President’s Message

Our Legacy...

We welcome you to a new year at Shorecrest High School. As kids we remember the butterflies in our stomachs with the start of each new school year. We are anticipating exciting beginnings in our PTSA this Fall as well. We hope to partner with the school to find funding and volunteers for after school tutoring, to find ways to decrease drug and alcohol use among teens and to discover the best ways to support academics at Shorecrest.

As we look forward to a new year we begin by looking back. What is the legacy of the PTA? Washington State PTA coined the phrase "pre-school," PTA brought immunization and health care to students, PTA was responsible for starting the school lunch programs, and last year Washington State PTA worked with the legislature to define what basic education should entail. With basic education defined we can now hold the State accountable. Some of our school districts (Shoreline included) are suing the State to fund basic education - "the paramount duty of the state of Washington"!

Here at home our PTSA Math Committee partnered with the district to help find the best math curriculum for our students. Today we are working together with the school to reach many goals. One of which is to keep Math Night and after school funding for tutors in all subjects.

We are asking the teachers what goals we can help them achieve. And we are embarking on a new writing program with the freshman class - "Writers in the Schools" (WITS). This program is sponsored by Seattle Arts and Lectures. They pair professional writers with schools to inspire students' understanding of the human experience through reading, writing, and performance. But is much more that, visit the website www.lectures.org/wits.html to get the big picture.

All of this is made possible because of generous "Pass the Hat"donations from YOU, our members. Thank you for making it possible to enrich our student's education. We need to hear from you! With each new PTSA member our voice in Olympia gets louder. We want to know what matters to you, your children, our teachers and staff. What shall we leave as our legacy?

Fondly,
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Co PTSA Presidents