OWNCS2 PTO General Meeting Minutes - May
Date, Time, and Location: Thursday, May 12, 2022 at 6:30PM Via Zoom
Meeting called to order by: President- Kathy Vergara at 6:38PM
Note Taker(s): Secretary- Esther Wallace
Timekeeper: President- Kathy Vergara
Attendees: President- Kathy Vergara, Vice President-, Vice President- Yaritza Cano,
Treasurer- Shaenne Toussaint-Islam, Secretary- Esther Wallace, Communications Officer-
Clorinda Rivera; Teacher Representatives: Ms. Valencia and Ms. Hynes. There were 23
attendees; a quorum was reached.
ORDERS OF BUSINESS
I. School Updates
a. New PTO Member
Clorinda Rivera – will be filling the role as Communications Officer for the
PTO
b. Math Workshop
Ms. Lucky will provide parents with the knowledge and tools to assist their
children with their math education at home and during the summer months.
This includes common core, base 10 model and the use of hands-on
manipulatives. Specific concepts that students will need to be proficient in by
the end of their grade.
The math workshop for the lower grades (K-2) was held on 5/11 and 5/12
Math workshops for upper grades (3-5) will be held on 5/31 and 6/1. Sessions
are held in person inside of the school so parents will need to show proof of
vaccination and wear masks in order to participate
Workshop spots are limited to 12 parents per session and each session runs
about 30 minutes
Reservations can be made on the PTO’s website
Parents have inquired about having a virtual workshop with the math coach
for those parents who cannot make it in person. PTO will speak with Ms.
Lucky about possibly preparing a zoom workshop where she can present a
powerpoint presentation.
c. Mother’s Day
Students completed flower pots this week and took them home
PTO provided compostable flower pots, which were decorated with the art
teacher, and wild flower seeds, which were planted with the assistance of our
science teacher. A poem also accompanied the flower pots home
d. Teacher’s Week Recap
Teacher’s received week long surprises as a joint collaboration between
OWN2 administration and the PTO
Thank you to all parents who made it possible to provide our OWN2 staff with
a week’s worth of activities
Pictures and videos of the week’s events are posted on Instagram and Class
Dojo
The Relaxation Room that was set up for teacher’s week will remain open for
the school staff to use until further notice
Parents donated an amazing total of $980, all of which went towards the
teacher’s week activities. Thank you for all your support and donations
e. Read-a-thon
The winning classes of March’s read-a-thon received a pizza party
Gift cards will be given to the top readers and teacher of the winning class
f. International Day – June 8 th (during school hours)
OWN2 will be having an International Day event headed by Mr. Thompson
Booths will be set up to represent different countries around the world and
students will be able to visit the different booths throughout the day. Activities
for the students will be provided as well as a passport that will be stamped.
The event will conclude with a parade of the countries.
The list of countries that will currently be represented are: Jamaica, Czech
Republic, Canada, Pakistan & India, Trinidad & Tobago, Italy, Colombia,
Russia, USA, Guyana, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Japan, Argentina,
Venezuela and Nigeria
Parents who would like to volunteer an additional country booth (that is not
currently represented by the school) and can supply the booth with artifacts,
information and/or snacks related to that country, please email the PTO or
speak with Mr. Thompson
For the international day event, parents can choose to dress their child up in
the native garb of the country of which their family identifies
Parents who are unable to volunteer can also feel free to donate snacks or
artifacts to any of the represented countries that can be displayed at the
respective booth
Thank you to all the parents who signed up to volunteer. We have reached
our max for the number of volunteers for the event. Parents will be spilt into
two shifts (8a-12, 12-3p). If you already received a confirmation email from
the PTO regarding volunteer status please email the PTO informing of which
shift you can attend
g. International Day Cookbook – Deadline 5/16/22
PTO will be collecting recipes from our OWN2 families of their favorite dishes
that represent their family’s background. These recipes will be made into an
OWN2 Cookbook
Please include pictures of the completed dish and/or pictures of their
child/family cooking and a small passage about what the dish means to your
child/family. There is no limit on the number of recipes you can submit
Once completed, the cookbook will be a great keepsake for your child to have
memories of their family’s recipes as well as those of his friends and
classmates
The completed cookbook will be sold during the International Day event as
well as online through Amazon. The link will be provided to all parents who
would like to purchase one themselves or those who would like to share with
friends and family.
50% of proceeds from the cookbook will go towards the Kindergarten and 5 th
grade graduation funds
h. Graduation
The school will have a 5 th grade class BBQ on 6/20/22 at 12 pm
Kindergarten- school will have a diploma ceremony on 6/20 outside of the
school entrance where parents can witness their child receiving their diploma.
Each class will receive a specific time slot to avoid congestion. Decorations
outside of the school entrance will be donated by PTO so parents can take
pictures. Stepping up ceremony will be held virtually on 6/21/22 and
children/parents are invited to Chuck E Cheese after. Specific details are still
being ironed out with the school staff and parents will be informed shortly
i. NYC Kids RISE
This is an account through NYC that sets aside money for your child’s college
and career training, regardless of U.S. immigration status
NYC will give $100 to start and parents can continue to add money to the
account
This college fund program is currently only available for Kindergarten aged
students and an email was sent out by the school to the parents of those
eligible
An email was sent out by the school with further information and a short
tutorial
If you need your child’s OSIS# please contact Ms. Valencia
j. OWN2 Author visit
Our very own teacher Ms. Henry has written an children’s book and will have
reading sessions with the students on 5/13/22
The book is available for purchase for $14.95 or as an E-Book for $9.99
Parents who wish to buy a book can send their child to school with exact
change
k. Summer School
Rising Stars will have a summer program at the school 5 days/week from 9a-
4p
An email was sent to parents with a form to sign up
Children will be picked on first come, first serve basis. Selected students will
receive an email from Rising Stars soon
l. Carnival Update
Tentative date set for June 18th
PTO re-submitted the park permit for the use of the field across the street
from the school with the needed corrections
All arrangements for the carnival are in place
Invitations will be sent out to parents once the date is confirmed
m. Field Day
Field day will be held in the field across from the school on May 25 th
The school will finish finalizing details this week
There will most likely be a need for a few parent volunteers for field day. You
can contact the school or Mr. Callegati for details
n. Summer Reading
In order to encourage your child to maintain good reading habits throughout
the summer you can look into programs like www.bookitprogram.com which
rewards children for reading with pizza prizes
This website is a private company and not affiliated or connected with the
school
II. Reminders
a. Join Mr. Wilkins every Friday for Virtual Coffee and Conversation! Time slots are
available between 8am and 9am. Please call the main office to schedule or you can
find the link on the PTO’s website
b. Traffic and Congestion – Please remember to be courteous when picking up and
dropping off your child. Do not double and triple park in front of the school building as
this creates an unsafe environment for our students and families
c. Google Forms – Several google forms have been emailed out to parents. Please
complete and submit in a timely manner so we can ensure school events can run
smoothly. If you have not received these forms or need them sent again, please
email the PTO
d. School Calendar – Remember to continue checking the school website regularly for
any changes to the school calendar related to Half Days or Holidays
CLOSING
Next meeting is Thursday, June 9th at 6:30PM
Meeting adjourned at 7:47PM
Minutes approved by President, Kathy Vergara
PTO Email: pto_own2@owncs.org
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