Any parent who attended the PTO meeting can have their children participate in a FREE DRESS DOWN on Friday, March 27th. Please email pto@energysmartschool.org or for specific questions for me at (Abhisha Desai) ptopresident@energysmartschool.org. TEECS PTO Meeting Minutes March 24 , 2015 (Meeting Start: 7:01 p.m.; Meeting End: 8:16 p.m.) Computer Classroom 1. President’s Debrief (Abhisha) th i) Approved funding of 50% of e-‐library and guest speaker for Black History Month 2. VP of Fundraising Report (Rajashree) a. Progress on fundraisers thus far b. Review of upcoming events – NEED FUNDING ASSISTANCE FOR DRAMA CLUB c. Volunteers needed for events ii) Restaurant night, Chuck E Cheese, and yard sale (at Spring Concert): proceeds go towards Drama Club iii) Year-‐book advertising iv) Corporate sponsorships (at events) v) Parent donations with company match (non-‐profit) vi) Recycle uniforms vii) REMINDER: Amazon, Target, Stop N Shop proceeds go to school (USE links on TEECS website) viii) Box Tops d. Votes needed for spending (President), if applicable 3. Treasurer’s Financial Report (Mitsui) a. Review February month-‐end financials balance is approx. $6,200 4. School Representative Update (Ms. Vigorito) 5. Town Hall ix) Discussed areas of additional funding: (1) Obama announced funding for education towards innovation (STEM: science, technology, engineering, and math); PTO to research STEM and see if we can use as a funding alternative (2) Robotics club – parents suggested buying robotics program from another school; hire a contractor to assist with the club; PTO can assist with funding (3) Parents suggested researching and organizing a meeting with Franklin Board of Education on seeking additional funding that may be available; PTO to research and lead this as fundraising alternative. (4) Parents requested research funding/resources needed for interim mobile science lab; PTO can assist with funding. x) Discussed improvement focus areas: (1) Continued improvements in communication: (a) PTO to work with Administration on FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) to address general questions and guidelines regarding approaches to events, clubs, funding, curriculum, etc. These are NOT meant to be binding rules, but rather general guidelines to support answers to questions that are frequently asked. (b) PTO to host a “Parent’s Forum” town hall 1x month for parents to discuss areas on improvement, constructive solutions, and volunteer for areas where a parent champion would greatly facilitate the improvements. THIS IS NOT A COMPLAINTS BOX – rational, constructive solutions must accompany a suggestion. We encourage parents to email constructive suggestions and questions to pto@energysmartschool.org in advance. (2) Prioritized improvement areas: (a) PTO to develop a survey in April that outlines the clubs targeted for next year. The goal of the survey is to understand which clubs have the greatest interest and try to help plan club needs/schedule in advance. (b) PTO to develop a handy one-‐page reference sheet for kids. PTO to provide template. These will be organized and handed out during orientation (August 2015) and will contain key facts for each child. Key information includes child’s teacher, usernames, passwords, etc. (3) Additional suggestions and discussion points: (a) Continue working with project coordinator and activities coordinator on activities, communications, events, etc. (b) Parents suggested providing a space on the website to add on-‐line suggestions box/questions where parents can submit ideas/questions to administration; this will be facilitated through the FAQs section with link to submitting constructive solutions/ideas to pto@energysmartschool.org (c) 6th grade graduation/formal dance; PTO can assist with funding. (d) Reduced lunch forms (bid for vendors).