EAST GREENWICH HOME AND SCHOOL ASSOCIATION

Minutes for the Meeting of November 20, 2012

  1. The Home and School Meeting was called to order at 7:05 PM. The Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag was recited.
  2. Minutes of the September 18, 2012 Home and School Association (H&S) meeting were approved.
  3. Officer Reports
  4. Recording Secretary
  5. Nothing to report.
  6. Corresponding Secretary
  7. Nothing to report.
  8. Treasurer
  9. Available funds are $11,670.90
  10. The Craft Fair line will be updated for Kitchen expenses once received.
  11. The H&S tax return will be posted on the H&S website as required by law.
  12. Service Chair
  13. Service requests received include
  14. Jessica Lensi: a card reader; $40.53 plus shipping; approved.
  15. Mary Ann Gianotti: treasure chests for rewards to encourage positive behaviors; $28; denied. Speculative writing assignment props; $27; approved.
  16. Stacy Kuhen: breakfast for 10 local veterans as part of Veterans Day celebration at the Clark School; $35; approved.
  17. Mr. Meyer: Dessert Theatre, the parents’ activity workshop at the Clark School; $82.05; approved.
  18. Mr. Meyer: lunch for 57 veterans participating in the Clark School’s Veterans Day celebration; $199.50; approved.
  19. Mrs. Humble: rug for classroom; $50; approved with the stipulation that the rug be designated as school property and remain in the classroom.
  20. Mrs. Meeks: Lego Robotics Club service request was approved January 17, 2011 for $1,846.45 but needs to be revised and reduced. The final amount is expected to be approximately one half of the original request; approved.
  21. Mr. Marchesani: the Mickle School “Hornet 100” program was discussed. In this program, all staff members and aides receive tickets, which are carried in their lanyards. A student is awarded a ticket/s for Random Acts of Kindness, good scores, etc. The student writes his/her name on the ticket and deposits it in a bin in his/her homeroom. Each week a ticket is drawn in the homeroom. The winning student chooses from four prizes, including a free snack (paid by the School Activities Fund (SAF)); a gym game of his/her choice; the opportunity to wear a favorite hat in school the next day; and no homework in one subject. All tickets are emptied into a large bin. When the volume of tickets reaches a black line on the bin, all students receive a prize, such as a one-time additional amount of recess. Monthly, one ticket is drawn from the large bin. The staff member or aide who awarded the ticket wins a $10 gift card. Mr. Marchesani would like to add a weekly drawing from the big bin, with the student on the ticket receiving a $5 gift card. Theresa Wordelmann mentioned that comments had been directed to her by members of the community regarding the reward program for the teachers – specifically its purpose and its necessity. Mr. Marchesani responded that the purpose of the program is to praise and reward students outside of the classroom, and, build staff morale and provide an incentive. $300 requested, to be allocated $100 for monthly staff gift cards and $200 for weekly student gift cards. H&S requested that the $200 for students be considered for funding by the SAF; $90 approved for staff gift cards, to be disbursed $30 for items already purchased and $60 for future purchases, pending submission of appropriate paperwork and documentation.
  22. Theresa Wordelmann recommended the H&S Board revisit its expectations of items it will fund, since the School Board has tightened its restrictions on the use of the SAF. The SAF was used in previous years to support Veterans Day activities.
  23. Principal’s Report
  24. Mr. Meyer, Clark School, was unable to attend the meeting. He provided a report, which was read to membership and is as follows. Clark School enrollment is at 583 and climbing. National Education Week started on Monday, November 12 with a Veterans Day celebration. Fifty-five past and present members of the military were honored by a lunch and patriotic songs. Parent Visitation Day, November 13, was extremely well attended and allowed educators to demonstrate the many academic activities their children are involved in each and every day. Wednesday, November 14 was Birthday Kids Table for July, August and November birthdays. All students will have a birthday table before Mr. Meyer retires on February 28. On November 15 and 16, Beginner parents and grandparents attended lunch. Lunch will be held for First Grade parents and grandparents in January and Second Grade parents and grandparents in February. November 15 was also Dessert Theatre, a parents’ workshop. It was well attended and plenty of information was presented about how to enhance your child’s education at home. Second Grade MAP testing results will be sent home to parents in December. A monthly outdoor picnic will be held on Wednesday, November 21, called the Thanksgiving Day picnic. Students will be invited to the microphone to share the things that they are thankful for. On December 6 at 6:30 PM at Clark there will be the Lights of Love and Tree Lighting Ceremony. Second Grade students will perform and the Fourth Grade students will play chimes. The Winter Concerts will be at 1:30 PM on the following days: Beginners, Tuesday, December 18; First Grade, Wednesday, December 19; Second Grade, Thursday, December 20. All grade levels will perform the same day of their program in the morning for the entire school.
  25. Mr. Marchesani, Mickle School,mentioned the Hornet Hundred program being implemented to encourage good behavior through rewards. The Halloween parade went well, especially the dancing. The Scarecrow “Recyclecrow” contest by Mrs. Benedetto had many interesting entries. Report cards were sent home today. Academic achievement was recognized with the Superintendent’s List and the Principal’s List. The 6th Grade Dance, decorations, and food were wonderful and it was a good time. Students are voting for four different slogans. The winning slogan will be used on the website. Examples are “Earn more than a nickel if you learn at Mickle.” And “Today a Hornet, tomorrow a leader.” The new hornet mascot, designed by Mrs. Benedetto, is named Buzz. Mr. Marchesani indicated that Dr. Chiodi and Ms. Lewis are handling the ASK test results, and he is not aware of the school’s ranking on the tests. The new ASK test system does indicate how students rank against all others in the Fall testing and then again in the Spring; and, shows student growth over time. He stated that writing skills across the county need improvement, while Math skills were good. At this time, there were no plans for an acknowledgement of Academic Achievement. Teachers had reported to Mr. Marchesani that some children had difficulty accepting that they did not do well. It was suggested that some sort of recognition could take place either at a School Board meeting or an evening event at the school.
  26. Committee Reports
  27. Membership
  28. Membership for 2012-2013 is approximately 300 families.
  1. Ice Cream Social
  2. Date to be determined.
  3. Market Day
  4. The Cookie Dough Sale is being organized.
  5. Halloween Sale
  6. Completed at approximately $130. The check has been delayed due to Hurricane Sandy. It was suggested this be revisited as a fundraiser for next year.
  7. ShopRite Gift Cards
  8. New cards were ordered and many have been sold. Going forward, we plan to partner with Great Lakes Scrip; families are able to purchase gift cards online to numerous stores. Information will be forthcoming in the new year.
  9. Spirit Wear
  10. The sale has been completed. Some ornaments are available. The new Hornet logo is a hit. They would like to consider donating a portion of any sales of ornaments made at the Wrap and Roll to Hurricane Sandy victims.
  11. 6th Grade
  12. H&S Vice President Lynne McCabe will assist in the processing of payments in order to ensure that confidentiality is maintained. The Sixth Grade trip will be to Baltimore on May 30, 2013.
  13. Turkey Trot
  14. Tee shirts are in. There are currently 40 children registered for the one mile run, which is new this year.As in previous years, teachers and staff have been supportive by registering to walk, run, and volunteer. For the third year in a row, Mrs. Dell has promoted the event to her students with the offer to walk the course with her. Additional volunteers are needed to monitor the course. Because of the construction, this year’s course is entirely new and all on pavement.
  15. Pouch Brigade
  16. Juice pouches must now be submitted in 13 pound increments to TerraCycle. Though unlikely to raise significant funds, membership is happy to do something good for the environment.
  17. Student Art
  18. The program will not expand to a year-round effort at another company, since the committee has only one member who is unable to devote additional time.
  19. Labels for Education
  20. No report.
  21. Box Tops
  22. First shipment sent out. Volunteers are needed to help cut. Box tops taped to the decorative sheets of paper must be ripped off the paper and bundled before being submitted.
  23. Craft Show
  24. The show went well though attendance was low, possibly due to competition by Washington Township’s craft show also held that day. Perhaps holding it earlier in the future will make a positive impact on attendance? New co-chair appointed to work with vendors for 2013-14, but we will need to find co-chair for volunteers and luncheonette coordinator.
  1. Old Business
  2. School Pictures
  3. Baldwin Studios and LifeTouch will be invited to present at the March H&S meeting. Attending members will then vote for 2013/2014 photography services

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  1. New York Life
  2. Financial planning overview with Pete Curran has been set for the January H&S meeting.
  1. New Business
  2. Lights of Love/Tree Lighting Ceremony
  3. Benefits the East Greenwich Education Foundation, which puts on the Summer Program. Motion approved to provide $50 for a gift card for a “good” Santa if a payment request is submitted by Toni Grdinich. The time conflict with Market Day distribution was addressed by the Market Day committee. H&S will supply candy canes for Santa to distribute.
  4. Wrap and Roll
  5. The event will take place after the Lights of Love. It will run from about 7:15 PM to 8:30 PM in the cafeteria. Each grade level is donating items beginning November 26 through December 5th. Each grade level’s gifts will be set up at a separate table and wrapped in color coded paper by grade level teachers if they volunteer. Volunteers are still needed. There will be a DJ and snacks. The wrapped gifts will be donated to Hurricane Sandy victims.
  6. Retiring chairpersons from Craft Show, Market Day, and Membership
  7. Volunteers are needed for the 2013-14 school year.
  8. Pencil Drive
  9. Idea to hold a pencil drive to replenish classroom supplies. After the holidays. We will organize this activity, requesting families donate their surplus pencils (think those collected from goody bags, e.g.) - preferably those with erasers and without bite marks.
  10. Idea to hold a Used Board Game Drive to replenish games in the classrooms. Dominos are especially popular. Flyers will be sent out after the holidays.
  11. Final Friday Spirit Day
  12. Mr. Marchesani has talked to Mr. Conroy. On the second and fourth Fridays of each month, the staff wears Jeans for a Cause. Thus it was suggested that the first and third Fridays be designated as days to wear Spirit wear or school colors.
  13. Questions and Comments
  14. None.
  15. Adjourn
  16. Meeting adjourned at 8:29 PM.

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