It's Official...

As of today I am officially the PTA President at Jonathan and Janina's school. I'm doing this for two reasons, one is selfish, and the other is not. The selfish reason is that I'm using the position as an internship for my Master degree. I need six hours of internship which equals 460 clock hours. I was looking for paid internships first, but when I found out that this position was opening I jumped at it. I am extreamly interested in public schools, so it right up there for me. I also am studying leadership. My only leadership experience is in the Army, which is different from the "civilian" way of doing things.
The non-selfish reason for doing this is the fact that I may never have another opportunity to help in the school that my children attend. I could end up deployed and miss an entire year of school in the future. I'm seizing the moment so my kids will remember the moment.
This month I started a Watch D.O.G.S. program at the school. It is a lot of fun. For those of you that aren't familiar with the program, it was started following the Columbine High School shooting. A dad put the program together with the idea that having more male adults on a given school campus would reduce the risk of a repeat attack. Statistically, schools that participate have better scores and higher high school graduation rates. This is believed to be because of the male role models that some children never see.
Anyway, we are out there directing traffic and making sure the kids get into the building safely. I've had a lot of fun. There are only four of us so far, but lots of people are interested in joining. If you'd like more information, go to fathers.com. I'm a die hard homeroom mom now and loving every minute of it.
Jenn and I are in the school constantly and we love the chance to be there. It was hard last year in Korea. I was working 50 sometimes 60 hours a week and had no time for the school. Jonathan didn't have a great experience and it probably would have been much better had we been able to devote more time to the classroom. I'm a firm believer that parents should be involved in everything that the child is involved in. It shows the child that it is a priority to you, so it should be a priority to them.
Anyway, I've invited the ladies over to the house for a fund raising meeting on Tuesday. I promised to make lunch, but I haven't decided what to make. Jenn in on the fund raising committee, so it all works out. If you have any good ideas on the food, I'd love to hear them. For those that don't know, I do most of the cooking in our house. I'm great with a Crockpot, but that's about my limitation.
Anyway, I'm looking forward to a great year as PTA President.