Teach Boosters Meeting Minutes October 2012

Meeting Minutes - October 2012 Teach Boosters Board Meeting Room 27, Teach School

October 5, 2012 Attendance: Dan Block, Idona Cabrinha, Nara Clark, Erin Clausen, Julie Feuerstein, Mignon Jones, Summer Kabaker, Deepali Kenjale, Doris Kim, Grace Kim, Pia Laurie, Cheri Love, Marie Neumann, Robyn O'Leary, Alisa Piette, Marie Presnal, Kurt Rightmyer, Paula Sandlin, Lori Shields, Nik Southern

The meeting was called to order at 8:32 a.m.

I. Welcome

Idona Cabrinha welcomed the group and each person quickly introduced him/herself and what grade/school their child(ren) are in. II. Reading and Approval of Minutes of Previous Meeting The minutes from September's meeting were distributed and everyone present had a few minutes to review them. Lori Shields motioned to approve them, Summer Kabaker seconded the motion and the minutes were approved.

III. Treasurer's Report

Marie Neumann reported that each grade now has a treasurer assistant. These are Marilou Ubay (4th grade), Carie Stanton (5th grade), and Nell Bennett (6th grade).

Marie then passed out a copy of the operating budget for 2012-13. Idona stressed that this budget has been compiled from all available materials and historical info; materials and info from previous years were not well organized and thorough, but the hope is that this process will produce a clear, comprehensive file for going forward.

Lori Shields asked about the line item for the Chili Cookoff, saying that she didn't submit receipts last year, so it didn't have a cost (budget lists it as a $200 cost). Marie said that she added that into the budget not knowing if there would be a cost this year or not. Someone else pointed out that the figures listed for the calendar appeared incorrect; these will be adjusted to reflect a $600 cost and $1,000 expected income. There were no other questions about the budget at this point.

IV. Principal's Report

Mr. Block passed out a chart detailing enrollment growth over the last several years. He noted that Teach could've easily added a class this year if space allowed, and he discussed his on-going concerns about balancing space limitations and exploding growth in the Bishop's Peak student population. This growth may be attributable -- at least in part -- to an increasing number of families moving into the BP neighborhood, taking over homes that may have previously been occupied by Cal Poly students. In addition, neighboring families are concerned about the impact of traffic from the schools.

Mr. Block pointed out that our campus is the largest elementary school (in terms of numbers of students) with the smallest facilities. Further, he mentioned that 180 of 194 kids added to the district this year enrolled at Teach/BP. Enrollment at other district schools is pretty much flat. Noting that he expects to need two additional teachers for the 2013-14 year, Mr. Block is now seeking input from parents and the community regarding how to address the growth/space issue. Among the options currently on the table: limit the neighborhood boundary of Bishop's Peak (which is not an immediate solution, as siblings would still be grandfathered in), and find a new location for Teach. There don't seem to be any obvious new locations, but he mentioned a few which could be considered and the reasons that they aren't very feasible.

Mr. Block said that he has talked to the staff of both schools and also presented at the school board meeting. During October, he will continue to get info out regarding the issues and will solicit input. There will be two community forums on October 30 (at 1:30 and 6:00) to give people an opportunity to ask questions and offer ideas. Open enrollment starts after December 31, so solutions need to be figured out soon. The school board will ultimately make the decision regarding what path(s) to take.

At this point, the group jumped ahead in the agenda to accommodate two visiting 6th graders, Nadia and Kenzie, who reported on their trip to Catalina. They really appreciated the hands-on learning experiences and presented the boosters with a giant hand-made thank you card. Mr. Block then fielded questions from the group, including whether he prefers to see Teach move (not voicing an opinion on that at this time), how much growth comes from within the district (15% of BP growth), and whether there are estimated bubbles of enrollment (K is much bigger than past years). In response to another question, Mr. Block said that currently, about 2/3 of Teach students come from town while 1/3 come from the coast.

He requested that any ideas be submitted in letter form versus email, so that they don't get lost and they can be included in a hard file in the office.

V. Old Business

The discussion then jumped ahead to the Scrip program, and Paige Wright updated the group on how the program is getting off the ground this year. Robyn O'Leary asked if friends and family can sign up online and link their purchases to a student's account. Paige is looking into that and said that it's likely parents will have to make delivery of first set of gift cards. Paige also detailed the process for setting up an online account. Paige gave out her phone number and said that parents can text her their 4-digit code when they get it so that she can plug it into the system. Her number is 540-4107.

Kate Poeschl suggested that the boosters set up a table to help people get registered at Teach events, and the group agreed that this was a good idea. There was some additional discussion regarding the use of a special card wallet or iPhone capabilities.

VI. New Business

A. Kurt Rightmyer presented a fundraising opportunity in the political "poop mitts" (for pets or as trash bags in cars) and said that he is willing to donate $.20 for each bag sold.

B. Marie presented the idea of hiring an accountant/bookkeeper to assist with keeping the financial records clean and consistent over the years. This would make it much easier to maintain consistency and to pass things to future treasurers and board members.

She said that she has identified an option that would cost $100/month for 10 months. There was some discussion regarding Quickbooks and the cost versus budget availability, and there was general agreement that this step would benefit the Boosters organization greatly. There was additional discussion of budget concerns but the consensus was that this is an important expenditure. Paige Wright motioned and Chantal Blanchard seconded and the motion to approve the expenditure was approved.

C. There was discussion of the Applebee's fundraiser, and it was mentioned that Mr. Crabb needs someone to help. There is not a date for this event yet, and the parent helper will not be required to do much. Most of the work revolves around ticket sales. Mignon Jones and Alisa Piette agreed to do this job.

D. Class Booster Reps:

Grace Abroms reported on Mrs. Bailey's class and said that they are working on personal narratives. Tuesday at 2:00 they will be hosting a publishing party. The class is also analyzing the debates and doing science experiments on molecules, and soon they will be doing research projects on famous Americans. She said that while she's not reporting on Mrs. Robson's 5th graders, she believes that it's likely similar in that class. Lori Shields reported on Mrs. Kelly's class and their recent trip to a water treatment facility.

No other class reps were present to report.

VII. Back to Old Business

A. Bylaws: Mr. Block reported that Z. Naccasha is a Teach parent with legal experience who now has all the documents and is looking them over. He also has the committee's input and knows that the Boosters want to simplify the bylaws.

B. Genevieve's: Idona said a thank you to those who have helped with this fundraiser and who are helping with other activities.

Marie Neumann reported that Genevieve's grossed $19,471 this year. About $7,700 of this will go to the school, compared to about $5,000 earned last year.

Pia Laurie reported that there will be LOTS of frozen cookie dough delivered on October 25, so she wants to make sure that parents are ready to take delivery. The group discussed possible options for dealing with dough that is not picked up and decided that Room Parents should send an email to parents to remind them.

C. T-Shirts: Chantal Blanchard reported that these would be ordered today. She asked the group to approve $200 for purchasing add'l pieces (not already ordered by families) so that there will be stock to sell at events and/or give away throughout the year. Idona asked about an itemized budget for this planned purchase, and Chantal said that $200 will purchase about 15-18 pieces and that she would stick to that amount. Kurt Rightmyer motioned to grant the expenditure and Lori Shields seconded. The motion was approved.

D. Communication: Idona reported that people are expressing that they don't know who is in charge of Boosters or how communication is handled. She mentioned Ning and the group discussed whether or not this was a project that made sense to continue funding/running. The old blog format is a cheaper option, as is Facebook. Nik Southern stressed that we should have one communication tool, and he added that Facebook does exclude those parents without accounts. He described his experience working with a godaddy.com site and said that it is very boilerplate. The most important thing is that it is easy to pass on to future volunteers. Mignon Jones volunteered to have her husband look into options.

VIII. Back to New Business

A. Chili Cookoff: Lori Shields said that she is sending out both paper and electronic promotion. She is still looking for a few volunteers. The group discussed judges and a few ideas were suggested (including the student council president, Debbie Duggan, the New Times food columnist, and Dave Hovde from KSBY). Kurt Rightmyer offered to contact the news director at KSBY to ask about availability. Robyn O'Leary said that she'd be happy to photograph the event for the yearbook.

B. Teaberry fundraiser: Summer Kabaker reported that this upcoming fundraiser is simple; Teaberry will donate 20% of profits to the school during the allotted period. If sales exceed $500 gross, they will donate 25%.

C. Scholastic Book Fair: Chantal Blanchard said that she is looking for a co-chair to help. Ideally this would be a 4th grade parent so that he/she can continue to help in the future. Idona stressed that the job is easier than one might expect, and she mentioned that a Teach family has donated a Nook to be raffled off to a student at the conclusion of the book fair. D. Calendar: Idona reported that this fundraising idea is an outgrowth of the cookbook project last year. Rather than do another cookbook, the Boosters are looking to create a calendar to sell during December. Erin Clausen said that she is going to coordinate this and that she just got the details prior to the meeting; she'll look over the info and create a timeline and plan for the project. Robyn O'Leary offered to assist with it. The group discussed pricing and there was general agreement that $12 per calendar is a reasonable price.

E. Winter Social: Summer Kabaker led this discussion. The idea is to do something low-key and fun, perhaps at the Creeky Tiki since the owner has offered to let the Boosters host something there. This possible event might feature heavy apps and drinks made available to those who purchase an entry ticket, and it would replace the Derby event previously held. The consensus seemed to be that the Derby was too much work to replicate. The silent auction might be carried over to the new event.

IX. Announcements

There was discussion regarding a speaker coming to the Downtown Cinema and funded jointly by a grant foundation and the District. There was a question about whether this was a wise expenditure on the District's part, given current financial strains.

Idona asked that anyone with questions or comments about the Boosters organization get in touch with her. The next Boosters meeting is scheduled for Friday, November 9 at 8:30 a.m.

Kurt Rightmyer motioned to adjourn the meeting and Kate Poeschl seconded the motion. The meeting was adjourned at 10:18 a.m.