Lisa Howie, OFLA Executive Treasurer 
Spanish Teacher, Smithville High School

I thought I would take this opportunity to update you on what has been happening in the Treasurer’s office. When I took over the position last Julyl I had some specific goals. While it has taken me longer than I thought it would, I have accomplished several of those goals.

A big shout out to Lucas Hoffman, the former treasurer, for training me and preparing me for this position. I still call and text him regularly for help. As we were working towards a smooth transition several needs came to the forefront.

In the past, many board members have had to pay for things for OFLA business (subscriptions to online services we use, flights/hotel for other conferences, supplies for meetings, etc.) and then wait for a reimbursement check to come. That situation has improved in two ways.  First, we have started successfully using Zelle as an alternative to paper checks for some such reimbursements. Second, we have obtained an OFLA credit card to pay for many of these things and earn the corresponding rewards that come with it.

I experimented with QuickBooks as a means of record keeping but after several months I realized the system already in place was just as efficient and I have canceled the subscription to save money.  

OFLA uses three bank accounts: a Chase checking and savings account as well as a J.P. Morgan investment account.  For many years, this investment account has been problematic when we  changed treasurers, but access has finally been turned completely over to me. Due to these issues, and the bad economy, the investment account was closed and the money transferred to the checking account.  We did not find the J.P. Morgan investment account beneficial to OFLA but someday we might revisit the idea of an investment account with a different servicer.  

Also, with the help of the Membership Chair, Maria Herman, and the Professional Development Chair, Nela Serrano, we were able to save at least $13,500 by not paying for an outside conference consulting company to invoice and follow up on schools sending teachers to the 2022 conference. We were able to handle that internally!

If you have any ideas about what I can do as treasurer to help your OFLA experience, please let me know by emailing me at treas@ofla-online.org.