PASC News Volume 37Issue 9

May 2013

continued on page 3

US Senate Youth Scholars Sarah Rudasill (right) and Dylan Brown (left) met with Pennsylvania Senator Pat Toomey.

U.S. Senate Youth Scholarship: A Super Experience Sarah Rudasill, New Oxford

High School

When I was first selected for the United States Senate Youth Program, I was honored to represent Pennsylvania but unsure of the adventure that lie ahead. Upon returning from a tremendous week of experi-encing government in action, I can confidently state that the United States Senate Youth Program was one of the best experiences of my life, both for the interaction with leaders of the free world and for the interaction with more than 100 brilliant, engaged students.

Although meeting the Presi-

dent of the United States, Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan, and Secretary of State John Kerry was inspi-rational and empowering, I was just as moved by daily discus-sions with my peers. I found it refreshing to be constantly sur-rounded by students who not only understood government, foreign policy, and economics, but also sincerely cared about the issues threatening our country and world. Without adhering to any single ideology, the speakers challenged my

peers and me to contemplate and debate solutions to the economic crisis, the danger posed by North Korea, and action in the Middle East. These conversations with our country’s leaders, which often continued late into the night with my peers, challenged my views, strengthened my debate skills, and ultimately enriched both my U.S. Senate Youth experience and my life.

With just seven months until the 2013 PASC State Confer-ence, many schools are starting to look for ways to raise funds for this year’s state char-ity, VH1 Save The Music. If you’re struggling with ideas for ways to raise money, one thing to keep in mind is to stay close to the ideals of the charity by focusing on music or perform-ing arts-based fundraisers.

One way you can do this is by holding a benefit concert or a

talent show. You can also get in contact with the music teachers of your district and have dona-tion baskets at all school music performances. If you want to have a more creative fundraiser, play annoying songs during lunches or study halls and have students (or teachers) pay to turn the music on, off, or turn the volume up. Get in contact with local businesses to see if they are interested in donating, especially if those businesses

have a tie to the cause!

You could also hold a sheet music or instrument drive, but keep in mind that you would need to find out where you can donate these items, as VH1 Save The Music can no longer accept them.

Don’t forget to take videos and pictures of your fundrais-ing events and email them to statecharity@PASC2013.org along with the amount of mon-ey or instruments collected.

State Charity: Fundraising for VH1 Save the Music

InsIde ThIs Issue

News & Notes ..................... 2

•PASC Baseball Outing Being Considered

•Plan Now for Horatio Alger Scholarship Opportunities

Clothing Drive Fundraiser: Help the World and Your Council .................................. 3

Districts Select 2013 Advi-sors of the Year .................... 3

Plan Now to Attend the State Conference in Boyer-town ...................................... 4

Present a Student-Led Work-shop at the State Conference This Fall ................................ 4

Roundtable Ideas from the Region 2 Conference ........ 5

NASC Names 16 Pennsyl-vania Councils as National Councils of Excellence for 2013 ....................................... 6

Middle School Advisor’s Re-flectionOnaBlueSummerWorkshop ............................. 7

Financing a Trip to Camp ... 7

Register Now for a 2013 Summer Camp Experience with PASC ............................ 7

View Summer Workshop Videos Online ...................... 7

Advanced Gold Workshop Director Position Open ..... 8

Final State Board of Educa-tion Report 2012–2013 ..... 9

PAL Conferences Informa-tion Sheet .............................. 10

PASC News • May 2013 • www.pasc.net2

News & NotesWhat do you think?PASC Baseball Outing Being Considered

PASC Resource and Development Coordinator Chris Seifert has developed a unique idea for a joint PASC outing for PASC member school students, advisors, and parents. “PASC AT THE BALLPARKS” would be held simultaneously at PNC Park and Citizens Bank Park on Saturday, August 17—a PASC Pirates/Phillies Party could be held with the Pirates playing the Arizona Diamondbacks for a 4:05 PM game at PNC Park and the Phillies playing the Los Angeles Dodgers at 7:05 PM at Citizens Bank Park.This idea is being investigated by Chris for costs and avail-

able seats through each team’s group sales offices. Details of this unique gathering of PASC members will be communi-cated through a special PASC NEWS email blast in the next few weeks.We need your ideas and questions now so we can make

“PASC AT THE BALLPARKS” a great new PASC activity from one end of the Commonwealth to the other. Share your thoughts on this event with Chris Seifert at seifertspeaks@gmail.com.

U.S. Senate Youth Scholars Meet Leaders in D.C. (cont’d from pg 1)

While the program featured prominent speakers and visits to organizations like the Department of State, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and White House, my favorite event of the week was speaking with NASA Administrator Charles Bolden. He inspired me to integrate my love of science and policy into a single career, and he even outright recruited Senate Youth students by saying, “If you want to help me put boots on Mars, I can use you.” The administrator incorporated humor and life lessons into his presentation, warning us that “humans have to be smarter than the dinosaurs” and that our effort and determination, rather than our intelligence or status in society, will dictate our ultimate success in life. Administrator Bolden is the archetype for using scientific knowledge to improve all of humanity, and although I will be pursing science in college rather than political science, I now have confidence that I can merge my interests to influence U.S. policy in the future.

Overall, I am humbled by the opportunity to represent Pennsyl-vania at this prestigious program. I have gained greater insight into my future career path under the guidance of U.S. leaders and Senate Youth military mentors. I highly encourage current sophomores and juniors to consider applying for this life-changing program. If you have an appreciation for government, interest in policy debate, desire to meet prominent American leaders, aspira-tion for public service, and love for luxurious hotels and food, this program was designed for you.

Sophomores and juniors look for the 2014 application in mid-August at www.pasc.net. All high school principals will also be sent an application packet for their school by the Pennsylvania Department of Education by September 1. The application deadline will be October 16, 2013, so don’t miss this great oppor-tunity. It was great to be given a $5,000 scholarship, but that was equaled by the tremendous week in Washington, D.C. in March. In September, look for another USSY article in PASC NEWS by my Pennsylvania colleague, Dylan Brown of Delaware Valley High School in Milford, PA.

President Obama was one of the distinguished guests to speak with the U.S. Senate Youth Scholars during their trip to Washington, D.C. in March.

Educators and Juniors: Plan Now for Horatio Alger Scholarship Opportunities in August

In 2013, 53 Pennsylvania seniors received a total of $310,000 in Horatio Alger Scholarships. These scholarships provide as-sistance to seniors who have demonstrated integrity, persever-ance in overcoming adversity, strength of character, financial need, a good student record, commitment to pursue a college education, and a desire to contribute to society.

Juniors (Class of 2014) and educators are encouraged to visit horatioalger.com/scholarships/programs for details about the Horatio Alger Association and its scholarships. Applica-tions for the 2014 scholarships will be available online from August 1 to October 25, 2013. In addition, the Horatio Alger Association has partnered with the National Association of Student Councils to provide a $20,000 national scholarship to a member of Student Council who meets the qualifications for the Horatio Alger Award and whose school is a member of both NASC and PASC. Information about this scholar-ship will be available on August 1 at www.nasc.us and on the Horatio Alger website.

PASC News • May 2013 • www.pasc.net 3

Districts Select 2013 Advisors of the Year

High School District Advisors of the Year

District 2: Katie Halliday, Seneca Valley HS

District 3: Felix Yerace, South Fayette HS

District 4: Lynn Clarke, Norwin HS

District 6: Mindy Leonard, Shade Jr.-Sr. HS

District 7: Karin Knaus, Cowanesque Valley HS

District 9: Kristine Smith, Elk Lake HS

District 10: To be announced

District 11: Andy Costanzo, Interboro HS

District 12: Chris Dyer, Pennridge HS

Congratulations to these outstanding advisors!

Middle Level District Advisors of the Year

District 2: John Motyl, Seneca Valley MS

District 3: Nita Lamneck, Carson MS

District 4: Lindsay Benzenhoefer, Trinity MS

District 7: Pam Mahonski, Harlan Rowe MS

District 8: Jodi Ellis, Millersburg Area MS

District 9: Joan Rakowski, Dallas MS

District 10: To be announced

District 11: Deb Spencer, Great Valley MS

District 12: Cynthia Weigand, Klinger MS

District 13: Megan Franz, Tamaqua MS

PASC District Associations have named the following individuals as District Advisors of the Year. These advisors will be recog-nized at the State Conference hosted by Laurel and Union High Schools November 1–3. At that time a PASC High School and Middle Level Advisor of the Year will be announced.

By Breanna Sheeler, Fundrais-ing and Finance Co-Chair, 2013 PASC State Conference

In November, Boyertown Area Senior High School will be hosting the 2013 PASC State Conference. To make the State Conference a success, Boyertown High School’s Student Council has been planning several fundraisers, the most recent of which was a very successful clothing drive. We worked with A & E Cor-poration, which redistributes the items to developing coun-tries and pays $0.17 per pound of donations. This fundraiser is dually beneficial, aiding the poor globally and supporting the projects of Student Coun-cils locally.

To begin a clothing drive, the advisor must make a client account on the A & E Corporation website, www.clothingdrive.net, then set up a collection date. A contract will be created, which explains what to do as the collection date

draws near.

Starting this fundraiser is quite simple, but first, permis-sion from the school principal must be acquired. The clothing drive will require storage rooms within the school for collection bags and doors to be unlocked for access into the school for students positioned at the drop-off location. Inform the principal of these needs, and request assis-tance in advertising. Boyertown found that most people learned about the event through emails sent out by the principals of the elementary, junior high, and high schools.

Advertising is extremely important in informing the community and making the clothing drive a success. Stan-dard and effective modes of ad-

vertisement are flyers in school hallways and classrooms, notifi-cations on the school website, announcements during school news, flyers in business win-dows, and if possible, an article in the local newspaper. Make

known the dates and times of when people can drop off donations, where the drop-off location specifically

is, and a list of accepted items, which can be found on A & E Corporation’s website. Boyer-town advertised for two weeks before spring break, encour-aging people to “help a great cause while spring cleaning.” The longer you can advertise and the more people that see the advertisements, the better the chances are for immense community involvement.

Keep in mind that community members may find it difficult to drop off their bags at specific times. Hold drop-offs after school until 6:00 pm, when most people are finished with work, and perhaps on one day, stay until 8:00 pm. Addition-ally, a drop-off scheduled on a Saturday morning may be the best time for busy parents. Be sure that these dates and times are advertised to the communi-ty and known by the adminis-tration and custodial staff.

During drop-off times, at least two council members should be positioned at the drop-off location, and having 3-4 more members around to move bags is very helpful. Clear and obvious signs are helpful in di-recting donors to the drop-off location. A drop-off location close to the temporary storage location will make moving bags less of a hassle.

A minimum of 100 bags (eas-ily surpassed) must be donated

Clothing Drive Fundraiser: Help the World and Your Council

continued on page 5

PASC News • May 2013 • www.pasc.net4

Dates: November 14–16, 2013

Cost: $115 per student or advisor delegate

Registration: August 27 to October 11 for 8 student delegates + advisors; Ap-proved workshop presenters are additional delegates

Housing: Student Delegates in Host Homes

School Option to house delegates in hotels (with advisor provided transportation and some meals)

Hotels for Advisors: See conference website or see review in February PASC NEWS

Theme: “The Rhythm of Leadership”

Schedule: Detailed schedule for Students and Advisors now on the website

Speakers: See background information on the website for Justin Laipley, Scott Backovich, and Monte Selby

Entertainment: Thursday night activities and entertain-ment; Thursday Night Advisors’ Dinner

Friday Night, Banquet in Boyertown HS “ Bear Gym”

Separate High School and Middle Level Dances

Friday Night Advisor Hospitality and Entertainment following the Banquet

Seeking Student-Led Workshops: Stu-dent delegates will be able to select 3 workshops conducted by peers. Applications for Workshop Presenters now on the website. Workshop applica-tion deadline: August 9th

Advisor Program in 3 Parts: Advisors will attend four 10–12 minute roundtable presentations on Friday morning. Volunteers are needed to share a successful project/activity or best practice with your fellow advisors. Contact Kathy Coll to volunteer at kcoll1@comcast.net. We need your new ideas.

Roundtables will be followed by Advisor University Seminars patterned after the hands-on PASC Summer Advisor Seminar.

Presentation by Scott Backovich

Questions: Email info@pasc2013.org

By: Courtney Black and Julie Gehret, Workshops Committee Chairs

Feel the Rhythm of Leadership! Boyertown is buzzing with excitement about the 2013 State Conference! In preparation for the conference, the workshops committee has been working to improve the efficiency and organization of the sign-up process. In the past, workshops were graded by hand. In order to decrease the time it takes to grade each workshop, the committee cre-ated an online process. Student delegates can find the link to the workshop application upload under the workshop tab at http://pasc2013.org/.

This new process is not only less of a hassle for you, but it is much more environmentally friendly as well! By going online, packets no longer need to be mailed. Instead, they can be uploaded directly to the 2013 State Conference website. When applying, make sure that you have your personal information (school, cell phone number, and email address), your partner’s information, and your advisor’s email handy. From there, applicants will upload a sample of the packet (the information to be distributed to the delegates at the conference), the justification/reasons for doing the workshop, and a list of the items needed to perform the workshop. For more detailed information on the guidelines and requirements for the workshops and justifications, make sure to check out the rubric on the conference website: www.pasc2013.org.

Anyone interested in submitting a workshop must do so online no later than Friday, August 9. Once your workshop is submitted, your advisor will receive an advisor sign off email. Advisors are still required to sign off on workshops, however instead of sending the sign off sheet in by mail, advisors now sign off via email. Make sure that your advisor is aware of your application so they can respond promptly. Workshops without advisor sign offs will not be accepted!

All of the information must be uploaded and saved to the website at the same time, so be sure to have everything together before starting the application. Make sure to upload the packet and the justification as two different documents! Workshop committee personnel will then download this information and score it.

By August 19, all applications will be scored and the workshops will be chosen. Delegates and their advisors will be notified with a confirmation email on the 19.

Boyertown is thrilled to host the 2013 PASC State Conference! We cannot wait to see you there!

Present a Student-Led Workshop at the State Conference This Fall

Plan Now to Attend the State Conference in Boyertown

Everything You Want to Know Is Now at WWW.PASC2013.org

PASC News • May 2013 • www.pasc.net 5

By Brynn Martin, PASC 2012-13 Middle Level Rep. from Harlan Rowe MS

I attended the Region 2 Conference at Boyertown Area Senior High School (BASH) April 26–28. Region 2 was one of the best conferences I’ve ever attended. Besides the hilarious energizers and the helpful workshops, I loved the roundtables the most. Round-tables are a great way to share information with a group of people. It was so much fun hearing new ideas given out by delegates from New Jersey, New York, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. Each of the roundtables covered a variety of topics. A few that I enjoyed were roundtables about fundraising ideas, teacher and student appre-ciation, and ways to get middle level students more involved in student council.

FundraisingThe fundraising roundtable was presented by Breanna Sheeler,

chair of the fundraising committee for the upcoming State Confer-ence in Boyertown. She gave out some of the fundraising ideas the BASH student council did to raise money. These tips included clothing drives, So You Think You Can Dance Competitions, a spirit couch, powder-puff football, and candy sales.

For info about Boyertown’s awesome clothing drive working with the A&E Corporation, see the article on page X. Their website is: www.clothingdrive.net. The Spirit Couch is a fun way to hang out with friends during school athletic events. You sell raffle tickets and students can buy them and win a chance to sit on the sidelines of a sporting event on the comfort of a couch with their friends. The So You Think You Can Dance Competition is a great way to get students and teachers involved and have an enjoyable time. The students and teachers make up dance routines and perform them in front of the school. (Tip: Also try and see if any local dance stu-dios/companies could come and perform at the competition too.) If you have any questions please contact: Breanna Sheeler, State Conference Fundraising Co-Chair by going to www.pasc2013.org.

Teacher and Student AppreciationThe second roundtable I attended focused on teacher and student

appreciation and was presented by Alexa Cunniff from New York. Some ideas for teacher appreciation included: Thank you cards, faculty car washes, decorating the faculty lounge, holding a faculty lunch the day before school, and having a dinner for the night-time janitors. Ideas for student appreciation were: school survival guides, a Random Acts of Kindness (RAK) committee, catching kindness, and a wall of fame. Catching kindness is a way to reward kids who have been seen by a student or teacher doing kind acts. The wall of fame is a way to honor the alumni of your school who, after graduation, have gone and done great things.

Motivating InvolvementThe last roundtable I attended was centered on ways to get mid-

dle level students more involved in student council. This round-table was put on by the students of Brooklawn and Stewartsville Middle Schools in New Jersey. The students at Brooklawn host a BIG (Brooklawn’s Intense Games) Night. They set it up so there are 12 student teams and they have a team name that consists of a color and an object (ex: Pink Panthers, Blue Barracudas, etc.). Each team is randomly put together so there are sixth, seventh, and eighth graders on each team. A student council member is a captain and the teams compete against each other on a designated night. The students of Stewartsville host a STAG (Stewartsville Totally Awesome Games) Night. This is almost the same as the BIG Night.

The students at Brooklawn also hold a BLT (Brooklawn Leader-ship Training) Saturday. This event is held for students in grades 5–8. This provides those students with an opportunity to learn important leadership skills that will help them reach their full potential. The students attend classes that teach them about public speaking, dealing with conflict, and working as a team. This one day event gives fifth graders a taste of what middle school student council is like, and it gives students in grades six to eight a chance to learn more leadership skills.

The roundtables at NASC Region 2 were so much fun. I hope these ideas will inspire you to try them, or at least take these ideas back to your school.

for A & E Corporation to collect the donated clothes. The day before the scheduled date for A & E to collect the bags, call the number provided on the website to confirm the col-lection time and inform them of roughly how many bags were donated, so they know how

many trucks to dispatch.

On the day of collection, several council members should move the bags to the agreed-upon collection spot, and prepare to help move the bags into the A & E truck(s). Boyer-town created a human chain to

pass the bags to make the work much easier.

About a week after the bags are collected, expect to receive email verification of how many pounds were collected, which will also be available on the client account. The check will

arrive within a week or two of the weight confirmation.

The clothing drive fundraiser is simple and extremely benefi-cial. Boyertown collected almost 7,600 pounds of donated items and raised almost $1,300. If we can do that, so can you.

Clothing Drive Fundraiser (Cont’d from page 3)

Roundtable Ideas from the NASC Region 2 Conference

PASC News • May 2013 • www.pasc.net6

PASC NEWS is published monthly during

the school year. To submit

announcements, articles, or corrections for newsletters, please email the Executive Director or Assistant Ex-ecutive Director. Articles or information from PASC NEWS may be reproduced for use, with appropriate credit.

Executive DirectorJim FinnemeyerNorth Penn HS1340 Valley Forge RoadLansdale, PA 19446215-280-9299215-855-0632 (Fax)Finnemeyer@aol.comPASCInfo@aol.com

Assistant Executive DirectorKathy Ann Coll174 Link AvenuePittsburgh, PA 15237412-366-5744Kcoll1@comcast.net

PASC PresidentDanielle CronerBoyertown High School120 N. Monroe StreetBoyertown, PA 19512

PASC President-ElectCourtney DetwilerAltoona Area High School 1415 6th Street Altoona, PA 16602

PASC News EditorLyn FiscusLeadership Logistics

PASC Email:PASCInfo@aol.com

PASC Website:www.pasc.net

NASC Names 16 Pennsylvania Councils as National Councils of Excellence for 2013PASC member schools rock! Sixteen schools have been named to receive the highly-esteemed 2013

National Council of Excellence Award by the National Association of Student Councils (NASC). That number increased from six schools in 2012. The six schools that were recognized in 2012 were recognized again this year. Three schools recognized in the recent past (Downingtown East HS, Garnet Valley HS, and Red Lion HS) were again honored, and six schools never previously named as Councils of Excellence received that distinction in 2013, including the first Pennsylvania middle school to be honored (Fleetwood MS).

NASC applauds the work of the following PASC member schools that have attained the status of Gold Council of Excellence. These councils continue to demonstrate exemplary efforts to build stu-dent leaders and to improve their schools and communities through the member’s service, leadership, and activities.

High School Council of ExcellenceGovernor Mifflin High School (District 13) first time

Red Lion High School (District 8)

High School Gold Council of ExcellenceBethel Park High School (District 3) first time

Boyertown Area High School (District 13)

Downingtown East High School (District 11)

Garnet Valley High School (District 11)

Hatboro-Horsham High School (District 12) first time

Interboro High School (District 12)

Mountain View Jr.-Sr. High School (District 9) first time

North Allegheny High School (District 3)

North Penn High School (District 12)

Norwin High School (District 4) first time

Pennridge High School (District 12)

Pocono Mountain West High School (District 9)

Middle School Gold Council of Excellence

Fleetwood Middle School (District 13) first time

“Receiving an NASC National Council of Excellence Award indicates a dedication on the part of the local school to providing a strong, well-rounded student council program,” says Jeff Sherrill, associate director of NASC. “NASC applauds the work of the National Councils of Excellence and challenges them to continue their leadership and service to their schools and communities.”

The award recognizes the work of each council during a calendar year. For more information on the process used to have your council designated as a Council of Excellence, go to www.nasc.us for a listing of criteria and the application which will be due February 15, 2014. Officers and advisors are encouraged to make sure that files are up-to-date this spring as the student council transitions from one set of student leaders to the next. PASC’s goal in 2014 will be to have all sixteen councils repeat and to have at least six other schools added to the NASC list of outstanding councils. We certainly know that many PASC schools will qualify after completing the required paperwork.

PASC News • May 2013 • www.pasc.net 7

The 2013 Summer Leadership Workshop brochures and applica-tions were mailed in March to all student council advisors. Please email PASCInfo@aol.com if you did not receive that mailing. The application, frequently asked question sheet, sample daily schedule, and curriculum benchmarks can also be found on the PASC web-site. The Blue and Gold brochures are also posted at www.pasc.net.

Please note the following dates and locations and begin planning now for students to attend a PASC Summer Leadership Work-shop in July.

Costs & Deadlines: Regular ( June 7th)

Blue (Grades 7–9)

Grove City College July 14–18 $370

Alvernia University July 28–Aug 1 $370

Gold (Grades 9–12)

Grove City College July 7–12 $400

Susquehanna University July 28–Aug 2 $400

Advanced Gold (Grades 11–12)

University of Pittsburgh/Johnstown July 14–20 $520

Register Now for a 2013 Summer Camp Experience

View Summer Workshop Videos OnlineVisit the PASC Summer Workshops video, which you can see on

You Tube by going to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7A-kX-8vGGoU. Please share this video at an upcoming Student Council meeting, or provide it to your student leaders and parents to give them a sense of what our leadership workshops programs offer.

In 2012 other videos were created. They include one showcasing the Blue Workshops found on You Tube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9xsu-dsUN8. In addition Susquehanna Gold del-egate Kara Piscarek of Souderton HS created two videos for her Senior Graduation Project that showcase her experience and that of other PASC delegates at the Gold Workshops. They are found on You Tube through the following links:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzyzwjoFCJU and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Dj8cN18F8k

These videos can also be found on the PASC website at www.pasc.net by clicking on summer workshops.

MiddleSchoolAdvisor’sReflectionOn a Blue Summer WorkshopBy Lisa Bernet, Fleetwood Middle School

In July 2013, I was fortunate enough to spend a day at Lebanon Valley College observing the Blue PASC Summer Leadership Workshop. I had been sending my kids to summer workshop for years, and I finally got the opportunity to experience a day myself as an advisor. It was a jam-packed day for the kids as they easily transitioned from activity to activity and class to class. I saw smiles on kids’ faces all day long as they were learning new leader-ship techniques and ideas while having a blast. I always knew that my students came back better leaders, but now I know why.

I was only there a day and I could see why this workshop is the best investment a council can make. New friendships are formed, new ideas are learned, but most importantly young students develop into true leaders. My year is always better when kids at-tend summer leadership workshop. The skills they learn and the training they receive is worth every penny spent.

If you want to have a smooth year, and if you want your kids learning the techniques to be a good leader, send them to Summer Leadership Workshop—you won’t regret it! I was so impressed with what I saw that this year we are sending eight delegates (the most ever for Fleetwood Middle School). I hope that if you have never sent students to a Summer Leadership Workshop, that you will consider sending at least one or two to the Blue program at Grove City College ( July 14–19) or at the new site at Alvernia University ( July 28–August 1).

Financing a Trip to CampBy Lyn Fiscus

Finding the funds to send students to summer camp can be a challenge. If your goal is to attend camp this year, check out these possible sources for funds:

• Personal sources. Start with your parents, grandparents, and other relatives to see if they might be willing to chip in part of the money needed. Maybe you can get a cash advance in lieu of a gift for an upcoming birthday.

• Community sponsors. Is there a business in the community that might be supportive of your effort? Write a letter to introduce yourself and explain your purpose. Provide details about the con-ference, including some of the skills taught and who sponsors it, to help the business leader understand the importance and value of the experience.

• Local organizations. Consider what civic and social organiza-tions in your community might be supportive. Any group whose mission is related to youth development should be considered a potential sponsor. For example, Optimist Clubs are dedicated to “bringing out the best in kids,” and Lions Clubs “do whatever is needed to help their local communities.” What other groups exist in your community that might be interested in supporting your effort?

PASC News • May 2013 • www.pasc.net8

Kathy Coll and Bill Sebastian have announced that they will be retiring as the co-directors of the PASC Advanced Gold Summer Leadership Workshop at the conclusion of the summer program in 2013.

Kathy began her career as a PASC Workshop staff member at the Grove City Gold Workshop in teaching the communications sessions in 1987–1988. Bill taught the “Making a Presentation” sessions at Advanced Gold from 1996–2002. With the death of Advanced Gold Director Linda Greb in the spring of 2003, Kathy and Bill “stepped up to the plate” to become the co-directors of the Advanced Gold Workshop on the campus of the University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown. They have co-directed this nationally acclaimed workshop program for the past 12 years.

Each year, Kathy and Bill have worked with their staff to retool the program to provide new approaches to meet the needs of Pennsylvania leaders. The PASC Advanced Gold Workshop has many unique components including the daily mentor sessions and the “Finding Your Voice” session, which challenges delegates to create presentations addressing the concerns of students in their home schools, community, and society at large. Under their leadership, sessions on conflict resolution, ethics and principles of leadership, breaking down barriers, and stress management have focused on strengthening the personal and leadership develop-ment of the delegates.

Sessions on social entrepreneurship and civic engagement have annually created unique ways to challenge student leaders at Advanced Workshop to reach out to help others, champion PASC programs, and find ways to inspire students in their own schools and other Pennsylvania schools to embrace service opportunities. The off-campus team-building program at Outdoor Odyssey has continued to be a program highlight.

It is with heart-felt thanks that we wish Kathy and Bill well in their PASC leadership positions and express our appreciation for all they have done to enrich the lives of Pennsylvania’s student leaders.

PASC has a policy that when any leadership position within the organization becomes vacant, the vacancy must be advertised to the member advisors and, in the case of workshops, to the teaching staffs of the PASC workshop program. The following process will be used to fill the vacancy of Advanced Gold Director for 2014:

1. A job description for workshop and an application are avail-able by emailing PASCInfo@aol.com

2. The application for Workshop Director can be submitted by an individual, or by two individuals as co-directors, or by two individuals as director and assistant director.

3. A resume from each candidate should be sent by July 1, 2013 to PASC Executive Director Jim Finnemeyer at 224 Oak Park Road, Hatfield, PA 19440. The application and resume(s) should be mailed together. Any questions about the application process should be directed to Jim at PASCInfo@aol.com or call 215-280-9299.

4. Please do not hesitate to call upon Kathy or Bill if you have any questions specifically about the details of directing the Ad-vanced Gold workshop.

5. The Summer Workshop Committee will conduct interviews of candidates at Halifax HS (Harrisburg area) on Friday, August 2, 2013 during the PASC August Executive Board meeting. Ap-plicants will be provided details regarding the interview process by July 10.

Kathy and Bill will be available to help the new Advanced Gold director(s), as will the other PASC workshop directors, in prepar-ing for the 2014 summer workshop programs.

PASC encourages those adults with workshop experience within or outside of PASC to see this as another opportunity to serve the PASC organization and the students of our member schools. Potential applicants are invited to visit the University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown campus during the Advanced Gold Workshop this sum-mer between July 14–20, to see the current program in operation.

Applications Available Now for 2014 Advanced Gold Summer Workshop Director Position

Make a difference in student lives by applying to direct the Advanced Gold Workshop for 2014.

PASC News • May 2013 • www.pasc.net 9

Erin Agnew, SBE Rep 2011-2013, Springfield Township High School

It is now the time of year when Pennsylvania’s students devote themselves to writing fi-nal papers, college applications, and graduation announcements and addresses. In the midst of all this pontification, we come across a lot of cheesy quotes. I feel that I would not be doing my duty in writing my final article as your representative to the Board of Education if I did not throw another one your way—if you give a man a fish, he won’t starve for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he won’t starve again.

The quote is a perfect one for an educational focus. There is math, with a question of the absolute value of infinity fish versus one fish. There is English, if we consider the use of double negatives to empha-size the meaning of the fish to society on the whole. There is history and civics, if we look at teaching versus giving as aris-tocracy of merit capitalism and equal distribution communism. There is science, exploring the impact of overfishing on an aquatic biome. These applica-tions would suit the quote to an education article, assum-ing it was actually referring to fish, which it is not. It is rather about self-sufficiency and altru-ism, which suits it equally well to education. It seems that this month, the State Board of Edu-catioin had this philosophy in mind while working to improve educational policy.

The Office of the Deputy Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education has been

working on developing new standards for evaluating and reporting teacher and school leader effectiveness. These new standards will be published and in use by June 2013. Teachers will be evaluated based on:• 20% on planning and prepa-

ration, focusing on “extensive knowledge of content area … relationships among different strands within the content and … clear outcomes”

• 30% on classroom environ-ment, with a goal of “maxi-mized instructional time … respectful interactions” and classrooms as a “safe place to take intellectual risks”

• 30% instruction, ensuring “teacher explanations are clear and invite student intellectual engagement”

• 20% professional responsi-bilities, ensuring “high ethical standards and a deep sense of professionalism.”

Teacher evaluations will then play into a school’s Performance Profile. The School Performance Profile is an online report of schools’ graduation rates, test scores and interpretations, student population diversity, looks at rigor of course offerings, and other important indicators.

This exciting new tool will be a means for students, parents, and community members to see every measure of progress and success available for their school. The profile is accessible any time through www.pdesas.org and questions are welcome any time at www.ra-paprofile@pa.gov.

The Deputy Secretary has also been working with hybrid learning in classrooms. The

structure focuses on three levels of instruction in grades 3 through 12: individualized work with every student, stu-dents working in cooperative learning groups, and class-room-wide discussion. We’re taking the rods and lines out of educational fishing, equipping teachers with nets that will engage the maximum number of students in each school.

Of course, work like this is an asset to our Commonwealth’s schools, and concerns over funding this kind of program are natural, considering the recent sequester. While draft-ing a budget for the upcoming fiscal year, Congress enforced a deadline for issuing a balanced budget by creating automatic spending cuts. With no ap-proved budget at the beginning of the year, these cuts went

into action, leaving the national and state education budgets severely depleted, and what Executive Secretary of Educa-tion describes as “little guidance from the federal government.” If there is no change in the budget, we will see a 5% cut in all federally funded educa-tion areas. Pennsylvania is handling what may still prove to be a short-term lack of funds with a balanced solution.

Title I schools who currently receive state funding will see no decrease in their funds. However, no increases will be granted this year either. This means that disadvantaged schools will not lose funding if they gain income, neither will they gain funding if they lose income.

The important thing to remember is that schools and students are not powerless

in any respect when it comes to educational policy. Funding cuts happen, but every stake-holder in education has a voice and a right to that voice. Fund-ing in programs like Title One operate with the idea of giving a person fish to tide them over while teaching them how to fish for themselves. But some-times, the best way to learn something is to do it, and do it with meaning. So, if you are concerned about funding cuts, or want to weigh in on teach-ing standards, the Keystone Exams, school safety, or any of the other countless things that impact your educational experience, go fishing. Contact your student representatives at pastudentrep.edublogs.org, or use http://www.legis.state.pa.us/index.cfm to contact your representative or senator.

Final State Board of Education Report 2012–2013

Editorial Note: PASC extends its thanks to Erin for her service for the past two years as one of two student representatives on the State Board of Education. We wish Erin well as she gradu-ates from Sprinfield Twp. HS in Montgomery County and heads to George Washington Univer-sity to pursue a degree in Inter-national Affairs.

PENNSYLVANIA ASSOCIATION OF STUDENT COUNCILS Executive Director, Jim Finnemeyer

Telephone: 215-280-9299 Email: PASCInfo@aol.com

Principal – Advisor – Leaders Conference

The Pennsylvania Association of Student Councils is sponsoring three Principal – Advisor – Leaders (PAL) Conferences in the fall of 2013. Locations are within 120 miles of all PASC member schools. PAL Conferences are scheduled to be held:

• Tuesday, September 24 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Reading • Wednesday, September 25 at Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove • Thursday, September 26 at the Pluma Restaurant & Banquet Center in Irwin

The objective of these conferences is to provide an opportunity for principals, advisors, and student leaders to share ideas, to set goals, and to begin a working relationship for the new school year. The program will provide time for participants to interact as school teams as well as separate opportunities for principals, advisors, and students to meet in small group breakout sessions. Each school is encouraged to bring their principal or assistant principal, student council advisor(s), and up to four student leaders to the conference. Additional teams from class government organizations or National Honor Society chapter may attend as long as they also are accompanied by an advisor. Our featured presenter and facilitator will be Terri Johnson, Executive Director of the Missouri Association of Student Councils. Terri has presented numerous programs across the nation for student leaders and educators. She will be bringing with her an array of books, leadership games and activities and other resources that will be available for purchase or order. Additional information about Terri Johnson can be found in April PASC NEWS and at www.pasc.net. Program: Attendees will be introduced to the FINISH STRONG program and its components. FS will assist your school team in creating a positive school climate, motivate students to get more involved in activities, increase attendance rates and ultimately raise test scores. FS also provides inspiration for staff members and appreciation for a job well done! FS incorporates a theme at each grade level, and provides ideas for projects, handouts and examples of “how to” do this at your own school. Pictures, video and handouts will be used in all sessions. You will see Points of Pride flyers, student produced commercials, apparel and other examples of how FS schools have created their action plan. It’s all about building school pride, giving staff and students a reason to be in school, and motivating your building toward excellence. During the sessions, school teams will organize their team goals, and develop a plan to take home to put into action! Resources: If you are looking for resources to teach leadership, provide training to mentors, leadership students, staff members, or to have at your fingertips for classroom use — you’ve come to the right place. The PAL Leadership Resource Extravaganza will include: books filled with icebreakers, training manuals, leadership guides, inspiration items and resources for students and staff members. A special section will include Resource Kits – each kit contains everything you need to lead a hands-on activity, complete with the directions, processing questions and props. All items are individually priced. Participants can pay with cash, credit card or check on the day of the event, and take the materials with them. Orders mailed later are subject to shipping charges.

Schedule: 8:15 AM – 9:00 AM Registration and continental breakfast 9:00 AM – 2:30 PM Program with buffet lunch at noon

Registration Fee: includes a continental breakfast, buffet lunch and conference materials. Register early and save $5 per person.

Early Bird Postmark Deadline (with or without names) August 9th $45 per person Regular Postmark Deadline September 15th $50 per person

REGISTRATION FORMS WERE MAILED WITH PASC DUES IN APRIL AND CAN BE FOUND AT WWW.PASC.NET.