What Is a Mission Partner?
Mission Partners are nonprofits or other groups whose main focus is to improve the lives of children. The types of groups are endless but might include a teachers or librarian group, foster care state entity, a mental health group, and so many more. LAPTA is always looking for more Mission Partners!
The Mission of LAPTA
Louisiana PTA is enormously proud of its educational child advocacy work over the last 100 years. It starts with a parent in a classroom and extends to meetings in Washington, D.C. with politicians. LAPTA is looking for Mission Partners to work together to support all children in reaching their full potential. Mission Partners are nonprofits whose focus is to improve the lives of children and encourage family engagement. LAPTA would like to do a joint support where we can assist each other in reaching our missions. Together, we all play a major role in furthering this important mission.
Why do we PTA? To make every child’s potential a reality by engaging and empowering families and communities to advocate for all children.
As a 501(c)(3) non-profit, LAPTA offers different avenues to help all children reach their potential by advocating for children at local, state, and national levels. We also have the Local PTA Units who do PTA work, community outreach, and more. LAPTA supports those efforts through 54 grants, more than 225 awards, and dozens of programs for teachers, students, and local PTAs. The innovative programs and grants focus on topics such as STEM, literacy, mental health, student leadership, comprehensive arts programs, healthy earth, anti-bullying, anti-drug, sustainability, inclusion, diversity, internet safety, community outreach, and much more. Can we support each other and become Mission Partners?
Volunteer work, especially when it involves children and their education, makes a significant impact on the community. Join forces with LAPTA’s nonpartisan, nonsectarian, and noncommercial advocacy work and we all will benefit. Meet with LAPTA to discuss how we can support each other. For those wanting to financially support LAPTA, become a Friend of LAPTA.
LAPTA sincerely appreciates your time and resources and looks forward to getting to know you better. Everyone on our Board of Directors is a volunteer because we all believe in our mission that much!
Mission Partners
Mission Partners are nonprofits or other groups whose focus is to improve the lives of children and whose mission aligns with the PTA mission. These like-minded associations and coalitions might include a teacher or librarian group, foster care, a mental health group, and so many more.
We live in a world where physical and mental health are not treated the same. Where we know exactly what to do if our child breaks an arm or gets the flu. But watching a child endure a panic attack or struggle with the effects of stress leave us feeling completely helpless. We don’t learn coping skills & breathing exercises until there’s a concern, or even an emergency. And sometimes, it even feels a little too late. Its time to reshape our children’s future. That's where we come in. Visit https://kidsmentalhealthfoundation.org/.
The Seymore D'Fair Foundation is an educator-centric non-profit organization that strongly focuses on serving the underserved preadolescent student population at K-6th grade levels. Recognizing the critical importance of early childhood education, the foundation utilizes its expertise and hands-on classroom experience to design highly effective awareness, education, and prevention initiatives tailored to this specific demographic. The world-renowned Seymore D'Fair, the foundation's brand ambassador, is at the heart of our efforts. Through the combination of engaging content and a recognizable costume and cartoon character, Seymore D'Fair creates a formidable program that resonates with our target student demographic. This unique approach captivates and empowers young minds, making drug awareness and prevention engaging and relatable. Our core mission revolves around fostering collaboration with like-minded organizations to maximize the impact of our initiatives. We firmly believe in the power of partnerships and actively seek synergies with local, state, and national partners to drive positive change in communities across Louisiana and America. Central to our work is the acclaimed "Kiki's Red Ribbon School Celebration" program, a powerful in-school prevention initiative that runs concurrently with the National Red Ribbon Week Campaign. Through this program, we instill crucial life skills in students, promoting a drug-free lifestyle from an early age and setting the foundation for a healthier future. With unwavering dedication and the support of our valued partners, the Seymore D'Fair Foundation remains steadfast in its mission to build a healthier, safer, and drug-free future for the children and youth of Louisiana and America. Together, we strive to create a lasting impact, empowering the next generation to make informed and positive choices, thus fostering a brighter tomorrow for us all.
The Children & Youth Prevention Coalition of St. Tammany (CYCST) is a dynamic and passionate community-driven coalition committed to promoting the well-being and safety of children and youth in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana. Our focus revolves around drug prevention, education, and building a supportive network to address the unique challenges faced by our young generation. Our mission is to empower children and youth with the knowledge, skills, and resources necessary to make positive life choices and lead a healthy, drug-free lifestyle. Through innovative programs, initiatives, and strategic partnerships, we strive to create a nurturing environment that fosters resilience and instills values that inspire lifelong success. As a united force, the CYCST collaborates with various stakeholders, including educators, parents, law enforcement, healthcare professionals, and community leaders. By leveraging diverse expertise and resources, we aim to implement evidence-based prevention strategies and interventions that make a lasting impact on the lives of our youth. Central to our efforts is our commitment to networking and collaboration with other coalitions and organizations across Louisiana. By uniting forces with like-minded partners, we expand our reach and effectiveness, ensuring a comprehensive approach to addressing substance abuse challenges and promoting mental well-being among our young community members. The Children & Youth Prevention Coalition of St. Tammany envisions a future where every child and youth can thrive, free from the detrimental effects of substance abuse. Together, we continue to build a stronger, safer, and more resilient St. Tammany Parish, where our youth can fulfill their potential and lead fulfilling lives.
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The STAR Task Force, with multiple state agency representatives and other critical stakeholders, was established by the State Superintendent of Education in the summer of 2022. The STAR Task Force works to address the following: ● Analyze statewide and system-level attendance and truancy data. ● Understand and provide solutions for several top attendance and truancy critical barriers. ● Establish multi-state agency coordination opportunities to improve structural changes to support attendance and truancy recovery initiatives. ● Research other State Education Agency (SEA) and Local Education Agency (LEA) chronic absenteeism data and initiatives. ● Create a strategic plan with recommendations to address the current attendance and truancy crisis. ● Establish measurable STAR Task Force goals and key performance indicators to progress monitor and report quarterly.
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The Louisiana Department of Education formed the Parent and Family Engagement Task Force in 2024 as a result of House Resolution 239. The task force will provide recommendations to the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) for the development and implementation of a state action plan for improving parent and family engagement at the school level. The task force shall: 1) Engage with state and national stakeholders and providers to identify research on best practices relative to effective strategies for increasing parent and family engagement in education. 2) Make recommendations on increasing high quality, effective parent and family engagement in education to improve academic outcomes with an emphasis on private-public partnerships. 3) Explore other considerations with respect to parent and family engagement as determined by the task force.