PTSA Minutes

(For archived minutes from previous meetings, click here)

Tremper High School PTSA Meeting Minutes
 April 19, 2010

 

  1. Call to Order:  The meeting was called to order at 7:05 pm by President, Patty Mahoney.
    1. Members Present:  Gene Mathias, Terri Harold, Bonnie Landwehr, Mary Mock, Steve Fredriksson, Andrea Boudreau, Sandy Ogren, Sue Freisheim, Tami Rakow, Renee Blise, Linda Coopland, Michelle Riley, Suzie Hildebrandt, Carrie Greskoviak, Jodie Zarletti, Patty Mahoney
  2. Guest Speaker:  Mr. Michael Fiedler, Tremper National Honor Society Advisor.  Mr. Fiedler discussed the National Honor Society. 
    1. Tremper has not been in accordance to NHS standards for the past few years.  This year the organization has regrouped with strict adherence to attendance, service hours, academic standing, and leadership opportunities. 
    2. Members have started providing tutoring in various subjects after school.
    3. For graduation, the students will wear gold cords instead of the stoles, and they can earn a patch for their letter jackets.
  3. Guest Speaker:  Linda Langenstroer, Coordinator of Research/Educational Accountability: 
    1. Each year Tremper must meet Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) goals toward proficiency levels.  If a school misses their AYP goal, they are given Safe Harbor to allow them to remedy the situation.  If they continue to not meet their goals, sanctions are placed on them, which could include losing Title I money from the state. 
    2. Tremper is currently doing very well overall on the WKCE tests.  If you would like to see additional data from our school district, you can access these records on the KUSD website under “Tremper Report Card”. 
    3. AP tests:  currently students pay $25.00 to take the test.  If they score a 3 or higher, they get their money refunded to them.  Charging this fee should result in a higher percentage of students passing their AP tests. 
  4. Prom:  Per notes sent from Samantha Reid:  Advisor for Tremper’s Prom: 
    1. The event will be held on May 1st at the Parkway Chateau. 
    2. Freshmen are not allowed to attend.  Sophomores can attend if they are the date of a junior or senior student.
    3. The Theme is “A Black and White Tie Affair”. 
    4. The cost will be $30.00 for Juniors and $35.00 for Seniors. 
    5. The Promenade starts at 5:00 pm, dinner at 6:00 pm, and dancing until 11:00 pm.  The Coronation will be at 9:30 pm.  Students will be allowed to leave prom after 10:00 pm.
    6. LifeTouch will be there to take professional pictures.
    7. Stroebe’s Flower Cart is offering a discount to Tremper students.
  5. Treasurer’s Report:  Renee Blise
    1. March beginning balance:  $7531.00. 
    2. There was no income received during the past month.
    3. We spent $50.36 for Parent/Teacher conference goodie bags.
    4. Ending balance on April 19th:  $7480.64.
  6. Secretary’s report:  Terri Harold
    1. Minutes were approved as presented:  Kok / Rakow
    2. Thanks to Paige Johnson for taking the March minutes!
  7. Vice President’s Report:  Patti Ault  (no report submitted)
  8. Legislative Report:  Patty Mahoney: 
    1. Rebecca Stevens and David Gallo were elected to three year terms on the KUSD School Board. 
    2. The District organizational meeting will be held on April 26th, during which the school board will recognize the outgoing member (Dave Fountain) and elect their officers.
  9. Membership Report:  Carol Kok: 
    1. There were no new members in March. 
    2. Students of the month:  Emily Coopland (parking pass), Karissa Cox, and Brenda Zarletti
  10. Communications:  Sandy Rende:  There have no major problems with PTA communications.
  11. Reflections Committee:  April Solms: 
    1. The State winners from Tremper HS will be invited to the May PTSA meeting to showcase their work and receive our congratulations. 
    2. They will also be recognized by the KUSD School Board in May. 
    3. The Wisconsin PTA Reflections Luncheon will be held on April 24th in LaCrosse, where our winners will receive their awards.
  12. Student Government Report:  Rebecca Stoebe
    1. Alice Wei will be the Student Government President next year, Sara Mahoney will be Vice-President, Brittney Seliga-Reget will be secretary and Matthew Vecchito will be treasurer.  The organization will be electing committee chairs in the following weeks. 
    2. The Diversity Awareness Committee had a great turn-out for their Talent Show in April.
    3. There are 8 contestants participating in the Mr / Ms. Tremper competition.
    4. The blood drive was very successful.  They received more donations than expected.  Thanks to everyone who participated or made donations.
    5. The Quizzapalooza competition will be held at the end of April.  The Academic Affairs committee is also preparing for the Honors Convocation and Graduation events.
    6. Applications for Student Government committees for the 2010/2011 school year will be available at the end of April.  They must be returned to Mr. Romano by May 10th.
    7. Since the Student Government had a rough year getting students involved and working on projects (mainly due to scheduling issues and conflicts), they are proposing a new Advisory schedule for next year.  Student Government meetings would be held during advisory on B days, and the regular advisory curriculum would be taught on A days.  This would mean that students would report directly to their committee room on B days and attendance and announcements would occur right there.
    8. Thanks to the parents for all their help over this past year!
  1. Principal’s Report:  Mr. Dick Aiello
    1. The test data for Tremper HS has been received by administration.  They are now working with the department heads to review areas of deficiencies and improve the curriculum for the next school year.
    2. Traffic Pattern: 
      1. The main area of concern right now is the intersection at 87th Place and 30th Ave.  Cars from the north have trouble turning east onto 87th Place, causing a back-up on 30th Ave.  The next change will be to prevent cars from crossing 30th Ave from the west at 87th Place.  This will be made a right turn only lane from 7-7:30 pm.  The city is still not convinced to place a 4-way stop sign there, since the traffic is only bad for an hour in the morning, and another hour after school. 
      2. 30th Ave. between 80th and 89th Streets will be resurfaced this summer.  The West parking lot will be accessible for cars to drop off students and pick them up.  It will be difficult to access the east drop-off area / circle drive.  The project will also result in widening 87th Place at the intersection with 30th Ave. and creating a right hand turn lane from the south.  Sidewalks are planned along 30th Ave between 80th and 89th.
      3. There are still some concerns about allowing cars to park on both sides of 87th Place, especially during soccer season.  It is hard to get through.
      4. There are also some concerns about the circle drive on the east side of Tremper.  People are still entering from the north, so better signage and directional arrows should be painted on the concrete.  Also, the pavement needs to be fixed, since there are so many uneven areas and potholes. (There are no plans to re-pave the circle at this time.)
      5. If you have further concerns about the traffic around the school, please contact the Aldermen for those districts or the City Planner.
    1. Prom Assembly:  April 30th, during second period.
      1. Crime Prevention Officers will be coming to speak to the students about good decision making.  Also, inmates from the jail will come to discuss how poor decision making as a teen can lead to worse problems as adults.
    1. Mr. Thomas is a social studies teacher who is back from his tour of duty in the Mideast.  He rejoined the Tremper staff April 19th.
    2. Projected enrollment for 2010-11 year:  2250 students, which is about 180 less than this year.  We expect to lose 8 teachers to other schools in the district.  We are currently at 2430 students this year.
    3. Construction projects for this summer: 
      1. The first floor bathrooms by the auditorium and cafeteria will be redone this summer.  The Receiving area will be redesigned to accommodate men’s and women’s bathrooms so we have more options that are handicapped accessible and closer to the gym.
      2. The portables are not going anywhere this summer.  We will still need them next year.
    1. District Attendance Policy: 
      1. If a student is truant, he/she can make up 100% of the work missed.
      2. If the student has an unexcused absence, he/she cannot make up the work.  The school principal approves/disapproves absences.
      3. The district is trying to work with students and their families to keep them out of the court system for excessive truancies.  130 students from KUSD ended up in court last year.
  1. District PTA Update:  Linda Coopland:
    1. The next Kenosha PTA Council meeting will be on April 26th.  Mr. Gallo has been invited to attend, so we have a chance to meet him and hear his views on various school district issues.
    2. Nash Elementary School has won two state awards and will be recognized at the State Convention on April 24th. 
    3. The Scholarship committee met with various high school counselors to inform them about the PTA Council Scholarship program and the requirements for awarding those scholarships.
    4. The PTA Council is looking for individuals interested in serving on the board for next year.
  2. Review of Projects
    1. Bake Sale:  Sign up lists were passed around for the May 13, 2010 bake sale.  We need volunteers to man the bake sale table and to bake goodies for the event.
    2. Staff Treat bags will be passed out prior to conferences on May 13, 2010.  We need to make sure we double check the member list so no teachers or administrators are missed.
    3. Progress Report Distribution:  Volunteers are needed to help pass out progress reports at conferences on May 13, 2010.
    4. Lunch Sale:  the next lunch sale will be on May 6th.  We need volunteers to help work the sale, as well as donations of desserts or chips.  The menu will include roast beef or meatball sandwiches, chips, and dessert.
    5. Traffic meeting:  See item 13.b.
    6. Winter formal:  Next year the committee does plan on hosting a winter formal, but perhaps in a different format:  perhaps a father:daughter / mother:son dance, or to include the freshmen and sophomore students.
    7. Kleenex drive:  thanks to everyone who donated tissues, hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes at our last conferences.  The items collected were disseminated to various classrooms throughout the school.
    8. Scholarship Committee:  Steve Fredriksson: 
      1. 6 applications were received by the 4-15-10 deadline. 
      2. One application was not received according to the program guidelines.  It was sent by e-mail, and the attachment was not opened until 4-16-10.  The committee will meet on 4-20-10 to review the applications and determine if the 7th entry should be eligible for consideration.
      3. The scholarship will be presented at the Honors Convocation on May 28th.
    1. Tremper Landscape Beautification Project:  We have not received any direction from the organizers of this project.  We are hoping that a plan will be available from them soon.
    2. Photo Frames:  The wood casings for the photos have been taken down.  Mr. Aiello will find out what happened to them.  Now it is evident that the wall also needs painting   Carrie Greskoviak will oversee the project from this point on.
    3. Bulletin Board:  Not discussed
    4. Yearbook:  Not discussed
    5. Retirements:  We don’t know of any spring retirements at this time.
    6. Secretary Lunch:  Sue Freisheim:   April 21, 2010.
      1. We will be serving meat and cheese trays, chicken from Infusinos, salads and desserts.  Donations of food items or cash to buy the items needed are appreciated. 
      2. If anyone can volunteer, we will need help from 11:15am – 1:00 pm on that day.
    1. Prom Coat / Belongings Check:  Volunteers are needed to work this event.
    2. Graduation Help:  We need volunteers to collect tickets and hand out programs.  Once the ceremony starts, you can leave if you don’t have anyone graduating.   
  1. New Business
    1. Nominations for PTSA officers for 2010-2011: 
      1. A motion was made to suspend the bylaws to allow nominations to be discussed at this meeting.  (Harold / Blise). Rationale:  we need to announce a slate of officers one month prior to the elections.  Since the elections are to be held at the May meeting, we need to have a slate of candidates this month.  Motion passed unanimously.
      2. Motion to suspend bylaws:  A motion was made to suspend the bylaws to allow a current officer to exceed the 2 year term limit in the event that no one else is willing to be nominated for that position.  (Greskoviak / Coopland).  Rationale:  we need to have a slate of officers for the May meeting.  Additional nominations can be made from the members at the May meeting if someone comes forth at or before that time.  Passed unanimously.
      3. Nominations for 2010-2011 school year:
        1. President:  Patty Mahoney
        2. Vice President:  Sue Freisheim
        3. Treasurer:  Open
        4. Secretary:  Terri Harold
    1. Parental Accompaniment Law:  In the state of WI, it is currently legal for a child to drink alcoholic beverages if they are accompanied by a parent.  There is a new law currently in the State Assembly which would increase that age to 18.  That is better, but still the legal age to drink is 21, so why not change the law to that?  Please contact your legislators if you are concerned about this issue.  Our representatives are John Steinbrink and Peter Barca in the State Assembly, and Bob Wirch in the state Senate.
    2. Parents who Host, Lose the Most Campaign:  this project is aimed at educating parents about their legal responsibility if they host a party or rent a hotel room where underage drinking is occurring.  Yard Signs have been placed around town and at all the schools.  Fines for infractions can start at $20,000.00.  Promotional materials were available at the meeting.
    3. Steve Fredriksson is planning on riding along with a sheriff deputy on prom night to crack down on underage drinkers.  He as ridden along with the tavern squad on a previous night and found it to be a very illuminating experience.
  1. Adjournment:  The meeting was adjourned at 9:15 pm (Greskoviak / Riley).  The next meeting will be Monday, May 17th at 7:00 pm in the Library

 

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