March 2021 General PTA Meeting Minutes

March General PTA Meeting Minutes

Thursday, March 25, 2021

This meeting was held remotely on Zoom.

Welcome – Michelle Dobson & Liza Gouger, PTA Co-Presidents

• Thank you for coming. We know this has been a rough few days for our community in and outside school. We hope everyone is ready for a nice, relaxing spring break. Ms. Rosa will not be joining us tonight. Ms. Bridget Nash, AP, will give us the school update.

School Update – Ms. Bridget Nash (AP)

• If you are fully remote, there is a second opt-in window happening now through April 7. 
• Children who plan on returning, there is no guarantee you will be in the class you were promised in August. We don’t know how many children will be back in building, and guidance is forthcoming from DOE on social distancing guidelines.
• We have spoken with remote staff and teachers who do not have medical accommodations who will be returning. We may have to hire some substitute teachers depending on how many children we have back in the classroom. Once we know that number, we will be able to come up with a better plan. Please reach out to your teachers to let them know your intention about coming back, because the data from the DOE is often delayed.
• We are in the process of planning 5th grade graduation. Right now, the decision is that all events will be virtual, including graduation.
• The Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee sent out a Konstella blast a couple of weeks ago to assess interest in a virtual Roots & Community event. If you are interested please go back and look at the Konstella blast and reply; as of now, they have only heard back from five groups wanting to host a table.
• We have a new remote movement teacher who will begin on April 5 with a remote program. All children will have access to a morning link for a yoga/movement class. There will be two blocks of time for PreK-2nd and 3rd-5th to join. Open to remote and blended students.
• COVID update
  • We are aware this has been very difficult for families as well as administrators.
  • This is not over yet. In the past two weeks, we have seen an uptick in cases again both at our school and at neighboring schools. 
  • We do not make the decisions about closing the school. This decision is made by the city based on mandatory reporting by the school. 
  • We know there are inequities in A vs. B days, and we are aware it is disruptive. The SLT is going to come together and try to find a solution to this problem.
  • There is a new health screener. Please pay attention to it as we come up to spring break. The travel advisory issued by NY State is not matching the DOE health screener, but we are governed by DOE and must follow DOE travel guidelines, which include:
    • If you are traveling internationally, you must quarantine for seven days upon return and submit a negative test before returning. 
    • Please keep an eye out for any changes to this policy that might come in early April.
  • Please do not send children to school sick. 
  • We still don’t know about what summer school or fall will look like; our hope is that everyone will be back in the building full-time.
  • The new 3-foot distancing guidelines have not been explained yet in detail to us by the DOE. There is a formula used to determine how many students can be in each room safely. We cannot simply double the number. because it is figured out based on available space, furniture, etc. We hope someone from DOE comes in during break to determine these numbers so that we have the information when we return from spring break.
• New York State Testing 
  • There is one day of testing, and we have approximately two weeks to administer the tests.
  • If you choose to opt out of testing, please send the required letter to Ms. Yvette.
  • We will have more information after a meeting scheduled for April 5.
• Fifth Grade Graduation
  • DOE allows permits for an in-person graduation at another site, but we cannot get a permit because it is not possible to get one for more than 50 people at a time.
  • Graduation will be virtual; in-person is not possible at this time.
  • Meredith Finn (parent) 
    • There is a parent committee completely separate from school, which will be setting up an in-person outdoor event for fifth grade graduates to gather together before the end of the school year. Fifth grade parents will receive more information after break. The DOE is not involved and the school cannot sanction any in-person events.

Update — Ms. Yvette Agas-Bautz, Parent Coordinator

• If your child is NOT coming back to The Children’s School next September, let me know.
• PreK applications are open until April 7. Please submit an application if there is a younger sibling starting in September. Submissions are done through your MySchools account.
• Thursday, April 8–Parent Workshop on Managing the Waves of Transitions. Save the date was sent on Konstella last week with the Google Meet link. 
• Wear it Blue • Friday, April 9 – Autism Awareness
• New York Schools Account – please let me know if you need assistance setting up an account. The report cards will be posted on your child’s account by next week.
• PS372 Spirit Week – April 19- 23: more information to come after spring break
• NYS Refusal Letters, if you are opting your child out of the exams this year please let me know by sending the letter template that was sent via Konstella last week. 

Stay@Home Gala – Michelle Dobson

• Friday, April 16th 9:00 a.m. -11:59pm
  • Please do not Dress Up
  • Please do not Hire A Babysitter
  • Please do not Leave Your Cozy Couch 
  • Show your Support for the school by donating from your home or office
• Sample donation ideas…
  • $20 Donation = what you didn’t spend on Concessions at Movie Night 
  • $30 Donation = what you didn’t spend on photo booth, raffles, and treats at ❤️ Day Dance
  • $50 Donation = what you didn’t spend on 2 Early Bird Auction&Gala tickets
  • $85 Donation = what you didn’t spend at Winterfest on coffee+baked goods+PS372 Gear/gifts 
  • $115 Donation = what you didn’t spend on 1 slice for 1 session for 1 child at Pizza Friday 
  • $240 Donation = what you didn’t spend on 2 slices for both sessions for 1 child at Pizza Friday 

• Gala Committee co-chairs will be sending out more information via a Konstella blast soon
• There will be a link for direct donations

Virtual Book Fair – Liza Gouger

• A rousing success!
• Over 200 new books into the hands of our students and families
• Raised over $500 for PTA programs
• Supported both our school and a local business!

Virtual Readathon – Merideth Finn-Beers & Brad Eichmann

• Student Participation soared!
• PS372 students have read over 200,000 minutes! That’s amazing!
• Class 3-1 had 100% participation
• Over 200 students participated
• Congratulations to everyone who participated!
• Fundraising by students and their sponsors of over $22,000. This is the biggest amount Readathon has ever raised!
• Thank you so much to everyone who donated!
• Milestone Minute Drawing Winners 
  • These students each won a $25 gift card from Community Bookstore.
    • Participation – Isla Ilnseher (4-Remote)
    • 125 Minutes – Oz Pengas – Feldman (K-1)
    • 250 Minutes – Hana Garcia (PreK-2)
    • 500 Minutes – Abraham Dyer (1-1)
    • 1000 Minutes – Miranda Rivera (3-2)

Budget Report – Tania Ahmed, PTA Co-Treasurer

• Read-a-thon
  • Sponsors have donated over $20k 
• Direct Appeal 2020-2021
  • Direct giving is the easiest way to support the PTA
  • Over $22K in donations to support school so far
  • Our goal is $35K by July. Please continue to support the direct appeal!

Upcoming Events

• March Movement Madness Finale – Spring Break activity!
  • Details soon – maps, activities, school spirit signs, and more.
  • It will involve moving with your family outside! (Bike, run, scooter, skip, hop, whatever you want!) We have made some runner-type bibs for participants to print and wear.
  • Thank you Lori White for putting bibs and a kid-friendly map of Prospect Park for this event!
  • Share your March Movement Madness photos – email to info@ps372pta.org
  • Watch out for the Konstella blast with more information coming soon
• Virtual Roots & Community — April 24th
  • Watch for details on Konstella 
  • Country-based breakout rooms with activities, crafts, etc.
  • Please consider hosting a virtual “table”
  • Reach out to Mr. Frank (AP) or Tatum Strum (372 speech therapist and parent)

School Garden Update – Liza Gouger

• Garden prep will be happening in next weeks
• Watch the school garden as it wakes up from winter slumbers!
• Students will be tilling and planting in April
• Daffodils growing in tree pits and planters
• Sensory garden in center, around edges will be fruits and vegetables
• If you have a green thumb, or are interested in helping restart the school garden, please email garden@ps372pta.org. All participation will be outdoors!

Thank Yous

• Thanks to our community for joining us tonight and supporting each other.
• Thank you for reaching out with questions and concerns and communicating with the PTA Executive Board. We are here for you!
• Thanks to Merideth Finn-Beers, Dan Beers & Brad Eichmann for bringing the Readathon online. Everyone loved doing the Readathon and tracking minutes.
• Thank you Merideth Finn-Beers for volunteering to organize the virtual fifth grade dance!
• Thanks to our families for buying new books through the Book Fair.
• Thanks to Yvette & Stomping Ground for safely and successfully managing Picture Day this year for all our students.
• Thanks to La Toya Jemmoth, Amy Vagelatos, and Lori White for your help organizing the March Movement Madness activities.

Announcements

• If your child still needs to take a school photo, you can still upload your own photo, and they will go into the classroom composite photo. Fifth grade parents — please upload your child’s photo since that will be used for the yearbook. Deadline for submissions is tomorrow, 3/26/21.
• The next PTA Meeting is scheduled for April 29, 2021. 

Submitted by Mimi Stauber-Levy

PS 372 PTA Recording Secretary

3/29/21