ATTENDEES

Dawn G, Rosanne S, Sally T, Christopher B, Missy D, Melissa B, Danielle S, Judy M, Melanie H, Hailie D, Sarah N, Jen S, Amanda B, Dayna M

Alison Reyes, Rob Cilino, Leah Costa

WELCOME

Meeting called to order at 7:03.

ADMIN

Mrs. Reyes provided updates for Wheeler. Notable updates include the winter sports pep rally, National Honor Society induction night, career day, and the middle school pride event.  Parent teacher conferences are April 5th and 6th.  Mrs. Reyes noted that Mrs. St. Germain has been nominated as a finalist for Principal of the Year, with an on-site visit at Wheeler the last week of March.  Congratulations to Mrs. St. Germain!

Mr. Cillino provided elementary school updates, including the Big Lux performance, bus driver appreciation day, and the visit by Dune the therapy dog.  He also noted that staff development day provided an excellent opportunity for review of the mission and vision as well as the ELA curriculum.  Re-writing the curriculum will be a multi-year process, with science and math addressed next year.  Upcoming events include report cards coming home next week, Drama club performance on Friday and Saturday, Kindergarten info night March 30th, and Kindergarten registration April 19th.  Conferences will be held April 5th and 6th, and April 28th will be the Day of Awesomeness.  Mr. Cilino noted upcoming budget meetings and resources available to inform residents about the budget.

Mrs. Costa reported that Carol Glynn has been working with the 3rd graders to prepare for their upcoming plan on April 4th.  The 3rd grade is also working on their biography projects and will be hosting a living wax museum for the entire school.  The STEAM committee is organizing a STEAM career day for June.

Treasurer’s Report

The starting balance after the January meeting $51,574.39.  After income and expenses, our projected ending balance was $43,976.40.  

Fundraising totals for 2022-2023 thus far: $21,870.88.  

A motion was made by Melanie, seconded by Melissa, and approved to accept the report.

January Minutes

A motion was made by Hailie, seconded by Melissa, and approved to accept the amended January meeting minutes.

Request and Review

Olivia Black has submitted a request to cover the $300 registration fee for the Great East Festival.  The request benefits 60 high school students in band and chorus.  The festival allows them an opportunity to perform and receive criticism from regional adjudicators, and spend the afternoon at Six Flags.  Melanie made a motion to approve the request, which was seconded by Melissa.  The motion was passed.

OLD BUSINESS  

Cultural Assembly: Big Lux- This event was very well-received.  We would like to bring him back to work with students in the music department.  Special thanks to Missy for organizing the event.

Coin Challenge: Update- Judy Main provided a report.  The challenge was a lot of fun for all, with 2nd Grade edging out 4th Grade to win.  The challenge raised $1,761.69 for the PTO.  Judy thanked the school staff, especially lunch staff, for allowing us to run the event.

The Family Fun Dance on St. Patrick’s Day had an amazing turnout.  We collected 244 non-perishable items for the food pantry.  Community feedback was very good.

The Next family Fun Night will be Friday May 12th, with the theme TBD.

Jen provided a Basket Raffle Update.  Sarah Nelson is leading the effort with the support of Jen Strunk and Toula Balestracci.  Jen noted that Breeze provided a very helpful list of resources.  Each grade will create one basket, with community members and businesses invited to donate baskets as well.  Fundraising groups are invited to sell concessions at the event.  The Basket Raffle will be held in the evening on May 6th.  Stay tuned for volunteer information.

NEW BUSINESS 

Board openings for 2023-2024 school year- The four board officers are completing their two year terms.  All officers of the board are planning to step down from their current positions.  Other board members have expressed interest in the Secretary and Treasurer positions, but we are seeking nominations for all positions at the April meeting. There will also be vacancies in the hospitality and auditing chairs.  

The Day of Awesomeness will be on April 28th.  A call for volunteers will be announced soon.  There will be an incentive for volunteers who are available the entire day.  A minimum of 12 volunteers will be needed.

Miss Anderson’s art show will be held Thursday May 11th.  Volunteers will be needed for set up on the 11th and clean up/packing on the 12th.  

COMMENTS & QUESTIONS

The Town budget process is ongoing.  Please consider making a public comment and participating in meetings and voting.  There are many needs in our schools that the PTO is not able to support, so please keep the importance of the budget process in mind.

A motion to adjourn was made by Rosanne and seconded by Melissa.  The meeting was adjourned at 8:04 pm.