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Principal’s Update: MVK’s new music and band teacher has been working extremely hard since the beginning of the school year to prepare the 7th and 8th grade marching band for their first parade. Last Sunday the marching band participated in the Dwight Harvest Days Parade. Of the participating middle school bands, we placed 1st in visual, 2nd in music, and 2nd overall in our division. Congratulations to the marching band members and thank you for all your hard work Ms. Hayes!

Principal’s Update: The transition from summer to starting the new school year can be a difficult time for children and parents. The thought of being in class all day and coming home with homework can be hard to adjust to after the summer months. Here are a few tips to help with homework: Make a to-do list and then order the assignments from toughest to easiest. This strategy will help your child finish on a high note, and perhaps inspire them to get in some extra studying. Another strategy can include creating a time slot that is set aside for only homework. This encourages students to get their homework completed during their study hall so they can use this time outside of school for another activity. Lastly, help your child see homework as a chance to prove their independence by getting their work done on time and on their own. This can boost confidence as well as promote the importance of responsibility.

 

 

Meeting Agenda: September 13, 2017

  • Call to order at 6:30 p.m.
  • Jenna Punke-Bendt distributed Secretary Report.  
  • Jessica distributed Treasurer’s Report: No Discrepancies.

Upcoming Items

  • Monthly Newsletter – Jenna Punke-Bendt includes what is happening for the month, volunteer opportunities, and a peek at next month’s events/items.  Distributed to newsletter email list, on MVK’s FB page, and MVK’s website.
  • Bulletin Board- Elementary school by Kindergarten doors.  “What’s Poppin’ with Parents’ Club.  Maintained by Amanda.
  • Book Fair: 9/11/17 – 9/15/17. Have $536 in Scholastic Bucks expiring in October.  Officers agreed to split that amount between both school libraries – Principals and Superintendent have been notified.  As of now (middle of the book fair) sales have totaled $1,924.18 which equates to $769.67 in Scholastic Bucks.  Final totals will be assessed upon Book Fair completion.  Will be open daily 9:-11:30 a.m. and 1:00-3:00 p.m., with an additional time on Thursday from 3:30-5:00 p.m.  Tear down will be Friday after school, volunteers needed.  Nicole, Tony, and Nancy have volunteered to help with tear down.  We discussed having a “Teacher Wishlist” going forward, so that parents may purchase a book to donate to the teacher’s classroom.  Will discuss further.
  • Room Representatives:  Have been notified and received duties/party sign-ups.
  • Box Tops: September 18 – October 13.  Theme will be Dr. Seuss’s The Cat in the Hat.  Michelle Weber can help Amanda with bulletin board.  Flyers need to be in mailboxes by Friday September 15.  Room Reps will count box tops for the first 3 weeks of contest.  Prizes have been adjusted to accommodate student allergies.  1st Place = Pajama Day; 2nd Place = Hat Day; 3rd Place = 5 Extra Minutes of Recess.
  • Legendary Pie Sales:  9/25-10/16.  Jessica will place orders by 10/19.  Delivery date will be 11/13.  There will be incentives for top sellers, to be discussed.  Michelle Brookman asked for a list of allergens to be listed on the flyer, and this has been approved by our liaison with Legendary Pies.
  • Parent/Teacher Conferences: 10/26-10/27.  Luncheon for staff (Subway).  Volunteers for homemade desserts for both schools.  Jenna will include this volunteer opportunity in monthly newsletter; Luri, Tifanie, Rachel, and Michelle W. have volunteered as well.
  • Fall Community Movie Night: Will revisit this idea during wintertime, as none of the fall movie releases sound appealing. Discussion was brought up for a Pickleball tournament in addition to Movie Night. 
  • Christmas Tree Auction: Wreaths vs. trees.  Consensus is we like trees better, easier to decorate, and 4H sells the wreaths every year.  Jessica will keep window shopping for best price on trees.
  • Spirit Wear: Crystal Aukland.  We have quite a few staff orders.  Student orders have not been as high.  B&R Designs turnaround time is currently between 2-3 weeks.  Will do another round of “Orders due by” before Christmastime with new items.  We will revisit a game plan for Spirit Wear and the Spirit Wear box. Tony DiNello offered to email order forms with other information he sends out weekly.
  • By-Laws: Distributed By-Laws for attendees to review.  We will vote at next meeting (10/11) to accept the By-Laws for the 2017-2018 schoolyear. We are also aspiring to create a working budget to help plan for larger purchase items.
  • Shoparoo:  The two schools have now been combined into one account.  Shoparoo sends us a check for $50 once we reach 50,000 points.  We are currently at 1,850 points.
  • Scholastic Bucks:  After gifting the 2 libraries with $536 in soon-to-expire Scholastic Bucks, our balance is $1,687.30.  An updated balance will be available after the Fall Book Fair is complete.

Fundraisers

  • Beer and Wine Tasting Fundraiser: Set for 4/14/17 at the Morris VFW.  Will be working with Westside Liquors again this year. 

Old Business

  • We received Thank You’s from retirees Debbie Granger and Alicia O’Keefe
  • Mulch needs to be updated on playground.  We are discussing changing over to pea gravel instead.  LaFarge is possibly donating the gravel, we would need volunteers to lay on top of existing mulch.  A second round of gravel laying would probably need to occur next year, as the existing mulch will disintegrate more, then there shouldn’t be a need for more maintenance after that.

New Business

Requests

  • Melanie Elias - $300 for various items throughout the school year: AR Prizes (Breakfast/Lunch with Principal, Erasers, Bookmarks), Battle of the Books, PARCC Party in the Park.  Approved.
  • Tony DiNello- $647 for various items throughout the school year: AR Prizes (Quarterly Donuts, Lunch, Limo Ride), Student of the Month candy, 4 Staff STAR gift certificates.  Approved by Luri and Nancy. 
  • Ralph Rowe: $607.57 for Electric Binding Starter Kit with Supplies and Crimping Pliers.  Approved.
  • Student: Tether ball set for Elementary School Playground.  Tabled until research can be done on prices for a safe, commercial-grade unit.

Open Discussion: 

  • Someone asked what our plan is to promote Parents’ Club and what it does for MVK in a positive way to resolve some negative public opinions and/or educate the public on how Parents’ Club spends funds to benefit our students, staff, and school.  We believe the newsletter and posters at events indicating what Parents’ Club provides yearly is a step in the right direction.

Meeting adjourned at 8:15.

Attention MVK families!  In recent years, we have collected used ink cartridges and cell phones to recycle in exchange for cash for the school.  However, the company we use has updated their qualifying items for recycling.  For example, they do except HP 61 cartridges, but they do NOT accept any Epson cartridges at all.  Also, they no longer accept cell phones.  So please click on the following link and check the qualifying list before sending in your items.  http://www.fundingfactory.com/qualifying-list-detail.aspx

Thank you!

Principal’s Update: Students in grades 7th & 8th are currently in their Archery Unit for Mrs. Siedentop’s physical education class. This unit has become a favorite in the middle school. Practicing archery allows students to strengthen core muscles, improve balance, and increase hand-eye coordination.  In addition to the physical benefits, archery allows students to work on their focus and concentration skills. Thank you to Mrs. Siedentop for all your hard work in making this unit successful!

Won a thrilling game at home over Shorewood Holy Family 8 to 7 to advance the overall mark to 9 and 5. Andrew Litwiller had 2 hits and struck out 9 as the starting pitcher. Matt Cruise added a 2 run double and was the winning pitcher in relief. Bryce Roe aded 2 singles. MVK trailed 6 to 1 before a rally that included consecutive suicide squeeze plays. The 7th inning  saw Chase Litwiller double and Jacob Johnson executing a bunt for the game winner. " A great game to be a part   of , "  said Jerry McDowell ." That was a total team effort today. We executed well down the stretch."   

Principal’s Update: The halls at the middle school are covered in student made posters by those who are running for student council. Student council members serve as the voice of the students and contribute to many of the programs at MVK. They are active in organizing semester incentives, running the concession stands at after school activities, creating banners to be hung throughout the schools, and organizing school assemblies. To run for student council, students must have had 10 students and 1 staff member sign their petition. Good luck to all students running and thank you to Mrs. Dillow and Mrs. Hunt for organizing the program!

September Newsletter PIC 2

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