Parent Group Report - January 31, 2008
Karen P. Principal’s Report – Karen highlighted a 4th Q registration compromise that will allow us to gain a lost instruction day. This has been an on-going issue with teachers and parents being opposed by students who wanting the full day off for registration. She reported that it takes ~ 600 hrs for her and Julie to complete registration. So, the compromise proposed a half day schedule on Tue., Wed., Th. (Mon. and Fri. are regular schedules), with registration from 12:30 to 2:05.
Alternative Fair – Not as many secondary parents attend the Fair in general. There are starting to be more secondary schools, i.e. School Within a School from East, etc. There was a suggestion made for taking down a list of interested parents/students at the Fair so they could be contacted about registering for the Steller lottery, attending open house, etc. Karin reported forms themselves can’t be filled out at the Fair as it’s not secure. The deadline for applications is March 20 (no later than 3 PM) with the lottery itself on March 21. A group of students and the Steller Counselor will travel to elementary schools to promote Steller to sixth graders.
Treasurer’s Report – Mary - Currently we have $8,616.80 in the bank. Donations from 82 families have provided ~ $6,200 of that amount and we sold 147 raffle tickets that earned us $1,400. There’s no e-Script report this month.
Auction planning report from Ingrid – The auction date has changed to Fri. March 28 (an in-service day). Donations are still being accepted and requested. If bringing them the day of the auction, drop-off donations in the gym. The plan is for desserts and drinks to be for sale. Drink sales earned about $300 before they ran out last year. A seed money request for $300 for drinks, supplies etc. was approved by the Parent Group.
Teachers Report – Troy
Intensives Development
Joe is working on some ideas for intensives with Dawnmarie and Cheryl and they plan to bring back some ideas to future Parent Group Meetings.
P/T Conferences during the semester to facilitate coordination - The Parent Group discussed the idea of parent/teacher conference for quite a while. There is some good information on the web about student led conferences and it seems to be a potential option. Currently we have end-of-the-year conferences with the student’s counselor (not with all their individual teachers) to do things like end of year credit counts.
Malcolm reminded parents that the drag sheet/progress report request is an option for a quick check on grades. Weekly (every Th.) teachers are available during 7th period to provide grade status and sign the status report for students to bring home. This is a requirement for any sports done by Steller students at other schools.
Karin said that initial discussion with teachers showed support for the concept of mid-year and end-of-year conferences especially for grades 7-9. Nina and Karen have developed a proposal for the concept. The group discussed the option of holding the election @ the Fall barbeque or at the end of the year, so that the first all community meeting is more focused on orientation instead of elections. Another thought was for an end of year one-pager from the various teachers that the advisor could use to communicate a bit more about the student regarding their individual classes. Karin would need to submit an annual proposal if Steller is not using the regularly scheduled conference time. Parents discussed some type of round-robin process and use of the portfolio concept in a student-led manner as a way to do the conferences. This could be organized through the development of a check list or outline for the students to use in preparation for the conference. Normally ASD PT Conferences are midway through second quarter. This time sounds the best logistically and contractually.
Following the discussion, the Parent Group agreed to recommend development of a Parent Teacher Conference that could be added to the mid-year to complement the end of the year conference. A Parent Group Committee led by Dawn-Marie and Peggy will develop the proposal more fully.
Increased Communication and Interaction With Polaris
During the last intensive, a Polaris group made an informal request for increased information sharing and relationship building between Steller and Polaris. This was based on the past relationship where the two schools have worked closely together and participated in shared activities. The Parent Group agreed to conduct an information gathering process to discuss the idea and brainstorm different options. Karin said that she wanted the proposal run by the Polaris principal. Alyse, Janice, Kitte (from Polaris) will work on the concept.
Parking and drop-off still congested and problematic. People are double parking and making their students cross in front of the on-coming traffic pattern. We can send out the traffic guidelines via the Flash and Steller Yeller.
Planning for the Steller Lottery Open-House This open house for prospective students is scheduled for Feb. 12. Karin said that the teachers were organizing the process and parents could email her with suggestions.
Next Meeting Wed. Feb. 27, 2008 @ 5:30