PTO Board Meeting
Wednesday, September 11, 2024
7:00pm
Rafferty’s Pub

Administration & PTO Board Members in Attendance

Ms. Amy Read, Pam Byerly, Rachel Melyon, Cathy Gannon, Meghan Muscato, Jill Tweedie, Andrea Carlson, Rocco Casamassimo, Nicole Musillami, Maggie Malone

Updates from Administration and Board Members

The board introduced themselves and then Ms. Read acknowledged her appreciation for the PTO and the programs that are offered. Collaboration and partnership between the school and parents is always in the forefront of her mind and she is so appreciative of all that the PTO does for the school and staff. 

The year has kicked off to a great start with welcoming ~30 new families into the school plus a staff welcome with treats in the lounge. The board is looking into a new medium to attract and engage new and younger families. A goal of the PTO is to continue (and increase) engaging new families, teachers and sharing all of the wonderful things the PTO provides. Some ideas to assist in this goal would be to utilize varying social media platforms, place PTO flyers in student backpacks, increased communication through the room parents, and more transparency on how the PTO raises money through parties. 

Teacher grants will be paid by end of month September. The total amount of grants will be approx $7,300 which is the same amount given as last year. 

There are many volunteer opportunities throughout the school year & still some Co-Chairs needed for events. The After 3 Program is due to launch September 16.

The first Fun Lunch is October 18th and the board plans to have four Fun Lunches this year vs three. The format will change to signing up for participation all at once instead of per lunch, and charging a heavily suggested donation of $30 per child to cover the significant Fun Lunch cost. 

Math and Science Night is scheduled for January 16. The board discussed w/staff present at the meeting to work with teachers on encouraging younger graded students to participate in this event by potentially incorporating items into their curriculum so students feel more confident in signing up.

The first annual PTO Block Party was scheduled for Sunday, September 22, but canceled due to weather. PTO plans to host this family event again in Fall 2025.  The first Retail Fundraiser is October 3rd at Portillo’s in Willowbrook, where 20% of proceeds will be reimbursed to our school.  The Book Fair is scheduled for October 21-23, during Teacher Conferences. The Fun Fair is in need of volunteer co-chairs and is likely looking at a facelift this year with new activities, no inflatable slide, and option to use multiple classrooms to spread the event out. Trivia Night is scheduled for Friday, January 31, 2025 at the American Legion. The Adult Social is scheduled for March 14, 2025 at the LaGrange Country Club with a possible Dueling Pianos theme. There are several open committee chair roles that need to be filled to make Fun Fair and the Adult Social a success.

The Student Directory is almost complete and will be distributed shortly.  The PTO plans to begin the process of a digital format directory as well, thru Directory Spot app.

Per the school’s request, the larger fundraising focuses for this school year include a playground canopy, new logo mat replacements and a revamp of the mural wall near the school main entrance (next to gymnasium). The PTO aims to focus on 1-2 larger school-needed projects each year, in addition to continuing raising money for the other 15-20 events and activities the PTO aids.  The PTO was able to cover over 75% of the library renovation thanks to our generous Spring Avenue families.

The Treasurer’s report shared there is just over $54,000 in the account and there was a net revenue of $11,000 from the 2023-24 school year.  This money has been allotted to each PTO event, activity, and expense for the 2024/2025 school year.  

The next PTO meeting will be Wednesday, November 6, 2024 at Spring Avenue School after drop off (8:40am).