September 11, 2006 - Media Center

Attendees: Mr. Rose, Ms. Sherry, Vicki Nizen, Michael Hartley, Randy Wilkins, Angel Lebak, Laura Lavan , Beth Montanaro, Brian Hartigan, Rachel Freund, Jennifer Volpe, Joanne Ward, Sue Boyette, Kathleen Savenelli, Laura Harrington, Donna Johnson, Connie Chamblee, Jana Greco, Alison Civils, Sue Hanehan, Wendy Buchanan, Gail Woolard, and Rose Raulynaitis

Opening
The meeting was called to order at 6:05pm.

Introductions and Committee Overview
Everyone introduced themselves and discussed their role.

Budget
Laura Harrington distributed the Budget for 2006/2007 and went through the various items. Mike made a motion to approved the budget, Beth seconded the motion; all agreed. The budget will be presented at the PTA General Meeting scheduled for October 3rd.

Cultural Arts
Ms. Hanehan discussed the Cultural Arts events planned for the school year:
September: - Leni Newell – Visual Arts (Continuation of Silk Banners in Lobby)
October: - Bright Star Childrens Theatre (Lady of Bulyburg and Sleepy Hollow)
- Androgena
November: - Charles Pettee (Music)
- Holly’s Harps (Chamber Music – Children may experience of a ‘hands on’ lesson
February: - Theatre IV (Harriet Tubman)

Ms. Hanehan mentioned that she has applied for grants from United Artists. The Cultural Arts
budget is in need of an additional $300 to be able to cover all the planned events. Laura Lavan made a motion to increase the Cultural Arts budget to cover the additional $300 needed. Rose seconded the
motion, all approved.

PTA Membership
We currently have 120 members for the new school year. Our goal is 225, which may be aggressive. We hope to enroll many more members from Open House and the Fall Picnic.

Newsletters
Donna Johnson will be responsible for the Newsletter. The newsletter will have highlights in Spanish. We will have a Counselor’s Corner and continue to have the Childrens Writing section. A separate calendar will be inserted in the newsletter to make it convenient for parents to post it in their homes and have the information easily accessible.

AR Program
Vance is experiencing equipment problems and hopes to be starting the AR program very soon.

School Store
The school store will start in October. Volunteers are needed.
Grocery Store Proceeds
A new Harris Teeter location recently opened down the road from the school. Vicki mentioned that the application for the school to obtain a percentage of the profit earned from Vance family purchases is quite lengthy. She will complete the application and sign Vance up for the program. We will remind parents via the Newsletter as to which stores offer Vance the opportunity to earn money.

Boxtops/Labels
Jana Greco mentioned that going forward Campbell’s now requires the UPC to be included with the
label. There will be a drawing once a week for the students who qualify per grade level. Each child
will receive a prize if their name is drawn. Near the end of the school year, the winning class will be
rewarded with a party.

Star Reading Program
Ms. Sherry discussed this program with the group. Students will be tested to determine their
independent reading level and their instructional reading level. In the past, children were reading
books that were either above or below their reading level.

School Improvement
We would like to have Parent Information Center for parents in the front lobby. It would basically be a
bookshelf with many booklets/brochures on helpful topic that may be of concern for parents.

Reflections
Wendy Buchanan discussed the Reflections program which is sponsored by the National PTA. It
allows children to compete for recognition. This year’s theme is ‘My Favorite Place’. Information
will be sent out to parents soon.

Multi-Cultural Awareness
Karen Blue is our Multi-Cultural Awareness Chairperson. Karen discussed some ideas she has
for the upcoming year. The International Fair may be a daytime event this year. Bulletin boards
may be used to feature various cultures. Perhaps we could also ask the cafeteria staff to make a
cultural related snack as well.

District 2 Meeting
Randy Wilkins is our District 2 Representative. Periodically throughout the year meetings are
held for the purposes of problems solving issues. Randy will attend these meetings and relay any
pertinent information to us. The first meeting is scheduled for September 18 and all board
members are invited. District 2 encompasses Holly Springs, Fuquay Varina, Garner and Willow
Springs (15 schools).

Housekeeping Items
• Vicki wanted to change Laura Lavan’s title from VP of Advocacy to VP of Special Events. Wendy made a motion to approve this change, Laura Harrington seconded the motion and all approved.
• Hospitality Committee Chairperson remains to be an open position
• All correspondence from the PTA must be reviewed and approved by Vicki and Mr. Rose
• Book Fair Vendors – Vicki is looking at other vendors due to some problems we had last year.

Fall Family Picnic
All of the grade levels have decided on their booth event.
Kindergarten – Bake Sale
First Grade – Spin Art, Jewelry Bead Making
Second Grade – Finger Nail Polish and Tattoos
Third Grade – Cup Cake Decorating
Fourth Grade – Bookmark Making
Fifth Grade – Used Book Sale

Families are invited to bring their own lunch; and the PTA will provide drinks. Each grade level has chosen how they will use the proceeds they earn from their booth.

2006-07 Overview and Initiatives – Mr. Rose and Ms. Sherry
Ms. Sherry mentioned that the staff has been asked to read a book titled Fish. It encourages a more
positive environment. It focuses on the following points: Being There, Play, Make Their Day and
Choosing your Attitude. A copy of the book will be available if anyone on the Board is interested in
reading it.

Vance had adopted a building-wide literary Resource, Houghton Mifflin.

Mr. Rose mentioned that Vance will officially follow the year round calendar for the 2007/2008 school year. Information will be distributed in the Tuesday folders directing parents to a website that offers useful information that may answer many of their questions. The October 3rd PTA meeting will be focusing mainly on the bond issue and the change to a year round schedule. While Mr. Rose invites parents to ask questions, he also asks for their patience. The school will be conducting quite a bit of in-house training. Mr. Rose is looking forward to the challenge.

Approval of June 2006 Meeting Minutes
Ms. Savenelli made a motion to approve the minutes, Randy Wilkins seconded the motion; all
agreed.

Fishbowl – Questions/Concerns
A poster of fishbowl will be hung at all PTA meetings to allow attendees to post questions
and/or concerns that they would like to be addressed before the meeting closed.

For this particular meeting, there was a question asked about the birthday gifts that were given to
each teacher last year and if the PTA was going to continue that this year. The PTA will not
continue distributing cards/balloons to each teacher as we did last year. Feedback was not
positive considering the amount of effort it took to carry out. We will continue with appreciation
breakfasts as done in the past.

Closing
 The meeting adjourned at 7:35pm
 Minutes submitted by: PTA Secretary, Rose Raulynaitis
Date: September 27, 2006