Archive for December 2014

: Campbell PTA Minutes 12.9.14

Attached and excerpted below are the minutes for the PTA meeting held on December 9th at 8 p.m.  Also attached is a presentation on the IPAD pilot.  Apologies for spacing and formatting errors in the minutes below (this happens when copying over from a Word document into google).  We are still looking for individuals to help translate PTA minutes and other PTA documents into Spanish. If you are interested, please contact Amy Yenyo at secretary@campbellschool.org.     

PTA Meeting

December 9, 2014

8:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.

Number of Attendees:  Approximately 20

I.   President’s Report – Beth Cavey


  • New Raffle Incentive:  Each
    individual will get a free ticket for attending restaurant nights and PTA
    meetings.  The raffle winner will get
    an extra recess for their child and his/her entire class.  The winner will be drawn at a future
    Community Meeting.    

  • Event Updates: 


    • The School Picnic was a
      huge success.  Thanks to Moley
      Evans, Rachel Schroeder, and the school custodians for all of their hard
      work.

    • Girls on the Run had
      their first race.  Congratulations
      to all the runners and organizers.

    • The School Dance was
      great.  Big thanks to Patty Healy
      for putting it together.  Patty
      also announced that we collected 49 pounds of food that was donated to
      AFAC.

    • Fall Project Discovery went
      off very well.  Thanks to Jennifer
      Lis and Ellen Bayer for organizing this. 
      They will be looking for replacements, so if anyone is interested
      in taking this over, let Beth Cavey know.

    • Odessey of the Mind:  Campbell will have two groups competing
      in March. 

    • Outdoor Classroom:  Our Garden Docent, Christy P., has been
      leading weekly lessons. 

    • Farm to Table Week Soup
      Tasting:  Virginia’s Own Farm gave
      a presentation and the kids got to taste butternut squash soup made by
      Christy P.  A recipe was sent home with
      the kids.  Thanks to Christy and
      Jessica Haney for organizing this event. 

    • A big thanks to Jen
      Robertson for organizing our first Teacher Appreciation Day.   The snacks were very much appreciated.
        


  • Campbell Directory Update: 
    The directory is almost done. 
    We hope to have it out in early January.  Thanks to Jackie Ventura and Maureen
    Nesselrode for getting all of the information together.  A template for putting the directory together
    was developed, so this should make it easier to get the directory
    completed earlier for the next school year. 

  • Fundraising Update: 


    • Fall Pledge Drive:  We have
      exceeded our budget goal (close to $3,650).  Thanks to Rachael Schroeder and Chandi
      Krohl for leading this effort.

    • Restaurant Nights:  We’ve
      had two very successful restaurant nights.  Both nights had about 20-30 families participate.  Nathan Zee has done an amazing job
      organizing these events.  Four
      Courts brought in $350.  A huge
      thanks to Dave Cahill for his support. 
      We had another successful night at Silver Diner.  We will likely bring in about $300 for that
      night. 

    • Black Friday Wrapping Day: 
      Brought in about $90. 
      Thanks to Chandi Krohl, Erin Link, Jennifer Lis, and the Robertson
      family for helping out.

    • Zumba:  Zumba classes
      on Saturdays has brought in $608.

    • Everwonder Conference Day Camps: Brought in $308.  Thanks to Moley Evans for her
      support. 

    • School Pictures:  Will
      be bringing in money.  Thanks to
      all the volunteers who helped out on picture day. 


  • Budget:  Budget is on
    track.  There are no major changes
    to report.

  • Upcoming Events: 


    • Yearbook Orders are due
      in January to get the reduced price. Mr. Roberts is our Yearbook Team
      Leader.  Ms. Gebhardt is helping
      with money collection and logistics.

    • Reading Challenge is in
      February.  This will be coordinated
      with the Reading Team.

    • Planning for the Wetlands
      Festival is starting.  The Festival
      will be on May 2nd.  Contact
      Rachael Schroeder and Chandi Krohl to help out.


II.    Principal’s
Update – Maureen Nesselrode


  • Plumbing Situation:  A letter
    was sent out regarding the plumbing investigation.  The problem is with the building
    additions where pipes make sharp turns. 
    The lower toilets reduce water use with each flush contributing to
    clogging.  A significant amount of
    work will need to be done to fix this. This most likely will occur next
    summer.  In the meantime, the school
    is doing some interventions to the keep the plumbing working. 

  • County Budget Process: The Arlington County budget process is
    beginning for next year.  There will
    be a significant increase in number of students.  Arlington County’s website discusses this
    process and possible cuts.  There is
    an opportunity for the public to comment. 
    It is unclear at this point whether potential budget cuts will
    impact staffing.  An update will be
    given in the spring on the status of staffing for next year. 

 III.   IPAD
Pilot Update – Intro by Maureen Nesselrode; Presentation by Liz Sites (K/1
Teacher) and Cathy Gust


  • Liz Sites (K/1 teacher) is
    coordinating the IPAD pilot in 3 classrooms (a 1st, 2nd,
    and 3rd grade class).   

  • The School Board plan for
    the elementary level (at this point) is to have IPADS in 2nd
    through 5th grade classrooms. 


  • Liz discussed why
    technology is important and how it can be beneficial if used properly.  She highlighted several applications (“apps”)
    being used

  • See the attached presentation
    for more information.  A list of
    useful applications is listed in the presentation.  

  • Questions were raised
    regarding the amount of screen time happening in the classrooms.  In pre-K/K, the maximum amount of screen
    time spent is approximately 20 minutes. 
    Same for 1st grade unless it is an IPAD pilot
    class.  Currently, the IPADs are
    being used in the language arts block to help moderate the amount of IPAD
    use time.  It is being used for a
    portion of reading.  IPADs have also
    been used as a part of field work. 
    Ms. Nesselrode discussed the importance of balancing screen time
    with learning in other ways and assured parents that the use of IPADs in
    the classroom was not replacing traditional learning practices.

  • IPADs won’t go with the students
    to 6th grade, the IPADs will cycle back down to 2nd
    grade.  When at full implementation,
    the IPAD will be issued to the student in 2nd grade and go with
    the student through 5th grade. 
    The plan for now is that the IPADs don’t go home with the kids – the
    IPADs stay at the school.  Too many
    logistical issues at this point to work through before sending them home
    with kids.

IV.    Budget Report and Funding Requests –
Beth Cavey


  • Budget:  Minor
    adjustment made to budget entries (lines 76-81 were added); however, it
    does not affect this fiscal year, so no voting is needed.  To see the Budget or the most recent
    Treasurer’s Report, go to:  https://campbellschool.org/httpcampbellschool-orgp413/.

  • Current Fundraising:  In
    general, we are on target/slightly above.


    • Met the goal of $3,000
      for the Pledge Drive, but we are still accepting donations.

    • Don’t forget to do store
      links and bring in boxtops.  For
      more information, go to:  https://campbellschool.org/support-campbell/
       

    • Spirit wear is on target


  • Funding Requests:   The following funding requests were
    approved by the PTA.


    • Mrs. Brewer:  $99 for supplies for classroom library
      space

    • Ms. Delong: $150 for supplies
      for classroom library space

    • Ms. Fleming:  $150 for supplies for classroom library
      space

    • Ms. Berg: $140 for
      supplies for classroom library space

    • Ms. McAleer: $150 for
      supplies for classroom library space

    • Ms. Montminy: $164 for
      supplies for classroom library space

    • Ms. Decker: $500 for
      author visit

    • Ms. Sites: $100 for
      ITunes gift card for Word Wizard App

    • Ms. Ammons: $200 for
      training for art journaling for Wetlands lessons

    • Ms. Boni: $200 for
      multicultural musician visit

    • Ms. Brown: $600 for
      band/chorus/orchestra polo shirts (split with Campbell School budget)


  Meeting adjourned at
approximately 10:00 p.m.
  

ppt icon Campbell-IPAD-Pilot-Update-for-PTA-2014.ppt
doc icon PTA-Meeting-12.9.14-Minutes.doc

NEXT PTA MEETING: TUESDAY 12/9 at 8PM!

We hope to see you Tuesday night at 8pm for the PTA meeting. Mrs. Nesselrode and Mrs. Sites will lead a discussion on the technology pilot at Campbell. We will also talk about other technology initiatives.

See you there!