McKenzie General PTA Meeting Minutes
October 7, 2014
McKenzie Cafeteria
I. Welcome – President , Cynthia Milne
Cynthia called the meeting to order at 9:20 a.m. She asked for any additions to the agenda. There were no additions. A motion was made to approve the September 2014 General Board Meeting Minutes. It was seconded and approved. Cynthia introduced Colin Wehman, the P.E. Teacher and last year’s Fun Run teacher lead with Mr. Moraschan. He was asked to read the acknowledgement letter that the PTA received for a gift of approximately $2,500 (proceeds from the Fun Run) provided to Carmen Buckner for new gym and playground equipment (See Exhibit 1).
II. Faculty Report – Jennifer Weil
Jennifer Weil reported that Casey Abrams (a former McKenzie student and accomplished musician) will be visiting McKenzie tomorrow to meet with the 1st-4th Graders about his experience at McKenzie and how grit and persistence helped his dreams come true.
Nurse- looking for donations of pants, leggings, shorts, boy’s underwear and socks to keep on hand in the office.
Art – Students are finishing up Color Review Process and encouraged parents to look at her website which includes projects that can be done at home. Currently, students are working on bike rack designs as part of a District 39 Educational Foundation project.
Technology – 1st Grade- Logging in and mouse skills; 2nd Grade – Photobooth and Word, 3rd Grade – gmail and e-mails; 4th grade – Internet Safety.
Kindergarten-Students are working on telling stories in their journals with pictures and words. They will also be filling up their book boxes with "just right" books. They are busy exploring numbers 1-10 working in their new colorful workbooks. Next week, Kindergarten will be participating in a fire safety presentation. There will also be a visit from Mad Science to explore magnets, which will kick off our unit on Properties.
1st Grade – This month 1st graders are building terrariums to accompany the garden habitat unit. The children are loving the Monday and Friday recess option in the garden. Very popular! The kids are psyched about the book fair. The new Social Studies curriculum has introduced citizenship into classroom routines, especially the read alouds as a great way to integrate oral storytelling and the essential questions or what makes a leader.
2nd Grade – Students are working on the sun, moon & stars unit and doing experiments outside with shadows and sunlight; students will be visiting The Grove for their Social Studies Unit; working on place value in Math; personal narratives in Writing Unit.
3rd Grade – Third grade continues to learn about a plant’s life cycle by observing Wisconsin Fast Plants as their structures develop. Third grade classes will be visiting Heller Nature Center, courtesy of the PTA, to do hands-on activities related to plant structures and functions, and the Illinois prairie. They have been reading both nonfiction and fiction text related to our plant unit. In math they have worked with addition and subtraction through 10,000 and are learning to use bar models to represent addition and subtraction problems.
4th Grade – The fourth graders have been enjoying their science unit of "Land and Water” and will be visiting the water filtration plant in Wilmette this month in connection with the unit. They have started switching for math groups to study multiplication and division. This unit includes terms such as factors, multiples, prime, and composite numbers. The students are learning about “empathy” during their Second Step lessons. The fourth grade teachers would like to thank the PTA for highlighting the Reading Rally books in the Book Fair again this year.
III. Principal Report – Dr. Denise Welter
Dr. Welter thanked the PTA for the Book Fair. In previous years, we have used our proceeds to build our library and reference materials. With that need met for this year, the school is looking at the opportunity to purchase Document Cameras with Scholastic Dollars. Document Cameras are used in the classroom which enable the teachers to project books, experiments, math problems, etc. onto the Smart Boards so that the entire classroom can view it. Close to 50% of the teachers have Document Cameras – the goal is to provide all classrooms with Document Cameras. Currently, a camera that Scholastic sells is being tested by a classroom teacher. If it meets the needs of the school, Scholastic Dollars will be used to purchase Document Cameras through Scholastic. If not, the school will take cash and purchase cameras through another vendor. Dr. Welter reported that Jewel/Osco has selected McKenzie as their charitable organization to receive $1,000 as part of their grand reopening celebration. In addition, Dr. Welter received approximately $850 from Target for the school (by parents allocating a percentage of their Target credit card purchases to McKenzie). Both of these donations will go toward Document Cameras. A lock-down drill will take place next week - Wilmette Police Department will be assisting. All new doors have push locks on the inside which speeds up the lock down drill in the classrooms. Teachers have been busy rolling out new math and social studies curriculum (based on stories). Dr. Welter expressed interest in presenting at the next General Board meeting to share more information about the Social Studies Curriculum. She encouraged parents to support the Wilmette Rotary Book Drive – boxes are in the lobby – children and adults, nonfiction and fiction, and reference books are welcome.
IV. Executive Board Member Reports & Updates
President, Cynthia Milne – Thanked committee (Rebecca Lieber, MaryAnne O’Keefe, Kim Peters, Chris Peterson, Brenda Werth). Handbooks were distributed and much positive feedback was received. When Exec Board positions are vacated mid-term, the Exec Board elects the replacement. When presented with the recent vacated position of Enrichment-Elect, the board elected Robyn Schaefer to fill the position. She will continue next year as the Enrichment VP. Thank you to Robyn for volunteering her time. Thanks were given to Shari Gottlieb and Kelly Warner who volunteered to jointly fill the McKenzie Monitor Editor position. Positions still available include: Bike Safety Co-Chair, Lost & Found, Open Gym Nights, and Yearbook Deputy Editor. Volunteers are needed in order for these programs to continue.
Treasurer, Kathy Owen – Distributed the monthly financial report for September (Exhibit 2). Receipts included Birthday Books, Membership and Print Directory. Disbursements included several events (1st Day Coffee, Ice Cream Social, New Parent Reception) and dues paid to Illinois PTA. Kathy thanked Committee Chairs and Budget Committee members for their help in putting together the 2014-2015 budget. Highlighted key differences from previous years: 1) this is not a benefit year; 2) transitioning from Grocery Dollars to Scrip program; 3) Increased Cash Reserve; 4) New Programs include Moms Night Out and Parents Night Out (community building events in non-benefit year); 5) School Gift from prior year surplus to provide a Lobby Monitor (a screen with rolling feed to publicize activities and events) in the entryway. A motion was made to approve the 2014-15 budget. It was seconded and approved unanimously. (Exhibit 3)
Communications, Kim Peters – Reported that first Cheetah Chat newsletter to all parents went out and 75% people opened the e-mail.
President-elect, Rebecca Lieber – Reported on Charging for Cheetahs Program (Scrip) which is replacing Grocery Dollar Program as a fundraiser. The Scrip program includes ecards and reloads on gift cards (purchased as needed) and three orders for physical gift cards (September, November, May) that will be delivered by Charging for Cheetahs Committee. More than 700 stores participate, 250 using electronic gift cards, and give back varying percentages on purchases to McKenzie. Rebecca showed an instructional video. Questions and answers about the program were discussed: 1) Are reloadable cards secure? They are to be treated like cash and any other gift cards. As they look identical to regular gift cards, should one be lost, there is no way that someone else could reload the card using the existing bank information; 2) What vendors participate in the program? A complete list of vendors is available on the PTA website, including the percentage that each store gives back to the school, along with whether the gift cards are available in plastic, reloadable plastic or electronic ScripNow versions; 3) Can PTA members only participate in the next plastic card order (scheduled for early November)? To place an order, you must be signed up and bank verified through ShopwithScrip.com. Contact for instructions on how to sign up and begin using your shopping dollars to support McKenzie. Charging for Cheetahs Committee is also looking for volunteers to help with marketing and administration of the program.
Treasurer-Elect, Sarah Fox – Reported that progress is being made on revising 2015-16 budget timing to get in line with the PTA fiscal year. Looking to have a budget approved and completed by this spring with a fiscal year that starts in July, instead of passing a budget in October. She reported on being in contact with other PTA’s to gather information on their processes. Besides moving the mechanics of the budget process forward, the PTA will look at moving up the Committee Chair recruitment so as many volunteers can be involved as possible.
Enrichment, Rebecca Guryan – Rebecca reported that enrichment programs in September and October included: Kindergarten: Mad Science/Magnets, 1st Grade: Science in Resident-Julie Zelke, 2nd Grade: Science of Sound-Guy Louis, 3rd Grade: Heller Nature Center Field Trip, 4th Grade: Water Treatment Plant Field Trip. Exploring ideas for in-school enrichment programs in March and May when it is not possible for kids to travel due to uncertainty of testing dates that will be allocated to McKenzie. Week of Nov. 17th – Library Week – librarian seeking professionals to come in and read to the kids in their professional attire/uniforms. Volunteers will also be asked to talk about ways in which persistence and resilience has played a role in their professional lives.
Fundraising, Jacquie Rayment – Reported on Spirit Wear – sales were down from last year which is likely due to decreased enrollment in Kindergarten and 1st Grade since that group has constituted the majority of buyers in the past. Suggestions were received and will be implemented, such as including more accessories and more items for boys. Next sale will be first two weeks of November in time for holiday purchases. There have been three Cheetah Attacks – reminded members to remember Cheetah Spirit as a way to commemorate a special event. Reported on New Parent Reception – approximately 40 parents attended at the Avenue; it was a nice way for new families to meet each other and to meet Committee Chairs and Executive Board members while learning about PTA opportunities.
Room Parents, Wendy Witzel – Wendy reported there are lot of wonderful plans to celebrate the teachers this year. She is looking for additional volunteers to serve on Teacher Appreciation Committee. Kick off meeting will be held on Monday, Oct. 13 at 9:15. First Teacher Appreciation Event is the Fall Conference Dinner on Nov. 13th. Plans are to cater the meal and ask for volunteers to provide drinks and desserts. Thanked Roland Rayment for Chairing Civics & Safety Committee this year. Roland will be attending the Village Wide meetings and sharing information with the Exec and General Board, which will be a big help.
V. Committee Chair Reports
Casey Brown, Book Fair – All the volunteers who co-chaired the Book Fair (Marya Lundstedt, Jo Kim, Colleen Shinners and Casey Brown) were thanked and applauded. Casey also thanked all the volunteers who helped run the program. Estimated/to date gross sales are $ 20,665.23, which is an increase from last year. This year online sales yielded more than $100 in sales, an increase from last year. It is worth continuing next year. Committee Chairs are working with Dr. Welter with how to spend the money – either through Scholastic Dollars (which is double the take) or cash which will help purchase Document Cameras for the classrooms. Teacher wish list and Carmen Buckner Wish List were well received. Used Book Drive collected approximately 400 books for Carmen Buckner and Rotary book drive.
Jennifer Campolieto, Garden and Power up to Play – The gardens are open during recess; looking for volunteers through Monday, October 20th. Fun Run has been scheduled for May 16, 2015. Power up to Play Nutrition and Exercise Night is scheduled for January 23rd.
FAN, Louisa Kunzler – Andrew Solomon will be speaking at New Trier East about his book The Noonday Demon on October 23rd. Lawrence Steinberg will be talking on Nov. 3rd at Evanston High School about his research on adolescents. Christine Ferdinand will be taking over as FAN Liaison for McKenzie. Everyone thanks Louisa for her work as the FAN Liaison for the past year.
Green Committee, Alicia Cirrincione - Reported on Environmental Week activities taking place this week. Kids are filling out Power Promises and posting them on the Bulletin Board so they can be reminded of their promise. During this weeks’ festivities, volunteers with the children will help with composting kitchen garbage for the garden. Wednesday is Walk to School Day – need volunteers for Walking Buses which start at 8:10 a.m. at Wilmette & Ridge and at Wilmette & Forest. Thursday is Waste Free Lunch – send your child with recyclable containers and pack only amount expected to be eaten; any unopened lunch items will be collected and donated to the New Trier Food Pantry. Friday is Halloween Costume Freecycle – come to the blacktop after school and share Halloween costumes. Also collecting bottle caps, used athletic shoes, butter tubs for Art.