Montgomery Blair High School PTSA
Minutes of PTSA Meeting --- February 21, 2006
Executive Committee Meeting Minutes
The meeting was called to order at 7:30 by Deborah Stoll.
The minutes were accepted as they appeared on the listserv.
Treasurer's Report Nancy Newton
1. Membership for this year is down from last year.
2. The El Golfo evening raised $596.00!
Principal's Report Mr. Gainous
1. Ms. Hazel Bratt who taught from 1927 to 1968 passed away and left the school $50,000. Silver Chips will be doing a story about her.
2. The school is reorganizing to better accommodate the Academies. There will be a meeting on February 23rd in the media center. Mr. Gainous has a few teachers how have volunteered.
3. The Down County Consortium has not had a meeting in over a year but Eric Lang has assured Mr. Gainous that Blair's issues will be addressed. Lead teachers are rethinking their roles and some are deciding to go back to the classroom because they feel they will not be given enough paid time to plan.
4. Blair is pooling its resources with the Recreation Department to help design and bolster the Blair Sports Academy's tutoring program. The plan is to have on staff teachers man those positions.
Presentation by Dr. Mary Atwater -- Challenges of Parenting Adolescents
Dr. Atwater was involved with the aftermath of the shootings at Columbine High School and violence prevention programs in Colorado
1. It's ok to share information between parents. Don't hesitate to call other parents to make sure that your children are where they say they are going to be and that there are adults present.
2. She recommends the STEP program. There are books at the library and book stores. It offers guidelines and structure.
3. It's all about relationships. Adolescents are emerging adults so negotiation and choices are important. Ask them about their goals and what they need and want. What steps do you, they need to take in order to reach those goals? Don't tell them what to do but negotiate and offer choices.
4. Set limits so eventually they will do it on their own.
5 . Remind them that you are the parent. They depend on you and that is the starting point of negotiation. It is reassuring to teenagers that they really aren't the ones in control. They are often scared about the future.
6. When they make a mistake, help them think through what happened. What could they have done differently? Teenagers are people who wish they could be anybody but themselves. They are insecure and always need you to get resources.
7. Kids go with kids who share their values. Systematic changes can happen in school. Kids will listen to other kids about what kind of school they want to have.
8. Cell phones and cars allow our children to be in out of control situations. It is hard to police kids. Parents can insist that kids call them from a land line phone.
9. Consequences should fit the behavior.
10. Warning signs for when you should seek help: losing weight, not sleeping, not following through, a shift in behavior.
11. Ask your kids what their goals are.Cluster Report Ray Scannell
1. The Old Blair Auditorium Project is asking for a $600,000 matching grant from the state. It would be helpful if people would write tot heir Congressman and request a federal grant as well. The PTSA board has already voted to send a letter to the state in support of a matching grant.
2. The Board of Education voted 7-1 to maintain the status quo on the Eligibility policy. 20- 25% of the student body is ineligible to participate in extracurricular activities at any given time. Valerie Ervin, a school board member, is going to put forth a new resolution to keep the issue alive on the school board. David Ottalini moved that the PTSA send a letter of support. Seconded by Ray Scanell. Passed unanimously. If you wish to send an individual e-mail which would be helpful, please send Valerie an e-mail to support this new resolution. You can e-mail her at boe@mcps.md.org
3. Presently there are 2,993 students at Blair with a projection of 2,900 for next year. In 2007-8 the projections is 2,800 which is capacity. Right now elementary school numbers are up. There is a study on how to reshuffle 3000 housing units in the Blair cluster. This will have an impact on Blair and the DCC.
4. The Blair Sports Academy is up and running. From 2:15 to 3:15 academic support is available through teachers and volunteer parents. 3:15-5:00 indoor sports are run by the Recreation Department with support from the Y. In the spring indoor soccer which is very popular starts. If a student has a 2.0 GPA or above, they are not required to go to academic support. There is concern about this that the bar should be raised so that more students are required to go to academic support.Conqestos Tu Suenos
1. On February 24th the program whose goal is to empower Latino parents at school, begins at 7:00 at Eastern Middle School. Childcare will be provided. Registration is through Ms. Rivera at Blair. It is 5 weeks long and the last week is a resource fair and celebration.Membership--Carolyn Lichtenstein
1. The April Board meeting will be devoted to brainstorming for next year.Staff Appreciation--Mary Abe
1. February 27th staff appreciation luncheon.Pedestrian Safety--Sam Stokes
1. The cones placed in the parking lot to keep people from forming 2 rows of cars in the exit lane from the Colesville parking lot is working. The staff , especially the security staff, like the new procedure. It has been an inexpensive solution to a very dangerous problem.
2. The University Boulevard parking lot problem requires engineering
solutions and a study for a long term solution. In the meantime, it calls
for police presence to insure compliance with the rules.
3. A request for signs could also help people become more compliant.Counseling Anne Kaiser
1. March 21st is the 11th grade parents meeting to introduce the college process.
2. The registration process is now going on for next year.
3. Work is starting on updating the website.Silent Auction
1. The Committee is looking for donations--good quality stuff. Please offer your talents as chefs, your professional talents, and any business contacts that you have.
2. The date is April 28th at 5:00 p.m. and coincides with Blair Fair.Volunteers Beth Martin
1. Please volunteer for After Prom and Silent Auction. Both programs need your support.
2. People have been responding to the call for volunteers through the listserv.Nominating Committee Ron McClain
1. It is time to think about a slate of officers and committee chairs
2. Fran Rothstein will join the nominating committee.
3. If anyone is interested in a job on the Executive Board, please contact Ron at rmcclain@parkmont.org or Fran at Fran.Rothstein@verizon.netAnnouncements and New Business
Bonnie Malkin announced the development of a new mentoring program at Blair. It is in the planning stages and would be modeled in the Big Brother/Big Sister model. Right now the thought is to require contact once a week and the goal would be to interact with the student and befriend them. The program is in the early planning stage. The next meeting is on March 21st. There will be short meeting from 7:00-7:30. At 7:30 the college program for junior parents will begin.