FMS PTSA Board of Directors Meeting Minutes
September 10th, 2007
12:00-2:00 pm at the Conference Room
(Minutes approved for permanent record on 10/08/07)
In attendance were Jenny Parks VP of Volunteers, Jeanne Stillman PTSA Membership, Amy Farris Co-President, Lynne Fuller (forTonya Bofto) LIT, Jackie Ferguson CVP of Fundraising, Sally Freed Logo Wear, Elizabeth Nordi State Legislative Rep, Julie Beaudette VP Communications, Joan Mullene Newsletter Editor, John Waldren FMS Principal, and Silvana Dice Secretary.
1- LOGO WEAR UPDATE- SALLY FREED: - Sally gave us an update on the Logo Wear choices voted on by the students. She mounted the kidÕs choices on a visual aid display and shared which Logo had received the most votes. She will have a pre order ready for sale at the upcoming Open House on 09/13/07. So far, the PTSA items for sale are: white t-shirts, hooded sweat shirts, flannel shorts and pajamas. It was suggested that additional items such as girls fitted long length t-shirts, and water bottles be offered. Sally will check availability and costs with the GO USA distributor. Sally requested funds to purchase totes and receipt books, and it was ok by Amy. Up for vote at the next general meeting is a $ 5.00 gift coupon or a t-shirt from Logo Wear for the Student of the Month Program.
2- VOLUNTEERS-JENNY PARKS. Jenny updated the board on the scope of her involvement with the PTSA this year. She will email each pair of Parent Volunteer Coordinators the current volunteer needs based on the Volunteer Caller Schedule. They will in turn get commitments from the volunteers. Upcoming needs for volunteer service are the PTSA Membership table, Logo Wear during Open House, and CHAOS day. Cindy Fraley needs to contact Jenny about the magazine sales volunteer needs.
3- JULIE BEAUDETTER-COMMUNICATIONS. Tom made a motion to increase the communication budget to $ 1,800.00, to include outsourcing the newsletter assembling to Office Depot. John shared that he would pick up the postage cost involved. The board voted in favor of the motion. That will eliminate the need to secure parent volunteers to assemble the newsletter. The newsletter needs to be kept at a maximum of five pages. Julie shared that assembling the newsletter requires a significant commitment of time and effort on her part. The increase in communication funding stands in need of a vote during the General Membership Meeting on Tuesday the 25th of September at 6:30 pm.
4- TREASURER REPORT- TOM DIETRICH- Amy Farris and Silvana Dice attended the internal audit review with former PTSA treasurer, since Tom was vacationing during that time. It all seemed in Iine with the Standing Rules. It was signed and dated. PTSA account balance as of 8/31/07 is $ 6, 537.72 on checking, and $10, 377.96 on savings. Box Top ED for reimbursements is currently at $ 500.00. To contact Tom call 663-8937 @ home, 667-2922 @ his office or email dietrichfamily@hotmail.com.
5- LIT REPORT- LYNNE FULLER SITING IN FOR TANYA BOFTO. Budget issues approved to support school improvement efforts, i.e. buying collaborative time and professional development. LIT team to rotate sending representatives to the Board Meetings.
6- FUNDRAISER UPDATE- JACKIE FERGUSON. 2 FOR 1 and Box Tops sales to continue. New this year is Office Depot Recycling for Printer Ink. Amy brought up a Silent Auction with Spaghetti Feed as an item for fundraising. Item up for discussion at upcoming General Meeting.
7- MEMBERSHIP REPORT- JEANNA STILLMAN. PTSA Membership currently at 126 members. Item # 6 on the PTSA Standing Rules has increased as of last spring; item stands in need to be voted on at the General Membership Meeting. Changes to standing rules to be emailed to Tom Dietrich.
8- Amy Farris-Co President. General Membership Meetings will take place on the 2nd Wednesdays of the month from 6:30-8:30 p.m. John to address Òhot topicsÓ such as My Space/You Tube, and Gangs. Chad needs to be in on the decision making process for the above topics. 6th grade camp volunteer to be recruited at the Open House. Amy mentioned she would like to see an Art Week to take place at Foothills from 10/8-10/11. John suggested that it be Òpush backÓ to May due to upcoming 6th grade camp. A discussion took place on how to involve Ruth Mattson, Sandra Lancaster, Jackie Ferguson and Lisa in the art week effort. Amy would like to see the kids still prepare holiday gifts to bring it home somehow. Amy and Angela to be introduced at the Open House. Make Your Day activities to include a hip-hop instructor. The water slides MYD activity is up in the air for discussion to be suspended, as per John. Amy would like to introduce a Culinary Cooking idea to expose the kids to the art of cooking or food exploration. John added that the schoolÕs kitchen is still fully functional and could be used at perhaps an after school Cooking Club. Someone could come once a month and do Demos. The club could include 6th-8th graders. Amy likes the idea of Banking Days at the school. John would like more information on it, because of the liability that money transactions at school would carry.
9- JOHN WALDREN- PRINCIPAL. John mentioned that the breakfast served during the first day of school was appreciated. The 8th grade core position left by Renee Wilson has been at the moment filled by Leah on a substitute basis. John is working with the district to finalize the details of how this will play out. The Mark OÕDonnell Memorial Fund offers $ 500, 00 for education. John would like to see something similar to help memorialize Mrs. Wilson. He suggested a ÒWho Am I as an AmericanÓ Scholarship for 8th graders. It would culminate as the result of what they learned in their US History class during the school year. The award would then be presented at the 8th grade awards night. John mentioned that the Windows Expressions would cost about $ 40 per teacher and would reflect what personalizes them. This item was not up for vote at the General Meeting yet. John talked about the 4 RÕs to refocuses Foothills as a learning community. They are: Relationships, Academic Rigor, Respect and Relevance. The District Survey results were also touched on. A third of the parents responded to the survey. John would like to see an increase in the level of responses. The two areas of focus from the survey were studentÕs respect for diversity factors, and intervention for at risk students. John brought up some ideas of how to start tackling these two issues. The use of the newsletter to communicate ideas to Foothill families was mentioned. More discussions on this at the next board meeting. It was mentioned that the State platform for this year is diversity. John ended his remarks with the question: ÒWhat does this mean for Foothills?Ó
10- Adjournment: 10/08/07