North County High School PTSA
Meeting Minutes
September 20, 2017
Meeting called to order at 6:37 p.m.
In attendance: Sonya Sutter; Nancy Sumwalt; Lisa Crittenden; Alison Cherowitzo; Michelle Fowler; Stephanie Doersam; Sally Wood; Wanda Behnke; Sarah Longo; Michele Schneck; Eric Jefferson; and Ginny Ford.
Call to Order: Sonya Sutter
President Sonya Sutter welcomed all in attendance. Introductions were made. Sonya read the PTSA Mission Statement.
Approval of June 2017 Minutes
Prior minutes were reviewed. Lisa C. commented that the SHA grant for the After-Prom is no longer available. She will look into other grants. (Stephanie D. e-mailed a link for an After-Prom grant to Lisa.)
- Motion: Stephanie D. motioned and Wanda B. seconded to accept noted changes and approve June 13, 2017 meeting minutes.
- Vote: Motion carried
- Resolved: Minutes from the June 13, 2017 meeting approved, as amended.
Treasurer's Report: Lisa Crittenden
Lisa has included the year-end numbers in the Budget. Budget to be reviewed and voted on at the end of the meeting.
Principal's Report: Mr. Jefferson
Approximately 500 after-school dinners and 2,000 lunches are served each day.
Prom Date will be 4/28, 5/5 or 5/12/2018.
It would be great to have the After-Prom Breakfast at the school again. The school can give back more to the students if they don't have a venue expense. Mr. Jefferson will recommend this to the Senior class; they are not familiar with driving downtown and would not have to deal with the bar/club traffic.
There was discussion regarding the pros/cons of the After-Prom venue. Historically it has been successful at the school. Last year, 291 students (out of 475 tickets sold) attended the After-Prom.
We had a good opening week; it was successful.
Thank-you to the PTSA for the staff lunch.
The students are adjusting.
Knight Time will be moved to after 1st period right before interims. Didn't seem too successful for the Freshman last year.
Advisory every Monday; reviewing the clubs offered; building community circles.
The pillars outside do not just include the STEM now. All pathways are included (Magnet, IT3, etc.).
Setting expectations for all students. Concentrating on good behaviors (98% good; 2% received referrals). Referrals are down 625; suspensions down 83. Teachers stay in the building (83%). AP pass rates are dramatically increasing (4% to 44%).
Urban Garden may be in a Baltimore Sun article (bees; at-risk students' work).
Keep supporting the students and teachers.
Snacks for Freshman and teachers go a long way, as do AP/PARCC testing snacks and gift cards for Fab. Fridays (still doing this).
Knight Time will be Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Mondays are for Advisory now and then will be for Advisory/Study Hall. Fridays will be a transition day (straight schedule). Michelle F. brought up the need for more Knight Time so the students can participate in other clubs as well as getting more instruction assistance. Stephanie D. said Senior schedules can be affected on Fridays. Mr. Jefferson will review this with Student Leadership and SGA. Discussion held that students need that break for clubs, etc. since there is no after-school transportation for them. There were approx. 2,000 tardies in the first period during Knight Time. County made them change. Adding Knight Time after next week.
Advisory has opportunities for F/S/Jr./Sr. class meetings.
Freshman snacks and testing snacks are welcome.
May is the most volatile time for students.
Communications: Ms. McVey - 9th Grade; Mr. Fowlkes - Comm. person, liaison with PTSA starting November; Ms. Holmes to Ms. Williams; Ms. McVey - weekly newsletters and notices to parents; Ms. Lewis - staff newsletters. ConnectEd - e-mails, texts and voicemails.
Mr. Jefferson will provide the Admin. Duty Roster.
Ms. Lewis asked Sonya to come to faculty meeting. There will be a contact for us.
Stephanie D. noted that until ParentConnect goes live, there are no phone calls regarding absences.
Freshman schedules came out the first day. There were problems with schedules. All others were able to get their schedules early and make changes before school began. Next year, all students will get their schedules early. The add/drop forms are available in the cafeteria; changes take about a week.
Homecoming - information to follow. Problems with other students coming from another school with no ID (Ben Franklin). The staff can look in the system for their information. Dance set for 10/7/2017. May change venue since approximately 1,500 kids last year. There will be no parade or carnival this year since it is too long of a day. SGA sponsors Homecoming.
Some parents received nothing regarding picture day. Some parents received notices in the mail. Senior class gets money from Senior photos (LifeTouch), robes (Balfour), dues, rebates and fundraisers. Approx. $12,000 to Senior class.
It costs approx. $35,000 for graduation (venues/schools, equipment rentals, chairs, etc.).
Dates are given out at Senior meetings.
Mr. Jefferson will talk to Class Advisors regarding a parent meeting (banners, etc.).
Teacher's Report: Ms. Mermod (via a message to Stephanie D.)
Thanks for the goodies. The school year is going great.
New Business: Sonya Sutter
Welcome Back Staff Luncheon: Lisa C. and Sarah L. covered the luncheon. The food came from Gino's; it was awesome. They had a good turnout.
Freshman Evening Orientation: The presentation was held in the auditorium. There was a PTSA table in the hall with snacks (left over from the staff luncheon). There was a suggestion to use Sign-up Genius for volunteers/donations.
First-Day Freshman Snacks: Ms. McVey said it was okay to do this, but we competed with the cafeteria.
Back-to-School Night: There was a spaghetti dinner in the cafeteria. We had a table in the hall with snacks. We also promoted Ready2Drive; we get money from them (two $500 checks and one $100 check last year). We had a steady flow.
Suggestions for snacks for testing: water, dum-dums, Nestle's (there's an online form; they are located on Rte. 1 in Laurel).
We need to advocate for the students to have Knight Time four days per week. There was a discussion regarding parking.
Get draft minutes posted and out to members prior to next meeting.
Get a connection with Music Boosters, Athletic Boosters and Drama.
We obtained 115 memberships during Freshman Orientation and Back-to-School Night.
It was suggested that the online master calendar be updated. Student run?
We need to give the office the PTSA dates again.
Committee Reports
Membership: To date there are 115 memberships. This year we offer different prices of memberships: Parents, $10; Students, $7; Staff, $5. Alison Cherowitzo will be the new Membership Chair.
Hospitality: Plan is to continue monthly treats such as Tootsie Rolls/Tootsie Pops. Perhaps the NHS students can stuff the mailboxes for service hours. A Sign-Up Genius was discussed for the grab-n-go snacks for parent/teacher conferences. The conference dates are 10/19/2017, 12/8/2017, and 3/2/2018. There are about 220 staff members. We may have a new Hospitality Chair. Sonya S. will follow up.
Senior Banners: Forms should go home separately to Senior parents, not just in weekly newsletters. Stephanie D. will coordinate with Mr. Fowlkes/Advisory. Sold one so far. First printing will occur after minimum order. Order dates: 12/7 ($30); 1/26 ($35); and 2/23 ($40).
The Seniors tab on the PTSA website will include information regarding Senior Banners, After-Prom and Scholarships. Ready2Drive information is included under the Fundraisers tab. A Search tab will be added. Lisa C. and Stephanie D. will maintain. Ebonie R. will assist with the Facebook page.
After-Prom: So far we havefour or five volunteers for After-Prom. Lisa C. is coordinating and will send something out.
Communications: Discussed with Mr. Jefferson. He will provide a copy of the Admin. Duty Roster. Draft/final minutes to be posted by Lisa C./Stephanie D.
Craft/Vendor Fair (10/28/2017): NHS volunteers with this. Maybe NAHS can help also. There is a separate tab on website and a scrolling reminder. Set-up after school on Friday, 7 a.m Saturday, and 1-3 p.m. Saturday (clean-up). Advertising on various craft and vendor sites, Facebook, signs, website and word of mouth.
School Store: Needs volunteers to run. There were two volunteers from Membership forms. Lisa C. told Administration twice. Sonya S. will check which Administrator is in charge of it. Ginny F. thinks it was closed and will not be reopened.
Ready2Drive: Lisa C. will assist with this. We need a liaison. We get a portion back.
Parent Volunteer Positions
Volunteer sign-ups increased on Membership forms.
By-Laws
Copies of the current By-Laws and drafts of the new By-Laws were distributed. A new form may come out from the Maryland PTA; may supplement. May vote at October meeting. Must vote by November meeting and submit to the MD PTA.
Budget
The proposed Budget was reviewed and discussed.
- Motion: Stephanie D. motioned and everyone seconded to accept noted changes and approve Budget
- Vote: Motion carried
- Resolved: Budget approved, as amended.
Next meeting: 10/18/2017 at 6:30 p.m.
Meeting adjourned at 9:03 p.m.
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