Ridgeline Community Organization (RCO)
Parent Council Meeting Minutes
April 7, 2015
Approximately 15 parents attending
MAIN HIGHLIGHTS FROM MEETING:
**No parent education session at this meeting; entire focus was on fundraising.
**DDD current total is approximately $30,100. It is hoped that the Jog-a-thon will raise the remaining $10K.
**Michelle Ludwig will be replacing Rhonda Zimlich as co-chair of the RCO next school year; Christine Everts will continue as co-chair next year.
**Parent Survey total is up to 105 completed online surveys.
**Recruitment is beginning for several positions, including Upper Elementary teacher and assistant, PE and middle school math instructors.
RCO Business (Rhonda and Christine)
-Current DDD total is approximately $30,100.
-Clarification of funds by Christine, including excellent visual aid:
-RCO ($40K annually for PE, councilor, music) funds come from restaurant nights, T-shirt sales, Jog-a-thon, Parent’s night out, on-going passive, DDD fund drive, E-scrip, tree sales, seed sales, Amazon Smile.
-The Capital Campaign ($500K total building purchase) funds come from the Southtowne event, Buy-a-Brick, Rummage Sale, House concerts.
-Rhonda will be rotating off the RCO committee and Michelle will be moving into the co-convener position. Christine will remain as co-convener next year.
-T-shirt orders are due the 20th of April; the hope to have new shirts prior to the Jog-a-thon.
-Ridgeline Alumni will possibly be invited to the end-of-year picnic, rather than having them speak at an RCO meeting (as they did last year).
-Blog update from Erica: some question about whether the blog is getting enough traffic to justify its existence. Perhaps just putting the Ridgeline Reader on the blog site would be more efficient. Facebook posts seem to be getting more attention than the blog. One idea was to tap students for written content for the blog.
-Curbing fundraising update: Darcy feels that “advertising” the amount of funds raised for the DDD on the curb is more effective than actually requesting donations, which tend to be small in that setting.
-Safe Routes to Schools update from Misenga and Sophie. Several local schools are working together with Shane McRhodes to address traffic safety concerns. 2017 reconstruction project on East & West Amazon will likely include a crosswalk at Dillard across East Amazon and a new bridge across Amazon Creek. “Bike and Walk to School” month is in May. Kickoff day is on May 6th. Some potential to use the Crossfire Church as a “park and stride” location, where parents can park vehicles and walk to school, reducing vehicular traffic right at the school. Provide additional ideas for event themes to Misenga or Sophie.
-Potential change in the Jog-a-Thon and “Ridgeline Rising” events for next year: potentially shift the Jog-a-Thon to the Fall (when weather is better) and the “Ridgeline Rising” event to the Spring (at the end of the year, when people are more familiar with the school). One suggestion was to have a different “thon” (like a read-a-thon) next fall; concern about having two Jog-a-thons just 4 or 5 months apart. Perhaps mix up the “thon” events for better fundraising.
-Some discussion about whether to shorten the DDD campaign next year. We’ll vote on fundraising ideas at the next RCO meeting.
-Jog-a-thon update:
Amy and Aimee met with teachers to gather ideas and information about the event logistics and details. Event will be on Friday, May 15th. Approximately 40 volunteers will be needed during the event in various capacities. See e-news for more information.
Questions or ideas about the event can be sent to the co-conveners amsage@gmail.com and acode27@gmail.com .
Admin Report (Chrystell)
-Testing is ongoing for the Smarter Balance standardized tests.
-Staffing update: Dana will be resigning her Upper Elementary teaching position next year, so recruitment is beginning for a replacement teacher and a classroom assistant.
-Recruitment is also beginning for a new PE teacher; Betsy has been offered a full time position with 4J next year.
-Recruitment also beginning for a 0.5 math teacher for middle school classroom.
-The Budget Committee will begin meeting in April. The budget proposal will be provided to the Board of Directors in June for approval.
-Parent survey total is up to 105.
Board Report (None)
Volunteer Coordinator Report (Cynthia)
-The position of volunteer coordinator was originally a voluntary position. Cynthia’s is a half-time position, focused on office support and volunteer coordination. She also works on event planning and coordinates the Ridgeline Reader and the weekly e-newsletter. She oversees the Ridgeline calendar of events, which lists all school-related events. She is the main liaison with the RCO.
Site Council Report (None this meeting)
