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NJASC Advisors Update - April 6, 2009
Here is the latest news about what is going on in your state Student Council association, and what you need to know for our upcoming events...
Have you registered for the Spring Awards Program yet?
If you have done so already, thank you! If not, there is still lots of time to join nearly 5000 student leaders and their advisors as NJASC recognizes outstanding leadership, community service, and charitable donations from students and schools throughout our state...
The 2009 Spring Awards Program will be on Thursday May 7 at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson Township. Our new ONLINE registration form is available on our website, a direct link to it is provided below:
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2009 Spring Awards Program |
As you may guess, our e-mail inboxes have been filling up in advance of this event. Here are some of the most Frequently Asked Questions about our upcoming Spring Awards Program...
- Will there be free return tickets given out as in the past? YES, we have worked together with Six Flags to provide this valuable benefit again to all students that purchase the picnic lunch. As we did in 2007 (and earlier), we will be giving these free return tickets out while you are at the park, to avoid the mailing issues that we had last year.
- Will the park be closed to the public on Thursday May 7? YES. Last year we had to move our date two weeks later due to NJ ASK State Testing, and this forced us to use a date where the park was open to the public. The result was much larger crowds than usual and major problems with the distribution of the free return tickets (see above). Now that the state has placed a one week window between the 7th-8th grade testing and the 5th-6th grade testing, we were able to take advantage of it and move back to our typical date. There will probably be 1-2 other student groups in the park on that day, as was the case in 2007 and earlier - but the park will be closed to the public.
- The AP English Test is on Thursday May 7 - is there anything you can do about this? Unfortunately, there is nothing we can do. Having this event in early May (before the park opens to the public) does place us in conflict each year with one day of AP testing. Depending on the AP test that is scheduled for that day, some years it is more of an issue than others - this year with AP English, it is a larger issue. Please understand that we cannot move the date earlier due to state testing (see above) as well as park availability, and we cannot move the date later due to the park opening to the public (see above) as well as conflict with various end-of-year activities in your schools. We have to schedule this event before the AP testing calendar is released, and Six Flags bascially assigns us the date - therefore we also have little flexibility in terms of the day of the week. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this causes, and encourage you to consider bringing underclassmen that are not affected by AP testing in place of those seniors who may be unable to attend.
- I can't find the Registration Form - where is it? We are now utilizing ONLINE registration for the 2009 Spring Awards Program, and will be implementing this for next year's Fall and Winter Conferences. A link to the new Online Registration Form is provided above. This new form is easy to complete and submit - after doing this, you will receive a confirmation e-mail that you can send to your Business Office so they can process payment. All payments should be mailed to Wendy at the Southern Office (Palmyra HS) - there is no need to mail the registration form printout.
- We are still working on our State Charity donation, and may need to send it in after April 24 - can we still get a plaque? YES, there are a number of schools that conduct events in April and May to support the NJASC State Charity. You can send the donation check to Wendy at the Southern Office once you have completed your fundraising. Please note that you will need to e-mail Wendy at wbsitzler@njasc.org with an anticipated amount no later than April 30, so that we can have an award plaque ready in time for the Awards Program. We appreciate all of your efforts to support the State Charity - since the inception of this program, over $3 million has been raised for worthy causes by the student leaders of our state.
Award Application Deadlines Closing FAST!
The following awards will be given at next month's Spring Awards Program - it is not too late to get your application in, but time is running out!
- Standards of Excellence - schools involved in this program have already completed their evaluations of each other, and the State Officers will soon review the paperwork submitted to determine whether awards will be given.
- Community Smile - DUE APRIL 24. CLICK HERE to download a 2009 Community Smile award application form and complete it to have your Student Council recognized for the valuable service it provides to your school and local community. Every member school is eligible to win this award, and we encourage all of you to apply for it!
- State Charity - DUE APRIL 24 (see above if you are still fundraising). CLICK HERE to download a 2009 State Charity donation form. This is a new form designed to accompany your check or purchase order. As in past years, there will be awards for the $1000, $2000, $5000, and $10,000 Club as well as the top three donations by middle and high schools to our 2008-2009 State Charity, "P.O.A.C." If you have already sent in your State Charity donation, you DO NOT need to send in this form.
StuCo Elections in April or May...then it's LTC in July!
With Spring now here, for many of us it will soon be Student Council election season. Don't forget to prepare your new student leaders for the challenges they will face in the year ahead by sending them to LTC!
The 54th annual NJASC Leadership Training Conference (LTC) will be at The College of New Jersey - Session 1 from (Wed-Sat.) July 15-18 and Session 2 from (Sun-Wed.) July 19-22.
Last year, nearly 300 delegates (including Oscar Sanchez from Bayonne HS, pictured above) from throughout the state joined us at TCNJ, and we look forward to having even more become part of the oldest continually operating state Student Council Leadership Training Conference in the nation.
It is NOT too late to get in on this one-of-a-kind experience! While we do have an initial deadline for reservations so we can figure out staffing needs, there is open enrollment throughout April, May, and June. There are spaces available in BOTH sessions, and also for the brand new "LTC 2" program that will prepare student leaders that have already attended LTC for advanced leadership as high school upperclassmen and beyond.
To learn more about the magic of LTC, CLICK HERE to view testimonials from student leaders that attended LTC 2008 last summer or visit the LTC Section of our website.
You can download LTC Delegate Registration Forms at the Forms Page on the NJASC website, or just use one of the links below:
LTC Delegate Registration Form This form is for any Middle Level or High School delegate that will be attending LTC for the first time. |
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LTC 2 Delegate Registration Form In order to attend LTC 2, a delegate must have already attended the standard LTC program in a prior year, and must be at least a Sophomore in September 2009. |
The registration cost for LTC (or LTC 2) is only $350.00 per delegate - which includes lodging, meals, and all course materials. Be sure to reserve places at LTC (and LTC 2, too) for your school as soon as possible, so your student leaders don't miss out on this one-of-a-kind experience!
New Jersey students and advisors "LEAD" in Harrisburg!
On the weekend of March 13-15, five advisors and nine student leaders traveled to Harrisburg, PA for the 2009 National Association of Student Councils' LEAD Conference.
Each year, LEAD Conferences provide a valuable opportunity for students and advisors to gain national-level leadership training in areas such as team building, fundraising, and community service. In Harrisburg, our New Jersey student leaders (pictured at left) shared ideas and gained valuable leadership skills with over 500 of their fellow student leaders from as nearby as Pennsylvania and as far away as Arizona.
Featured speakers at LEAD 2009 included Paul Bernabei and Willow Sweeney (Top 20 Training, Top 20 Teens), Bob Tryanski, and Byron Garrett. Several speakers that we have seen at LEAD in recent years have been invited to come and speak to you at our seasonal NJASC Conferences - last Fall's keynote speaker Scott Greenberg being the latest example.
Our New Jersey delegation included the following student leaders and their advisors:
- Bayonne HS: Jeanine Jensen (advisor), Oscar Sanchez, Edyta Bondaruk, Dolores Bujnowski
- Brooklawn MS: Lou Miller (Executive Director), Alison Franz (advisor)
- J.P. Stevens HS: Hanna Lee (advisor), Wendy Wang, Grace Ma, Devon McRimmon (State BOE Rep.)
- Nutley HS: Deanna Cafone (State VP)
- Parsippany Hills HS: Kitty Reinhard (advisor), Aman Shah, Kelsey Bradley
We look forward to organizing another New Jersey delegation to attend LEAD next year in Crystal City, VA on February 5-6, 2010. Several of those who attended LEAD this year are planning to submit applications to present workshops there next year, to share the great things taking place in their schools in particular, and New Jersey in general. If you or your student leaders are interested in being part of this delegation, please contact Lou at lmiller@njasc.org.
Finally, a call for ideas from YOU!
For this final segment of the NJASC Advisors' Update, we are asking YOU for some content. We would like to start a Project Showcase segment, in which each month we include one successful event or project submitted by YOU to share with your fellow advisors throughout the state...
If you have such a project/event that you would like to be featured, we are asking you to please submit a 200-300 word writeup and a couple pictures from the project/event to Lou at lmiller@njasc.org. Be sure to include how the project/event was planned, anything special or unique about it, the impact that it had on your school and/or community, and how participation in NJASC activities helped in making this project/event a success.
Since we would be using a picture or two that you submit in this online newsletter, we will also need you to complete and return a Media Release Form for each student pictured. You can CLICK HERE to download this form, which should be mailed or faxed to Lou.
As always we would like to thank you for your support of the NJASC and student leaders throughout New Jersey. We look forward to seeing you and your student leaders at Six Flags Great Adventure for the Spring Awards Program on Thursday May 7!
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