MEETING MINUTES
North Royalton Middle School
September 19, 2017
President: Chris May –
Call to Order
The September meeting of the North Royalton Middle School PTA was called to order at 9:35 am. President Chris May led the Pledge of Allegiance and welcomed all members and guests.
Secretary Valerie Kanieski reported that the May meeting minutes were posted online and approved by the financial review committee.
Treasurer Jami Haley reported that the budget will be discussed and voted under new business. The treasurer’s financial statement includes:
Balance as of June 30, 2017: $23,651.50
Total deposits: $ 2,214.51
Total disbursements: $ 1,500.00
Balance as of September 19, 2017: $24,366.01
Principal Report – Mr. Jeff Cicerchi
Principal Jeff Cicerchi reported that the Middle School had a great start to the school year. The students seem to be happy and getting into their routines.
The 1:1 Initiative for Chromebooks in the 6th grade is going smoothly. About 300 devices were provided to students. The district is using Go Guardian as a 3rd layer of protection for the Chromebooks. Go Guardian shows that educational sites like Google Classroom, Google Docs, and TenMarks are the most used sites for learning on Chromebooks.
Mr. Cicerchi thanked the parents for using the Giant Eagle Apples to Apples program. The program provided $2,408.00 to NRMS, which was used to purchase Chromebooks for classrooms.
Mr. Cicerchi also announced that the Fall Pep Rally and Tailgate will be on October 4 before the 8th grade football game. This event recognizes student athletes and receives good support from the students.
WNRMS continues to provide video announcements at lunchtime. The announcements can also be found online at the NRMS website. To make sure everyone gets a chance to see them, they are also sent to teachers and students through email on their NRapps accounts. Unfortunately, Google thought it was spam and blocked it. The school is working to get the emails of the announcements straightened out.
Mr. Cicerchi reminded everyone to follow the North Royalton District on Twitter at #NRinspiregreat to find out what great things are going on in the schools.
There will be guest speakers at future PTA meetings to address topics about the school district that are of interest to parents. The current topics are scheduled as follows:
October: Athletics and Activities-Tricia Pozsgai
November: Food Services-Sue Rudolph
January: Pros and Cons of World Language-Erin Calabrese
February: Buildings, Grounds, and Facilities-Dave Guciardo
March: Transportation-Greg Hovan
April: 1:1 and BYOD-Mike McGinnis
Please let Mr. Cicerchi know what topics interest you that can be included in future meetings.
September 19th is 4th Grade Spirit Night. Fourth graders will take buses from the elementary schools to the middle school where they will participate in activities and walk to stadium to watch the 7th grade football game.
Teacher Representative Report – Mrs. Caputo and Mrs. Drescher
Mrs. Caputo announced that the 5th grade teachers have started the 40 Books Challenge. The students get to choose any books they want to read from certain genres. It provides many opportunities for students to read and discuss their books. The 5th grade classes will be reading the book, Wonder this year. The movie will be in theatres in November.
Mrs. Drescher noted that the 6th graders are well prepared this year with their new Chromebooks. The 7th and 8th graders are doing self-selected reading. They have opportunities for quiet time daily with the book of their choice. Mrs. Drescher also made a copy of the article, Field Guide to the Clueless Teen Boy available to parents who were interested in it.
President’s Report – Chris May
We got off to a great start! Thank you to everyone that helped with packet stuffing, packet and PE shirt distribution and picture day. Thanks also to those helping tonight with the 4th Grade Spirit Night.
We will be utilizing Sign Up Genius for our donations again this year. We’ve heard positive remarks; it allows members who are not able to attend meetings to still be involved. A Sign Up Genius will be coming out soon for the media center Book Fair help and the Fall Tailgate. Media center is also looking for gently used games with all pieces.
Officer Reports:
1st VP – Membership – Laurie Weiser
Membership cards are coming soon by email. We have about 274 members with many more memberships being added.
2nd VP- Fall Fundraising – Kelley Rieger
3rd VP – Spring Fundraising – Rebekah Thompson
Malley’s Chocolate will be the Spring Fundraiser this year.
4th VP – School Pictures/Yearbook – OPEN
Chris May, who assembled the yearbook last year, offered to work with anyone who would like to help put the yearbook together this year. Fall Sports pictures needed! The yearbook needs both action shots and group shots of fall sports. Please see the Sign Up Genius to send your pictures in.
Council Delegates – Jodi Heffke, Kelly Tarnowski; Alternate – Maria Velkos
The first PTA Council meeting is October 5.
Committee Reports:
Cultural Arts/Reflections – Cathleen Finnecy
The theme for this year’s Reflections contest is “Within Reach”. Information for the competition which starts in October will come out soon.
Curriculum Advisory – Becky Cozzens
The Curriculum Advisory Committee has not met yet.
Facebook Page – OPEN
Financial Review – Kelly Tarnowski
The Financial Review Committee has examined the records of the treasurer of the North Royalton Middle School PTA for the period of July 1, 2016 through June 30, 2017 and found them to be in order.
GM Box Tops – OPEN
Anyone interested in collecting Box Tops for Education for the Middle School should contact Chris May.
Health, Wellness/PHNR – Ashley DeAngelis
The Partnership for a Healthy North Royalton is open to everyone in the community. Upcoming events include a Health Fair and Family Expo with a 5k run and the annual Turkey Trot on September 30 from 8:30 am to 12 noon. There will be a meeting for PHNR on October 18th from 9:30-11 am at the North Royalton Library, and a National Prescription Drug Take-Back on October 28th from 10 am to 2 pm.
Field Day Coordinator – Sharon Bohland
Scholarship – Melissa Crowe
Special Events/Tailgates – Marie McLaughlin
Special Events/Real World, Real Money – Cristina Hornik
Spirit wear – Kelley Reiger
Staff Appreciation – OPEN
Staff Member of the Month – Leslie Stetler
Store Programs – OPEN
Sunny D – OPEN
Talent Show/5th-6th Grade – OPEN
Talent Show/7th-8th Grade – OPEN
Transportation – Becky Cozzens
The transportation committee will meet on September 27.
Volunteer Coordinator – Debbie Sexton
Please report all your volunteer hours.
Welcome Back Lunch – Barb Davis and Jodi Heffke
The Welcome Back Lunch is scheduled for January when the teachers and staff return from Winter Break.
Old Business: Financial Review Report – Kelly Tarnowski.
The Financial Review Committee has examined the records of the treasurer of the North Royalton Middle School PTA for the period of July 1, 2016 through June 30, 2017 and found them to be in order. Motion to accept the Financial Review Committee’s report and May minutes? Motion made by Lori Kryzwicki and 2nd by Ann Gurin. The membership voted and the motion passed.
New Business: Approval of the proposed 2017-2018 budget.
President Chris May asked if there were any budget changes. Mr. Cicerchi reported that the school’s poster maker which is used by teachers and students needs replacing. A new poster maker costs $4,000, but Mr. Cicerchi has found a refurbished one that will meet the school’s needs for less than half that price. A motion to allocate $2000 for the poster maker was made by Ashley DeAngelis and second by Becky Cozzens. The membership voted and the motion passed.
A motion to approve the proposed 2017-2018 budget was made by Leslie Stetler and a second by Lori Kryzwicki. The membership voted and the motion passed.
Announcements: Fall Tailgate – October 4th, 3:00 pm – 4:45 pm
Next PTA meeting, October 19th, 9:30 am HS Community Room
Adjournment at 10:15 AM.