CHANGO NEWS

NEWS TO USE FROM THE CHANGO PTA

Our thanks go out to those who helped make our Spring fundraiser a real success!! We made over $4500!! Also, last month our Beach Party was a huge success with many enjoying the limbo, great music, food and fun!

At our March meeting we discussed some important upcoming events: TV Turn-off week, which is April 23^rd through the 27^th, culminating in our Talent Show at Gowana on the 27^th--both great events to look forward to!! We also plan to poll the children, as well as parents separately, about what their favorite activities and events have been, as well as what they’d like to see in the future.

With only one meeting left in the year, we are looking to fill the ballot with those interested in board positions for next year. A form was recently sent home. If you or anyone you know is interested in serving on the board, please don’t be shy! The Shenendehowa PTA council has outlined what the PTA needs to accomplish each month during the year. Also, on Tuesday, May 29^th there will be regional PTA training for all who will be serving on the board this Fall. If you’re considering an executive board position, this year should be a very easy transition! Also, we have divided up the responsibilities of the Arts in Education VP position to help those involved with this important job! By being on this committee, you could help decide what extra cultural programs your child will be able to participate in.

We also have many events in need of chair people this year due to some of our most involved volunteers being redistricted or moving up to the middle school. Look for a list of these openings to come home soon! There are so many PTA volunteer opportunities big and small, so join us to see how your skills and talents can be put to use!

Remember our next PTA meeting is Tuesday, May 15th at 7pm in the cafeteria.  Hope to see you there!

Sincerely,

Kristin Renauld and Lisa Hodge

Chango PTA Co-Presidents

If you happened to drive by the Chango parking lot on March 15^th you would have thought there was a party going on. Well, there was – a Book Fair party. There were parents, students, alumni, grandparents all enjoying the Book Fair. They started arriving at 6:15 and at 8:15 we had to tell people that we had to close. A very special thank you to all who supported our Book Fair, not only those that came on Family Night, but all who came to the fair all during the week. Thanks to all the volunteers – some volunteers came twice because they saw how much they were needed.

As always, the PTA support is overwhelming and we want you to know how much it is appreciated.

HAPPY SPRING.

Gowana PTA is currently looking for a PTA President for the 2007-2008 school year.  If you have a fifth grader who will be going to Gowana next year and are interested in learning more about this opportunity, please contact Patricia Clark (current Gowana PTA president) at 899-2094 or clarkdplj@verizon.net by May 16th.

Shenendehowa Advocates for Gifted Education (SAGE) will be having a meeting on Wednesday, April 18 at 7pm in the Gowana library. Please join us to brainstorm ways in which we as parents can have input into the changes being made to the gifted program. As you may or may not know, the district is currently in the process of evaluating and reworking the entire program for next year. Now is the time to organize and make our voices heard. We will be discussing specific ways in which we can affect the course of gifted education at Shenendehowa, such as contacting your legislator about bill A01502. For more info on this, please visit the NYS Assembly website at www.assembly.state.ny.us/ Please join us in shaping the future of gifted education at Shenendehowa.

Just a head’s up to let everyone know that we were not able to provide an After School Activities program this year due to lack of volunteers. It sounds like a really fun idea for the kids, so if anyone would be interested in working on this for next year, please contact Jane Neidhart.

 GET READY TO "TUNE OUT TV AND TUNE IN TO FUN!"

Chango is having our first annual "TV Turnoff Week", which runs from April 22nd through 28th, in conjunction with National TV Turnoff Week.  Our committee of Chango parents has been busy thinking of great ways to spend our time away from the tube and other screen devices.  That's right, we are encouraging your family to spend a week without zoning out in front of the television, handheld screen games, computer (except for necessary homework), cell phone games, Playstation, XBox, etc.  We are really excited about the great ideas we have for you!  There are themed ideas for each day of the week which you can follow, or you can choose to do something else as a family, so long as it doesn't involve the technologies listed.  (And don't try to find loopholes, because you will only be cheating yourselves!)  We will also provide a log for each child to write what they did each day instead of "screen time".  All participants will receive certificates, and those who go "screen free" the whole week will be eligible for prize drawings.  Our committee members are on the move, gathering prizes from sponsors.  If you are part of an organization that has prizes to donate, please contact Rochelle Runyon at 899-9160.  We realize that the Chango Talent Show is on Friday, April 27th, and we fully endorse it as a screen free family activity.  Participants may be practicing in the days before the show, and that counts, too!  Come to the March PTA meeting for more information.

CHANGO PTA TALENT SHOW 

I’m sorry to say, everyone’s favorite news letter editor is being moved to Orenda! We are looking for someone to take over. It just takes a couple of hours a month to help out at Chango!

Please contact Jean Lorica at 877-0865 if you are interested.

We ask that parents dropping off children in the morning that use to Drop-Off area on the busport, to please not park their vehicles here. This causes both a traffic problem, and more importantly, causes a safety issue for children getting out of cars . This area is for dropping off children only. If you wish to walk your child in, please park in a parking spot to do this. Thank you.

The character word for March was Reliability.

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