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Friday, April 30, 2021
2021 National PTA Convention Business
Founded in 1901, Ohio PTA is the oldest and largest volunteer organization in the State of Ohio focusing on the health, welfare, safety, and education of children and youth.
Thursday, April 29, 2021
New Resources from National PTA on the American Rescue Plan Act
The recently-passed American Rescue Plan Act provided substantial funding to each state for K–12 education. Recently, the Department of Education released guidance for state and local education agencies about these funds. As a result, state and local educational agencies are currently developing plans for how they will use these funds and are required to seek public input as they do so. This presents an opportunity for your PTA to have a voice in how this funding will be used, what will be prioritized, and what is most needed in your community.
National PTA has produced two fact sheets attached to help you understand how states and localities are allowed to use this funding and how your PTA might provide input on the planned use of these funds in your community.
Opportunity to Provide Input on the Implementation of The
American Rescue Plan Act in Your Community
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1qPDR6A9-B8aZsOY7OTuHFRupuU5y67pn/view?usp=sharing
American Rescue Plan Act
Summary of K–12 Education Provisions
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wOEpdp4oGYhVkhc4YK2FXCkb4z_S1lXz/view?usp=sharing
Founded in 1901, Ohio PTA is the oldest and largest volunteer organization in the State of Ohio focusing on the health, welfare, safety, and education of children and youth.
Thursday, April 22, 2021
What do Ohio Students Need to Thrive?
PTA’s mission for 124 years has been to make every child’s potential a reality by engaging and empowering families and communities to advocate for all children. Here in Ohio we work in unison with the National organization to carry out this work as well. As all of our communities have experienced, the continued pandemic of Covid-19 has turned our children’s lives upside down.
Our communities have experienced significant loss in many ways, but our students continue to be a shining light in these challenging times. Our children have adapted, overcome, and have done their absolute best living through something very few people alive today ever have. The negative and harmful effects of this past year and the time to come is something we will still likely be studying a decade or more to come. However we as students, parents, educators, and community members continue to learn how to best move forward in these trying times.
While it has been known for a significant amount of time that adolescents are at a high risk for behavioral and mental health issues, Covid-19 is once again putting this important topic front and center. Anxiety, depression, and in very unfortunate circumstance, suicide, in our youth is a very real problem faced in our communities. Early detection is one of the best tools we have for helping our youth in addition to having services and early intervention methods in place within our communities. Our schools and education system can play a very large role on this topic just as they do in often screening for other health related conditions such as an often performed annual vision/hearing exam. It is not a question that behavioral health screenings and services are essential for children; it is our duty to remove as many barriers to gaining that access as possible.
Have you ever heard of wrap around services? Since our children spend a large portion of their developmental years in a school, the schools are in one of the better positions to look at how to help the whole child. A child is not going to perform well in school if they are hungry, tired, scared, in pain, or with undiagnosed conditions. Since it is the education systems mission to help the child perform well in school, it’s important that communities look at ways to support children being able to perform well in school. Many programs from nutrition, recreation, to health screenings, and other interventions are all things that schools rely on funding to provide and make up educational wrap around services. You have to work with and address the whole child, not just one component for success.
Join Ohio PTA and Children's Defense Fund of Ohio at our next Town Hall to further discuss student needs and the results of our recent parent survey on the topic.
Register today!
Ohio Parent Teacher Association Townhall:
What do Ohio students need to thrive?
In March 2021, the Ohio Parent Teacher Association & Children's Defense Fund-Ohio conducted an Ohio Parent Survey to gain insight into what their children need as they reemerge from the pandemic happy, healthy, and ready to learn.
The Ohio Parent Teacher Association welcomes you to join us on Tuesday, April 27th by registering for a virtual townhall discussion of these findings and an opportunity to learn together about how parents, school districts, and state leaders can act to address children's needs now post-pandemic and into the long term.
Date: Tuesday, April 27, 2021
Time: 7:00pm-8:00pm
Featuring a presentation on survey findings from
Children's Defense Fund-Ohio and a special school district spotlight
This forum will be streaming live via Zoom. REGISTER HERE
Founded in 1901, Ohio PTA is the oldest and largest volunteer organization in the State of Ohio focusing on the health, welfare, safety, and education of children and youth.
Tuesday, April 20, 2021
Announcements
Helping Hands Winners!
Founded in 1901, Ohio PTA is the oldest and largest volunteer organization in the State of Ohio focusing on the health, welfare, safety, and education of children and youth.
Tuesday, April 13, 2021
Monthly Math Workshops for Students Grades 6 to 12
 | The Ohio State University'sBeyond the Classroom MonthlyThe Department of Mathematics at The Ohio State University, through its outreach branch Buckeye Aha! Math Moments (BAMM), hosts free, virtual, monthly workshops for students in grades 6 to 12. The next virtual workshop is April 17. Student attendees get to explore math through engaging activities in a nontraditional environment. If you hit a ball on a billiard table, how do you know where it will go? Will it come back to where it started? In April, students in grades 6 to 12 can join BAMM to find answers to questions like these as they study billiards from a mathematical point of view. WHEN: Saturday, April 17, 11 a.m. Learn more or register: go.osu.edu/billiards |
Founded in 1901, Ohio PTA is the oldest and largest volunteer organization in the State of Ohio focusing on the health, welfare, safety, and education of children and youth.
Celebrate the "T" in PTA
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
New public service announcement unveiled for K-12 Schools:
“The Future Depends on Teachers”
Columbus, OHIO - The Ohio Department of Education, in partnership with TEACH, is excited to announce “The Future Depends on Teachers,” a new public service announcement campaign for K-12 schools, airing in time for Teacher Appreciation Week. It celebrates the role teachers play in shaping the future and invites people to explore teaching at a time when teachers are needed more than ever.
This is a hero moment for the teaching profession. The pandemic presented K-12 education in Ohio with enormous challenges. Yet, despite these challenges, teachers across the state innovated, improvised and ultimately rose to meet this new reality head-on. Teachers are not only essential workers; they are crucial to developing the next generation of leaders who will shape the world.
“The pandemic highlighted what we’ve always known: Ohio has awesome teachers. We just need more of them,” said State Superintendent of Public Instruction Paolo DeMaria. “I can’t think of many things that are more rewarding or significant than teaching. Each day, I am amazed at the incredible ways our teachers are supporting and encouraging students. Most of us are fortunate to leave an impact on one or two others during our lifetime. Teachers, however, are guaranteed an opportunity to make a positive impact on hundreds or thousands of lives throughout their careers.”
“The Future Depends on Teachers” will air on TV and radio to inspire future teachers to explore the profession, celebrate the hard work of current teachers, and elevate the teaching profession among the general public. The spots communicate teachers’ impact not only on students, but on society. The spots end with a call for viewers to explore pursuing a career in teaching as a way to leave a lasting and meaningful legacy.
Viewers who visit Teach.org automatically will be directed to a page about teaching in Ohio with links to the Department and information about certification, teacher prep programs and what it’s like to teach in Ohio.
ABOUT THE PARTNERS
TEACH is a nonprofit founded by the U.S. Department of Education. Its mission is to elevate the image of the teaching profession, reduce the teacher shortage, especially in hard-to-staff subjects, and improve the quality and diversity of the new teacher supply. The website at www.teach.org is a one-stop shop of free, valuable tools and resources to help anyone who is considering becoming a teacher. “The Future Depends on Teachers” is one part of a long-term multi-phase recruitment initiative to diversify the teaching profession and address our nation’s teacher shortage.
The Ohio Department of Education is a diverse team of passionate, education-focused professionals dedicated to fulfilling the vision established in Each Child, Our Future, Ohio’s strategic plan for education. The vision is, “In Ohio, each child is challenged to discover and learn, prepared to pursue a fulfilling post-high school path and empowered to become a resilient, lifelong learner who contributes to society.” Ensuring this vision for each of Ohio’s 1.7 million students, in partnership with more than 240,000 educators across the state, is no small feat. Under the leadership of the superintendent of public instruction and governed by the State Board of Education, Department team members, in collaboration with a wide range of partners, are sharply focused on helping schools and districts continually improve to be the best they can be for each child. Equity and impact are core to every program, service and action. The Department’s work is well regarded both in Ohio and nationally for its innovative, leading-edge and forward-looking approach. When the Department succeeds, students succeed, communities succeed and Ohio succeeds.
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Founded in 1901, Ohio PTA is the oldest and largest volunteer organization in the State of Ohio focusing on the health, welfare, safety, and education of children and youth.
Sunday, April 11, 2021
Ohio PTA / ODE -- Parent Academy Webinar Event
Parents, families and caregivers are invited to learn more about Ohio's Whole Child Framework. In partnership with Ohio PTA, the Ohio Department of Education's Office of Integrated Student Supports will spotlight Ohio’s Whole Child Framework and provide information about what it means for our children.
When: Apr 28, 2021 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Topic: Ohio PTA / ODE Parent Academy: What Does Ohio’s Whole Child Framework Mean for my Child?
Please register in advance for this webinar: REGISTER HERE FOR THE WEBINAR
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
MORE ABOUT OUR WEBINAR:
Ohio’s strategic plan for education, Each Child, Our Future, puts the whole child at the center, where each component of the plan works harmoniously to support a whole-child approach. Likewise, Ohio’s Whole Child Framework also places the whole child at the center, with district, school, family and community supporting the needs of the whole child using a comprehensive approach.
A whole child approach broadens district and school focus beyond academics to include meeting students social-emotional, physical and safety needs. It provides a blueprint to meet these whole child needs, which are foundational to a child’s intellectual and social development and necessary for students to fully engage in learning and school.
Please join us on April 28 to learn more about Ohio’s Whole Child Framework and what it means for my child.
Please share the link with interested parties: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_LUZAbF2SQzOHgAhjIWbBIg
Founded in 1901, Ohio PTA is the oldest and largest volunteer organization in the State of Ohio focusing on the health, welfare, safety, and education of children and youth.
Roadmap to Reopening Safely and Meeting All Students' Needs
U.S. Department of Education Releases "COVID-19 Handbook, Volume 2: Roadmap to Reopening Safely and Meeting All Students' Needs"
Today, the U.S. Department of Education (Department) released the COVID-19 Handbook, Volume 2: Roadmap to Reopening Safely and Meeting All Students' Needs to provide additional strategies for safely reopening all of America's schools and to promote educational equity by addressing opportunity gaps that have been exacerbated by the pandemic.
Building off of Volume 1: Strategies for Safely Reopening Elementary and Secondary Schools, which focused on health and safety measures that schools can use to successfully implement the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) K-12 Operational Strategy, Volume 2 of the Handbook focuses on research-based strategies to address the social, emotional, mental-health, and academic impacts of the pandemic on students, educators, and staff, such as how to address any potential anxiety or depression some may face as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and nearly a year of remote learning.
"There is simply no substitute for in-person learning," said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona. "But as schools reopen their doors, we must also make sure that we are meeting students' social, emotional, physical, mental-health, and academic needs, and addressing gaps that existed before—and were exacerbated by—the pandemic. This is an opportunity for us to not only reopen our schools safely, but to make sure our education systems are truly serving all our nation's students."
Today's release is part of the Biden-Harris Administration's broader effort to provide states, districts, schools, and communities with the resources and support they need to return to in-person learning safely and quickly, and achieve the President's goal of reopening a majority of K-8 schools within the first 100 days of the Administration. Volume 2 identifies strategies states, districts, schools, and communities can use when implementing funding they have received from the American Rescue Plan, which invests $130 billion in safely reopening schools, sustaining their safe in-person operation, and addressing the impact of COVID-19.
Volume 2 also aims to meet President Biden's call for communities and the country to "build back better." As states and districts continue to reopen schools safely, the Department is encouraging communities to implement strategies that address the social, emotional, and mental-health needs of students, including the disproportionate toll COVID-19 has had on underserved communities, and address inequities in our education system that predate and have been made worse by the pandemic.
In February, the Department released Volume 1 of the COVID-19 Handbook, which provides educators and staff with practical examples, roadmaps, and tools to implement the CDC's K-12 operational strategy for in-person learning, including the recommended five key mitigation measures (universal and correct use of masks; physical distancing; handwashing and respiratory etiquette; maintaining clean and healthy facilities, including through ventilation; and contact tracing in combination with isolation and quarantine).
Since the release of Volume 1, the Department and CDC have met with educators; state and local elected officials, including governors, mayors, and legislative leaders in every state and territory; chief state school officers; state boards of education; and stakeholder organizations across the country about how to safely reopen schools. Volume 2 includes many strategies and resources informed by these conversations and recommended by education, civil rights, and research organizations.
As part of the launch of Volume 2, Secretary Cardona will hold a virtual roundtable with a diverse group of students and parents today, Friday, April 9, to discuss how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected their education and their lives, and how the tools and resources in Volume 2 of the handbook can help assist schools and communities in addressing student needs.
Strategies described in Volume 2 can be supported by funding under the American Rescue Plan. Each section provides strategies and considerations for meeting the needs of underserved students. The sections include:
- Providing school meals regardless of educational setting.
- Meeting the social, emotional, and mental-health needs of students.
- Providing all students with access to a safe and inclusive learning environment.
- Accelerating learning through in-classroom instructional approaches, tutoring, and expanded learning time.
- Supporting equitable access and effective use of technology for teaching and learning.
- Using data about students' opportunities to learn to help target resources and support.
- Addressing resource inequities.
- Stabilizing a diverse and qualified educator workforce.
- Supporting educator and staff well-being.
The Department will continue to provide support and resources to schools and communities as they work to return to in-person instruction safely. Later this month, the Department will launch its "Safer Schools and Campuses Best Practices Clearinghouse," which is open for submissions from states, schools, districts, and individuals nationwide. Once launched, the Clearinghouse will highlight lessons learned and best practices that can help schools and districts identify opportunities to utilize American Rescue Plan funds to meet their unique needs.
Founded in 1901, Ohio PTA is the oldest and largest volunteer organization in the State of Ohio focusing on the health, welfare, safety, and education of children and youth.