Author: Matt Burnham

The Portola Middle School students, teachers, and staff would like to invite you to the 1st annual “Portola Night”, which will be held on campus on Thursday, March 27th from 6 to 8pm. Instead of the usual Open House structure, the students and teachers have come together to organize a night of student projects and presentations, along with performances by the jazz band and drama class. Please join us in a fun-filled and informative evening to celebrate Portola Middle School!

1021 Navellier St., El Cerrito, CA 94530, (510) 524-0405

Below please find the latest resources from the California State PTA organization regarding the new LCFF law.

Get the facts! The new school funding law called the LCFF (Local Control Funding Formula) and the LCAP (Local Control and Accountability Plan) offer a great opportunity to talk with parents, teachers and your school community about the importance of family engagement. Take a look at this quick video to get the facts about LCFF. You can also share this at your next PTA meeting or post it on your PTA website or Facebook page. Video is also available in Spanish. Information fliers about the LCFF and LCAP are available in multiple languages online and can be easily downloaded, printed and shared. Plus, we’ve also provided a PowerPoint presentation highlighting what parents and PTAs can do to get engaged. Be sure to also check out the PTA National Standards for Family-School Partnerships Assessment Guide. The comprehensive guide provides a great framework to support school districts and parents in the development of family engagement goals and activities as part of their newly required LCAPs. A summary version is also available. Learn more – get engaged! Visit the California State PTA website to download and share more videos, fliers and resources with parents, teachers and your school community to demonstrate the value of PTA.

Bring this flyer with you for Portola to earn 20% of your bill:  Pasta Pomodora_Partnership_Feb

A new Portola after-school class in Japanese Culture & Language is starting the end of January.
Class will meet the last Thursday of each month from 2:40-3:40 beginning Jan. 30

• Learn what today’s Japan is like
• Experience Japanese culture through Origami folding, foods and other activities
• Learn some conversational Japanese
• Instructor is a UC Berkeley student who just returned from a semester of research in Japan
• Students from El Cerrito High’s Japanese program will be assisting with the class

To sign up, or for additional information, please send e-mail to japan-portola@leonardoslab.net 
Please include:

• Name
• Parent’s name(s)
• Phone number
• Email
• Any Japanese experience
• Other hobbies or interests

See the flyer for more information.

The first PTSA meeting of the year will be as usual on the second Tuesday of the month, January 14th at 7pm in room 7. We will be voting on the revised bylaws which can be viewed  at the school office and a summary of the changes is available at http://portolanews.com/2013/12/06/notice-of-change-to-ptsa-bylaws/. Also, find out ways to help at our biggest fund raiser “Celebrate Portola”, which is on Saturday, Feb.1st !

After PTSA business, Community Engagement Specialist, Karina Tindol, will present the “Tips, Tricks, and Traps” of disaster preparedness.  Come learn what you need to do in the new year to prepare yourself, your family, and your neighborhood for potential disasters.

You can find the agenda at Portola PTSA Agenda Jan. 14, 2014.  See you there on the 14th!

Kensington Hilltop has a great speaker from Our Families Coalition coming to their meeting tomorrow night to talk about being inclusive and welcoming to LGBTQ families, being good allies, and breaking gender stereotypes. They have generously opened the presentation up to other local parents who might like to attend.

The meeting is Thursday, January 9th at 7:00 in the Kensington Elementary School library at 90 Highland Blvd in Kensington. We have free childcare and can accommodate approximately 20 children.