Call to Order:
The meeting was called to order at 7:08 p.m.
New Agenda Items:
Jen will be updating the Treasurer’s report.
February Minutes Approval:
The minutes were approve with many thanks to Mindy for filling in for Therese.
Requested Topics:
Buy The Change Celebration: Annette handed over our first earnings from this project: a check for $36. Yippee! Thanks to all who participate in this program.
Easel Purchase: Annette reviewed the research she’s done. Her dream purchase, state of the art easel from the office catalog rang in at over $400. Annette feels that although this is a top of the line easel, the price tag is too high. She was able to find two acceptable models through Office Max. Annette’s preference was for the slightly more expensive easel which appeared to be more durable and more portable.
The group discussed the various options and agreed to fund the purchase of Annette’s preferred choice from Office Max. Therese and Andy will check to see if they have any coupons or discounts we can use. They will forward this information to Jen.
Momcation: Maria led the discussion about our upcoming Mom getaway. There appears to be a lot of interest in this event. Hopefully a lot of mom’s will be able to get away for the weekend. We discussed and made decisions on the following items:
• Extending attendance: There has been some interest among “North Side” alums of ECFE as well as other ECFE locations. We determined that during this pilot year, the event will continue to be for North Side moms. North Side ECFE alums are also welcome. However, because this event is new and details about payments, reservations and agendas have not been worked out the group felt that keeping this as a North Side event in the pilot year made sense. The Momcation will be very unstructured. The only scheduled activity will be to discuss next year’s event. During this time we will try to figure out the most practical way to include other locations.
• Scholarship money: An anonymous donor has made a generous contribution specifically for North ECFE moms. She emphasized that she really wanted to help moms who might not otherwise be able to afford a break to have a chance to get away. PAC attendees will be emphasizing this in ECFE classes. We want to be sure that no one lets money get in the way of attending this event.
• Attendance of children: A nursing mom asked if she could bring her baby to the Momcation. The group felt that while the event is billed as a break from family life, nursing mothers would be welcome to bring their babies. Unfortunately in this pilot year, we will not be able to accommodate toddlers and older children. We will try to see how we might possibly accommodate moms with kids in future years during next year’s planning meeting.
Business Cards: Maria discussed an opportunity to get 250 free business cards from Vista Print. She suggests printing these cards with our PAC information including website information. The cards would also include upcoming events of note. The group agreed that since the cards are free, we’ve got nothing to lose and possibly a lot of publicity to gain!
LAC Volunteer Atenndee: Aqueelah volunteered to represent the North PAC during the April and May LAC meetings. (Dates: 4/16 and 5/21) Thanks Aqueelah!!
Report from LAC Meeting:
Annette and Aqueelah provided an update of last month’s meeting. Highlights include:
• ECFE end-of-year picnic: The picnic will be held on May 28th at North Mississippi Regional Park. The Teddy Bear Band will perform. The LAC discussed looking at other possibilities for kid’s bands for future years, perhaps alternating with the Teddy Bear Band. Anyone with suggestions should contact the PAC.
• Sharing Subcommittee: the LAC is looking to form a sub-committee to discuss how various PAC groups can share ideas, events and fundraisers. There are many questions as to how this would work. The sub-committee will work on these issues.
• Upcoming events sponsored by the LAC include Cinco de Mayo and Vehicle Day.
Treasurer’s Report:
Jen provided a brief treasurer’s report: we received a $20 donation which has been banked. Jen will be receiving the checks from the Plant fundraiser. Early results are very encouraging!
Plant Sale Fundraiser:
Sherri reports that this is a big hit among Hall teachers. Things are going well. This should be a good fund raiser for us this year and in years to come. Sherri handed over the initial earnings to the Committee (Andy and Sophie); they will tabulate information and forward money to Jen.
PAC Fiduciary Responsibility:
Therese kicked off a discussion topic regarding PAC planning. In past years we’ve not had as many involved and active parents in our PAC group. We now have a very productive and thoughtful group! We should try to put goals in place that can be used by future PAC groups. Since the PAC changes from year to year as some parents leave and others start ECFE, some sort of framework would be beneficial moving forward. Some things to consider are budget planning: should we try to plan a two-year budget and not assume that each year we will raise as much money as we did last year? In addition, should we develop spending guidelines which allocate a percentage of our spending for certain areas such as: the kids; teachers and parents, etc?
Jen offered to provide some data regarding where past years’ money has been spent.
We will look into forming a committee to put together some preliminary suggestions to be reviewed by the entire PAC at a future meeting.
Adjournment:
The meeting was adjourned promptly, and I do mean promptly at 7:00:00 p.m. Thanks Maria for such an efficient meeting!
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