LES PTA Board Minutes
September 16, 2011
The LES PTA Board meeting was called to order by Kathleen Songer at 9:46 a.m. The
meeting was held in the conference room at Laytonsville Elementary School.
In Attendance
Kim Braun, Kathleen Songer, Liz McClure, Patti Twemlow, Shannon Hockey, Elena
Mitrione, Linda Solomich, and Cathleen Marose were in attendance. The meeting was
open to the public. Donna Sagona attended to present and Kathy Lippincott stopped in
to make a request.
Approval of Minutes
No minutes were presented at this meeting.
Old Business
The Open House, both Back to School Nights, the Back to School Picnic and Membership
numbers were discussed.
It was noted that the membership numbers are down slightly from last year and it was
requested that the link to membership forms be put on the front page of LES Website.
Kim Braun to implement.
There was a motion made to discontinue the $8 directory only sales and charge $10 for
the directory, parents are not required to join the PTA to purchase the directory. The
motion was seconded and all present voted to approve the directory price change to
$10.
The Lions Club donated $200 to the PTA, Patti Twemlow will send a thank you note and
Kim Braun will have the thank you posted on facebook and the LES Website.
Bar-T donated the sno-cone machine for the Back to School Picnic, Patti Twemlow will
send a thank you note to them. The picnic was well attended by the LES staff. Kim
Braun will thank teachers for their participation in Cybernews as well as by email.
New Business
Fundraising:
Entertainment Books have been distributed and are due September 30. Cathleen
Marose to send a reminder flyer and Kim Braun to add to Cybernews. Sally Foster starts
on October 14.
LES PTA Board Minutes
September 16, 2011
The date for Mamma Lucia dinner night is being finalized by Liz McClure. She will also
look into other restaurants, including Jersey Mikes.
A corn maze flyer was sent to the PTA, it was determined that more research should be
done on the event before presenting.
Gardening and Landscape Funds:
There has been a request to clean up the bench area around the flagpole in the front of
the builiding by adding gravel or pavers, but changes will require some funds. Kim
Braun will ask Julie Knolmayer to get an estimate and also look into donations of
supplies to finalize cost before presenting if necessary.
PTA Leadership Meeting: There is a PTA Leadership Meeting offered by the county on
September 24th. Kim Braun will be attending and has publicized the invitation to other
PTA Leadership.
Facebook: It was announced that the LES PTA now has a Facebook page that you can
join by hitting Like. It will be used to do general announcements and reminders.
PTA Money for Staff: In the past, staff has requested funds from the PTA to meet their
needs. This year there has been a change that all fund requests go through the school
first and then to the PTA to ensure that items already budgeted into school funds get
covered by the school.
General PTA Meeting: The next General PTA Meeting will be held on Thursday, October
13th and will offer a Literacy Workshop.
Variety Show: The sound and lights for the Variety Show are no longer being donated
to the PTA. Cathleen Marose is researching other options and doing cost analysis on
them. Most options include moving the show to an outside venue and only having one
performance night. Final options to be presented at a later date.
Teachers on Leave: There are currently 2 teachers on long term leave, Patti Twemlow
and Elena Mitrione will coordinate sending them meals or cards from the PTA.
Gazette: The Gazette would like articles submitted for publication about LES events.
Liz McClure to look into this further for action.
Donuts for Dads: It was reported that Kristen Roe is currently looking into getting
coffee donations from local businesses for this event.
LES Message Board: The message board out in front of LES needs volunteers monthly
to change the message. Currently the hinges are not working properly and therefore
changing the message is difficult. There was discussion last year on fixing it, Kim Braun
LES PTA Board Minutes
September 16, 2011
to check on the final outcome last year. Further discussion required on how to manage.
In the meantime, board members have signed up to change the messages.
Math Supply Budget: Mrs. Lippincott stopped in to request that the math supply
budget remain as part of the budget. It was confirmed that it was still there.
Principal’s Report: Mrs. Sagona presented information regarding the PAC, the Parent
Advisory Committee, that has been formed to have parents give input. She also talked
about the need for on level books to come home each day/week, intervention
opportunities for specific needs, help making the learning process authentic, engaging
and meaningful. Other topics discussed included homework, field trips, and chorus.
Mrs Sagona requested assistance from the PTA in regards to a new process for getting
money from the classrooms on behalf of the PTA as the children are not allowed to
carry money so the responsibility falls to the teachers. Kim Braun to look into different
ideas to help out.
A request was made for funds to help create on level “book baskets.” No motion was
made or action taken as more specific information will be needed.
A request was made for help paying for the fix to the front door camera/lock
mechanism that is not supported by the county. A motion was made to pay for half the
cost of the repair. The motion was seconded and approved by all present.
Mrs. Sagona asked about the visiting author program from last year and was directed to
Pam Martinez for more information. Mrs. Sagona will contact her directly.
Treasurers Report: The treasurers report was presented for review as well as a draft of
the new PTA Cash Verification Form. The correct process for handling PTA money was
discussed. It was suggested that a Spring Festival Sub Committee be created specifically
to handle the money.
Business for Future Meetings: Topics mentioned for follow up at future meetings were
Membership Dues and a new directory option.
The meeting adjourned at 12:46 pm.