PS 87 PA General Meeting Minutes DRAFT, December 2022

1/19/2023 12:08 pm

PS 87 Parents’ Association 

General Meeting Agenda

12/22/2022

7:00 PM

Board Members: Meredith Thompson, Pamela Unger, Melissa Donovan, Jill Rackmill, Megan Hoffman, Jami DeAngelis, Shoshana Jaffess, Elizabeth Battin, Marguerite Boonzaier, Sarah Emley, Andrea Bryson, Peter Battin, Anirban Dasgupta, Sarah Hansen, Shira Hudson, Lauren Sachs, Sabrina Blum, Gina Cirrito, Lora Martinez & Beatrice Yang

• Call to order: Meredith Thompson (7:07pm)

• Approval of Minutes from 11/18/2022 General Meeting (7:00) Approved by Sabrina Blum and Melissa Donovan at 7:30 pm.

• Administration Updates from Principal Monica - 10min (7:00 - 7:10) 

1. The school is getting ready for winter break. Most classes have had holiday celebrations and it was nice to have families back in the building.
2. New community members are more settled. We have a lot more resources. At the time of the last meeting we hadn’t gotten the allocations, but now we have them. We also have brought in bilingual substitute teachers. The kids have been working with teachers, and that has really helped. We are looking forward to adding English classes for parents to take as well.
3. January is a going to be a great month. We have the 87th day of school, which is very exciting. We will all be dressed in PS87 clothes. There will also be a lot of fun activities (including possibly an all-school chant doing the PS87 song).
4. Monica loves watching the children grow closer and see them welcome in new students. There is a 4th grader who is now almost completely bilingual. All the students seem very interested in becoming bi or multilingual. It is very exciting for Monica to see kids interested in languages.
5. We are moving in a great direction. As we have more programs where people can come in and volunteer, it is becoming more like it used to be.
6. Questions
1. When is the 87th day of school? She will have to look it up, but sometime around the 3rd week of January. We will announce it.
2. How can we ensure everyone has access to PS87 gear? There is a group Manana Otra Dia that will make sure everyone has something. Homemade gear is also completely acceptable and encouraged.
3. Will there be more bilingual classrooms in September? As of right now, we don’t know; it depends on budget. Likely we will have one class per grade (K - 4). As a district, the superintendent is interested in all children having access in other languages. While it likely won’t happen by September, next school year we should be hearing more about it. This year we are working on bringing in more language learning for the school.
4. Could there be supplemental Spanish classes in the morning or other opportunities for non-dual language classes to learn Spanish? They aren’t as effective, so she isn’t sure if they will do that or something more enriching and immersive. There are also Spanish classes in Afterschool program. The current morning class is a Spanish language arts class for kids who were previously in the dual language program.

• Afterschool Report - Remeice Ellis - 5min (7:10 - 7:15)

1. Registration closes on Jan 7. Semester starts Jan 30.
2. Question about Afterschool: 2 classes she wanted to sign up for were waitlisted almost immediately and was wondering if spots will open up.
1. For extremely popular classes, they hope to see which classes were the most popular and then add more similar classes and take out the less popular ones.
2. The waitlist is also always shifting.

• Presidents’ Update - 5min (7:15 - 7:20) We have been busy. There are so many things happening in break: January comedy night, 

• Treasurer’s Update - 5min (7:20 - 7:25)

1. The Afterschool Program loan: Afterschool unofficially said they want to start paying off their loan, but the Afterschool board needs to discuss before giving official answer.
2. See slides below.

• Membership Events - 5 min (7:25 - 7:30) Nothing to report.

• Spring Auction - WELCOME TO THE TROPICS - 10min (7:30 - 7:40) If you are interested in helping please reach out. Sarah’s email is pa-auction@ps87.info It will be on Sat Mar 25 and we are hoping to have babysitting available again.

• Broadway Nite - Sabrina and Jill (7:40 - 7:45)

Broadway Night is confirmed for Sunday, May 7th at 7:00.  

Calling parent performers, teachers/staff & guest artists for Broadway Night 2023! Be a part of the Broadway Night magic this year! Our annual fundraiser, returning after a 2-year hiatus features parents, PS 87 staff, and special guests in a one-night-only, always sold-out show for our PS 87 community. 

The Broadway Night Committee is seeking parents who have Broadway or professional theater experience, or have worked in backstage production and would like to participate in the show.  We are also interested in guest artists from the Broadway community, so please let us know if you have any friends in the industry who would be interested in donating their time & talent to help raise money for our great public elementary school. Please contact Broadway-Night@ps87.info if interested. Thanks!

• Other Committee Updates/Other Business

• Talent Show - (Sarah) We have a Talent Show. Monica named it “87’s Got Talent” and it will take place Saturday, April 29th in the auditorium. We are thinking a 2pm show with a second showing at 5:30pm if this looks like it will outsell OR if we have a large show of interest from performers. Currently opening to 5th Graders and 4th Graders. We are going to need many volunteers to make this a success. By the month of January we hope to have an idea of what volunteer roles are available for parents and students… Students can be stage hands! More info to come. If you are interested in helping or if your child is excited to perform, email Sarah at talentshow@ps87.info .

• Family Giving - Shira - There will be one more email sent out before year end so people can donate before the new year for tax purposes.
• Wellness - Lauren - Family Fit Night. There will be a meeting on Jan 4 at 8am to discuss Family Fit Night. We are looking to create a committee and focus on health and wellness. Anybody interested, please join us. Family Fit Night will be on March 2.
• K - Sabrina - Two more tours coming for prospective K parents.  Tell your friends to register on our school website. If you have questions, email Jennifer Stark (do not try to call her as there are problems with her phone). Pre-K parents must also still apply for Kindergarten.

Thursday, January 12th at 6 pm (in-person)

Thursday, January 19th at 6 pm (Virtual)

IIX. Adjournment (7:41 pm)