It's BACK! The Livonia PTSA Council is proud to announce that we will be hosting our 7th Annual Chili Cook-Off on Saturday, January 21st at Franklin High School! We are so excited to be able to host this much-beloved event once again! We are very grateful to have Kiwanis Early Risers again award a $500 grant to the school with the winning chili! Remember, anyone can enter as long as they are a PTA Member of your school! All entries must be received by January 14, 2023.

NEW THIS YEAR! Entrants can now sign up online through our MemberHub store!

https://lptsacouncil.memberhub.com/store/items/806480

Entrants can also mail in their entry forms with the $10 entry fee. They can download the entry form and the complete set of rules on our website at livoniaptsacouncil.org. Printable entry form and rules are also below.

Please be sure to share the Chili Cook-Off flyer and paper entry form on your social media pages!

We are looking forward to tasting some fantastic chili! And don't forget, we will also have raffle baskets, a 50/50 raffle, a bake sale, and more! So start getting those winning recipes together! Let's see who takes home the win! Good Luck!

Andrea Malenfant

Livonia PTSA Council President

Join us for a night of celebrating the founding of PTA in America,

as well as the accomplishments of our amazing local units!

Help us honor our staff, student and parent nominees,

as well as our LPS Educators and Support Staff of the Year.

Tickets: $30 each. Tables seat EIGHT.

Invite/RSVP form below.

Questions? Email: amandagerstenbrand@gmail.com (734) 293-6404

Honoree nominations forms due by December 19. Use the Google form links below. No paper copies will be accepted.

Student Nominee Form (secondary only)

Staff Nominee Form

Parent Nominee Form

Start working on those centerpieces based on the 2022-23 Reflections theme - "Show Your Voice." Best centerpieces will win a prize!

Also, we need your pictures to display during the evening! Link at the end of this newsletter and every newsletter. Let everyone see the cool things you've been doing!

Don't forget to send Michigan PTA their dues for every new member by the 28th of the month. Also, for those units that have not paid their annual Livonia PTSA Council dues, please send them in or contact me if there is an issue with doing this. They are over one month late.

Kindly,

Nicole Dant

nicole.dant@livoniaptsacouncil.org

Livonia PTSA Council, Membership Chair

How about sending them a Star Award from the LPS Education Foundation!

Units, please pass on this info to your families.

Are you looking for a unique way to thank a Livonia Public Schools staff member? A Star Award honors any LPS employee who has made a difference in a student’s, family’s or fellow staffer’s life. For a $25 donation to the Foundation, a personalized, color certificate will be presented to your honoree, and they will receive recognition on the Foundation’s website and social media platforms as well as the district’s social media platforms. The certificate will be personalized with your praise to show this LPS employee how much they mean to you!

Please click on the link below to send a Star Award to an awesome LPS staff member!

https://bit.ly/LPSEF-StarAward

Donations received will be used to help fund the Foundation’s Grant Program so all funds will be going back into the schools to provide programs and supplies for our students and staff.

Thank you for your support!

If you have any questions, please email lpsfoundation@livoniapublicschools.org

'Tis the season! By now you should have uploaded and submitted everything needed to make sure your Standards of Affiliation (SOA) are complete. If you have anything missing, you should be uploading those documents today, even if they're late! Are you still wondering what needs to be uploaded and what needs to be emailed to PEP? Here's a few tips to help:

• Submitting the signed copies of the Best Financial Practice and Bylaws Acknowledgement forms are to be emailed to PEP.
• Submitting compliance information needs to be uploaded into the Compliance hub in MemberHub under "Enter State Submissions" so Michigan PTA can approve it. This includes your 990, Bylaws, Budget, Audit, and Proof of Insurance.
• Inviting your liaison to your meetings and submitting newsletter articles, simply CC PEP on those emails for PEP credit.

Are you and your PTA/PTSA board wondering if you can earn more PEP points? The answer is YES! It's super easy, too! When you invite your liaison to your monthly membership meeting, simply CC PEP on that email. Did your PTA/PTSA unit do something you'd like to share? Write a newsletter article and CC PEP. Are you attending Founders' Day in February? You earn PEP points for attending! Don't forget to make a centerpiece, that's more PEP points. How about your membership numbers? Have you achieved last year's numbers? If so, that's another 250 PEP points! Have you exceeded that number by 25? For each additional 25 members, that's another 100 PEP points! And those are just some of the ways you can earn more PEP points! Review the PEP checklist for more ways.

Want to know where your PTA/PTSA unit currently stands in the rankings? Simply visit https://livoniaptsacouncil.org/work/pep/ for a breakdown of what you have received credit for. Please note the date of the PEP standings.

Happy PEP-ing!

Sara Bennett

Livonia PTSA Council - PEP Chair

pep@livoniaptsacouncil.org

Hello Elementary PTA Units!

Please remind your kindergarten families to sign up their students for the Competitive Edge Savings Program, an exciting savings program offered to every kindergarten student entering the Livonia Public Schools. The goal of the LPS Education Foundation is to provide a unique opportunity for LPS parents to begin planning early for their children’s post-secondary education (such as eligible colleges or trade schools) and to help set aside money for their children’s future educational expenses.

The Foundation deposits $100 for every kindergarten student who registered into a pooled 529 account. This account grows over the course of the students' educational journeys. When the student graduates from an LPS high school and is accepted into an eligible post secondary school, they will receive a check from the Foundation after completing the claim form and submitting the necessary documentation.

Here is the link to register for the program: https://bit.ly/CompEdgeSignUp. Current LPS kindergarten students have until February 1, 2023 to register – do not miss out on this wonderful program that is totally free to you!

The Cleveland PTA hosted a DINOmite walk-a-thon event on November 18th. Students and adults got into the “Dinos on a Walk” theme spirit. It was a cold, but very fun afternoon.

This year we were excited to KICK off our walk with a guest performance by Livonia Pom, an award-winning dance group that includes some Cleveland alumni. We were also thankful for the partnership of BJ’s Brewhouse, who donated cookie treats for our hungry student walkers and adult volunteers. Leftover cookies were delivered to the Livonia Police and Livonia Fire stations.

As of 11/28, Cleveland has raised $1,000 more than the school-wide goal of $12,000. Pledges were accepted until 11/29, Giving Tuesday, and the class that raises the most will win a free roller skating party at Riverside Arena.

Frost Craft Show Returns!

The beginning of November saw the return of the ever popular Frost Craft Show. This PTSA event, run entirely by volunteers, is a huge undertaking that takes months of preparation. We hosted over 100 vendors and 1,400 visitors on Saturday, November 5! We also hosted a bake sale and kitchen for attendees and vendors.

The PTSA board is so grateful to all of those who supported the event, whether it was by baking an item for the bake sale, helping with set up, exhibiting at the show, visiting the show, or volunteering that day, you made the show a success - THANK YOU! It truly takes a village to pull off the craft show and we couldn't have done it without everyone's help!

November was a fun month for our Kennedy students. Our mileage club made its annual debut last month. It’s a wonderful way for the students to get their energy out and earn prizes based on how far they run each week. Many parents proudly help by keeping records of each student’s distance and putting together the weekly prizes.

Our students had the opportunity this month to enter our school wide “Turkey in Disguise” contest. This is one of our family engagement activities that is highly anticipated every November. It is always fun to see how creative the turkeys are year after year. The turkeys are also proudly hung up for all to see throughout the month.

Our 4th graders enjoyed their first field trip of the year to Matheai Botanical Gardens in Ann Arbor, and Jim Basketball Jones came in for a school wide assembly as well. Overall, November was a great month at Kennedy.

We hope everyone has enjoyed the beginning of all the Holiday fun! At Randolph, we provided our staff with a Panera dinner during parent teacher conferences! Our teachers are so important to us and it makes us all feel so great to be able to spoil them while they connect with parents and talk about how our students shine!

Our first Riverside skate night was in November and we were happy to see such a great turn out!

The Randolph PTA had our annual November calendar raffle. We had such a great time doing our daily drawings and giving away so many amazing prizes! The biggest was a Castle Gardens summer pool membership which drew in a lot of participants. We are always so grateful to our Castle Gardens community pool for donating!

Something to celebrate - we successfully hit our PTA membership goal this past month! Woohoo!

Next month we have the Jolly Jamboree! The PTA is excited to continue to celebrate the holidays with a fun, festive night for our families.

In October, we paired our Trunk or Treat with our chorus concert. Attendance was overwhelming! We had 525 kids go through the Trunk or Treat.

In order to increase school spirit at Riley, we sold Riley Wildcat socks. We sold 162 pairs and we are gifting each staff member a pair as part of their holiday gift.

Some events have set dates while others have tentative months. Please watch for finalized dates or any date changes.

Please mark your calendars now for Founders' Day, Officer Training and the 2022-23 Audit Party.

2023

1/18 - LPTSA Council Meeting | 6 - 8 p.m. | Central Office

1/21 - Chili Cook Off | 11 a.m-2 p.m. | Franklin High School

January - Reflections Ceremony | TBD | TBD

2/15 - Founders’ Day | 6 p.m. | St. Mary's Cultural Center

March - Transportation Appreciation

3/15 - LPTSA Council Meeting | 6 - 8 p.m. | Central Office

4/19 - LPTSA Council Meeting & Elections | 6 - 8 p.m. | Central Office

4/27 - YMAD Celebration | TBD | TBD

5/24 - Officer Training | TBD | TBD

6/7 - LPTSA Council Meeting | 6 - 8 p.m. | Central Office

7/19 - LPTSA Council Audit Party | 6 - 8 p.m. | Central Office

Please note that these dates and times could be subject to change due to any change in COVID-19 regulations. We will inform all units of any updates or changes as soon as possible.

Use the link below. Please include school in the comment.

If you are a PTA/PTSA officer or committee chair, please make sure to join our group for important information, discussions, and more! Be sure to answer the questions when you request to join. A lot of great information is shared on this closed group page. It's also a great way to network with other units, share ideas, and ask for help.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/541318689333449/

Michigan PTA Website: https://www.michiganpta.org/

Michigan PTA Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/everychildonevoice

National PTA Website: https://www.pta.org/

National PTA Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ParentTeacherAssociation

National PTA Blog: https://onevoice.pta.org/

The Livonia PTSA Council is a group of 22 local PTA/PTSA Units within the Livonia Public Schools District. The Council is organized under the authority of the Michigan PTA for the purpose of promoting conferences, communications, leadership development and coordination of the efforts of the local units.

Interested in joining Council? There are chair opportunities available! Contact President Andrea Malenfant at andrea.malenfant@livoniaptsacouncil.org

Email: newsletter@livoniaptsacouncil.org
Website: www.livoniaptsacouncil.org
Location: 15125 Farmington Road, Livonia, MI, USA
Phone: .
Facebook: facebook.com/LivoniaPTSACouncil
Twitter: @LivoniaPTSAC