Hamden Public School Brag Sheet

• Hamden High School is named #32 out of 139 CT public high schools ranked by Connecticut Magazine in October 2008.
• Hamden High had a “Cool Day” where over 650 students showed up at 5 AM, complete with live news coverage. Principal Highsmith got pies in the face.
• Church Street’s Principal, Joyce Kossman, awarded the Hamden Chamber of Commerce 2008 Educator of the year award.
• Grace Griffin, a Church Street school teacher was given the prestigious Milken Award and a $25,000 grant. Griffin and other teachers at Church Street have helped to boost student performance in math, writing and reading on state mastery tests.
• More info at Hamden Public School's site, http://www.hamden.org/

Please comment to share your school's accompolishments.

Education Budget 2009 - All Hands On Deck

The following were ideas we shared on how to increase awareness of all the great things you do for your schools, and ways to frame the argument for fully funding the upcoming education budget:

• Get kids involved in the process, as spokespeople for their school. What has their experience been like? What do they get out of it? Tim Nottoli has will lead a kid letter writing campaign in early spring.
• Always accentuate the positive and offer solutions, rather than just complaining.
• Make the correlation of property values and town prosperity to educational system.
• Build / talk about alliances between the Hamden business community and Hamden Public Schools.
• Get testimonials from parents, alumni and grandparents. Where are they or their children now and how did HPS help them get there? Ask council members, Mayor Henrici and his staff, BOE members, teachers, staff, business leaders, HHS alumni group and family members.

Please Post Testimonials in Comments Below ...

How to Make Lemonade - Hamden PTA Idea Bank

The faculty basketball game between Dunbar Hill and Shepherd Glen was an “off-the-hook” success.

Who’s pairing up next?

The following is the start of a list of fundraising/family fun ideas:

• Inter-district ball game


• Bottle collection/return


• Crazy hair / clothes / hat days


• Skate party
• Duckpin bowling
• Collect receipts – Big Y, Shaw’s
• Faculty and student waiters at Applebee’s, TGIF’s
• Hamden / School Pizza Night – get a bunch of area pizzerias to pledge 10% of bills from HPS families one or two nights this year
• Walk-a-thon / Dance-a-thon / Read-a-thon
• Talent show – parents, teachers, kids, pets
• Silent Auctions
• Movie Night
• Game Night
• Father / Daughter Dance
• Themed Festival or Fair
• Bingo
• Alumni event
• Local Pro Baseball, Basketball, Hockey Games (Sun, Bluefish, Wildcats, college)
• Coco Keys (at Waterbury Holiday Inn) – discounted rates while they are building clientele
• ESPN free tours

More ideas at:

• www.pta.org/pta_great_idea_bank.asp


• www.ptoideas.com/category/1/Fundraisers


• www.globalideasbank.org/site/home/

Remember to have a membership table at all events

When Life Gives You Lemons...

Make Lemonade

If you are being kept awake at night by the fact that your PTA fall fundraiser only brought in half what it did last year, you need to come to our next meeting, on Thursday, November 6.

This correction in the economy is an opportunity for us as an organization to lead by example about what’s truly important. To quote Suzy Orman, “People first, then money, then things.”

Even though we act in the best interest of children, that may not be what is perceived at the unit level. Parents who do not sit on committees, or are constantly involved, only see the fundraising flyers. Even if they are involed, myself included, when the message from the larger world says to conserve, they recycle the flyer instead of getting out their check book.

So now that we’ve experienced a couple months of the new economy, let’s put our heads together and share strategies for how we’re going to keep our commitments to the children of Hamden.

We will also discuss a communication strategy for PTAs to get our message to parents, politicians and taxpayers, in advance of budget season. If you thought last year was tough, just wait.

I’ll see you at the Middle School, Thursday, November 6 at 7 PM. Please bring your current budget and some low-cost-high-fun-factor ideas to share with everyone.

Election Day Opportunity

I hope everyone is working on their Election Day Bake Sale plans. The CT Secretary of State, Susan Bysiewicz, says that 2 million voters are now registered in CT (out of 3 million people) and that she expects turnout to exceed 90%.

Needless to say, this is a huge economic opportunity.

Please have healthy choices available - local apples and pears. Perhaps even harvest decor like pumpkins, gourds and Indian corn. http://www.buyctgrown.com/

If you have not yet reserved a space at a polling place, please send your request, in writing to the Registrar of Voters, Peggy Rae at PRae@Hamden.com and follow up by phone at 287-7081.

October 2 - CMT/CAPT Forum Recap

Thanks to Supt. Rabinowitz for enlightening us about the CMT/CAPT exams, numbers and process. Those that took the 6th grade math primer now have a much greater appreciation for our children's stamina and test scores.

We will make it through these lean times, but our success is only guaranteed if we work together.

Have a great Halloween and Election Day and I'll see you on November 6, 7 PM in the Middle School cafeteria.

CMT/CAPT Forum October 2

Have you ever wondered how to interpret your child’s CMT or CAPT scores?

Why are these test scores so important?

How are they used to shape my child’s education?

At the next Hamden PTA Council meeting, on Thursday, October 2, 2008 at 7 PM in the Hamden Middle School Cafeteria, Superintendent Fran Rabinowitz will answer these and any other questions you have about the Connecticut Mastery Test (CMT) and the Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT). We will no doubt touch on No Child Left Behind and the effect its mandates have on school choice and what options parents' have.

We are so grateful for Fran's willingness to help parents understand the public education process. Between the news stories about "failing schools" and parents' worry about "teaching to the test," this kind of honest dialog is an incredibly valuable resource.

We look forward to seeing you then!

Marjorie Clark

Hamden PTA Council Meeting

OUR FIRST MEETING... will be next Thursday, September 4th, 7 PM at the Middle School.
I need everyone to attend for two reasons:

1. This is the best opportunity for all of the units to exchange ideas and information, before we get too far into the school year. We have decades of experience between all of us and it would be wrong not to share. :)
   
2. Hamden Lights for Life will be presenting their fundraising campaign for Hamden's Father Michael J. McGivney Cancer Center. They have asked for all PTAs to help sell luminaries that will be placed all over Town Center Park on the eve of September 28th. The Hamden Cheerleaders are leading the charge and are available for presentations to your school. Come get more details....
   
3. We need to plan our year. I've got some ideas, but I'd like to hear your ideas as well.

A REMINDER...
If you haven't already done so, please submit your officer information sheet to CT PTA, even if your roster is the same as last year. Email them at connecticut.pta@snet.net or call 281-6617.

I look forward to seeing you there - the public is welcome, but only PTA members may vote.

PTA in Transformation

The new National PTA CEO, is Byran V. Garrett, not only a man, but an African American.

In addition, the new national president-elect is a Charles J. Saylors. For the first time, since it's inception, PTA will be run by a dad. Considering that a child is 40% more likely to earn A's if a male role model is involved in their education, I think it's a great thing.

To that end, I would encourage all units to specifically invite dads and the male adults in your school community (uncles, grandfathers, etc.) to contribute time to your schools. Have them read a story, run a car wash or chaperon a baseball game: stuff they’re comfortable doing that doesn't require a lot of meetings. :)

National PTA has launched a new initiative called PTA MORE — Men Organized to Raise Engagement to help units with this idea.

If you haven't already guessed, this is NOT your mother's PTA. It is no longer a gaggle of moms who sit around gossiping over tea in the afternoon. In fact, nationwide, PTAs are finding it increasingly difficult to get members together to talk about what's going on or about getting organized. Our time is divided by multiple jobs, school and/or aging parents; a two hour meeting in the middle of the week, ten times a year is more time than most parents can afford. Not only that, but it's a relatively poor use of their time. After all, Rome wasn't built by having meetings, right?

Our children's generation is the first to never have experienced life without iPods, cellphones, IM, email, Ethernet and social networking. Our adaptation of these tools for running our organization will not only give us the technological knowledge to keep up with our kids, but keep us relevant as an organization.

This is the moment when we evolve or become irrelevant.

Hamden Public Schools has created a space for all Hamden PTAs on their website, www.hamden.org. The hope is that units and HPS will use this platform as a way to keep the vital link between children, family, teachers, administrators, school board and town strong. Please subscribe to their newsletter to be notified of happenings and emergencies via email.