Cleveland High School PTA Meeting Minutes

Location: Cleveland High School Room 106 + Zoom

Date: Wednesday, October 20, 2021

Time: 7:00 pm

Board in Attendance

Board Members: Melissa Toledo, Amy Lewin, Janet Morgan, Nicole Chaves, Carolyn Choi, Chris O’Connor, Dan Mason, Lucretia Lyons, Rosemary Breger, Kristy Oliver, Kristin Sherwood, JJ Heldmann

Guests: Principal JoAnn Wadkins, Heidi Tolentino, Amanda Weber-Welch, Christina Marcoules, John Golden, Moxie Thompson, Byronie McMahon

Agenda Items

Call to Order
Meeting called to order by Melissa Toledo at 7:00 pm

Principal’s Report

• The Principal’s Update that went out on Tuesday, October 19 had an error - Parent-Teacher Conferences will be held on November 22 and 23rd. They will be entirely virtual and we are using the same MyConferenceTime software that we used last year. Keep an eye out for further communications with information on how to sign up for conference appointments. Principal Wadkins knows that all of the teachers are looking forward to talking with families at the end of the first quarter.
• Principal Wadkins reminded everyone to encourage their students to use Flex time to connect with their teachers. Teachers are available during Flex to get help, make up work, and have a quiet place to work. Students are free to move about and see multiple teachers during the Flex period.
• The home soccer game on Tuesday, October 19 was the first event where vaccination status was checked for all non-student visitors, per PPS’s new regulations pertaining to all adult visitors on campus who will be there for more than 15 minutes.
• The first theater production of the year, Antigone, will be held in the auditorium on November 9, 10 and 12.

New Families 101: Q & A Panel Discussion
        Moderator

• CHS PTA Vice President, Amy Lewin

Panelists

• Principal Jo Ann Wadkins
• Counselor Heidi Tolentino
• Counselor Amanda Weber-Welch
• CHS Foundation President and Parent Christina Marcoules
• Teacher and Instructional Coach John Golden. Oversees freshman academies
• CHS Student Co-Body President, Moxie Thompson
• District Student Council Representative, Byronie McMahon

The CHS PTA’s long-awaited October meeting was dedicated to new Cleveland High School families. The 7-person panel (1 person on ZOOM) consisted of Administration, Staff, Counselors, Students, and a Parent.

This year’s questions spaned a wide range of topics. Panelists talked about the overall climate at Cleveland, they gave advice on what Freshmans should know, they gave us insights into the students’ experience, they spoke of learning to become an advocate for themselves and others, they elaborated on the many resources and programs Cleveland has to offer, and they spoke on how they address equity and inclusion.

The video of the CHS PTA’s New Families 101, Q&A Panel Discussion, which starts with the Principal’s Report, is now available on YouTube.

Board Business

• Secretary’s Report

• The minutes from the September meeting were distributed electronically as linked before the meeting, and were approved as written.

• Unit in Good Standing
• Treasurer’s Report

• Dan provided a summary report of the YTD income/expenses and cash balance
• Nicole stated that we still need a few people to help with the annual audit that is required to be filed before the end of November in order to maintain our status with the Oregon PTA.

• Membership Update

• Carolyn reported that we currently have 270 members of the PTA and it’s not too late to join.

• Volunteer Update

• Kristy and Lucretia reported that they have gotten 40 responses so far to the volunteer interest survey that has been in the eNews for the last couple of weeks.  
• The PPS Clothing Center is currently closed and is not scheduling volunteers at this time, but they are still operating on a limited basis to support families in need. Anyone can call 503-234-3928 to schedule a time to pick up a box of clothes.
• Lucretia is working on migrating the survey into Signup Genius so people can start committing to the events.
• They will start actively recruiting for someone to be the new eNews editor.

• Teacher Grants

• Rosemary reported that she received nine requests for grants totaling $10,327 to

support teachers and students in visual arts, performing arts, carpentry & construction, math, special education, literature, world language, and the new club Transit-to-Trails.

• She thanked the review committee for their assistance in evaluating the grant proposals and noted that the PTA budget line for grants is $10,000 and asked to make a motion to increase the line item by $327 in order to fund all the current requests.

New Business

The Board called on parent Amy Gannon to discuss her ideas about the PTA supporting the Cleveland student affinity groups with funding. Amy noted that the PTA does not generally fund clubs and supports students through the Teacher Grants, but does believe there is an opportunity to explore funding options as the affinity groups become more organized. She thinks the involved students should come to the Board with a request and will reach out to Vice Principal Murray to encourage that engagement.

Motions

• Rosemary Breger made a motion to increase the PTA budget line item for Teacher Grants by $327 to a total of $10,327. The motion was seconded by Amy Lewin and unanimously approved by the Board.

Notes and Announcements

• Check emails Monday morning for the CHS PTA’s eNews for announcements and opportunities within the CHS community. Submissions for eNews are noon on Fridays - email cleveland.enews@gmail.com
• Look out for Volunteer Opportunities.
• Visit us on our website at chspdx.org
• Find us on Instagram at clevelandhspta and Facebook at chsfamilies
• Next PTA General Meeting: Wednesday, November 21, 2021

Adjourned at 8:35pm

Minutes Approved:

November 17, 2021