H T T P : / / W W W . P A L O A L T O P T A . O R G /

Palo Alto Counci l o f PTAs

COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT: 2010 -2011

ADDENDUM TO CA STATE PTA EXHIBIT D8 :

COUNCIL ANNUAL REPORT FORM

S u b mi t t ed to

Th e C a l i f o rn i a S i x th D i s t r i c t PTA

(San ta C l a r a C o u n ty , C a l i f o r n i a )

June 23 , 20 1 1

T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S

Palo Alto PTAC Mission .............................................................................................. 3  

Strategic Goals: 2010-2011 ........................................................................................... 3  

Financial Overview 2010-2011 .................................................................................... 4  

Key Accomplishments (by Officer/Committee) ...................................................... 5  ADVOCACY ................................................................................................................................................... 5  PRESIDENT ................................................................................................................................................... 5  EXECUTIVE VP ........................................................................................................................................... 6  PARENT EDUCATION .............................................................................................................................. 6  PARENT/STUDENT EDUCATION ...................................................................................................... 8  HEALTH & SAFETY ................................................................................................................................... 8  ARTS/REFLECTIONS ................................................................................................................................ 9  COMMUNITY KIOSK ................................................................................................................................ 9  SCHOOL MATTERS ................................................................................................................................. 10  SCHOOL BOARD OBSERVER ............................................................................................................. 10  PARLIAMENTARIAN .............................................................................................................................. 10  MEMBERSHIP ............................................................................................................................................ 10  TRAFFIC SAFETY ..................................................................................................................................... 11  PTA WARDROBE ...................................................................................................................................... 13  

Addendum A: PTAC Strategic Goals ..................................................................... 14  

Addendum B: Unit Programs ................................................................................... 20  

C O U N C I L A N N U A L R E P O R T : 2 0 1 0 - 2 0 1 1

PALO ALTO COUNCIL OF PTAS (PALO ALTO PTAC)

PRESIDENT: Terry Godfrey HISTORIAN: Keri Wagner

PALO ALTO PTAC MISSION

The Palo Alto Counc i l o f PTAs works wi th the d i s t r i c t s ta f f , the Board o f Educat ion , communi ty par tner s and the PTAs at the 17 s choo l s to suppor t the s tudents and fami l i e s o f the Palo Alto Uni f i ed Schoo l Dis t r i c t and to improve the educa t ion , hea l th and we l fare o f a l l ch i ldren and youth .

STRATEGIC GOALS: 2010 -2011

1. Advocate For, Promote, and Support Student Social/Emotional/Physical Health

a. Advocate for: i. Student emotional health and well being; ii. The understanding of learning differences; iii. Efforts to help each child to maximize his/her potential through individual definitions of success;

b. Use PTA programs and channels to: i. Inform parents and community about trends/programs/issues; ii. Sponsor parent education presentations on relevant elementary and secondary topics; iii. Improve internal communications and foster strong working relationships with school board and district staff; iv. Connect PTAs to relevant community service organizations such as Youth Community Service (YCS), Palo Alto Medical Foundation (PAMF), and Adolescent Counseling Services, et al;

c. Encourage program emphasis on emotional health and well being; d. Work with PAUSD to promote stress reduction, good nutrition, fitness, sustainable schools,

emergency preparation and school commute safety.

2. Advocate For, Promote, and Support PAUSD Strategic Goal A ("create an exceptional learning environment that engages, challenges, and supports all students" including recent work on writing, math/science, civic, and arts education):

a. Advocate to ensure high academic expectations, curricular and instructional challenge, and support for all students;

b. Use PTA programs, communication channels, and Executive Board to: i. Inform parents and community about participation opportunities, trends, programs issues, reports, surveys, and survey results; ii. Sponsor parent education presentations (Elementary topics different from Secondary; iii. Foster strong working relationships with school board and district staff; iv. Connect PTAs to relevant extracurricular resources and programs; v. Participate, early and ongoing, in district discussions on instructional materials, standards, vision, and philosophy; vi. Gather input from PTA members to help inform actions.

3. Maintain and Enhance a Strong, Effective Palo Alto PTA:

a. Promote benefits of PTA programs and encourage volunteering; b. Foster inclusiveness and diversity in our membership and add active and passive members;

i. Recruit student members and volunteers; ii. Recruit teachers and administrators as members; iii. Recruit community members and past PAUSD parents to join the PTA;

c. Build leadership through consistent PTA unit training and support; d. Facilitate sharing of best practices between schools within and outside the district; e. Meet our statutory obligations; f. Work with Partners in Education to enhance the relationship and leverage both organizations to

benefit our community.

4. Advocate for All Children Using PTA Local, State, and National Advocacy Networks:

a. Continue to strengthen and broaden our communication network to keep our community informed and to keep PAUSD informed of parent views and concerns;

b. Evaluate local, state, and national legislative and legal issues and determine which ones should be pursued and brought to the attention of our Council;

c. Stay current on state and national education policy and law, and participate where appropriate; d. Increase the role of advocacy within the Council and units.

(See Addendum A for additional details and progress on Annual Goals relating to our Strategic Goals)

FINANCIAL OVERVIEW 2010 -2011

Each year, the 17 units in the Palo Alto Council raise over one million dollars to support programs for their school communities. Sums vary depending on school size, membership, and other factors. Sources of funds are direct appeals (the major source of funds at the secondary schools), auctions, book fairs, gift wrap and other product sales, kids’ art cards, eScrip, festivals and carnivals, pancake breakfasts and spaghetti dinners, running events, t-shirt sales, and many other events. The funds are spent over a wide variety of uses, including: technology, teacher grants and student scholarships, principal discretionary funds, and social norming survey support, parent education and student assemblies, hospitality/community building/staff and teacher appreciation, site beautification, homework clubs and after-school enrichment activities, scholarships for students and teachers for field trips, science programs and foreign language trips, library books, math workbooks, core literature books, grammar workbooks and teacher resource material, promotion and graduation parties, science fair support, classroom funds for teachers, children’s theatre, art supplies, noon exercise programs and recess equipment, college fairs, playground structures, meals and free clothing assistance to needy families, leadership training for students….and more.

KEY ACCOMPLISHM ENTS (BY OFFICER/COMMITTEE)

ADVOCACY

(LAUREN JANOV)

Advocacy efforts this year related to the following goals: • AG 2-3. Understand the nuances of educating students performing above grade level, raise

awareness in the community, and help PAUSD work on solutions. • AG 2-5. Communicate key information about the district and the Board of Education to parents,

including topics such as budgets, funding, board agenda and action items. Details of how parents can get involved and when and where discussions would take place were included.

• AG 4-2. Understand PAUSD's budget priorities, inform PTA members about them and encourage parent and community members to make PAUSD and the BoE aware of their opinions and priorities.

Advocacy efforts were many and varied, including the following: • PTAC Budget Survey: re-disseminate survey to PAUSD and board members • PAUSD Budget: track and summarize • State budget cuts in general: track and inform PTAC membership. Run "let us vote" campaign • State budget cuts directed at basic aid school districts: track, research, advise school board and

inform PTAC membership • School Calendar: Inform parents about the issues and opportunities to opine • Developmental Assets: Analyze data to determine which groups of students are in need of extra

advocacy support • Elementary math: track flexible grouping and task force developments and report to PTAC

membership

PRESIDENT

(TERRY GODFREY)

In addition to presiding over the Palo Alto PTA Council, running the Council and President meetings and participating in a multitude of district, staff and community meetings and events relevant to the PTAC mission and goals, Terry Godfrey participated on the Executive Team involved with Project Safety Net, along with several other PTAC members. Her role on the Executive Team included helping to raise money for Track Watch, developing communications, and contributing to the action planning, in line with annual goal AG 1-1: Support the city-wide “Youth and Teen Health and Welfare” team. Terry led the Exec Team in contributing to the three strategies PTA can affect (Parent Education, Reduction of Lethal Means and Reduction of Harassment/Social Cruelty), contributing to the PTAC website to facilitate the team's work, as well as supporting the Developmental Assets survey by facilitating the positive-consent process and handling the survey distribution to classrooms.

EXECUTIVE VP

(ANNA THAYER)

As Executive VP, Anna Thayer facilitated parents’ participation in the decision-making process for PAUSD regarding the district calendars adopted for 2011-2012 and 2012-2013. Anna also worked with a team to organize and host the annual Honorary Service Awards luncheon.

PARENT EDUCATION

(SUNNY DYKWEL)

This year's PTA Council Parent Education offerings focused on the social/emotional well-being of our students with a particular emphasis on teens. The PTA Council was pleased to be able to present eight high-quality sessions throughout the year to community members throughout the city, through in-person events and through broadcasts (and on-demand programming) on Public Access Cable Channel 28 (thanks to support from the Midpeninsula Media Center and the Palo Alto Medical Foundation).

1. From Crisis to Long Term Strategy… Developmental Assets—A Community Framework for Helping Youth Thrive, September 2010

2. Connecting With Your Teen, October 2010 3. The Romance of Risk: Talking with Your Teen About Risk Behaviors, November 2010 4. The Challenge of Nurturing Emotional Intelligence in Palo Alto, December 2010 5. Communicating With Your Teen: Keeping the Door Open, January 2011 6. Ingenious: Levers for Unlocking Creativity—Lessons on defying expectations, challenging

assumptions, and unleashing Innovation, February 2011 7. Staying Connected to your Teen in a 24/7 Digital Media World, March 2011 8. Connecting Family and Culture to our Children’s Voices, May 2011

September 22, 7-9pm, SDC at 25 Churchill: “From Cris i s to Long Term Stra tegy… Deve lopmenta l Asse t s—A Community Framework for Help ing Youth Thr ive” A panel presentation to introduce the Developmental Assets framework which has been adopted by the school district, the City, and community agencies to support the health, resiliency, and overall well-being of our youth. Learn about the upcoming school survey that will measure student attitudes, behaviors and assets. Become an asset builder for your child. October 13, 7-9pm, SDC at 25 Churchill: “Connec t ing With Your Teen” Ser i e s kicks off the presentations on Connectivity and the 41 Developmental Assets, scheduled throughout the year. It will be an engaging, interactive night hosted by local parenting experts focused on one goal—to help parents consider, gather and share the very best strategies for enhancing their relationship with their teens. Minimal presentation, maximum interaction, hot topic segment, clicker questions, subsequent discussion, breakout groups. November 17, 7-9pm, SDC at 25 Churchill: “The Romance o f Risk: Talking wi th Your Teen About Risk Behav iors” - Speaker : She i la Dubin , MS, f rom Parents P lace Teens need risk in order to grow. They also need parental support in order to take those risks. In this workshop we will discuss what is “healthy” risk-taking and when a parent needs to be concerned

and intervene. We will also address how parents can talk with their teens to help them develop in healthy ways. December 8, 2011, 7-9pm, SDC at 25 Churchill: “The Chal l enge o f Nurtur ing Emot iona l In te l l i g ence in Palo Alto” Does your child feel overscheduled? Do you protect your child from making mistakes by making decisions for him/her? When you plan for your child’s future, is anything more important to you than academic achievement? Expert panelists include 3 professionals with decades of experience counseling Palo Alto/Silicon Valley parents and their children within the K-16 context. They also teach university courses on student mental health, emotional intelligence and cross-cultural issues in education and training for counselors. (This is the second follow-up of the three-part community conversation “Growing Up Asian in Palo Alto.”) January 12, 2011, 7-9pm, Paly Haymarket Theater - “Communica t ing With Your Teen : Keep ing the Door Open” – Speaker : Susan Stone -Be l ton , BSE, f rom Parents P lace It’s not uncommon for the doors to communication to literally feel shut during the teen-age years, yet it is one of the most important times to communicate with your son or daughter. What worked during the elementary school years may no longer work during adolescence. This workshop will give parents strategies for keeping the doors to communication open, strong and healthy. February 15, 2011, 7-9pm, “Ingen ious : Lever s fo r Unlocking Creat iv i t y—Lessons on de fy ing expec ta t ions , cha l l eng ing assumpt ions , and unleash ing Innovat ion” held at Arrillaga Alumni Center at Stanford campus. Keynote speaker: Dr. Tina Seelig, Executive director for Stanford Technology Ventures Program and bestselling author of “ What I Wish I knew When I was 20: A Crash Course on Making Your Place in the World”. How can you enhance innovation within your teams and organizations, and what can you do to stimulate creative problem solving in your families and classrooms? Using thought-provoking stories, interactive exercises, and engaging video, Dr. Tina Seelig will highlight some of the surprising, yet tangible things we can do to stretch our imaginations and enhance creativity at home, school and work. Whether it’s rethinking how we frame questions or the assumptions we bring to solving problems, Tina will demonstrate that most challenges are opportunities for creative solutions. She is joined by Matthew Severson, who offers a real life example of this creative approach to identifying and solving compelling social problems. Matt founded The School Fund in 2008 to help students in Tanzania and is expanding the organization globally with the help of fellow students from Palo Alto High School. Matt currently attends Brown University. March 30, 2011, 7-9pm: “Stay ing Connec t ed to your Teen in a 24/7 Dig i ta l Media Wor ld” – Spangenberg Theater, Gunn HS (English presentation) Gunn Library (Spanish version) In collaboration with Parents Place and Common Sense Media. Workshop addresses the issues that today’s parents face raising their teens in a 24/7 digital media world. Our teens are consuming and creating a lot of media that allows them to express themselves, explore their identity, keep in touch with friends and family, and gives them an instant community. It also has its challenges: our kids leave “digital footprints” that will follow them into adulthood, cyber bullying is on the rise, and it can be addictive. Parents will learn about the benefits and risks, and most importantly, what they can do to stay connected to their teens in this 24/7 world of media. May 26, 2011, 7-9pm, SDC at 25 Churchill: “Connec t ing Fami ly and Cul ture to our Chi ldren ’ s Voic e s”

Panelists and Palo Alto parents Becky Beacom, Dana Tom, and Vic Ojakian highlight some results from the Developmental Assets student survey. Come and participate in lively discussion of how culture and community influence our children’s development. Learn how you can help your child develop higher asset levels and shape an environment that helps our youth thrive. (This is the third/final follow-up of the three-part community conversation “Growing Up Asian in Palo Alto.”)

PARENT/STUDENT EDUCATION

(STACEY ASHLUND)

Parents of students in the Social/Cognitive class at Jordan (which includes a social skills group) recommend replicating it at JLS and Terman. Terman successfully ran a lunchtime club, using a special ed classroom staffed by behaviorists, and students with and without IEPs participated. The club was titled a generic "Games" club so a variety of activities could be included. The students made signs to promote it, helped choose the activities, and invited other students to participate. Staff invited students to participate, and Leadership students also participated. JLS might consider this as well.

Under the leadership of Stacey Ashlund, PTAC collaborated on parent education events with the Parent Network for Students of Color and the CAC (Community Advisory Committee for Special Education) to address reading delays, IEP advocacy, and inclusion. Stacey promoted the CAC email list and added families to facilitate communication, and communicated parent events via http://info.paloaltopta.org/ and eNews.

Stacey organized Family Math Night at Briones, and communicated with Fairmeadow about renaming their math night to Family Games Night to attract more families. At Family Math Night, parents and students learned hands-on math and logic activities, which are presented as fun games that also facilitate conceptual understanding of math. The ST Math program is in use in 2nd and 3rd grades at Briones, and for this year as after-school activity for parents - PTA evaluated its effectiveness to mixed reviews. No other PAUSD elementary uses ST Math. Briones made ST Math available for home use as well. Stacey collaborated with the Board of Education and the superintendent to define the purpose of Math Task Force. Addison tried the Foundation 4 Math program as an afterschool program with mixed reviews. Los Altos introduced the Khan Academy web-based program as a complement to their current math program; they are still evaluating its effectiveness.

HEALTH & SAFETY

(KATIE SHADE AND MICAELA PRESTI)

The Health and Safety VPs surveyed each elementary school on lice screening process, sharing best practices and district policy with all schools. This resulted in the implementation of a more consistent process for screening that meets district policy. As a result of the sleep study summary report, Katie Shade met with the high school parent education leaders and coordinated a parent ed program, led by a local parent and sleep expert in the community. Data from the SOS survey and input from the PAMF health ed department was also used to create a program targeting the teen population. Other activities included attending district Health Council meetings and meeting with PTA Presidents to identify health and nutrition representatives at the elementary school sites.

ARTS/REFLECTIONS

(ROXANE MEHTA)

For the academic year 2010-11, Palo Alto PTAC Arts sponsored the following programs: Palo Alto Art for Youth (PAArtY!), the Artspeak! Lecture Series, and the You Made It Jamboree and a series of classes on Animation software. This year, we replaced the Reflections program with PAArtY!- Palo Alto Art for Youth.

PAArtY! is divided into two sections, the non-competitive element for K-8 and the 9-12 competitive part. For the Elementary and Middle Schools the objective is for all students to experience the joy of creativity unencumbered by the stress of competitiveness. The message is that everyone is an artist and everyone is a writer, so there are very few rules to restrain the kids. There is also hope that students with different or special needs will enjoy participating. The categories offered are Visual Arts and Literature. All entries received are exhibited at the unit level, and it is suggested that the unit chair arranges a “Gallery Night” when the exhibition is opened, and students talk about their artwork to the visitors and to their families, and literature students read their poems, or stories. High school students however, are offered a prize for best entry in two categories, Photography and Visual Arts. A show of some Elementary and all High School entries is installed at University Arts, Hamilton Ave, from May 2nd through 26th.

ArtSpeak! Co-sponsored the Cubberley Artist Series Connecting Art at the Palo Alto Art Center. A series of four panel discussions on the connections between art and science, animation, collaboration across disciplines, and found objects. We did not continue the speaker series after November due to low audience attendance.

You Made It Jamboree! is a student maker fair, modeled on, and inspired by the Maker Faire in San Mateo. The fair is held on May 14th, in conjunction with Cultural Kaleidoscope's Annual Show, at City Hall Plaza. This fair features 28 creative works of Palo Alto students, some of which are collaborative efforts. On display were creations from many areas of expertise, ranging from robotics, carpentry and welding to fine arts, comic strips and jewelry, and a group of students who are raising funds for Japanese earthquake victims. There were also several booths with hands-on projects for visitors and students to participate in. In addition, there were other booths from Kidizens and Camp Galileo. Many volunteer hours are spent in this effort, and on the day of the event, high school students and adults in the community will help man the booths. The event is free and open to all. http://www.youmadeitjamboree.com/

Learning Animation. We also had a series of after school classes on Animation in October through April, by Patricia Hannaway, a renowned, award-winning animator who donated her time, and taught the students the use of Maya, software used in the animation industry. Held at the office of the District Arts Coordinator, it was a fantastic learning experience for the High School students who participated.

COMMUNITY KIOSK

(KAREN KARPEN)

Published the Community Kiosk, a twice-monthly, 2-page summary of community events of interest to elementary school families in the elementary newsletters, and posted on the PTA Council Web site. Sent advance copy to elementary newsletter editors to avoid duplication of items.

SCHOOL MATTERS

(PREEVA TRAMIEL)

School Matters is a weekly column, which usually appears on Friday in the Palo Alto Daily News under Preeva Tramiel’s name and picture. It and is archived on San Jose Mercury News website. Tramiel writes most of the column. Thirty columns were published in the 2010-2011 school year. This year, School Matters worked very closely with the PTA Council president and the PTAC Vice President of Education to promote important parent education events and PTAC activities. Often parents who do not get their news from computers attended events because they saw it in School Matters, and it helps keep the broader community engaged, as the Daily News is so widely distributed. Besides Parent Ed, School Matters reports on issues that are of interest to the community including interesting programs that involve our students or our schools that are open to the public such as Bike Safety programs, the Wardrobe Closet, and YCS. Press releases are encouraged, and should be addressed to schoolmatters@paloaltopta.org.

SCHOOL BOARD OBSERVER

(SARA WOODHAM-JOHNSSON) As co-school board observer, attended Board of Education meetings and wrote up detailed summaries that were distributed to PTA Council and Presidents and forwarded to general membership. To this end, accomplished annual goal AG 2-2: Communicate the key information about the district and BoE to parents, including topics such as budgets, funding, board agenda and action items. Details of how parents can get involved, and when and where discussions will take place will also be included.

PARLIAMENTARIAN

(LOUISE VALENTE)

This year's main goal was to train and assist unit parliamentarians with electronic bylaws. This was accomplished at the Fall Training and throughout the school year. Thus far we have 7 unit bylaws under review at either 6th district or State PTA. Another goal this year was to keep all 17 schools as current as possible with their bylaws and to support them to the fullest extent possible. To this end, we have only 2 units, which need to review their bylaws, per the 3-year rule. In addition, assistance was provided for various schools with the nominating committee process over the past five months.

MEMBERSHIP

(ELLEN SHELL)

This year’s goal was to increase PTA membership by 10% over last year. While we did not meet this goal, district wide membership participation this year reached 75%, an increase of 3% over last year. The membership participation is the ratio of PTA members to the student population. There are 11,803 students in the district and 8,861 members.

2002-2003

2003-2004

2004-2005

2005-2006

2006-2007

2007-2008

2008-2009

2009-2010

2010-2011

Enrollment 9995 10190 10370 10567 10799 11016 11279 11525 11803 Participation 75% 72% 81% 84% 77% 80% 74% 72% 75%

TRAFFIC SAFETY

(BORIS FOELSCH, STEFAN ROSNER, PENNY ELLSON)

PTAC Traffic Safety Committee Goal: To sustain our Safe Routes to School Partnership with PAUSD, City of Palo Alto, PABAC and other community groups to reduce risk to students en route to and from school and to encourage more families to use alternatives to solo driving more often. Provide Safe Routes to School programs: comprehensive approach that addresses the 5 E’s:

o Education teach traffic safety skills and the benefits of using alternative modes o Encouragement encourage families to try alternative commutes through events o Enforcement collaborate with PAPD o Engineering safer routes for juvenile bicyclists and pedestrians o Evaluation

2010-2011 Accomplishments: • Recruited and trained 31 Traffic Safety Reps (TSRs), providing representation at all 17 PAUSD

school sites. • Updated and maintained Palo Alto PTA Safe Routes to School website

http://saferoutes.paloaltopta.org/index.shtml . • Worked with City of Palo Alto and League of American Bicyclists to coordinate TS101 class

and referred four local candidates from this class to a three-day Alameda League of American Bicyclists Instructor Certification Seminar. They all have been certified as bike safety instructors. This was a first step toward our goal to reduce our local shortage of certified bike safety instructors.

• Provided support for revision of the City of Palo Alto Bicycle/Pedestrian Transportation Plan. Reviewed and commented on drafts at various stages, distributed bike survey to PAUSD families, helped to publicize related public meetings to PAUSD families and staff.

• Assisted Police Chief in getting annual letters with traffic safety information to all schools • Supported City of Palo Alto effort to improve Shuttle service to middle schools. Publicized

changes to service once they were in place.

Traffic Safety Education: • Collaborated with City of Palo Alto Transportation and PAUSD Staff on implementation of in-

school traffic safety education: o Kindergarten “Safe Moves” pedestrian safety class seminar and practice o 1st Grade “Safe Moves” pedestrian safety participatory assembly o 2nd Grade “Safe Moves” pedestrian safety participatory assembly o 3rd Grade Bike Programs (3 lessons: bike safety basics, key traffic skills for cyclists (grade

level assembly), on-bike event covering controlled riding, scanning, driveway skills, intersection skills, and helmet fitting

o 5th Grade Bike Safety Refresher (assembly: PowerPoint and “Bicycle Zone” video) o 6th Grade “Drive Your Bike” (making safe choices)

• Collaborated with City of Palo Alto Transportation and Parks & Recreation Departments to offer outside of school: o Middle School Bike Skills (after school program for children age 10-14) o TS101 bike safety skills for older teens and parents.

• Coordinated two “Bringing Up Bicyclists” Parent Ed. classes, this year sponsored and hosted by Hoover Elementary School and Addison Elementary School.

Encouraging Alternatives: • Organized two district-wide events to encourage more families to use alternative transportation

modes for their school commutes through fun community events that also educated students and parents about the health, safety, community and environmental benefits of alternative mode choices. o October: “Walk & Roll” Event o April, Earth Week “Drive Less Challenge” Event

• Continue to organize the successful “Pedaling for Prizes” program throughout the year at Gunn. • Supported successful City of Palo Alto grant application for a $500,000 Valley Transportation

Authority (VTA) Vehicle Emissions Reductions Based at Schools (VERBS) non-infrastructure grant, which will benefit Palo Alto Safe Routes to School education and encouragement efforts.

Engineering Safer School Commute Routes -Collaborated with PAUSD, CPA, Caltrans, and County of Santa Clara on school route engineering projects, including: • North California Avenue SRTS traffic calming project

• Arastradero Restriping • Oregon Expressway Intersection Improvements • Greer Road Safe Routes to School Traffic Calming Study • Review transportation plans/routes for summer school • Stanford/El Camino Real Intersection Improvement project • Town & Country projects (potential impacts on Embarcadero/Paly HS driveway) • Facilities Master Planning Transportation Elements for multiple school sites. • Continued coordination with VTA to fine tune routes and scheduling around Gunn schedule. • Recruited volunteers to maintain VTA notification list to keep Gunn bus riders apprised of VTA

bus schedule changes.

Enforcement Collaboration with PAPD • Meet monthly with PAPD Traffic Team representative and share information re: enforcement

needs and efforts on school commute routes. • Worked with PAPD on spot enforcement issues as they arose. • Watching City of Palo Alto budget process for possible cuts funding for crossing guards again

this year (ongoing). Evaluation • Conducted annual transportation mode survey and bike counts

o Survey indicates continuing decline in percentage of students coming to school by single family car, bucking the national trend toward driving to school.

o Bike counts were at a ten-year record high at Gunn and Paly (again).

PTA WARDROBE

(ROSEMARY BUSHER AND MARY VINCENT)

In 1934, during the Depression, a mother at Mayfield School started collecting clothes from the school community and distributing them to people who needed them. This evolved into the PTA Wardrobe, which currently operates from a facility at Jordan Middle School. Current Situation: The PTA Wardrobe receives lots of used clothes, some from the Lost & Found of PAUSD schools. Most of the clothes are high quality and in good condition. The Jordan space will no longer be available to us when construction begins. PAUSD has offered space at the Greendell school site for the wardrobe. We took this opportunity to assess the wardrobe operation. We explored several options and passed the following in our April 2011 PTAC General Meeting: We will not take up the district’s offer to take a spot at Greendell, we will give up the "bricks and mortar" wardrobe, we will work with the existing organizations who offer clothing free or at reduced rates to meet our community needs, and we will separately consider what to do with the ski clothes rental (consider using the ski clothes rental as a fundraiser).

ADDENDUM A : PTAC STRATEGIC GOALS

Grading June 2011

Strategic Goals (3-5 yr horizon) Annual Goals Key: []=Owner/Exec Bd Member responsible

1. Advocate For, Promote and Support Student Social/Emotional/Physical Health

a. Advocate for: i. Student social/emotional health and well being; ii. The understanding of learning differences; iii. Efforts to help each child to maximize his/her potential, through individual definitions of success;

b. Use PTA programs and channels to:

i. Inform parents and community about trends/programs/issues; ii. Sponsor parent education presentations (Elementary topics different than Secondary); iii. Improve internal communications and foster strong working relationships with school board and district staff; iv. Connect PTAs to relevant community organizations such as Youth Community Service (YCS), PAMF, Adolescent Counseling Services (ACS), et al;

c. Encourage program emphasis on social/emotional learning; d. Work with PAUSD to promote stress reduction, good nutrition, fitness, sustainable schools, emergency preparation and school commute safety.

AG  1-­‐1. Support  Project  Safety  Net  including:  [Godfrey/Presti/S.Dykwel]  a. [done]Deliver  3  –  5  parent  

education  events  in  support  of  social/emotional  learning.  

b. [done]Provide  PTA  communications  channels  (e.g.  eNews,  newsletters)  to  parents  for  PSN-­‐related  topics  (e.g.  Track  Watch,  41  Development  Assets  roll  out,  etc)  

c. [done]Support  the  41  Developmental  Assets.  

d. [ongoing]Develop  a  common  focus  on  social/emotional  issues  across  the  17  PTA  units  including  encouraging  them  to  devote  budget  and  volunteers  (i.e.  a  PTA  Board  role).  

e. [done]Provide  up  to  $1800  for  student-­‐initiated  social/emotional  learning  activities.  [$1000  to  Youth  Council  for  IGNITE  and  $800  to  support  the  May  2011  Youth  Forum]  

AG  1-­‐2. Support  the  41  Developmental  Assets  by:  [Presti/S.Dykwel]  a. [done]Assigning  a  parent-­‐

volunteer  at  each  school  to  distribute  surveys  to  classrooms  and  act  as  point  person  for  the  PTA,  

b. [done]Encouraging  parents  to  provide  positive  consent  for  students  to  participate  in  the  survey,  

c. [ongoing]Communicating  survey  results  and  next  steps  to  parents,  

d. [done]Organizing  the  September  22nd  kick  off  and  panel  discussion,  and  the  May  18  discussion,  

e. [done]Publicizing  trainings  (e.g.  Assets  101)  through  PTA  communications  channels,  and  

f. [ongoing]Aligning  existing  and  new  PTA-­‐sponsored  social/emotional  learning  programs  with  the  41  Developmental  Assets  framework  and  language.  

AG  1-­‐3.  [done]Sponsor  walk,  bike,  carpool,  and  other  alternative  mode  encouragement  programs,  pedestrian/bike  safety  education,  and  partner  with  the  City  of  Palo  Alto  (CPA)  and  PAUSD  to  promote  safe  routes  to  school.  [Foelsch  /  Rosner]  

AG  1-­‐4.  [done]Support  the  review,  development  and  release  of  a  planned  update  to  the  Palo  Alto  Bicycle/Pedestrian  Transportation  Plan  (last  update  2003).  [Foelsch  /  Rosner]  

AG  1-­‐5. [done]  Coordinate  with  the  City  of  Palo  Alto  (CPA)  and  the  League  of  American  Bicyclists  (LAB)  to  promote  and  schedule  TS101  courses  and  League  Certified  Instructor  (LCI)  Certification  seminars,  with  the  goal  of  developing  and  maintaining  a  pool  of  3  or  4  LCIs  to  support  district-­‐wide  bicycle  safety  educational  programs.  [Foelsch  /  Rosner]  

AG  1-­‐6. [done]Continue  our  work  around  the  importance  of  sleep  by  seeking  expert  advice  and  disseminating  it  to  families  via  our  communications  channels  (including  parent  ed,  School  Matters  column,  etc.).  [Presti/Shade]  

AG  1-­‐7. [done]Promote  social  support  for  students  in  need  in  middle  grades  by  introducing  the  Terman  "lunch  bunch"  program  (including  a  behaviorist)  to  the  other  middle  schools.  [Ashlund/Presti]  

2. Advocate For, Promote and Support PAUSD Strategic Goal A ("create an exceptional learning environment that engages, challenges, and supports all students" including recent work on writing, math/science, civic, and arts education):

a. Advocate to ensure high academic expectations, curricular and instructional challenge and support for all students; b. Use PTA programs, communication channels, and Executive Board to:

i. Inform parents and community about participation opportunities, trends, programs, issues, reports, surveys, and survey results; ii. Sponsor parent education presentations (Elementary topics different than Secondary); iii. Foster strong working relationships with school board and district staff; iv. Connect PTAs to relevant extracurricular resources and programs; v. Participate, early and ongoing, in district discussions on instructional materials, standards, vision and philosophy; vi. Gather input from PTA members to help inform actions.

AG  2-­‐1.  [Deferred]Understand  the  nuances  of  educating  students  performing  above  grade  level,  raise  awareness  in  the  community,  and  help  PAUSD  work  on  solutions.[Janov]    

AG  2-­‐2. [done]Communicate  the  key  information  about  the  district  and  BoE  to  parents  including  topics  such  as  budgets,  funding,  board  agenda  and  action  items.  Details  of  how  parents  can  get  involved  and  when  and  where  discussions  will  take  place  will  also  be  included.  [Janov,  Woodham]  

AG  2-­‐3. [done]Organize  a  K-­‐12  Arts  Contest  that  will  partner  with  the  Palo  Alto  Art  Center  and  the  City  of    Palo  Alto  Arts  Commission.  Sponsoring  or  organizing  a  speaker  series  on  the  intersection  of  art  and  technology.  [Mehta]  

AG 2-4. [done]Continue  with  the  Student  Maker  Faire  and  also  participate  again  in  San  Mateo  Maker  Faire's  Young Makers. [Mehta]

AG 2-5. [ongoing]Coordinate  an  "abilities  awareness  program"  at  each  school  once  every  two  years,  which  would  be  organized  or  supervised  by  the  special  ed  reps.  [Shufro/Wright]

AG  2-­‐6. [done]Foster  clear  public  communication  about  PAUSD  special  ed  to  interested  community  members  including  an  accessible  online  location  for  information  with  

regular  updates  by  the  CAC.  [Shufro/Wright]  

AG  2-­‐7. [ongoing]Continue  to  advocate  that  the  school  district  continue  its  efforts  to  eliminate  the  achievement  gap;  [Bomar/Usman]  

AG  2-­‐8. [done]Sponsor  at  least  three  (3)  outreach/community  building  events  for  underrepresented  minority  parents:  (a)  to  provide  resources  and  skills  to  help  parents  help  their  kids  succeed  academically  in  school;  (b)  to  encourage  greater  participation  in  school  district  activities  and  events;  and  (c)  to  improve  communication  between  parents  and  teacher(s).  [Bomar/Usman]    

AG  2-­‐9. [done]Co-­‐sponsor  one  outreach  event  with  the  CAC  and  underrepresented  minority  parents  regarding  communicating  with  teachers  about  special  education.  [Bomar/Usman]  

AG  2-­‐10. [done]Partner  with  other  program  sponsors  desiring  to  reach  out  to  those  that  may  be  outside  of  the  mainstream,  to  encourage  greater  participation  in  school  district  activities  and  events.  [Bomar/Usman]  

AG  2-­‐11. [ongoing]Address  needs  of  achievement  gap,  struggling  learners,  and  Inclusion  students,  by  collaborating  with  PAUSD  on  increasing  parent  awareness  on  effectiveness  and  alternatives  to  interventions    at  middle  grades.  [Ashlund]  

AG  2-­‐12. [ongoing]Work  with  units  to  promote  family  involvement  regarding  math  &  science  at  the  elementary  level.  [Ashlund]  

3. Maintain and Enhance a Strong, Effective Palo Alto PTA

a. Promote benefits of PTA programs and encourage volunteering; b. Foster inclusiveness and diversity in our membership and add active and passive members:

i. Recruit student members and volunteers; ii. Recruit teachers and administrators as members; iii. Recruit community members and past PAUSD parents to join the PTA;

c. Build leadership through consistent PTA unit training and support; d. Facilitate sharing of best practices between schools within and outside the district. e. Meet our statutory obligations. f. Work with Partners in Education to enhance the relationship and leverage both organizations to benefit our community.

AG  3-­‐1. [done]Establish  regular  meetings  with  Partners  in  Education    and  share  goals.  [Godfrey]  

AG  3-­‐2. [done]Deliver  Fall  and  Spring  training  and  facilitate  the  transfer  of  knowledge  of  outgoing  /  incoming  officers.  [Valente]  

AG  3-­‐3. [done]Meet  our  deliverables  on  insurance,  audit,  membership  and  unit  bylaws  updates.  [Carpenter,  Zook,  Shell]  

AG  3-­‐4. [done]Write  30  "School  Matters"  columns  that  support  our  goals.  [Tramiel]  

AG  3-­‐5. [done]Move  PTAC  to  the  new  on-­‐line  accounting  tool  and  disseminate  the  information  to  the  units.  [Carpenter]  

AG  3-­‐6. [done]Facilitate  parents'  participation  in  the  decision-­‐making  process  for  PAUSD  by  making  them  aware  of  upcoming  topics  of  interest  (e.g.  evaluation  standards  for  teachers  and  administrators,  calendar,  Mandarin  Immersion  third  year  evaluation.)  [Woodham]  

AG  3-­‐7. [done]Document  the  process  for  communicating  information  and  publicizing  events  (e.g.  pony  fliers,  eNews,  press  release,  etc)  to  help  organizers  understand  the  best  ways  to  publicize  their  events.  [VP  Comms  Godfrey]  

AG  3-­‐8. [Not  done]  Increase  membership  by  10%  year  over  year.  [Thayer,  Shell]    

AG  3-­‐9. [Not  done]Create  a  "buddy"  system  whereby  PTAC  Exec  Board  members  align  themselves  with  units  to  promote  collaboration  and  act  as  resource.  [Godfrey]  

AG  3-­‐10. [done]Appreciate/recognize  great  people:  [Merritt/Saliba,  Thayer,  Busher]  

a. New  Teacher  Luncheon    b. Fall  District  Staff  

Appreciation  c. Spring  Honorary  Service  

Awards  (HSA)  Luncheon    

Unplanned accomplishments: [done]  Worked with Cathy Mak and Peseti Latu to improve billing to the PTA units to improve timeliness. Also included PTAC and PiE in the new process.

4. Advocate for all children by using PTA local, state and national advocacy networks

a. Continue to strengthen and broaden our communication network to keep our community informed and to keep PAUSD informed of parent views and concerns; b. Evaluate local, state and national legislative issues and determine which ones should be pursued and brought to the attention of our Council; c. Stay current on state and national education policy and law and participate where appropriate. d. Increase the role of advocacy within the Council and units.

AG 4-1. Support the parcel tax campaign with funds and volunteers for outreach and education. [Thayer] • Done, contributed a co-chair,

financial donation, communications channel and volunteers.

AG 4-2. Understand PAUSD's budget priorities, inform PTA members and encourage them to make PAUSD and the BoE aware of their opinions and priorities. [Janov] • Done - both reporting out and giving

input in with budget survey and Town Hall meeting. Won an award from the State PTA for our communication about the budget.

ADDENDUM B : UNIT PROGRAMS

Addendum B lists programs available at the units, which include social-emotional learning, fitness programs supported at each school, enrichment programs at the elementary schools, and community-building events held at each school. K-12 school programs related to social-emotional learning Addison Life Skills Barron Park Second Steps (K-2) and Steps to Respect (3 – 5) Juana Briones Second Steps and Steps to Respect Duveneck Peaceful Playgrounds El Carmelo Tools of the Heart, monthly Character Assemblies, Peaceful Playgrounds Escondido Second Steps (K-2) Steps to Respect (3-5) Fairmeadow Second Steps and Steps to Respect Walter Hays Steps to Respect (not sure yet if all grades are involved), 6 Seconds,

Primary Social Skills) Hoover Steps to Respect (3 – 5), Peaceful Playgrounds,

Conflict Resolution (Walk, Talk and Rock) Nixon Some of the lessons from Second Steps (K – 2) Talk It Out (3 – 5) Ohlone 6 Seconds, Social Inclusion assembly Palo Verde Life Skills/Character Traits Jordan: Had a program but teachers did not like it – has a new committee of

parents and staff called Social Climate. Main focus is to look at these issues.

JLS: Character Education (movie shown 1/month) might address some of the material but not clear from web site)

Terman: Terman has an active program promoting social kindness and positive behavior among all students. Each grade level has a series of lessons with follow through activities starting at the beginning of the year. Staff actively discourages mean or bully type behavior. Our student group, Tigers Achieving Social Kindness – TASK – works with 6th graders to promote a safe school environment.

Palo Alto High School: Living Skills class: provides students with knowledge and preventive skills that will enable them to: 1) make informed, responsible decisions about issues that affect personal health and well-being, 2) establish and sustain healthy, rewarding, interpersonal relationships, 3) manage life crises, and 4) cultivate the understanding, appreciation, and practice of democratic values and behavior appropriate for a responsible community member.

Gunn High School: Living Skills class: Major topics include individuality, influences on teens, smart decision-making, communication, conflict resolution, personal organization, physical and emotional health, substance abuse, sexuality and life lessons. Sponsored parent education events on Teen Academic Stress.

Explanation of Programs:

• 6 Seconds – teaches about emotional intelligence • Character Education – covers many important character traits such as respect,

honesty, and integrity, but not in the framework of bullying. Does not give kids skills to use with bullying. Does not consistently reinforce the information over the course of a year.

• Life Skills – teaches kids about drugs, alcohol, and smoking prevention • Peaceful Playgrounds – covers conflict, not bullying. Provides for a structured play

yard and getting kids involved in play • Talk It Out – conflict resolution • Second Steps – teaches K – 2nd grade concepts social/emotional skills related to

empathy, respect, how to make friends, and showing kindness • Steps to Respect – teaches kids to recognize bullying and harassment. Provides

tools that enable kids to recognize, understand, and deal with bullying in a supportive environment, within the context of daily school life.

Elementary school programs related to fitness Many of the elementary schools have fitness programs that take place during recess. Below is a summary of fitness programs offered: Addison Noon Walking and Noon Yoga Duveneck Noon Dance, Noon Sports Escondido 10-Mile Club, Noon Sports Fairmeadow Walking Club, Noon Sports Hoover Run, Walk, and Jog Club, Noon Sports Palo Verde Walking Club, Noon Sports Elementary school enrichment programs Each elementary school has a variety of enrichment programs that enhance the curriculum, such as overnight field trips for the 4th and 5th grades and school-wide assemblies. Below is a summary of the highlights of each school: Addison Balclutha and Coloma overnight trips, Day trips to California Missions,

Marine Science Institute, Hiller Aviation Museum, Noon Chorus, Baylands Clean up (Earth Day), Art Center Collaborative Projects, Composting, Green Team efforts, Student Council Activities, Science Fair, Literacy Circles

Barron Park Noon Art Juana Briones Monterey day trip, Fort Ross day trip, Balcutha overnight trip, Young

Authors Day, Assembles: Street Beat, Wildlife Associates, Theater of All Possibilities

Duveneck Noon Activities: Drama, Art, Gardening, Game Cart Science Fair, Junior Great Books, Astronomy Nights, Math Nights

El Carmelo Ship Trip Escondido Zero Waste Pilot Program, Audio Systems Program, Ship Trip, Theater

Works, Poetry in Motion Trip, Student Leadership Council, Math Tutor. Math Lab, Visiting Author, Noon Art, Game Cart, Reading Specialist, School Library Reading Club, School Library Newspaper, Reading garden

Fairmeadow Math Lab, Science Lab, Balclutha Overnight Boat Trip—5th Grade, Colonial Day—5th Grade, Gold Rush Day—4th Grade, Sacramento Trip—4th Grade, Discovery Day, Noon Art, Checkers Club, Chess Club, Wildlife and Water Resources Assemblies, Childrens Musical Theatre Student Plays, Science Fair

Walter Hays Ocean Week, Co-Op with 4th grade “Monsters, Mondrian and Me” Hoover Noon Games, Student Council, Book Exchange, Opera in the Schools

performances, Balclutha day trip for 5th grade, Walk Through the American Revolution Reenactment for 5th grade, Sacramento day trip for 4th grade, Palo Alto History trip for 3rd grade, Invention Convention, Visiting Poet, Noon Chorus

Nixon Hiller Aviation, Tech Museum, Soil Shoppe Associates, Roaring Camp, Lawrence Hall of Science, Noon Art, Noon Science

Ohlone Noon Farm, Art, and Board Games, Native American Storyteller for 2nd and 3rd grades, Opera performances, after-school foreign language program, Book Swap, Children’s Theatre production

Palo Verde Writing Club, Reading Club K-12 school programs related to building community This year, many of the unit PTAs focused on community building activities. These activities enhance the asset building opportunities for adults and children in our community. Below is a summary of some of the community-building activities sponsored at the schools: Barron Park Newcomer Treasure Hunt, Heritage Potluck, Spring Family Fun Day, Pizza

and Ice Cream Social, Ice Skating Party Duveneck All Harvest Carnival, Ice Skating Party, Earth Week Family Picnic, Spring

Social and Talent Show, book and bake sales for charity donations Hoover Pizza and Ice Cream Social, Ice Skating Party, Family Games Night,

International Festival Potluck, incoming kinder family playdates Ohlone Ice Skating Party, Bingo Night, International Night, Spring Fling and Talent

Show, incoming kinder parent coffees Terman International Fair, Breaking of the Bread, Juana Run (co-sponsored with

Gunn Sports Boosters), Spring Fling Gunn High School Juana Run (co-sponsored with Terman PTA)