Newshttp://www.bpa.org/http://www.bpa.org/news/n/544Business Professionals of America Week is each year during the second full week of February, part of Career and Technical Education Month. This year, Business Professionals of America Week is February 13-17, 2012. BPA Week is a great opportunity to promote your chapter, have your students learn P.R. skills, and take pride in their local chapter. If you click here, you can download a sample press release to send to local media. You can also download a sample "proclamation" announcement for use at a ceremony with your principal or mayor. Click here to go to the BPA Week page at BPA.org. Need more ideas to get your BPA Week going and promote your chapter? There are lots of ways to promote your chapter that week. Have a brainstorming session to come up with your own ideas, execute them, and let us know about them! Below are a couple ways chapters celebrated last year. This year, be sure to tell us what you did by posting a news story about your chapter in the BPA.org Custom Chapter System.http://www.bpa.org/news/n/532A few important updates to take note of at BPA.org today:Scholarship applications are now available, and are due March 30.The NLC Walk for Special Olympics Pin Design contest deadline has been extended to February 3. Get us a design by next Friday!Individual member BPA Cares Awards (the Member Recruiter, Service Learning Individual and Entrepreneurship Exploration) are now available as fillable PDF forms.http://www.bpa.org/news/n/519Business Professionals of America local chapters and members do more than prepare for successful careers.nbsp; When it comes to serving the community, BPA members are on the front lines, pouring thousands of hours into making their community and world a better place.Officially, Business Professionals of America encourages and recognizes these efforts through a variety of programs. The Torch Awards program, the new Service Learning Individual award, the Special Olympics, Community Action, Community Relief, Environmental Action/Awareness, and Safety Awareness awards all help our members and chapters identify areas of need and take action to improve their community.Business Professionals of America and its members will continue to lead the way in this area. We are proud to announce that Business Professionals of America has been selected and approved as an official Certifying Organization for the President's Volunteer Service Award.The President's Volunteer Service Award is a national award created from the White House. The President's Council on Service and Civic Participation (the Council) was established in 2003 to recognize the valuable contributions volunteers are making in our communities and encourage more people to serve. The Council created the President’s Volunteer Service Award program as a way to thank and honor Americans who, by their demonstrated commitment and example, inspire others to engage in volunteer service.The President’s Volunteer Service Award recognizes individuals, families, and groups that have achieved a certain standard – measured by the number of hours of service over a 12-month period or cumulative hours earned over the course of a lifetime.Business Professionals of America members are now eligible for this award and can be approved for it via Business Professionals of America as their Certifying Organization. Members can begin their pursuit of the award by tracking their volunteer hours online. The hours do not have to be only for volunteer work in support of BPA; they can be for a wide range of projects and service. However, it is important that BPA members use Business Professionals of America's Record of Service Key, FHF-51860, when identifying their Certifying Organization.(IMPORTANT NOTE: TO USE THE ABOVE CODE, CREATE YOUR ACCOUNT AT THE AWARDS SITE, CLICK "YOUR HOME" OR "PROFILE" AND ADD THE NUMBER AS YOUR 'RECORD OF SERVICE KEY.')"We applaud your commitment to volunteer service," a representative of the President's Council on Service wrote in a message to Business Professionals of America. "We look forward to assisting you in recognizing volunteers through the Presidents recognition program." BPA is proud to be a part of the crucial task of encouraging and recognizing BPA members for their dedication to a better world.Click here (and use FHF-51860 as your Record of Service Key) to get started on tracking your hours.http://www.bpa.org/news/n/507A new survey is now available regarding BPA advisors and related virtual classroom resources. Click here to take the survey. It takes less than a minute.http://www.bpa.org/news/n/493Webinar Wedensday is cranking back up for the winter and spring as we prepare for the National Leadership Conference. Visit our Webinar page to see the full list. Currently eight Webinars are scheduled for the rest of this school year. The following are the Webinars coming up:January 25: Utilizing the Pre-Event Submission System for NLCFebruary 29: First Time NLC AdvisorsMarch 7: A Student's Guide to Being a National OfficerMarch 21: Intern OrientationsMarch 21: A Student's Guide to Exploring Chicagohttp://www.bpa.org/news/n/484Business Professionals of America's official site is now mobile! If you are accessing our site from your mobile device and are not automatically redirected, visit our mobile site at http://www.bpa.org/mobile.aspx.http://www.bpa.org/news/n/481http://www.bpa.org/news/n/463Congratulations to the following BPA members who have completed and earned the first ever BPA Local Certified Advisor Designation. The members completed six hours of online webinar training and participated in six online discussion forums. The program was host to over 15 BPA advisors, however, only 3 have completed the program in its entirety.Kala Griffin: AC Jones High School, TX: Advisor DesignationJeannette Barreto: Colstrip High School, MT: Advisor DesignationShayla Jackson-Martin: Idaho State University, ID: Student Designationhttp://www.bpa.org/news/n/462The Webinar archives page in the SOURCE has been updated with archives and streaming video for our most recent webinar, Give Your Students an Edge Through Industry Certification. Advisors, don't miss out on these resources!Click here to go to the SOURCE and review our archived webinars.http://www.bpa.org/news/n/439Topic: Overview of available industry certifications and how this will lead to employment and college entrance.Wed, Dec 7, 2011 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM ESTRegister now by clicking below:https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/889959025Once registered you will receive an email confirming your registration with information you need to join the Webinar.System RequirementsPC-based attendeesRequired: Windows® 7, Vista, XP or 2003 ServerMacintosh®-based attendeesRequired: Mac OS® X 10.5 or newer