Sperling Elementary PAC

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  • May. 22, 2019 PAC Annual General Meeting (AGM) Minutes

    May. 22, 2019 PAC Annual General Meeting (AGM) Minutes

    PAC General Meeting – AGM held on May 22, 2019

    Attendance: refer to sign up sheet

    Meeting called to order (Kelly-Chair) at 7:12 pm.

    Attendees reviewed last meeting’s Minutes and a motion was made to adopt the Minutes from the last meeting – motion to pass made by Ruth and seconded by Tina. All were in favour and Minutes were passed.

    1. Voting in of the PAC

    Chair: Nominations were made for Kelly Zecca. No other nominations were brought forward. All were in favour of Kelly and she was voted in.
    Vice-Chair: Nominations were made for Grace Liang. No other nominations were brought forward. All were in favour of Grace and she was voted in.
    Treasurer: Nominations were made for Jesssica Liu. No other nominations were brought forward. All were in favour of Jessica and she was voted in. Note a co-position available.
    DPAC: Nominations were made for Dina Shafey and Ron Heyde. No other nominations were brought forward. All were in favour of both Dina and Ron as co-committee members and both were voted in.
    Secretary: Nominations were made for Ruth Heyde and Livia Hong. No other nominations were brought forward. All were in favour of both Ruth and Livia as co-committee members and both were voted in.
    Website Designer (King of the Web): This is a new position available. Nominations were made for Ian Chan. No other nominations were brought forward. All were in favour of Ian and he was voted in.
    CPF Member: No nominations were brought forward. One parent, William Au, was considering the role. At the moment the position and a co-position are still available. (Subsequent to the meeting William Au has put his name forward for the position)
    Committee Members at Large:

    • Brief summaries were provided for other tasks available during the school year:
      • Fruit & Veggie program (Kelly)
      • Fundraising:
        • Christmas Craft – current member is stepping down, need someone to step up
        • Sperling Sprint – Eugene will stay on, with assistance by Kelly and Melanie
        • ShopFunds (Ruth continues to run)
      • Indoor/Outdoor Boxes (Dina is considering)
        • Indoor – rainy day games
        • Outdoor – bubbles, sport balls
        • Buy items needed with a budget, organize & coordinate the boxes
      • Emergency Box (Daisy is stepping down)
        • Forms filled out at beginning of the year – update the forms – member will replenish as needed with the budget given
        • Review and replace expired items; systemizing the Box
        • Sperling teachers are willing to assist (Mme Day and Ms. Schiffo)
      • Lost and Found (Alessandra and Renee)
        • Alessandra and Renee will continue to maintain
          • Instagram post is a hit and awesome feedback; really helps for the working parents
          • Once the L&F get super full, the members will donate to Once Upon a Child and funds go back to PAC
          • Tupperware gets donated to Value Village
      • Lice committee
        • Current members will re-convene in the fall
        • Need 6-8 people;
        • Hopeful for 2x a year, maybe a 3rd – ideally at the beginning of the year; after winter holiday and after spring break

    2. DPAC Update

    Ron provided a general feedback of attending the DPAC meetings. He found it was a good source of sharing information and storytelling of what other schools are doing or stopped doing for various reasons. It is great to hear how we can benefit with each other school wise, such as incorporating ways to learn and focus on indigenous matters. For example, Sperling has been accredited for their use and exploration of the forest. Another example is how and what schools are doing to fundraise. The District helps look at how to encourage stuff that we are doing right.

    There was discussion on the new funding model:

    • Still postponing; in a holding pattern
    • Considering the concept – not solidified yet on how the model will look like
    • All hearsay still at this moment, indication from the ministers and school trustee is that there is new money and new opportunities
    • Also talked about the first school closure in 21 years (snow days)
      • Have learned to be over prepared in situations for future

    3. CPF Update

    The CPF member (Monique) was not present and thus no update was provided.

    4. Treasurer’s Report

    • a. Latest update is to May 14 th, which includes the Fun Fair and some Deposits
    • b. Last page detail – mostly fundraising (Fun Fair) – not all monies have been deposited and accounted for yet
    • c. Gaming account – haven’t spent much yet (funding just came in March)

    Motion to adopt the Treasurer’s Report as presented – motion to pass made by Ruth, seconded by Kelly; all were in favour and Report was adopted.

    5. Fun Fair Update

    Lucia Yap from the Fun Fair Committee gave a brief rundown on the status and setup for the upcoming Fair. The Fair is 10 days out and things are ramping up. Lots of promoting has been done through Facebook and flyers are being delivered through a local paper route. There has been awesome teacher engagement and student excitement which is great to hear. Lucia also gave a huge shout out to all the PAC members involved in the Fun Fair for their time, dedication and efforts on this major event.

    Activities:

    • Many activities lined up, including stage entertainment
    • Silent auction has been moving along, with the showcasing of local vendors/businesses via Facebook and Includes teacher/classroom art pieces

    Food:

    • Set up for presale orders for punchcards and food (through Munchalunch)

    Volunteers:

    • Still looking for volunteers
    • Extra hands usually on deck and available on day of
    • All volunteer time is appreciated;

    Day before the event:

    • Presale punchcards and food orders will be disbursed to students on the Thursday before the Fair
    • Setup and preparation will begin at 6:30 and there is a callout for parent volunteers to assist

    6. School Fundraising.

    • a. Sperling Sprint raised over $6,000 this year – one child raised $1,100 alone – AMAZING!
    • b. Clothing Drive (April) – raised $765 plus extra $100 from the company
    • c. Mother’s Day flowers – still confirming the totals. Possibly need to re-consider this fundraiser for next year, as the prices keep getting raised.

    7. Chair’s Thank You

    Kelly expressed a huge thank you for all members who have committed their time and support for the PAC. She thanked all those that have come out to the meetings.

    8. Principal’s Report

    • a. Carving ceremony:
      • The dedication and blessing carving ceremony is scheduled for 1 pm on June 18th. The mayor, various dignitaries (MP, Burnaby School District) and Simon and his family are expected to attend. We are working on someone to come out from the Coast Salish Nation to bless the carving piece. Two indigenous members are also working with the Kindergarten classes and teaching them a thank you song. The principal commented that the carving tells an amazing story and has become a great catalyst for telling stores, creating interactions and conversations. It will continue to be a legacy for the school. The principal gave many thanks again to the PAC for the funds given towards the carving experience.
    • b. Staffing:
      • no surplus; but also not adding any classes; will remain at 23 divisions
      • at the moment, only 1 or 2 spots available at the Primary level
      • French Immersion is full
      • Goodbyes and Hellos:
        • i. Mme. Godel (5/6 immersion) is leaving – Ms. Schulz to replace her
        • ii. Ms. Spence will not be returning; Ms. Deis to replace her
      • Moves:
        • i. Mr. Kelsey will be moving from Grade 6/7 to 5/6; a Grade 6/7 position is open now and Mr. MacLean is currently looking into filling it
        • ii. Ms. Grundy’s return status is unknown, PT basis – will move to 4/5
        • iii. Ms. Czech (LSS) is leaving; Ms. Venos will fill the LSS role and still maintain her role as Head Teacher
    • c. New Playground update:
      • Mr. MacLean met with a committee that included parents and teachers who provided good feedback. It was realized that the existing playground area has quite a large footprint and so there was more than enough space to keep the existing component while still able to add the new structure. Therefore, the current structure will be moved and flipped around to be alongside the new play piece.
      • Mr. Maclean showed a visual sketch of the projected new playground, which included the following:
        • Disc chair/swing part of the accessibility component
        • Accessibility ramp that will come onto the play area
        • some areas for shade
        • lots of climbing pieces including ropes, a wall and a rock
        • slides facing southwest – so it doesn’t get too hot The estimated timeline for the installation is projected to be for September.

    Meeting Adjourned at 8:30 pm

  • Traffic Safety Letter

    Traffic Safety Letter

    Dear Parents and Families,

    I am sending out a message to all our families in hopes of raising more awareness on the importance of safety when parking and driving around our schools. We all know parking is horrible and I do understand the frustration of not being able to find a spot without parking a mile away and you may be rushing to get your child to school on time, however I want to remind you all that our children are worth the small sacrifice of walking a little or coming a little earlier to find parking.

    I personally stand with a sign after school on Hycrest everyday helping children cross the street and making sure they get to their rides safely but like most of you I work and can’t make it in the mornings so I do what I can and it is only 1⁄2 hour a day but I know children are crossing the street safely. I even have my friend Ella (a student from Sperling) handing out a letter she wrote to parents asking for them to park appropriately and be aware.

    Although Ella is helping, I am hoping to get some more volunteer parents to help cross in the mornings and afternoons on Hycrest (By the teachers parking lot and by the stop sign closest by Sperling) and on Adair (3 Parents). What this would require is for you to come 15 minutes early and stay 15 minutes after the children are in school or after school.

    I have had many parents and children thank me for keeping them safe but if this isn’t enough one of our own Sperling children was hit by a car on the corner of Sperling and Hycrest in the morning and I have been made aware that a couple of other Sperling children were almost struck by a car on Adair when a car was speeding in a school zone.

    I am not sure what else to do but to reach out to all of you and remind you to please drive with care, slow down, no U-turns where children are crossing or back up where you might not be able to see them. I know this seems like common sense to some, but I have seen it and it worries me and I think we need to stand up and let them know it’s not safe.

    I don’t want my children to have a memory of seeing a friend get hurt or worse when it is something we can prevent. I talked to a Sperling dad who is a fire fighter and he mentioned that getting hit by a car is a common occurrence but let’s not make it common at our school.

    Also, if you can volunteer some time to come out and help (I know it is not the best job in the world) but all we want is our children to be safe.

    Please contact me if you are interested and remind yourselves that when you are driving always be aware and keep the children’s safety in mind.

    Thank you,

    Kelly Zecca (PAC Chair)

    Check out the linked page for more information on Sperling Traffic Safety & the “Walking Sidewalk”