Hello SWWFS Community!

Thank you for a wonderful 2021-2022 school year and it is up to all of us to make 2022-2023 even better. It is election time for the SWWFS parent organizations and we encourage anyone that is interested in getting more involved in the school to run for one of our parent committees:

• Local School Advisory Team (LSAT) elections are for a 1-year terms
• Home School Association (HSA) elections are for a 1-year terms
• Home School Association (HSA) financial positions (Treasurer, Financial Secretary) are for 2-year overlapping terms.

More information about the parent positions can be found below. Both organizations also have administration and faculty involvement as well.

Nominations open today, Saturday April 2nd and close Saturday April 23rd @ 5pm. Elections will take place via MailChimp between Monday April 25th and close Friday April 29th @ 5pm.

To submit a nomination, please use this online form and indicate the individual you are nominating and the position. Any questions can be submitted to hsa@swwfs.org and someone on the current LSAT or HSA boards will respond.

All parents & guardians can participate in the LSAT election while anyone in the broader community HSA may participate in the HSA election.

Home School Association Team
If you would prefer to see the roles and responsibilities in chart form, an HSA Roles and Responsibilities chart is available here.

President:  Oversees and coordinates the work of the executive Board; presides at Board and Association meetings; serves as the official contact, communicator and representative of HSA with administration and to school community; works with other HSA leaders to connect families, school, and community to support student success and school environment; holds ultimate compliance responsibilities for other Board members; attends LSAT meetings.

Vice President:  Supports the President in all capacities; serves as primary aide to the president and performs duties of the president in his/her absence; helps oversee and coordinate HSA committees; helps with planning and execution of HSA events and individual event chairpersons; conducts ad hoc tasks as assigned. 

Treasurer:  Maintains fiscal accounts and records – making deposits and payments, with board oversight. Helps develop an annual budget and monitors expenses/revenues and advises on variances. Presents monthly financial report for inclusion in meeting minutes. Files financial & tax records on behalf of HSA.

Financial Secretary:  Works closely with the treasurer in handling HSA funds; keeps a record of all HSA funds collected, deposited, and disbursed; prepares monthly and annual financial reports.

Recording Secretary: Records and distributes minutes of executive and general meetings and presents for approval. Records attendance at general meetings and board meetings. Retains copies of all bylaws, policies, and correspondence. 

Engagement Chair:  Leads parent and community engagement with the HSA and Staff serving as the “front-line” to parents including responding to (and moderating) hsa@swwfs.org and TigerPride; serves as the General Meetings Master of Ceremonies; encourages and connects room parents and works with teachers to better enable room parents; finds and encourages school leaders to run for HSA; coordinates with Events Chair, Fundraising Chair as appropriate.

Events Chair:  Coordinates annual and special events;  works to recruit volunteers and provides guidance to those volunteers regarding events; coordinates with HSA Board to develop calendar of events; coordinates with Fundraising Chair as appropriate.  Events may include: Back to School picnic, Staff Appreciation Week, Principal’s Coffee, among other community building activities.

Fundraising Chair:  Works with the volunteer committees to plan and organize fundraising activities; serves as liaison to HSA Board regarding all fundraising events; focuses on raising the amount of funds needed to meet the budget; presents reports on proposed fundraising activities at Board and Association meetings for approval.

Technology Chair:  Coordinates technology efforts to support the HSA, including the website and communication tools used to disseminate messages to the community.

Communications Chair:  Coordinates all communication from Board to Association and broader school community.

Local School Advisory Team
There are 4-parent positions on the LSAT board.

DCPS describes the role of the LSAT as "a group of elected and appointed members that exists for every DCPS school. The team (formerly the Local School Restructuring Teams) consists of parents, teachers, non-instructional school staff, a community member, and in some cases students, to advise the principal on matters that promote high expectations and high achievement for all students.”

Any parent/guardian can stand for and vote in the LSAT. The LSAT also includes teachers, a non-teaching staff member, a teacher union rep and a non-parent member of the community/neighbor.

The LSAT meets at least quarterly, and in particular may have several evening meetings during the months of February and/or March when the School Budget is released.  LSAT members (along with officers) may be drafted to provide testimony or lobby the DC Council or other city leaders.