Wilkinson School Community Council
Meeting Minutes
From March 7, 2011
*Council approves funding for two Smart Board kits * New projector for Movie Night * Fun Fair planning is in full swing*
Present: Leasa Adams (vice-principal), Laura Bullard-Brezovsky, Paul Dobson, Leslie Domenico, Carolyn Eagle, Sarah-Jane Gillespie, Kris Kearns, Allan Kelly (principal), Ruby Lederman, Kirsten McGooey, April Moon, Deanna Rosolen, Martin Saxton, Saeka Shaikh, Jill Spellman, Erin Vaillancourt, Sam Vrakking, Paula Weekes-Kahn (council chair), Karen Wiseman
Regrets: Helen Ferraro, Heather Fitzgerald, Susan Haney
Recorder: Deanna Rosolen
Meeting called to order 7:07 p.m.
1. Welcome and Introductions
Paula welcomed everyone. Tonight’s meeting took place in the library for a Smart Board presentation.
2. Approval of the Agenda
Motion: Karen Wiseman. Seconded: Martin Saxton.
3. Approval of Feb. 7, 2011 meeting minutes
Motion: Jill Spellman. Seconded: Sam Vrakking.
4. Smart Board presentation by Joel Krentz, school librarian.
Smart Boards are interactive whiteboards for the classroom. They offer students a more interactive experience. The idea is for children to experience the technology and use it. It’s touch-sensitive or it will work with “pens.”
The Smart Board comes with more than a thousand ready-made lessons for teachers or they can create their own lessons and games with it. It comes with PowerPoint presentation software, which students can use.
Each classroom with a Smart Board will also need a laptop, a projector and a stand. The board can also be mounted on the wall.
The Smart Board kit costs $3,000.
Wilkinson already has three in the school: one in the library and two are in special ed.
Teachers who receive one for their classrooms can be trained to use it through the school board.
5. Principal’s Update
A) Staffing
Staff numbers will not go down in the next year.
Student numbers are expected to stay the same as well.
There are 30 children on a wait list.
B) Quite a few school staff will be volunteering for Fun Fair.
C) School ambassadors will be helping with Fun Fair as well.
D) Primary Intramurals to start in April.
6. Treasurer’s Report
Parent Council has $23,000 in the bank. Proceeds from Bake Sale and last Movie Night still to be added.
After all expenses – from Reading Program, Scientists in the School, Authors in the School, Field Trips, Greening Grounds and Graduation – there is $10,000 to spend.
Also keep in mind that Fun Fair has not happened yet.
7. Funding Requests?
A) Kirsten McGooey, chair of Greening Committee, has asked for $100 for garden cleanup.
Motion: Martin Saxton. Seconded: Ruby Lederman.
B) Leasa Adams, v-p, says a teacher has asked for $500 in funding for Earth Rangers to come and visit the school.
Motion: Kirsten McGooey. Seconded: Sam Vrakking.
C) Ruby Lederman asked for a new projector for Movie Night. About $600.
Motion: Erin Vaillancourt. Seconded: Laura Bullard-Brezovsky.
D) On behalf of Susan Haney, April Moon asked for three new folding tables for Movie Night. About $300.
Motion: April Moon. Seconded: Sam Vrakking.
E) Jill Spellman asked for 100 volunteer T-Shirts for Fun Fair and T-shirts for school ambassadors.
About $1,200.
Motion: Ruby Lederman. Seconded: Paul Dobson.
F) Administration asked if council can increase Field Trip funding. Currently it stands at $1,500.
Council decided to increase it by $1,000.
Motion: Erin Vaillancourt. Seconded: Paul Dobson.
G) Administration asked about Smart Board funding. Council approved funding for two. About $6,000.
Motion: Ruby Lederman. Seconded: April Moon.
8. Kindie Registration.
Went well. Jill Spellman represented the Parent Council to new parents.
9. Spirit Wear Sales: Sold: 141 units.
10. Wil-Kitchen: The last Wil-Kitchen had the best turnout. The next one will take place in April.
Committee Updates:
11. Arts Committee: O is for Ogre was rescheduled.
12. Communications Committee: March newsletter went out. March 18 was the last day for content for the April newsletter.
Fundraising:
13. Movie Night: The last one was very successful. The next one is scheduled for April 8.
14. Sweetheart Bake Sale: Very successful. Proceeds totalled just under $700.
15. Chocolate Sales: complete.
16. Fun Fair
Silent Auction.
There was some discussion about making the Silent Auction its own event rather than holding it on the same day as Fun Fair. This is how it was organized in 2003 and 2004. The Silent Auction would take place in the fall and Fun Fair in the spring. The turnout for the Silent Auction was very poor.
April Moon explains in this letter why it’s best to hold the events together and determine another revenue source to replace the Silent Auction in the fall.
“We moved the silent auction from a stand-alone event in 2004 and now include it with Fun Fair. We have found that since folding the event into Fun Fair, we can guarantee traffic and bids. When it was a stand-alone event, we only had a small number of parents come out, and there was pressure on them to buy all items on offer.
In 2003 there was talk to start adding events to the Auction Evening to help entertain the children and to have more parents come out. The Auction was held in the fall with the hope that people would buy for holiday presents.
Moving it to Fun Fair has allowed the Fun Fair sponsorship and food certificate acquisition to include auction items. With Fun Fair we naturally have more families engaged with the organizing of the event and this has resulted with more hands available to reach out for auction items and to run it day of. Fun Fair definitely attracts people and guarantees traffic for the auction.
The organizers of the auction night in 2003 were also Fun Fair organizers. This group of families was tasked with planning a large fundraiser in the fall and then another in the spring. Moving the silent auction to the same day means fewer families are feeling stretched between organizing two major initiatives. The 2003 organizers also had a short turn-around time to pull the event together. Moving it until the spring Fun Fair resulted in more time and effort given to having the right items donated to our community.
I recommend that we leave the auction with Fun Fair and look to create a different fundraising campaign in the fall.”
April Moon
• Fun Fair Greeter: Still need someone to greet and direct guests on the day of Fun Fair.
17. Greening Committee
A splinter group has formed with four people who are interested in working on a vegetable garden. There was some discussion about starting a pilot project with containers or picking a classroom to run with a pilot project. Would school staff be interested in taking it on? Part of the Grade 3 curriculum includes studying plants.
Allan Kelly, p, asked for group to come with a timeline.
To be discussed.
18. Health & Safety: No news to report.
19. Report Back/Follow-up Items: None to report.
20. New Business/Other Items for Future Meeting: None to report.
21. Dandylion Daycare: There is a space in the after-school program. Daycare staff will all be coming out to volunteer at Fun Fair.
22. Adjournment of meeting at 8:50 p.m.
Motion: Karen Wiseman. Seconded: Laura Bullard-Brezovsky.