|
|
|
Wow this school year really seems like it’s flying and it’s hard to believe that it is nearly November! I hope that you have eased into the school year and found your groove. As an Oregon PTA Board, we have settled into this new year, meeting challenges, balancing workloads and coming together to ensure that we all continue to strive toward our mission, making every child’s potential a reality by empowering and engaging families and communities to advocate for all children.
The cornerstone of this work for our local units is through family engagement strategies. You will find newly updated standards for family-school partnerships at the Center for Family Engagement at National PTA.
|
|
|
|
|
There is an upcoming virtual townhall that will aid you in using these standards to enhance your efforts to help your students and communities thrive. Save the date for November 17, 2022 at 4:00 pm PST. Join National PTA, the American Federation of Teachers, the National Association for Elementary School Principals, the Superintendents Association, the National School Boards Association, and the National Education Association to celebrate National Parent Involvement Day in the virtual townhall. Hear about the latest updates to the National Standards for Family-School Partnerships, discover our newest resources, and learn about our latest research in the field. You can register here.
November is a busy month with PTA tax deadlines, UGS deadlines and school holidays but I hope you will find some time to tune in to this townhall. There will be useful information from an array of professionals that will be an asset to your family engagement strategies.
Thank you for all you do as PTA leaders in expanding your knowledge, serving your communities and maintaining healthy school-family partnerships. I appreciate all you do!
|
|
|---|
|
Already, many of your PTA groups are doing great things for the students, families, and school staff in your community. There is so much Power when PTA people get together and make things happen! |
|
|---|
|
Setting Goals
Have you set a 2022-2023 membership goal for your PTA? Here are some ideas for you to consider:
- Grow your membership by 10% over last year
- Meet or exceed your unit’s highest membership year since 2016. That information was provided to you in the Back-to-School digital packet. If you haven’t received it, email me and I can give you the numbers.
- Recruit members to equal or exceed 35% of your student enrollment. Again, I can give you that information.
- If you have struggled over the past few years to reach even 25 members, set that as a minimum number to strive for. By the end of September, five awesome local PTA units that had less than 25 members all of last year, have exceeded that amount already this year!
|
|
|---|
|
Congrats - Increased Membership
- Lot Whitcomb PTA, Region 4; increased from 14 members last year to 60 already this year
- Lowrie Primary PTA, Region 4; increased from 20 members last year to 40 already this year
- Scouters Mountain Elementary PTA, Region 4; increased from 7 members last year to 58 already this year
- Skyline School PTA, Region 2; increased from 18 members last year to 32 already this year
- Tualatin Elementary PTA, Region 1; increased from 10 members last year to 26 already this year
|
|
|---|
|
Congratulations - Reviving with Renewals September Membership Incentive Winner
Out of the 45 units that met the challenge, Maplewood Elementary PTA was pulled from the drawing for a prize! They will receive a PTA shopping bag full of goodies.
You still have time to Put the ‘T’ in PTA by recruiting teachers and staff by October 31, for a chance at the drawing prize.
Looking ahead, November’s membership incentive is Community Connect to the Power of Collaboration. Ask community members: neighbors and others that don’t have kids in your schools; business owners; service club members (such as Kiwanis); and others who would like to support education in your community. Enter and pay dues for at least 5 community members by Mar. 31. |
|
|---|
|
Membership reminders
- Enter your members into the Oregon PTA database, print your invoice, and remit dues payments to Oregon PTA by the end of each month. Click here for step-by-step instructions on entering members.
- Oregon OPTA is no longer using MemberHub for reporting leaders, members, and
collection of Unit in Good Standing documents
- You can also have people join your PTA by going to the Oregon PTA membership webpage, oregonpta.org/membership, and choosing your PTA unit from the dropdown list. There they will enter their information and pay online as well.
|
|
|---|
|
First Zoom Chat - Oct 27th 7pm
This will be a drop-in opportunity for leaders to ask specific questions, talk over challenges you’re having, or share your membership successes. Watch for a message with the Zoom link closer to the date. Join us to get more out of your membership campaign.
With the right tools and information, every unit can grow and maximize membership. Contact us; we’re here to help and support you.
|
|
|---|
|
Dos and Don’ts of Partnering with Administrators
DO:
-
Plan together: Learn administration goals and discuss how your PTA can engage families in supporting those goals.
-
Connect to resources: Talk with the principal about how ORPTA and National PTA programs and resources support and enhance student learning.
-
Be respectful: You don’t always have to agree. Find a way to communicate in a professional and respectful manner with your school’s leadership team.
-
Differentiate: Help school administration understand that your local unit is a separate and independent child advocacy group, part of and supported by a large and experienced association.
-
Meet regularly: Consider a regular monthly coffee or lunch with the principal, or arrange a regular phone call. Invite the superintendent to board meetings. Stay in touch.
-
Make the connection visible: Ask your principal to provide a report at PTA meetings, or to write an article for your PTA’s newsletter or post for the PTA blog. Plan an open-to-all monthly “chat with the principal” or “coffee with the principal”, solicit questions in advance to help your administration with talking points.
|
|
|---|
|
DON’T:
-
Entangle administration in personality issues: Sometimes personal issues interfere with PTA function. To maintain a professional, credible relationship with administration, work through the personal problems without involving administration. Seek help, if necessary, from your region directors or State PTA leaders.
-
Cede control of PTA meetings: All members, even administrators, have the same rights at meetings. The PTA meeting is run by the PTA President or the president’s delegate in their absence, in compliance with PTA bylaws and using Robert’s Rules.
-
Get in trouble with the IRS: Know the rules and file the proper forms with the IRS. PTA’s funds are not school funds; do not use the school’s EIN. Consult your region director or ORPTA if you have questions.
-
Open your PTA to theft: No administrator wants to deal to with the negative publicity surrounding a PTA’s poor money management. Use good business judgment, ensure financial reports and audits happen, and follow the ORPTA rules about money-handling.
-
Become an ATM: PTA funds are raised to further PTA’s mission and goals, not to supplement school budgets. Collaborate with your administration, but do not allow your PTA to be viewed as a bottomless source of funding available for all administration requests. Raise awareness rather than raise funds. PTA is a separate entity from the school. PTA funds are controlled by PTA members and board. The checkbook resides with the treasurer.
|
|
|---|
|
IRS Update
Form 990-N filers will use a new sign-in process beginning this summer:
Beginning August 2022, smaller charities that are eligible and choose to file Form 990-N, Electronic Notice for Tax-Exempt Organizations (e-Postcard), must sign into the IRS modernized authentication platform using either their active IRS username or create an account with ID.me, the current IRS credential service provider.
When accessing the Form 990-N submission page, Form 990-N filers have three options:
- Sign in with their active IRS username: Users with an active IRS username have the option to access the Form 990-N submission page using their existing IRS credentials or they can choose to create a new account with ID.me.
- Sign in with their existing ID.me account: Users that have an ID.me account to access other IRS online services or from a state or federal agency can sign in using their existing ID.me account.
- Create a new ID.me account: Users that don’t have an active IRS username credential must register and sign in with ID.me.
ID.me account creation requires an email address and multifactor authentication. Form 990-N filers who have an existing IRS username and register for an ID.me account must use the same email address.
For Form 990-N filing instructions, see Publication 5248, Form 990-N Electronic Filing System User Guide (PDF).
The filing process has not changed for organizations that file Form 990, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax, or Form 990-EZ, Short Form Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax.
|
|
Free Online Training for Small to Mid-Sized Section 501(c)(3) Charities
The IRS provides interactive online training to help officers, board members and volunteers maintain your organization's Section 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status - including a course on filing Form 990-series annual returns. The Virtual Small to Mid-Sized Tax-Exempt Workshop at StayExempt.irs.gov is an important resource for all charities, old and new.
|
|
|---|
|
Treasurer Upcoming Dates to Remember
September 30: September memberships DUE - Input to OregonPTA.org and pay dues owed.
October 1: Partner with your Secretary and make sure your Officers’ List is up to date – input online at OregonPTA.org
October 31: October memberships DUE - Input to OregonPTA.org and pay dues owed.
November 1: Check AIM Insurance renewal - Did you receive your renewal notice yet?
November 1: Verify Completion of Yearly Audit Report - Due for upcoming UGS.
November 15: Due Date for filing IRS 990/990EZ/990N & Oregon CT-12 to Oregon DOJ.
November 30: Unit in Good Standing Documents DUE to ORPTA - Upload to OregonPTA.org
|
|
|
|
|
|
We are doing some great things on Social Media! Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram! |
|
|---|
|
|
| |
|
|