TPES PTA Meeting Minutes: January 2019

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Takoma Park Elementary School PTA

Meeting Minutes, January 8, 2019, 7-8 pm, APR

Attendance: 36

 

Welcome and Upcoming Events: Lia Salza, President

  • Saturday, January 12: MCPS/MCCPTA Mental Health and Wellness Forum, 1-5pm, Wood Middle School, Rockville. There will be programs on bullying, mental health first aid, etc.
  • Monday, January 21: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day – no school
  • Friday, January 25: early release
  • Monday, January 28: Professional Day – no school
  • February 1-8: Scholastic Book Fair
  • Tuesday, February 5: PTA Meeting – Literacy
  • Monday, February 18: President’s Day – no school
  • March – Read-a-Thon!

 

Updates:

TPES Treasurer’s Report: Erin Kelley, Treasurer

  • Everything is on track with fundraisers and expenditures; we’re looking forward to the Read-a-Thon, which is the largest fundraiser of the year.
  • Announcement of grants:
    • Shana Sabbath wrote an application for the PTA and received a grant from the Takoma Foundation. The grant will support equity initiatives at TPES and the Young Scholars program.
    • Tracee Matthias wrote an application for a STEM grant that secured $10k for a variety of STEM programs at TPES, including a new fleet of Lego robots.
    • Both of these grants were identified and spearheaded by parents committed to these important areas of school support and improvement. Have ideas? Let’s talk!
  • Question regarding Politics&Prose fundraiser: we currently don’t have a parent volunteer to run this (and other similar) fundraisers – if you’re interested, please contact Sarah Corcoran (volunteer coordinator).

 

TPES Clubs/Enrichment Update: Virginia Davis, Clubs Coordinator, and Shana Sabbath, Equity Chair

  • Enrollment is now closed for the winter TPES club session. Ten scholarships were provided (an increase in the number being requested, which is great).
  • If you have ideas for clubs, please email them to tpesclubs@gmail.com

 

Book Fair Update: Kate Ivcevich and Shivani Sutton, Book Fair Chairs

  • The TPES Scholastic Book Fair will take place from February 1-8, both during the day and in the evenings (late hours on Tuesday and Thursday). Dave Burbank from the TP Library and authors will be leading activities in the evenings.
  • Kids will get to visit the fair early in the week and make wish lists; it’s also possible to send money (cash, credit cards, checks, e-wallet) with them, so they can purchase while at school
  • Teachers will have wish lists available for those interested to make donations.
  • This “fundraiser” doesn’t bring cash into the school, it provides the media center and classrooms with new books, and is a significant source of classroom materials for the school.
  • 90-minute sign-up opportunities will be available on the TPES PTA website soon; more information about the book fair, opportunities to assist, and ways of sending money with your kids will come home soon.

 

Read-a-Thon:

  • The Read-a-Thon is the PTA’s largest fundraiser of the year, and is a lot of fun.
  • Begins in early March (Dr. Seuss’ birthday) and lasts for the entire month.
  • It encourages kids to read or be read to by tracking and sponsoring minutes read. Have kids ask grandparents/aunts/uncles to sponsor them.
  • We need a chair (ideally 2 people) to coordinate the effort – which includes helping with a school assembly,  overseeing the weekly gathering of charts and data, making there is a binder of materials, and you will receive lots of support from the school and other parents. Are you interested? Even a little? Please contact Lia Salza (President) or Sarah Corcoran (volunteer coordinator).

 

Announcements from Dr. Gadsden

  • Snow is coming! Be sure to check all available resources to make sure you get accurate updates on school closures, delays, and early closures.
  • The playground is up and running, and the kids all approve! Thanks to all of the parent volunteers who helped to make that happen.

Adjourn

Summer Camp Fair

Participating programs: Nature Lab, Lowell School, Takoma Rec Center, Little Loft, Glen Echo Park, Barrie School, The Y Silver Spring, Girl Scouts, Roda Movement, Flag Star Football, Montgomery Parks: Totally Tennis, Takoma Sports, Takoma Park Child Development Center, The Evergreen School