Meeting called to order at 6:38 p.m. by co-chair Diana Ede. Quorum established.
Principal’s Report: Denise.
Denise shared a letter from Commissioner Sampson recognizing Polaris for its improvement in boosting the achievement of the lowest achieving subgroups while maintain the school’s overall performance. NAPE testing of fourth graders took place. Fifth and seventh graders will be taking the Terra Nova standardized tests on Feb. 6 and 7. Spirit week will, therefore, be reduced to Monday and Friday. Monday will be formal and Friday will be school colors.
The money left over from construction will be used for technology. 30 more computers have been ordered for the library. Current library computers will go to classrooms that have antiquated computer equipment. 5-6 more printers will be bought. In addition, Parent Forum funds will be used to purchase televisions and DVD players for classrooms that don’t have them. Corey Aist received a Best Buy Grant for $2,500 and has applied for a Best Buy $15,000 grant.
Transition to 6-7-8 middle school:
A schedule has been hashed out to accommodate a 6-12 secondary program. Working on curriculum emphasis for 6-8. The plan to publicize this information includes written communications, newsletters, Thursday folder and eventually a page for the handbook. The transition is being made because a 6-7-8 middle school is developmentally most appropriate. It’s also in line with the Anchorage School District which is also moving towards a 6-7-8 middle school. Heidi and Siri will give a presentation on the transition to Parent Forum at its next meeting on Feb. 27, 2007. The same presentation will be given at the ad board meeting on Feb. 28, 2007. Current 6th graders will do the 6th grade camp intensive in the spring. Current 5th graders will do the camp intensive in the fall. In coming year, the 6th grade camp intensive will be in the fall.
Graduation: Michelle Johansen
College Goal Sunday is Feb. 11, 2007. Seniors need to fill out the FAFSA
(Federal Application for Financial Student Aid) in order to be able to accept scholarships or loans for college.
Lori Sheperd is organizing a parent committee for graduation, planning for the event, the reception and looking for funding from Parent Forum. 32 students are graduating this year. The first meeting for parents of seniors will be the evening of Feb. 5. Molly Boots said that senior graduation is not a big budget item for Parent Forum. Funding for graduation will be on the agenda for next month. An idea that came up last year during graduation planning was for the junior parents to help or plan the event for seniors.
Prom date has been moved to April 28. It will be at the Hilton. The theme will be red carpet or 007 or a combination. Hilton has agreed to do some food and decorating. A hoodie with a wolf print and ’07 will be sold as a fundraiser.
Elementary Report: Carol Bartholomew.
The middle school transition has been the topic of discussion in K-6 meetings. The family backpacks that are complete have been given to Cindy to be bar coded and put into circulation. There will be a Family Literacy Night on Tuesday, February 13 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. There will be both informational and activity stations. Some of Hilary Seitz’ UAA student will be leading some of the activities. Coffee and Conversation on Feb. 1 will focus on math.
Secondary Report: Siri Khalsa
Registration went smoothly. Middle school details are being passed on to secondary (9-12) teachers. The textbooks purchased with the legislative grant have arrived. They come with integrated internet support so that students can get extra help and practice. These are Algebra I, II and Geometry texts.
Ad Group Report: Sally Betz
Ad group is working on a revision of its by-laws. These have not been revised since the inception of the school. There will be further discussion on the changes during the next ad board meeting on Jan. 31 at 5 p.m.
Financial Report: Kim Pigg
IRS 990 was submitted Dec. 13, 2006.
Current balance is $20, 256.91 Actual available balance is $14,074.62. This does not yet include the Title Wave fundraiser which brought in $752. E scrip has brought in $500 with another $500 about to be deposited.
Polaris has received a $15,00 Rasmuson Grant for the Polaris Sports Field. Doug Eby was instrumental in getting this grant. The Rasmuson Foundation does not normally fund schools so this grant is going through the Parks Foundation.
Budget discussions for next year need to start soon. A draft budget is needed in April. The budget must be approved at the Parent Forum meeting in May.
Fund Raising:
Spaghetti Dinner – Kristen Buchta and Kathleen are organizing this event. The cooking has begun. Kathleen with the help of Marx Brothers Café at the museum is preparing all the food. 25 gallons of sauce have already been made. Marx Brothers has loaned us their kitchen, provided many of the ingredients including their Caesar salad and is loaning us their van. They’ve also let us purchase many of the ingredients through FSA which has brought down the cost. They expect to come in at or under last year’s budget. Any leftover sauce could be canned and sold as a fundraiser. Six student from Heidi’s advisory and six from Allie’s advisory are helping as wait staff. Wait staff should arrive between 4:30 and 5 p.m. The layout will be a little different from last year to try to improve the flow of people through the food lines and tables. Volunteers are needed at 2 pm on Friday, Feb. 2, to help tear lettuce for the Caesar salad. Volunteers are also needed for clean-up.
Vision Committee: The next meeting is February 13 at 11:30 am.
Discussion last time centered on the community environment at Polaris. The current issues include the school climate and ways to strengthen the community. The students have formed a group called Polar Resurrection which is looking at ways to strengthen the sense of community, reestablish elementary and secondary connections and recapture some of the Polar spirit. Some of these issues have to do with the new school and how to use all the space in the new school. This was likened to a large family, which has been living in a tiny apartment where togetherness was the only option and all resources had to be shared, moving into a spacious multi-bedroom house. Now everyone has their own room with their own bathroom, computer and television and the challenge is to find ways to bring everyone out of their rooms and into a common space to spend time together.
Community service continues to be a focus. How does community service fit into the Polaris philosophy? How important is it to the Polaris mission? One of the issues is that the various family groups and advisories handle community service differently. Community service requirements for secondary students differ significantly from advisory to advisory. This raises the question of grading equity. A suggestion has been made that there be both a list of choices for community service and a list of the community service students and families are performing. Since Polaris does not have team sports, it was suggested that perhaps community service could be viewed as the school sport and used as a focal point for school spirit. How can a balance be found between accountability (requirement and grading) and spontaneity (meaningful, heartfelt community service). Denise suggested that perhaps a seminar class for parents (and older students, if interested) on how to have a dialog and discussion be offered next fall. It could run through UAA and be offered for credit. The subject for the dialog/discussion could be community service. Perhaps there would be a community service proposal that grows into a community service policy for Polaris.
Old Business
Parking Lot Please remind people not to park in the red zone. It’s a safety issue and it shouldn’t be just James’ job to do this.
New Business
School Bonds:
Kitte’ Miller who is the chair of School Bonds Yes asked Mike Carlson from McCool Carlson Green Architects to give a presentation on the plans for Clark Middle School. Clark Middle School is 45 years old, has many deficiencies, and needs to be leveled and rebuilt. In order for this to happen, Anchorage voters need to approve a school bond for $65 million in April. Polaris got its new school because Anchorage voters approved a school bond. Polaris now has the opportunity to help Clark get its much needed new building by supporting its bond. The slogan being used is “My school is Polaris, but I bond with Clark.” Chugach Open Optional is also supporting Clark. Mike Carlson’s presentation showed both the school as it is now with its many problems and the plans for the new school. 60% of the bond would be funded by the state. Anchorage would only be responsible for 40% of the $65 million. Debt from school bonds is not steadily building up. $43-$50 million is being retired each year. The last time a school bond issue passed in 2004.
Opportunity Scholarships:
A senior at Polaris, is going to the 33rd Annual Harvard National Invitational Forensics Tournament as a member of the South High Debate Team. The student is asking for an opportunity scholarship from Parent Forum to help make this possible. The student has offered to do a workshop for Marion’s debate class upon returning from the Tournament as well as reporting back to Parent Forum at the next meeting. Parent Forum still has $1000 budgeted for Opportunity Scholarships for this school year. Upcoming events for which students might request Opportunity Scholarships are the FFA State conference and the DECA state conference both taking place this spring. Debra Blouin made a motion to award the student a $250 scholarship. The motion was seconded by Jeff Friedman. After some discussion about whether we were supporting South H.S. and whether the amount was appropriate, it was agreed that as a Polaris student, the student would be representing Polaris as well as South. South is giving the debate team $300 and Debra Blouin felt we should match that amount. Debra revised her motion from awarding the student an Opportunity Scholarship of $250 to awarding an Opportunity Scholarship of $300. The revised motion was seconded by Molly Boots. The motion passed unopposed.
The suggestion was made that there be a ski swap at Polaris next fall.
Meeting adjourned at 8:30 pm.