Zaharis PTO Community Meeting
Sept. 15, 2005
Attendees:
We had 44 attendees that signed the list (and I know some others didn’t) see the list stored in the binder in the teachers work room.
Julie introduced the board members and had each committee report on their activities and needs.
Teacher reps – Lori Scott and Kim Tanquilig are our teacher reps and were in attendance. Mr. Oliver could not attend due to a family event with his son and Eagle Scouts. His apologies were extended.
Yearbook – Chris Ginty is chairing this committee. We would like to have a 60 page color book. The cost is going to be approx $20 unless we can find a way to get some ads to help cover that cost. We could sell “Love Notes” perhaps? Chris is looking for help with this committee – perhaps someone who likes to do layouts, take pictures, etc.
BoxTops and Labels for Education – we have new chairs on this committee this year – Lisa Zobeck and Heather Horn. They may be looking for help with the clipping end of this. Cindy explained that there are so many ways to get extra BoxTops, through the websites, store specials, and just being aware of the different brands that are participating (Pace Picante lids, Goldfish UPC Codes, Tyson A+ products) See the web sites for more details.
http://www.boxtops4education.com/
http://www.labelsforeducation.com/default.aspx
Book Fair – Kim Pearce is chairing this event – the first book fair will be Nov 14 – 18 this year. It will be every day during lunch and one afternoon during the week and one evening during that week. The dates will be set based on volunteer availability. We are using a different book club this year – it is called A+ Books.
Quarter Sales – Melinda Alicea has volunteered to take on this committee this year. We will only hold Quarter sales on one Friday a month during the lunch hour 11 -1. We will focus on “Healthy” snacks and toys this year. Start date TBD.
Santa Breakfast/Holiday Boutique – Julie Ritter will be chairing the Holiday Boutique this year and we are searching for a volunteer to chair the Santa Breakfast portion of the event. The event will be held on Dec 3rd from 8:30 – 11:30 am. The Holiday Boutique portion will consist of vendors purchasing a table to sell products. The cost per table is yet to be set. Space is limited and is first come first serve.
The Santa Breakfast portion of this event consists of arranging for the “Santa”, selecting the menu, coordinating the photographer (we hope the Vincent’s will volunteer for this task again this year!) and coordinating activities for the kids (coloring books, perhaps a craft table). PTO will have the “Teacher Likes” lists available and Spirit products for sale.
Carnival – Diane McLaughlin is chairing this event this year. The carnival will be held on Nov 4th from 5 – 9 pm. Our carnival is our biggest undertaking each year. It is an event that everyone looks forward to. We have bouncies, rock walls, classroom carnival games, a live DJ, amazing door prizes, food, fun, and lots more. This is an event that takes lots of help and brings our families together for a wonderful evening! More info will be coming on this soon!
Teacher Appreciation – We are looking for a chairperson for this committee. We love our teachers and try to let them know in lots of ways. We remember them on their birthdays, we treat them during conference week, we feed them for special occasions, we arrange for a gift for them to spend on their classrooms each year. Anyone interested in organizing this effort – please contact the PTO for details.
PTO Contact Parent – Cindy Huffman will be organizing this group this year. This is not the same thing as the teachers room parent who organizes the teachers parties (although you can be one and the same too!). This is a limited effort task where you become the PTO liaison for your child’s classroom. Last year we counted on the PTO liaison to help us sign up parent volunteers to man the classroom booth at the carnival, we asked them to recruit 3 or 4 parents to bring something in for a teacher luncheon, and we asked them to collect items for gift baskets to help with the Media Center Golf Tournament. We still need PTO Contact Parents for the following classrooms: 3, 4, 9am, 9 pm, 10 am, 10 pm, 11 pm, 12, 13, 14, 16, 20, 21, 24, and 28. If you are interested in this effort – please contact the PTO.
PTO Volunteer Manager – We have a new system to help us manage our volunteers. We are trying to centralize our efforts rather than have all of our work be located on someone’s home computer! This system allows the parents to enter their email addresses and phone numbers (none of which will be used for anything other than PTO business – mailing out the minutes, recruiting help) and also they can identify what interests they have in helping our PTO. Just because you mark an interest does not mean you have to commit to it when you get a call. It just gives us a starting point for whom to ask! If you are getting this email – you are already a member. You can just log on and click the “I FORGOT MY PASSWORD” button and the system will send you your password. You can change it the next time you logon. It only takes 5 minutes to get you set up!
If you have any questions – please don’t hesitate to ask!
http://zaharis.ptomanager.com/home/login.html
Art Masterpiece – although Art Masterpiece is not a PTO run activity – we highly recommend your participation in this enlightening program. Amy Helbig spoke to the attendees about the program. It runs from Jan – May and requires that you spend 15 minutes once every two weeks in the classroom – talking about art. You will be trained by the Mesa Public Schools – they require that you attend three classes during the month of October. The classes are on Thursdays, form 9-10:30 or in the evening from 7-8:30. You don’t need any experience or knowledge of art to participate in this fun experience! Currently there are no volunteers for any of the 1st grade classes. Contact Amy Helbig at 832-9361.
ECA – Extra Curricular Activity Tax Credit – also not a PTO fundraising activity – but a very worthwhile opportunity for you to direct your tax dollars where you want them. We will not give out tax advice – but if you pay taxes – you can probably partake in this! We highly recommend all 4th, 5th, and 6th grade parents seriously look into this as a way to pay for your child’s field trips – and best yet – you get the money back on your tax return! For more information on this – please contact Jim Dabbs at 373-9316.
Grocery Store linkage – Lara Mugge is heading up this campaign. This is an easy way to earn money for our school; all you have to do is link your card to the Zaharis school account – and shop. The stores will keep track of your spending and send us money. Last year we only had 12 cards linked to Basha’s and we brought in $130. We have the potential to earn up to $2000 from each store, Basha’s, Fry’s, Albertsons, and Safeway. Nancy has flyers in the office and if you want us to email it to you – just ask!
Entertainment Book Fundraiser – we kicked off our fundraiser this week – Kathy Reed is chairing this event. We earned approx $6000 last year on this easy fund raiser.
Treasury Report – not much to report as of yet. We have approx $8,400 in our account.
Directory reminder – final calls are being made this week to finish up the student list. Final ad requests went out this week. We would like to begin composing this by the 23rd of Sept. We are shooting to send it to the publisher by the first week of October.
Three door prizes were given out – a t-shirt, water bottle, and entertainment book. (My apologies – I didn’t catch the names of the winners!)
The next PTO Board meeting will be held on Sept. 26th at 8 am.
The next PTO Community meeting will be TBD.