Minutes from December 12th 2007 Council Meeting

Meeting start: 6:00 PM
Meeting close: 7:30 PM
Attendees: Steve Cole, Jennifer Huntley, Lisa Hooper, Julie Croteau, Ozzie Ahmed,
Richard Marcil, Roger Boettcher, Allison Wardrop, Elizabeth Ney (recording minutes)
Next meeting: January 16th @ 6:00 PM (Clemens Mill Art Room)

Financial Update
Current spending is on track for the 2007-2008 school year. Payment (by cheque) coming into the school for fundraisers are being deposited on a timely basis.
Main Account:
• The current balance is $47,333.71.
Playground Account:
• Closed.

Treasures Book Update
A total of 36 Treasurers books are outstanding at this time. A reminder to families will be noted in the next Dolphin Talk. A total of $3,240.00 was raised making this a very successful first-year program. Next year it is hoped that a Treasurers book campaign will begin early in September and be promoted to families as a value added fundraiser with the emphasis being buy the book now and get 16 months of use. Sincere thanks to Steve Cole for leading this first time initiative and to the secretarial staff for the support provided to make the fundraiser happen.

2008 Seminar Planning
Possible topics suggested include the following
• Internet smarts ( seminar to coincide with the launch of the school website, clemensmill.ca)
• Child safety ( to include self esteem, and parenting resources)
• Community Constable (police department to do an internet related seminar, using a live link for demo purposes, one during the day that would be kid appropriate and one in the evening that would be for parents only)
• Time management for Parents (guest speaker invited to provide useful tips)
• Public Health Representative (to take about nutrition and exercise, etc)
It was agreed that the first seminar planned should be about internet use/safety and be scheduled preliminarily for February (which Richard Marcil will spearhead) with the second seminar sometime in April 2008. Jennifer Huntley mentioned she knew a parent who is a constable and would ask for possible resources. Alison Wardrop will contact the Community Constable to ask for possible dates in February. This is also an opportunity for CMPS to showcase clemensmill.ca and the work of the internet/web group.

BBQ
In previous years Clemens Mill has held successful year-end BBQ promoting fun and friendship in the community. This year school council would like to plan one for early June, however the rate limiting step seems to be the number of parent volunteers available to take on the task. It was suggested that families would preorder food. The BBQ committee would look to service groups to provide the meat (sausages, hotdogs, soydogs) at discounted prices. Buns and condiments could easily be purchased locally. A music group or band would be sought out for entertainment. Lisa Hooper and Steve Cole agreed to start a committee requesting volunteers. Roger Boettcher will discuss with teachers and provide a suitable date.

School Update
Roger Boettcher and Allison Wardrop provided council with an update of the school happenings which included:
• Christmas/ Holiday concert to coincide with a food drive
• PJ Spirit Day scheduled for Friday Dec. 21st
• Voice Mail Pilot (each teacher to have a voice mail box to facilitate parent/teacher communication)
• First term interviews went well
• Aerobithon scheduled for another year, being lead by Mme Papilia who is currently on maternity leave.
• Treasurers book top sellers to receive their gifts this week
• Grade 7/8 Quebec trip to Montreal scheduled for June (an information night to be held in January)

School Boundary Study

In the new year, Clemens Mill Public School will be looking for two (2) parent representatives to join Mr. Boettcher on a Boundary Study taking place within our School Board. This study will examine the current Mattamy subdivision that is being transported to Silverheights P.S. A new subdivision being constructed close to Silverheights will have an impact on the population of schools. Principals for many Cambridge schools, as well as community representatives, will form the working group. This group will examine possible boundary changes and forward recommendations to the Board. Individuals involved in the working group will need to meet at least once each month leading up to public meetings. As those public meetings draw closer the frequency of working group meetings will increase. It is anticipated that meetings will take place early in the evening. The first working group meeting has been scheduled for Thursday January 31, 2008. This meeting will begin at 4:30 p.m. More details will be distributed once the membership of the working group has been established.

If you are interested in participated in this important process, please contact Mr. Boettcher at the school.

December Dolphin Newsletter

2007-2008 investments and programs
Thanks to parents, teachers, school staff and the community at large for your support of 2007-2008 fundraising programs. Special thanks to Wilma Miyasaki, Steve Cole, Jennifer Huntley and Tracy Lebar for their leadership in fielding this year’s programs. Council approved the final 2007/2008 budget this month and, with fundraising activities completed, will now focus on the purchase of goods for the school and students as well as the delivery of programs. Also, let us know if there are issues and/or opportunities that Council should pursue. You can do so by attending a meeting, dropping by at the school office or, soon, through clemensmill.ca.

Dec 12th meeting – come and join us
The next CMPS Council meeting is scheduled for Wednesday December 12th at 6:00PM. A detailed agenda for the meeting will be available Monday December 10th at the school office. As always, all parents are welcome to join us, participate and make a difference.

Zehrs & Campbell's Save-a-label programs
Don’t forget to send in your Zehrs receipts and your Campbell’s product labels. Clemens Mill Public School will be able to exchange these for money and for educational merchandise – both of which are always needed! And with winter weather upon us, it should be relatively easy to collect labels from your favorite Campbell’s products.

We want to hear from you!

2008 seminars for parents, families and community
We are beginning to develop seminars for parents and families. These will likely involved guest speakers, and be given at the school between January and March 2008. What topics are of most interest to you? Internet safety? Child safety? Developing confidence & self esteem? Other?
Let us know

We need parent volunteers to help deliver new programs
We need more volunteers to help deliver some of our programs this year, for example our seminars, the year-end BBQ, etc. None of these activities will be especially time consuming, and all promise to be a lot of fun. Please sign up and we’ll get in touch with you!