Hillside PTA Meeting Minutes

June 21, 2022

10am 

(Zoom Meeting)

 

PTA co-president Yvette Frazier welcomed everyone.

 

Recording Secretary Amber Reed presented the minutes of the May 13th meeting and they were approved unanimously.

 

President’s Report by Betty Shvetz and Yvette Frazier:

• Commemorative T-Shirts have been ordered – 2nd order placed for 38 shirts. The shirts will be delivered very soon.
• Field Day 6/10  was a great success.
• Fireball moved to Friday 6/24 @Pineapple Express @ 7-10pm. A few tickets are available.
• 5th Grade events:
  • Celebration at MAM all day on 6/21
  • Moving Up Ceremony at 11am on 6/23. Drop off by 10:30am at Woodman Field. If it rains, we will be at school.
• May events
  •  International Night on 5/19 attended by 150-200 people with performances and food. Congratulations at all and special thank you to Bonnie Hendrix for covering the entertainment, and the families who donated the food.
  • Car wash on 5/21 was a fun day that raised a lot of money. Thank you to the parents who supported this.
  • Nishuane/Hillside picnic on 5/25.
  • Looking for three parent volunteers to be at school on 6/22, 24, and 27 to help with Chromebook returns.
  • Today is final day for teacher gift-giving.

 

Nominating Committee update:

• Nominating Committee member Stacie Hawes presented the slate for the PTA Exec Board 2022-2023 and described their roles.
  • Co-Presidents: Lani Sommer-Padilla and Justin Taylor
  • VP Events: Caitlyn Yeykal
  • VP Communications: Christina Joseph Robinson
  • Recording Secretary: Tsihai Hanson
  • Treasurer: Michael Barrett
• With no further nominations from the floor, the above slate was approved unanimously by voice vote.
• President Yvette Frazier thanked the nominees and the Nominating Committee members for their work.

 

PTA Treasurer’s Report by Dana Rizzo: 

• Thanks to some creative fundraising and generous open donations, the budget did better than initial expectations.
• The PTA funded a range of programs, from Explorers to teacher stipends and appreciation events.
• Will likely end year with net income of $5,000-7,000.

 

Principal’s Report and Q&A:

• Dr. Anglin thanked the 2021-22 for their hard work during another unusual year and acknowledged the importance of the PTA in enhancing Hillside’s climate and culture.
• Staff members must receive non-renewal notices by May 15th. Dr. Anglin and Mr. Adamo did not hear about non-renewal notices at Hillside until a few days before and were not asked for input into which positions to cut. They have been fighting to preserve Hillside’s electives.
• No staffer has received a paper contract yet. Even though some teachers who received nonrenewal notices have now gotten emails saying they would be renewed, trust has been lost.
• They believe they have made a case for needing a full-time Visual Art teacher and full-time Music teacher who is also the Drums of Thunder teacher.
• 5 paraprofessionals cut. Need 19 paraprofessionals to legally support IEP needs in SY2022-23 and only have 11 left right now.
• Ms. Smeriglio will be on leave next year. A new health and PE-certified teacher with dance background has been hired.
• Looking for a special ed teacher in math/science and a new Spanish teacher.
• Will meet with new PTA co-presidents to talk about dates and plan for next year.
• Secretary Maura Mazar is a 10-month employee and will be out this summer. Stacy will be available.
• Will present Governor Educator of the Year awards at BOE meeting tonight.
• Comment: Colleen Dougherty invites other families to join for mass action at BOE meeting in support of Hillside’s arts program and Ms. Y.
• Q: Will Aesthetics and CI schedules for next year be the same given staffing and budget challenges?

A: Yes, everything is on track and will be similar to this year.

 

7. SATp Updates by Stacie Hawes

• In May/June, we had:
  • Hillside Rocks in honor of Pride Month.
  • Double Dutch and Soccer Stuff was canceled due to inclement weather and low enrollment.
  • Pride cupcake sale went well and raised about $900.
  • Juneteenth and Caribbean Heritage Festivals in collaboration with Nishuane SATp, held at Nishuane, were very successful with great turnouts.
  • Dee Thompson thanked everyone for their support of SATp’s initiatives this year.
• Social Justice updates:
  • Caribbean Heritage celebration drew many of our own families as well as some from neighboring towns.
  • Juneteenth celebration at Nishuane was on Thursday, last event for year.
  • Still recruiting more people interested in working on Social Justice committee next year. Hope to set up new committee for success beginning with Hispanic Heritage Month from Sep. 15-Oct. 15.
  • Will support new committee members with Google Drive of lesson plans, etc. Please help get the message out and recruit new parents.

 

• Yvette and Betty presented an extensive year-end list of the many people who contributed to the PTA’s initiatives and the health and well-being of the Hillside community this year.

 

The meeting adjourned at 11:15am.

 

Attendees:

• Betty Shvetz
• Yvette Frazier
• Dana Rizzo
• Jacqueline Ahern
• Justin Taylor
• Colleen Dougherty
• Varsha Hathramani
• Allison Silverstein
• Stacie Hawes
• Dee Thompson
• Diane
• Ian Hall
• Jennifer DiLullo
• Josie Williams
• Lani Sommer-Padilla
• Nicole Chalfoun
• Samanthaa Anglin
• Thomas Adamo
• Cristina Barbosa
• Leslie Houseworth-Fields