FRIENDS OF WINTHROP: April Minutes
Wednesday, April 8, 2009, 9:00 a.m.
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Attendance: 19
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Call Meeting to Order
• Esther Vanier called the meeting to order and thanked everyone for attending.
• Motion: to approve minutes from March 2009. Voted and unanimously approved.
Principal’s Report (Carrie Vaich & Celeste Petradelis)
• Carrie Introduced Celeste Petradelis, Principal of the Day for Wednesday April 8, 2009. Celeste is fourth grade student at Winthrop. She won the raffle contest to be the Principal for a day at the FOW Holiday Boutique in December.
• Celeste gave an update on what is happening in the fourth grade at Winthrop. She talked about the big project for the Living Biography Day which is coming up April 14th. She mentioned that the students have selected a famous person who has made a difference in American History. Celeste recognized fourth grader Julia Rowse for receiving an Honorable Mention award for her essay on Democracy and Change, by the Massachusetts League of Women Voters. Julia went to Faneuil Hall in Boston to receive her award.
• Carrie reported that she is continuing the work with Winthrop parent John Vanderwilden to improve and update the Winthrop playground. Last week they walked the playground and made note of what would be prioritized for updates and repairs. John is actively looking competitively for best prices and quality, including services such as installation and maintenance.
• Academic Choice will be beginning on Fridays at the end of May. Watch for more information on specific times and dates and for opportunities to volunteer to teach courses or contribute materials. Teachers will be setting up classes to offer. Celeste mentioned that she did a fun class in jewelry making last year and enjoyed it. She recommended having another class similar. The kindergarten will have a separate Academic choice schedule to accommodate the split days. This year the 5th grade leaders will have an opportunity to help out with the kindergarten Academic choice.
• Carrie described that the three Winthrop School council member’s terms end this year. Because there are 3 representatives from Winthrop, it is optimal to have a staggered term to avoid having full turn over as in this year. So the new representatives will go in for a 1yr, 2yr, and 3yr term. Carrie made a motion to vote in School Council Members: Tina Dixon for a 1 year term, Jenny Frain for a 2 year term, and Stacey Verge for a 3 year term. Voted and unanimously approved.
Treasurer’s Report (Stacey Verge)
• Stacey presented the Treasurer’s Report dated through April 2009. She summarized by reporting that FOW funds are strong right now and that programs will continue to be supported through FOW. She reported the profits from recent FOW events :
• Toy Bingo-$585. – Esther Vanier commented that the event went well. That it should be noted that FOW events are not “drop off” students must be chaperoned by a parent or competent adult. Volunteers had to stay late to watch for children who were left alone at the school until they were picked up by a parent.
• CocoKey- $1,284. Designated to the fifth grade activities.
• Spring Social- Swing, Shoot and Boogie- approximately $3,000.
• Project Adventure- Shari Beane spoke on behalf of supporting the Project adventure day for the fifth graders. Her experience with PA has been positive and she highly recommended it for development of team work and confidence building. The field trip will be at the end of the school year and will be from 9 am to 2:30.
Votes
• Motion to approve $1,880 to fund 5th grade Project Adventure. Voted and unanimously approved.
• Motion to move $1,300 from available funds to Cultural Enrichment to complete Programs for the 08/09 school year. Voted and unanimously approved.
Business News & Updates
• Spring Social Update (Jenny Frain) This was a big success and lots of fun. Many people enjoyed their evening out and commented on the value of socializing with other parents that our children play with. Some parents suggested that it may be more beneficial to offer a social evening in the fall when we are coming in to school so we can meet people before the year is almost over. This suggestion was valued and will be considered in future planning.
• Art Show Wednesday April 29, 5-7 pm. The Art Show, Banbury Cross Book Fair and 3rd grade recorder concert is coming up. This is always an enjoyable evening. Jackie Johnson, the art teacher extraordinaire, is looking for volunteers to help set up and hang artwork. She is also looking for a clean up crew.
• Banbury Cross Book Fair is being coordinated by Tish Rodde. The fair will kick off the same night as the Art show and recorder concert. It will be in the classroom that is down the 5th grade hall, where the scholastic book fair was held in December. Families who may not be able to afford a book for their child may qualify for assistance. Please contact Jan Lee for more information.
• Staff Appreciation Luncheon (Molly Morin) Molly announced the annual staff appreciation luncheon will be happening again on a Wednesday after students are dismissed. Molly sent around a sign up sheet to provide food, entertainment and set up and clean up. Please see Molly or contact her for details on how you can become involved.
• Roller Skating Event, May 14th (Jenny Frain) Jenny is organizing a fun morning of roller skating at the Roller Palace in Beverly, on May 14th, Thursday, from 10-12. This is a day off from school so everyone can come. Jenny is extending the invitation to Culter and Buker schools as well.
• Building Grounds and Improvement (Mela Lew) Mela Lew announced that we should be watching for the Spring Project of “Reclaiming the Courtyard” She would like to have a volunteer day dedicated to cleaning up and sprucing up the courtyard outside the art room and along the library. This was well received and many expressed interest in helping out. There was some discussion about how the River Run Clean ups have worked and that students enjoy being involved in this type of project.
• Hot Dogs to Go (Esther Vanier) deb Littlefield is organizing Hot Dogs to Go this spring. It is scheduled to be Wednesday May 6th. Watch for your order forms and take the night off from cooking. Let FOW make dinner.
Next Friends of Winthrop Meeting:
Please Join Us Wednesday May 13, 2009, 9:00 a.m.
Please submit agenda items for the next meeting to:
Esther Vanier ewvanier [at] verizon.net or Amy Katz amybkatz [at] verizon.net
Minutes are posted following monthly meetings at our website www.hwfriendsofwinthrop.com
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