AMIGOS DE ASPIRA PTO

MEETING MINUTES FOR 4TH GENERAL PTO MEETING 2015-16

DAY: JANUARY 7. 2016LOCATION: ASPIRAACADEMY

BOARD MEMBERS IN ATTENDANCE: Elva Clark, Co-President; Christine Herfindahl, Assistant Treasurer; Melissa Tribuiani, Recording Secretary.

Board Members Absent: Rebecca Holowka, Co-President; Sara-Beth Miller, Co-Vice President; Pam Evans, Co-Vice President; Julie MacRae, Treasurer; Paula Lockhart, Fundraising Chair; Donna Price, Corresponding Secretary.

Members: 12. Teachers: 1 (Mrs. Labanda).

Agenda: Treasurer’s Report/Joe Corbi’s Fundraiser/Elementary School Dance/Shoparoo/Famly Fun Night at Chuck E. Cheese/Resale/Viva Aspira/Calendar/Open Forum

  1. Welcome and Introductions. Co-President Elva Clark called the meeting to order at 1800.
  2. Treasurer’s Report. End balance for our bank account at the end of 2015 is approximately $18,000. Recent expenses included holiday teachers’ gifts. Recent deposits included fundraising proceeds from the Square One Art Fundraiser and the SaveAround Books fundraiser; proceeds from Dress Down Days in November and December; and proceeds from recent memberships and T-shirt sales.
  3. Joe Corbi’s Fundraiser. This year we will be selling food items only. (The nonfood items came from a different location and were delivered at several different dates last year). Order forms will come home on Tuesday, 1/19/2016 and delivery will be on Tuesday, 3/8/2016. Pickup will be at school from 3:30-6pm; all unclaimed items will be donated to the Food Bank at that time, as we have no storage space for refrigerated items at school. Volunteers will be needed on the day of delivery; more information to come at next month’s meeting.
  4. Elementary School Dance. Friday, 1/22/2016, from 6:30 to 8:30 pm at AspiraAcademy. The dance is free, but 8th graders will be selling snacks as a fundraiser. There is a 150 person maximum, so signup is necessary. 3rd—5th graders can be dropped off at the dance; parents will need to stay with students in grades K-2. Volunteers are needed! Please contact Amy McDowell to sign up for the dance, as well as to volunteer.
  5. Shoparoo. This is an opportunity for the school to get funds based on members’ purchases; there is no cost to use this service and the school gets money from purchases you are already making! The app is free to install on your smartphone and users accrue points based on shopping history (via receipts entered into app). Contact Rebecca Holowka (Shoparoo user) if you have any questions regarding this.
  6. Family Fun Night at Chuck E. Cheese. Thursday, 2/11/2016, from 3pm to close (there is no school on Friday 2/12/2016). More info to follow next month.
  7. Resale. Kelly Root-Cruz is spearheading the 2nd Annual Aspira Resale event. Date is TBA (springtime)—we are trying to arrange it for the same date as the Just Between Friends Resale that will take place at the SportsPlex. Items for sale can include all children’s clothing and shoes, including school uniforms; toys; books etc. We will NOT have an adult clothing resale at this time. PTO may have a table to sell T-shirts as well. Home-based businesses may rent a table at the event as well. More information to come. Volunteers will be needed. Contact Kelly Root-Cruz if you would like to become a consignor (tags are 20 for $1). 50 percent of the proceeds go to the consignor, and 50 percent go right to the PTO for our programs!
  8. Viva Aspira. This year’s event (our 3rd annual!) will be on Saturday, April 16, 2016, at the University of Delaware STAR Campus. More information to come. Volunteers are needed for obtaining donations, as well as organizing classroom donations for raffle. Please contact Mrs. Lilia Meredith if you would like to help.
  9. Calendar. Clarification of days off: Teacher Professional Development (TPD) is on Friday 1/15/2016; school is also closed on Monday, 1/19/2016 for Dr. Martin Luther King Day. Monday 2/8//2016 will be TPD (no school). School is OPEN on Friday, 2/12/2016. This will also be Dress Down Day and Friendship Day. School is CLOSED on Monday 2/15/2016 for Presidents’ Day. Please check the school calendar on the Aspira website for the most up-to-date calendar information.
  10. 5th Year Cookbook. This is Aspira’s 5th year; we would like to put together a cookbook fundraiser celebrating our rich cultural diversity. Kelly Root-Cruz and Christine Herfindahl will investigate possible options; we discussed doing physical cookbooks, E-books, or both. If you are interested in spearheading this project, helping organize the book, or gathering recipes, please contact Kelly or Christine.
  11. Home-based Businesses. Possible fundraisers were discussed but it was decided against this, as vendor parents would have a conflict of interest in the fundraiser. However, we may sell table space at the upcoming resale for interested vendors. More details to come.
  12. Labels for Education. Please contact Paula Lockhart for more information. We have asked parents to turn in LFE on Dress Down Days; there is no contest associated with this. This year the proceeds will go towards arts programs (art/music/dance) at Aspira.

Meeting adjourned at 1850.

Next general PTO meeting will be on Wednesday, February 3rd, 2016 at 6pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Melissa Tribuiani, Recording Secretary