Meeker Elementary School’s Parent- Teacher Association (PTA) has been named the state’s Outstanding Local Unit of the Year.

The PTA was honored last spring at the Washington State PTA Annual Convention in Bellevue and at the Puyallup PTA Council Annual Awards Night.

This is the second time a Puyallup School District PTA unit has been selected for the statewide honor. Zeiger Elementary PTA received the recognition in 2006.

In selecting award winners, the state’s Outstanding Local Unit award committee considers factors such as a PTA’s working relationship with school staff, how it engages its families, and its ability to identify strengths and where it can improve based on its research of the school community.

“This PTA obviously understands the concept of school and community,” the award committee stated. “We found they are an outstanding local unit that serves a Title I community and thinks outside the box doing new and inventive things to serve them!”

The award is given each year to one PTA unit at the primary level and another at the middle/secondary level. Meeker Elementary was selected for the top award from among more than 900 elementary school PTA units statewide.

An article in the state PTA “Leadership News” blog states that one of the keys to the success of the Meeker Elementary PTA is in developing clear and measureable goals, with input from the principal and a teacher representative, so its goals are aligned to the school’s goals.

The article further states that the school has achieved the 100 percent membership award — one member for every student at the school — for two consecutive years.

Meeker Elementary School PTA schedules activities and events year-round that align with its own PTA goals, which are created to complement schoolwide goals, said PTA President Megan Klein.

The school hosted a “Freaky Friday” event last February, for example, in which parents and students traded places for the night, giving adults a chance to experience a typical school day. With their children at their side, parents chose a hot lunch, took an Accelerated Reader test on the computer, went to music and P.E. class, completed a math assignment online, participated in a school lockdown drill, and ended the evening with a school spirit assembly in the gym.

More recently, the PTA hosted its annual “Doughnuts for Dads” event in the morning before school and filled the gym with students and their guests.

“Meeker Elementary is very fortunate to have PTA parents who contribute to the welcoming learning culture that helps our students thrive academically and socially,” said Principal Andrea Drake.

Drake added, “Their partnership and support strengthens the effectiveness and positive impact our educational programs have on the lives of all of the students we serve.”