PTO Meeting Minutes, January 12th, 2009
Attendees: Megan Houston, Donna Macdonald, Lisa Kunin, Katherine Hunter, Tonia Karnedy, Leslie Capano, Kate Cunningham, Lisa Hebert, Andy Pearson, Nancy Vetters, Steven Schmidt, Deb Gurwicz, Monica Ostby.
Co-President Monica Ostby welcomed the group and started the meeting with a forecast of the Martin Luther King Jr commemorative activities slated for this Friday, January 16th. Special guest Cheryl Garner, who also led last year’s observance at Orchard, will structure this year’s theme around a quote from the ‘I Have a Dream’ speech: “We Can Not Walk Alone.” The activities planned illustrate the connectivity between the actions of individuals and the resulting chain of collective action, rooted contextually in history from King’s ‘Dream’ speech to the imminent inauguration of America’s first black president occuring the day after the King memorial holiday. Some discussion followed in regards to whether a parent assembly could be coordinated in time, which might include contributions from the music department and faculty from each house.
Co-President Ostby led a discussion regarding special end-of-the year activities. A committee was formed to develop and execute these ends; members include Co-Vice Presidents Leslie Capano and Nancy Vetters, Outreach committee member Katherine Hunter, and Co-Secretary Kate Cunningham.
Co-President Ostby announced that the bulk of communication intended for PTO Co-Presidents be sent to (Co-President) Lisa Hebert.
Regarding meeting minutes from the last meeting in November, Co-Secretary Megan Houston reminded attendees of the only lingering item under consideration: a request from SLIMY to augment the portion of their self-generated funds used to support the summer garden coordinator.
Treasurer Tonia Karnedy presented the PTO’s treasury report. The Nothing But Noodles fundraiser from October raised $140. Pizza Night from November raised $500. The Book Fair raised $850. Popcorn Friday continues to be successful. The results of the Uno’s fundraiser are unknown at this point. A suggestion was made to advertise the next Uno’s fundraisers as ‘Mom’s Night’ and ‘Dad’s Night’ to urge participation. Drama Club outflows have been logged thus far. A new section of the report lists the field trip earnings by teacher; these funds will now be filtered through the PTO to assist tracking and PTO contributions toward shortfalls. The written report also includes PTO expenses for the school year with no unusual or unanticipated expenses so far. No update on district fundraising policies and guidelines is available.
Regarding the invitation to join the other South Burlington PTOs at a meeting in February, it was agreed that Orchard PTO will maintain the customary Monday meeting to accomplish our individual agenda and send 1-2 representatives to the group meeting. One of the representatives will be Co-Secretary Kate Cunningham.
Donna Macdonald asked the PTO to consider funding BookFlix, an annual membership at an online site by Scholastic that incorporates various reading resources for kids. Central School reported that since the fall of 2008 their students had logged into the site over 4,000 times and over 19,000 books and movies had been viewed. Orchard teachers Steven Schmidt and Deb Gurwicz described the site. Some of the features are as follows: Children can log on from school or from home. They will find an array of fiction reading materials each paired with a non-fiction compliment. They will be able to choose their materials and choose whether to listen or to read, and they can follow text that self-highlights word by word. Video and music are also utilized. At least a portion of materials are furnished in foreign languages such as Spanish. The site has a strong multi-cultural focus. The teachers explained that the variety available on the site makes it appropriate for K-5 and readers of all ability levels, and that it strongly enhances vocabulary, fluency, and kids’ interests in reading. Orchard students have responded extremely favorably to a free trial and several teachers have expressed a desire to utilize the resource as well. The question was asked whether each student’s chosen materials are tracked for parents to review; the answer is unknown at this point. The attendees unanimously agreed to use the $850 profit from the Book Fair as well as funds (perhaps from Uno’s fundraisers) to support the $1,049 annual membership fee. A request was made to encourage the teachers to present a strong emphasis at next year’s Book Fair to help encourage participation and therefore, the necessary support for BookFlix.
Treasurer Tonia Karnedy asked the PTO to consider funding the purchase of ‘Parenting on Track’ for the use of Orchard parents. Having attended the class when it came to South Burlington recently, Tonia could verify that the techniques described to improve communication and build emotional and practical resilience in children could be useful for many parents and families. The set, containing a guidebook, DVD’s and CD’s, was unanimously supported in the amount of $350 and will available to Orchard parents in the library.
Discussion returned to the issue of fundraising guidelines in specific reference to field trips. The Orchard teachers in attendance, Mr. Schmidt and Mrs. Gurwicz explained that formal communication had not been forwarded to the teachers regarding new procedures. As a result, some field trips had been cancelled but other teachers had requested donations from parents with varying degrees of success. Discussion continued as attendees debated the process of scheduling field trips in advance since some are available only by lottery, then cancelling if needed funds weren’t raised. However, cancellations could easily result in fewer opportunities made available to Orchard by the sites of visitation, so this practice is not recommended. Some attendees debated how much of an obligation the PTO should assume in funding field trips, and it was generally agreed to target shortfalls and assistance but not field trip costs in entirety. One person clarified that Ed Unit funds provided to each teacher by the PTO are not specifically intended for field trip use and that the district had allotted a set additional amount for each classroom. To assist the PTO in forecasting expenses tied to shortfalls in parent contributions, Mr. Schmidt agreed to test a change in wording from last year’s request form that would satisfy the new district policy. The point was made that parents might participate at a higher rate if each trip carries its own singular letter of request for parent contributions, rather than requesting a lump contribution for multiple field trips. Treasurer Tonia Karnedy will draft a letter for Mr. Ebel and for the district, requesting an approved procedure for this process in order to provide clarity and closure for teacher’s practical use.
Lisa Kunin updated the group on the Drama Club activities. Preparations and student participation were going smoothly and with great enthusiasm. Ticket order forms had begun trickling in; plans to raise funds with the sale of Ben and Jerry’s and a bake sale headed by Allyson Downing will generate more revenue to offset expenses. A grant from the Windham Foundation in the amount of $2,000 had also helped considerably to cover the Drama Club budget. However, a couple of concerns were raised: a voluntary collection for 4-5 costumes had not resulted in anticipated funds, although $156 had been collected to date. T-shirt sales had also not maintained last year’s standard, netting approximately $100 so far compared to $850 last year. Also under debate is the newly adopted practice of allowing individuals and businesses buy ad space in the play program to wish luck to students. Due to parent feedback, a suggestion was made to limit the practice to businesses-only for next year, or to allow only general messages encouraging the collective body so that students would not feel left out. In addition, a reduction in prices was recommended. Lisa Kunin agreed to add general messages of encouragement to the program for this year. To help raise funds, the topic of a fee for next year’s Drama Club participants was reintroduced but concerns over exclusion were raised given the high numbers of student participation; this topic will be revisited next year. Lisa Kunin reported on the plan for honoring this year’s 5th grade Drama Club participants: a photo will be taken at dress rehearsal so that the audience can view it in the Orchard lobby on the way into the play, and this photo will also be used in the Memory Book on the Drama Club page. Mr. Ebel will also make an announcement at the performance congratulating the 5th graders.
Andy Pearson, district Sound and Lighting specialist, updated the attendees on the installation of the sound panels purchased this fall. Unfortunately, a series of ordering and shipping problems has delayed the panels and they have still not arrived; it is unlikely they will be installed in time for the Sound of Music. However, Andy feels that since the invoice is not yet paid, the PTO is not at risk concerning funds, and the suggestion was made to ask the supplier for a further discount. The procurement of the panels will continue even if they are not installed prior to the this year’s play, because the community will benefit from them for many years and various activities and events to come.
Tonia Karnedy provided a proposal from Beltrami photographers regarding next year’s school pictures. Attendees agreed to review the proposal in comparison to the current program from Lizzari with respect to quality and fundrasing benefit and parent costs, etc. Co-Vice-President Nancy Vetters agreed to gather proposals from other photographers for review at subsequent meetings.
Co-President Ostby announced that French and Spanish Club would begin a few weeks later than usual this spring due to coordinating instructors.
Meeting Adjourned.
Page created by PTO Secretary Megan Houston and Orchard Library Media Specialist Donna Macdonald.
This page last updated: 03/12/09.