From the President's Desk
Truly, I am honored and humbled to accept the leadership position as the 35th President of the Massachusetts Parent Teacher Association. As the second man to secure this role in 102 years, I am sincere in sharing that I have enormous shoes to fill! My predecessors have planted the seeds and cultivated enormous growth in our commonwealth. It will be incumbent upon me to expand the growth and impact of the Massachusetts PTA.
As I prepared for my presidency, I assessed what we do well and what areas we can improve in our affiliate association. As the new leader, I want to invite more people to share our vision, mission and membership in the Massachusetts PTA. Throughout this exceptional state, we have many successes to be proud of. Our students continue to perform over and beyond others across our nation. Teachers continue to meet and achieve certification requirements more difficult than in any other state. And, educators are embracing a new evaluation tool which will be the most challenging in our country. Yet, teachers continue to struggle with insufficient resources and stagnant salaries. Some students continue to disengage from school, make poor and life-altering decisions, and believe that hope for a prosperous future is unattainable.
As your new President, I imagine an expanded membership so that we can support our students and help create academic experiences that will change their lives. I see our association:
- continuing our advocacy for the health and safety of all students
- promoting greater accessibility for vocational education
- providing quality professional development for educators and support personnel
- encouraging stronger participation in local and national PTA programs
- working with our partners to ensure a first class education for all students
- building alliances with our state universities to create more opportunities for students
- drafting legislation to ensure mandatory arts education for all students in our commonwealth
- organizing and defeating anti-educational efforts in the legislature
- embracing each member of our state affiliate as valuable partner in the Massachusetts PTA
As the PTA, we are responsible for equipping our schools with the tools and treasures to make a difference. I am fatigued by the repetitive rant that we do not have funding for our schools. I challenge lawmakers and taxpayers to find the financial resources to offer a top-shelf school experience for each child in America. In the process, I challenge each member of the Massachusetts PTA to build membership, programming, awareness, and support for our goals. Our parents, teachers, and students deserve the best that we can offer.
Thank you for your confidence and support as we continue to support the Massachusetts PTA.
On behalf of all children,
Dr. Erik J. Champy
President, Massachusetts PTA
