PTSA

BY LAUREN BARTHOLEMEW

Issaquah PTSA Council President

president@issaquahptsa.org

Hi, My name is Lauren Bartholomew, and I am the Issaquah PTSA Council President this year. I am a full-time mom and volunteer in the Issaquah community, and my husband works for Microsoft. We live in the Issaquah Highlands and have a senior at Issaquah High that plays football and is my hyperactive fun-spirited child. We also have a 5th grader that attends St. Thomas School in Medina. She is cautious, smart and will try anything once she assesses the risk. We love to travel as a family and experience different cultures around the world.

I grew up in Southern California, in a border town. My neighborhood schools were my safe place as a child. School was where I played, ate, and got guidance. It was the place where I could be a kid, a teen, and learn to become an adult. For me, it has always been important to be an active member of my kids’ schools and be involved in their extracurricular activities. Even when I was a single mom in Bryce’s early education years, I made sure I took off two days a year to volunteer in the classroom and helped at the walk-a-thon. It’s so important for students to see adults they care for be involved in their education.

Why PTSA? PTSA gives my efforts focus and a place to bring families together for the same goal: Supporting our students in school. Each school in the Issaquah School District has its own PTSA, and these PTSAs provide community support, programming, teacher grants, connection, and so much more! We also have a new Issaquah Special Education PTSA in our District that is connecting families at every school. I encourage everyone to reach out to their PTSA and participate. There’s space for everyone. What is Issaquah PTSA Council? Issaquah PTSA Council supports the local PTSAs. We are a 100% volunteer 501(c)(3) organization that connects PTSAs District-wide to each other, to the Washington State PTA, to the Issaquah School District, and to our local partners like the Issaquah Schools Foundation and Volunteers for Issaquah Schools (VIS). We provide training to the PTSAs so they are able to run their local PTSAs successfully and have monthly meetings for Presidents and local PTSA delegates to attend. We have annual events like Reflections Art Walk, Golden Acorn Awards Reception, Art Docent Training, and more. We are all members of our local PTSAs, and many of us hold positions on local PTSAs.

Connection! This year we’re starting fresh, and connection is a key ingredient to PTSAs’ success and our students’ success. My hope is that our communities continue to heal and connect through the wonderful programs your PTSAs will be offering this year. Please email, call, or stop by to say hi at an event – we'd love to CONNECT with you!