The motto of the PTA is “Every child, one voice”.
That sounds nice enough and I can understand the meaning that all children are represented by one organization but they are not. There is inequity and inequality. It also promotes the idea that the PTA stands for all children and parents but they do not yet it is an effective tool to use when these PTA representatives meet with our legislators. The meaning being that whatever the PTA promotes is what all parents and students want but again we know that’s not the case.
Let’s start at the beginning of the membership process. When contacting PTA’s in Seattle to promote my classes as part of the school’s enrichment program, I noticed that there were several schools that did not have PTA’s. These schools were in the financially depressed, mostly minority areas. If there was a PTA, there might be two officers and little to no activities being promoted such as fund-raising. In Seattle with the alternative schools, there are site councils made up of parents that have a similar function.
According to one PAA parent in Spokane, Washington there are only 5 schools that have PTA’s and they are in the higher income neighborhoods. According to this Spokane parent:
Most of our schools are PTG, or PTO, having gone that way a few years back, due to the $5.00 FEES charged in the PTA. Parents made this change as they wanted all the money to go to the kids and schools. These organizations wouldn’t even be allowed to vote. So the only folks that could vote from Spokane are higher income.
That leaves many Spokane parents with no voice in this matter, even though charter legislation would have the greatest effect on their low-income neighborhood schools.
I checked the schools in Tacoma by going to the websites of the elementary schools and found one or two schools that had PTA’s.
And as I stated in an earlier post, many schools that have PTA’s will not be able to attend this two-day legislative session to vote on the PTA platform due to financial reasons. A day off from work if the parent is working, the cost of childcare, a hotel room, the registration fee, transportation and food can be cost prohibitive to many struggling parents and these days just about 99% of us are struggling.
It would be helpful if the Washington State PTA (WSPTA) provided a list of schools represented statewide at this statewide legislative session.
And on the issue of the WSPTA charter school proposal, it is interesting to note that the only issue that will have a panel providing pro’s and con’s at the PTSA legislation session is whether the sale of alcohol should be privatized or not and yet there will be no panel discussion on whether our schools should be privatized. According to Ramona Hattendorf’s e-mail describing the PTA’s legislative session agenda regarding the proposed bill on the sale of alcohol:
I-1183, Privatizing the Sale of Spirits. A Panel Discussion
We have invited both pro and con campaigns to present and take questions.
There will be no panel discussion of the pro’s and con’s of what is for parents, students and teachers, a far more important subject, the privatization of our public school system in the state of Washington.
The PTA legislative session starts today and it will be interesting to see how this all plays out for the Washington State PTA and Stand for Children.
Dora
Whoa! I got a message from the site saying I’d made a duplicate post, so I tried it again. That’s why there are two redundant posts.
That’s OK. What’s important is that you are sharing this information.
Dora
Sorry, I miss-typed. The sentence should have read “The new model for Teacher RIF policies also made it onto their 2010 legislative platform, and is even more dangerous than compensation in my opinion.” I didn’t mean to say the sponsors were dangerous! Sorry.
I misspoke. I typed “The sponsors of the new model for Teacher RIF policies also made it onto their 2010 legislative platform…” I meant to type “The new model for Teacher RIF policies also made it onto their 2010 legislative platform…”
Dora,
Along with a team of two other teachers from Issaquah and one from Bellevue, I was delegate at PTSA Legislative Assembly this past weekend. Our team presented an Amendment to the New Model for Teacher Compensation, which you’ve been talking about. We had 3 intense presentation sessions on Friday followed by a caucus Friday night. On Saturday morning the Charter Schools proposal was debated on the floor and passed by a narrow margin. they had to do a standing count. Our amendment was the last vote. We knew that our amendment to retain experience and higher learning as the foundation of the teacher salary scale wouldn’t fly, so we moved a 2nd amendment which changed the wording and recognized the importance of the new teacher and principal evaluation pilot. The debate was amazing, and we picked up a lot of support. In the end we lost but it was close. We came in as outsiders, faced a lot of skepticism, but I actually feel that PTSA would welcome more participation by teachers, if we can just get them to be more involved. The choice is clear: drop your PTA membership in protest (and just give a donation to your school PTA) or GET INVOLVED AND GET ACTIVE! i and a growing number of teachers have chose the latter. BTW, you were wondering who the issue submitters of the New Model for Teacher Compensation were last year. They were: Leslie Warrick, Alison Merryweather, Trina Davis and Chad Magendez. This is public information on WSPTA’s website. The sponsors of the new model for Teacher RIF policies also made it onto their 2010 legislative platform and is even more dangerous than compensation in my opinion. My team submitted an amendment this year to change that one too, but it didn’t make it out of PTA’s legislation committee. I appealed it to the executive board, but they voted it down so it didn’t survive to the legislative assembly. Here is the link to last year’s Legislative Issue List (a two year platform). http://www.wastatepta.org/meetings/leg_assembly/Issues_Guide_2010.pdf
Thanks for all of this helpful information!
I will include it in a post that I am working on regarding the legislative assembly and the details of what happened.
If you have any additional information to share, please add it to this list of comments or send it to me at dora.taylor@gmail.com.
Dora
Thanks, Bill and colleagues, for actively participating! As a parent, I’ve tried to share with my child’s school staff everything that’s happening with WA PTA and the teachers’ right to become involved. I’ll be sure to share your post with them.
I stand corrected.
Dora
Dora, the plural of PTA is PTAs, not PTA’s. Thanks.