James Hubert Blake High School

James Hubert Blake High School Parent Teacher Student Association (PTSA) MINUTES Prepared by: PTSA Secretary, SEPTEMBER 16, 2014 7:00PM BLAKE MEDIA CENTER Betsy Sirk

TYPE OF MEETING General Membership Meeting Monica Abuliak, Samuel Amanuel, Christopher Berry, Maqueda Brown, Vincent Browne, Sharon Cannon, Linda Currie, Barbara Girolami, Paul Girolami, Lisa Hedgepeth, Sheila Holmes, Donna Howell, Crystal Lee, ATTENDEES Vicky Lin, Sheila Marshall, Jamila Mathis, Melvin Moore, Sharon Mosley- Ramsey, Willie Parker-Loan, Abby Sandler, Betsy Sirk, Amelia Watkins, Daniela Wiggins, Marcus Wiggins

Summary: The first General Membership meeting of the Blake PTSA for the 2014- 2015 school year was held on September 16, 2014. Paul Girolami, PTSA President, opened the meeting and welcomed the group. Introductions of all attendees including the PTSA Officers and Board members followed. A description of PTSA programs and reports by Committee Chairpersons and Peer-Parent Liaisons were provided. A proposal to amend the by-laws to reduce the number of required general meetings per year from 8 to 5 was passed. Also, the PTSA budget for the school year was reviewed and approved by the membership. The meeting concluded with remarks from Principal Christopher Berry. Details are provided below:

President’s Report: PTSA President Paul Girolami welcomed everyone to the meeting and reminded everyone to join the PTSA if they had not already done so. He encouraged people to become active by leading or participating on a PTSA committee or activity. He further stressed the importance of signing up for the Blake PTSA listserv as well as activating the parent edline account, as these are the best ways to get critical information.

Paul introduced a proposal to amend the current PTSA by-laws which require 8 general membership meetings a year to only require 5 meetings. The rationale was that grade level specific information is provided in peer-parent meetings throughout the year, and parent attendance at these meetings is important. Five General Membership meetings per year along with 3-4 grade level specific meetings was proposed to be sufficient to promote the work of the PTSA. The amendment was seconded and approved unanimously.

Paul made a general appeal to membership to help with PTSA fundraising. New ideas are welcome. A suggestion was made to investigate after school pizza sales on Tuesday and Thursday to benefit the PTSA. He also encouraged people interested in becoming involved or with questions about PTSA programs to contact him either by phone at 301-388-2227 or via email at [email protected] .

Committee Reports 1 After Prom: Chairperson Lisa Hedgepeth provided a description of After Prom. For the past several years, the event, which ran from midnight until 5am following the Prom, had been held at Dave and Busters. Since Dave and Busters closed, other venues are being sought by the After Prom committee. Parent volunteers are being sought to help on the committee. The first meeting will be held on Tuesday 9/30 at 7pm in the career center.

Book Sale: Chairperson Barbara Girolami presented. Volunteers to help set up and run the book sale are welcomed. Even 2 hours of service will help make the book fair successful. It is one of our largest fundraisers. Student Service Learning hours will be provided. Information about location and book sale dates will be provided as it becomes finalized.

NAACP: Sheila Holmes, NAACP Parent Representative along with co-representative Crystal Lee, reported their first meeting was held on September 16, right before the PTSA meeting. The representatives will be attending a September 20 th Parents Council meeting in Rockville. Metro is currently working on a study of potential improvements to the Z line corridor services At Blake High School, one bus runs by the school from 4-5 pm only. Blake students do not have public transportation to sports practices, extra- curricular activities, early release after final exams or AP tests, or to internships and work. If you would like to see service increased, please contact metro immediately at [email protected] to provide feedback. Parents are encouraged to bring their students to the November 18th meeting which will feature safety presentations.

Peer-Parent Liaisons: 12 grade: Melvin Moore reported that the first meeting was on Back To School Night, September 11th. The college application process was reviewed. Look to the Blake Website or Listserv announcements for the schedule for upcoming meetings. 11th grade: Abby Sandler and ______reported that a meeting for parents of juniors is scheduled for September 23rd from 6:30-8pm, in the Blake Amphitheater. 10th grade: Betsy Sirk, along with co-peer-parent Sheila Holmes announced that the first meeting will be held on October 9th from 7-8:30pm in the Blake Amphitheater. The topics for the meeting include meeting Blake’s new 10th grade administrator, Anita O’Neill, PARCC vs HAS testing, and upcoming events. 9th grade: A new peer-parent for 9th grade is being identified who will coordinate with 9th grade administrator Rudy Tyrell to plan the meetings.

PTSA Teacher Liaison: Marcus Wiggins introduced himself as the new PTSA Teacher Liaison. He is also a math teacher and the Varsity Basketball Coach at Blake.

Reflections: Chairperson Sharon Mosley-Ramsey is looking for volunteers to establish a Reflections program at Blake this year. Students will enter works in various art areas, including dance, film, and photography, which will be judged at the county, state, and national levels. Principal Christopher Berry will identify the teacher point of contact for the committee.

PTSA Budget Review: The budget was prepared by PTSA Treasurer Jamila Mathis. President Paul Girolami reviewed the expected income and expenses line by line. The budget was approved after a vote by the general membership.

2 Principal’s Report: Principal Christopher Berry opened by encouraging all parents to get involved on a committee to promote the work of the PTSA. Announcements were as follows:  Current student enrollment is 1630, down 30 students from last year th  There are 12 new staff members this year, including Anita O’Neill (10 grade administrator) and Bill Parsons, the new building service manager, and a new cafeteria manager  Good attendance at Back to School Night  Wifi networks for students are operational at Blake  Five hundred chromebooks will be used in social studies classes  Air conditioning is a problem at Blake  The fall musical is Crazy for You th  Patty Lupone will be at Blake September 26 to talk about her award winning musical and acting career th  The 2015 graduation is set for June 10 at 10am at DAR Constitution Hall.

The meeting adjourned at 8:30pm.