Keith Valley HSA Meeting Minutes

Keith Valley HSA Meeting Minutes

October 18, 2012

This meeting was called to order at 7:00 pm by Linda Gorkes, Co-President.

Mr. Kircher, Mrs. Whiteside and Mrs. Condit were in attendance.

Secretary’s Report

Jodi Golub presented the minutes from the September 20, 2012 meeting.

Motion to approve made by Vicki Brzoza, seconded by Carolyn Kushner.

Treasurer’s Report

Sharon Brennan presented the current budget:

-  Profit & Loss Budget vs. Actual (July – Sept 12)

-  Statement of Cash Flows (July – Sept 12)

General ledger cash is reconciled with the bank through September 30, 2012.

Motion to approve made by Kristy Schmidt, seconded by Eileen Lindsay.

Principal’s Report – Mr. Kircher

-  The book drive to replenish books lost in the fire at Montessori Children’s House was a great success. Mrs. Quinn and a number of KV students delivered the books and were recognized on TV channels 3, 10 and Fox 29. They were also featured on the internet at Horsham Patch.

-  6th grade red, black and grey teams all got to go outside geo-caching to experience the ultimate in high tech scavenger hunting.

-  Teen Read Week went over great with fun activities that included a daily trivia contest, guessing the number of worms in the head, a poster contest and guest readers.

-  KV teachers honored as grant recipients at HHEF’s 25th Anniversary Celebration

o  Nancylynn Sicilia

o  Meghan Struzinski

o  Carolyn Koch

o  Diane Heitzenrater

o  Jim Keyes

o  Sarah Sweet

-  KV getting national recognition for the KV K’NEX program and has been invited to present at the National Conferences on Bullying Prevention in February and March.

-  KV K’NEX program also having profound effect with ROB (Reach Out Button) which is a means for kids to reach out and let adults in the school know when someone is at risk or has been treated badly. Reports can be anonymous and they can also be the kind where contact back is welcomed. KV students have already helped the staff reach out and be even more effective supporting the students. 12 reports submitted to date.

-  Nearby school districts experiencing incredible loss as there have been two suicides. One child in Souderton and another in Springfield took their lives.

-  Mr. Shey has been named Middle School Teacher of the Year.

-  Long term substitute teachers are being interviewed as 10 teachers are expecting and will be going out on leave this year.

-  The 6th graders had an amazing day out at the Renaissance Fair.

-  Some calendar items to note: (1/2 day parent conferences coming up, Halloween dance on Friday (no masks/make up okay), student of the month breakfast October 3rd)

-  Spirit week coming Nov. 2nd with College Sweat Shirt Day. The following week includes M: PJ Day, T: school closed for Election Day, W: Red & Black Day, Th: Dress to Impress Day, F: Red, White & Blue to honor Veterans.

-  November 9th is KV’s Breakfast to honor Veterans

-  End of marking period coming up soon ~ November 9th.

-  November 13th intergenerational breakfast for 6th graders and their families.

-  November 14th intergenerational breakfast for 7th & 8th graders and their families.

-  November 16th Principal’s Chat & Chew.

-  KV proudly presents The Little Mermaid on November 15, 16 & 17th. The curtain rises at 7:30pm.

-  KV Idol November 20th ~ sign ups will start soon.

-  December 1st is the Train Show.

-  Mrs. Stout and Mr. Devine have stopped the selling of sticky frogs at the school store and students are no longer permitted to bring them to school.

-  The Color Guard has requested funding to purchase a second hand floor covering for their practices. The cost is $500 and Mr. Kircher will provide their written request from the office right after the meeting. The Color Guard has extended an open invitation to their practices beginning in January.

Teacher Report by Mrs. Boyle (8th grades)

-  8 red has made over 30 deliveries to JRA on October 15th as part of their class project.

-  Lisa Giardetti Classic Kickin’ It for a Cure event was a huge success.

-  8th graders working on letters to their elementary school buddies.

-  October 25th is the KV Challenge kickoff assembly.

-  8th graders looking forward to the Halloween dance.

Teacher Report by Mrs. Condit (6th grade)

-  Students had the opportunity to purchase team T-shirts. All have the PACE car logo on the front.

-  PA Renaissance Faire today was a hit thanks to all of the parents that acted as chaperones.

-  Thanks go to Mrs. Whitelock, Mrs. Eberly and the Team Captains (King, Kentopp and D’Alonzo) for all the planning efforts.

-  Math classes completed a coordinate grid project in the tech lab.

-  Technology orientation classes have finished.

-  Language Arts classes are using Covey language and sharing weekly lessons from the text, Highly Effective Teens.

Teacher Report (7th grade)

-  No formal report submitted for this meeting.

-  Science teachers just finished a segment with bottle rockets.

Old Business

-  Membership: Amy Wuillermin reports current HSA membership of 571 families and 35 staff members with deposits of $4,288 with more trickling in weekly.

-  Giant A+ Program: Amy also reporting on this program’s great success. So far 323 individuals have registered with 280 resulting from the new tear off flyer distributed at the start of the school year. Enrollment is up from 120 last year.

-  Joe Corbi Fundraiser: Amy reports that delivery of 1400 fundraising brochures is expected on October 31st. Volunteers are needed for stapling help and the fundraiser kicks off on Monday, November 12th.

-  Directory: Not including parent email addresses in an effort to prevent solicitation. The file is almost complete.

-  WAWA Coupons: $1500 in coupons purchased so far. Another flyer will be sent out before the holidays as the coupons make great gifts.

-  Spirit Wear: Kristy Schmidt report that $500 was earned on the first sale this year. Delivery is expected in 2 – 3 weeks.

-  Box Tops for Education: Pam Tuckey reports that great success with the first contest and that contest winners were announced on KV TV.

o  1st Place - Jessica Gutekunst – 6th grader

o  2nd Place - MaryKate McKenna – 8th grader

o  3rd Place - Kyle Hinks – 8th grader

The deadline for the first submission of Box Tops to the company is November 1st. The second batch of Box Tops will be submitted on March 1st. Box Tops can be turned in at school any time. They are sent to the company for reimbursement in large batches.

- Fun Night: Linda and Amy report successful ticket sales matching with the fun time had that night. More than half the attendees were 6th graders. 121 tickets were sold before the event and 87 at the door that night. Police were on hand that night to help with traffic at pickup at both entrances. Everything ran very smoothly.

-  Committees Still Needing Chairs/Shadows: Nicole Stasio reports no responses from requests out to committee volunteers. Another round of communications to go out to encourage others to step up. Jodi Golub to shadow Lollerpalooza and chair next year. Carolyn Kushner and Wendy Kephart to shadow 8th Grade Picnic this year and chair next year. Michelle Gutekunst to chair 6th Grade Field Day. Michelle and Nicole to help put together orders for Spirit Wear Committee.

-  School Store: No more sticky frogs to be sold in the store. Linda is looking to get some of the less expensive Spirit Wear made available at the store. (hats, drawstring bags, T-shirts) Looking to basketball season to start selling refreshments for game days. (game time only)

-  By-Laws Revision to be voted on at next HSA meeting on November 14th. An email blast went out this week with the proposed by-laws attached giving the membership sufficient time to review the contents before the vote.

New Business

-  Barnes and Nobel Fundraiser: Friday, December 7th 5-10pm. Yuliya Ostapenko reports things going very well and confirms the agreement signed for this year at the Willow Grove Barnes & Nobel. Whoever plans it for next year will need to lock in the first Friday of December early and keep in mind many school districts are competing for limited slots. There will be gift wrap tables, appearances by the KV Orchestra, Jazz Band, Cheer Squad, Robotics Club and students who attend will be rewarded with Homework Passes.

-  Winter Fun Night: Friday, December 14th, 7-9:30pm. Same format as the other Fun Nights.

-  Hospitality: Carol Boehm working on the event for teachers and staff to be held in December. The goal is to have parents be able to contribute baked items and collectively group together to create an atmosphere of appreciation. It will be a mid morning setup in the library with fruit, juice, coffee and baked items. Although it won’t be as big an event as Teacher Appreciation Day, we hope it will make a difference and be a mid year way to show our gratitude.

-  Spirit Nights: There are a number of events in the works at local yogurt shops, pizza places, and various other places in the community. Details to be announced as more are finalized.

Other Business

-  8th grade parents with interest in the foreign exchange program are encouraged to come out to the information meeting. The tentative date is November 5th at 7pm in the LGI. There is an application process. Mr. and Mrs. Brown have volunteered as chaperones for the 10 day trip to England

-  Mr. Kircher reports that the magazine drive is getting a bit stale. The prizes offered weren’t as good as previous years and many people purchased multi year subscriptions in the past. He is challenging the company to improve the offering for next year.

-  Cafeteria food waste was discussed. Mr. Kircher confirmed that the single stream trash does have recyclable materials removed once at the waste processing facility and that the existing recycle only bins are going to be moved to more prominent locations. There is ongoing evaluation to see if unused food can be donated to local charities. The packaging of the food and requirements for the charities may not be a match. HSA members asked to be notified if volunteer resources are needed to help make it happen.

-  The HSA is looking to spend on big ticket items needed by the school and asked Mr. Kircher to present requests for the HSA to take to a vote.

Meeting Adjourned, 8:02 p.m.

Next Keith Valley Home and School Association meeting is scheduled for November 14th at 7 p.m. in the KV Library.

Jodi Golub, Secretary