May 11, 2016 PTO Meeting Minutes
Secretary’s Report
· Minutes from the April meeting were emailed prior to the meeting.
Treasurer’s Report
· Current balance is $13,346.08.
· Received a check from Kroger for $102.82
· Received a check from Box Tops for $420.30
· Received receipts from Rachel Hoover and Lisa Branch for Teacher Appreciation Week expenses.
Vice President’s Report
· No report.
President’s Report
· School Kidz kit orders were due to the school today. Online orders will be accepted until Friday.
· Carrie Vogel attended the PTO President meeting in place of Bill Legett.
o Biggest topic was the changing of start times and transportation. The district has commitments for every building for before and after school care for next year and these may be expanded if needed. There will not be band for 5th grade students on any Wednesdays next year. District may be putting together an online dashboard for information regarding child care.
o Kindergarten enrollment is down for the second year in a row. Although kindergarten enrollment is lower, enrollment at the high school is higher. The 2016 graduating class has 750 students and freshman class for next year (class of 2020) is over 1,000. NCHS and Towanda are full.
o Possible “State of the District” meeting in the fall. Be looking for further information on this.
o School Reach is now School Messenger. May also be able to start doing emails and/or texts through this system.
Principal’s Report
· Thanks for a phenomenal Teacher Appreciation Week.
· Butterfly Garden – general consensus among the staff is that a garden is not necessary, but they do use the picnic tables so they would like to keep those and maybe even add a couple more.
· We have received mulch to put down in the front, but are waiting for weed control before laying the mulch.
· Sign in the front will be repainted. The paint has been purchased, but it has been too wet to paint.
· Price for dunk tank for play day has gone up to $181.50 so will need approval for the price increase.
· Class sizes in 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades are large. In the future, two charter buses will be needed for the 5th grade field trip. A State Farm Grant has been received and designated to field trips, so that will help offset some of the cost. PTO would just need to increase their contribution to $529.50 in order to cover the cost for two busses.
Teacher’s Report
· Teachers were extremely thankful for Teacher Appreciation Week. The Flinger’s pizza was great.
· Request was made for $112 for a new supply of owl pellets for fourth grade. The owl pellets will last several years.
CAC Report
· No report
Room Parent/Volunteers Report
· A survey will be sent out seeking input from teachers and room parents regarding parties next year. Michele Darnell has a draft of the survey ready for others to review.
Family Fun Report
· A date for next year’s Family Fun Night was discussed. There was discussion about moving it later into the spring so that some events could be outside. Decision of a date was tabled until August.
Cheetah Run
· Insurance will need to be renewed in September.
· Ordered a minimum order (12 shirts) so that the t-shirt can be presented to the winning student at awards day.
· Juli Richards will work on putting together a document for sponsorship levels. There will be a committee meeting in the summer to discuss further.
Hospitality Committee
· Lisa Branch will send the owner of Flinger’s a thank you note from PTO. They were very generous in providing food for Teacher Appreciation Week at significantly discounted price.
· Expenses for Teacher Appreciation Week totaled $695, which was under budget.
Box Tops
· Heather Bruder indicated interest in taking over box tops for next year.
· There are box tops that have been turned in and need to be sent in before the end of the year.
Restaurant Nights
· Dairy Queen night was a success. We have not yet heard the total amount earned, though.
Building and Grounds
· A plan for the butterfly garden will need to be put together. There was discussion about killing the weeds and then mulching the area under the picnic tables.
New Business
· Request for $112 for Owl pellets for 4th grade
· Request to increase the amount PTO donates for the fifth grade field trip from $500 to $529.50 in order to be able to get 2 charter busses for next year.
· Request to approve the price increase for the dunk tank for play day.
· A question was brought up about the printed menus that are sent home with each child. There was discussion as to whether or not these need to be printed and sent home or if they can they just be accessed on the website (unless parents wish to request copy in print).
· Discussion about parking lot drop-off and pick-up procedures. There will be additional teacher presence on duty next year in hope of increasing student safety.
· Approved $25 to purchase a gift for the crossing guard.
· Approved $100 to purchase a thank you gift for Mrs. Vaughn.
· Accepted a nomination for Kate Williams for Treasurer position for next year.
· Elections for the Executive Board for 2016-17 were held with the following results:
o President – Bill Legett
o President Elect – Carrie Vogel
o Vice President – Juli Richards
§ Vice President will also oversee fundraising committees.
o Treasurer – Kathy Moran
o Secretary – Jolene Baldwin
· Committee Chairs for 2016-17:
o Family Fun Night – Cathy Webber/Carri Karch
o Teacher Representatives – Sue Nicklas
o Room Parents/Volunteers – ? (Michele Darnell will mentor a new chair)
o Hospitality – Lisa Branch & Rachel Hoover
o Restaurant Fundraising – ? (Carrie Vogel will continue one year if no replacement is found)
o Box Tops – Heather Bruder
o Fun Run – Juli Richards
o CAC Representatives – in need of two representatives for next year
o Building/Grounds – ?
· Will need the following help before next year
o Help with building/grounds work now and prior to school
o Help with registration in August
Old Business
· Mrs. Combs reported that if the families who wanted to purchase new basketball hoops for the gym were still willing to do so, it would be greatly appreciated.
· Mrs. Combs will check in with Mrs. Dullard about what is still needed for the IMC now that the Scholastic Book Fair is finished.
· Mrs. Combs will re-send the list of inside recess games requested by the teachers so that PTO can act on it for next year.