Ice Storm
Since I wrote my last post (see it here), we missed FOUR days of school due to ice and power outages (from Jan 31 through Feb 3) and many folks were out of power for at least part of that week. Some were out much longer. It was a trying time for many families as well as for teachers and staff. However, we seem to have recovered with grace and, with the springtime weather out there, it now seems a distant memory.
New Parent Coffees News
Also because of the power outages, some deadlines associated with the new student application process were extended. This undoubtedly caused additional angst for some families waiting to hear. It also caused us to scramble a bit, because we had our New Parent Coffees scheduled for Feb 11. But as it turned out, many parents did not know by then if their student had been accepted, so we turned that into our Coffees for Parents of LASA Applicants and followed it up with a Newly Accepted Families Informal Coffee on Feb 18th, which we had at Easy Tiger at the Linc. Between the two events, we had a great turnout and answered A LOT of questions. A huge shout out to Geeta Suggs who helped organize both and to all the parent volunteers who came. A special thanks to those who came out to both events, giving up time on two Saturdays in a row! These include: Geeta Suggs, Nicole Truelock, Jayne Rosso, Karen Roof, David Buldoc, Lindsay Rose-Arellano, Lorena Lauv, and Becky Strandwitx. Please forgive me if I missed any one! Many thanks also to parents who donated food for our Feb 11th event at the school. It was so much appreciated.
Another opportunity is coming up on Saturday, March 4 to engage with and help new parents and new students. It’s called the Elective Fair and Choice Sheet Meeting Day . Please check for the sign-up sheet here.
Tutoring
Our 3 new Biology tutors started in full force this week! We had one available on Thursday 2/16. YAY! Many thanks to Ms. Crescenzi for prioritizing the interview process once PFLASA decided to move forward and found candidates. Please send your students and keep the tutors busy!
We are still working on hiring an additional Physics tutor. The one we have does an outstanding job, but we want to give him a little help.
In terms of tutoring for Algebra 2, some feedback we got from students is that they simply don’t feel they need help OR they feel they can get it during the school day (like at lunch) or through other resources like videos. No decisions have been made to change our current program in Algebra 2 or Chemistry, but we will keep you all posted if we do.
Parent Presentations Available
Please check out the awesome presentations available to parents here, including the newest posting on “Giving and Understanding Consent: Relationships, Risks, Rights and Responsibilities.” This is the presentation given the Monday night of the “Ice Storm Week.” I look forward to viewing it!
Wellness Committee News
We have many upcoming wellness events for parents:
• A presentation by naturopathic doctor Amy Tyler on March 2 at 7pm at LASA
• Zoom cooking class hosted by LASA parents (planned for the end of March)
• Online interactive recipe project (time frame and format TBD)
• Screening of “Screenagers/Next Chapter” (possibly in April)
• Presentation by Psychologist Dr. Michelle Natinksy: Strategies for Building Life Skills in Teens (scheduled for April 27)
Would you like more information about any of these activities or would you like to be involved? Contact Wellness Committee Chair Nina Miller at nina@goodfoodfighter.com.
Parent Class Representatives
I promised to talk to you about Parent Class Representatives—who are they and what do they do? So, I am going to share with you a streamlined version of what Geeta Suggs has shared with me. Geeta has been the main coordinator and recruiter for these roles for as long as I have been on the PFLASA board (much longer, no doubt), so she is clearly a good authority. You will see that there is a great reliance on the idea of continuity over time, with one set of volunteers learning from the previous set. So, those who volunteer for these roles should be willing to make a long-term commitment. Of course, the structure may change in coming years, but as of now, this is how the Parent Class Representatives are set up to work.
Join us at our next PFLASA meeting (Feb 24) for an overview of what parent class representatives do and Q & A by Geeta!
PFLASA Parent Class Representatives – A Preview of Roles and Responsibilities
Each grade needs a parent committee of 4-5 parents that can help with events that occur during the year. Most of the roles for this parent committee occur Junior and Senior year. If you sign up for this committee, you are signing up for 4 years. As a class representative, you are expected to lead or co-lead one of three big events for your Senior year. These are: Project Graduation Silent Auction, Project Graduation and Senior Salute. More information about these is provided below. There are also some general communication roles and responsibilities that cut across all 4 years. You will also be a parent liaison for your class Student Council. Student Councils organize 2 social events per year during lunch. Two parents must be present at each event per LASA rules. You may get requests at the last minute that parent reps are needed for an event (which means you can volunteer or find a volunteer).
FRESHMAN YEAR
Each year, current Freshman parents organize the incoming Freshman Orientation with LASA admin starting in April or May. These parents will reach out to incoming parent representatives (who hopefully will be known by May and who will become the Freshman Parent Class Reps the followng year) to organize their volunteers and/or food donations for Freshman Orientation in August.
SOPHOMORE YEAR
Sophomore year duties are light. In April, sophomore parents should decide who among their group will chair each of the three big senior event teams: Project Graduation Silent Auction Team, Project Graduation Event Team, and the Senior Salute Event Team. All three of these events work better if there are two leads (co-chairs) for each team. These duties are for TWO years. See below for more details on what is involved.
JUNIOR YEAR
The Project Graduation Silent Auction Team helps get items for the silent auction and learns how to enter and run the silent auction.
The Project Graduation Event Team meets with the Senior parent team and learns how to do everything for Project Graduation, which is an overnight alcohol and drug-free event. This team also shows up at the event to help. For many years, this event has been done at the Eastside YMCA. If a new venue is ever needed, research would be required as early as possible (see discussion below about Senior Salute).
The Senior Salute Chair meets with Senior parents and LASA admin to plan Senior Salute. These meetings occur during the school day and begin in January or February. Based on likely dates, Junior parents should determine if a venue is already available (for instance, from the prior year) or if a new venue will be needed and conduct research accordingly. The date of graduation will likely be announced the following fall, at which time a contract can be solidified. The Senior Salute Team works the Senior Salute event so Senior parents can enjoy the event with their graduate.
SENIOR YEAR
The Project Graduation Silent Auction team manages the team of auction helpers and should start asking for items for the silent auction during the summer. The more items obtained, the more money for Project Graduation Event. The Online Silent Auction usually runs for 3 weeks in November and 1-2 weeks of December and then there is the delivery of items to winners. We have also done a “Mini-Auction” earlier for ACL tickets for the last several years.
The Project Graduation Event team starts meeting in February to plan the night of graduation celebration. They will divide up tasks among all parents on team, plan, and then solicit more volunteers for night of event. PFLASA should inform parents early on that graduation is not on a weekend and that Project Graduation will need many people willing to give time during the work week.
The Senior Salute chair begins meeting with LASA Admin in January or February. He or she assigns tasks to team members, including working with students on the memory book, helping admin interview Master of Ceremonies candidates and following up with the script, reviewing the senior skit material, ordering cookies, etc.
Senior class reps should also work with the Senior Class Student Council officers to continue sponsoring class socials, and to distribute information to the students. This parent group will be a clearinghouse for general information. Urge families to sign on to their class Google Group so they can stay updated.
THANKS FOR READING!!!! Happy Almost Spring!