It’s Almost A Wrap!
As our students wrap up the fall semester with finals, I bet we are all looking forward to a nice winter break. Whether you and yours are skiing in the Alps or cozying up on your own coach for some cocoa and old movies, or anything in between—I wish you all a happy, healthy and safe conclusion to the year that was 2022!
What We’ve Been Up To
PFLASA organized and helped pay for a wonderful stress-busting event last week. We brought in Tiny Tails To You—a traveling petting zoo! It was a huge success. The kids came to the small gym during their lunch hour, on the day before finals began, to hold and pet bunnies, hedgehogs, chickens, guinea pigs, chicks, tortoises and bearded dragons. They bonded with each other over the tiny creatures and smiles of delight could be seen far and wide.
On the next day, we had our last PFLASA meeting of the year, which was mainly a chance to share yummy treats and chat. There were cookies and pastries, egg dishes and bacon, fruit and cheese, coffee and tea and much more. It was really fun and may become an annual tradition!
PFLASA offered extra tutoring during the finals period and we continue to work on ways to improve the tutoring program. If you think your child needs tutoring in Physics, Chemistry or Algebra 2 but does not attend our after-school sessions, please talk to your student. Then shoot me an email and let me know why he or she does not go. This will help us refine our program to meet students needs. We will consider adding Biology if there is a need, so please email me about that as well if you want to advocate for that and if you have spoken to your kiddo regarding whether he or she would attend. You can email me about this or anything else at “president at pflasa dot org.”
Our Wellness Committee, led by Nina Miller, put together a wonderful parent guide full of fun activities designed to get your student and whole family interacting (and off of screens!). We even got it translated into Spanish (Thank you, Yolanda Torres and team!). Both the English and Spanish versions can be found here, along with other useful information about wellness resources.
Looking Ahead to January
There are several events involving alumni coming up. On Dec 29, at 6 pm, there will be an LASA alumni celebration and reunion, with a special focus on the class of 2013. Contact Cyril Kuhns for more information, or check out the alumni site here.
Also, on Jan 12, the Latino Outreach Committee will host an event for current Latino LASA Juniors and Seniors and parents. The event is a panel discussion with Latino LASA alumni who will share experiences and advice for the high school journey toward planning for college. There will be a question/answer session as well. Email Cristina or Lina at “latinooutreach at pflasa dot org” with questions.
We will have a special guest at our first PFLASA meeting of 2023—AISD Trustee Ofelia Maldonado Zapata! The meeting begins at 8:15 am in Room T102. She will be first on the agenda after our call to order and approval of prior minutes. She will have time for questions and would like to hear from parents. Trustee Zapata represents the area in which LASA High School is located, District 2. You can learn more about her here, and see the District 2 map, which includes many other elementary and several middle schools in addition to LASA.
Looking Even Farther Ahead, Mark Your New 2023 Calendars!
If you are the type who likes to look ahead, here are some of the bigger events that happen in the Spring and generally need parent volunteers and involvement.
• New Parent Coffee (Feb 11)
• Choice Sheets (March 4)
• Teacher Appreciation Luncheon (April, exact date TBD)
• AP Exams (May 1st-12th) (parent proctors are needed and parent volunteers distribute breakfast/snacks to students)
• Coffeehouse (May 12)
• Senior Salute (May 31)
• Project Graduation (overnight on the night of graduation which is June 1 for LASA)
In April/May, we also try to fill our roster for new board members. Our Bylaws dictate that each year, we need a new person to serve as VP (who then serves as President the next year), Assistant Treasurer (who then serves as Treasurer the next year), and Assistant Secretary (who then serves as Secretary the next year). We will also potentially need two Co-Chairs for the Grants Committee. We would love to have commitments in place by mid-April so that we can vote on these by the end of April. We typically evaluate our budget and approve the new year’s budget in May.
If you would like to serve on the board, or be involved in the budget planning, please reach out to me or anyone on the current board. April/May is also the time we would love to have all committee chair and co-chair positions filled for the new year. See this page for a comprehensive list. Some committees already have a chair or co-chairs set for next year but many don’t, so please consider how you might like to help!
Have a safe and happy holiday. See you in 2023!!!