The 9th District Spring Conference provided some wonderful ideas for the local unit PTAs. Our desire is for you to have access to these ideas and incorporate any you find interesting for promoting your local organizational goals. Please click on the link below to access the PDF version of the document.

Best Ideas/National Standards

Congratulations to the following Margie Hatfield Scholarship winners:

Robert B. – Sprayberry High School

Pranay U. – Wheeler High School

Bryant M. – Kell High School

Catherine C. – Walton High School

Hannah B. – Lassiter High School

Kylie A. – Pope High School

To view the East Cobber Article, click here. We are proud of our students and encourage a good education foundation for their future. Thank you for your service and dedication for our community!

LU Presidents, ECCC PTA BOD's, and others,
 
The end of the school year is here…hard to believe. This is your last official day as a Local Unit President, unless you are continuing next year. Please continue to check our website for updates. We will try and keep it up to date throughout the summer.

Please let your incoming President know that we hope to have our dates finally set by mid June at the latest. President's night will be included in that and most likely will be in August and not in July.
 
Thank you to all of you for a wonderful year for ECCC PTA of Educating, Communicating, Connecting with the Community!
 
We have had a little difficulties with the survey site…so it will be up soon and will send out the link once running properly!!!
 
We hope to see many of you at CLT June 25 & 26. Remember, this is where you will also receive your new Membership Cards for the 2010-11 school year! You must designate one person to pick them up. If you do not, I am sure we, ECCC PTA, will be picking them up and contacting your incoming President we have them!
 
Please make sure your Secretary has input your New Officers for 2010-2011. You will all be receiving new Bylaws electronically from GA PTA since we changed our name. So please make sure that information has been input.
 
Our new ECCC PTA Officers are as follows:
Abby Shiffman & Irene Barton, Co-Presidents
Pamela Kent & Stephanie Daniels, Co-VPs
Lynne Cherrington, Secretary
Laurie Rashidi-Yazd, Treasurer
Karen Hallacy, Parliamentarian
Amie Fann, Advisor/Past President
 
It has been our pleasure to serve you this year,
 
Amie Fann & Abby Shiffman, Co-Presidents
ECCC PTA, 2009-2010
 
*******************************************************************************************************
 
 
Legislation & Advocacy: Cobb County Commission Chairman & District 3 Commissioner Forum, Wednesday, May 26th, East Cobb Government Center, doors open at 6:30 with Forum starting at 7pm. See Flyer.
 
Some races may be determined in the PRIMARY, which is July 20th: Board of Education Post 4, Commissioner Districts 1 & 3  click here to view July's Candidates
 
HOT OFF THE PRESS: Please click on the words and you will also find the current list to date (today 5/21/10) of those running for Georgia House, Senate and Statewide elections. Please realize that this list will change. Those who are in other parties or running as Independents do not have to file until the end of June. So more will be added to the list of those running!
 
Please keep checking the Georgia PTA website for updates….we will send out over the summer as we find out to the New LUP and Legislative Chairs. LU=Last Updated.
******************************************
 
Youth Services: Please click on the link for the Sandy Plains Summer 2010 document about Drivers Education discounts for PTA Members
 
******************************************
Georgia PTA:
Thank you, PTA!
 
On behalf of the Georgia PTA Board of Directors, THANK YOU for all you have done this year on behalf of the children and youth of your school community.  You have unselfishly shared your valuable time and special talents because you realized the importance of our PTA Mission. 
 
If you are a returning officer, rest up and get ready for another exciting PTA year by registering for Convention Leadership Training, the Road to PTA Success.   There is no other time and place like this for gaining the knowledge, information and skills you need as a PTA leader.  
 
If you are not a returning officer, we have plenty to offer you too.   Join us as we celebrate local unit, council and district achievements, honor outstanding school nurses and educators, and hear motivating speakers and workshop leaders.  Your time to learn and celebrate! 
 
Register for Convention Leadership Training by June 4 for discounted rate.  The on site registration fee is $125.00.

When: June 25-26, 2010
Where: Georgia International Convention Center, College Park
Delegate Hotel: New Spring Hill Suites at the GICC, Phone – 770.907.8880
Basic Registration Fee and Parking: $85.00 per person
Complete Registration Package: Includes registration, parking, Friday and Saturday lunch, and Banquet dinner – $150.00
 
Go to www.georgiapta.org/convention.html for more information or to register today! 
 
Don't forget about the Student Summit, Saturday, June 26 from 9:00 am – 4:00 pm.  This is a great opportunity for high school students to learn about advocacy, education and career opportunities.  Please encourage your high school students to register.  The registration fee is $25.00 and includes lunch and materials. 
 
With deep appreciation and sincere thanks,
Georgia PTA
********************************************************
Save the Date for Young Audiences SHOWCASE – August 21

Mark your calendars for Saturday, August 21 as we SHOWCASE our Young Audiences artists in Decatur, GA.

This is an OPEN event for all counties in Georgia — as you're invited to see Young Audiences artists in action through live performances, artist-led workshops and other arts activities for families and children.

More details to follow, including an official artist line up and activity information.
 

• TO: All LUP Presidents & ECCC PTA BOD

The end of the year is near, can you believe it is almost May?

The Legislative Session ended last night with the passing of the budget, a gun bill, and many others. We will get a synopsis probably later today as to how it all affects our children and our schools and we will send out when it is all formulated. Remember, this is an election year. It is the Legislators who decide how　 much money $ comes to the school systems. We are planning a forum and will work with other organizations to bring additional forums to you as well for our elected official positions that will represent you at various levels. So stay tuned for dates/venues/etc.

Please remember that all NEW INCOMING OFFICERS have trainging at our School of Information, Tuesday, May 11, 9am-noon at Crossview Baptist Church 9am-noon. It is imperative that ALL incoming Officers attend this important Training! If they can not please make sure they have someone attend in their place so they may learn and pass along all the information. STATE DEADLINE to send in EXEC Officers is MAY 1st…TOMORROW…Please have your current secretary do that if you have not done so already. Also send a copy of incoming officers to us　at secretary@ecccpta.org!

——————————————————

Is your new Bd. planning the calendar for the 2010-2011 school year? Please click here and utilize the suggested Evening Meeting Calendar  for planning. Work with your Principal and have the Band/Choral/Orchestra Directors involved as well. It hurts everyone when multiple schools in the same cluster (elem/middle/high) all have things scheduled on the same night!! Communicate with each other and work together so parents don't feel pulled to be at all three schools the same night.

———————————————-

Congratulations to all who won awards at the District Meeting this past Tuesday. Thank you to all who attended and a special THANK YOU to all of the schools who donated food items for the meeting. ECCC PTAs "ROCK". We couldn't have done it without you! It was an ECCC PTA hosted event and we were glad to have such a nice showing of support by your attendence! If you were unable to be there and you won awards, you will receive them soon!

Please look for a survey to come out soon! We want to know what worked, what didn't, and how we can improve for next year to assist you and your PTA's better! This is something you may also want to do. Survey your PTA Membership to find out what do they want to see in programming next year, how you have done a fabulous job, or where your PTA may need to improve. You will only find out if you ask so please consider it. This is also a good idea for individual Chairs to do. Find out from your participants what they liked/didn't like about a program and why. The more input you have the easier it will be for those coming in next year to improve upon what was already done. Don't reinvent the wheel!

———————————————————————　

We know it is a busy time of year but please take the time to THANK your volunteers. We are a 100 % Volunteer Organization and it is nice when someone who volunteers their time gets a "pat on the back" or a little "thank you" it helps them to know they are appreciated and may continue to voluneteer for you!

——————————————————————-

So, we THANK YOU for all you have done this year and we look forward to working with all of you again in whatever capacity you choose to do in the future.

Amie Fann & Abby Shiffman, Co-Presidents

ECCC PTA, 2009-2010

********************************************************************

Reflections:

2010-2011 Theme is "Together We Can". Now is the time to get it out there and get a start before Summer hits. Still working on dates for when it will be due to Council but it will be close to where it was this year…mid-late October. Talk it up now! This is a wonderful program to continue and I hope we have 100% participation this upcoming year!

Three is　a cd for each school who had a State winner with all of the pictures taken by Abby that afternoon. They will go out in County Mail to the Reflections Chair along with a booklet from the Georgia PTA Reflections Reception next week so look for it!

***************************************************************

Georgia PTA:

CLT: Convention Leadership Training

When: June 25-26, 2010
Where:Georgia International Convention Center, College Park
Delegate Hotel: New Spring Hill Suites at the GICC, Phone – 770.907.8880
Basic Registration Fee and Parking: $85.00 per person
Complete Registration Package: Includes registration, parking, Friday and Saturday lunch, and Banquet dinner – $150.00

The deadline for Advance Registration is June 4.　 The on site registration fee is $125.00.

New this year – Georgia PTA Youth Institute 2010, a one day conference for rising 9th-12th graders.　 The registration fee is $25.00 and includes lunch and materials.

Check out our new link, www.georgiapta.org/convention.html for more information or to register today!

REMEMBER: Grants are available from ECCC PTA.

We are offering you a chance to bring representatives to Georgia PTA's CLT (Convention Leadership Training).

MAY 1st is the deadline to get in your requests! You can receive up to $200 to help your Board Members get the training they need to assist your PTA this upcoming year!

The Grant Request Form for you to fill out is attached. So fill it out, send it　to our treasurer especially if you have financial needs. It is very important to　have your incoming officers　attend Convention Leadership Training this summer at the Georgia International Convention Center June 25-26th, near the airport.

Please see attached form and follow the directions. Deadline for submission is May 1st. You will be notified by May 15th if you have rece'd the Grant.

***********************************************************

CCSD:

Board Approves Reduction In Force; Receives Survey Results

At its April 22, 2010 meeting, the Cobb County Board of Education approved a series of initial steps to help the school district address a projected $137 million budget deficit for the fiscal year that begins July 1, 2010. The deficit is due to reductions in state funding and local property tax collections – the two main sources of school district revenue. The school district and Board of Education have announced previously that due to the unprecedented scope of the deficit, the District will have no choice but to expand to the maximum class sizes allowed by the state at each grade level.

Expanding to maximum class sizes will result in a reduction in teaching positions. The Board approved an agenda item that authorizes administration to begin a Reduction in Force (RIF)　that　will impact 579 teaching positions, 68 central office and support positions, 34 graduation coach positions, 21 school counselor positions and 31 alternative education staff positions.　The RIF　will offset approximately $58.6 million of the　projected $137 million shortfall.

Prior to the meeting, the Board held a called budget meeting to discuss　additional solutions to address the budget shortfall, and learn the results of a community-wide online survey that gauged public opinion of school district budget priorities. The Stakeholder Budget Survey received 23,889 responses and more than 10,000 comments and suggestion. The survey results and comments submitted are available on the District Web site. The data and comments from the survey will be used to　gauge support for additional budget reduction considerations.

The Board approved changes to the District’s Reduction in Force policy during its May 14　work session, shifting the criteria to a performance-based model. Personnel who receive an unsatisfactory annual evaluation will be considered first for RIF, along with documented performance concerns and seniority　as other factors.

Additional budget reductions will be recommended in the coming weeks, and the Board will approve the final FY2011 budget on June 9, 2010.

School Bd Meetings:

David Banks, Post 5 School Board Member,　is having an Informational Meeting, Monday, May 3rd, 7pm at the Mountain View Library. Everyone is welcome to attend.

CCSD FOUNDATION:

Save the Date!

The 6th Annual Cobb Homecoming Classic golf tournament is set for Monday, September 27, 2010 @ Brookstone Golf and Country Club in Acworth, Georgia!

Please join us for a day filled with food, fun, prizes, golf and marching bands!

Come out for an exciting day of golf and help our Cobb County Schools.　 Proceeds benefit the Cobb Schools Foundation.

Click here to find the 2010 registration/sponsorship form. Get your team together and reserve your spot today!

Thank you for your continued support of Cobb County Schools!

Sheri Brante
Executive Director
Cobb Schools Foundation
514 Glover Street
Marietta, GA 30060
770-426-3390
www.cobbschoolsfoundation.org