ADVOCACY

PTA Advocacy: A Legacy in Leadership

National PTA is proud to announce the release of the video, PTA Advocacy: A Legacy in Leadership. Each PTA state/congress will receive one DVD copy of PTA Advocacy: A Legacy in Leadership by November 2011. In addition, the video has been uploaded here for PTA members to view and share!     
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Online Advocacy Toolkit

To help child advocates speak up for the health and well-being of all children, National PTA has created an online advocacy toolkit. From writing your legislators to scheduling Capitol Hill visits, these step-by-step directions and examples will help you reach out to policy makers and the media.

The sections below provide easy to read guides for such advocacy tasks as working with the media and corresponding with members of Congress. Each section also has a downloadable PDF version of the text to allow for easy distribution. You can also download the PDFs from the following links at http://www.pta.org/3020.asp:

Why We Advocate

Part of the National PTA’s threefold mission is to speak on behalf of all children and youth before governmental bodies and other organizations. For over 100 years, PTA volunteers have used their time, energy, experience and knowledge to bring about changes in laws, policies and programs for the benefit of children. 

In order to maintain a nonprofit status under federal rules, the Arizona PTA is nonpartisan and works to direct its efforts at members of both political parties in order to enact change. When PTA officers or lobbyists participate in legislative activities that educate lawmakers about officially adopted PTA positions, or support a particular piece of legislation that is in agreement with the PTA Legislative Program, it is done on a strictly nonpartisan basis.

What is Advocacy?
Advocacy can be broken down into basic parts: the Advocate, the Issue, the Act and the Decision-maker.

  • Anyone who speaks for another is an advocate. PTA members are advocates for children and their parents.
  • PTA members advocate on a wide variety of child-related issues: education, health, nutrition, safety, juvenile protection, welfare reform, parent and family life, and drug abuse prevention, to name a few.
  • Advocacy is simply communicating about an issue for which PTA has adopted a position by speaking, writing, phoning, faxing or emailing. The purpose of the communication can be to inform, educate, persuade or increase the level of awareness about the issue.
  • The decision-maker is any individual or body that has the power to address the issue or solve the problem. Decision-makers include elected and appointed officials, legislative bodies, school boards, county commissioners, and judges.

Every PTA member can be an effective advocate. The process is always the same: identify, research and understand the issue; identify, research and understand the decision-maker; and develop and communicate the message. The process is not always easy, and dedication and perseverance are usually required. Sometimes success is achieved quickly, sometimes slowly.

Sign up for permanent early voting and to request a ballot

http://www.azsos.gov/election/county.htm

2012 National PTA Federal Public Policy Agenda

Each year National PTA publishes a public policy agenda that outlines policy priorities and recommendations for Congress. The priorities are selected based on the following criteria: timeliness of issue (is it being considered before Congress and the Administration), opportunities for National PTA to provide leadership and expertise to Congress, alignment to National PTA’s mission and resolutions, and ability to achieve a meaningful policy change that will produce positive results for children and their families.

The 2012 Public Policy Agenda features three key policy areas:

  • Education
  • Child health and nutrition
  • Juvenile justice and delinquency prevention

Download the 2012 Public Policy Agenda as a PDF.

Download the Executive Summary as a PDF.

Download the Spanish version.

 

Federal Policy Update and Action Alerts

PTA Takes Action Center keeps you informed on what’s happening on Capitol Hill and what action you can to take on legislative issues affecting families, schools, and communities.

PTA Takes Action Update, a monthly e-newsletter, replaces This Week in Washington.


http://www.pta.org/takesaction/

 

Policy Issue Briefs

National PTA seeks to demonstrate the value and impact of family engagement on student success.  The Best Practices and Innovation Issue Briefs will help you reinforce that message when speaking with federal and state policy makers and educational leaders in your states. The Federal Policy Issue Briefs are intended to educate PTA members and families about current federal laws within National PTA’s policy priorities.

 

  http://www.pta.org/3463.asp

 

State Laws on Family Engagement in Education

National PTA developed this publication as a tool for State PTAs and other family and child advocates to increase systemic, effective family engagement in all of our nation’s public schools.  Family engagement in education is a critical strategy for ensuring students’ academic achievement, graduation from high school, and overall success in life.  Low levels of family engagement in schools must be addressed at the federal, state, and local levels through the development of sound public policy and implementation, evaluation, and replication of best practices.

Implementation of state policies at the local school level is among the most critical components of achieving greater family engagement in education by requiring State Education Agencies (SEAs) to develop effective policy that, in turn, governs activities of the Local Education Agencies (LEAs), or school districts.

The purpose of this reference guide is two-fold:

  • It provides families and advocates with information on family engagement provisions within state education laws so that they can better advocate for their children’s education on the school and district levels. 
  • It guides policymakers’ and advocates’ development of their legislative reform initiatives as well as their efforts to monitor the implementation of laws already in place. 

The reference guide provides key facts, background, analysis, noteworthy statutes, and policy recommendations for crafting successful family engagement legislation at the state level.  Finally, the reference guide contains a survey of laws including legal citations pertaining to family engagement in education in all fifty states and the District of Columbia.


Family Engagement in Education Act of 2011

The Family Engagement in Education Act (H.R.1821/S.941) incentivizes schools and districts to meaningfully engage families to close the achievement gap. This bill was introduced on May 10, 2011 in the House of Representatives by Rep. Todd Platts (R-PA) and Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY), and in the Senate by Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) and Sen. Christopher Coons (D-DE). Research demonstrates that family engagement in a child’s education increases student achievement, improves attendance, and reduces the dropout rate.

 Proposal Overview (pdf)


 

Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act: S. 3307 Passed

On Monday, December 13, 2010, President Barack Obama signed S. 3307, the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act into law. The act reforms and improves programs under the Child Nutrition Act, including school breakfasts and lunches. This legislation comes at a pivotal time when both childhood obesity and child hunger are at alarming levels.

National PTA applauds the passage of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act and has played a vital role in the formulation, debate, and passage of this critical legislation.

Download the fact sheet for additional information on S. 3307.