AUGUST 10, 2020
IN ATTENDANCE: Diane Terhanian, Meredith Pressler, Larry Livietsky, Marco Pedersen, Martha Bonta, Anna Kondic, Julie Clemens, Simone Robin, Daniel Garcia, Norrina Hayat, Natalie Sullivan, Veronica Harris, Patty Gramcsik, Colleen Dougherty, Kathryn Fogliano, June Raegner, Payal Mariar, Jada Roman, Christin Banks, Laura Farrell, Mary Ann Vanco, Dory Hack, Karina Linch, Brad Haggety, Mary Sue Youn, Marci Clark, Erin Herlihy, Jaime Bedrin, Irene Ronsenthal, Patti Marn, Sarah Spagnola Young, Christine Calderon, Eileen Birmingham, Selma Avdicevic, Allison Silverstein, Yvette Frazier, Anne Kilkullen, Phoebe Williams, Najla Wazeem, Reggie Valentine, Meslissa Shrager, Deborah Villarreal-Hadley, Tessie Thomas, Brian Fleischer, Courtney Redfern and Kirstin Wood-Werner
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Minutes of June 8 and June 16 meetings were submitted for approval and the minutes were unanimously passed.
PRESIDENT’S REPORT
Discussion of school year-opening operations. Membership drives should be focused on increasing and encouraging diversity of membership and participation
PTAC has submitted a National PTA grant application focused on the mental and emotional needs of K-2 families
There is a lot of discussion about supporting pods for students in need– more information needed to determine how PTAs can/should support. Superintendent said there would “probably” be difficulty with holding ASE on school grounds, MFEE is exploring working with the MNDC, holding programs at local churches.
PTAC meeting with Sergio Gonzalez of BOE and Dr. Ponds tomorrow– all PTAC Members invited to attend
VP of SCHOOLS REPORT
Tessie and Marci have organized “MPS 101” for incoming kindergarten parents. PTA Presidents will participate and parents can break out by school
A first meeting of ASE committees was held in an on-going effort to enable collaboration among the schools. The ASE’s will share materials on the PTAC Drive. Next meeting is scheduled for the 25th.
PTA calendars and distinct calendars are being organized for submission to the district (for conflicts)
PTA UPDATES (by school)
BRADFORD
PTA applied for National PTA Grant. Have been working with principal on antiracism initiatives and are doing a “book read” focused on racism.
BULLOCK: The new PTA leadership has been meeting, figuring out how to best support the community, the principles and the teachers. They’ve been discussing a resource list for families as well as exploring ideas for ASE in the fall.
EDGEMONT: A town hall with parents was held on July 31. Many concerns were expressed about remote learning, safety, and special needs. The principal had no answers as yet. They are exploring the funding of six outside learning areas. The SATp has been working on cultural inclusion. They are also working on a buddy system for new families.
HILLSIDE: There was a significant loss to the parent community when Barry Hartsfield passed away. The PTA helped support/facilitate a drive for his family. The PTA has a meeting with the principal tomorrow. They have drafted an equity and anti-racism statement which should be approved shortly.
NISHUANE: The PTA is finalizing its calendar. The board is meeting with the principal weekly and they are working on their website. The committees are kicking off. PTA President Reggie Valentine expressed an interest in collaborating with other PTAs.
NORTHEAST: They have a number of new board members. They are planning all activities being remote until further notice. They are meeting weekly with their principal and working on the calendar. They are planning two story times with kindergarten teachers and counselors. They are putting together welcome bags, including whiteboards, which their teachers suggested might be helpful. The SATP is discussing anti-racism measures. They are exploring buying tents for outdoor learning.
WATCHUNG: They are considering re-institution of a buddy system for families. They are talking to the pre-K about creating outdoor classrooms and they are also exploring the possibility of providing welcome bags for families. They have created potential calendars which are in the first draft.
BUZZ ALDRIN: They are organizing welcoming zoom calls by grade for sixth, seventh and eighth graders. They intend to send out welcoming materials by August 31. They also filed for a PTA grant. They are exploring ASE programs at the middle school on a free or low-cost basis, such as D&D and outdoor drama. The most exciting thing is that they will be using MemberHub going forward for communications and community building and they highly recommend it.
GLENFIELD: Their main focus is supporting the administration. They feel it is premature to do other work because there’s just not enough information. They are considering a buddy system similar to that done in other schools.
RENAISSANCE – was not able to attend the meeting.
VP OF COMMITTEES AND COMMITTEE REPORTS
Committees are having their first meetings. Zoom account established and Brian/Tessie will manage sharing,
EAROG
Committee forming– approximately thirty members so far. Surveying them to determine areas of focus and availability.
COMMUNICATION
New PTA websites. All PTAs will create websites using WordPress. After the new websites are created, future communications will have to go through mailchimp or MemberHub as the websites do not have messaging capacity.
COMMUNITY BUILDING
Welcome to MPS for new families.
FINANCE/FACILITIES
Q will there be any savings as a result of remote instruction?
SEPAC
Upcoming Zoom meetings with administration
LEADERSHIP
POLICY
TECHNOLOGY
Submitted report: https://docs.google.com/document/d/19YAv-lPZkFAjvlRxAiePb2e8a5OcN5D7S25L1sm2kZs/edit?usp=sharing
NEW BUSINESS
Meeting adjourned