Happy Friday WACA Area 5 Friends! 
 
WACA is almost here and that means it is time for The Greatest Show on Earth!  The conference begins next Wednesday, March 13th!  


Here are some last-minute details… 

If you are a presenter, THANK YOU for your time and talent. We can’t make this conference happen without your willingness to present.
 
During Area meetings, the focus will be on how we can best utilize this conference and one another to fill the needs we have in our schools.  Is there a need to improve school culture?  Got it.  Professional Development?  Deal.  Help with projects and events?  Okay.  We’ll also spend some time networking and sharing resource and ideas with one another.

It’s a very casual conference so jeans and t-shirts usually work well.  Temperatures in the conference center rooms can vary so you may want to dress in layers. Some people like to dress a bit nicer for the Thursday evening awards banquet, but that is very optional.  Friday of the conference is school colors day.  Show your school pride on Friday! 

If you have any questions or comments please email me.
 
I'm excited to see you NEXT WEEK!



Make it a great day!


Stacia Hardie
EHS Assistant Principal

Hello WACA Area 5,
 
We are just three weeks away from the Greatest Show On Earth, our 2019 state WACA conference.  
 
1. It is not too late to sign up for the conference.  You will not regret it! www.wacaonline.org
 
2. We need 15 more people to present at Meet the Pros. This is a chance to present a short lesson that you do or an activity you want to highlight.  It is low-key.  You sit around a table with people who want to hear about your project.  Would you consider signing up for a Meet the Pros session?  Here is the link.  http://www.wacaonline.org/presenter-application.html
 
That's all for now.  Have a great week!


Make it a great day!


Stacia Hardie
EHS Assistant Principal

I hope that you had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday.  My family and I traveled to my parents, ate tons of great food, put together puzzles, and laughed a ton!  It makes for an amazing short vacation!
 
Well, as you begin your march toward the end of the calendar year, and you usher in the holidays, I have a few more WACA items to send your way:
 
1) Don’t forget!  If you want to nominate someone for the WACA Hall of Fame, you need to do so by December 1st.

• The nomination form can be found on our website, wacaonline.org.
• The nomination pool is pretty low right now; we could use your great suggestion for a person to recognize for their leading role in activities in our state.

 
2)Our program coordinator, Tammy Caldwell, just sent the board a reminder message:   start thinking about presenters for the WACA Conference in March!

• Each year, we have several rounds of 50-minute presentations.  We also have a couple of rounds of 10-minute Meet the Pros.  The 50 minute sessions allow us to go into depth on a topic or program or activity.  The Meet the Pros sessions are usually a nice summary, or a “snapshot” of our topic. 
• The Presenter applications are available on the website, wacaonline.org.
• Our conference theme this year is Come One, Come All to the Greatest Show on Earth.  As we think about the activities at our school, they seem to fall into the categories of Personal Growth, Event Planning, and Culture Building… kind of a three ring circus of activities!  What do you do at school that fits into one or more of these three rings?  Present it!
• What do you do at your school that you are proud of?  Present it!
• Many of us are familiar with TPEP evaluations.  How does your activity match up with one or more of the 8 TPEP elements?  Your WACA colleagues would be interested (… and so would your administrators).  Present it!
• As always, if you have an idea or question that you want to discuss, please email me, and we can visit.

 
As you count down the days until Christmas Break (Yes, I still call it "Christmas" Break) and check things off your to do list, don't forget to add your WACA registration to your to do list!  I can't wait to see you there!



Make it a great day!


Stacia Hardie
EHS Assistant Principal

​Area 5 Leaderbodies~

My name is Stacia Hardie and I am  an Assistant Principal at Eastmont HS.   I am the Area 5 representative for WACA (Washington Activities Coordinators Association).  I hope that this note finds you happy and healthy.  As usual, my first task at the beginning of the year is to ask, “Am I talking to the right person?”  Are you the activities/leadership person?  If so, great.  If not, could you please forward me contact info for the correct person?  And if you know someone in a neighboring school who should be getting this email but is not, I’d love some help with their contact info as well.  Thanks!
 
The WACA board had our WACA Fall Board Meeting on Sept 22-23 in Spokane.   We covered A LOT of material at the Board Meeting.  Here goes:
 
1)       The Board uses the Fall Meeting to check out possible sites for our conference.  Since there have been several changes in the Spokane area, we decided it was time to visit again.  We have to find a site that will accommodate our many break-out sessions, our big vendor area, our large-group sessions, and our housing needs (for about 350 people).  And we try to be fiscally responsible – so we know that if we book a certain number of rooms (room block) and order a certain volume of food (banquet minimums), we can get our conference areas at no/low cost.  Make sense so far?  Well, we found ourselves involved in a “Three Bears” story at our Fall Meeting.  Many places were “too small” – they didn’t have enough meeting space or vendor space.  Some places were “too big” – like the Davenport Grand Hotel, where we were staying; they had enough space, but we can’t meet room blocks and banquet minimums that are large enough to offset the conference costs.  So, the Spokane venues weren’t the answer at this time, and we continue to look for “just right”.  
 
2)      Don’t forget that WACA sponsors an Advisor Certification program.  Details may be found on our website wacaonline.org.  The application is being simplified for this year.  If you haven’t already applied, I would recommend it.   Deadline for applications for this cycle (certificates handed out at the March 2019 annual meeting) is February 1st.

3)      Back to the WACA Conference:  Each March at the conference, we present our Hall of Fame awards.  We need some input from you, so would you please consider going online at wacaonline.org, and nominating a colleague?  Details are on the website, and the deadline is December 1st of 2018.

4)      Mark your calendars for the WACA conference March 13-15 at the Three Rivers Convention Center in Kennewick.  Registration is open at http://www.wacaonline.org/conference-2019.html
 
Okay, that’s enough for now.  I’ll send more information as we hit Winter.

Make it a great day!

Stacia Hardie

Area 5 Leader Bodies...


We are less than a week away from the WACA conference.  The schedule is in place, the speakers are ready, the entertainment has been arranged, and the class sessions are full.  I’m looking forward to seeing you all.  
 
Some final details to your conference planning:
 
#1:  Attire -  The conference is very casual; jeans and a t-shirt usually work very well.  Since our theme is Tune in to Leadership, how about bringing a concert/music shirt to wear on Thursday.  And Friday, we try to show off our school colors, so find some spirit gear from your school.  Some people like to dress a bit nicer for the Thursday evening awards banquet, but that is very optional.
 
#2:  Clock Hours -  Recall that 10 clock hours are available at the close of the conference.  The sign-in will be quick, but please plan for a few minutes to complete that task.
 
#3:  Area Meetings -  I am looking to having a chance to see everyone, hang out and share resources and ideas at our area meetings.  Looking forward to some great networking!
 
All right, that should do until we see each other next Wednesday.  Please let me know what questions you have.




Make it a great day!


Stacia Hardie
EHS Assistant Principal

​Area 5 Leader Bodies...WACA is only a month away!  I hope you are as excited as I am for this year's conference.


I have two quick conference items for you:
First, Barnes and Noble is managing our Resource Room this year.  That means that they will provide the books and supplies for us.  One of the advantages of using them, is that they are available during the conference, and beyond.  They have set up a special code for us (bookfair ID is 12325999), that is active from March 15 – 20.  So if you don’t pick up an item during the conference, you can go to the local B & N store, or online, and get that item for the same price as during the conference (but only from March 15-20).  
Second, we still have a couple of spots to fill for our conference Meet the Pros session.  Meet the Pros is really nice, because it is just a 10 minute chat (actually less, when you consider discussion and questions!)  You have something cool at your school… so present it!  All delegates that present at Meet the Pros get a copy of all Meet the Pro presenter handouts!!  Wow!    So…

• Have you got a novel way to celebrate students (birthday calendar each month?  Their face in a cut-out star that is taped to the cafeteria wall?)
• Do you have a cool alternative to decorating with butcher paper?
• What cool technology are you using in class?  
• Do you hold a leadership retreat?
• Do you have a great MLK/Black History month assembly?

Share one of the amazing things that is happening at your school!
The presenter application is really easy to find on the website (wacaonline.org).   ;-)
Get your application in TODAY!  

Happy New Semester Area 5!
Are you ready for a March break?  Don't forget to register for WACA 2018...Tune into Leadership!
Just a quick note:
Laurel Robillard, WACA Board President, sent out the following update regarding our conference hotels.  Looks like there a some rooms left for reserving!  I’ve added the contact phone numbers, if that is how you want to contact them.  But you can also find them online.  Please note the address of the Red Lion; there are two of them in the Kennewick area.
February 9th is the reservation deadline...after that rooms not reserved (with names) will be released to the public...we are getting the group rate...
Springhill Suites        (509) 820-3026

• $139/night
• 8 rooms just opened up

Hilton Garden Inn    (509) 735-4600

• $129/night
• 11 rooms left

Red Lion        (509) 396-9979
602 N Young St

• $129/night
• 22 rooms left

A couple more quick items for you:

• Clock Hours:  10 clock hours are available for attending the instructional sessions of the conference.  These are FREE (yep!), and they are available at the end of the conference AFTER THE CLOSING SESSION.  No, I’m not using all caps to “yell” at you.  I’m using them to emphasize when they are available – we have to maintain the integrity of our offerings, so they are not available before the closing of the conference.  So please, plan for this time.  We too are planning; we know that things were a bit slow last year, and we are planning on streamlining the process and offering MULTIPLE pick-up stations.
• WACA Board:  We have elections this year for the following positions:  President-Elect, Middle-Level Rep, Secretary, and Even # Area Reps (Areas 2, 4, 6, and 8). We also have an appointed position up for selection this year:  the Partner Coordinator.  If you are interested in any of these positions, check out the info (and application) on the website. 

​
Please let me know if you have any questions!

Make it a great day!

Stacia Hardie
EHS Assistant Principal

Happy Fall WACA Area 5!
 
Here's an update on all things WACA.
 
Registration is open for our WACA Conference, March 14-16 at the Tri-Cities Convention Center in Kennewick at wacaonline.org.   Get your paperwork in, reserve those substitutes and put it on the calendar to recharge your battery in March.  Here are some conference details.

• The Pre-Conference session topics and the Speakers Showcase speakers are listed on the website, if you’d like a little advance peak at some highlights of the first day of the conference.  The outline for the entire conference is online as well.
• Hotel information is available too.  Book now, so you get a great room.
• When you register, look carefully at the section for menu options/concerns.  We’re trying to serve our delegates as best we can, and trying to be sensitive to dietary needs.

Be a Presenter at WACA.  We need you to help make our conference great.  Share your expertise and creativity, by presenting a session at the conference.  If you would rather not do a 50 minute session, we have alternatives with Meet the Pros!!

WACA Hall of Fame:  If you would like to nominate someone for the WACA Hall of Fame, the deadline is December 1, 2017.  Check the menu bar on the left hand side of our homepage (wacaonline.org) to access the Hall of Fame info and application

Don’t forget that you can apply for Washington State Advisor Certification.  We started the program earlier this year, and have thirty or so certified advisors at this time.  If you’re interested, please refer to the application on line at wacaonline.org (it’s the third menu tab on the left side of the home page).  Application deadline is February 1, 2018.  If you have questions, feel free to shoot me an email.

Make it a great day!

Stacia Hardie
EHS Assistant Principal
​WACA Area 5 Representative​

Thanks for joining us!Allow me to take this opportunity to extend my thanks to my fellow WACA Conference attendees.  Thank you for sharing your valuable time with myself and others. Thank you on behalf of students, staff and parents that will all ultimately benefit from your experiences at WACA. The fine leaders of WACA are always appreciative of input to help shape and improve your experience and value.  I am providing a link below for you to share your thoughts.

Please visit the WACA website for all the latest information and news.
I am always available to answer any questions. You can email me at school or home.