Monthly archives for October, 2009

State PTA 2010 Legislation Conference

Oct27
2009 Written by Webmaster

Registration is now open for the 2010 State PTA Legislation Conference, which will take place on Sunday, February 21-Monday, February 22, 2010 in Sacramento. This year’s theme is “Connecting the Dots: From Issues to Advocacy.” Come learn from education policy experts and State PTA advocates about the major issues affecting children and families, what PTA’s positions are on these issues, and strategies to use when you meet with your legislators. Time will be provided on Monday afternoon for appointments with your local legislators.

The conference will take place at the Embassy Suites Hotel (near Old Sacramento). Registration costs for the conference is $135, and hotel rooms are $159 per night. The conference fee covers all conference activities and materials, and dinner on Sunday and lunch at the capitol on Monday. The hotel serves a complimentary full cooked-to-order breakfast daily and a manager’s reception in the evening. Travel and hotel costs are not included. Visit the State PTA website for more information and to register.

Posted in Events, Legislation, State PTA News

Education Town Hall with Jerry Hill & Jack O’Connell

Oct22
2009 Written by Webmaster

Assemblymember Jerry Hill will be hosting an Education Town Hall with guest Jack O’Connell, State Superintendent of Public Instruction. This is an excellent opportunity to learn about priority education issues at the state and local levels and share your ideas for improvements.

The event will take place on Wednesday, October 28, 7:00-8:30 PM at the Hillsdale High School Cafeteria at 3115 Del Monte Street in San Mateo, located near the corner of Alameda de las Pulgas and 31st Ave (view map). Please RSVP for the event.

Posted in 17th District News, Events, Legislation

17th District PTA General Meeting, Wed 10/14

Oct11
2009 Written by Webmaster

Including a Presentation on Key PTA Issues in State & Federal Legislation

Funding for schools in California continues to be a major concern of the PTA, along with other issues affecting children and families. How can we influence the legislative process? Debbie Look, State PTA’s Director of Legislation, will share how she, as a volunteer, works to educate the state legislators to see the PTA point of view. The presentation will include a brief overview of key legislative issues for PTA, at both the state and federal level and an overview of the current status of education funding. The presentation will follow a brief business meeting starting at 7 p.m. All members of the community are invited to attend!

Please join us for 17th District PTA’s annual fall General Meeting this Wednesday, October 14 at the San Mateo County Office of Education, 101 Twin Dolphin Drive, Redwood City (view map).

The Resource Area for Teaching (RAFT) has a new facility at the San Mateo County Office of Education and will be giving tours until 7 PM. Join us before the meeting (at 6:30 PM) for a tour.

Our meeting begins at 7:00 PM with the following agenda:
Welcome and Introductions — Colette Rudd, 17th District PTA President
Business of the Organization

  • Finance Reports
  • Approval of the 2009-10 Budget and Release of Funds
  • Approval of the 2009-10 Calendar

Guest Speakers

  • Jean Holbrook, County Superintendent of Schools
  • Lynda Dobyns, Director of Resource Area for Teacher (RAFT)
  • Debbie Look, Director of Legislation, California State PTA

ALL community members and PTA members in San Mateo County are invited to attend! Please come and learn more about PTA and California and 17th District helps make a difference for students. Please RSVP to Colette Rudd, 17th District President, and we hope to see you on Wednesday!

Posted in 17th District News, Events, Legislation

Message from the President — October 2009

Oct11
2009 Written by Webmaster

I am honored to be the new President of the 17th District of the California PTA. Our members are all of the members of the local PTAs and PTSAs in the San Mateo County – approximately 20,000 of you!

We are part of nearly one million PTA members in the state of California, and we’d like to make it more than one million. Why? Because legislators pay attention to PTA, and will pay more attention if we have more members. Building Community Unity is the theme of PTA’s 2009-10 membership campaign.
Please encourage everyone you know to be a PTA member!

The State PTA Director of Legislation, Debbie Look, is our featured speaker at our first program of the year, on Wed. evening, Oct. 14 (see flyer on page 1), at the San Mateo County Board of Education (SMCOE). She advocates for all of us on the state legislature’s proposals that affect children, families and schools. Many of us wonder what we can do with regard to legislative issues, especially those involving the education and the state budget. As a volunteer for PTA, she is uniquely qualified to answer this question.

Jean Holbrook, County Superintendent of Schools, and Lydia Dobyns, the director of new Redwood City Resource Area for Teaching (RAFT) will also give short presentations on Oct. 14, and the RAFT facility will be open for tours before the meeting (until 7 p.m.). Everyday items like foam cut-outs and office supplies are donated to RAFT by local businesses and these items are transformed into interactive, hands-on learning materials for use in the classroom. The SMCOE partnership with RAFT will make it easier for San Mateo County teachers to bring science, math, and language arts to life for nearly 90,000 students.

Thank you to all who served as PTA officers last year. I hope you are still involved with PTA! I have volunteered for PTA for more than 20 years, and every year I learn something new. We have opportunities at all levels. I especially need experienced officers who are bilingual to communicate with volunteers who are still learning English.

Deborah Kemper, 17th District President for the past two years, recognized the need for leadership to help recruit a diverse set of volunteers. She is now chair of the new Diversity and Inclusion Committee for the California PTA Board, and, fortunately, is still on the 17th District PTA Board as Legislation Chair.

PTA is a grass-roots organization. We promote parent involvement. We are volunteers and we advocate for children. Our officer Susan Bell composed a song, which begins:

“We’ve lived too long in isolation
We’ve got to find new inspiration
We must increase participation
Volunteer today!”

For those of you who are currently presidents of PTA, this newsletter includes information for all PTA officers. Please share it with your board!

The 17th District PTA Board of Managers is always here to help you in any way that we can. Please do not hesitate to contact us.

I hope to see you on October 14!

Sincerely,

Colette J. Rudd
17th District PTA President

Posted in Message from the President

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The mission of the 17th District PTA is to empower local PTA/PTSA associations to support the school community by providing training, resources, education and communication to promote the value of PTA membership, programs, advocacy and networking opportunities.

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