MCCPTA News and Updates                                             November  2013

PTA members are driving countywide advocacy on capital improvements program and operating budget issues, local PTA leaders are preparing for Board of Education hearings on school construction and maintenance, and PTA was out in support of the Montgomery County Executive's proposal to seek state support for funding to move vital capacity projects forward. It's a very busy Fall! 

 

And, according to the latest membership figures, we are indeed growing; that growth is a tribute to the work of our leaders and the recognition they are sowing in their communities of the value to students and schools of parent engagement through PTA .  

 

In the month of Thanksgiving, I am more grateful than ever of the work being done by PT(S) A leaders and volunteers, and all those in our schools and our communities who share our mission of enabling every child in Montgomery County to reach his or her potential. Thank you for all you do.  This is PTA.   

   

Janette Gilman

President, Montgomery County Council of PTAs
CIP Advocacy Season is Now 
Your school need a new roof?  Permanent classroom space? A modernization? All of this and more fall under the Capital Improvements Program (CIP) budget.  Read the Superintendent's proposed CIP budget HERE.  Read MCCPTA's CIP Budget Priorities HERE.  Have questions? Come to our MCPS-MCCPTA CIP Forum, Monday November 4 at 7:30 pm in the Auditorium at the Carver Educational Services Center and ask.  
 
MCCPTA cluster coordinators and representatives from each high school cluster will be testifying before the Montgomery County Board of Education of Education on Monday November 11 or Thursday November 14 from 7 PM (to roughly 9:30 PM) at the Carver Educational Services Center.  Details on testimony schedules will be up shortly on the MCCPTA website.
  
Your presence--and that of members of your PTA and school community--makes a difference at these hearings. Wear your PTA or school spirit finest, bring your students, and join us!
Get Your Community's Voice Heard on Bell Times
MCCPTA urges every PTA and PTSA to conduct a program and collect its school community's views on the Superintendent's recommendation on bell times made in early October.  Dr. Starr's recommendation were based on the findings of the 2013 Bell Times Report, completed in August 2013, by the Bell Times Workgroup; Susan Burkinshaw, MCCPTA treasurer and co-chair of the MCCPTA Health and Safety Committee represented our organization in that work. The report reflects current research, reports from sleep experts, the efforts of other school districts, as well as previous efforts documented in reports published by Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) in 1998 and 1999.
 
MCPS has created a Neighbor-to-Neighbor toolkit to facilitate this program, provide background, and give a mechanism for input; CLICK HERE to access these resources.   
 
Three more Bell Times Community Fora will be held; this is another opportunity to have your voice heard.  The events will be held:
  • Monday, December 16: Richard Montgomery High School, 250 Richard Montgomery Drive in Rockville
  • Monday, January 6: Seneca Valley High School, 19401 Crystal Rock Drive in Germantown
  • Monday, February 10: Montgomery Blair High School, 51 University Blvd., East, in Silver Spring

All forums will be held 7-8:30pm.  Free child care (ages 4 and older) and interpretation services will be provided.

Days Away from a Winner for Membership Challenge #2
If your PTA or PTSA has grown by thirteen (13) or more members, and you send (or sent) in your dues by November 13th (thirteenth) to document that growth, your unit could win thirteen (13) $10 Silver Diner gift cards. Who EVER said 13 wasn't a lucky number?!
 
   
 
We will draw two lucky PT(S)As from all who have met the challenge by 11/13/13; winners will be announced at the November Delegates Assembly on November 26. CLICK HERE for all the details.  As of October 31, thirty (30) PTAs and PTSAs already had met the challenge; is yours one of them?
 
Need some help and/or ideas to grow? Contact our MCCPTA Membership and Engagement Chair, Shruti Bhatnagar, who is available and willing to chat or come out to your meetings to brainstorm ideas to grow PTA, or our MCCPTA Multicultural Awareness Co-Chairs, Frances Frost and Antonio Hernandez-Cardoso for tips and suggestions on outreach. You can also find ideas and resources online in our Membership Tool Kit.
November Delegates Assembly
The next MCCPTA Delegates Assembly (DA) will be held on Tuesday,November 26, starting at 7:30 PM in the Auditorium of the Carver Educational Services Center. This month's agenda will feature updates, discussion of MCCPTA's advocacy plans and projects, and presentations by several MCCPTA committees.  We also will announce the two lucky PTAs and/or PTSAs to win Membership Challenge #2.  Join us, THEN take off for Thanksgiving!  
Our Next MCCPTA Presents! 
The November edition of MCCPTA Presents! features a conversation with James Fernandez, principal of Albert Einstein High School. MCCPTA Presents programs are held each month, the same night as the Delegates Assembly, starting at 6:30pm, and are open to all PTA members.  Join us.
PTA Logo

MCCPTA Officers  

President 
Janette Gilman

VP for Educational Issues 
Shebra Evans

Vice President for Administration 
Frances Frost

Vice President for Programs  
Paul Geller

Vice President for Legislation
Lynne Harris

Treasurer  
Susan Burkinshaw

Recording Secretary -
Board of Directors 
Karen Collishaw

Recording Secretary - Delegates Assembly 
Kellie Schoolar-Reynolds
 
MCCPTA Office
Office Administrator
Pamela Loebach 
301.208.0111
 

Upcoming Dates

MCCPTA-MCPS CIP Forum
Monday, November 4
7:30-9pm
Auditorium, Carver Educational Services Center

MCPS State of the Schools
The Music Center at Strathmore
5301 Tuckerman Lane
North Bethesda
7:30 AM

Board of Education Hearings on Boundaries and Facilities 
(Capital Improvement Program)
Monday, November 11
7:00pm
Auditiorium, Carver Educational Services Center

Board of Education Hearings on Boundaries and Facilities 
(Capital Improvement Program)
Thursday, November 14
7:00pm
Auditiorium, Carver Educational Services Center
 
MCPS Community Day
Blair, Einstein, Kennedy, Northwood, Wheaton Clusters
Town Hall with Dr. Joshua Starr
Thursday, November 21
7:30-9pm
Montgomery Blair High School

MCCPTA Presents!
Tuesday, November 26
6:30-7:25pm
Auditorium, Carver Educational Services Center

 

November Delegates Assembly
Tuesday, November 26
7:30-9:30pm
Auditorium, Carver Educational Services Center




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