As you might already know, we had a BIG meeting on January 27th with insightful and essential discussions. If you were there, you were part of an important decision for the school and community. If you were unable to attend, here’s a quick recap of what you missed.

• We reviewed our financial information and noted that the organization continues to be on track for budget expectations and for providing great programs for the school.
• We elected our Nominating Committee that is responsible for developing a slate of nominees for our 2011 – 2012 PTSA Board. This is a big responsibility and we appreciate the dedication and hard work of Monica Futty, Ingrid Olsen, Bona Park, Peggy Rodman, and Nichole Wengert. Thank you!
• We heard proposals for two options for spending of our accumulated funds which included a new Book Room and a Reader Board for our school. Both proposals held great merit and provide improved opportunities for our kids and community, and the upfront research and information provided was key to the membership making a well-informed decision for our funds spending.
• After listening to the proposals and having group discussion, we voted on the options. Our General Membership voted to spend the full $30K between the two proposals where up to $12K will be spent to purchase and install a reader board, and the remaining funds will be allocated to a new Leveled Book Room that will benefit all grades, K – 5. More to follow as we move forward with purchase of these long-lasting improvements to our school.
• We had timely and informative updates on our upcoming and popular Science Fair from Peter Wengert. The Science Fair will be on March 24th and the website is ready for everyone to register projects and to gain helpful information regarding the event. Be sure to check it out at www.cascaderidgeptsa.org.
• We also heard from Cathia Geller who provided us with information regarding our popular Festival of Cultures which is scheduled for April 15th. Take a break on tax day with some fun cultural events and experiences and be sure to look for information between now and then. We would love to have more cultures and countries represented, so be sure to contact Cathia (cathia@cathiageller.com) or Erin Rooney (roon888@msn.com) if you’d like to host a country.
• We closed our meeting with a great parent educational workshop of “In the Kitchen with Kids: Burn and Scald Prevention” sponsored by Safe Kids Seattle. This presentation was filled with important and helpful information that is important in keeping our family safe from burns and in treating them if they occur. Many thanks to Carolyn Blayney RN, BSN and Kathy Espey RN, BSN for an excellent program. Additional special kudos and thanks go to Alison Cathro for coordinating this great opportunity for our community.

It was a crazy busy, productive, and informative meeting, and we had an interested and engaged group. Many thanks to everyone who spent the time with us to be an important part of the process. If you’d like to join in the fun next time, mark your calendar now for the next GM meeting in April: Thursday, Apr. 21st at 8:30 am, right after student drop-off.