Heya there Polaris website early adopters! Just wanted to let folks know that (inspired by Beth’s list of upcoming events) I’ve set up and configured the Drupal events module. This will allow folks to submit events and have them appear on the public calendar. It’s very roughtly configured this at this point, so things may or may not be fully operational yet. Tomorrow I’ll add Beth’s events as a test.
And I’m doing this in sleep-deprived state with a newborn on my lap, so I’m probably even a bit more error-prone than normal.
You should be able to submit events just like stories. They still need to be reviewed by a moderator. And I know the calendar view is as ugly as sin and doesn’t match the look and feel of the rest of the site. I’ll fix this soon.
Comments and questions are welcome!
Parent Forum met last night. A LOT HAPPENED! These are not official minutes and probably don’t cover everything that was discussed - just my recap.
- After a fun icebreaker facilitated by Kitte, Carol reported that the elementary teachers were adjusting to their new space. Carol and Hilary discussed the UAA Early Childhood Education internships.
- Frank mentioned that he had received several e-mails with concerns about the amount of secondary homework. He asked that people contact teachers first, then cc: Frank. He also asked parents to discuss with their students whether they are using study halls effectively.
- The playground is open and supervised until 3:30 p.m. After that, children must have a parent supervising them if they are to continue using the playground.
- Fundraising for the rock wall was discussed and it was agreed that Kelly, Kim, George, and Damon will form a committee to pursue ideas for a formal event.
- Kitte reported that the Spaghetti Feed was extremely successful.
- Parent Forum voted to restrict the $332 wine bottle auction proceeds donated by the art students to art program expenditures.
- Kim reported that the fall Nicholson fundraiser has been extremely successful, though final numbers are not yet in.
- Pippa made a presentation about traffic flow and parking and will continue to investigate problems and solutions.
- Molly and Kitte reported on auction/carnival plans.
- Kitte reported on the Polar!s Now fundraising idea, which would solicit cash donations from parents. The amount raised would probably be eligible for matching grants.
- Kitte also presented an informal but thorough calendar of upcoming events. Parent Forum formally requested that the school post a calendar of events for the community to keep everyone apprised of important dates.
- Ideas for several new parent events were discussed, including different events with focus on different grade levels.
- Bonnie and Pippa will continue researching options for before and after school care.
- Beth reported on the Alaska Kids Count! a Juneau-based parent network formed to advocate for school funding in the legislature. Beth will pursue having someone make a presentation to Parent Forum.
- Beth also reported that the website is up but needs content, and that the laptop has been submitted to Margaret for ordering. Dianna suggested ordering a printer with the remaining funds already committed to the purchase of the laptop.
- Beth also presented the idea of a parent database which could be used to generate a directory.
- The possibilities for sports activities before and after school were discussed and will be pursued by Kelly, Frank, and Damon.
- I missed the discussion of the Parent Forum “Strategic Plan.”
The Polaris website is ready for news stories, articles, and information about scheduled events. Anyone can submit information. Simply create an account and click on “submit story” at the top of the page.