PTA Radio - National Parent Teachers Association

Whether students pursue learning through local community service or far-flung educational travel, universities appreciate applicants who take the initiative to seek out knowledge in unique ways. This PTA Radio show will highlight some vehicles for young people to obtain those experiences and help them build their self-confidence. Peg Thomas is President of People to People Ambassador Programs, an organization that provides educational travel experiences around the world for thousands of students each year. Prior to her current position Ms. Thomas lived and worked in Bergamo, Italy as an English teacher.

In the aftermath of the horrific tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School, children will look to us to help them make sense of what happened. They may us ask difficult questions, ones which we may not be prepared to answer. This PTA Radio show will address some of those questions and help parents reassure our children that they are safe in school. Amy R. Smith is currently serving as the President of the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) for the 2012–2013 term. She is on sabbatical from her position as an Educational Consultant at the Pennsylvania Training and Technical Assistance Network (PaTTAN), the training arm of the Pennsylvania Bureau of Special Education.

The most widely read magazine by PTA leaders and members just got better by going digital! The digital version of Our Children will contain features that help readers navigate to additional information with a single click. Social media and email options help readers share content just as easily. Video will enhance your reading experience and tabs will help readers go directly to any article. Of course, for those who like to "thumb" through the magazine from front to back, the digital Our Children behaves just like a print magazine. Subscribers will still receive the print issue as usual but now have the option of sharing information with one simple click. The August-September issue has already hit newsstands and laptops! Marilyn Ferdinand is the editor in chief of Our Children, National PTA’s flagship magazine. Published five times during the school year, Our Children offers timely information helpful to parents, teachers, and PTA leaders who serve the needs of school children and their families across the United States and at our military outposts overseas.

National PTA Radio features an exclusive one-on-one conversation with the US Department of Education. Listen to find out how Today's PTA is working with the White House and the US Department of Education to call attention to the needs of parents at the grassroots level nationwide. From a grassroots recognition program called PTA Champions of Change to a White House briefing that will be streamed live online for all parents to watch. If you have ever wanted to know what's going on at the national level of education, do not miss this episode of National PTA Radio!. Massie Ritsch is Deputy Assistant Secretary for External Affairs and Outreach, U.S. Department of Education.

With inadequate education funding and education budgets being sliced more and more every year across the country, communities are dealing with a growing number of school closures. The question from our listenership is: how do PTAs handle these controversial situations? To help answer this question and more, we speak to Janet Meyerson of the NYS PTA. She is the vice president of field support and region directors. Janet Meyerson is presently New York State PTA Vice President for Field Support and Region Directors. She has been involved in PTA for 25 years, starting as a local leader at the elementary level.

2012 is shaping up to be a big election year throughout the country. From local to national government, many parents and PTAs will experience a lot of political campaigns. Some PTAs may even want to get involved in the political process, but there are some very specific aspects that all PTAs should be aware of and careful with. PTAs can lose their 501c3 status if they misstep. Listen now to avoid any problems but still get the PTA message out!

National PTA Teacher Appreciation Week is approaching quickly... May 7th through May 11th! Tired of the same old ways of thanking teachers? National PTA Radio comes to the rescue by providing parents and PTA leaders with fresh ideas for Teacher Appreciation Week. Who else to hear them from than the 2011 Teacher of the Year! We'll also provide a teacher's perspective on what this special week really means to them.

During the civil rights era National PTA made a statement to the world: segregation is wrong. Leading by example, the National Congress of Parents and Teachers merged with the National Congress of Colored Parents and Teachers to form what we now know as National PTA. In honor of Black History Month, National PTA Radio’s James Martinez digs deeper into how this milestone of a merger created the world’s largest child advocacy organization that truly speaks for every child with one voice and how the merger spoke volumes about the association’s three founders, including Selena Sloan Butler.

National PTA Radio presents an exclusive one-on-one interview with William Novelli, former CEO of AARP, former president of Porter Novelli (one of the world’s largest public relations agencies), and current professor at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business. National PTA's Marilyn Ferdinand, editor-in-chief of Our Children (National PTA's flagship magazine), talk with Novelli about how the economy affects non-profits, appealing to a younger generation without alienating longstanding supporters and his efforts in education.