PROGRAMS AND RESOURCES CREATED BY PTA FOR PTA
While there are many programs that PTAs can use, the following programs have been created by National PTA and Utah PTA. They have been designed to help PTAs build their community and provide support to parents and families for specific issues they are facing.
National PTA School of Excellence
National PTA School of Excellence recognition program opens the lines of communication and critical thinking within school communities to make data-driven decisions that yield positive, longterm results.
National PTA School of Excellence is a recognition program that supports and celebrates partnerships between PTAs and schools to enrich the educational experience and overall well-being for all students. By enrolling in this program, your PTA and school administrators are making a year-long commitment in identifying and implementing an action plan for school improvement based on PTA’s National Standards for Family-School Partnerships and Transformative Family Engagement.
Those that exhibit improvement are honored as National PTA Schools of Excellence, a distinction that spans two years. Honorees receive celebration tools and automatic consideration for the Phoebe Apperson Hearst Award and a $2,000 grant for their school. PTAs are encouraged to renew their designation each year, or every other year, to continue to build on their momentum.
Your School of Excellence designation will help attract new, action-oriented PTA members who want to focus on the issues that affect our children the most, and being a National PTA School of Excellence will open the door to other honors and opportunities for your school. Enrollment is open June 1 to October 1 each school year.
To find more information and to enroll, visit: PTA.org/ Home/Programs/National-PTA-School-of-Excellence.
National PTA Take Your Family To School Week
Occurs during a designated week each February
PTA Take Your Family to School Week is a way to attract families to your school. Invite family members to step away from their daily grind and into the school during PTA Take Your Family to School Week. This special week is designed to connect families with their child’s school experience, and hosting PTA Take Your Family to School Week events will help strengthen the parent-school partnerships throughout the year.
By planning organized activities for families at the school:
- Parents gain a new perspective on their children’s school day.
- Teachers build positive partnerships with parents.
- Children know that their family cares and values education.
- Schools build an excellent reputation in the community as an open welcoming place for families.
- Studies show that a child’s academic performance increases when their parents become involved in their education.
Ideas for PTA Take Your Family to School Week:
- Open Gym Day: Get in the Game! Set up for volleyball, softball, kickball, or basketball on the school grounds.
- Family Food Functions:
- Host mealtime opportunities with options like “Guests and Goodies” or “Parents and Pastries.”
- Host Evening meals: ethnic pot luck, barbecue, or indoor picnic where families bring food.
- Wall of Fame: Who’s Who at the School
- Students interview teachers and adults at the school. They can use quotes, photos, pictures, and facts for a “Wall of Fame.”
- School Lunch Together: Parents go through the lunch line with their student and eat lunch together.
- Family Heritage Exhibit: Families contribute artifacts that highlight the history and diversity of all the members of the school’s community.
Utah PTA Battle of the Bands
Battle of the Bands (BOB) is an official Utah PTA program for PTSAs. Utah PTA’s Battle of the Bands is the only PTA program like it in the country. Beginning in 2002, a competition between high school bands was created. In its current form, there are three levels of competition:
School Playoffs
One band representing each school will move on to the multi-region competition. Each school that has more than one band applying to compete will hold a school competition. This will be run by the school PTSA president or BOB chair. All school winner applications will be forwarded by the school PTSA president or BOB chair to the chair in charge of their multi-region competition by March 1.
Multi-Region Competition
Multi-region competitions will take place between March 1-31. The region chair or BOB chair will be in touch with all school winners with the date, time, and place of the multi-region competition. Three bands from each multiregion competition will advance to the state BOB. Each multi-region will decide which three bands will advance. Some send first and second place and then the audience favorite, and some send the top three place bands. The multi-region competition winner’s application will be sent on to the Utah PTA Battle of the Bands Chair by the multi-region BOB chair. Multi-region entries are due to Utah PTA by April 1.
State Competition
The State Battle of the Bands will include the three entries from each multi-region competition. They may have other entrants through areas that may not have a multi-region, or there are other possible wild card entries. State BOB has traditionally been held around the end of April or beginning of May. Rules are updated each year, so for a complete packet with rules and forms, go to our website: utahpta.org/bob
Utah PTA Digital Wellness Video Contest
The purpose of this video contest is to promote digital citizenship, safety, and wellness through students’ creativity, tech, and filming skills.
Students Eligible to Enter
This video contest is open for students in grades 9-12 in the state of Utah at a PTA/PTSA school. Students may create a video as a group, but only one student can submit the video entry. If a group entry wins, the winning student will share the prize with the other students in the group.
Digital Wellness Video Topic
A new theme is picked each year and announced in the early fall. . Students may choose to focus on one or more aspects of the theme. For example, a student may choose to focus on how to be safe online and another student may choose how to be responsible with their tech use, but students do not need to cover all three aspects. However, a student is welcome to cover each aspect if they would like. The theme is generally broad and open for different interpretations as there are many different aspects of being safe, kind, and responsible online. Be creative and have fun. For more information on this year’s theme and contest rules, visit utahpta.org/video-contest.
Utah PTA Family Health Night Toolkit
As a Health Commission, we believe in whole-child wellness that will help to make every child’s potential a reality! Use the power of collaboration with school district health professionals and community partners to bring resources and fun to your school community. In the toolkit you will find planning materials, printables, digital fliers and examples of brochures you can use. utahpta.org/family-health-night
Utah PTA November Military Family Month
Attention All PTA Families Utah PTA and Utah National Guard celebrate Military Family Month with a concert held around Veterans Day every year.
Essay Contest
Utah PTA, in partnership with Utah National Guard, is also holding an essay contest for military families! The three winning students from elementary school, middle school/junior high, and high school from military families will be honored at this concert and receive a valuable prize!
A military family is one that has a father, mother, sister, or brother who has served or is presently serving in the Active, Reserve, or National Guard (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard). If children live with guardians who are presently serving, they are also included.
The theme for the essay contest is “America 250 and Me: What My Military Connection Means to Me” The essay must be no more than 500 words. You can email or send the essay to Utah PTA Military Families Chair at militaryfamilies@utahpta.org. Word format is preferred. Deadlines for the essay and concert information will be posted on utahpta.org in the early fall. utahpta.org/veterans-day-concert-military-family-essay-contest
Utah PTA Red Ribbon Week
Red Ribbon Week is generally held the last full week in October.
In many schools, PTAs plan the Red Ribbon Week activities. Utah PTA in collaboration with prevention experts, created a Red Ribbon Week Toolkit.
This toolkit is meant to be a helpful guide when planning Red Ribbon Week activities. Included in this kit are ways that adults can engage students in effective drug prevention messaging and activities that are based on prevention science and research. The categories and themes are meant to be guides in assisting adults to develop activities during Red Ribbon Week that will target their individual communities, schools, and students as needed. Activities are separated out by ages (elementary, secondary, or both) and include instructions, templates, and resources needed for implementation. Feel free to adjust activities and themes as needed. To access the Red Ribbon Week Toolkit, visit utahpta.org/brand-new-red-ribbon-week-toolkit.
Utah PTA Suicide Prevention Toolkit
In a time when suicide is the leading cause of death among Utah youth, it is more important than ever for families, educators, and community members to be educated about suicide and suicide prevention. This evidence-based toolkit has been created by prevention specialists in collaboration with Utah PTA with a singular goal in mind: to help every child in Utah. It contains a combination of upstream, midstream, and downstream approaches designed to help children of all ages in their homes, at PTA activities, in the classroom, and more.
It is our hope that each PTA/PTSA will have a prevention specialist who can help implement these ideas throughout the year into things you are already doing, which will add a prevention piece to as many activities as possible in order to keep the conversation going.
The activities suggested in the “School Support” section align with the Utah State Board of Education Core Standards for Health and are designed to be used by educators and others in the classroom. Activities are separated by ages (elementary, secondary, or both) and include instructions, templates, and resources needed for implementation. Feel free to adjust activities as needed.
To access the Toolkit, visit utahpta.org/Suicide-Prevention-Toolkit.
Utah Reflections Online Guide
Complete training materials are available at utahpta.org/ref.
Note to PTA presidents: Reflections is now 100% online and easier than ever to run. Open communication between local schools, councils, and regions is essential to keep the program running smoothly.
Schools must be in good standing by December 1 of each year or their entries will be excluded from participating in Reflections at the state level. Please make sure that your membership dues are paid and that your bylaws are current or renewed. Bylaws take time to renew because you are required to post them for 14 days.
Please provide your Reflections Specialists with contact information for your council/region specialists, including names, phone numbers, and email addresses. You also need to share contact information for your specialists with your council/region specialists at the earliest possible date so they will not miss out on trainings and deadline information. Sharing and using contact information between the levels is essential. Also, please provide your specialists with the information needed to register with National PTA, which includes your unit ID number and bylaws expiration date.
Utah PTA Arts Education Grant
Utah PTA believes cultivating the arts is important to Utah’s children, and participation in the arts can make a notable difference in a child’s abilities, talents, and self-esteem. With support from the Utah Division of Arts and Museums, Utah PTA has grant money available to encourage local schools to develop, participate in, promote, and provide quality art programs. This grant is offered to schools annually to assist in this effort.
This program is currently being revised and more information will be available later in the year for the coming school year.