierUS Schools Challenge (USDA): A voluntary

certification initiative recognizing those schools enrolled in Team Nutrition that have created healthier school

environments through promotion of nutrition and physical activity.

Let's Move: A comprehensive initiative, launched by the First Lady, dedicated to solving the challenge of childhood

obesity within a generation.

Fuel Up to Play 60 (National Dairy Council and the NFL): An in-school nutrition and physical activity program to help

students make positive changes in their schools. Thriving Schools (Kaiser Permanente): A targeted,

multiyear initiative offering free tools and resources to improve the health of students, staff and teachers in K12 schools.

Parent Leadership Series (Action for Healthy Kids):

Teaches parents how to work collaboratively within their school communities to improve policy and practices related

to school nutrition and physical activity. Together Counts (Healthy Weight Commitment

Foundation): A nationwide program inspiring active and healthy living.

Source: http://www.pta.org/programs/content.cfm?ItemNumber=4280&navItemNumber=4216



Make Summer Safe for Kids

Warm weather brings more opportunity for outdoor activities.

Whether they are young children or teens, keep your kids

safe and healthy while they enjoy the summer fun.

Master water safety Water-related activities are popular for getting physical

activity and have many health benefits. Here are some

tips to stay safe while having fun. Learn how to prevent recreational water illnesses and

help protect yourself and your kids. Help kids get H2O Smartz about water safety.

Drowning is responsible for more deaths among children

ages 1-4 than any other cause except birth defects. Two to

three children die every day as a result of drowning.

Always supervise children when in or around water. A

responsible adult should constantly watch young children.

Teach kids to swim. Formal swimming lessons can protect

young children from drowning.

Learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Your CPR skills

could save someones life.

Install a four-sided fence around home pools.

Recreational boating can be a wonderful way to spend time

with family and friends. Make boating safety a priority.

Wear a properly fitted life jacket every time you and your

loved ones are on the water.



Beat the heat and sun Heat-related illness occurs when the bodys temperature

control system is overloaded. Those at greatest risk for heat-

related illness include infants and children up to 4 years of age.

Even young and healthy people can get sick from the heat if

they participate in strenuous physical activities during hot

weather. For heat-related illness, the best defense is

prevention.

Never leave infants, children, or pets in a parked car, even if the windows are cracked open.

Dress infants and children in loose, lightweight, light-colored clothing.

Schedule outdoor activities carefully, for morning and

evening hours.

Stay cool with cool showers or baths.

Seek medical care immediate if your child has symptoms of heat-related illness.

Just a few serious sunburns can increase you and your child's

risk of skin cancer later in life. Their skin needs protection

from the sun's harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays whenever they're

outdoors.

Cover up. Clothing that covers your and your child's skin

helps protect against UV rays.

Use sunscreen with at least SPF (sun protection factor) 15

and UVA (ultraviolet A) and UVB (ultraviolet B) protection every time you and your child go outside.

Keep mosquitos and ticks from bugging you

this summer Protect yourself and your family by preventing bites and

diseases, like West Nile virus and Lyme disease, which can

be transmitted by insects. Use an effective insect repellent while playing outdoors.

Make your backyard a tick-safe zone. Check yourself and your children for ticks. Ticks are easy to

remove.



Hello Fellow PTA Members,

It has been my pleasure to serve as your state-level Health,

Welfare, and Safety Director during the 2013-2015 term. Please

welcome my successor, Lisa Catalano, as she will continue the

Ohio PTA tradition of educating, engaging, and serving the needs

of Ohio PTA members.

I look forward to working with the incoming Ohio PTA leaders

and all PTA members next term, as your Director of

Communications.

I hope everyone has a safe, healthy, and sensational summer.

Best regards,

Venezuela Robinson Director of Health, Welfare and Safety

Ohio PTAs many times works with other educational associations. These include but are not limited to this list. Join us as we thank them for their continued support! OEA Ohio Education Association OSBA Ohio School Boards Association OFT Ohio Federation of Teachers OAESA Ohio Assoc. of Elementary School Administrators E&A Coalition for Equity and Adequacy OASSA Ohio Assoc. of Secondary School Administrators BASA Buckeye Assoc. of School Administrators OASBO Ohio Assoc. of School Business Officials CPE Coalition for Public Education



STANDARDS OF AFFILIATION

ARE COMING YOUR WAY

Ohio PTA introduced the Standards of Affiliation for Councils and Units at the

Ohio PTA Convention in Columbus this year. The Standards of Affiliation

(SOA) is not anything new to Ohio PTA. As a state PTA, we have a SOA with

National PTA. Many of the required indicators that Councils and Units are

asked to provide in the SOA are what you are currently doing. This will assist

you to be in compliance with the Mission and values of PTA, maintain good

business practices and follow federal laws for 501(c)3 organizations. Well-run

Councils and Units will find the Standards of Affiliation to be very helpful in

operating your Councils and Units.

The required indicators requested are:

President, officer and chairpersons names and contact information

Volunteer hours

National PTA/Ohio PTA dues submitted (Councils do not pay dues)

Copy of Financial Review

Copy of 990

Proof of Bonding

Charitable Solicitation Act Filing Receipt

Code of Ethics

Conflict of Interest Policy

Updated Bylaws (Reviewed yearly, updated every three years)

Each of the above bullets are things you have been doing, or should be doing to

have a smooth running PTA. More detailed information will be provided over

the next few months and in the Ohio PTA Resource Guide mailed to the

incoming/returning President.

Gloria Cazan

Immediate Past President

VERY

IMPORTANT!!!

NEW THIS

2015-2016 YEAR!



END OF YEAR TREASURER TOOLS

Preparing for the Financial Review

Before leaving office, the president and treasurer must follow the PTA units bylaws and standing rules to see that a financial review is performed even if the current treasurer is returning. The financial review committee generally consists of three or four members whom do not have check writing privileges with the PTA being reviewed.

The purpose of the financial review is to verify the accuracy of the books and records of the treasurer. This assures the membership that the PTAs funds are being managed appropriately and in a businesslike manner. The final financial review for the year can go very smoothly if reconciliation of the checkbook and bank statements has been done monthly. To prepare for the financial review the treasurer needs to assemble materials to make the job of the financial review committee easier. The following items need to be made available to the committee: A copy of the last audit report Checkbook and cancelled checks Receipt book Bank statements and deposit receipts Treasurers ledger The annual financial report Itemized statements and receipts of bills paid Check requests (vouchers) Copies of board, executive committee, and organization minutes including

the adopted budget and subsequent amendments Current bylaws and standing rules

Once the committee performs the review, a statement is prepared explaining their findings and signed by committee members. The report of the financial review committee must be officially adopted by the PTA and must be included in the annual report. Further information regarding financial review procedures and forms may be found in the Ohio PTA Financial and Legal Handbook and on National PTAs website. Sharon Urig Ohio PTA Secretary/Treasurer



TREASURER TOOLS

RELINQUISHING OFFICE

As the school year comes to a close, it is time for PTAs to

transition to new officers. There are several items the PTA treasurer needs to have in

order.

Be sure that all state and national dues have been collected and forwarded to the

Ohio PTA office.

Balance the books in preparation for the financial review. PTA financial books

should agree with the bank balance.

Prepare a financial report covering term of office. Prepare IRS Form 990/Form

990-EZ/Form or 990-N for filing as well as registration with the Attorney

Generals office.

Arrange for transfer of all records, reports and files to the new treasurer.

Make arrangements for updating signature cards with the bank so that the new

treasurer may draw on funds without delay.

Forward a copy of the annual financial report to the Ohio PTA office.

Prepare the treasurer file to transfer to the next treasurer. This file should contain the

following items:

A copy of the PTA unit or council bylaws and standing rules.

A copy of the budget adopted by the organization.

Receipt book to acknowledge money received by the treasurer.

Checkbook and saving account records.

Treasurers account book or ledger in which to keep the financial records of the organization.

Permanent IRS Identification Number (EIN), copies of filed Form 990, 990-EZ,

or 990-N, any other required IRS forms, and records of Attorney Generals office registration.

Current membership list.

The Ohio PTA Legal and Financial Management Handbook as well as financial

information from National PTA.

Refer to Records Retention Schedule for recommended retention of PTA legal

and financial records.

Past three years of budgets.

Sharon Urig

Ohio PTA Secretary/Treasurer



Director Reports

DIRECTOR OF ADVOCACY REPORT

According to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, the definition of advocacy is

the act of or process of supporting a cause or proposal. While no member of a PTA may be surprised to learn that, many may be surprised at the depth and breadth of PTA

advocacy work around Ohio and in Washington, D. C. to help children and youth.

PTA advocates bring critical issues that affect the education, health and welfare of

children and youth before the public, policy makers and elected officials. Ohio PTAs communication and collaboration among state directors, council and unit presidents

through action alerts, new articles and conference calls have expanded our ability to

reach our members. Furthermore, Ohio PTA keeps advocacy relevant through

workshops, lobbying legislative leaders in Washington and Columbus, working on

public education concerns, and building our advocacy capacity. On behalf of every

child, we take action, provide resources, and initiate programs for parents and PTA

leaders to advocate for public education success within their community.

As we review the year, Ohio PTA advocacy focused on empowering members to

become better advocates for every child. With one voice, we started the summer

helping promote advocacy concerns around the nation. Many Ohio PTA members

supported several National PTA requests to contact national leaders about pending

legislation and co-sponsorship of new proposals. Furthermore, the National PTAs 2015 Public Policy Agenda continues to address public education priorities for every

child. The executive summary outlines four key priorities: Education Equity,

Educational Funding, Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Child Nutrition

and School Safety and is available on its website. Among the National PTA initiatives,

family engagement language in laws; safe, healthy, and technologically advanced

schools; and equal opportunity for children, regardless of socioeconomic background

dominate the advocacy efforts around the United States. Likewise, national education

measures must be advanced to ensure every child, no matter what, has the opportunity

to receive a public education. PTA lobbying efforts were realized when members of

Congress reintroduced the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education

Act (ESEA) in February. At the National PTA Legislative Conference in March, three

of Ohio PTA leaders, Lisa Mack, Sheila Ragland, and Debbie Tidwell attended

various workshops and spent a day visiting all 18 Ohio Congressional offices to share

the valuable work Ohio PTA offers. While managing public education continues to be

a local matter, a national commitment to a thorough and efficient common educational

system requires vigilant state and local advocacy for the children using it.

Over three decades of research constantly reminds us that family engagement in

education is the key underpinning of not only individual student achievement but also

whole school improvement. With that in mind, and a little closer to home, Ohio PTA

advocacy work was two-pronged this year. First, monthly reminders were given to

members of how easy it is to advocate regularly. Second, Ohio PTA leaders conducted

workshops for members, attended several state and national meetings on education

topics, visited legislators, and participated in webinars and conference calls on relevant

issues to our members and promote public education.



Every month in the advocacy article in the Ohio PTA newsletter, a segment called

Advocacy in Action was included which offered readers concepts on advocacy engagement. Simple ideas such as using national themed months as launching pads for advocacy in a unit or council, inviting elected officials to schools to understand what

happens in public education, or having stationary at meetings and writing letters to state

and/or national legislators then personally delivering them to their local/state offices.

Random acts of advocacy generate curiosity that leads to involvement. Great leaders

within PTA understand that education and training is not only for students, but for all of

us as well.

During the summer and into fall, I presented advocacy workshops at conferences and

workshops training PTA leaders on election participation, grassroots advocacy, and

meeting with legislators. In addition, Ohio PTA has continued to build relationships with

various organizations across the state that champion public education. At the state level,

the Ohio PTA Board of Directors continues to produce outstanding advocacy endeavors

through involvement. Other directors have participated in respective coalitions or

fieldwork. Throughout the year, I represented Ohio PTA at several meetings and on

conference calls from teen safe driving, to juvenile justice reform to working with your

school board to standards and assessment. On October 6, 2014, Lisa Mack, Venezuela

Robinson, and I visited the Cleveland office of Senator Portman to discuss topics from

human trafficking to state standards and assessments to education and employment

opportunities. My Ohio PTA advocacy work continued by attending meetings, webinars,

and conference calls with the Ohio Juvenile Justice Coalition, Ohio Teen Safe Driving

Coalition, Ohio Standards, Educator Leaders Cadre, ODEs Committee of Practitioners and ODEs Education Equity Stakeholders. In February, Ohio PTA conducted training webinars on what parents needed to know about assessments. These webinars allowed

local units and councils to hold parent informational meetings plus provide resources.

None of this could be possible without the valuable support of Ohio PTA members.

Many participated in the Ohio PTA state-wide advocacy conference calls held on

understanding changes to Ohios assessments and engaging with your school board. The variety of advocacy efforts undertaken by PTA members reflect the numerous ways

children need to be protected, educated, and sustained in their formative years.

Ohio PTA members continue to be a powerful voice for the education and well-being of

every child. We must continue advocating at the local, state, and national levels on

behalf of all children to ensure a quality and equitable public education. In closing, I

leave you with this quote from Maya Angelou, The thing to do, it seems to me, is to prepare yourself so you can be a rainbow in somebody else's cloud. Somebody who may

Thank you for this opportunity to be an Ohio PTA leader.

Jackie Arendt

Director of Advocacy




BYLAWS AND STANDING RULESDont stop reading; dont go to sleep. Some would say boring, but they are SO necessary for the running of your PTAs. Some of you may like me or some may want to pull me aside and have a word with me! I guess it depends on how fast I got your approved bylaws back to you or if I made you

correct a few things in your bylaws.

Bylaws are an entity of PTA that has no beginning and no end. There are no deadlines,

such as in Membership, therefore, bylaws can be done ANY time of year.

Bylaw revisions arent as hard as people make them out to be. It can be a little time consuming, but not difficult. There are six simple steps to revising our bylaws:

1. Obtain a copy of your current bylaws and a copy of the current sample bylaws from

me.

2. Form a committee 3 people is good.

3. Have committee meet and go over the current units bylaws and the sample bylaws. Make comparisons.

4. Bring your revised bylaws back to your units PTA meeting for review and discussion.

5. Ask for a vote to approve the new bylaws at your next months unit meeting.

6. Email them to me and I will check them over and approve or send them back to you

for a revision.

This whole process can take up to 3 months so plan ahead if you want to change something in your bylaws by a certain date or event.

Your unit and council bylaws need to be reviewed every 3 years.

There is a Bylaw and Standing Rules committee for Ohio PTA that gets together once a

year and has a marathon session to go through the Ohio PTA bylaws, the unit and

council bylaw samples, and standing rules samples line by line to update and tweak the wording to better fit your PTAs. So dont be surprised when there is new wording, a new sentence or even a new article that needs to be added. I know it is a relief when

your bylaws and approved and you can move on, but your PTAs will run so smoothly

when your bylaws and standing rules are in order.

In the last year I have approved 72 bylaws and standing rules. Since becoming your

Director of Bylaws almost four year ago I have also: had emergency gallbladder surgery,

dealt with losing my mom after finding out she had cancer for only four weeks, cleaned

out her home of 42 years and sold it, had both knees replaced, served as council

president and a held a variety of other positions on the unit level, and raised my 3

children ages 21, 17, and 15, alongside my wonderful husband. I tell you this not for

your sympathy or praise, but to remind you that all of us are VOLUNTEERS. We all get

paid the same wage for what we dothe satisfaction that we are making a difference in the lives of the children in Ohio and beyond.

I want to thank you for your patience, your hard work, your time and dedication, and

also for your kind words of sympathy and well wishes during the past four years.

Continue with your hard work and know that the children of Ohio are better off because

of what you do!

Linda Read




Director of Diversity and Inclusion

All director plans and policies were updated in November 2014 to include diversity

and inclusion in all aspects of PTA leadership plans.

The diversity and inclusion committee, aptly named the MOSAIC Committee, is the

primary resource for fostering unity within the units in the state. The term mosaic, from

which the committee name is derived, serves as a reminder that we want our PTAs to be reflective of the communities that they serve. Rather than wanting every family to

come in and just blend into our units, we want each familys culture to be integrated into and embraced by our PTAs.

The committee communicates via conference call and has met eight times since last

years convention. The MOSAIC Committee produced articles for our state newsletter, as well as social media postings that align with National PTA's "Every Child in Focus"

campaign. Our diversity and inclusion committee includes a wide variety of persons

with varied areas of expertise such as military family programs, Title I education

aspects, talented and gifted resources, and many others which allows for a broad

spectrum of collaborative activities. We continue to make contact and seek

partnerships with other like-minded organizations such as the O.A.G.C. (Ohio

Association for Gifted Children). To promote diversity and inclusion practices, the

Ohio PTA is developing a Diversity and Inclusion Digital Toolkit. This toolkit will help unit and council leaders and members acquire resources and points of contact

covering a wide array of diversity issues. The concept is to build and maintain a digital

platform with web hosting that allows easy access for users and updates easily for the

project administrator and contains tabs that can be updated by subject-matter experts.

Our Male Involvement Committee continued an essay contest this year that allows

students to submit an article about a strong male role model in their life. This contest,

named the M.A.C.K. (Male Actions Changing Kids) Award, was the subject of an

article that was published in the October 2014 issue of National PTAs Our Children magazine.

Terry Hickey

Director of Diversity and Inclusion



Director of Education

The subject of education continues to be marked with controversy, confession and

politics. This year has been no different. Since the implementation of Common Core,

there have been many changes both good and bad. In 2010-2011 we saw the

implementation of the new state standards for language arts and math. The 2014-2015

school year saw the implementation of the new standards for science, social studies

and the fine arts. Along with the changes in state standards, there have also been new

testing procedures put in place. PARCC testing began this year. As the Advocacy

and Common Core Directors can attest, this has caused the most controversy. U.S.

students still rank 23rd in the world for science, 31st for math and 17th in reading.

Many of Ohios students go to college unprepared for the demands of a college curriculum. We must all remember that the new standards are being put in place to

help our students be prepared for college and future careers.

Graduation Requirements

Along with the new state standards there are new requirements for graduation. This

year the class of 2018, which were this years incoming freshman class, will follow new requirements for graduation based on an 18 point accumulated score. In

September of this year the state school board set the point system that will be used to

earn the needed accumulated points. Students points will be determined by seven end-of-course exams. All students will be required to take end-of-course exams in algebra

and geometry or integrated math I and II; Physical science; American history and

American government; English I and English II. The end of year course exams will

replace the OGTs.

Students studying Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB) or

taking dual enrollment courses in physical science, American history or American

government may take assessments aligned to those courses in lieu of end-of-course

exams to avoid double testing.

Students can also earn a remediation-free score on a nationally-recognized college admission exam such as ACT or SAT is another pathway to a diploma. The state of

Ohio will pay for all 11th-grade students in the Class of 2018 and beyond to take the

exam free of charge.

Students may earn a State Board of Education-approved, industry-recognized

credential or a state-issued license for practice in a career and achieve a score that

demonstrates workforce readiness and employability on a job skills assessment.

The State Board of Education will consider more AP exams, dual enrollment exams

and International Baccalaureate exams in the coming months. When the test results

from the first exams of the 2014-2015 year have been reported and compared the

board will release the score crosswalk for assigning graduation points.

Continued...



Safe Harbor

Safe Harbor has also been implemented as Ohio transitions to new state tests. Safe harbor gives schools, teachers and students time to adjust to the new tests. In most cases, there will no longer be consequences tied to the results of the state tests given in the 2014-2015 school year. The consequences of state tests usually impact the following school year. Therefore, a safe harbor on tests given in the 2014-2015 school year will affect consequences in the 2015-2016 school year.

As part of safe harbor, the 2015 Ohio School Report Card (which is based on 2014-2015 test results) will not have an overall letter grade or letter grades for the six groupings of measures called components. All other results and letter grades will be reported on the 2015 Ohio School Report Card, just like previous years.

Student growth makes up a significant portion of a teachers evaluation. State tests are one of the ways to calculate this student growth. Because of the transition to new state tests, House Bill 487 created an opportunity for a safe harbor for teachers. Safe harbor for teachers allows school districts and teachers unions to enter a memorandum of understanding to not include student growth calculated from state tests when making decisions regarding dismissal, retention, tenure or compensation. Teachers covered by safe harbor will still receive a student growth score and an overall, summative rating. However, the score and rating may not be used for the employment decisions previously mentioned. It is up to the school district and teachers union, through the memorandum of understanding, to determine how the remaining components will be used for those employment decisions. The rating of a teacher covered by safe harbor still can be used to trigger professional development and improvement plan requirements. If their performance is high enough, these teachers also can be placed on a modified evaluation schedule in future years.

The General Assembly passed House Bill 7 that outlines several ways students may not be impacted by the 2014-2015 state tests. Schools may not use the results from the tests given during the 2014-2015 school year in any decision to grant credit to a student. The law also ensures that a students score report from these tests is only released to the school district, the student and the students family. Finally, schools may not use the results from the tests given during the 2014-2015 school year as a factor to promote or deny a students promotion to a higher grade level.

The only exception to this safe harbor provision is the Third Grade Reading

Guarantee. Students still will be required to reach the promotion score on the

states reading test or an alternative test if they are not exempt from retention. It

Third Grade Reading Guarantee

Lastly, the Third Grade Reading Guarantee. This year the minimum passing

score on the third grade reading assessment was raised from 392, last year, to

394, this year. Results from the states spring 2014 reading test show that

25,000 students improved enough between the start of the year and the end of

the year to move on to the 4th grade. In the 2012-2013 school year 88.2% of

third graders met the minimum requirements to move on to the 4th grade.

During the 2013-2014 school year, 95.8% of 4th graders met the minimum

requirements to move on to the 4th grade. We can see that these efforts put

forth are paying off.



Step Up To Quality

A cross-agency team began working in May 2012 to develop a new single framework for quality that the state can apply to all early learning and development programs. The team includes ODJFS and ODE staff and key external stakeholders. The Step Up to Quality Program was implemented to improve early childhood learning standards for preschool children so that they can be prepared to enter kindergarten. In order for early learning centers to receive state funding they must adhere to certain state standards.

The program standards are organized into the following four domains:

Learning and Development: Is the program using research based curricula aligned to Ohios new early learning and development standards for birth to kindergarten entry?

Staff Qualifications and Professional Development: Have administrators, teachers and assistant teachers obtained required credentials and ongoing professional development hours?

Administrative and Leadership Practices: To what extent does the program adhere to an annual continuous improvement process?

Family and Community Partnerships: How well does the program engage families and community partners to support children and families while enrolled in the program and as they transition into and out of the program?

The original Step Up To Quality program contained three levels, or ratings. Programs had to meet all standards for a given level before advancing to the next level. A new model has been implemented that uses a newly designed points approach to create star ratings that correspond to each level of achievement. A program in level one will receive one star; a program in level two will receive two stars; and so forth. Programs must meet all standards at the lower level before advancing to the next level. Beyond step level three, programs are awarded points based on their adherence to step level three requirements and their ability to achieve additional performance targets. Programs must achieve a minimum of at least one point in each of the four domains and can earn extra points for accreditation, lower staff/child ratios, and group size. A program will be awarded four or five stars depending on the programs point total.

Verification ODE and ODJFS will cross train staff members to conduct SUTQ reviews and verify the star rating attained by a program. Both agencies are working together to develop the review and verification process and to identify the documentation and other evidence programs will need to provide.

Before implementing the new quality measures, programs will receive a guidance document containing details about the review process and how the state will verify each standard. Legislation in HB 487 and SB 316 requires all publicly funded early learning and development programs to participate in Step Up To Quality as a condition of funding.

Rebecca Gawsyszawski Director of Education




Part 1: Family-School Partnership

The FSP goals for the year were to: 1) determine best practices and effective ways we

can partner to strengthen the family unit, 2) extend involvement with PTA families and

schools, and 3) develop new ways to engage the community. Progress was made

towards these goals through a wide variety of activities that took place over the past

year.

Our FSP committee members worked very hard to build family-school partnerships for

student success by promoting programs that link learning to improved student

outcomes through communication and empowerment. I wish to thank my committee

for their continued support and commitment to FSP this year: Lisa Catalano, Hazel

Trinko, Debbie Tidwell, Maria Lang, Lisa Mack and Sheila Ragland.

Take Your Family To School Week

Our efforts included the promotion of National PTA Family-School Partnership

programs such as the Phoebe Apperson Hearst and the Take Your Family to School Awards. The theme this year was prevention of high school dropouts and took place

February 16-20.

We are very pleased to report that Stiles Elementary School received the 2014 Take

Your Family to School Week (TYFTSW) Award, and won $1000 for their program.

They hold the distinction of being the only winner from Ohio, one of 50 winners across

the US, out of 230 applications. Principal Jessica Cahill wrote to us about her

commitment to family involvement and two-way communication in her school. For

their project, families engaged in a writing lesson with their child and participated in a

read-a-thon. This event was just one of the ways Stiles Elementary involves families in

being part of student success. For more info on how to promote TYFTSW, you can go

to pta.org and download the toolkit.

National PTA School of Excellence

Last year, over 300 PTAs participated in National PTA's School of Excellence

program. Of those participants, National PTA recognized 170 schools as 2014-2016

Bay Village Senior PTSA - BV

Copley-Fairlawn Middle PTSA Copley

Fort Island El PTA- Copley

Green Valley EL PTA -- Parma

Grindstone El - Berea

Normandy El - BV

Westerly El - BV

Congratulations to all!



This year we have 11 (eleven) PTAs that are seeking the National PTA School of

Excellence Award. They will finish the Award in June. Best wishes to:

Jefferson Raiders

Brookview Elementary

Forest Park Middle

Westlake High

Bay Middle School

Copley High

Grant Elementary

Schumacher CLC

Bellflower Elementary

Pleasant Valley

Ohio PTA Family-School Partnership

The Ohio PTA Family-School Partnership Certificate Award is now in its second year.

This is an individual award. First year winners receive a nice pin, all winners receive a

certificate. The forms are available on the Ohio PTA web page. This award runs starts

October 1 and runs through September 30. The award highlights our new way of leading

in Ohio PTA in terms of building family-school partnerships for student success by

creating programs that link learning to student success, communication and

empowerment; speaking on behalf of children in ways to protect and promote their

success, engaging teachers and family members to promote success, as well as

partnering with community members, businesses, and other organizations to improve

learning and student achievement. We recently revised the form to make some edits in

organization, tweaked the point scoring and added a space for to give you credit for

viewing the new e-learning workshop Family-School Partnership.

Throughout the past year, local units and districts were assisted as needed with District

workshops and leadership conferences. We continue to speak on behalf of children

across the state of Ohio in ways to protect and promote their learning, engage teachers

and family members in collaboration as well as focus on programming on issues that

strengthen family and encourage parent leadership as we partner with the entire school

community for student success.

A State-Wide Conference to help units get started with applying for the School of

Excellence Award was planned for April 14, 2015. The FSP committee met in October,

November, January, March and April.

To continue our community outreach, our board of directors collected school supplies in

the fall and donated to a Columbus metro area school. We collected shoes that will be

recycled for use in communities of need. We sent the shoes to Shoebox Recycling, a

company that gives us a donation for the shoes, that we will use for the Ohio PTA

Scholarship program.



Thanks to all who brought shoes. If you want to continue to collect them in your

districts and need boxes or someone to pick them up, feel free to contact me and I will

make arrangements for this.

In the year ahead, we will concentrate our efforts to 1) seek partnerships with

community members, businesses, and other organizations in establishing FSP programs

and 2) develop new ideas for promoting FSP with committee input.

Please send me your success stories and the FSP activities in your units and how you

are engaging with your schools and communities! I welcome your ideas and

suggestions.

Part II: Reflections

Our goals for this years Reflections Program are to: 1) promote the Reflections

Program at local, state and national level. 2) provide up-to-date information to clarify

issues, address concerns and provide assistance as needed and 3) seek partnerships with

community members, businesses, and other organizations to help bring the Reflections

Program to all children across Ohio.

Participation in Reflections speaks on behalf of children in ways to promote Arts in

Education across the entire state.

Activities to meet these goals included overseeing the Reflections Program and

incorporating it as an integral part to the Family-School Partnership Program. I attended

monthly State Reflections team webinars and helped to disseminate communications

and information from National PTA. Updates were provided on the Ohio PTA website,

Facebook, newsletter, Twitter and email blasts.

2014-2015 Highlights

While most of our entries continue to be in the visual arts and photography categories, it

was great to see so many entries in dance, film, literature, and music and the new

Special Artist Award. We are hoping to continue to grow in reaching all corners of the

state for even more participation in this program.

This years theme, The world would be a better place if sparked a great deal of

creativity. The judges commented on the outstanding caliber of the entries, making the

selection very difficult. We congratulate all that participated in Reflections at the local

level, those that were advanced to the state level, those that we advanced to the National

level, and those that won on the National level. The results of the state judging were

sent to all participating councils and ribbons were sent to all participants in the program.

National winners are acknowledged at Convention in June (Charlotte) and are invited to

a special exhibit ceremony in January (Washington DC Dept of Ed).

Continued...



State Award of Excellence, Award of Outstanding Achievement, Award of Merit and

Honorable Mentions were displayed at our state convention. The visual arts and

photography works are on a roadshow and will be displayed at libraries in Avon Lake, Painesville, Solon and Columbus Public Library, downtown branch. The works

will remain at Columbus Public Library until September after which the pieces will be

returned to the artist.

We worked throughout the year to distribute and clarify information concerning

Reflections across Ohio. This was accomplished through Reflections roundtables,

workshops, district conferences, Facebook and Twitter communications, newsletter

articles, phone calls and emails. Two state-wide web conferences were held in

December to discuss online registration and clarify concerns.

Theme Search Results

Our Reflections Committee met per phone conference in October, November,

December, January and April. One of the functions of the committee is to select five

National PTA selected an entry from Brianna Eisman of Douglas Anderson PTSA in Jacksonville, Florida: What is your story for the 2016-2017 year. We will hold another Theme Search in the fall and I hope we will again receive an even

larger number of entries!

Continued...

I did not know I could...

Laila Sitts - Uniontown - Grade 6

If I could have a wish come true it would be...

Madison Harrison- Barberton - Grade 4

In the blink of an eye

Abigail Dumm - Westlake - Grade 6

What lies beyond the rainbow?...

Jenna Steiner- Uniontown - Grade 2

When I close my eyes this is what I see...



General Info

Participation in the Reflections Program is open to any student in Ohio through a local

PTA/PTSA in good standing. PTAs in good standing pay membership dues to Ohio

PTA by November 30. Students in grade divisions - Primary: preschoolgrade 2, Intermediate: grades 35, Middle/Junior: grades 68 and Senior: grades 912 may submit works in any of the six arts areas: Literature, Musical composition,

Photography, Visual arts, Dance choreography, and Film production. Special artists

can submit in any category. The Reflections Program is one way we can speak on

behalf of children to promote diversity and inclusion. New on the horizon: We are

considering adding 3D art to the competition (submitted digitally). For now, our 2015-

16 program will be the same as this past year. Reflections At-A-Glance Forms will be

posted soon on the Ohio PTA website.

I wish to express my sincere thanks to the Reflections Committee: Gloria Cazan, Sue

Owen, Hazel Trinko, Lis Sobczyk, Dana Paul, JoEllen Weingarten, Lisa Mack, Sheila

Ragland, and Susan Hans. I also wish to thank those that helped with processing the

entries, hanging artwork, and other supportive activities: Lynn LaMore, her daughter

Heather and son-in-law Steve, Sue Owen, Jeri Gookin, Susan Hans and crew, Sheila

and Robert Ragland.

The Reflections Handbook is undergoing revision and will be available soon. We will

continue with online registration and will provide information, workshops, phone

conferences and webinars throughout the year to help your PTA succeed. The theme

for 2015-2016 is Let your imagination fly...

Pam Bonnett


Director of Health, Welfare & Safety

Parents, schools, and communities share the responsibility for the health, welfare, and

safety of children. Health is a state of physical and emotional well-being, not merely

the absence of disease or illness. Welfare pertains to identifying and helping children

and youth who are neglected, dependent, unwanted, and abused or in trouble with the

law. Safety relates to identifying the areas of greatest potential threat to children and

youth and averting these dangers.

Therefore, the Ohio PTA Director of Health, Welfare and Safety serves as a strong

advocate and resource to PTA members across the state by coordinating workshops,

providing information, and circulating tools provided by National PTA and through

other energetic collaborators within these fundamental areas of concern for all children

and youth.

Our diverse HWS committee held two state-wide conference calls on Human

Trafficking. The February state-wide call was in collaboration with the Advocacy area

and Family-School Partnership.

During the first half of this school year we continued to write, publish, and distribute a monthly eNewsletter about health, welfare, and safety issues supported by

Ohio PTA programs in partnership or in-sync with other entities such as Action for

Healthy Kids, Ohio Safe Driving Coalition, National Center for Safe Routes to

School, Ohio Injury Prevention Partnership, Ohio Department of Healths Creating Sustainable School Environmental Health in Ohio, HASH, which is an

acronym for Home and School Health) through the Academy of Pediatrics, and

The American Heart Association just to name a few.



National PTA has partnered with Safe Routes to School National Partnership and Kaiser

Permanente on Fire Up Your Feet, a physical activity program that encourages families

to walk more to and from schooland in daily lifewhile keeping track of their steps, and raising money for their PTA or school. Ohio PTA continues to promote this

opportunity for our units and schools. For more information, visit fireupyourfeet.org.

Ohio PTA continues to work with the American Heart Association through their Healthy

Voices for Kids initiative to combat obesity through a six-prong focus smart foods, healthy drinks, unhealthy marketing to kids, healthy food accessibility in communities,

increasing community active places (which is referred to as Shared Use), and the 6th area is promoting active kids out-of-school. With our testimony and others within the

coalition, Shared-Use in now law in the great State of Ohio.

The Ohio Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics reminds children to Put a Lid on It! Protect Before You Pedal. This is a statewide public awareness campaign. For more information about how to properly fit a helmet, bike helmet safety events

throughout the state and ongoing safety updates, visit facebook.com/bikehelmetsafety.

Venezuela Robinson

Director of Health, Welfare, & Safety

Director of Membership

It has been a privilege to serve as your Director of Membership over the last 5 years.

Every year has been a pivotal move forward to improving membership communications

and providing valuable information to officers and chairmen around the state. I am

extremely proud of all the accomplishments our membership committee has made this

past term. We stand 70,000 members strong in Ohio.

As Ohio PTA membership, we are stillAdvocating in Perfect Harmony for

Children. Advocating is more than only taking a stand on Capitol Hill. And being a

part of the PTA experience is even more than just taking a stand for children. Being a

part of PTA means taking a stand for families. We throw around the term family

engagement, but what that really means is we want the entirety of the family unit to be

strong, educated, and healthful. By helping families as a whole, we are advocating for

every child. Strong families create strong schools and an entire ripple effect happens,

which positively affects entire communities. This is how we advocate in perfect

harmony as PTA.

As we finish out this year, we look back at a road paved with good intentions. We

wanted to reach out further to districts, councils and unit PTAs through discussions and

best practices in Membership. We wanted to increase the communication directly in the

field so that the topic of Membership would be on the minds of PTA leaders throughout

our State. We wanted to encourage councils to reach out to their PTAs and make

membership a priority by giving more incentives and more personal contacts. We

continued our statewide calls and opened the door for PTAs to network and learn from

each other. We continued to provide proven programs like Member Perks for units as a

guide of how to maintain a strong membership and be rewarded for each

accomplishment. We increased awareness with The Membership Dues Review process

which was started last year.



And although we were not successful in growing overall memberships in Ohio, we

have successfully kept our rate of decline below the national averages. I believe in

celebrating the small successes and will still hope that one day, through the leadership

of those who will come after me, that we will be one day celebrating the big success of

increasing Membership numbers in Ohio!

Let us celebrate those PTAs who earned their Member Perk rewards for 2013/2014

they are: Fort Island Primary PTA, Olmsted Falls Middle School PTA, Green Valley

PTA, North Olmsted Early Childhood PTA, and Dexter Drake Elementary PTA.

Congratulations to these PTAs, for completing the program and receiving their well-

earned PTA Perks.

The winners of the 2014/2015 Membership Incentive for Councils and Units were

drawn during our state convention. The Councils represented in this raffle with one

ticket or more for their units with 15% increases or higher are: Greenville Council,

Avon Lake Council, North Ridgeville City Council, Marion Council, Columbus Coun-

cil, South-Western City Schools Council, Worthington Council, Westerville Council,

Bedford Council, Cleveland Heights Union Heights Council, Euclid Council, Fair-

view Park Council, Garfield Heights Council, Lakewood Council, S. Euclid-Lyndhurst

Council, Bay Village Council, Berea Council, North Olmsted Council, Olmsted Falls

Council, Parma Council, Rocky River Council, Strongsville Council, Westlake Council,

Akron Council, Barberton Council, Cuyahoga Falls Council, Nordonia Council, Stow-

Munroe Falls Council, Green Council, Tallmadge Council, Revere Council, Twinsburg

City Schools Council, Lake County Council, Austintown Council, Boardman Council,

and Warren Community Council.

Congratulations to all the Councils with Membership growth!

Units were recognized at convention with a drawing for those who increased members

by 10% or higher, and those with a 50% increase or higher.

Congratulations to our raffle winners!! And to all the Membership leaders around the

state, thank you for your passion and dedication to PTA Membership!

Suzie Smith-Rios

Director of Membership



Your Ohio PTA Board of Directors . . . the field service team

Your Ohio PTA Directors

Your Ohio PTA Staff

President

Lisa Mack

216-691-2990

[email protected]

President-Elect

Sheila Ragland

614-351-8083

[email protected]

V P of Leadership

Ana Chapman

440-234-2504

[email protected]

V P of Field Service

Cathy Harless

614-877-3673

[email protected]

Secretary/Treasurer

Sharon Urig

440-365-7602

[email protected]

Executive Director

Sue Owen

[email protected]

[email protected]

Administrative Director

Jeri Gookin

[email protected]

Immediate Past President

Gloria Cazan

440-886-1453

Advocacy

Jackie Arendt

440-230-1567

[email protected]

Bylaws & Standing Rules

Linda Read

330-923-7248

bylawsandstand-

[email protected]

Events

Lynn LaMore

440-356-9710

[email protected]

Membership

Suzie Smith-Rios

614-878-3596

member-

[email protected]

Education

Rebecca Gawsyszawski

440-315-9097

[email protected]

Diversity & Inclusion

Terry Hickey

614-870-9570

[email protected]

Family-School

Partnership

Pam Bonnett

440-871-7932

[email protected]

Health Welfare &

Safety

Venezuela Robinson

440-786-9855

[email protected]

Your Ohio PTA District Advisors

Vacant Advisor Positions: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 10,

11, 19 Assistant Director of Advocacy, Bylaws,

Communications, Education, Health, Welfare &

Safety and Family-School Partnership

If anyone is interested in serving on the Ohio PTA

Board of Directors, contact Ana Chapman at

[email protected]. Job descriptions and

an application are posted on the Ohio PTA website.

Your Ohio PTA Officers

District 7

Susan Hans

440-243-8776

[email protected] District 17

Carol Beasley

216-383-1963

The Mission of the Ohio PTA

CHILD ADVOCACY

PARENT/FAMILY EDUCATION

SERVICE TO PUBLIC SCHOOLS

District 13

Lisa Weaver

330-825-8252

District 11Interim

Debbie Tidwell

440-779-7141

District 12

Maria Lang

440-289-9696

District 18

Hazel Trinko

330-896-1694

Communications

Jeanne Groetz-Shockling

330-313-1544

the ohio pta voice may_june 2015 issue

Documents

pta symphony

ohio pta president

ohio pta note

ohio pta voice page

pta tagline

ohio pta board of directors

ohio pta cathy harless

beautiful symphony