Please review the following nominations for your PTA Officers for  the 2014-2015 School Year:

Ashley Bunkley: Co-President 

The Bunkleys have been a family here at Nickajack Elementary for the last four years.  Their daughter Megan (10) is in fourth grade and Charlotte (7) is in 1st grade.  Ashley and her husband, Wes, both grew up in Alabama and attended Auburn

University.  They have lived in Georgia for 18 years and been in Smyrna for 15 of those years. 

Ashley has served in many different capacities throughout the years.  Those areas include classroom math parent, Mystery Reader coordinator, Room Parent, and AR parent.  She has also volunteered at school for the Nickajack Dash, Scholastic Book Fair, KC Club, Field Day, Candy Grams and numerous other needs throughout the years.  Ashley loves being a parent at the school and doing what she can to make this the best elementary school it can be for our kids and teachers.

In addition to volunteering, she has worked for the past four years at Smyrna First United Methodist Preschool & Kindergarten.  She is a Pre-K teacher and has a Bachelor Degree in Education.  Ashley is also an active member at church, the CPR (Classroom Parent Rep) at the GMDT for Megan, and has assisted in several performances with the Smyrna Village Players.  She is happy to be nominated for the co-president position for our PTA and hopes to be able to help our school reach any goals set forth for the 2014- 2015 school year.

Seth Rubenstein: Co-President

Seth is a Partner at BeaconVox.  Faced with this question when we first moved to Smyrna, November 2002: "What will you do when you have kids; move or do private school?"  He and his wife Rebeca chose neither. They decided that the best option for them was to be engaged parents. Their son, Maximino is in Mrs. Paller's 3rd grade and both Seth and Becky are quite involved in the PTA volunteering for events like the Dash, PTA Silent Auction, and bookfair just to mention a few.  And now people are asking, "where will you send Maximino when he graduates from Nickajack?" They intend to do their part to ensure that their child remains with his peers and he has the best education that they, and their tax payer provided school system, can provide. He asks, "How about You?"    

Jen Bachman: Co-VP

Jen Bachman is the proud parent of three daughters; a rising 4th grader, a rising 1st grader, and a rising kindergartner in 2015.   In the fall, the Bachman's start their 5th school year at Nickajack and they  have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know many parents and teachers at the school.  Jen has been a room parent for the last two years and has been amazed by the level of involvement by active parents and by the commitment of our teachers to go above and beyond for their students.  By being on the PTA board she hopes to support other parents who are eager to be involved at Nickajack as well as support our awesome teachers in their day to day interactions with their children.   Prior to staying home with her girls, Jen had been a math instructor at Mathnasium, a project manager at Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina and a consultant for Ernst & Young.   In her free time, you can find her on the tennis courts, at the soccer fields, or walking their new golden retriever, Teddy.

Heather Graham: Co-VP

Heather has lived in Smyrna for 9 years with her husband
Greg and their two daughters, Avery and Olivia. Avery is a first grader at Nickajack Elementary in Ms. Love-Mahone's class and Olivia is in preschool at Smyrna First Baptist. For the past two years she has been a room parent at NES and has really enjoyed helping in the classroom and interacting with both parents and teachers during this time. By serving on the PTA board she is looking forward to the opportunity to share her enthusiasm for education by encouraging parents to become involved at NES and by supporting the dedicated teachers that help our children learn and grow every day. Prior to staying home with her girls, Heather was a teacher in the Cobb County School District, an after school tutor and was a mentor for the Big Brother Big Sister Program in Atlanta. She loves being with her family and friends, staying active, being at the beach and of course, the Georgia Bulldogs!  

Sara Young: Co-Secretary

Sara is wrapping up her fourth year at Nickajack Elementary School. She and her husband, Rob, have two children at Nickajack.  Gracie (9) who is in 4th grade and Robby (7) who is in 2nd grade.  She is originally from New Jersey, but has been in Atlanta for over 20 years. Sara graduated from Jacksonville University and fell in love with the South and decided to move to Atlanta.  She has strong feelings about parental involvement at Nickajack so she has been very active here over the past 4 years. Sara has served as Secretary of the PTA this year.  She has also been a room mom, AR parent, and served on the nominating committee.  Sara also been a volunteer for the  KC Club, the Dash, PTA Pals, and the Welcoming Committee. Her husband Rob likes to help out at school events whenever he can.  Sara works for Our Town Magazine. She has been in advertising sales for over 20 years working for magazines such as Atlanta Sports & Fitness Magazine, Atlanta Home Improvement Magazine, and Southern Living Magazine.  She is pleased to be nominated to serve for the PTA as Co-Secretary next year, and hopes to make an impact next year by getting more parents involved at Nickajack!

Ivy Abelmann: Co-Secretary