Issaquah’s PTSA Council

Parent Education Program

Issaquah PTSA Council Parent Education Chair

5/2006

Council Wide Parent Education Mission Statement:

Our purpose is to facilitate healthy growth of children and families within the Issaquah School District. This is done by providing parent education seminars, information, and access to community resources, which can provide guidance for parents to act on their children's behalf. We believe that when parents are serious about taking an active role in educating their children (physically, intellectually, emotionally and socially), they are building a strong foundation from which their children can mature into successful, responsible, young adults.

Council Wide Program Organization: 

The program’s organization and operation is analogous to how the PTSA Council works. The Issaquah PTSA Council has a Standing Committee (as described in their Standing Rules) as the Parent Education Committee. It is run by the Committee Chair (this can be one person or co-chairs), who is appointed by the president(s) of the Council.  The Council’s Parent Education Chair functions to coordinate all the parent education opportunities through communicating and meeting with her community parent education contacts.

Each local unit of the PTSA is encouraged—not required-- to have a Parent Education committee of its own, with their committee chair representing their PTSA to the committee operated by the council (so, just like a local PTA unit sends their president to Council, parent ed reps from local units meet with the Council’s parent ed chair, or at the very least, sends their information and coordinates their programming with the parent ed chair).           

Parent Education General Job Descriptions:

PTSA Parent Ed Rep-Job Description:  

• Attend Individual’s School PTSA board and/or general meetings to communicate all issues and updates in regards to parent education.  (Depends on individual local unit Standing Rules; or report to PTSA President if that is acceptable to both parties, for the President to announce.)

• Attend Parent Ed Rep Council team meetings to be the representative for their school and liaison to their school for the district wide Parent Education Program.

• Be their School’s PTSA Centralized point of communication for Parent Education Programs.

  • Stay current on what is happening and being planned within the larger program or School District if no council program.

  • Available via phone, email and/or in person for questions and answers in regards to the program.  Offering their PTA consultation, guidance, and coaching for programs, resources, ideas and other related topics. Stepping in to assist when asked, appropriate and/or necessary.

  • Responsible to their PTSA, School and their schools parent population for publicizing the parent education opportunities available to them.  This is via, newsletters, kid mail, email, websites, flyers, reader boards and other creative alternatives to get the word out to parents.

  • Distributing the monthly Parent Education Listing of appropriate Seminars/ opportunities that are available through Council, Individual PTSA, School District, and other community resources that are known to their PTSA and the parents at their community.

  • Responsible for those Parent Education Seminars Hosted by their PTA/School. This includes speaker scheduling & payment (when applicable), room & equipment reservation, event day set-up, clean up and follow-up thank you.  Collecting seminar surveys are recommended but not required.

  • Email write-ups and flyers etc for upcoming seminars they are hosting to Council Parent Ed Chair to be distributed to larger group and to the parents/staff in their school.
    
    Sample of flyers for seminars are in the sample section of this handout.

  • Network with, ask for assistance of and assist Council Parent Ed chair and other individual PTSA Parent Ed Reps in regards to program offerings.

  • Maintaining Parent Education Bulletin boards and/or Schools parent education library where they are available.

• Responsible for their school’s PTSA Parent Education Budget, if any.

• Responsible for the overall health and evolution of the PTA Parent Education Program in their school and the larger program.

• Some schools offer regular parent ed topics in their newsletters and websites.  Often the Parent Ed Rep obtains and maintains these articles and/or works with the Principal, counselor or others to provide these articles.

PTSA Council Parent Education Chair-Job Description:  

• Attend Council Board and Council General Meetings to communicate all issues, and updates relative to parent education.

• Central point of leadership, guidance, training and support for the individual School PTA Parent Ed Reps.

  • Establishes and maintains a positive approach to communication and problem solving.

  • Hold regular meetings for planning, networking, sharing resources and program support.
    
    A Sample of First Parent Ed Rep meeting is included in the sample section.

  • Email communication updates

• Centralized point of communication for PTSA Council, Parent Ed Reps, PTSAs, School District, Schools, Community Groups and Resources.

  • Includes updating and distributing Parent Education Listing of all Seminars/opportunities that are available through Council, Individual PTSAs, School District, and other community resources that are known.  This includes screening out “opportunities” that do not fit into the public education arena such as offerings with the intent to sell a product/service and recruit to a religious faith, etc.

  • Email to distribution list flyers etc for upcoming seminars.

  • Available via phone, email and in person for consultation, guidance, and coaching for individual Parent Ed Reps, PTSA Presidents, Schools and District.  Stepping in to assist when asked, appropriate and/or necessary.

  • Assist the individual PTSA Parent Ed Reps to network with the other Parent Ed Reps (or Special Service Reps) for support and help on individual school parent education projects and offerings.

  • Work with the School district to foster good communication and development of parent education seminars.  Including but not limited to Publicity dept., Special Services Dept., Counseling, Curriculum, Primary and Secondary ed groups, Drugs and Substance of Abuse committee, etc.

  • Present annually to School District Principals and counselors groups to update them on the Program’s mission, goals, ways to help each other, and how this program helps them and their schools.

  • Helps to establish and maintain good communication and networking with community resources directly or indirectly via Parent Ed Reps.

• Responsible for monitoring the Council Parent Education Budget (contributions from each local PTA unit; approved by membership as part of Council’s annual budget).

• Responsible for the overall health and evolution of the PTSA Parent Education Program.

Copyright 2005-2007.  All rights reserved.

No information on this website may be reproduced in any form without the expressed permission of the Issaquah PTSA Council.  This website has been published by the Issaquah PTSA Council for specific use by its members and district staff.  Information contained on this website and other publications of the Issaquah PTSA Council may not be used for purposes of solicitation, either commercial, political or ideological, or for any purpose not consistent with the Bylaws of the Washington Congress of Parents and Teachers.

Send mail to webmaster@issaquahptsa.org with questions or comments about this web site.

Last Updated October 6, 2007.