Steps for a successful event:

1. Working with your president and principal, schedule your HSA program for the month of February, if possible.  If you hold your HSA program after February you will run into problems with other deadlines. 

2. An HSA committee needs to be formed. Please review your bylaws and standing rules regarding this committee.  The committee needs to be ratified at an executive board meeting. 

3. Send out nomination forms via email and/or hard copies sent home.  Here is an example from CAPTA, which can also be found on their website.      

4. Please make sure that all nominations are kept private and are not discussed until you meet with your committee. 

5. Meet with your President to see what your budget is for HSA.  This is a very important conversation to have before meeting with your committee. 

6. Once you meet with your committee all discussion taking place at your meetings needs to be kept confidential within your committee. 

7. Please read the attached information from the CAPTA Toolkit regarding the different types of awards. The Outstanding Administrator Award should only be given to an administrator (for example, a principal or TUSD director). It should not be given to non-administrative school employees (teachers, secretaries, health clerks, custodians, etc.) 

8. During your meeting, go over any details that pertain to the Honorary Service Awards and delegate jobs. For example: who will write the bios; who will order pins and certificates from state PTA; who will do the presentation, etc. You and your committee will, of course, go into more detail . . .

9. Order your pins and certificates.  It can take 2 – 4 weeks for delivery. 

10. Be mindful of deadlines because this is one of those events where you will need help from others, like getting information for your recipients’ bios.  You may be great at getting things done at the last minute, but others may not be.  And again remember that there is a 2 – 4 week turnaround time for receiving the certificates and pins.