LWE Volunteer Room/Cafeteria

President, Jennifer Neuse called the meeting to order at 9:25 a.m., with a verified quorum.

The minutes from the previous two meetings were read with correction on the May minutes to reflect September 2^nd as Volunteer Training. Lyn Quinn motioned for correction approval. Motion carried.

Principal’s Report-Sam Hicks

He emphasized the importance of PTO through volunteerism and curricular/extracurricular support.
Hurst Creek MUD supplies water for Lakeway Elementary.
Chemical spill on 8/23/04 only affected Bus Route 17. Bus was re-routed as were walkers that travel along Lakeway Blvd. and Lohman’s Crossing.
Parents are requested to refrain from entering the building in the a.m. transition.
The 4^th/5^th grade wing is resolving the A/C problem.
Chess and Spanish clubs will be handled through Community Education. A volunteer to coordinate a chess tournament is requested.
Liz Charbonnet is sponsoring “Smart Girls Camp” for interested girls. This after school program will also be handled through Community Education. The club will emphasize contributions women have made through math, science, history and technology.
There will be a rotating teacher representative at PTO meeting this year.
Class placement notification and suggestions for next year were discussed.
Sam introduced “A+ Cards” for teachers and parents to highlight contributions made at LWE this year. Located in the office, individuals can nominate a teacher. Sam will hold a drawing at each faculty meeting with door prizes going to the winner.
Sam to meet with Cynthia Clinesmith to discuss matching funds and school supplies on 8/25/04.

Officer’s Reports

1^st VP/Volunteers-Cynthia Casto
- Volunteer forms were offered online, however only 200 have been returned. Volunteer assignments need to be made by 8/27/04.
- A Volunteer Breakfast Meeting will be held on 9/2/04.
- Homeroom parents will be assigned this week. PTO provides coordination.
- Fall Carnival commitment will meet 8/25/04 at 1 p.m.
- Committee chairs need to e-mail requests to Jessica Evans.
- Cynthia to forward area chairs to appropriate VPs.
3^rd VP/Fundraising-Cheri DeLong

o Passbook funding is in full swing. Approximately 1,300 books are on site for distribution based on last year’s efforts.

o Kids Giving Mall needs to reflect a $6,000.00 profit on Fundraising Results for 2003-2004. Sam stated that the Mall will not be held during school hours, but he took suggestions of using School Store and/or holding a venue after school. Cheri requested immediate action on the matter. Items will need to be order for the mall.

o Other fundraising options were discussed: Sally Foster, Garage Sale, School Supplies, Theatre Arts and Box Tops

o LWE received dedicated funds from Target.

4^th VP/Programs-Felicia Callazo

o The drug awareness event, Red Ribbon, will be a one-day event to accompany specific curriculum. There will be no assembly.

o A Cultural Fair is planned for the spring.

o Character Education was discussed, but assemblies will be limited this year.

o Discussion for the possibility for a spring carnival was offered as a way to eliminate other forms of fundraising.

o “Coin”acopia. It was suggested that the change collected from this service project be offered to the custodial staff.

Treasurer’s Report-Shelley McCannon

o Shelley will host training on appropriate money-handling matters. All pertinent forms can be downloaded from the Treasurer’s Trove on the PTO website.

o Shelley reported that as of 8/23/04, our balance was $22,566.58.

o Fundraising results were as follows:

§ Kids Mall grossed $13,280.12, had $7,236.50 in expenditures and gained $6,043.62 in profit.

§ Total income for 2003-2004 was $ 152,217.07, $69,290.65 in expenses and $82,926.42 in profit for PTO.

o Shelley proposed a budget amendment of $7,200.00 to cover school supplies. Cynthia Casto motioned to amend budget and motion carried.

Nominations

Jennifer reported an At-Large position is open on the board. Nominations will be accepted until the next PTO meeting on 9/28/04.

New Business

Wish List Items

o 1^st grade had a balance of $143.28 for field trips from 2003-2004 and Shelley proposed to zero out their account.

o The counselor requested motivational media at a cost of $14.33.

o Music requested $1,075.00 for field trip transportation to attend the Nutcracker and Austin Symphony Orchestra this school year.

o Nurse Haskins requested funds to purchase a linear test mask, emergency bag and additional eye charts for a total of $205.46.

o Assistant Principal Cobb has requested to assemblies in reference to student bullying. This was approved, but may be cancelled if limited to a certain number of assemblies. Cost for character education is $920.00. Ms. Cobb requested funds to purchase a labeling machine at approximately $125.00.

Melanie motioned to approve these requests. Motion carried.

Lori Griggs was recognized for her efforts with the Picnic Pavilion.
The PTO newsletter will publish on 9/7/04. Jessica requested that any items to be included in letter be submitted to her no later than 8/27/04. All newsletters will be sent home on the second Tuesday of the month. Jessica reported the website had 80,000 hits in the first three weeks of operation.
An At-Large board member will do membership. It was suggested that membership could be expanded by encouraging business memberships. Susan will assist Shelley inputting membership data on spreadsheets. Lynn Isaak will process the new business members.
Jennifer, Melanie and Shelley are revising the PTO bylaws. A notice will be going home informing parents of the revisions and will be approved at the next meeting.
Jennifer noted the lack of materials in the new Science Lab. Currently, the science curriculum teacher at each grade level is creating a list of needed items. Jennifer stated that the lab could use about $6,000.00 to become fully functional. Lori Griggs volunteered to assist with the lab. The goal of the PTO this year appears to be outfitting the Science lab and updating computer technology. Sam is checking to see where the bond money applies to technology at LWE.
The meeting schedule for the year will be the last Tuesday of each month, with exception of December. PTO will meet on 12/14/04 due to the holiday break.

Meeting adjourned at 11:15 a.m.

Robin Thomas

Secretary