Letter from the President
Hello! I cannot believe it is already the 4th quarter! This is a busy time of year with nominating committees, elections, and year end procedures. If you have any questions on how to complete any of these please reach out to Council @ president@scptamo.com. We are here to help!
If you have completed elections, please submit officers for next year here: https://mopta.org/home-2/missouri-pta-2021-2022-officers-form/
If you have any vacant positions, that is okay, please submit what you have. It helps us keep connected and assure someone is getting up to date information.
When you vote in the coming days (Tue April 6) consider what you want the future of education to look like. Consider the impact on families and children when you assess the candidates’ values. Our children’s access to quality education and to the tools that will help them succeed, are in your, the voters, hands. This year and every year after, let’s take the next step and make our voices heard.
Don’t forget to VOTE on April 6th.
It has been a trying year for all of us and I continue to be amazed by your creativity and resourcefulness during these unprecedented times. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me if you need anything.
Please know that Council is here to support you and your unit. We are able to help with officer nominations, elections, changing and updating bylaws, audits, treasurer reports, budgets, and anything else you may need. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me to discuss successes, frustrations, ideas or ways to improve.
See you on Zoom this Thursday April 1st at 9:30
Mandy Mitchell
President, Springfield Council of PTAs
president@scptamo.com www.scptamo.com
Check out 15 Free Volunteer Thank You Cards from our Friends at Moneyminder: Click Here!
PTA Clothing Bank
I hope everyone had a great Spring Break. We returned to The Clothing Bank March 25th and had a great shopping day. We’re looking forward to our next one, April 8th!
We have officially started transitioning our floor from winter to summer so we are looking for those warm weather items – shorts, tees, tanks, summer pajamas, etc. We have opened up donations at The Wash House or you may drop off at The Clothing Bank any time during shopping hours.
Our remaining days for the school year are April 8th, April 22nd, May 6th, and May 20th 10am- 4:30pm. We are also looking forward to offering a shopping date during Explore! We will share that date when we get it nailed down.
If you have any questions, please contact us via Facebook and watch our page for updates.
Thank you for your support of The PTA Clothing Bank and students of SPS!
Taryn Raidel, VP of Health and Public Services
Treasurer’s Report and Tips for Treasurers
The detailed Treasurer’s Report can be found at Moneyminder.com
Username: council@scptamo.com Password: SCPTA.658
End of Fiscal Year Financial Review
Now’s the time to form a committee to do an Internal financial review to review the financial records at the end of the fiscal year (after the final bank statement is issued – usually mid-June). Your PTA’s bylaws should indicate who, when, and how the audit/review is to be conducted and reported to your membership. Start by finding (usually) 3 members to form an Audit/Review Committee. None of the 3 can have been signers on the bank account. They will need to set aside 2 or 3 hours – or more if they run into problems – to do a thorough job. The mission of the Audit/Review Committee is to confirm, to the best of its ability, that the financial records prepared by the Treasurer accurately reflect the financial status of the organization. They will need to determine a time and a place that the audit can occur. It is best if the Treasurer is not present during the audit, but may need to be available to answer questions that come up. See this link on the National PTA website for more information about what documents need to be given to the committee and the steps to complete the review. Use the form on the Missouri PTA website (End of Year Procedures) to submit your report to your membership and to Missouri PTA. Once the review is completed, you’ll be ready to file your PTA’s appropriate tax return (a copy of which is also submitted to Missouri PTA).
I would encourage each unit to go to this link and download in your unit’s shared folder or print out for your treasurer’s binder. This is the MOPTA guidelines and instructions for treasurers. A lot of good information that will answer frequent questions as well as inform you of our PTA legal & federal status with the IRS as a 501(c)(3). https://mopta.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Missouri-PTA-Finances.pdf
If you’ve had any new memberships, be sure to send the portion to MOPTA by end of March (or asap). Feel free to email treasurer@scptamo.com with questions or if you need some help.
Reflections Winners (City Level)
Reflections Winners (State Level)
Photography – Intermediate – 1st Place: Ilyann Khan, Greenwood Laboratory School PTA
Photography – Middle School – 4th Place: Sophy Wicklam-Zhou, Central HS PTSA
Photography – High School – 2nd Place: Hailey Youngblood, Central HS PTSA
Literature – Primary – 2nd Place: Rachel Brawley, Wanda Gray PTA
Literature – Middle School – 4th Place: Keren Ding, Central HS PTSA
Literature – High School – 3rd Place: Elana Hadi, Central HS PTSA
Literature – High School – 5th Place: Nina Musiyenko, Central HS PTSA
Visual Arts – Intermediate – 5th Place: Eden Mitchell, Wanda Gray PTA
Visual Arts – Middle School – 3rd Place: Grace Meyer, Central HS PTSA
Visual Arts – Middle School – 4th Place: Keren Ding, Central HS PTSA
Visual Arts – Middle School – 5th Place: Minal Khan, Greenwood Laboratory School PTA
Visual Arts – High School – 2nd Place: Madison Dimmick, Central HS PTSA
Visual Arts – High School – 3rd Place: Nina Musiyenko, Central HS PTSA
Visual Arts – High School – 4th Place: Karson Feuerbacher, Greenwood Laboratory School PTA
Springfield Reflections Leaders – Thank you for all you do for your students!
Teacher Appreciation Week May 3 – 7, 2021
While we often thank our teachers every day, it’s during Teacher Appreciation Week when we like to pause and really show our love for the teachers in our lives. We encourage you to tell your teacher how much you…
- Love (❤️) how they encourage you in special ways
- Like (👍) what’s happening in their classroom
- Celebrate (🎉) their achievements with students
- Care about (😍) their commitment to students and families
What will your PTA do to honor teachers this year? Join the conversation at
https://www.facebook.com/groups/PTALeader/permalink/2536192470020137
“We are doing a Super Hero theme this year – seems pretty fitting! A few things we will be doing: decorating the staff lounge, giving each staff a “super hero name”and putting it outside their classroom door, sending fill-in sheets home, “My teacher is a Super Hero because…” Lots of awesome ideas on Pinterest”
“…we will have a teacher drive thru and hand out swag bags to the teachers. Students are making signs for them to see as they drive by.”
“We are stealing an idea from a neighboring PTA which did a “Make a Wish” kind of thing. They got the teachers to put what they would wish for (for Christmas or Teacher Appreciation) and it could have been anything, a card, a cup of coffee, some learning materials for their class, and then converted that into a Signup genius and sent that to parents who signed up to fulfill a wish. Easy for us, gets parents involved, saves our limited budget, although I’m thinking we may need to supplement a couple of wishes depending on the response.”
“We have a food truck coming. A few social media posts got us 1/3 of the total cost and then we sent home a flyer for donations.” (Another posted about getting an Ice Cream Truck).
“… catered lunch and a snack day. Everything individually wrapped, ready for grab and go.”
From the Parliamentarian
Officer Transition–check your bylaws for direction on when officers assume duties of their new positions. If you are “passing the baton,” please plan for a smooth transition that is in the best interest of your PTA/PTSA and the students you represent.
- For more Parliamentary reminders and tips, check our website: https://scptamo.com/category/parliamentary-notes/ or https://scptamo.com/communication/parliamentarian-questions/
Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
Introducing Listen, Educate, Advocate (our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion mission). Listen to the new National PTA YouTube learning series, educate and share these with your PTA. Then, let’s make a plan to advocate:
New events added to the DEI calendar -> Check it out!
April 1 – SCPTA General Membership meeting via Zoom – 9:30 am
April 8 – PTA Clothing Bank open for shoppers and donations
April 15 – SCPTA Exec Board meeting – 9:15 am via Zoom
April 22 – PTA Clothing Bank open for shoppers and donations
May 6 – SCPTA General Membership meeting – 9:30 am via Zoom (SCPTA Officer Installation)
May 6 – PTA Clothing Bank open for shoppers and donations
May 20 – Springfield Council of PTAs Exec Board meeting – 9:15 am via Zoom
May 20 – PTA Clothing Bank open for shoppers and donations
Council Goals
1. To provide leadership development for local units and council board members.
2. To serve as a resource for education, parenting information, and legislative issues.
3. To encourage parent and public involvement in the Springfield Public Schools.
To join the SCPTA board, fill out the “Talent Bank form” and send to council@scptamo.com.
Click here: SCPTAs Talent Bank Interest Finder
Springfield Council of PTAs 