Minutes of the October 9th, 2018 meeting of

The 19^th Ward Community Association Schools Committee

Attendees: John Boutet, John Laing, Jay Ross, Dan Ross, Sarah Yaworski, Moiet James, Brianna Dean

September minutes

Approved

Spelling Bee

Co-chairs Moiet James and Brianna Dean announced that the Spelling Bee will be held in Hoyt Auditorium on Saturday April 6^th.

Spelling words have been selected by grade level and will be ranked according to difficulty. DRAFT versions will be sent to the school coordinators for comments. John L will write a note to the coordinators stating that Moiet and Brianna are the co-chairs.

John L and Moiet will get together on the budget and present it at the November meeting

We discussed options for promoting the spelling bee including a presentation at convention on November 16^th

Local Busing Position Paper

We were happy with the position paper and spent time discussing where to send it. The following opportunities were discussed.

Local Busing Position Paper

We were happy with the position paper and spent time discussing where to send it. The following opportunities were discussed.

1. 19^th wca and Delegates council John B to share

2. Reporters who are covering school issues (including busing)

3. Local and state politicians

4. RCSD administration

5. School Board

6. Churches

7. Teachers Union

8. Bus companies

9. Staff person for NYS school boards

Each of these would require a separate cover letter and we had some discussion on the content of these and the order in which the letters should be sent

School 16

A note from a volunteer was shared expressing concern of the chaotic feel in the cafeteria at lunchtime. The discussion led to the concern that some at the spelling bee left when their children were finished and didn’t support the other children. There was a suggestion that there could be door prizes, which would be awarded at the end of the event (must be present to receive).

Old/New Business

John B raised the issue of lack of civics in the curriculum, which he is pursuing.

The next committee meeting will be Tuesday November 6^th at 7 pm in the 19^th Ward Community Association office.

Submitted by John Laing