Calendar

REGISTER FOR THE ZOOM LINK

As part of LWPTSA Council’s continued commitment to building welcoming, inclusive school communities, we invite you to join a timely and thoughtful learning session: “Advancing Inclusion in Evolving Times,” with guest speaker Ilsa Govan.

Pre-Reading:

• Small Works by Sarah Lazarovic
• Advancing Racial Equality: Legal Guidance for Advocates from the Othering & Belonging Institute (UC Berkeley)

In today’s rapidly shifting social landscape, families, educators and community members are called to reflect on how we stay rooted in our shared values—ensuring all students and families feel respected, supported and connected.

This session is an opportunity to deepen our understanding of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB), and explore how we can nurture inclusive environments in ways that are thoughtful, informed and responsive to the moment.

🌟 What to Expect:

Guest speaker Ilsa Govan will guide us through:

• A practical overview of relevant civil rights considerations and current guidance
• Approaches to sustaining inclusive practices and healthy community dialogue
• Tools for responding to uncertainty with clarity and collaboration
• Insights on grounding equity work in care, trust and shared purpose

At the heart of this conversation is a simple belief: Every student deserves to feel safe, seen and valued.

We hope you’ll join us for this meaningful opportunity to reflect, connect, and grow together.

Council’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Committee meets one Wednesday each month of the school year (with the exception of September and June) at 11:30 am. During the 2024-2025 year, meetings will be held online via Zoom.

DEI chairs and other interested leaders from PTAs and PTSAs in the Lake Washington School District are invited to these monthly meetings to discuss DEI issues and advocacy initiatives that impact our students and families.

At our final Lunch & Learn of the year, join us as we welcome Jon Kollman, LWSD Director of Transportation Services, who will discuss district transportation. Are you concerned about school bus route cancellations and driver shortages? Safety and bullying on the bus? Accessibility? Health and sustainability? Bring your questions, grab your lunch, log on, and learn with us!

Register for the Zoom link: https://bit.ly/May25-LL

LWPTSA Council’s Lunch & Learn series consists of short presentations and Q&A on topics of interest to our school community, from noon – 1 pm on select Thursdays online via Zoom. Grab your lunch, log on, and learn with us! Event links will be shared on our website calendar, social media and newsletters close to the event dates. Topics and featured speakers are subject to change and will be updated as they are finalized.

Please join us for our virtual roundtable to discuss the important topic of safety at school. We will discuss different types of drills in LWSD, the importance of multi-option responses to human-made threats, an overview of emergency preparedness supplies, and how to respond to issues after hours or during PTSA-sponsored activities.

This roundtable will be an open discussion led by Dr. Brooke Gialopsos, LWPTSA Council E-Prep Chair and Associate Professor in the Department of Criminal Justice, Criminology and Forensics at Seattle University. In addition, Dr. Brooke is a certified ALICE (Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate) instructor.

Register for the Zoom link here: https://bit.ly/LWPTSA-safety

Building a goal-based budget is key to the success of PTAs. Learn how to assess your PTA’s financial management practices and how to develop and amend budgets. Topics discussed in this class are not covered in the class “Managing Your Nonprofit PTA.”

REGISTER HERE

This WSPTA-approved training session will help all PTA/PTSA board members understand the basic responsibilities of their positions—and everyone else’s! We will review the basic elected PTA positions (president, secretary & treasurer), and we’ll also cover topics such as advocacy, fiduciary responsibility, membership and outreach. This training is ideal for anyone new to a local PTA board, as well as any board officer who could benefit from a comprehensive overview of the board’s responsibilities in the PTA realm.

This official training will be led by LWPTSA Council, and will count toward your 2025-2026 training requirement.

REGISTER FOR THIS ZOOM TRAINING

Please join us for the last SEG meeting of the year! 

At our April meeting, we had powerful conversations and brainstormed ideas about building a culture of inclusion in our PTSA events. This time, we’ll be diving deeper by exploring what it means to have an inclusive culture, and how we can bring it to life.

Together, we’ll:

• Reflect on inclusive values and practices
• Work in small groups to develop action plans for creating more welcoming, inclusive PTSA events and activities
• Connect with others who are passionate about meaningful inclusion

Whether you were there in the last meeting or joining us for the first time, your voice matters. We’d love to have you with us as we continue this important work. This meeting is recommended for PTA presidents and parents who volunteer in PTSA events or activities!

Join on Zoom to hear WSPTA legislative consultant Marie Sullivan summarize how things went during the 2025 Washington state legislative session. We will review the WSPTA scorecard on wins and losses on major policy bills and budget related to adopted legislative priorities and resolutions.

Register: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_OQlbnmhKQqClzfzY6RT0-g

It’s never too early to start thinking about next year. This class will help you prepare for the transition of leadership to make sure that your PTA continues strong, and has the right leaders in place to take the organization forward.​

REGISTER HERE

Join us for the final session of our Advocacy Skills in the Education System series this school year—taking place on May 30 at the LWSD Resource Center! (11 am to 12:30 pm)

This event is more than just a conversation—it’s a chance to play a role in the decision-making process that shapes our schools and impacts students and families across our district. This is your chance to not just listen, but to participate in the conversations that matter.

We’re thrilled to welcome elected officials who are connected to LWSD and education policy. This is your chance to engage in a Q&A session and learn directly from decision-makers.

Have a question or concern? Send it to us in advance! This helps us prioritize and organize topics to ensure your voice is part of a productive dialogue. From school funding to classroom equity—your input can influence decision-making.

Submit questions to LWPTSA Council’s Co-VPs of Advocacy, Zahra Eslami and Kameh Saman, at Advocacy@LWPTSA.net. Let’s wrap up the school year strong. Hope to see you there!

Join LWPTSA Council’s Scholarship Awards Reception and Presentation Ceremony as we celebrate the recipients of our 2025 scholarships! Families of student recipients, teachers, friends and scholarship program judges are all invited to join us to celebrate our Class of 2025 scholars.