Back to School with PTA

Can you remember the first whiff of that unmistakable smell when you opened that brand new yellow and green box at the start of the school year? To this day, the scent of fresh crayons brings back fond memories and vivid images of my own school days.

Parents, focused on dutifully completing a back-to-school mission, might find themselves distracted by the same phenomenon. Purchasing crayons and all of those school supplies can bring to mind a mixed bag of emotions. Some may become teary-eyed at the thought of their first child beginning their educational journey, while others may be dancing for joy after spending many weeks over the summer vacation anticipating a well-deserved break.

Parents, whether this is your first back-to-school or your last, we share with you the hope that the experience will be the best that it can for each of our children. This is a great time to remember that the best way to help ensure that your child’s year will be successful is to become a member of your local PTA!

Speaking of the summer, PTA never stopped buzzing. In addition to the multitude of PTA events and activities that took place across the state, almost 50 members of the New York State PTA Governance Team prepared for the upcoming PTA year! More than 200 leaders came to work on honing their leadership skills, attending nearly 40 different workshops at our Summer Leadership Conference at Utica College. Twelve attendees were hand-picked by a team from Facebook© and sat on a panel designed to discuss the Facebook Parents Portal and the tools and resources that parents of school-age children would find helpful in navigating the digital world.


All volunteer leaders from all around New York took valued time from their families and attended a variety of workshops at the conference so that they would be best prepared to lead their local units and councils. Please join us in thanking them for their commitment to PTA and making the SLC such a successful training experience. And many thanks as well to all who facilitated or supported any of the many PTA events furthering our mission and kept our message out there for all to see.

All of the details related to our upcoming convention in Niagara Falls were finalized during the summer months. Our fantastic Convention Committee has planned a new program with exciting guest speakers, including the 2017 NYS Teacher of the Year Amy Hysick, NYS Commissioner of Education MaryEllen Elia and Georgia Superior Court Judge Verda Colvin. Convention registration is now open, CLICK HERE to register and see the registration packet. We hope you will join us November 3-5!

And so this week, as many children in New York head back to school, I’d like to wish all of our students a great year! To all of our teachers, administrators, guidance counselors, staff members, bus drivers, crossing guards and all others who work with our students, heartfelt gratitude for your service to our children and youth. It is because of your dedication that these bright stars will become the leaders of tomorrow!

-Gracemarie

Gracemarie Rozea, President
Leading the Way
president@nyspta.org