25631 Peter A. Hartman Way • Mission Viejo, CA 92691 • www.svpta.org
President: Bridget White
Newsletter Editor: MaryAnne Shults
February 2005
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Council News OnlineSaddleback Valley PTA Council Newsletter
Saddleback Valley PTA Council
25631 Peter A. Hartman Way • Mission Viejo, CA 92691 • www.svpta.org 
President's Message
by Bridget White, February, the month of hearts and love. May you all have such sweetness in your lives. I know my husband and I enjoy our two little special valentines, without them life would seem so ordinary. Our children have given so much joy to our lives, we didn't even realize until we had them. Not to say we all don't have our moments, but I am thankful for my two boys, and the true, deep love they have brought out of me. You all have the sweetest valentines, and the work you do for the PTA to give so much back to them and their school is one of the best ways to show your love this Valentines.
Election of Officers
Most of our units nominating committees have met and have presented the next years slate of officers to be voted on at their March meetings. Our own councils' slate of officers will be presented at our February 24 meeting. I will not be returning for a second term as a council president. I asked to be taken out of consideration for the position due to family reasons. I will still be very involved and supportive to the council officers, and new president elect, and I look forward to a long and continued relationship with the PTA members. I have learned, grown, and been so enriched by being so involved in such a worthy organization. I have met such caring and enthusiastic people. I have found so many people doing so many wonderful things, and have learned a lot, mostly that I have a lot yet to learn. We all have such a common goal, to do the best for the children and schools. They are our future and our love. Coordinated School Health Summit
The 4th District PTA is a partner in this conference, themed, "Making the Connection between Health and Learning" being held on Tuesday, February 22, 8:00 am - 3:30 pm, at the Neighborhood Community Center, in Costa Mesa. Mary Galuska, the 4th District PTA President is part of a partnership with William Habermehl, Orange County Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Mark Horton, Director of Public Health, Cathy Lawhon, Health Editor of the Orange County Register, and Justin Saks, Chair of the State Task Force on Obesity. Their purpose is to make the connection between health and learning by including physical, social, and emotional needs as a common ground to promote learning and productivity for our children, families, and community. The health issues such as obesity and mental health are complex and require additional resources beyond what schools can provide. Collaboration and partnerships between schools, families, and communities is the solution. At the beginning of the year, Dr. Gross and Laura Ott brought many of us together at the "Strategic Planning Workshop." Some of the key issues addressed at the busy and productive two-day process were not only encouraging parent-community involvement, but also meeting individual needs of the whole child, both physically and emotionally. By the end of the day at the "Coordinated School Health Summit", we will be provided with tools to reach these goals. It will give us a plan, support, partners and collaboration to improve student and community health to build capacity for learning. I encourage us all to attend. Registration deadline is February 15. For further information, please call Rob Bachmann at (714) 327-1057.
Legislative Grassroots Advocacy Plan
A special committee of the California PTA Legislative team has developed a comprehensive grassroots advocacy campaign for PTA's to use to support the needs of children in response to the proposed 2005-2006 State Budget unveiled by the Governor earlier this month. They have sent each unit, council, and district President a packet that includes a cover letter, advocacy tips, sample resolutions, talking points, fact sheet, reference list, and sample letters to the Governor, Legislators, and Editors. Our own council chair, Don Romoser, is compiling all the incoming information, working with our School Board and Administrators to develop a cohesive and factual basis for our response to our legislative officials. We feel we all have an important role in the struggle ahead. We must make our voices heard, as well as the voices of the school community, parents, children, teachers, administrators, and community members. We need to make our voices heard with an informed and unified message. Don is going to help all our units Legislative Representatives and Presidents participate in the response to the budget proposal by holding a SVUSD Council PTA Legislative Budget Discussion on Tuesday, February 15th, at 9:30 am in the Board Conference room. He will discuss the Governors Budget Proposal, what it means to education and specifically what it means to SVUSD. We plan to develop a response that addresses the proposed budget and the difficult reductions we have made in SVUSD.
We hope this will help keep you up to date and that we can reflect the needs in our schools and community. PTA cannot remain silent when so much is at stake.
FEBRUARY 24, 2005 COUNCIL MEETING:
SVUSD BOARD ROOM, 7:30 PM ITEMS TO BRING TO THE MEETING: 1) Adopted Audit for Period Ending 12/31/04 - two (2) copies Auditor's folder 2) Copy of 990 Filing or Letter Requesting Extension - Treasurer's folder 3) FINAL SUBMISSION - Per Capita Dues (submit check w/ Remittance Form) - Treasurer's folder 4) Items for Incentive Chart - Vice President's folder (if not otherwise noted) 5) Your unit's newsletters (any not already submitted) - President's folder
Mark Your Calendars:
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Attention Unit Secretaries:
Just a reminder to have blank paper strips available for your Annual Election if a ballot vote is required.
Molly O'Grady, SVPTA Secretary
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Show Me The Hours!
Each year, PTA asks us to report our volunteer hours at all levels of PTA on the Annual Historian Report form. Our volunteer hours include time spent in PTA activities related to PTA functions and services that members contribute on behalf of children in our schools and communities. This tally is used to compile data showing our legislators a hypothetical monetary value of the time we donate. The historian assembles and preserves the record of activities and achievements of the PTA and assists the president in preparing the Annual Report. Historian records, like minutes, should be kept forever. By this time, you should have established a method of tallying your volunteer hours that works best for your unit. Please have your unit historians begin working on this task in order to avoid the mad rush as the March deadline approaches. (A firm date to follow.) For more information encourage your Historians to visit http://www.svpta.org/forms/index.html#historian. As a reminder, please include the following when tracking volunteer hours:
If you have any questions, please feel free to call Luis Alvarado at 949-858-5257, or by .
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Arts Learning in Action:
Celebrate Arts Education Month in March 2005!
The California State PTA and the California Alliancefor Arts Education (CAAE)) are coordinating a statewide campaign to bring elected officials into our schools to witness the power of learning in the arts during the month of March. PTA participation in this advocacy campaign is particularly important this year as budgets at the state and local level continue to be "challenging." Some people use a stronger word than "challenging" but you surely know what I mean.
The Arts Learning in Action Toolkit is an organizational "how to" which includes:
You can invite your state elected officials, your school board, mayor, city council, county board of education, county supervisors and others who help make decisions that affect the education of our children. Activities should demonstrate "arts learning." Observers will gain an understanding of arts education as a rigorous, content-rich field of study accessible to all students, not limited only to the "talented or gifted" students who might be showcased in a public event. Whenever possible, include classroom visits as part of your event. Getting Started:
You can find the full toolkit with lots of suggestions and templates at: http://www.artsed411.org/involved/toolkit.stm.
Carol Kocivar, Education Advocate
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