President’s Report – 6/13 PTA Meeting

The MPR was packed with familiar and new faces for our June meeting. Thanks so much for being there! On that note, thanks to all of you who have put in so much time this year–in the classroom, at a PTA event, in the garden, or where ever you volunteered–all of your efforts are so appreciated.

Principal Conlon reported on preliminary CAASP testing reports: In English/Language Arts we have 85-92% of students meeting or exceeding standards, improving our already high scores from last year. Math scores 80-83%, which is also amazing. More will be shared with parents once reports are finalized. 

LBHS parent Jacquie Cohn was hired as the TOW science specialist from a field of talented candidates. She will run the new STEAM lab next year. She has previously taught at high school and middle school level and also worked with the UCI teacher preparation program. The $15,000 that was designated from the PTA for the STEAM lab will go into a budget for her to use to outfit the lab with equipment. Check will be written this fiscal year. The district will also provide ongoing funding for the program.

Treasurer Laura Jumani gave an overview of the year-end PTA budget and the proposed programs and budget for next year. We will end the year in a strong financial position with increased cash reserves of approximately $79,000 (our goal was $50,000). Due to the decreased enrollment of 70 students projected for next year, we are budgeting a $28,000 decrease in total revenue for next year. We will continue to support the teachers and grade-levels with the same fixed amount per grade next year ($1,500 per grade plus $500-$800 per classroom). We are adding a paid coordinator position to the Outdoor Classroom and Garden program. We will continue to fund the Art Masters program, as well as add two additional arts programs: Segerstrom Arts Teach assemblies and a day of Arts Reflections Workshops in the Fall. We will continue to support prizing/incentives for Reading Counts. We will add a $1,000 scholarship for a LBHS graduate who attended TOW, as well as a TOW student grant program. We are planning for a decline in web registration fees with our planned move from Active Networks Thriva to REC1. That transition should happen over the summer.

Kelly Osborne reported on activity the garden: Last month we kicked off a lunch time food waste recycling program, installed outdoor sink benches in both spaces and built a small wood bleacher seat in primary.

PTA Council Reflections Chair Jennifer Baker reported on the artwork on display at the Festival of the Arts. She also thanked the staff for the Stars Wars event and encouraged parents of 4th and 5th grade band members to have their children play with the Laguna Concert Band on Tuesdays this summer. Patricia Molteni and Lisa Burchi were thanked for their work with Reflections this year.

I invite you all to read the June issue of the Advocacy Communicator, which includes information on Governor Brown’s May revision of the proposed state budget and the resolution on dyslexia was approved at the California State PTA Convention. Up to 20 percent of students in California have dyslexia and struggle to learn reading, yet there are no programs to train teachers in recognizing and addressing the problem. PTA will work to change that.

We hope you will all join us for our first meeting next year on Sept 19 at 8am in the MPR so we can kick off another action-packed year! Look for PTA membership information in your school registration info this summer.

If you actually read this whole report, I invite you to email contact@towpta.org…there could be prizes…or a PTA position with your name on it. 😉

Thanks,

Sarah Durand
TOW PTA President