Minutes of PTO meeting 9/22/15
*Meeting was called to order at 6:00
* Minutes of meeting on 8/18/15 were reviewed and approved.
* Dr. Castillo reviewed Site Council information
-Santa Maria will offer intersession tutoring the M-W of Spring Break.
~This is a change from the Saturday school & after school options tried in the past.
~There will be buses provided for student transportation.
- Smart Boards
~8 teachers will be receiving them, 12 received them last year.
- American Dream Academy classes are still open for parents to join
~Two sessions are offered on Thursdays, one in the morning, one in the evening
~ The programs purpose is to help parents be educational advocates for their children.
~Students are given a dress down incentives when parents attend.
~Mrs. Rueda asked if perhaps parents of middle school aged kids are not considering
college preparation yet.
- Proud Choices Sex Ed. Classes
~Offered to all middle school students by Pima Health in conjunction with the district.
~Students must attend with their parents.
~no longer open to join since program ends soon.
* Snack Shack update
- Cheese Crackers and goldfish have been tried but have not sold well.
- Cannot order cold items since Costco trucks are not refrigerated.
- Takis are still the #1 seller
* Chairs
- PTO had previously decided to help the school purchase chairs for the classroom.
- District has provided the school with about a dozen from other schools.
- Dr. Castillo said that the chairs will be about $30 each and we would need about 200 of them.
-The question was posed about why we are focusing on chairs when that should be provided by
the district.
~District has not received capital funding from the legislature since 2008. This type of
funding covers furniture and books.
~Teachers are currently shuffling and scheduling chairs for classes. This takes away from
class time.
~ The chairs we have are broken and are becoming a hazard to student safety when
they pinch or collapse.
- Mrs. Breit has connections at channel 12 and they are willing to do a news story about our
efforts as soon as we complete the Tax Exempt paperwork.
~ Assurances were made that it would not paint the district in a negative way.
* Mrs. Breit is having her legal service review and assist us with our 501(c 3) status.
* Garage Sale
- The date was decided for November 7th
- Parking spots will be sold for $10 each. Vendors will keep their profits.
- PTO will donate one spot for Art Club to sell their work.
-Food vendors will only be allowed to sell if they have a food handler’s card and vendor’s
license.
- A preliminary announcement flier will be sent home with students before Fall Break.
- Face painting, snack shack and an art sale will be included.
Minutes of 9/22/15 cont’d.
* Financial Review
- The PTO books are available for anyone to see. Please contact Mrs. Padilla if you would like to do so.
- Currently waiting on a band deposit slip
- Mrs. Padilla review each individual account and the general PTO account
The fund raisers that currently feed into this fund are:
- Snack Shack
- Coupon Book sales
- School Yard Sale
- Penny Wars
-The distribution of PTO funds was decided. Following is the breakdown:
~20% to each grade level
~5% to Special Olympics and Unified Club
~10% to Art (9% for class and 1% for art club)
~5% to Band for instrument upkeep and repair, not for travel
~5% to Library
~15% for general use
- The following fundraisers run through PTO but do not go into the general PTO funds, they go directly to the organization:
- After school dances – band
- Candy Sales – band
- Water Sales – PE
- Student Council sells Spirit Shirts and some school supplies, but all their profits go into the carnival. They do not profit from the carnival they do it as a community outreach.
-Yearbook sell the yearbooks but they are not looking to make a profit this year, they are trying to lower the cost so more student can get one.
-It was approved that PTO will purchase plastic sleeves for the student ID’s at a cost of $95 for 800 of them
- Ms. Banuelos mentioned that Red Robin restaurants have a rewards program that can be linked to our school as a fundraiser. 10 % of your bill is donated each time you use the card.
- Mrs. Breit asked about making vinyl “SMMS Bulldogs” window decals to sell as a fundraiser.
She will look into the cost of the supplies.
- Ms. Banuelos discussed the condition of the furniture in the library and how she would like to have new.
~Mrs. Rueda is going to ask her father-in-law, who does upholstery, if he could re-upholster them for a cut rate or as a donation.
~It was also suggested Ms. Banuelos look into Habitat for Humanity or Goodwill and to ask local furniture stores for deals or donation.
- Coupon books will begin next week.
~They are $20 each.
~Students will be able to have sample books.
-The school raised $110 from Peter Piper Night
~It was suggested that we don’t do these events on Friday nights again due to crowds.
~How was the money split? Since we are not familiar with these fundraisers, it was asked if $110 was a lot.
* Yearbook
- Using a new company this year.
- Pages will be customizable
- Trying to lower cost to $15
- On-line orders will be $24
- Ms. Bisom asked PTO to donate a few books when they come in for incentives.
* Next Meeting is Jan. 12. 2016
* Meeting was adjourned at 7:33.