THE CLARION
The Culver City Council PTA Newsletter
Web Page Edition

 

 

 

A WIN/WIN PROPOSITION
Recycle and help your PTSA! Members of the CCHS/CPHS community have been recycling printer cartridges since the fall. Preaddressed, postage paid envelopes are in the CCHS main office. Keep them near your home computer and pop a little cartridge into the envelope each time you need a replacement, costing you nothing and netting $2 for the PTSA. Thanks to Miriam Forman, who initiated the fundraiser and presented a check for $194 at our December PTSA meeting, a nice addition to our treasury for being good recyclers.

DON’T FORGET TO CHECK THE HIGH SCHOOL ONLINE BULLETIN:

http://schoolnotes.com/90230/chapmajo.html

TEEN CENTER SEEKS PARENT AND YOUTH COMMISSION PARTICIPANTS

The Culver City Teen Center is in need of parent support. We are coming up to a major change within the next year when we inherit the old Senior Center. This will give us five times the amount of space we currently enjoy. The teens within the community and the schools have voiced their opinion on what they need in a functional and meaningful Teen Center. Once we gather ideas from adults within the community we will develop a plan to implement in the new building.

The Teen Center is always soliciting support from the Culver City community, not just at times of major change. Both the Parent Commission and the Youth Commission are struggling to get off the ground. These entities provide a helpful resource to the Teen Center.  Besides the minor role of being advisory councils, both Parent and Youth
Commissions operate to connect the Teen Center participants to business opportunities, educational presentations and recreational activities.  Currently, without participants in either commission, the Teen Center relies solely on internal leadership.  It’s always a good idea to have more than one set of eyes when crossing a street.  The trick in building both Parent and Youth Commissions lay in identifying individuals who can contribute one hour each month to attend a planning meeting. Teen Center  staff have tried advertising in flyers at schools, mailing inquiries for help to parents of participants, advertising on the Culver City Community  Website and in the quarterly brochure (Culver City Living), approaching 
parents of teens and adults in the community directly by phone and in person. It’s hard to believe that the only facility in the community which caters for free to a population which is teetering on the brink of  adulthood, struggling through life’s greatest and most rapid changes and challenges are not given more attention by would-be community role models. 

Parent Commission meetings are scheduled for the first Wednesday of every month at the Teen Center beginning at 7:00pm, ending at 8:00pm. Interested parties can call Jim Warner, Teen Center Coordinator, at (310)253-6675 or by e-mail at 

PTA GRANTS AND SCHOLARSHIPS

Reminder: Just as California State PTA awards grants to arts programs (CCHS /CPHS PISA was awarded $5000 this year for the Academy's 16 mm. film), other grants and scholarships are also available. Please note the following link and, for those whose deadline has passed, keep the grants in mind for next year. They are available to students, teachers, school nurses, PTA

volunteers, etc, etc.
">California State PTA -Scholarships and Grants</A>

OF IMPORTANCE!!

 

SENATORS LOBBY FOR INCREASED PARENT INVOLVEMENT

Sens. Jack Reed (D-RI) and Ted Kennedy (D-MA) sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of Education Roderick Paige this week about the need for parents to be fully involved in the implementation of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), also known as the No Child Left Behind Act. They pledged to work with the secretary to ensure that parents' interests are represented in federal policies. The senators contend that parents are being denied their proper role in this process

and cite the negotiated rulemaking panel as an example. The law requires that the group of people charged with writing the rules on Title I standards and assessments provisions "provide a balance between representatives of parents and students and representatives of educators and education officials." However, the U.S. Department of Education is being sued by representatives of Title I parents because the rulemaking panel has only two parents among its 22 participants. Sen. Kennedy met with local parents to tell them about this letter, and to assure them that he and Sen. Reed will continue to do all they can to keep parent involvement as a top priority in implementation of ESEA, and in overall federal education reform. As stated in the letter, "Research shows that regardless of ethnic, racial, and economic background of the family, parental involvement is a major factor in determining success in school." National PTA strongly supported the strengthening of parent involvement provisions in the ESEA, and thanked Sens. Reed and Kennedy for their efforts. For additional information on parent involvement, go to .

C.E.R.T.
Community Emergency Response Team

Culver City Council PTA invites all PTA members and Culver City residents who are 16 years of age or older to become a member of Culver City's emergency preparedness team.  You can make a significant difference to our community and protect the health and safety of our children at home and at school in the event of a disaster. 

Culver City Firefighters will train you to help your family and neighbors by teaching you how to be better prepared.  There are four class sessions.  17 1/2 hours of training include: Intro to Disaster Response, First Aid in Disasters, Fire Suppression, and Light Search & Rescue.  The training takes place in Culver City at the Fire Training Facility at 9275 Jefferson Boulevard.  There is no cost for this training.

Commit yourself to helping yourself and others.  Contact the Culver City Fire Department, City Hall, 9770 Culver Boulevard, Culver City, CA  90232 or call (310) 253-5900 and let them know you are interested in CERT training.

Sincerely,

Marty Zisner
Chairperson, Health and Safety 

Your PTA Dues at Work

When you join the PTA...

1. You will be joining a nationwide organization of volunteers.
2. You will be a member of:
• the unit (individual school site), council, and 33rd District PTA
• the California state PTA
• the National PTA

Annual membership dues include per capita to the council, district, state and National PTA. The remaining portion stays with the individual school. Dues at each school may vary.

What services do your dues provide at the various branches of PTA?

At the PTA District, State and National Level: all of the above, plus Field Services, training materials, Sacramento and Washington Legislative Satellite offices and important published resources for the above levels.

The above has been adapted from the PTA Leadership Handbook, Unit Management Section - California State PTA

RESPONSIBILITIES OF A PTA Board Member

ACCEPT the position and contribute intelligently to board discussion.
PARTICIPATE constructively at meetings.
KNOW and ADHERE to PTA philosophy, principles and policies.
STUDY the structure of the PTA organization.
BECOME WELL INFORMED in all areas of PTA programs.
FOLLOW national and state procedures.
MEET DEADLINES and fulfill assignments promptly.
DEVELOP AND STRENGTHENS leadership.
LEARN TO DELEGATE instead of doing it all yourself.
UNDERSTAND THE VALUE OF TRAINING, attend conferences, workshops and convention.
PASS ON YOUR FILES.

From President…The Easiest Job in the PTA, National PTA.

"THE NOMINATING COMMITTEE"

The Bylaws for "Local PTAs or PTSAs, Article V, Section 3". Specify that the nominating committee is elected at least two months prior to the annual (election) meeting. The bylaws also specify how many members and alternates should be elected and who is eligible to serve on the committee. No member should be elected to serve on the nominating committee for two consecutive years.

Members elected to the nominating committee should be knowledgeable about PTA, be aware of qualified and willing potential nominees, be familiar with the eligibility requirements and job descriptions of each position to be filled, and be available to meet with the committee members until the nominees are all selected.

Immediately after the election of the nominating committee and alternates, the Parliamentarian meets with them to set a date for the first meeting. The parliamentarian meets with them at the first meeting and provides instructions in nominating procedures, conducts the election of a chairman, defines the chairman's responsibilities and provides a copy of the bylaws and list of officers to be nominated. The parliamentarian remains only if they are an elected member of the committee. The school principal serves in an advisory capacity if not an elected member of the committee. (Article V, Section 3c.)

Alternates do not attend meetings, but must be advised of date and the time of the first meeting and be available if needed. Should an alternate replace an originally elected member at the first meeting, that alternate remains as a member of the committee until the work. has been completed.

The nominating committees major responsibility is to nominate the best qualified available person for each office. Only those individuals who are eligible and who have given their consent to serve, if elected, should be nominated for office. Open and frank discussion must be held within the meeting. All discussions must be strictly confidential! The chairman of the nominating committee should make all contacts. If a committee member is being considered for an elected position, that member should be asked to leave the meeting during discussion but may return for the vote. It is not the responsibility of the nominating committee to fill appointed positions for officers or chairmen.

The proposed slate of nominees shall be submitted to the membership thirty (30) days prior to the election (Article V, Section 3g), it may be done at an association meeting or through a separate flyer or newsletter. All of the nominating committee must sign the nominating committee report and this report must be entered into the minutes of the association.

If a nominee withdraws prior to election the committee must reconvene to select another nominee for the vacated position. The nominating committee serves until the annual election meeting. Please refer to the California State PTA Publications, WHERE LEADERSHIP BEGINS - THE NOMINAT1NG COMMITTEE and the NOMINATIONS AND ELECTIONS HANDBOOK

33^rd District PTA 

FOCUS ON OUR SCHOOLS

HSA Nomination Form
(Highlight the entire below HSA form. Copy it to your clipboard.  Paste into a word processing 
file, printout, complete and mail in.)

Culver City Council PTA

Each year your Culver City Council PTA may bestow a California State Honorary Service Award, Continuing Service Award, Very Special Person Award, National Honorary Life Membership or Golden Oak Award to individuals who have demonstrated outstanding service to children and youth.   The individual nominated must make far-reaching, notable contributions to Youth.  Council PTA selects persons who have benefited children and youth on a district-wide, or community level.

If you know of someone who deserves to be honored at this level, please indicate their name so that they may be put into nomination when the committee meets to choose this year’s recipient's.  The chosen recipient's  will be announced at our Honorary Service Award and Installation Dinner in April 15, 2003.

Thank you,

HSA Chairman

I WOULD LIKE TO NOMINATE:

NAME: ____________________________________________  PHONE: __________________

ADDRESS: _________________________________________

Nominee's Youth/Community Activities: PTA/PTSA at the Unit or Council level, service clubs, sports, scouts, etc.  (Use A SEPARATE SHEET OF PAPER if necessary) : (Please be specific as we DO NOT have the resources to thoroughly research any of the nominees.  Only complete forms will be considered. __________ _____________

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Submitted By: ______________________________ Phone:___________________________________

Please contact the person below for more information:

Name: ____________________________________ 
Phone: ___________________________________

Please return to: Council PTA 
4034 Irving Place
Culver City, CA 90232