Host a Math Night

The 2018 National PTA STEM + Families Math Grants, sponsored by Mathnasium, will award 35 local PTAs $1,000 to host one STEM + Families Math event with students and families at their elementary school between October 1, 2018 and January 31, 2019.

Click HERE to find out more and apply now.

Want to Host a Science Festival?

The 2018-2019 National PTA STEM + Families Science Grants, sponsored by Bayer, will award $1,000 to 30 local PTAs to host a STEM + Families Science Festival. All PTAs are eligible provided they can host their event during the 2018-2019 school year.

Click HERE to find out more and apply now.

Help Celebrate Healthy Lifestyles

National PTA and GOYA-Move are partnering to support healthy lifestyles by offering $1,000 grants to 15 local PTAs who commit to hosting a "Get Off Your Apps" Physical Activity Event at their elementary or middle school during November. So, put down those devices and join in the fun!

Click HERE to find out more and apply now.

National PTA created a webinar explaining both the grant and application processes. Click HERE for the webinar - which includes their top 10 tips on applying for a grant!

Find all of National PTA's grants and giveaways HERE. 

Completed applications for any or all these grants must be submitted by August 26, 2018 at 8:00pm EST. Awardees will be notified by September 28, 2018.

It's the most wonderful time of year for PTA! The beginning of the school year is an unofficial holiday season; teachers, parents and students are filled with anticipation and excitement for the school year ahead.

National PTA is committed to making the 2018-2019 school year a huge success for you. That's why they teamed up with Office Depot/OfficeMax and Instagram to make sure you get a great start.

National PTA has everything you need to make this a winning school year - whether you're a parent, student, teacher or PTA leader. Check it out!

National PTA Back-to-School Week is September 17-21

Each day of Back-to-School Week, National PTA will share essential tips and resources - with exciting announcements and classroom surprises - for the amazing people who support our children's learning and success.

from Delaware PTA:

As an FYI, we want to make you aware of an email scam aimed at PTA associations. These emails are hitting both state and local PTAs, so everyone should be vigilant of these types of email scams.

The person(s) hacking the account sent a message under the cover of the PTA president requesting that the treasurer initiate a wire transfer for the purpose of procuring equipment for the school.

Thankfully, due to well written out and established business processes, the treasurers in these PTAs were able to identify the email as a deliberate act to commit fraud and were able to avoid exposing their PTAs to the potential loss of valuable resources designated for the benefit of the children they serve.

There are several things your PTA can do to protect yourself from such an attack:

• Make sure you have well-documented procedures and processes for money disbursement.
• Know your budget well. The best indicator of a potential fraudulent activity is a request that is made for something outside of your PTAs member-approved budget.
• Review financial safeguards in the NYS PTA Resource Guide, Section 05A-Finance.
• Establish clear lines of communication between your board members.
• If you receive one of these emails, call or text the person the email appears to be from to find out if they sent it. Don't attempt to verify the email by responding to it.
• As a courtesy, contact leaders of other groups in your school community. If your unit is part of a PTA council, share the news with them.

Exciting News! NYS PTA was awarded a 2018-19 Traffic Safety Grant!

We are looking for units to hold traffic safety events this October and in April, May and June (2019). We are especially looking for units in the following counties to hold safety events: Nassau, Westchester, Suffolk, Erie, Monroe, Onondaga, Dutchess, Niagara, Oneida, Schenectady, Broome, Ulster, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Chautauqua, Oswego and Tompkins!

These free events run for 1½ to 2 hours, and are held early weekday evenings or Saturday mornings. They feature traffic safety materials for children and adults, attendance by local community partners, and include child-friendly giveaways, activities and food.

We will work in conjunction with your PTA, region and school to organize. Importantly - there will be NO cost to your PTA or school.

The state office is scheduling dates NOW! Email the office HERE to book a date for your school.

We are excited to share that NYS PTA is now offering translations for parent and family documents! If your unit needs documents translated, know that NYS PTA is here to help!

Email any documents (Word or PDF preferable) to translation@nyspta.org and using newly-implemented technology, NYS PTA staff will send you back your documents in your requested language.

And share the news! NYS PTA is committed to serving ALL families, and is proud of this new service!

The NYS School Boards Association's Education 2030 stakeholder summits will cultivate meaningful discussions about what needs to change in today's schools to prepare our students for success in the year 2030. Conversations will cover topics such as artificial intelligence, enrollment and cultural shifts, staffing needs, instructional technology and much more.

Who should attend?

School board members, administrators, educators, parents, students and community members.

Find out more and register HERE.

Dear Parents,

Yesterday, Board of Regents Chancellor Betty A. Rosa and I issued a statement to adamantly oppose arming teachers. While nothing is more important than the safety and security of our children, the way to ensure their safety is to focus on social emotional development and well-being and promoting a positive school climate.

Click HERE to read Commissioner Elia's letter to parents.

Talking to kids about online predators: use this script to kick off this tricky, but necessary, conversation with your kid - from Common Sense Media.

Here are 10 days' worth of easy activities that can be used to help refresh your child's verbal and reading/writing skills, get them primed for learning, and build their excitement for the start of the new school year - from National PTA.

IDEA and ADA - special education acronyms and other terms decoded - from Understood.org.

Did you know that if you are a Title 1 school or a school in a district that has Title 1 schools, your district is entitled to up to $1,000 grants from the state for field trips to state parks, historic sites and DEC sites? Find out more from Connect Kids to Parks Field Trip Grant Program.

Join The 30,000+ Schools, Fire Stations, Police Departments and Homes That Already Have LifeVac.

Strategically place units in the principal's office, the physical education office, the nurses office, and the cafeteria. Easy as Place-Push-Pull. If you can use a plunger at home, you can save a life with LifeVac.

NYS PTA Back to School Special Only $189.00 Including Free Shipping.

Stop the Bleed is a nationwide campaign to empower individuals to act quickly and save lives. No matter how rapid the arrival of professional emergency responders, bystanders will always be first on the scene. A person who is bleeding can die from blood loss in under 5 minutes.

NEW MEMBER BENEFIT! NYS PTA has partnered with Stop the Bleed to offer a 10% discount off any kit ordered, use code nypta10 here - stopbleedingkits.org

NYS PTA has partnered with Solar Gard to support school safety and help protect our most precious resource of all, our children.

Find more information here on how your PTA unit and school can partner with Solar Gard, and feel free to contact Gary Clark at Gary.R.Clark@saint-gobain.com with questions.