PTA FOR YOUR CHILD

The Executive Committee of the Louisiana State PTA has recommended a change to the operating structure of the LAPTA. Under the proposal, the two District PTA Boards (Caddo and St. Tammany) would be dissolved, and all Local PTA Units in the state will fall under the Louisiana State PTA Board of Directors for operational guidance and support. Local Units affiliation with LAPTA and their daily operations will not change. Dissolving the Districts also means the dues amount paid per member to State PTA will decrease from $4.00 to $3.50 because there will be no District dues included.

Membership in Louisiana PTA has been declining each year, with a loss of 5,735 members from June 2018 (25,248) to June 2020 (19,513). Like PTAs all across the country this year, the membership numbers in Louisiana have dropped dramatically, and currently stands at 7,625 members. 

The District Board has been having difficulty in filling volunteer positions in the last few years, and the offices of President-Elect, VP Advocacy, VP Training, and VP Public Relations have been open since July 2020. Our members and potential members are busier than ever, with more competing requirements on their time. Three of our District Board members serve concurrently on the LAPTA State Board, and one Caddo District Board member also serves on the state board.

It is no longer practical or effective to run the District and State Boards in this manner. Streamlining the governance model allows us to provide a consistent and equal level of support to all the local units in Louisiana and provides us the opportunity to become a stronger State Unit. Our united focus can be on advocating for our children, in providing educational opportunities for them, and increasing the PTA stature as a critical educational player here in Louisiana. 

 Consolidating volunteers and their talents at a state board level also allows us the resources to grow LAPTA. We can expand into parishes not represented by Local Units through the creation of a statewide unit, The Lagniappe Unit. This unit can provide students, their families, and interested community members the ability to affiliate with PTA, participate in our programs, and become part of an association that makes the highest and best uses of their resources for all Louisiana children. 

Change is scary, difficult, and intimidating. But constructive change allows us the opportunity to grow -- to invest our valuable time in meaningful projects, interesting initiatives and causes we care deeply care about – and reinforce our core values of collaboration, commitment, diversity, respect, and accountability.