TPES PTA Meeting Minutes: September 2023

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Takoma Park Elementary School (TPES)
Piney Branch Elementary School (PBES)
Parent & Teacher Meeting (PTA)
Thursday, September 7, 2023 

 

Meeting Minutes and PTA Information

  1. Upcoming Dates & Announcements
  • Little Scholars After School enrichment clubs at both TPES and PBES
    • Registration opens September 7th at TPES and September 8th at PBES.  
    • Sign-up is open until September 17th. 
    • Applications for PTA funded scholarships are due September 10th through the online form (link will be provided at the bottom of the registration form) 
    • Clubs will begin on October 3rd.
    • Link for TPES: https://www.littlescholarsllc.com/at/takoma-park/ 
  • Important dates:
    • September 13: PBES back to school night (7:00 PM) – Adults only
      • PBES PTA is working with Kids Adventures to secure onsite childcare  for those who need it and will share more information soon
      • Instrumental information session at 6:45 pm
    • September 14-15: TPES Picture Day
    • September 22: EARLY RELEASE (1:20 PM) 
    • September 25: NO SCHOOL
    • October 3: Next PTA Meeting (Zoom), 7:00 PM
    • October 9: NO SCHOOL
  • Hispanic Heritage Month
  • Breakfast and lunch:
  • PTA Equity teams
  1. TPES Welcome 
  • Dr. Zadia Gadsden, TPES Principal & Ms. Joi Hollis, TPES Vice Principal
    • This is Dr. Gadsden’s 20th year at TPES!
    • Despite challenges that happen at the start of each year, TPES had a successful start to the school year.
    • Welcome to new families and welcome back to returning families.
  1. PBES Welcome
  • Mrs. Christine (Chris) Oberdorf, PBES Principal & Mr. Richard Weerts, PBES Vice Principal
    • Mrs. Oberdorf’s 6th year as Principle of PBES!
    • PBES has 602 students (15 more than projected)
      • 9 3rd grades
      • 8 4th grades
      • 8 5th grades
  • PBES is fully staffed with the exception of one long-term sub for special ed, which they hope to fill by December.
  • Ms. Hernandez is planning a Hispanic evening event on October 11th. 
  1. PTA Welcome & Volunteer Opportunities 
  • PTA meetings will be first Tuesday of every month 
  • Kaitlin Caruso, TPES PTA President 
    • Weekly updates are sent with PTA information and opportunities – lots of opportunities for volunteering this year – encourage all to take part.  
    • There are also ample opportunities to volunteer at school – Ms. Paz seeking volunteers for picture day
    • Become a member of the PTA OR renew membership – https://tpespta.net/ 
      • Free memberships are available
    • Join the listserv: https://groups.io/g/tpespta
    • PTA funds help with supplies, field trips, drives, and more!  
  • Ingrid Gardiner, PBES PTA President 
  1. Introducing Gabrielle Williams, TPES NAACP Rep.
  • This is Gabrielle’s first year as Rep. She will bring family concerns and needs to light.  Will also connect district-wide NAACP priorities to the PTA.
  1. Q&A

 

Q&A – Both TPES and PBES

  • Q: How do we celebrate holidays as a community?
    • TPES does not celebrate holidays due to them often having religious aspects.  Instead, they focus on celebrating diversity, being good people, etc.  
    • PBES similarly stopped celebrating Halloween recently and thinks about alternative holidays.  
      • For Valentines Day, they focus on kindness and friendship
      • Community circles with community members
      • In recognition of challenges parents voice when children celebrate holidays on school days, they’re working hard to be more inclusive and think about those holidays and celebrations. They include them in announcements, etc.  
  • Q: Mental health support for students?
  • PBES 
    • PBES uses Leader in Me program
    • Supplements Leader in Me with MCPS resources.
    • Students typically participate in Leader in Me sessions four days a week (15 minute sessions).  They also have sessions with counselors on well-being and community building.  
    • PBES partners with an outside organization to provide therapy services to students in need.
    • PBES has a well-being committee that meets every two weeks to identify additional needs. 
  • TPES
    • TPES used Leader in Me school last year but didn’t feel it was as well suited for the younger students 
    • This year they are using a program called Zones of Regulation which seems more appropriate for younger children.  Through this program they identify feelings and what to do with them, learn how to manage their feelings.
    • Guidance counselors visit each class each week for 30 minutes
  • Q: How do you deal with extreme heat?
  • PBES – 
    • Follow MCPS protocol
      • Recess after 12:00 noon has to be indoors – so anyone that has recess before noon is outside (and closely monitoring). Anything after noon is indoor
      • It’s not always a district mandate, but they follow the guidance on MCPS website about temperatures
      • MCPS sent someone out to confirm airflow was happening after the building felt warm (after the 3-day weekend)
  • TPES –
    • Are not as strict about following MCPS guidance.  
    • They do not have space for indoor recess but they try their best to let them have activity when they have to move things inside.
    • Sometimes that means just letting them outside for 15 minutes.
    • Rooms at the top of the building do not cool as well but they have empty rooms to move them to.  
  • Q: How can we volunteer?
    • TPES and PBES welcomes volunteers for almost anything (ie reading, sweeping!) but not until October.  This gives time for children to learn the rules, processes, and procedures.  
    • Any volunteer needs to take the child abuse and neglect training
    • PBES has a volunteer coordinator, Victoria Welch victoria_m_welch@mcpsmd.org
    • The PTAs will also email volunteer opportunities
    • PBES:
      • PBES PTA’s Staff Appreciation Committee is collecting gift cards to host a gift card raffle at  PBES’s monthly staff meetings. Parents can either 1) Donate money and the committee will purchase gift cards to Target/Amazon/etc or 2) Parents can donate gift cards that teachers might enjoy (for example: book store/Starbucks/local restaurants/etc). You might even have some on hand that you wouldn’t mind passing on! You can turn in either gift cards or cash to purchase gift cards to Ms. Welch at the front desk at PBES.
      • PBES families: We are still looking for room parents for a few classes, particularly for Ms. Porter (4th) and Ms. Patrick (5th). Granados, Gazda, Eberly, Serra, Kenney, and Luker could also use one more room parent. Please reach out to Amie Kershner if you can volunteer (amielkershner@gmail.com).
  • Q: School security – 
  • PBES:  The space was not breached last year despite rumors. There was a group that rented out the space through the Montgomery County use of public facilities; it was a permitted event.  Anyone that has specific concerns can reach out.
  • TPES: Also has had no breech.  They are having cameras installed, exterior doors, hallways, to deepen security

Q&A – TPES 

  • Q: TPES: How do students borrow books from the library?
  • Kindergarteners do not get to borrow books right away – they have to go to the library twice before they can borrow a book.
  • Ms. Anderson will walk them through the process.
  • After they have experience they will be able to borrow more flexibly.
  • 1st and 2nd graders are familiar with the process so do not need to wait. 

 

  • Q: TPES: What type of field trips are planned this year?
  • Each grade will go on at least 3 field trips (one might be within the school)
  • 1st grade has one planned for Oct 31st to Sharp’s Farm

 

  • Q: What kind of English support and ESOL classes are there?
  • TPES made the transition to structured literacy and signs of reading. 
  • During the shift, TPES’s PTA funded structured literacy training.  
  • Teachers are doing an exceptional job with doing phonics and really great reading (RGR).  
  • TPES has English development language teachers and ESOL for all three grades – they are currently testing Kindergarteners.  

 

Q&A – PBES

 

  • Q: PBES: How do the pods work? 
  • Each grade has 200 students, so they prefer to break them into smaller groups for lunch and recess.  This helps to make lunch/recess more manageable and to help with planning (specials, lunch, and recess is correlated with teacher planning time)
  • For the most part pods are lunch and recess pods (half go to lunch and half go to recess and then they switch).  There are also specials pods so those teachers can coordinate together. 

 

  • Q: PBES: Are there opportunities for enrichment in 3rd grade, especially for kids that were pulled out for math and reading at TPES?
  • There is no pull-out program for 3rd graders
  • However, when they did the articulation they worked closely with staff at TPES to ensure students have academic peers in their classroom that are also suited for enrichment 
  • In 4th grade they begin to offer course distinction 

 

  1. TPES Budget

 

  • Treasurer: Amy Swift
  • Budget was passed/approved during the meeting
  • Biggest fundraiser is book fair
  • Expenses 
    • Can not pay out reimbursements unless it has been approved in a budget.  If something comes up they can do an amended budget which is presented to the membership for a vote.  
    • Expenses include cultural assemblies, teacher and specials support, field trips, health and wellness, scholarships for enrichment clubs, equity &  inclusion programs (Rainbow club, Hispanic Heritage month, Multi-cultural assemblies, books that represent the diversity of our students)..  
    • $43,000 in expenses planned.  $33,000 funds expected to be raised.  This is a net loss of 10,000 but there is a cash balance of 24,000.  The goal is to use the money to benefit the school.
  1. PBES Budget

 

  • Treasurer: Rachael Pierotti
  • Budget passed/approved
  • Income from:
    • Carryover
    • Fundraisers – Panther appeal, readathon, club scholarships, gear
    • Small business sponsorships and small grants
  • Expenses:
    • $19,000 of the budget goes to programming that includes costs of swimming (swim lessons during PE), club scholarships, equity fund, special events (STEM night, geo bowl, etc)
    • Also staff support, PTA operating expenses, panther gear, etc

 

General PTA Information:

 

TPES PTA Executive Committee: 

President: Kaitlin Caruso 

Executive VP: Claire Dean

Treasurer: Amy Swift 

Executive Secretary: Anna Juarez

Membership Secretary: Lesley Perry & Christine Kahler Smith 

VP of Communications: Joyce McDonough

VP of Membership: Mercedes Castelo 

VP of Fundraising: Diana Hickey van Houwelingen

VP Equity: Jon Frederick

County Delegate: Christina Davis 

NAACP Representative: We still are looking for a volunteer! 

 

TPES Key Volunteer Teams:

 

One-time volunteer opportunities – Be on the lookout this year for emails! 

  • Book Fair (sign up for shifts)
  • Readathon (tally up minutes)
  • Staff appreciation (deliver meal, coffee, etc.)
  • Garden and atrium beautification
  • Field trip chaperones? 
  • School Fun Mornings – fall, winter, spring (supervise fun activity stations so teachers can prep reading/math together as grade level team) 

 

Regular (weekly or bi-weekly) volunteer opportunities: 

  • Classroom volunteer (work with classroom teachers, often during reading or math) 
  • Room Parent

 

_______________________________________

For all volunteers: MCPS Volunteer Training and support guide – please complete this before you are scheduled to volunteer: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1URJRNYdUyL0ghVzZ32xLqPmkE7IwUvcRF2qid89ojA/preview

 

Incoming Kindergarten Playground Meet Up

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Hello!

If you have a rising Takoma Park Elementary School Kindergartener, are a new TPES family, or just want to get together with TPES friends, please join the PTA for our second Popsicle Meet & Greet Saturday August 19, 2023. The PTA welcomes all kindergarten students and families to meet your new classmates before school begins!

When: Saturday August 19, 2023
Rain/Air Quality Make Up Day: August 20, 2023

Time: 10AM to 12 Noon
Where: TPES Playground 7511 Holly Avenue Takoma Park, MD

Popsicles and water will be available.

More information in the following link. Please spread the word!

Fliers (English, Amharic and Spanish).

June 2023 PTA Meeting Minutes

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Takoma Park Elementary School (TPES)
Piney Branch Elementary School (PBES)
Parent & Teacher Association Meeting (PTA)
Tuesday, June 6, 2023 from 7-8pm on Zoom 

 

1a.   Upcoming Dates and Announcements – Refer to MCPS 2022-2023 Calendar and additional dates at the end of these notes

Both TPES and PBES:

  • June 13th 7-8pm via Zoom TPES-PBES NAACP Parent Council meeting.  Dr. Gadsden and Mrs. Oberdorf will join for a discussion on how to help our students keep engaged and continue learning over the summer. A zoom link will be sent on the day of the meeting. Look out for an email from Sharon Gaskins and Ingrid Gardner with more information. Need volunteers for next year’s NAACP Rep from TPES (and PBES)
  • Friday, June 16: last day of school (half day)
  • Summer school— Summer school invitations have gone out and summer school is full at PBES. Please contact your student’s teacher or principal with any questions. 
  • Thank you to all TPES and PBES volunteers — please visit the TPES and PBES PTA Volunteer Hall of Fame and help thank all volunteers.

PBES

  • June 15th PBES – Reminder about Fifth Grade Promotion. The PTA will be providing lunch for the fifth graders that day. 
  • If you are a committee or event co-chair or room parent or would like to be one next school year, please contact Sara Lewis or add your name to the Google Document to confirm that you can volunteer – help us get all set up for the fall! serowe@gmail.com. 

TPES

  • Volunteers Needed for TPES Field Days: June 7 (K), June 8 (1st) and June 9th (2nd) from 9:15-11:30am Field Day is coming up and the success of the event depends greatly on the number of volunteers there are per station! There will be 10 – 12 stations and each station should have at least 2 volunteers to function properly (20-24 volunteers needed per day). The dates and times for Field Day for each grade are listed below. If you are interested in volunteering, please email Ms. Paz (Johanna_A_Paz@mcpsmd.org) with your name, child’s name, phone number and the date you plan on volunteering. As a reminder, please come dressed comfortably and equipped with a hat and sunscreen for your personal use, as well as water. Please help us make this a memorable event for all students!

 

  1.     TPES Wellness Committee Initiative of “Wait Until Eighth” (Amber Rieke from Health     and Wellness Committee) 
  • Nationwide family-led initiative to change community norms and delay phone use until 8th grade
  • Responding to a wave of recent research on the youth mental health crises
  • While a lot of the recent research highlights teens, we know that children are getting access to phones earlier and earlier
  • Smartphones are addictive and distracting but they can also impact child brain development, increase risk for mental health conditions, increase risk for exposure to cyberbullying and inappropriate content
  • www.waituntil8th.org for resources
  • Consider signing the pledge on the Wait Until 8th to have strength in numbers (more families signing on to this helps) but no action is requires
  • For families worried about their child missing out on conversations that take place on social media/phone, can appreciate the idea that we all link arms to change the norms in our school communities. The more families who delay, the easier it is. (The other thing to point to is that it is technically not legal for kids under 13 to use social media anyway, we just know that’s not enforced.) There are also always options for flip phones for texting!
  1.   Membership vote on the 2023-2024 Executive Boards 
  • Voted on full slate for TPES and it was passed
    • President: Kaitlin Caruso 
    • Executive Vice President: Claire Dean
    • Treasurer: Amy Swift
    • VP Membership: Mercedes Castelo 
    • VP Equity: Jon Frederick 
    • Membership Secretary: Lesley Perry and Christine Kahler Smith
    • VP Communications: Joyce McDonough
    • VP Fundraising: Diana Hickey van Houwelingen 
    • MCCPTA Delegate: Christina Davis 
    • Executive Secretary: Anna Juarez
  • Voted on full slate for PBES and it was passed
    • President: Ingrid Gardiner 
    • Executive VP: Aphra Adkins
    • Treasurer: Rachael Pierotti 
    • Secretary: Lis Hooper 
    • Fundraising VP: Mary Kathryn Lee
    • Membership VP: Sara Lewis 
    • Communications VP: Chris Campbell 
    • Equity VP: Desiree Hernandez
    • MCCPTA (County) Delegates: Matthew Stark Blumin; Paul Donowitz
  1. Brief remarks from TPES and PBES principals 
  • Dr/ Gadsden: Attempted to return to normal with evening activities and such. Was a difficult year but grateful to teachers and parents and staff who showed up
  • Ms. Oberdorff: Thanks to PTA board and membership for helping to facilitate events; thanks to all who showed up to help
  1. Margaret Webb (Guest speaker and parenting coach). We’re pleased to be joined by Margaret Webb, who has been a parenting coach for over 12 years. She’s a certified life coach, nature-based coach, a former teacher, and author. She’ll be sharing highlights and actionable steps from her Summer Survival parenting course. 
  • PDF Handouts referenced: https://www.mediafire.com/file_premium/nrzmkdktrm6uju1/Summer_Survival_Skills_Handout.pdf/file
  • She is the mother of a 20 y/o son with autism. 
  • A contributor to TilT Podcast about parenting differently wired children
  • Identify things that create tension with your child (eg boredom, unstructured time ) and then brainstorm with your child things they can do when these moments come up
  • They may also need downtime to do what they consider flow-type activities (things that come really easily to them and it may not look like what your neighbor’s kids are doing (swinging, swimming, bouncing, singing, etc)
  • There’s the child aspect and then there’s the parent aspect – what can parents do as well to set ourselves up for success
  • Can ask: is there anything I can do ahead of time to make stressful times easier for myself? What do I know are the stressful times of our day? If we can do things to check off stressful items we will be calmer and have larger bandwidth to manage kids during stressful periods
    • Do I need to pack a lunchbox for myself?
    • Do I need to have water in my car for pick up?
    • Is there anything that I need to communicate ahead of time to those who are supporting my child? (and who do you feel safe communicating that information to)
  • Taking time to reflect each week – either alone, with you and a partner or you and your kids to ask three questions: 1. What worked? 2. What didn’t work? 3. What’s one thing we can try next week that can get us a different result?
    • How can you be a better friend? How can you take care of yourself better/next week? 
  • These questions creating a learning mindset, curiosity, a reminder that nothing is set in stone
  • Academics during the summer are light and real-life based (math with baking; geography with maps of places they are going; good books, trips to the library; going to museums; tap into what they already like and slip in the academics. Go light on the worksheets. Summer is a time to recharge. Make it authentic to what you’re doing day-to-day and different from what they’re doing at school.
  • Grocery lists from 101planners.com and have the kids plan the grocery list and go shopping with you
  • For summer camps, could sit down with your kids and a spreadsheet where they are engaged with you in filling out which camps they are going to each week, what time they need to walk out of the door each morning, what they need to pack for camp and then have them back up the night before
  1. Treasurer’s End of Year Report and Budget Votes

 TPES

  • A little over the goal at $32,678 for total PTA income
  • Expenses: major one is dreambox math adaptive software is already planned an in the works but not in this budget – it costs around $10K
    • Mostly school support activities like academic supports, 2nd grade graduation, field trips, teacher appreciation week
    • Expenses at $54,628
    • Will leave the available cash balance at $35K?
    • PTA taxes were done and accepted by the IRS
  1. PTA Summer Send-Off! 

 

List of Upcoming Dates and Announcements

Reminder on Upcoming Dates/events: 

To request topics for future PTA agendas, please reach out to president@tpespta.net or pbes.pta@gmail.com. 

Announcements and Opportunities:

  • Snack donations for both TPES and PBES to be distributed to teachers and counselors to ensure all kids have access. Nut-free, healthy options requested. Delivery options: please drop off at the main office between 8:30 am-4:30 pm, or order for direct delivery to the school.
  • School Meals Applications due ASAP – free federal meals have ended. All families must either complete the application for Free or Reduced School meals from MCPS or deposit funds to pay for your child’s meals at school.

Deposit funds in your child’s “MySchoolBucks” account – link 

Apply for Free and Reduced Meals at School – link

No child will be turned away – PBES and TPES will ensure every child who requests food receives it, but applications are needed so no debt is accrued. The PTA equity teams are also seeking to support families during this time – please donate to the PBES PTA and TPES PTA and to Tommy’s Pantry to help fill gaps and ensure food access for all in our community. 

 

Reminder for all volunteers: MCPS Volunteer Training and support guide – please complete this before you are scheduled to volunteer: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1URJRNYdUyyL0ghVzZ32xLqPmkE7IwUvcRF2qid89ojA/preview

 

We need your help and support:

Become a PTA member, donate, become a sponsor, sign up to volunteer:

Takoma Park Elementary School PTA: https://www.tpespta.net

Piney Branch Elementary School PTA: https://pineybranchpta.membershiptoolkit.com

 

PBES Website: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/pineybranches/

Find out the latest from the Panther Tracks Newsletter for PBES. Sign up for the PTA listserv or send an email to pbespta+subscribe@groups.io to start posting and receiving messages.

 

TPES Website: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/takomaparkes/ 



May 2023 PTA Meeting Minutes

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Takoma Park Elementary School (TPES)

Piney Branch Elementary School (PBES) 

Parent & Teacher Association Meeting (PTA)

Tuesday, May 2, 2023 from 7-8pm on Zoom 

 

  •  Welcome – Chris Campbell PBES PTA VP of Communications & Emma Cheuse, PBES PTA President
  • Interpreters:
    • Luis Mejia (Luis_D_Mejia@mcpsmd.org), Spanish Interpreter
    • Tebeje Abebech (Abebech_Tebeje@mspsmd.org), Amharic Interpreter
  • Upcoming Dates and Announcements – Refer to MCPS 2022-2023 Calendar

 

  • TPES Key dates and updates/announcements:
  • May 3, Bike to School Day
  • May 11, 7pm: Parent Meeting (Behavior Support), via Zoom
  • May 18, 7pm: TPES Art Showcase. Celebrate your child’s artwork.
  • May 24: TPES assembly in honor of Asian/ Pacific American Heritage Month at TPES 
  • GoFundMe fundraiser created for Ms. Joines and her two young daughters as they grieve the loss of her husband, Mr. Nick Joines.
  • Actively recruiting for PTA leadership positions for the 2023-2024 school year and have a number of open positions given term limits and parents who are graduating to PBES. Please email vp@tpespta.net if interested in stepping up. We need you!
Positions 2023-24 2022-2023
President Kaitlin Caruso Margaret McDonnell
Executive Vice President Need – max term limit Joyce McDonough
Treasurer Need – max term limit Stephen Tippett
Executive Secretary Need – max term limit Dianne Kirsch
Membership Secretary Justine Lassman Justine Lassman
Vice President Communications Need Kaitlin Caruso
Vice President Membership Mercedes Castilo Estelle Jean
Vice President Fundraising Diana Hickey van Houwlingen Diana Hickey van Houwelingen 
Vice President Equity Jon Frederick Jon Frederick
MCCPTA Delegate Need-  Rebecca Shaeffer

 

  • PBES Principal Mrs. Oberdorf will provide an update on ELA Enrichment and classroom assignments for 2023-24. Please feel free to contact her with any questions at: christine_d_oberdorf@mcpsmd.org.
    • Planning for a time of articulation re rising 3rd graders
    • Work closely with Dr. Gadsden, ELD, special ed, and administration all get together to plan class assignments for next year. 
    • Parent input forms will be coming out next week to help teachers will class assignments for 3rd grade
    • Discussing enrichment opportunities – but uncertain what ELA curriculum will be – stay with Benchmark or transition to a new program.
    • District will screen all 3rd graders for enrichment opportunities in 4th grade + PBES has some discretion to add students based on their own ELA assessments

 

  • TPES Principal Dr. Gadsden – will provide information on class assignment process. Please     feel free to contact her with any questions at: zadia_t_gadsden@mcpsmd.org
    • Dr. Gadsden has a slideshow to help parents understand process for making class assignments at TPES
    • For K start with race and the parent identified gender of child so we have balanced classes; also gather data from kindergarten orientation
    • Close to 200 incoming K which may be another 1-2 K teachers
    • Will not honor requests to “keep with” unless they are twins bc it is required by law
    • Requests to keep students “separate from” are always honored
    • For Grades 1 & 2 use DIBELS assessments and MAP growth scores and teacher recs (twins will not necessarily be kept together for math unless works)
    • Will not honor requests for teacher classrooms; if you request a teacher by name your child will not have that teacher to avoid the appearance of favoritism.

 

  • PBES PTA Bylaws vote (Introduced by PBES PTA Exec VP Sara Lewis). Changing article 8, section 2 (was emailed out a few months ago), changing article 10 section 3 as well (shown on screen share again today). Moved for passage -PASSED.

 

  • TPES PTA Budget Amendment vote (Introduced by Margaret) The TPES Executive Board proposes spending up to $10,000 to purchase the math DreamBox subscription for every current K-2 student (from June 2023-June 2024) to provide supplemental math practice and enrichment to address learning loss. Moved for passage – PASSED.

Background: 

Due to the pandemic and thanks to the generosity of our membership, the TPES PTA has built a steady surplus of cash from not spending on as many in-person programs. We have been in close communication with school leadership and have determined the greatest need and highest impact gift that our PTA can make at this time is to provide supplementary math support. As many of you know, our PTA has been focused on addressing learning loss due to the pandemic, and math has been hardest hit. DreamBox is an adaptive math program that can be used at home and in classrooms. Dr. Gadsden’s colleagues at peer schools have used the program with great success. TPES plans to use the program as one of its math centers within the classroom, and now that MCPS provides free access to Chromebooks and hotspots at home, families can use the program at home. 

Since our current 2nd grade families are the ones who have contributed to our PTA these past three years during the pandemic, we’d like to ensure that they are included in this program, so at minimum, your second grader will have a subscription to DreamBox they can use at home for the next year, even in third grade. 

 

  • Treasurer’s Reports

Stephen Tippett, TPES PTA Treasurer Budget Report 

  • Fundraising just over $9K
  • Tix prices from DC United Game raised a few hundred $
  • No big expenses coming up, only smaller scale expenses

Kate Bauer, PBES PTA Treasurer Budget Report  (out tonight)

 

  • Introduction of Promotion Panels for rising 3G and rising 6G (Chris Campbell, PBES PTA VP Communications) – 
    • Welcome to Future Panther Families (facilitated by Emma Cheuse, PBES PTA President); Welcome from PBES Principal Mrs. Oberdorf
    • Hear from current PBES Parents Ingrid Gardiner (PBES NAACP Representative and Parent), Julie LeSuer (PBES Parent), Joyce McDonough (PBES PTA Secretary and TPES Executive Vice President), and Chris Campbell (PBES PTA Communications VP) about the transition from TPES to PBES.
    • Q&A: If you have additional questions, please contact Mrs. Oberdorf, chritine at PBES or the PTA at: pbes.pta@gmail.com, or visit: pbespta.org.
    • Ms. Oberdorff – June 6th 2G will visit PBES, tour the building, spend time in the classroom with current 3G learning about the grade.
    • Learning, Caring, Thriving and Embracing are the four core values
    • Working with Dr. Gadsden to help the transition from 2G to 3G
    • Panelists provided guidance, advice to rising 3G parents
      • Massive playground and swim classes were highlights
      • For swimming -students attend swim classes during PE and they are free; occur during 2 separate 3 week periods. PTA funds swim suits/provides assistance for supplies as needed. Reach out to school or PTA if you have questions about needs.
      • PB Jelly the Panther mascot is a big highlight
      • Going from being the big kid to the little kid was not such a difficult adjustment
      • As a walking family, you do not need to be at the school in person at dismissal – could have the children meet you at TPES for a younger sibling or elsewhere 
      • Each grade divided into two pods for lunch and recess (pod A and pod B) which makes the school feel smaller re playground and lunch, etc. Not much overlap between the two pods. Downside is if your buddy is not in the same pod you might not have much overlap. However, you can request a pod share at the beginning of the year. No academic distinction between the two pods.
      • Some kids may fear that they won’t know anyone at this new building – need to be reminded that they will know everyone in their grade and lots of kids in the older grades too
      • Increased independence – kids have agency to use their planner for homework etc.
      • Kind teachers; kind front desk staff
      • Specials for art music media STEM, PE; counselors also visit classrooms re social and emotional curriculum
      • 3G enrichment is provided in classroom for ELA and math re small group instruction. This changes in 4th grade.
      • KA (Kid’s Adventure) offers before and after care; Little Scholars also has programs as does Forest Explorers, and the TP Rec Dept.
      • Lots of cultural and social opportunities: https://pineybranchpta.membershiptoolkit.com/
      • Geobowl at PBES teaches geography and is really fun
      • What’s different – a lot more focus on getting your children to be more independent -they are responsible for their homework and there is more of it; more projects that they will be working on. More writing assignments. 
      • Ride the waves of that first month or month and a half of the adjustment to homework interfering with socialization or losing homework or doing really well on an assignment, etc. Some days they want you to walk to school and sometimes they don’t – just ride the waves 🙂
      • Friday 8/25 tentative open house for PBES

 

  • Final joint TPES/PBES PTA meeting of the year – Tues. June 6, at 7pm on Zoom. 

________________________________
List of Upcoming Dates and Announcements

Reminder on Upcoming Dates/events: 

  • April 24-May 12: PE Swim Session 2. 
  • Artist in Residence Working with 5th Graders:
  • 5th grade English Language Arts (ELA) classes are excited to host an Artist in Residence for the month of May.  The artist is a professional playwright who will work with each ELA class to conceptualize, write, and perform an original play.  Performances will be script-in-hand without props or stagecraft, but each play will be original to each class.  Each ELA class and Media class will host one  session per week from May 1st through May 19th.  In-school performances will follow on May 31 and June 1.  
  • May 3: Bike and Wheels to School Day at PBES
  • May 8-12: Teacher Appreciation Week at TPES and PBES
  • May 10: MCPS Program – Popular Culture and Hate: Understanding what Your Student is Exposed to in Society today – (English) May 10, 2023, Registration Link
  • May 26: Field Day at PBES
  • May 31: Cultural Heritage Night at PBES
  • May 31, 7pm: Cultura Popular y Odio: Entendiento a lo que esta expuesto su estudiante en la sociedad actual (Espanol/ Spanish) Registration Link 
  • June 6, 7pm on Zoom – Last joint PTA meeting of the school year.  Agenda TBD – but will include a Vote on the PTA Officers for next year – so please save the date.
  • June____ at : _____: Fifth Grade Families – save the date for the PBES Promotion Ceremony.

To request topics for future PTA agendas, please reach out to president@tpespta.net or pbes.pta@gmail.com. 

Announcements and Opportunities:

  • To request topics for future PTA agendas, please reach out to president@tpespta.net or pbes.pta@gmail.com. 
  • Snack donations for both TPES and PBES to be distributed to teachers and counselors to ensure all kids have access. Nut-free, healthy options requested. Delivery options: please drop off at the main office between 8:30 am-4:30 pm, or order for direct delivery to the school.
  • School Meals Applications due ASAP – free federal meals have ended. All families must either complete the application for Free or Reduced School meals from MCPS or deposit funds to pay for your child’s meals at school.

Deposit funds in your child’s “MySchoolBucks” account – link 

Apply for Free and Reduced Meals at School – link

No child will be turned away – PBES and TPES will ensure every child who requests food receives it, but applications are needed so no debt is accrued. The PTA equity teams are also seeking to support families during this time – please donate to the PBES PTA and TPES PTA and to Tommy’s Pantry to help fill gaps and ensure food access for all in our community. 

 

Reminder for all volunteers: MCPS Volunteer Training and support guide – please complete this before you are scheduled to volunteer: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1URJRNYdUyyL0ghVzZ32xLqPmkE7IwUvcRF2qid89ojA/preview

 

We need your help and support:

Become a PTA member, donate, become a sponsor, sign up to volunteer:

Takoma Park Elementary School PTA: https://www.tpespta.net

Piney Branch Elementary School PTA: https://pineybranchpta.membershiptoolkit.com

 

PBES Website: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/pineybranches/

Find out the latest from the Panther Tracks Newsletter for PBES. Sign up for the PTA listserv or send an email to pbespta+subscribe@groups.io to start posting and receiving messages.

TPES Website: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/takomaparkes/

April 2023 PTA Meeting Minutes

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Takoma Park Elementary School (TPES)

Piney Branch Elementary School (PBES) 

Parent & Teacher Association Meeting (PTA)

April 11, 2023 from 7-8pm on Zoom 

 

  • Welcome – Kaitlin Caruso, TBES PTA VP of Communications & Margaret McDonnell, TPES PTA President
  • Upcoming Dates and Announcements – Refer to MCPS 2022-2023 Calendar 
  • Both TPES and PBES:
    1. Friday 4/14 Popcorn party to celebrate kids reaching Read-A-Thon 200,000 min goal
    2. NO School on April 21st- professional day for teachers 
    3. April 26: Administrative Professionals – help celebrate teachers at both schools
    4. TPES: NO School for Kindergarten students on April 28 and May 1 because of Kindergarten orientation 
    5. City of TKPK is no longer able to coordinate the 5K typically held in May and the hope is that volunteers will step up to plan for Fall 2023. Please consider volunteering to help pull it together. There’s a meeting on April 25, at 7:30pm to coordinate the 5K transition from City management. https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAkdu-qrDgvHNNof27v-S1xkgs5WI_nzRQL#/.(include link in chat)
  • TPES Key dates and updates/announcements:
    • Thanks to those who came out for the DC United game in March– 129 tickets were sold for a total of $645. 
    • TPES: Thank you to everyone who participated in the TPES Read-a-thon in March. The students exceeded their goal of 200,000 minutes and read a total of 253,650 minutes. Pledges are due by April 17th and we will post information in the chat on how to send them in. Finally, we would also like to send a huge thanks to our Read-a-thon chairs, Amanda Wagner, Sonia Fernandez and Latha Reddy. 
    • May 8-12: Teacher Appreciation Week: For TPES Sharon Garner and Emma have agreed to co-chair committee for TPES considering a wellness week for teachers to include a lunch, maybe massages and notes of appreciation from students/parents- requests forthcoming from committee and room parents 
    • May 24: TPES assembly in honor of Asian/ Pacific American Heritage Month at TPES 

 

  • PBES Key Dates/Announcements
    • May PTA meeting will include a PBES PTA Bylaws vote – see Sara Lewis’s email with the revised draft Bylaws, or contact serowe@gmail.com or pbes.pta@gmail.com if you’d like to see a copy.  (Basically we had to adjust some wording for the host PTA organization and so need to revote). 
    • PBES Staff and Teacher Appreciation week is coming up the week of May 8.  Please contact Amy (amybethsawyer@gmail.com) or Alisa (alisaobrien10@yahoo.com) if you can volunteer to help that week.
    • Snack donations still needed – please deliver to PBES to the attention of the Third Grade and Counseling Teams – thank you.
    • April 24 PE Swimming session two will start 
  • Recruitment for TPES and PBES PTA Officer positions for 2023-24

TPES: We’re starting to recruit for PTA leadership positions for the 2023-2024 school year and have a number of open positions. An email will go out from the recruitment committee, headed by Joyce McDonough. In meantime, please email vp@tpespta.net if interested in stepping up. We need you!

Positions 2023-24 2022-2023
President Need – max term limit Margaret McDonnell
Executive Vice President Need – max term limit Joyce McDonough
Treasurer Need – max term limit Stephen Tippett
Executive Secretary Need – max term limit Dianne Kirsch
Membership Secretary Justine Lassman
Vice President Communications Kaitlin Caruso
Vice President Membership Estelle Jean
Vice President Fundraising Diana Hickey van Houwelingen 
Vice President Equity Jon Frederick
MCCPTA Delegate Need- youngest moving to 3rd grade Rebecca Shaeffer

 

  • PBES – calling new Board members for 2023-24! (Emma Cheuse, PBES PTA President)
    • Click this link for information about our current Officers list and Board positions: https://pineybranchpta.membershiptoolkit.com/our-pta
    • Please reach out to pbes.pta@gmail.com or any of your current Board members if you would like to express interest in helping in any position on the PBES PTA Board next year. We are still resolving the list of open positions and would love to help match your interest and time with a way to help that will make a difference for our community.

 

  • Mayor Talisha Searcy: to cover priorities, decisions and plans that particularly affect students, teachers, and parents/families of TKPK re the city’s recreation, library, Adventist Hospital, PBES renovation https://takomaparkmd.gov/government/city-council/mayor-searcy/#:~:text=About%20Mayor%20Talisha%20Searcy,Association%20from%202015%20to%202017.
    • Ward 6 council member for 5 years prior becoming Mayor
    • Working to advocate for more parks/spaces 
    • Priority on council is the budget; navigating hard decisions about how to advance priorities
    • Library construction is still moving forward; may be receiving some additional funds from the state to support that effort (please take advantage of temporary library space)
    • Put out request for proposals on rec center
    • Working to address safety re school shootings; sitting in on meetings with police chief and principals on safety
    • There is crowding in our schools especially as we increase opportunities for density – how to begin to address current and future crowding in the schools. The role of council is advocacy on behalf of the city as it pertains to funding for schools. What happens within the school is MCPS domain. With the Adventist site as a possibility for expanding school space, council is working with the county to get the proper zoning. Currently Adventist is zoned for hospital and single family homes so you can’t do much until there are changes to the zoning
    • The county’s plan for the school’s infrastructure (Capital Improvement Plan) is on a 6 year plan but the Council operates a CIP on a 6 year plan. 
    • The decisions around where the school goes belongs to MCPS. 
    • Funding and building the schools is between the MoCo and MCPS
    • Takoma Park Council only approves the zoning and can work to influence MoCo and MCPS re development/improvement around zoning.
    • The minor master planning work for PBES renovation or rebuild is operating on the assumption that MCPS has approved this increase in student population. However, TPES and PBES enrollment is going down and so if PBES reno comes to pass, then over time we should have enough space in these schools as density increases as anticipated. 
    • The priorities of the council: 
    • leverage ARPA dollars to help households with direct cash assistance ($1K if income less than $50K), food and security grants and workforce development grants
    • Working to identify best programming opportunities for the diverse communities 
    • Funding mental health counselors from MoCo to work with the city staff, particularly the police department, to help them respond to calls that may warrant mental health rather than police intervention – they can also help the city think through novel ways to route calls to 911 or 988 to get non police support when needed
    • 10% increase in county taxes mean council has been advocating that some of that money go to the schools – the best way for parents/teachers/admin to weigh in on PBES renovation timeframe is to make sure the money goes to this. 
    • Other ways people can get involved: sign up for the Takoma Insider to get a quick download of what is happening on a regular basis; Can check in weekly on the Council agenda website; check in with your city council member; council meetings are Wednesday nights at 7pm
    • Middle and high school students can participate in the Arts & Humanities Commission and in the Youth Council.

https://takomaparkmd.gov/government/boards-commissions-and-committees/

Video last night’s City Council Special Meeting recording/resources: https://takomaparkmd.gov/meeting_agendas/city-council-special-meeting-agenda-monday-april-10-2023/

  • Treasurer’s Reports & Vote

Joyce McDonough, PTA VP in lieu of Stephen Tippett, TPES PTA Treasurer Budget Report 

  • Income still waiting on pledges from Read-A-Thon (can make those pledges on the website – deadline of 4/17)
  • Tracking lower on our expenses; following up with school staff
  • Still have funding for field trips and assemblies
  • Good shape overall

 

Emma Cheuse, PTA President, in lieu of Kate Bauer, PBES PTA Treasurer Budget Report  

  • Meeting goals thanks to generosity of school community; wanting to make sure there’s a buffer for next year’s PTA. Expenses are under right now only bc they haven’t paid the pool bill (~$6K)

 

  • Thanks & Next Steps – Margaret (TPES PTA President)

Thank you to all TPES and PBES volunteers — please visit the TPES and PBES PTA Volunteer Hall of Fame and help thank all volunteers. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ucSOV9NXPnYnnFvkZIKfwYi50KMEnQUtqCarVSSIVJc/edit 

______________________________________

List of Upcoming Dates and Announcements

Reminder on Upcoming Dates/events: 

  • April 26: Administrative Professionals Day 
  • April 24-May 12: PE Swim Session 2. 
  • May 8-12: Teacher Appreciation Week at TPES and PBES
  • Next joint PTA meeting: Tues. May 2nd, at 7pm on Zoom. To request topics for future PTA agendas, please reach out to president@tpespta.net or pbes.pta@gmail.com. 

Announcements and Opportunities:

  • Snack donations for both TPES and PBES to be distributed to teachers and counselors to ensure all kids have access. Nut-free, healthy options requested. Delivery options: please drop off at the main office between 8:30 am-4:30 pm, or order for direct delivery to the school.
  • School Meals Applications due ASAP – free federal meals have ended. All families must either complete the application for Free or Reduced School meals from MCPS or deposit funds to pay for your child’s meals at school.

Deposit funds in your child’s “MySchoolBucks” account – link 

Apply for Free and Reduced Meals at School – link

No child will be turned away – PBES and TPES will ensure every child who requests food receives it, but applications are needed so no debt is accrued. The PTA equity teams are also seeking to support families during this time – please donate to the PBES PTA and TPES PTA and to Tommy’s Pantry to help fill gaps and ensure food access for all in our community. 

Reminder for all volunteers: MCPS Volunteer Training and support guide – please complete this before you are scheduled to volunteer: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1URJRNYdUyyL0ghVzZ32xLqPmkE7IwUvcRF2qid89ojA/preview

We need your help and support:

Become a PTA member, donate, become a sponsor, sign up to volunteer:

Takoma Park Elementary School PTA: https://www.tpespta.net

Piney Branch Elementary School PTA: https://pineybranchpta.membershiptoolkit.com

PBES Website: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/pineybranches/

Find out the latest from the Panther Tracks Newsletter for PBES. Sign up for the PTA listserv or send an email to pbespta+subscribe@groups.io to start posting and receiving messages.

TPES Website: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/takomaparkes/ 

March 2023 PTA Meeting Minutes

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Takoma Park Elementary School (TPES)

Piney Branch Elementary School (PBES) 

Parent & Teacher Association Meeting (PTA)

Tuesday, March 7th, 2023 from 7-8pm on Zoom 

 

PBES Facilitated PTA Mtg: Chris Campbell, PBES PTA VP of Communications & Emma Cheuse, PBES PTA President

  1. Upcoming Dates and Announcements – Refer to MCPS 2022-2023 Calendar and see details at the end of the minutes

  2. Happy Women’s History Month! Here are some resources to share with your children:

  1. Volunteers and Donations Needed for March: Please see the list at the end of this meeting agenda – the following are immediate events.

TPES Key Dates/Announcements:

  1. TPES Readathon co-chair Amanda Wagner : Readathon at TPES is Feb 27-March 24!  If you are able to volunteer to help by tracking minutes, please email Amanda Wagner at helloamandawagner@gmail.com.
  2. DC United TPES Fundraiser: Purchase tickets (each ticket costs $15 and includes an additional $5 donation for the TPES PTA for a total cost of $20) for the March 25 game vs. New England Revolution. Click HERE to purchase tickets. First 50 seats are located in Section 114. Contact Emma Cohen-Dumani to make the purchase and donation (ecohendumani@dcunited.com) for the tickets.
  3. TPES STEM Night is next Thursday, March 16th, 7-8pm. All children are welcome. If any parents would like to volunteer (or teenagers looking for SSL hours), please contact Ms. Joines (Christine_A_Joines@mcpsmd.org)  or Mrs. Blacksten (Jessica_R_Blacksten@mcpsmd.org) .
  4. TPES’s Scholastic Bookfair Chair update

PBES Key Dates/Announcements

  1. Geo-Bowl volunteers needed for March! Please email brittrhoads@gmail.com if you can volunteer.
  2. The PBES Readathon wrapped up with 318,000+ minutes read – exceeding goal of 200,000 minutes. Please finalize your pledges if you have not already done so.
  3. Pool & Fundraising Update — We are close but still need to raise about $2,000 in additional funds to meet our goals. Please give if you can or email Mary Kathryn or pbes.pta@gmail.com if you are able to help recruit Pool Sponsors – we are making progress toward our spring PE swimming session.
  4. Rainbow club meet up March 26th

 

4.   PBES  MISA/MCAP (Maryland Integrated Science Assessment/ Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program) – Ms. Java Robinson, PBES Staff Development Teacher

  • Mandated state assessment annually for grades 3-8 and once in high school

  • Marks students progress re marking pathway to college readiness and provides teachers info on student progress and supports needed

  • MISA – all students 5th, 8th and high school (March 6 – March 10). Testing in pods Pod A 2:20-3:35, Pod B: 10:40-11:55

  • MCAP ELA demonstrates reading comprehension and literacy skills (oral responses for early grades) (70 minutes long)

  • MCAP Math – demonstrate understanding of math by solving real-world problems (40 minutes long)

  • MCAP is not for magnet program qualifications

 

5.   TPES (DIBELS: Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) – TPES Literacy Specialist Ms. Bozel

  • Ms. Bozel helped families interpret and understand DIBELS reports that were sent home with report cards

  • Fall, winter, spring for all K-2 students; reports come home three times a year

  • The grade level targets change based on when the testing occurs (eg different targets in the fall, winter and spring)

  • Used to track students progress, especially those who are below expected proficiency

  • Flags for students in need of intensive support

  • Sometimes a lower score is a result of the timed element – the student may not have been able to respond in the time allotted for the test

  • Link to overview: Parent DIBELS Explanation (1).pdf

 

6.  Elementary Students Book Club, Sponsored by the TPES PTA and focuses on books featuring black and brown characters, Dr. Gadsden, TPES Principal. and Dr. Roberts-Harris

  • B.R.I.D.G.E.S. geared towards African American and Hispanic children but all students are invited to attend. In this book club, children of color can see themselves and/or develop empathy and respect for other cultures

  • When children see themselves reflected in the pages of a book they feel that they belong

  • Takes place on 3 Saturdays/month with grants/money from the PTA; free for all

  • Can take a max of 30 participants (currently full)

  • Always looking for middle and high school volunteers (contact Ms. East)

  • If interested in book club, please contact Ms East at Samikia_East@mcpsmd.org with cc to Dr Roberts-Harris: Deborah_L_Roberts-Harris@mcpsmd.org and Dr Gadsden.

  • Link to presentation: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1dxJodG4C7AajNOJnqWoIRrcnW8-Z3zh_65DW_KGbTBs/edit#slide=id.p

 

7.   PBES Spring Garden Update (Crossroads), Robin Hernandez crossroadscommunityfoodnetwork.org

  • Nonprofit based in TP, Crossroads Community Food Network, started in 2007

    • Host a farmer’s market on Wednesdays

    • Community kitchen on Tulip avenue

    • Host middle schoolers in cooking classes in TkPk Rec

    • Healthy eating programs hosted by Ms. Hernandez

    • Garden along the entrance to the pool is for pollinator plants, herbs, spring greens

    • Hosting an open house and SSL day on April 15th

  • SNAP benefit holders can get 15% off when purchasing their food at the TP Co-op.

  • Making plans with the 5th grade team for a final visit; hope to bring them to the farmer’s market in May.

 

8.  TPES Food Forest Update, Amy Zimmerman,

  • Organizing a food forest in TPES playground – imagine the edge of the woods with trees, shrubs, trees  that produce food that you can eat

  • Should exist in harmony with wildlife and provides a space for children to explore and learn and harvest food

  • Hands-on learning to teach children that when we look after the land it also looks after us; hoping to learn about soil, biodiversity, native plants by incorporating the food forest into the curriculum

  • Radio interview on Takoma Radio on the food forest at TPES:

  • If interested in volunteering contact Ellen Marcus (need grant writers and info to be spread on social media): To volunteer or learn more about the food forest, email Ellen ellen24fps@gmail.com or me amymangono@gmail.com

  • To listen to the radio interview about the food forest radio https://spinitron.com/WOWD/pl/17054533/Talk-of-Takoma (minutes 1:09-1:30)

 

9.  Treasurer’s Reports & Vote, Stephen Tippett, TPES PTA Treasurer Budget Report

  • Income is on track at $22,300

  • Expenses are similarly on track $32,740

  • Spent about $10K more than raised but that’s less than what was projected and there was a balance coming into the school year

  • Readathon donations easiest through PayPal

  • Book Fair money is paid out to Scholastic which provides proceeds in the form of Scholastic dollars

  • Budget vote on buying a new PTA budget computer for treasurer for $1K (hopefully will last ten years) – vote passed

 

10.  Kate Bauer, PBES PTA Treasurer Budget Report

  • Overall met fundraising goals for the year of $57K – had $19K carryover that went towards this.

  • Would like to have a healthy carryover for next year; currently have about $7K carryover

  • Expenses low last month; bought swimsuits for children who did not have them for swim gym class, black history night and ELD night.

  • $25K in programming which will go in part towards another pool gym, club scholarships for after school clubs, staff appreciation week, 5th grade promotion.

11.  Thanks & Next Steps – Emma (PBES PTA President)

Please visit the TPES and PBES PTA Volunteer Hall of Fame and help thank all volunteers. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ucSOV9NXPnYnnFvkZIKfwYi50KMEnQUtqCarVSSIVJc/edit

 

List of Upcoming Dates and Announcements

Reminder on Upcoming Dates/events:

  • Through March 24: TPES Read-a-Thon!

  • March 26: Panthers & Dolphins TPES/PBES PTA Rainbow Club meet-up at Main Street Pearl, 3-5pm.  LGBTQIA+ parents/caregivers/students all welcome to join for bubble tea and arts and crafts projects.

  • March 29: STEAM Night at PBES, 7-8pm. Please email Sara Lewis if you can volunteer or can host a science, technology, arts or music table: serowe@gmail.com.

  • March 31: No school – Professional Development Day for Teachers.

  • April 3-10: No school – Spring Break.

  • April 11: TPES/PBES PTA mtg on zoom at 7pmTo request topics for future PTA agendas, please reach out to president@tpespta.net or pbes.pta@gmail.com.

  • April 24-May 12: PE Swim Session 2.

Announcements and Opportunities:

  • Snack donations for both TPES and PBES to be distributed to teachers and counselors to ensure all kids have access. Nut-free, healthy options requested. Delivery options: please drop off at the main office between 8:30 am-4:30 pm, or order for direct delivery to the school.

  • School Meals Applications due ASAP – free federal meals have ended. All families must either complete the application for Free or Reduced School meals from MCPS or deposit funds to pay for your child’s meals at school.

 

Reminder for all volunteers: MCPS Volunteer Training and support guide – please complete this before you are scheduled to volunteer: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1URJRNYdUyyL0ghVzZ32xLqPmkE7IwUvcRF2qid89ojA/preview

 

We need your help and support:

Become a PTA member, donate, become a sponsor, sign up to volunteer:

Takoma Park Elementary School PTA: https://www.tpespta.net

Piney Branch Elementary School PTA: https://pineybranchpta.membershiptoolkit.com

 

PBES Website: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/pineybranches/

Find out the latest from the Panther Tracks Newsletter for PBES. Sign up for the PTA listserv or send an email to pbespta+subscribe@groups.io to start posting and receiving messages.

TPES Website: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/takomaparkes/

 

February 2023 Meeting Minutes

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Takoma Park Elementary School (TPES)

Piney Branch Elementary School (PBES) 

Parent & Teacher Association Meeting (PTA)

Tuesday, February 7th, 2023 from 7-8pm on Zoom 

 

  1. Upcoming Dates and Announcements – Refer to MCPS 2022-2023 Calendar and see notes at the end of these minutes. Select highlights here:


  • PBES/TPES
    1. Black History Night – will be on February 22, 7-8:30pm at PBES, cosponsored by the TPES and PBES PTA’s. We’ll have live performers and light refreshments, including our own Takoma Park Poet Laureate. For students and their families/caregivers.

 

  • TPES Key Dates/Announcements:
    1. TPES Book Fair: February 10-17. Students can shop at the fair during school. We will also have two days when the fair is open until 7:30pm for families to shop together. Please sign up to set up the fair, break it down, or staff the registers. For more details about the fair, including shopping hours, popular titles, and no-cash payment options, check out our homepage. Please email the Book Fair Committee with any questions.
    2. TPES Readathon Feb 27-March 24.  Most significant PTA fundraiser of the year. If you are able to volunteer to help by tracking minutes, please email Amanda Wagner at helloamandawagner@gmail.com.
    3. DC United TPES Fundraiser for March 25th game: Purchase tickets (each ticket costs $15 and includes an additional $5 donation for the TPES PTA for a total cost of $20) vs. New England Revolution. Click HERE to purchase tickets. First 50 seats are located in Section 114. Contact Emma Cohen-Dumani to make the purchase and donation (ecohendumani@dcunited.com) for the tickets.

 

  • PBES Key Dates/Announcements
    1. Geo-Bowl kicks off soon after being on hiatus since COVID.  Please email brittrhoads@gmail.com if you can volunteer.
    2. The PBES Readathon kicks off this week, starting with a book swap on Friday. Thanks to your support, we were able to collect enough gently used books for each student at PBES to take home a “new to them” book!  Need parent volunteers to staff the book swap on the 10th and to help us do the data entry of the minutes over the two weekends. Please sign up here if you can help with either. 
    3. Pool & Fundraising Update — Thanks to the Finn Family Group for a significant sponsorship gift toward the pool, along with all of the wonderful community donors who have given in recent weeks.  We also want to highlight that Sangroid Distilling Panther Valentine Gift Sale continues through Feb. 10 which go towards the pool. See the flyer sent to the listserv, or contact marykathryn.lee@gmail.com for info – you can order online for pick-up or delivery. Please give if you can or email Mary Kathryn or pbes.pta@gmail.com if you are able to help recruit Pool Sponsors. 

 

  1. Guest speaker Rob Ruffins, Assistant Director of State Advocacy at the Education Trust

Education Trust is a national organization committed to advancing policies and practices to dismantle the racial and economic barriers embedded in the American education system. Mr Ruffins is the assistant director for state advocacy, identifying and building strategic partnerships across the country. 

  • There is tension between the world as it should be and the world as it is and education has mirrored the most taut point of this tension.
  • Mr. Ruffin’s definition of public education:
    • School must be free
    • Must be compulsory
    • Must be accessible to each person
    • Must be high quality, more than the minimal/basic
  • Mr. Ruffin provided historical overview of public school laws/mandates/court battles in the US. Some key points/dates:
    • Massachusetts passed law (1850s?) indicating everyone should have education up to a point and it should be free. But basic levels of education not accessible to everyone. 
    • Not until 1920 that every state has a requirement that kids go to school. Free and compulsory is really only for white students. No system for education for black students
    • 1954: Brown vs Board- first time at any universal level that the govt makes any articulation that every student should have access to education. Every legally born and fully documented legal citizen of the U.S. should have access. But infrastructure doesn’t exist to fulfill this demand. 
    • Could not legally immigrate from Africa and Asia until the 1960s. Fair Housing Act. Elementary Education Act- passed April of same year as Voting Rights Act of 1965.
    • 1979- created Dept of Education. Full engagement re education is only 40 years old.
    • Not until 1982- Plyer (sp?) vs Doe Supreme Court confirms that every student in the US, regardless of their immigration status has a right to elementary and secondary education but the Court was still saying education was not a constitutional right while also upholding equal protection. SC not saying anything about the quality of the US education.
    • 2020: Supreme Court ruling re Detroit, MI- disparities were so great that violated the constitution. First time that the fed govt made a constitutional commitment that every student deserves quality education.

 

  • MoCO is one of the 20 biggest school districts in the US. incredibly diverse school district, ¾ of the students are non white, MoCo has diversity in income with a high proportion of low income students; increasing number of students where English is not the primary language; increasingly representative of the US and US students.
  • However, there is not just one MoCo. White student experience is different than a black or latino student experience; same true of differences in the experience of English, Spanish and Amharic-speaking students.
  • We know that black and latino students are more likely to be taught by novice teachers, less experienced principals and are less likely to be placed in advance/AP courses. The teachers who are the most experienced teach the most advanced courses, thus the black and latino students less likely to have access to these teachers, even when they get the same grade and are sitting in the same classrooms as white students which also means we’re spending less money on them

 

  • Three things make this a unique time in MoCo Educational history: Lots of money, opportunity for citizens to vote, and a strong advocacy network to help inform and mobilize voting.
    •  Blueprint For Maryland’s Teacher – $30billion. Biggest reform act in several decades. MoCo has more resources than ever. Majority of these resources are available for the next decade
    • Cares Act, American Rescue Plan also put in a lot of Federal money of which MoCo got $400million (local, then state, then Federal $ make up funding in that order). All of this money has to be spent by 2024
    • We have an opportunity to vote on how this money is spent before a public version of this document is made visible in 6 weeks. We can shape how MoCo will educate our youth for the next 10 years.
    • This is also a budget here for MoCo, we operate on 3 year budgets
    • Advocacy: advocate for students to be put in advanced placement classes (data suggests when you have more students in a school who take AP classes, student achievement goes up, attendance goes up)

 

  1. PBES Updated By-Laws – Membership Vote (Emma Cheuse, PBES PTA President). Proposed update to the bylaws which are updated every three years. PBES PTA executive board has been working to update the Piney Branch PTA bylaws to ensure that they are in alignment with the Free State PTA template and with how we currently operate. Changes that have been made to the bylaws include updates to:
  • – the responsibilities for officers of the board in article VII.
  • – the language around who makes up the board of directors in article VIII.
  • – the duties of the executive committee in article IX.
  • – how committee chairs are selected in article X.
  • – the language around who represents our PTA in the Montgomery County Council of Parent Teacher Associations in article XII.
  • Link to bylaws: https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/FMfcgzGrcXkWTztQHhkpfWGBhNGgcKTr?projector=1&messagePartId=0.1
  1. Treasurer’s Reports & Vote, Stephen Tippett, TPES PTA Treasurer Budget Report – vote for budget amendment passed
  • The TPES PTA proposes a budget amendment to increase the funding allotment to support additional scholarships for TPES families to have their students attend Little Scholars LLC after-school programs for students from $3500 to $7000 for the remainder of the 2022-2023 academic year
  • Budget update: a little bit ahead on fundraising and a little bit behind on spending! 
  • Ledger balance of $39,838.
  1. PBES PTA Treasury update from Kate Bauer.
  • Also ahead on fundraising as compared to spending. Readathon primary fundraiser. Gone above projected donations on fundraising
  • Big expenses were covering scholarships for after school activities and making payments to lifeguards for swim lessons
  • Ledger balance is $23,981    
  1. Volunteer Hall of Fame and help thank all volunteers. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ucSOV9NXPnYnnFvkZIKfwYi50KMEnQUtqCarVSSIVJc/edit

 

List of Upcoming Dates and Announcements

Reminder on Upcoming Dates/events: 

  • Feb. 1, PBES English Language Development Night
  • Feb. 1-17, PBES Read-a-thon – 
  • Feb. 9-10, PBES Geo Bowl quizzes
  • February 10 – 17: TPES Book Fair  
  • February 20: No School – President’s Day
  • [Feb. 22 or 23: Black History Night at PBES, sponsored jointly by the TPES & PBES PTAs]
  • Feb 27-March 24: TPES Read-a-Thon
  • Next joint PTA meeting: Mar. 7, 7pm on Zoom. To request topics for future PTA agendas, please reach out to president@tpespta.net or pbes.pta@gmail.com. 

Announcements and Opportunities:

  • Snack donations for both TPES and PBES to be distributed to teachers and counselors to ensure all kids have access. Nut-free, healthy options requested. Delivery options: please drop off at the main office between 8:30 am-4:30 pm, or order for direct delivery to the school.
  • School Meals Applications due ASAP – free federal meals have ended. All families must either complete the application for Free or Reduced School meals from MCPS or deposit funds to pay for your child’s meals at school.

 

Reminder for all volunteers: MCPS Volunteer Training and support guide – please complete this before you are scheduled to volunteer: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1URJRNYdUyyL0ghVzZ32xLqPmkE7IwUvcRF2qid89ojA/preview

 

We need your help and support:

Become a PTA member, donate, become a sponsor, sign up to volunteer:

Takoma Park Elementary School PTA: https://www.tpespta.net

Piney Branch Elementary School PTA: https://pineybranchpta.membershiptoolkit.com

 

PBES Website: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/pineybranches/

Find out the latest from the Panther Tracks Newsletter for PBES. Sign up for the PTA listserv or send an email to pbespta+subscribe@groups.io to start posting and receiving messages.

TPES Website: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/takomaparkes/ 



December 2022 Meeting Minutes

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Takoma Park Elementary School (TPES)

Parent & Teacher Association Meeting (PTA)

Tuesday, December 6, 2022 from 7-8pm on Zoom 

1. Key dates and announcements (see additional details at end of minutes): 

2. LGBTQ+ Inclusion and Support with MCPS Instructional Specialist Yael Astor from MCPS Office of School Support & Well-Being

  • Info re anti bias and antiracist lens/support coming through language arts curriculum at TPES and PBES
  • Using books to cultivate LGBTQ+ affirming spaces – reviewed books available to MoCo teachers featuring LGBTQ+ affirming identity; often the characters’ LGBTQ+ identity is incidental rather than central to the plot
  • Goal is to normalize representation and conversations featuring LGBTQ+ / nonbinary gender expression
  • Presented topics/questions to help continue the conversation at home
  • If children want to opt out of the books, caregivers can speak to child’s teacher and an alternative text will be provided 
    • TPES Dr. Gadsden reports working to normalizing LGBTQ+ stance; working with the children re using gender-specific + gender-neutral bathrooms
    • PBES Ms Oberdorff & Mr Weerts noted that the kids are pushing the conversation about LGBTQ+ support/inclusion – an additional gender-neutral bathroom has been put into the school. Explored how PBES staff are talking to children to support how they identify themselves and how the school can best support them. Rainbow club is having lunch bunches with staff
    • HOW TO GET INVOLVED: Rainbow Club – contact Jon Frederick or Britt Peterson co-chairs of Rainbow Club at RainbowClubTKPK@gmail.com or MoCo virtual Rainbow Club: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EilYbFeV4Mq7lzsPzPiycO2gmT-Ve-cB/view?usp=share_link

3. Thank you to volunteers! TPES and PBES PTA Volunteer Hall of Fame https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ucSOV9NXPnYnnFvkZIKfwYi50KMEnQUtqCarVSSIVJc/edit  

4. TPES Dolphin Drive with Diana Hickey van Houwelingen – About 81% of dolphin drive goal reached, still accepting donations via check or online

5. PBES Panther Appeal with Emma Cheusse surpassed goal and got to $11K+

6. Presentation and Q&A with Children National Medical Center re trifecta of COVID, Flu and RSV and what your family can do to stay as healthy as possible with Stephanie Evers, RN, MPH, Nurse Administrator, School Health Services, Montgomery County 

    • Flu season started earlier and with more cases this year; seeing a rise post-Thanksgiving
    • RSV, flu and Covid; all viruses, spread mostly by droplets. 
    • How to Protect:
      • Teach kids to sneeze / cough into their elbow
      • Keep hands off of your T-zone on your face
      • Keep social distance of six feet when possible
      • Get kids the flu shot 
      • Keep kids home when sick
      • Medical attention sought if signs of dehydration; fever lasting for more than 4-5 days, if signs/sxs of cough don’t improve or get worse, comorbidity with other dx

7. Treasurer’s Reports with TPES PTA Treasurer review of fundraising, membership and spending, teacher scholarships

8. Next meeting: Jan 3, 7pm on Zoom with Mr. Bledsoe and Ms Bozell regarding the reading curriculum and switch to structured literacy.

______________________________________________

List of Upcoming Dates and Announcements

Upcoming Dates/events: 

  • December 7th: virtual Family Financial Fun Night. It is a 20-minute online activity to learn about saving and making good financial decisions that can lead to wonderful discussions with your children about this important topic. Complete the survey at the end of the program and be entered to win one of five $50 Amazon gift cards! You may access the program HERE. See flyer attached in email from Kaitlin Caruso. 
  • December 9th: Little Scholars After School Scholarship Sign-Up Deadline – PBES families who need assistance with tuition for an afterschool club may use this link to sign up for a scholarship.  Little Scholars will then send a code to register for a club so please watch for that code after registering. Please contact Nicole Brown with any questions:  nbrown@littlescholarsllc.com. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScwDpRCICVOh4DgeaHUwDM4dPRbWO5wGihSlGawF6TWSbVrDQ/closedform. 
  • December 12-22:  Little Scholars Registration will be open for After School Clubs that will run from January through March 2023. https://www.littlescholarsllc.com/at/piney-branch/.  If you are able, please donate to support club scholarships at this link: https://pineybranchpta.membershiptoolkit.com/packet/1082. 
  • By December 14th: TPES Holiday Gift Drive. We are looking for families to (anonymously) adopt a fellow TPES family and generously provide a gift for each of their children.You will be given the gender and age of each child. Each gift should be individually wrapped with a post-it that indicates the age and gender of the child for whom it is intended. Families range in size from one child to five children. If you are interested, please email Kaitlin Caruso (kaitlin.h.caruso@gmail.com) and if you have a preference for family size, please let me know. Gifts will need to be ready to be picked up from your front porch or brought to school by Wednesday, December 14th.
  • December 23-Jan 2: TPES and PBES closed for holidays 
  • Tues, January 3: PTA meeting with Mr. Bledsoe and Ms Bozell regarding the reading curriculum and switch to structured literacy.
  • Mon, January 16: TPES and PBES closed for Martin Luther King Jr/ Day of Service  
  • Fri, January 27: TPES and PBES closed for professional day for teachers/end of quarter grading 
  • Feb 13-17: TPES Book Fair

Announcements and Opportunities:

  • TPES Jolly raffle: Ms Paz has organized a raffle of tokens of gratitude and love, simple gestures and/or acts of kindness at least once or twice a week during the next few months. Consider donating anything from a gift card, “IOU” coupons, treats, etc. Please contact Ms Paz directly. 
  • Holiday gifts for TPES teachers/ staff: room parents will be organizing during month of December 
  • Snack donations for both TPES and PBES to be distributed to teachers and counselors to ensure all kids have access. Nut-free, healthy options requested. Delivery options: please drop off at the main office between 8:30 am-4:30 pm, or order for direct delivery to the school.
  • School Meals Applications due ASAP – free federal meals have ended. All families must either complete the application for Free or Reduced School meals from MCPS or deposit funds to pay for your child’s meals at school.

Deposit funds in your child’s “MySchoolBucks” account – link 

Apply for Free and Reduced Meals at School – link

No child will be turned away – PBES and TPES will ensure every child who requests food receives it, but applications are needed so no debt is accrued. The PTA equity teams are also seeking to support families during this time – please donate to the PBES PTA and TPES PTA and to Tommy’s Pantry to help fill gaps and ensure food access for all in our community. 

Reminder for all volunteers: MCPS Volunteer Training and support guide – please complete this before you are scheduled to volunteer: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1URJRNYdUyyL0ghVzZ32xLqPmkE7IwUvcRF2qid89ojA/preview


October 2022 Meeting Minutes

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TPES/PBES October PTA Meeting

Tuesday, October 11, 2022
7:00 pm
Join Zoom Meeting
https://mcpsmd.zoom.us/j/86551173734?pwd=dmxHVDB6ZnBWOGpObmlxNnQzTHQ4dz09

1. Intro (Margaret)

We’ll discuss social emotional learning curriculum. There will be a breakout room to jump into volunteer training with Dr. Gadsden. Tomorrow is Walk to School day. Tomorrow evening there will be a joint fiesta at Piney Branch. Thursday the 13th there will be a virtual Board of Education Candidates Forum that is sponsored by the League of Women Voters; relevant to anyone who votes for at-large or district candidates.

2. Piney Branch Garden (Robin Hernandez)

Crossroads community food network is a nonprofit serving the TKPK and Langley Park communities. Farmers market, community kitchen. Prior to Covid we were cooking in classrooms and going on field trips to the farmers market. During Covid, we held virtual classes and created a school garden with over 500 hours of volunteer work. Crossroads currently maintains the garden with donations, fundraising, grants, and a team of volunteers. Volunteers offer lessons to 5th graders, exploring the garden with all senses, and providing math, science and history lessons. We need volunteers to support our Monday afternoon classes. The garden has existed for 2 seasons. We hope to include more grades in the programing in the future, and are looking for volunteers for an hour on Monday afternoons. We do offer SSL hours for middle and high school students on half days and no school days. We have done family days in the past, including Dios de los Muertos. 

3.  Panther Appeal (Mary Kathryn Lee)

Looking to raise at least $5,000. Any donations are welcome. Funds are used to support initiatives like equity, literacy support, supplies, staff teacher appreciation, community events, and enrichments like PTA funded after school scholarships. As part of panther appeal, we thought it would be fun to have a friendly competition between grades. We will track participation and amount between grades. Grades could win a fun dance party, or a visit from PB&J. Look for matching donations. Still looking for a few volunteers. 

4.  Treasurer Reports (Kate and Stephen)

Kate says for Piney Branch the income side things look good. It’s the 2nd or 3rd year we haven’t had to ask for membership dues. For fundraising we’re also off to a good start. On the programming side we spent a sizable amount on club scholarships, we’ve also been funding supplies for teachers’ classrooms. Translation for various events. 

Stephen says the income up to now has mostly been donations and membership signups. Membership dues are $30 for single membership. The rest have been donations associated with membership signups. Fundraising will increase after dolphin drive. Expense side is bigger because several expenses were rolled over in summer months. Atrium project Lunch and Learn, helping out with different activities like field day, end of year celebrations. We haven’t spent that much yet this school year. In September we helped teachers for classroom setup. 

5.  Piney Branch SEL Curriculum  (Mrs. Oberdorf, Mrs. Johnson)

Social Emotional Learning at PBES. Karen Johnson is the counselor for 3rd and 5th grade. Mrs. Oberdorf says Ms. Coco-Content had her baby yesterday and everyone is well. 

Counselors do monthly lessons in the classroom. First lesson we did this month was to meet the counselor, in November common sense lessons-3rd grade responsibly, 5th grade bullying. Other lessons include unsafe touch, internet safety, kindness, empathy, problem-solving, careers, self-regulation. We consult with teachers when they have concerns. Since covid, we haven’t run any groups, but when we do the groups are about friendship management. We also are there for crisis response, suicide. We do case management for 504 plans for students. We work closely with the Pupil Personnel Worker, Ms. Wilson, and we also coordinate with her for any students who need additional support of basic needs. School backpacks filled with supplies, coat, gloves. Work with her so parents have access. Member of the student wellbeing team. Teacher referral – teacher may have a concern about students attendance.. Monitor and outreach. Bring about support for that student. 

Mental health awareness week is moved to next week. We will be having several announcements. On Monday we will have a MCPS message and community circle. On Wednesday mediation activities. Thursday students will create care cards in class. Will include a self care tip to share with a friend or family member. Friday will salute the week and encourage students to wear their favorite hats to school.

Mrs. Oberdorf says we also have additional support from MCPS. We’ve been assigned a parent community coordinator. We also have a social worker, Alana Tipton, as well as Tariq Harris who is an instructional specialist in the Department of Student Engagement. We also have a lot of school wide programming. We always start with hello week, to combat social isolations. On Unity day, we wear orange as part of an anti-bullying national initiative. We do a Kindness Pledge every morning on the morning announcements. PB Jelly has a Mailbox, where students write notes recording acts of kindness for peers and staff. Those notes get posted on a bulletin board for recognizing respect and kindness. In addition, we have restorative practices. We talk about our core values. The student wellbeing team addressing needs to students. We are initiating the Leader in Me Classroom for more consistency in the classroom. This is the 1st year of implementation. This summer all of our teachers attended 2 full days of training. For the 1st quarter, we will have 2 major actions. The first is an implementation of lessons so we can start using common language to assign classroom roles. Have a common language in the school to describe how the students are contributing to the classroom community. 

6.  TPES Volunteer Training (Dr. Gadsden)

Rita Pierson says in order for kids and people to be productive and move forward they need positive relationships. Dr. Gadsden says we need you to volunteer. All schools operate with volunteers, private, parochial, etc. We’ve been given staffing based on the staffing policy, but we need more. Outdoor lunch is not a requirement but a request from parents. We want to support it but it takes all of us. We need extra parental support and involvement for loads of extra activities. We are not fully staffed. We’ve been looking for lunch and recess staff but no one has applied. 

We need outdoor lunch volunteers. Today it was canceled because we only have 1 volunteer. Small group reading volunteers. Junior great books is a program used for kids who need enrichment. They will read “great books” like old stories like Icarus and Little red riding hood with some deep questions. There are opportunities with Phonics lessons. Junior greet books is only for 1st and 2nd grade. We need 3 consecutive days in 1 week. For phonics lessons we are asking for 2 days, although it would be great to get a commitment for a month. 

Small group math support:

Our data says our math scores were not good during covid and last year. Kids are struggling. We would like help with small group math support. Looking for computerized math programs that have been shown to help. Math support could be a 1 day volunteer opportunity. You may not be with your child, but you would be making a contribution to your child’s environment. It gives teachers more time to focus on kids that need help. 

Special events coming up:

We want to go back to the old normal. Fun is incredibly healing. Many of our children are in need of more fun in their lives. Fall festival on October 31st. Teachers need more time to plan, and we need help unloading pumpkins. We have a popcorn machine and need volunteers to operate and help distribute. There will be extra recess. Nov 1st will be for 2nd grade because they are going on a field trip Oct. 31. No costumes or makeup. This is about fall so we can be equitable and inclusive. 

Let the teacher know in advance that you are coming. If the teacher is doing a whole class lesson, sit and wait. Encourage children to pay attention to the teacher. If kids are at a center, help kids at center. When there is a sub, circulate the room. 

Requirements for volunteers:

You can’t talk about someone else’s kid. You need to have confidentiality. We want to make sure that kids are socially, emotionally safe in your presence. Child Abuse and Neglect training for all volunteers for anybody coming more than once. The training is good for 3 years. 

Common volunteer scenarios:

Pick up reading materials, go and get kids you were assigned at their classrooms. Then go to a designated spot out in the open like the atrium. Do your lesson, return materials, and go on your way. For outdoor lunch it’s not just your presence. You must stop things that are not appropriate. Talk to the kids as if they are your neighbors kid. Math volunteers expected to take a group of kids to play a math game with kids. Might support kids getting a computer program, showing them how to log in. Do reinforce positive behaviors. If things escalate, do get staff help. There are people there that the kids know. With outdoor lunch kids can be warned, if kids don’t behave they can go back inside. Please step in when you see behaviors that are inappropriate. Say something basic like we keep our hands, feet and objects to ourselves. Do not ever touch anyone’s child. An innocent touch on the shoulder might seem innocent to you but maybe not to the kid. Please don’t yell, if avoidable. Please don’t use inappropriate language. Do not allow yourself to be alone in a closed room with an individual child. 

A sign up form for the reading volunteers and for the fall festival will come out shortly. Room parent coordinators will be reaching out to all parents. Opportunities for classroom volunteering. Some teachers struggle to use volunteers. We will provide professional development for teachers. Grandparents can also volunteer. One parent suggested that Americorps might be a good partner for volunteers. 2nd grade field trip might need volunteers to Sharp’s Farm on October 31st. Every kid can go, and they do not have to pay. Parents can donate an equivalent amount to support folks who can’t pay. 

You can reach out to your room parent to coordinate classroom volunteering. The PTA will follow up with sign-up geniuses for all opportunities. If you are interested, we need help with the parking lot at pick-up or drop-off. Parent volunteers are needed to guide traffic and help with kids getting out of cars. 

TPES PTA Meeting Minutes: September 2022

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Takoma Park Elementary School (TPES)

Piney Branch Elementary School (PBES) 

Parent & Teacher Meeting (PTA)

Tuesday, September 6, 2022 from 7-8pm on Zoom 

 

7:00 Meeting Kick-off  – Kaitlin Caruso, TPES PTA VP of Communications & Emma  Cheuse, PBES PTA President

-Interpreters, including Ursula Indacochea for Spanish translation

-Kaitlin Caruso reviews dates/deadlines below

Updated MCPS School Calendar 2021-2022 

  • Little Scholars sign up until Sept. 13th; PTA-funded scholarship requests are due by Sept. 7th at TPES and by Sept. 9th at PBES 
  • Weds. Sept. 14th: Early Release (1:20 pm)
  • Thurs. Sept. 15th, 6:30-8:00pm, PBES Back to School Night
  • Weds. Sept. 21st: Deadline to enroll for Instrumental Music at PBES, available for all 4th and 5th Graders 
  • Mon. Sept. 26th, No School
  • Tues. Sept. 27th:  Little Scholars After School Clubs begin
  • Fri. Sept. 30th, Early Release (1:20 pm)
  • Sept. 15- Oct. 15: Our schools will be celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month 
  • Weds. Oct. 5th, No School
  • Tues. Oct. 11th, Joint PTA Meeting (7pm, Zoom)
  • School Meals Applications due ASAP – free federal meals have ended. Info provided on how to pay
  • No child will be turned away – PBES and TPES will ensure every child who requests food receives it, but applications are needed so no debt is accrued. The PTA equity teams are also seeking to support families during this time – please donate to the PBES PTA and TPES PTA and to Tommy’s Pantry to help fill gaps and ensure food access for all in our community. 

 

Participants added their Back to School questions at this link during the meeting. If we can’t reply today we will follow up.

 

7:10: Principals’ Welcome to the School Year

Mrs. Christine Oberdorf, PBES Principal & Mr. Richard Weerts, PBES Vice Principal

  • Ms. Oberdorf – good first week welcoming 610 students
  • Dr. Zadia Gadsden, TPES Principal & Ms. Joi Hollis, TPES Vice Principal

 

7:20:  PTA Welcome, Calendar & Volunteer Opportunities

Emma Cheuse, PBES PTA President 

  • Goals is to restore PTA contributions to support the school to pre-pandemic levels, help with learning recovery and support students/families have a positive year 
  • Shared updated, hoped-for calendar including events supporting diversity, equity, inclusion, kindness; hopes to strengthen school-family connection
  • Need volunteers to help make these events happen through event support and fundraising
  • Introductions of PBES PTA 

Sara Lewis – Shared a link for a survey in chat/screen for volunteer interest at PBES and TPES; 

  • Reviewed PBES volunteer opportunities on the survey and highlighted special need for volunteers for the book fair, room parents, readathon (last year did not happen at PBES bc not enough volunteers but hoping to return it this year as a key source of fundraising), fish tank, Geobowl (has not occurred the past several years), teacher appreciation in May, organization multicultural events such as black history month, NAACP rep

 

PBES Key Volunteer Teams:

  • Events/In-School Volunteer Team (Contact Sara Lewis, serowe@gmail.com) 
    • Book Fair
    • Room Parents
    • Readathon (literacy event and fundraiser)
    • Fish Tank
    • GeoBowl
    • Teacher, Staff Support and Appreciation
    • Garden Clean-up or Planting
    • Multicultural Community events like Black History Month, Cultural Heritage Night
    • Other in-school volunteer needs like STEAM Night, Kindness/Leadership/Social & Emotional Learning event
    • NAACP Representative
  • Fundraising Team (Contact Mary Kathryn Lee, marykathryn.lee@gmail.com & Emma Cheuse, pbes.pta@gmail.com )
    • Panther Appeal
    • Business Sponsors
    • Other possible fundraising events to fund our ambitious budget this year
  • Equity Team (Contact Desiree Hernandez and Corey Null, d.hernandez0811@gmail.com, corey.null@gmail.com)
    • Social Service and counselor support
    • Translation, interpretation volunteers needed for Spanish and Amharic

 

Link to sign up now to volunteer for these opportunities with PBES PTA https://forms.gle/wLfSEs8M9EiBBcR59 or contact Sara Lewis to link up with a volunteer opportunity that matches your time and interest (serowe@gmail.com). Contact Chris Campbell to help with the School Fish Tank or to serve as a volunteer interpreter in Spanish or Amharic (ccampb4@mac.com). 

 

PBES PTA Executive Committee: board@pbespta.groups.io 

President – Emma Cheuse, pbes.pta@gmail.com 

Executive VP – Sara Lewis

Treasurer – Kate Bauer 

Secretary – Joyce McDonough

Equity Co-VPs: Desiree Hernandez and Corey Null

Fundraising VP: MaryKathryn Lee

Comms VP – Chris Campbell 

Membership VP – Erin Kelley

NAACP delegate needed (please contact pbes.pta@gmail.com if you will volunteer)

 

TPES PTA Overview

Ways to Stay Informed: 

  • Join the PTA listserve! https://groups.io/g/tpespta
  • Weekly TPES newsletter from Dr. Gadsden
  • New weekly PTA newsletter
  • Monthly PTA meetings first Tuesday of every month at 7pm

 

Joyce McDonough, TPES PTA Exec VP & PBES PTA Secretary

  • Introduces herself
  • Thanks to Estelle Jean coordinated kindergarten play dates; thanks for donations of indoor plants; thanks to teachers, administrators
  • Listed ways to stay informed including joining PTA (link provided), weekly TPES letter from Dr Gadsden, weekly PTA newsletter (summary of all of the events), monthly PTA Meetings
  • Listed ways for parents/caregivers to volunteer and get involved including using the survey/volunteer interest form
  • “School fun morning” where volunteers set up stations for kids to play/craft and allow teachers concentrated time to prepare for the next quarter
  • 5 classrooms still need room parents
  • Lunch volunteers; outdoor lunch volunteers organized by Laura Petes
  • Still need some leadership roles
  • This Friday at 4pm there is a playgroup meetup for those interested in organizing Hispanic Heritage month events
  • In school volunteers begin in October: two volunteer requirements (links supplied) child abuse neglect training and proof of vaccination
  • Join the PTA – scholarships available (links provided)

 

TPES PTA Executive Committee: 

President: Margaret McDonnell 

Executive VP: Joyce McDonough

Treasurer: Stephen Tippett

Executive Secretary: Dianne Kirsch

Membership Secretary: Justine Lassman

VP of Communications: Kaitlin Caruso

VP of Membership: Estelle Jean

VP of Fundraising: Diana Hickey van Houwelingen

VP Equity: Jon Frederick

County Delegate: Rebecca Schaeffer

NAACP Representative: Sharon Gaskins

 

Volunteer

Volunteer interest form: https://forms.gle/wLfSEs8M9EiBBcR59 

 

TPES Key Volunteer Teams:

  • Events/In-School Volunteer Team
    • Room Parents (coordinator: Annie Kneedler, akneedler@gmail.com )
    • Dolphin Drive (November; Diana Hickey van Houwelingen, Diana.s.hickey@gmail.com )
    • Book Fair (February; Shivani Sutton, shivani.sutton@gmail.com )
    • Readathon (literacy event and fundraiser – March; Amanda Wagner, helloamandawagner@gmail.com)
    • TKPK5K Race Committee Representative (race in May)
    • Health and Wellness Committee (includes garden, atrium, teacher wellness room): Mari Quenon, mariannaq@gmail.com
      • Garden – work day for native plantings and invasives removal Ellen Marcus, ellen@actsofpaint.com 
    • Multicultural Community events
    • Social Services Coordinator: Kaitlin Caruso, kaitlin.h.caruso@gmail.com
    • Staff Appreciation Committee – vacant – need chair! 

 

One-time volunteer opportunities: 

  • Book Fair (sign up for shifts)
  • Readathon (tally up minutes)
  • Staff appreciation (deliver meal, coffee, etc.)
  • Garden and atrium beautification
  • Field trip chaperones? 
  • School Fun Mornings – fall, winter, spring (supervise fun activity stations so teachers can prep reading/math together as grade level team) 
  • Lunch and/or recess volunteers

 

Regular (weekly or bi-weekly) volunteer opportunities: 

  • Classroom volunteer (work with classroom teachers, often during reading or math centers; can include cutting lamination, decorating bulletin boards, etc.)
  • Lunch and/or recess volunteers 
  • Enrichment reading groups 
  • Outdoor lunch option? If we have parent volunteers, we can host optional outdoor lunch for families who opt-in. 
  • Room Parent (~monthly commitment)

 

Join the TPES PTA: https://tpespta.net/join/

 

For all volunteers: MCPS Volunteer Training and support guide – please complete this before you are scheduled to volunteer: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1URJRNYdUyyL0ghVzZ32xLqPmkE7IwUvcRF2qid89ojA/preview

 

7:30:  Back to School Q&A with the Principals & PTAs 

           (facilitated by Kaitlin & Emma)

  • Q: which PBES teachers were able to take the Benchmark Advanced Enrichment? Oberdorff explains that all teachers were required to take this training and took it last year
  • Can you share the PBES MAP scores and break down by demographics? Oberdorff did not have that data for tonight; MAP assessments will begin next week and offered to share it another time
  • Are there any vacancies at PBES? One vacancy for 5th grade teacher
  • TPES – new K family curious about how lunch works / myschoolbucks is organized; Dr. G explains
  • When will the pool reopen at PBES? Ms. Oberdorff has a meeting on Monday with the people re-opening the pool, pool has passed inspection; possibly opening at the end of September
  • Can PBES bring back mid-morning snack for 3rd graders? Ms. Oberdorff explains that there were no snacks during Covid. Did not plan on having a universal snack option bc of disparity in access to snacks and stigma re receiving school snacks. For students who need  snack accommodations can be arranged.
  • Question re safety crossing PBES parking lot – Oberdorff explains that we do have staff available at arrival and dismissal
  • Is PBES taking a new approach to staffing this year? Programming in 4th and 5th grade is different bc of the accelerated math courses offered; in 3rd grade they stay in their homeroom for both.
  • Will there be Covid notifications this year? Gadsden reports yes for TPES
  • MySchoolBucks question – about how to check if/when money was deducted (lunch card is not required but is handy bc it has their ID/Pin number on it
  • For those excited to volunteer reach out to PTA

 

7:45:  PTA Business

 

           PBES PTA: Vote on County PTA Delegate (Nominee: Matthew Stark Blumin)

  • Matthew Stark Blumin volunteered to represent PBES on a county level to strengthen school policies
  • Movement seconded; nomination passed

 

            Treasurer’s Reports and Budget Votes

  Kate Bauer, PBES PTA Treasurer

  • Shared budget
  • Last year did not do a lot of active fundraising, had a substantial carryover, did well with booster PTA donations
  • Last year we put the book fair under fundraising but it becomes a credit for the school to buy books (looks like we raised $10K but actually closer to $2.5K)
  • Readathon is an important PTA fundraiser as well as proceeds for selling Panther gear
  • Expenses – increased on income side
  • Biz sponsorships will be encouraged/recognized this year
  • This year the pool will be opened again and historically the PTA has sponsored the pool rental (it’s a county, not school pool) and helped to pay for lifeguards in December and March typically. It’s a sizable expense that the PTA takes on
  • Fundraising expenses will change in that the readathon will now be moved to this line item; need to replenish the small size Panther gear
  • School support is budgeted at $4K for appreciation and hopefully training this year
  • PTA operating funds: several hundred dollars a year spent on the software running PTA budgeting, membership, etc – but need a volunteer to help transfer to a free option being offered through the state PTA (PayPal fees, translations, childcare at BTS night, etc)
  • Total budget is $8K more than last year but due to ramp up in activities offered to increase connection between school/community
  • Membership voted: voted to pass budget

 

Stephen Tippet, TPES PTA Treasurer

  • Introduced himself
  • Shared budget
  • Proposed budget – PTA fundraises everything they have from their community (no continuing donation support through memberships or grants typically)
  • Membership dues are $3K, plus $2K through membership donations
  • Main incomes areas are Dolphin drive in November ($10K) and readathon in March ($10K). These are low projections based on last year
  • Similar to PBES re book fair – the money is ‘pass through’ comes in as income but goes to Scholastic to purchase books for the school
  • Outreach and social events expenses are $2.5K
  • PTA Admin expenses are $3K
  • School programming expenses (including cultural assemblies, gardening, equity & inclusion, scholarships for enrichment clubs are $19,050
  • Staff support expenses including classroom set-up at $4K, Dr Gadsden Literacy program with black and brown students at $2.5K totals $11,850
  • Budget at $43,500; expecting to leave around $25K for next school year
  • Membership voted to pass and adopt the budget

 

8:00:  Thanks & Next Steps – Emma (PBES PTA)

  • Volunteering encouraged 
  • Oberdorff will send out MAP schedule
  • Dr Gadsden, wanted to stay on to talk to TPES families about Math to answer questions

Become a PTA member, donate, become a sponsor, sign up to volunteer:

Takoma Park Elementary School PTA: https://www.tpespta.net

Piney Branch Elementary School PTA: https://pineybranchpta.membershiptoolkit.com