Meeting Minutes

June 10, 2010 PTO Meeting Minutes
Meeting was called to order at 6:37 p.m.

Principal’s Report – Mrs. Poglitsch
a)       Mrs. Poglitsch – scheduling for next year; they try to make balanced classes, social needs, gender balancing; class placement will be mailed home the end of August (most likely last week of August)
b)       Grades K-1 Open House will be 9/14/10 from 6-7; grades 2-5 will be two weeks later, 9/28/10
c)       School Wellness Policy – has been approved, with clarification in the language which was revised to state things like “schools must offer healthy food options” & “all food fund raisers must be approved by school administrators.” It does not limit the school to only 1 food fund raiser each school year.
d)       If any parent would like to part of the Center Road PBS (Positive Behavior Support) team, let Mrs. Poglitsch know; it involves 6 days of workshops; 2 consecutive days 3 different months of the year (exact dates will follow) The parents role would be an interactive with the school to help establish & implement rules/behaviors in entire school.
e)       Math packets – a letter will go home next week stating the packet will be able to be accessed on-line (students will have an access code) so they can log on & start working on it.   A Limited number of packets will be available to be sent home. Students do not need to hand anything in at the beginning of the school year but the school would like to encourage students to work on it so they’re trying to think of ideas to reward the kids.

President’s Report
a)       Committee Chair – continue to update your committee task/to do lists.
b)       Nancy and Barb thank all PTO members for their help in making this past year a success!

1^st Vice President’s Report
a)       Open Committees: Grants, Welcome Wagon, School Newspaper, School Spirit – refer to website for details on each committee. Please join & help your child’s school!

2^nd Vice President’s Report
a)       Staff Appreciation – Mrs. Wilde said she received several emails stating the teachers & staff very much appreciate the food/gifts given by the PTO!
b)       Some great ideas went around for teacher appreciation – we can spend the same amount of money in the appreciation fund but have 2 lunches in November & May instead of various appreciation events throughout the year
c)       Mrs. Wilde has collected $147.50 from returned bottles (for the tree!)
d)       We will start recycling ink cartridges immediately. Mrs. Wilde also spoke about Crayon & Crazy Crayon recycling program; company provides a bin to collect & we could put in the school store. Looking for volunteers to look into this.

Secretary’s Report
a)       A motion was made to accept the May PTO Meeting Minutes; motion moved & accepted.

Treasurer’s Report
a)       $9,000 was paid out this month;
a.        Income side
                                                               i.      Butter Braids $1,955
                                                              ii.      Mixed Bag fundraiser – net about $1,800
                                                            iii.      YTD income is $23,000
b.       Expense side
                                                               i.      $8,000 assemblies & cultural arts
                                                              ii.      Playscape, new basketball hoop, 5^th grade field trip
                                                            iii.      $800 for Roadrunner folders; over $1,000 for 3-5 grade agendas
                                                            iv.      We’ll have spent roughly $11,000-$12,000 by year end

b)       A motion was made to accept June 2010 Treasurer’s Report; motion moved & accepted.

Board of Ed Report
a)       They are discussing whether or not to add another ½ day kindergarten & 1 first grade class at CRS.

Committee Reports
a)       Mixed Bag Design fundraiser – made a profit of $1,898
b)       If anyone needs gift cards over the summer, email Laura Eppler at Eppler@snet.net
c)       School Rewards – Price Chopper triangle for music
d)       Campbell Soup program – Amy Shane submitted 1,300 labels & also filled out a community bonus (max 4 times) to receive 500 points a piece to receive 2,000 extra points, we now have 12,574 points
e)       Grants – Angela Vernola & her team met with other schools to discuss grants & will meet with Mrs. Poglitsch in August to present what they have researched
f)        Yearbook – 5^th graders receive on 6/16; remaining student receive on 6/17
g)       5^th grade recognition – we have gifts for teachers retiring – can we get on 5^th grade recognition agenda to present them to teachers. 5^th graders will receive yearbooks on Wed, 6/16; remaining grades receive them 6/17. Follow-up with Sue Bassick & Monica Bardon to make sure they are taking care of hospitality.
h)       Rock Cats are Friday, June 25^th at 7:00 p.m.
i)         School Store – Price list needs to be updated; Mrs. Wilde mentioned teachers bring the students to school store to buy items
j)         CRS Sign – John Kopec gave an estimate of $120 (donating most of his time & work) – he opened a new company called Duncan & Fox in Vernon; landscaping around sign
k)       If anyone needs discount cards, contact Nancy 860-870-4047. Cards are also available in the office.

New Business
a)       Please keep any shoe boxes with tops that come off - Maureen Kermode (860-871-2751) is collecting them for a 5^th grade Assembly in the fall; call her & she will coordinate picking up/dropping off
b)       School bus volunteers needed for the first few days of school next year (6 people) needed for first few days of school – Thur, 9/2, Fri, 9/3 & Tue 9/7
c)       As part of back-to-school packet, add PTO flyer for parents to learn more about PTO and to fill out and return with their name, email etc.. Instead of sending flyers home with oldest siblings, we might try sending flyers home with youngest sibling.
d)       Rita’s Italian Ice/Custard PTO Fundraiser will be Wed, 6/16, from 5:30-8:30 – please come out & support CRS!
e)       A motion was made to accept below officers for 2010/2011 school year; motion moved & accepted:
a.        Nancy Sullivan, co-President
b.       Karen Aafedt, co-President
c.        Julie Polansky, 1^st Vice President
d.       Peggy Wilde, 2^nd Vice President
e.        Danielle Dumont, 2^nd Vice President
f.         Kelley Mathes, Secretary
g.       Mary Stone, Treasurer

Announcements
Meeting adjourned at 8:10 p.m.

Next Meeting is September 2010 – exact date & time TBD! Enjoy your summer!

May, 2010 PTO Meeting Minutes
Meeting was called to order at 6:50 p.m.

Dr. Katz, principal of VCMS, came to provide information and answer questions from parents for 5^th graders moving on to VCMS next school year.

Principal’s Report – Mrs. Poglitsch

a)       Please get out & vote on May 11^th! Center 375 (YMCA on Rt. 30)
b)       The PTO received awesome thank-you notes from 5th grade students thanking us for the yearbooks, dictionaries, Boston trip and new basketball hoop!!
c)       Mrs. Poglitsch visited the Book Fair and was very impressed!
d)       Parent/Teacher conferences went well. Mrs. Poglitsch in on several and thought the teachers did a great job.

President’s Report

a)       Committee Chairs – continue to update your committee tasks/to do lists
b)       Discount Cards are still available
c)       Reminder when you request a flyer to go home with students, please send the flyer to the administrative staff 5 business days prior to the day you’d like the flyer to go home for the event to get it sent out in a timely manner

1^st Vice President’s Report

a)       Open Committees: Appreciation; Welcome Wagon; Newspaper; School Spirit, Book Fair

2^nd Vice President’s Report

a)       Recycle bags we are selling for PTO are made from recycled materials;
b)       CRS is doing a great job recycling! Next week, 3^rd, 4^th & 5^th graders will be stuffing 5,000 flyers for the Town of Vernon to assist in their project to inform residents about recycling (and 5,000 households will also be receiving a new, large recycling barrel)
c)       CJ May came from Yale in early May; magician & storyteller who teaches children wonderful ideas about recycling – the kids loved him & we’d like to have him come every year in the April timeframe (to coincide with Earth Day which is the end of April but it normally falls during school vacation.)

Secretary’s Report

a)       A motion was made to accept the April PTO Meeting Minutes; motion moved & accepted.

Treasurer’s Report

a)       A motion was made to accept May 2010 Treasurer’s Report; motion moved & accepted.
b)       PTO spent $65.00 for appreciation items for CRS staff.
c)       PTO funded the Cyril May recycling assembly
d)       Over $3,000 was expended to fund the buses for one field trip for each grade, including the Coach buses for the 5th grade trip to Boston.
e)       $1,800 was expended for the purchase and installation of the new basketball hoop in the blacktop area.

Board of Ed Report

No Report

Committee Reports

a)       Book Fair April 26-30 –

Book Fair total sales were almost $6,500. This was about $75 more than the fall Book Fair. While we don’t benefit from any profits from this fair, this means our families stocked up on twice as many books!

We had $2,994.27 Scholastic Dollars (mostly from the Fall Fair) to redeem through Scholastic:
·         The Reading Program redeemed $908.29 Scholastic Dollars in books for the students who have been participating in the Monthly Reading Calendar. (Cash equivalent is $454.15).

·         The Library redeemed $791.58 Scholastic Dollars for a portion of books for all students (preK-4) to kick off the Governor’s Summer Reading Challenge. (Cash equivalent is $395.79).

·         The Library redeemed $292.55 Scholastic Dollars for books for the Library. (Cash equivalent is $146.28).

At this Book Fair we collected $14.05 in the One4Books box. We had $12.04 from the Fall Book Fair. The librarian used this money to buy new books for the Library.

FYI, next year’s Book Fairs are scheduled for Nov 29 – Dec 3, 2010 (for profit) and
April 25 – 29, 2011 (BOGO).

b)       Butter Braids are here! We made a profit of $1,985.
c)       Staff Appreciation Week – PTO funded 2 large fruit baskets which were placed in Teachers Lounge
d)       Mixed Bag Design fundraiser – mixed bag orders are due next week
e)       Gift Card – one more order before end of school year
f)        Scholarships – the 3 winners have been notified: Eric Thepsiri, Chelsea Clay & Mathieu Wheeler each received $850!   A motion was made to approve $300 additional for scholarship fund to cover the scholarships (only $750 was originally requested for each so we need $300 additional); motion moved & accepted. The winners have been asked to come to the PTO meeting in June so we can honor them (& have cake!)
g)       School Rewards – still waiting for 2 dye cuts; Price Chopper is closed & for Big Y, we can do another order in September
h)       Grants – Barry Grant who is technical contact for school; he informs us of what we can & can’t get, wiring for classrooms, etc. He will provide more information to help us make our decision
i)         Yearbook – should be here by middle of May but we will most likely wait until the end of the school year to give them to students; 5^th graders may get them a day earlier than the rest of the grades
j)         Rock Cats – Friday, June 25^th 7:00 p.m.
k)       Family Night – do we want to have a family night again this year, perhaps Rita’s Italian Ice? Kelley Mathes to call Rita’s to get more info, possibly for Friday, June 18^th.

Unfinished Business

a)       CRS Sign –Tamm Gessay received two quotes (both $2,000 from local companies) to have the sign refurbished and painted. We need to get a quote for trees/shrubs to put around the sign to present to the building facilities committee in order to get approval and go forward. Angela Vernola asked Karen Aafedt to provide her with the list to see if she can apply for a beautification grant from Lowe’s.

New Business

a)       Crayon & Crazy Crayon recycling program; company provides a bin to collect & we could put in the school store.

Announcements

Meeting adjourned at 8:04 p.m.

Next Meeting (last PTO meeting for this school year) is June 10, 2010 @ 6:00 p.m. We will begin the meeting by honoring our scholarship winners! Cake will be served! J

April 8, 2010 PTO Meeting Minutes
Meeting was called to order at 7:04 p.m.

Principal’s Report – Mrs. Poglitsch
a)       Report cards will go out next Friday, 4/16; parent/teacher conferences begin after school vacation, on 4/29 & 4/30
b)       The Road Runner Run is at 10:00 a.m. this Saturday, 4/20, at CRS (plan to arrive at 9:40). Please try to participate!!!
c)       Town council passed the budget! The Annual Town Meeting will be held on 4/27, 7:00 p.m. in the RHS auditorium
d)       Assemblies Committee – the committee has received state funding in the past but the state has suspended the funding; Julie Polansky said we receive money from the town (about $300) so Jocelyn is going to look into it. They are wondering if the PTO can fund some of the assemblies. Motion made to budget an additional $1,300 for the Assembly Committee. Motion moved & accepted.
e)       Idea for Sept - send out a reminder to parents; for
United Way
donations, you can select a local organization.

f)        Fundraising idea – recycle bags; a complete catalog of fun & useful recycle bags. Karen Mytych is going to research for us & let us know if we can try to do a fundraiser this school year.

President’s Report

a)       Nancy Sullivan asked if some type of communication could be            sent out when teachers are retiring, etc. Peggy said there is a              Retirement Committee that plans these events but some teachers don’t want anything formal.
b)       Discount cards are here! Let Nancy know if you want to purchase any.

1^st Vice President’s Report
a)      Open committees ; Appreciation; School Spirit, Welcome Wagon, Yearbook, 5^th Grade Recognition; refer to the website for details on each committee
b)       Wolf Pack game was a huge success

2^nd Vice President’s Report
No report

Secretary’s Report
a)       A motion was made to accept the March PTO Meeting Minutes; motion moved & accepted.

Treasurer’s Report
a)       Julie Polansky gave a copy of the April Treasurers Report
b)       A motion was made to accept April 2010 Treasurer’s Report; motion moved & accepted.

Board of Ed Report

No Report
Committee Reports
a)       Spare Time Event 4/11from 3-5 - try to get there at 2:45 to get your shoes, etc.
b)       Book Fair April 26-30 – need help Monday the 26^th from 8-10 a.m. for set up; Scholastic has reminded us this is a BOGO not a 50% off
c)       Gift Cards – no report
d)       School Rewards – Big Y points are still accruing; DVD/VCR combo machine came in and was left for Peggy Wilde; still awaiting delivery of dye cuts for librarian
e)       Yearbook – submitted everything for yearbook included Invention Convention; they should arrive the middle of May
f)        Grants – Continue working with Jocelyn on grants mostly toward smart boards & computers
g)       Butter Braids – sale date is 4/12 thru 4/26 (orders due by 5/4); Delivery date is Thursday, 5/6

Unfinished Business

a)       Basketball hoop will be installed within the next few weeks! Myles MCurry purchased a new hoop for $1,700
b)       CRS Sign – looking to refurbish, sand & paint the sign out front; Tammy received one quote for $2,000 so she is going to get another estimate
New Business
No report

Announcements

Meeting adjourned at 8:14 p.m.

Next Meeting is May 6, 2010 @ 6:30 p.m. Dr. Katz from VCMS will discuss the transition to VCMS and will be available for Q&A. The PTO meeting will begin after this discussion (no later than 7:00 p.m.)

March 11, 2010 PTO Meeting Minutes
Meeting was called to order at 6:35 p.m.

Principal’s Report

a)       Mrs. Poglitsch was unable to attend but did want to share that the following; “CMT testing was complete today. The students worked so hard and I am very proud of them. The teachers also worked very hard to prepare them for the tests. Thank you for your support with sending the kids to school well rested and with a good breakfast.   The school fair was fantastic! I am so impressed with your hard work and dedication. My son and husband had an excellent time. I had so much fun looking at all of the games and activities. It was truly an example of how closely knit the
Center Road
families are.”

President’s Report

a)       Nancy Sullivan passed around a copy of Board of Ed minutes from their latest meeting.
b)       Nancy will have discount cards at the April PTO meeting. Reminder $5 per card.
c)       Website committee – Colleen Bogli offered to help with uploading info onto our website

1^st Vice President’s Report

a)       Wolf Pack March 26 final date for collecting slips is 3/12.

2^nd Vice President’s Report

a)       Peggy Wilde said recycling is going very well! Kids are very into it!
b)       Peggy also asked everyone to please try to attend the Board of Ed meeting on 3/24 (see Board of Ed Report)

Secretary’s Report

a)       A motion was made to accept the February PTO Meeting Minutes; motion moved & accepted.
b)       Recycling update – we are looking into recycling water bottles in the cafeteria (Peggy Wilde is going to see if there is a deposit on the bottles)

Treasurer’s Report

a)       Julie Polansky handed out a copy of the March 10^th Treasurers Report and reviewed it with the group.
b)       A motion was made to accept March 10, 2010 Treasurer’s Report; motion moved & accepted.

Board of Ed Report

a)       Board of Ed presents to Town Council on Wed, 3/24.
b)       New Superintendent is Dr. Mary Conway, starting July 1^st. She lives in Vernon.

Committee Reports

a)       Wellness Policy – Julie Polanksy said they don’t want as many food fund raisers in schools but have not put any restrictions in place (yet). Ann Marie Schrager is also on the Wellness committee. Julie will keep us posted on further information.
b)       Gift Wrap Fall Fundraiser – Lori Barfield called Current & Innisbrook; & will also call MeadowBrook. She’ll give us an update in April.
c)       Family Dance Night in February – Great turnout and a great time had by all!!
d)       Spare Time booked for 4/11/2010 from 3:00-5:00; we will have 10 lanes; flyer will go home with students next week; cost will be $10 which includes bowling, shoes & the disco light show.
e)       School Rewards – S&S program ends in 2 weeks (3/26) Big Y has a promotion that ends in April (see Kelley’s email for details)
f)        School Fair – went great! Julie P. suggested putting an editorial in the paper thanking them for all their help (Firefighters, Big Y, Shaws, S&S, etc.)
g)       Yearbook – finishing up pages, 4/5 is due date for pictures.
h)       Grants – Angela Verona & committee will be meeting with Jocelyn next week.
i)         Butter Braids – if you sell 3 or more butter braids, you get your name in a raffle to win a $20 Gift Card to Barnes & Noble; the company is also giving incentives such as drawstring bags; maybe next year we’ll do Yankee Candle instead of Butter Braids for 5^th graders next year

Unfinished Business

a)       Karen Affedt volunteered to be co-president; Julie Polansky volunteered to be 1^st Vice President; Mary Stone volunteered to be Treasurer & Danielle Dumont & Wendy Blume offered to be 2^nd Vice President
b)       Open Positions – see website for open positions

New Business

a)       Spring Clean-up – need volunteers to help clean up; sign needs to be painted. Monica Bardon & Wendy Blume’s Daisy Troop is going to come on 3/25 to clean up around the playground
b)       Playscape – Miles suggested purchasing a basketball hoop for the kids; he will research spending up to $2,000 on new or old hoop for the flattop area. A motion was made to spend up to $2,000; motion moved & accepted

Announcements

Meeting adjourned at 8:00 p.m.
Next Meeting is April 8, 2010

FEBRUARY 11, 2010 PTO MEETING
Meeting was called to order at 6:39 p.m.

Principal’s Report

a)       Mrs. Poglitsch reported the Board of Ed meeting to discuss the budget was this past Monday night. See Board of Education section for more details.

President’s Report

a)       Nancy Sullivan reported the $5 discount card is in progress; we should have the cards by early April. The front of the card is finished but we’re still working on the back which lists all participating restaurants, etc.
b)       Nancy Sullivan also brought to attention the importance of maintaining all of our PTO documents; she suggested we could put all of the documentation on our website so all pertinent information is available for anyone helping on a committee.

1^st Vice President’s Report

a)       Wolfpack game is still planned for 3/26.

2^nd Vice President’s Report

a)       Haiti Relief Fund is set up in a jar in the library.
b)       CRS is celebrating its 40^th birthday! Nancy Sullivan suggested we could promote this by putting up a banner at the school fair. Monica Bardon will put an announcement in the JI & Reminder papers.

Secretary’s Report

a)       A motion was made to accept January 2010 meeting minutes; motion moved & accepted.

Treasurer’s Report

a)       Copies of February Treasurer’s report was provided.
b)       A motion was made to accept February 10, 2010 Treasurer’s Report; motion moved & accepted.

Board of Ed Report

a)       Susan Norlie-Hesnan spoke on behalf of the Board of Ed. Julie Polansky provided copies of the suggested reduction ideas. Salaries and benefits are the main cause of the increase in the budget over the current year. One of the first meetings will be televised on Feb 16^h at 3:00 p.m. on Channel 96. The Superintendent's Public Budget Presentation will be held on Thursday, February 25th at 7:00 on the 3rd floor of the Administration Building,
30 Park Street, Rockville
.
b)       The Board of Ed is very close to finding a new superintendent. The job hasn’t been officially offered so Susan cannot tell us who it is. Official start date will be July 1, 2010 (but the start date is negotiable).

Committee Reports

a)       Gift Wrap Fall Fundraiser – Lori Barfield reported if we go back to Jeannine, we could receive 3% off final invoice if we sign a contract by April 15^th. Lori will research some other companies.
b)       Family Game Night – Great turnout; 30 or 40 families participated
c)       Family Dance will be 2/12/2010. Dancing, raffles, $1 pictures; fun, fun, fun!
d)       Rock Cats – Friday night in either in May or June. We will have a date by next month.
e)       Assemblies –
Skinner Road
contacted us to have a co-school assembly in April; promoting character traits is the topic. We will receive a discount from company since we’re scheduling it with another school. List for assemblies is on our website. BMX assembly is April 14^th.
f)        Spare Time booked for 4/11/2010 from 3:00-5:00; we will have 10 lanes; flyer will go home with students; cost will be $10 which includes bowling, shoes & the disco light show
g)       Book Fair – in the past the PTO has provided 5^th graders dictionaries; we should continue this program.
h)       Rewards Program – placed order with Price Chopper & Big Y; DVD/VCR combo; balls, bats, jump ropes for gym; camcorder for School Fair. Angela Verona was able to procure a Keurig coffee maker.
i)         School fair – Saturday, March 6 – Flyers are going out next week; the need 7 or 8 more people between 12:00-2:00.
j)         Yearbook – ½ of the yearbook was submitted (mostly portrait pages); they will be sending out another order form shortly.
k)       Butter Braids – Barbara Lung would like someone to shadow her because she is leaving next school year. Vicki Nagalis & Heather Hwalek volunteered to do it.

Unfinished Business

a)       Recycling Task Force – Kelley Mathes reported the Task Force met tonight before the meeting & are working on getting orange recycle bins for every classroom as early as next week. Peter Griffiths from the Town of Vernon Department of Public Works is available to assist us in any way possible which is wonderful news! More updates to come in March!
b)       Parent Resource Center is in progress – everything has been sorted through & listed on a sheet of paper.

New Business

a)       Board positions are open – 1^st Vice President (responsible for Indoor Kiosk, Monthly Newsletter & volunteers for certain committees) and Treasurer (a knowledge of basic math helps J).
b)       Committees have some openings: Playscape; Welcome Wagon; School Newspaper (teacher & parent); we are contacting all committee chairs to determine if they are continuing next year and/or they need assistance.

Announcements
Meeting adjourned at 7:55 p.m.
Next Meeting is Thursday, March 11, 2010

JANUARY 14, 2010 PTO MINUTES

Meeting was called to order at 6:15 p.m.

Principal’s Report

a)       The new principal, Jocelyn Poglitsch, introduced herself & told us about her work background. She has worked in the school system – specifically elementary schools – for 16 years. She is married and lives in Higganum with her husband, son & dog! J Her email address is Jocelyn.poglitsch@vernonct.org
b)       Budget process – next Tuesday, 1/19/10, elementary schools present to the Board of Education. This year will be tough. As a district we need to cut $2 million from the budget. Final budget comes out in May
c)       Nancy Sullivan said we may be able to use some of our supermarket points to purchase things that are not covered in budget

President’s Report

a)       Mrs. Pleviak called Nancy Sullivan to inform her of “Jump Rope for Heart” which will be 2/3/10 in the school gym; snow date the following Wed, 2/10/10. Sue Bassick volunteered to help coordinate delivery of oranges and graham crackers for the jumpers!
b)       Discount Fundraiser Cards – the company sells the cards for $5 (600 card minimum), $10 & $20; they (the company) do all the legwork for us, they will solicit the establishments & ask them to be on the card & we receive 50% of the proceeds of the cards. Funddaz.com is another company which covers multiple states. They sell for $20-$25 but include states, hotels, restaurants, etc. Everyone agreed we will shoot for selling the $5 card at the Spring Book Fair

2^nd Vice President’s Report

a)       See “Committee Reports” C & J for updates.

Secretary’s Report

a)       A motion was made to accept December 2009 meeting minutes; motion moved & accepted

Treasurer’s Report

a)       Winners of Box Tops:
Kindergarten: Jacob Walden & Arianna Vernola
1st Grade: Charles Bannon & Justin Doty
2nd Grade: Joshua Opdenbrouw & Sam Yencho
                3rd Grade: Clayton Aafedt & Samantha Peters
                4th Grade: Sean Horton & Emma Bardon
                5th Grade: Brian Graver & Cara Clay
b)       See January Treasurer’s Report for activity since last month
c)       A motion was made to accept January 11, 2010 Treasurer’s report; motion moved & accepted

Board of Ed Report

a)       Susan Norlie-Hesnan spoke on behalf of the Board of Ed. The Mayor said we are $2 million over budget. Magnet schools are taking away some of the budget dollars so now we have fewer budget dollars going to public education. Feel free to call her, her phone number is (860) 872-4517; sj_norliehesnin@yahoo.com
b)       The Board of Ed is interviewing 6 people for the Superintendent of Vernon position

Committee Reports

a)       Family Game Night – 1/22/10 from 6:00-8:00; from 6:00-7:00 families can bring their own games & from 7:00-8:00 will be group games; families can also bring a non-nut snack and/or dessert
b)       Family Dance Night – 2/12/10 from 6:00-8:00; DJ, dancing, trivia, games, raffles; drinks will be provided by PTO & parents are encouraged to bring a non-nut snack
c)       Wolf Pack March 26– a flyer will go home in February about the game; we decided we would do the $15 package in the red section which will include pizza or hot dog & a drink
d)       GL Script gift cards – email Laura Eppler if you’d like a gift card
e)       School rewards – S&S is doing double bonus bucks this weekend
f)        School fair – Saturday, 3/6/10 – volunteer forms will be going out next week; Free masons will be coming to do the CHiP program. They need an empty classroom for this program so Monica Bardon will be working with Mrs. Poglitsch to find a room. DVD camcorder will be raffled (bought through Big Y points)
g)       Yearbook – coming along very nicely; portrait pages are being put together now; they are verifying with teachers that students’ names are spelled correctly.
h)       Grants – Sarah Harrigan & Angela Vernola met with Mrs. Poglitsch for the first time. There is available money & untapped resources. They talked about some of the grants to pursue - technology was the biggest; interior work; landscaping, etc.
i)         Jesse Young Fundraiser – 1/24/10 from 12-4:00. If you’d like to donate desserts, please drop them off between 9:30-12:00 at the TKB club in Rockville (or Karen Mytych offered to have people drop them off at her house in the a.m., contact her at kmytych@comcast.net to verify drop-off time.) Tammy Gessay will research dress down dates for teachers which could benefit the Jesse Young memorial

Unfinished Business

a)       Recycling Task Force – Kelley to report in the February meeting; 3rd grade teachers want to be involved so Kelley Mathes will reach out to 3^rd grade teacher Ann Marie Schrager
b)       Parent Resource Center is in progress – we’ll update in February

New Business

a)       PTO Board positions available 2010/2011 – 1^st Vice President (responsible for indoor kiosk, monthly newsletter & volunteers for committees when possible) and Treasurer (a knowledge of basic math helps.J) Please consider and talk to any board member for more information. We need to know by May 2010
b)       Committees also have a few openings: 1) School Spirit; 2) Playscape; 3) Ice Cream Social helper.
c)       Family Day with
Skinner Road
school to Ron-a-Roll; Wed date TBD; $9 for skates & towards bus.
Skinner Road
will schedule the bus (70 children per bus & each school can have their own bus). Kelley Mathes will reach out to Skinner Road PTO contact & obtain more information.
d)       Spare Time Bowling Fundraiser will be 4/11/10 from 3:00-5:00 p.m.; more details to come
e)       Nancy Sullivan will be reaching out to all committee members with hopes to collect and create a PTO CD to store all fliers and information per committee and event. If you would like to help, let her know!

The next PTO meeting will be held on 2/11/10 at 6:30 p.m. in the CRS Library.
Meeting adjourned at 7:55 p.m.

DECEMBER 18, 2009 PTO MEETING MINUTES

Meeting was called to order at 6:45 p.m.

Principal’s Report
a)       The new principal, Jocelyn Poglitsch, will be starting on Monday, 1/4/10; Mrs. Myslinski will introduce her at the morning monthly meeting & then will take her around to each classroom to introduce her to students.
b)       We will start our January PTO meeting at 6:00 p.m. in order to have a “Meet & Greet” with the new principal. We will also have a “Welcome Cake” for her; a paper notice will be sent home to parents; an email will be sent to our PTO distribution list & the website will be updated.
c)       Mrs. Myslinski submitted the budget to the Superintendent; it was very lean. Angela asked if the Grant Committee could obtain a copy of the budget to see if grants were approved. The “Smart Board” budget was around $3K & that includes the Smart Board, projector & installation (per classroom & she asked for 3 classrooms).
d)       Most of the heating issues should be fixed.

President’s Report
a)       We received a thank you letter from Mrs. Spare for the PTO helping with the fundraiser for maintenance around the flagpole garden – they profited $616 J
b)       We received a notice from Blockbuster; any student (K-12) with a B average or better (minimum of a 2.7 or 80% overall score of a Satisfactory rating) can bring their original report card signed by a parent or legal guardian to a participating Blockbuster store and receive one free movie rental. The report card must be presented within 30 days of issuance. Students are eligible to participate each new grading period. Blockbuster wants to help show students one of life’s great lessons: hard work has its rewards!

2^nd Vice President’s Report
a)       Friday, 3/26/10 is Wolf Pack family game night; we are hoping to sell tickets between $15 - $18 which will include the ticket & meal voucher (hot dog/pizza & soda); more information to come.
b)       Joanne Kaminski would like to notify everyone of a fundraiser for Jesse Young (the 10 year old boy from Northeast School who passed away on Thanksgiving Day); the fundraiser will be Sunday, 1/24/10 from 12:00-4:00. They would be very grateful to PTO parents if they could help supply desserts; you can drop desserts off at the TKB club (behind Rockville Hospital) anytime after 9:00 a.m. They also need help serving. We sent $50 to the Jesse Young fundraiser which will help the family during this very difficult time.
c)       Rock Cats Family Night will be in May; date TBD.

Mr. DeBellis said a farewell; his replacement on the PTO Board is Wendy Blume who is a teacher as well as a parent!

Secretary’s Report
a)       A motion was made to accept October 2009 meeting minutes; motion moved & accepted.
b)       A motion was made to accept November 2009 meeting minutes; motion moved & accepted.

Treasurer’s Report
a)       We have gift cards available if anyone would like them.
b)       Still taking $$$ in for yearbooks
c)       We paid for additional assemblies; 2^nd & 3^rd grade Rocks & Dirt; Lutz Museum is also doing a program
d)       Balance of checking & savings is roughly $17K.
e)       A motion was made to accept December treasurer’s report; motion moved & accepted.

Board of Ed Report   No report

Committee Reports
a)       Appreciation – thank you to everyone who brought cookies; a number of thank you cards were also sent to the PTO for the November appreciation breakfast
b)       School reward – we have over $1 million points from Big Y; 3/1/2010 is the deadline for Big Y; deadline for Price Chopper is 2/13/10; the computer lab (Rm 38) has internet access for anyone who may need to use it.
c)       Gift Wrap sales went well; there were a few minor problems which were resolved & only 1 box that needs to be picked up.
d)       Book Fair – our total sales were $6,413 ($900 less than the Fall 2008 Book Fair); Laurie decided to take 100% in Scholastic Dollars (SD) to buy items for school. 100% Scholastic Dollar profits gave us almost $3,950 to spend through Scholastic. Cash profits would have earned only $1,600 cash + $450 Scholastic Dollars. Scholastic Dollar spending includes: 1) PTO gave $5 to teachers & staff ($268 SD redeemed); 2) Governor’s Reading Challenge $1,092 SD redeemed to date; another $1,000 to be redeemed at Spring book fair; 3) Dictionaries for all 5^th graders $650 SD redeemed; 4) Reading Program approximately $700 SD will be redeemed at BOGO fair in the spring.
e)       School Fair – no report (Amy Shane said her husband could include the Chip Program at the fair (Children Identification Program); they collect DNA, take videotape, fingerprint, etc. They put it all in a plastic bag with name & date and put on a CD (and it’s a free program!)
f)        Yearbook – every teacher has sent something in for yearbook; orders are continuing to come in so if you haven’t ordered yours, order now! There are 2 spots left for ads ($50 per ad for 1/8 of a page)   A motion was made for the PTO to spend $50 for one of the ads to thank teachers for all their hard work throughout the school year; motion moved & accepted.
g)       Playground – Myles installed new spaceship – YEAH!

Unfinished Business

a)       Recycling Task Force – Kelley will attend a meeting in January (date TBD) with Diana Gagne, 6 committee members and Pete Griffiths who is the Recycling Coordinator for the Dept of Public Works. He is looking forward to helping us implement more recycling efforts in the town & schools. FOLLOW-UP FEBRUARY

New Business
a)       Possible Family Nights to consider: Spare Time (Extreme Bowling); UCONN Ice Rink;
b)       Possible Fundraising idea: Discount Gift Cards ($5 per card); Nancy to research Gift Cards for CRS.
c)       Angela asked if PTO would pay for a book on grants; Nancy & Barbara asked her to let the PTO know the price of the book and we will make a decision then. The committee would like to focus on “How To” this year & next year get things going for grants. Lowe’s gives $5K twice a year and PTO Today magazine has great ideas for grants. There are so many grants that are untouched every year.

Announcements No new announcements

Meeting adjourned at 7:40 p.m

NOVEMBER 12, 2009 PTO MEETING MINUTES

Meeting was called to order at 6:35 p.m. Introductions were made and all were welcomed.

Principal’s Report

a) Teachers are working on electronic report cards.

b) Regarding construction – there are still some temporary issues in a few of the classrooms so Mrs. Myslinski will continue to ask until everything is fixed

c) Teachers are working on closets to get them back in order

d) Unexpected fire drill today; sensors went off but they aren’t sure why (could be something as minor as dust or a bug or spider walked near the alarm)

e) Sickness has gone down; 22 students were absent this week compared to about 124 students last week.

f) The new dismissal of exiting from the classrooms seems to be working well (the younger kids leave separately)

g) Budget for next year is going be tough; we unfortunately don’t have a lot of money & they froze funds.

President’s Report

a) Nancy brought in copies of the Parliamentary Procedures (Robert’s Rules of Order) for anyone interested in reading or googling.

2^nd Vice President’s Report

a) Balance in Motion – Mrs. Wilde will give information to Julie.

b) No teachers are interested in running the school newspaper

Secretary’s Report

a) A motion to accept the October minutes will be presented at the December PTO meeting because not all parents were able to read through the minutes. FOLLOW-UP DECEMBER

Treasurer’s Report

a) Gift & Wrap made a profit of around $8,000.

b) Few assemblies happened over the last few months; 2^nd grade “Give me Dirt”; 3^rd grade “Dig It”will be on 12/9.

c) Motion to approve Treasurer’s Report dated 11/12/09; motion moved & accepted.

Board of Ed Report

a) New Board of Ed representative, Susan Norlie-Hesnan, will probably be at next PTO meeting in December.

Committee Reports

a) Entertainment books will close out soon; books are still available and Elissa did receive all her books back which had been sent home with students.

b) Appreciation – National Education week is next week; PTO will host breakfast for teachers; at the December PTO meeting (12/9) we will do a cookie swap (3 dozen cookies each) and make platters for the teachers/school nurse/etc. After making the platters, each individual usually goes home with about a dozen cookies. Plan to arrive at 6:00 p.m. if you are interested in participating. J

c) Ice Cream Social – lower turnout this year could be due to illness; next year Shady Glen will not accept ice cream returned so we’ll have to plan how much we’ll need to order

d) GL Script gift cards –will be available to purchase at every PTO meeting as well as flyers going home with students periodically.

e) School Rewards – this program is going very well; for Stop &Shop, we will need to re-register every year. Angela looked into Price Chopper “Tools for Schools” bonus points and we will receive 1,000 points retroactive. We also receive 500 points for having their link on our school website.

f) Gift & Wrap – we had $16,000 in sales; our profit was about $8,000. Items will be delivered 12/1 and between parent help/service club they will be distributed to teachers who will give them to parents at parent/teacher conferences.

g) Book Fair 11/30-12/4 - notices will be going home tomorrow looking for volunteers. You can also volunteer through the PTO website. Set-up is Monday morning, 11/30, at 7:00 a.m. and the remaining shifts are 2 hour intervals.

h) School Fair – we will be keeping some traditional games but also bringing in new games. Tentative date is Saturday, March 6^th but possibly later (March 20^th) because the weather would be nicer.

i) Yearbook – next week (Wed, 11/18) is re-take & group pictures; Susan asked Mrs. Wilde to ask teachers & paraprofessionals to get their picture taken so she doesn’t have to come & take them herself; the PTO picture will be taken at the Dec PTO meeting (Wed, 12/9) Kudos to Mrs. Koppa who provided her baby picture.

j) Website – looks great & is a work in progress

k) Reading Program – Les Julian (the entertainer) was very impressed with PTO Programs & the fact that a lot of dads were participating; he also does song writing workshops for teachers.

Unfinished Business

a) Parks & Recs does work on major repairs if a playground has a safety issue, otherwise they only cut the grass. They would appreciate PTO members do cleaning because they don’t have the manpower.

b) Summer math packet; produced in partnership with the new math series; more work will be put into them before they are distributed next summer.

c) Recycling Task Force – there is a Principal’s meeting on Tues, 11/17, and more info will be provided. FOLLOW-UP DECEMBER

d) Lego League – Nancy discussed with Barb but there weren’t a lot of kids participating; there is a small team (6 or 7 kids) and they meet at someone’s house. Mr. Seekins had previously told Barbara that they did not need any donations. Competition is next Saturday, 11/21.

e) Butter Braids – Nancy will research further with Marge McCurry

f) The new playground equipment will be installed this weekend.

g) Concerns about illnesses at school; they’ve ordered as much hand-washing supplies as possible; vendors have been overwhelmed but they are working as hard as they can.

New Business

a) Suzanne & Tammy are on committee to assist with hiring new principal; also on committee is someone from NE school & someone from

Maple Street

school; out of 50 applicants, they narrowed it down to 7 & then narrowed it down again to 2. They hope to have a decision by 11/23.

b) Mrs. Spare requested a donation of funds toward a raffle basket where the proceeds will go toward the upkeep of the area around the flagpole. We will give $50 for 2 baskets to come out of Beautification fund.

Announcements

a) Regarding the grants committee, Angela Vernola is asking if anyone has information to pass down to assist her in learning more; Nancy Sullivan will look to see if she has any information in the PTO binder she has at home. (Updated on 11/13/09 – Nancy checked her binder at home & unfortunately she does not have any information on grants. Julie Polansky will put Angela in contact with someone from Skinner Road School who has done some grants in the past. She will also get her the name of the person who handles all grants for Vernon schools for the Board of Ed.)

b) Family resource section – Debi Sofianos will create an inventory & we can add to the Newsletter to make it more available to parents.

Meeting adjourned at 8:00.

OCTOBER 15, 2009 PTO MEETING MINUTES

Meeting called to order at 6:32 p.m. Introductions were made and all were welcomed.

New Business

a) Tammy sent “PTO News & Information” newsletter home with all students; the newsletter is filled with a lot of information about committees, fund-raising, ice cream social, etc.

b) Question came up - can we send photos to someone from trips the kids go on? Parental consent forms were sent home but not all are signed by parents so we need to be careful if there are group pictures, etc. If you want to submit for the yearbook, look in the “PTO News & Information” (or our website) for more info on how to send them.

c) Motion to accept Kelley Mathes as secretary for 2009-2010 school year. Motion moved & accepted.

d) Mrs. Myslinski spoke about the new student release procedure – there is a new security system and kids are coming & going differently this year; school officials were coming up with ideas of where to gather the kids in one place & they decided on the gym; they are going to try different places as the year progresses (classrooms K&1^st will be lead out and all other grades will meet at a door & they will go outside together.)

e) Summer math packet concerns on level of difficulty. Nancy let everyone know that all Vernon school presidents/committee members of PTOs go to a district meeting (November 6^th) so she will bring up this subject. This year it didn’t seem to equate with what was taught over the school year; it seemed like parents were having to teach their kids the entire math packet. FOLLOW-UP NOVEMBER (Discussed in November Meeting)

f) Welcome Wagon – Julie P. suggests this for new students/parents at CRS; Julie Clay offered to be the contact person. Contact Julie with any questions. cabmkrs@comcast.net

Principal’s Report

a) Construction update – Mrs. Myslinski mentioned they are still working on some details; heating systems; finishing up security & sound in gym & cafeteria; shelves by doors; afternoon activities REC will start next Monday, 10/19. YMCA will keep Latch Key at the Y. Lego League has found another place so we’re not sure if they will come back. Is PTO still sponsoring Lego League? Per Julie, we thought it was Parks & Rec so we did not budget anything for Lego League. Mrs. Myslinski will follow-up with someone from the Lego League. FOLLOW-UP NOVEMBER (Discussed in November Meeting)

b) When will trailers be removed at CRS? They need to remain while they are still working so 2-3 more weeks.

c) All parents should have received SRBI letter. Parents whose children will be receiving support will receive another letter notifying them. SRBI is basically universal screening of what they should know in reading in math. Some is administered 1 at a time & some is in a group. Scores are all together for kids who need support. Depending on what grade child is in, they will either take them out of class to help them; twice or three times a week; depends on skills & grades. Will we know who is taking child out of class? Reading consultants & some paras will be doing this. Regina Lee is one hired consultant. CT Mastery Test results should have been sent last month. Also, Maple & NE were offered school choice & 18 students transferred to CRS for this year. Did children who came last year stay? Yes, most did stay at CRS.

President’s Report

a) Nancy went to PTO Presidents/Superintendent meeting last week. Since she was the only attendee (!!) she had a 1x1 with Superintendent; Nancy brought up cleanliness of equipment on playground; he said he was pretty sure it was Parks & Rec responsibility; Nancy will update us next month. FOLLOW-UP NOVEMBER (Discussed in November Meeting)

2^nd Vice President’s Report – no report this month

Mrs. Wilde – 1^st Grade teacher

a) Monica made a motion on Mrs. Wilde’s behalf for the first grade teachers to spend up to $100 to buy new science items related to “Bounce in Motion”; Motion moved & accepted.

b) Headphones in computer labs are always breaking; one idea to think about – a one time purchase for 2^rd graders that each student receive their own set of headphones & they will have them until 5^th grade. Another idea was to add them to supply list that goes home to parents but many kids can’t afford regular school supplies so it was suggested we purchase them so all kids have the same ones. We could name one of the fundraisers as being a supporter of purchasing something in particular so parents know how they are helping their children.

c) There is a website called www.freewebs.com (2^nd & 3^rd grade definitely do this; 4^th & 5^th may do it) where you can go to their website & everything the kids have done on the computer at school, you can do at home with them. Ann Marie Schrager (3^rd grade teacher) is in charge of this so email her with any questions.

Note: During this discussion, someone asked to give an overview of “Making a Motion”. Nancy provided the following explanation: Roberts Rules of Order are commonly followed during meetings. These rules providing meeting protocol, including how to make a motion (bring to new business to the group) allowing review, discussion and voting. This also helps us make something official; we ensure it is documented in the meeting minutes. Nancy will bring more information on this to the next meeting.

Secretary’s Report - Report will be provided next month.

Treasurer’s Report

a) Julie gave an overview of 2008-2009 report.

b) Vickie spoke about Reading Night on 10/23 & then talked about the calendar event where gifts are given to students for reading more. Very creative idea for kids!

c) Julie made a motion to approve treasurer’s report for 2008-2009 school year; Motion moved & accepted.

d) Yearbook – for 5^th grade yearbook; there are more 5^th graders this year (85 this year, 10 more than last year); the committee thinks they will need $1,700 this year. There are 62 pages of color for $20. We could get local companies to advertise. We could also charge for photos/call-outs to be put in the yearbook. We will stick with $1,500 for now but we’ll see where we are mid-year and re-examine. FOLLOW-UP FEBRUARY

e) Butter braids – someone said there might be a ban against selling butter braids due to health issues? Tammy will look into it. FOLLOW-UP NOVEMBER (Discussed in November Meeting)

f) Julie made a motion to approve the 2009-2010 budget; Motion moved & accepted.

g) Julie made a motion to approve treasurer’s report dated October 12, 2009; Motion moved & accepted.

Board of Education Report

a) Diana spoke about “no child left behind” program. 8 out of 10 CRS students are meeting goals. Superintendent search – Board of Education is main search committee but they want input from others; admin, teachers & parents. Mtg scheduled 10/26 School Admin bldg in Rockville; 6:00 p.m. Email Diana if you have comments: Diana.gagne@gmail.com Also doing search for new CRS principal.

b) School in Guyana appreciated all our school supplies. We will add details to PTO newsletter.

c) Recycling Task Force – any volunteers should contact Diana (email above). We will add details to PTO newsletter. Nancy will bring it up at District meeting.

Committees

a) 5^th grade ceremony recognition – getting cake & plates, decorate cafeteria (parent cannot be 5^th grade parent) Sue Bassick & Monica Bardon offered to help.

b) School Newspaper – 11/18 they are taking pictures of clubs so we need to know if there is a School Newspaper club. Mrs. Wilde will let us know. FOLLOW-UP NOVEMBER (Discussed in November Meeting)

c) Grants Research Committee – Susan Appleton is already on committee but could use another member. Angela Vernola offered shadow Susan to learn more about the committee.

d) School Reward Program (Grocery stores) - Angela Vernola offered to be member or to help coordinate.

e) Julie explained the Gift Card program; we make between $3-$4K a year on this program. Email Laura Eppler if you’d like to purchase any. Eppler@snet.net Suggestion was made that Laura could send out/post on website a schedule of when they are ordered & when they will arrive.

f) Gift Wrap delivery will be 12/1; you can pick up orders at parent/teacher conference

g) Book Fair 11/30-12/4 – Lori needs help at 7:00 a.m. Monday, 11/30; We have scholastic dollars or cash so Lori will bring everything to present at the November PTO meeting.

h) Artists visit CRS – Julie mentioned we funded $200 to Mrs. Gag.

i) Yearbook – we’d like picture of everyone in the PTO in the yearbook so we will schedule a date to do that. Would teachers like copies of old yearbooks? Mrs. Wilde suggested putting them in the teachers conference room with “Free” sign. Committee would like the teachers to provide fun facts to add to the yearbook.

Other

a) Amy Shane who mentioned that Northeast School PTO currently uses PTO funds to sponsor kids for summer camp. Mrs. Myslinski commented that the CRS staff club already uses funds from dress down days for this cause.

b) Scranton Motors – CHIP program – Amy Shane asked if we would be interested in having this child identification program at the school fair. She will follow up with Monica Bardon after she obtains more details on the kind of space and other requirements (power) they might have

Meeting adjourned at 8:40 p.m.