Sage Community Network
Meeting Minutes
September 5, 2013
Present: Too many individuals were present to include names. All the officers and most of the volunteer coordinators plus nearly 100 participants were in attendance.
Next meeting:
Tuesday, September 24, 2013 @ the Middle / High School
Announcements
Soren informed the group that he was testing the feasibility of recording the business portion of the meeting.
Discussion
Parent Return on Investment (ROI) topic selection for October
Volunteer debate judges
Teacher appreciation
Website update
Volunteer meeting
Mind the Gap kickoff
Activities webpage
Middle / High School community building update
Miscellaneous
Soren reminded people to complete the sign-in sheet. 1) We want to know who is here tonight, and 2) there will be a random drawing for a gift certificate at the end of the meeting.
Questions
The meeting was opened to general comments or questions.
Other
A representative from the Tour Boise scavenger hunt presented the date and time of the event. She had flyers for interested persons and teacher packets for those teachers who might be interested in extra credit or supplemental activities.
The Skyward presentation followed the close of the SCN business meeting. See the attached handout materials.
Meeting Minutes
September 5, 2013
Present: Too many individuals were present to include names. All the officers and most of the volunteer coordinators plus nearly 100 participants were in attendance.
Next meeting:
Tuesday, September 24, 2013 @ the Middle / High School
Announcements
Soren informed the group that he was testing the feasibility of recording the business portion of the meeting.
Discussion
Parent Return on Investment (ROI) topic selection for October
- Jenny encouraged people to approach her with ideas for ROI topics. She has made it her goal to set the entire ROI agenda by October and any ideas would be welcomed.
- The October ROI presentation will feature Jennifer Poole, Idaho Certified Professional Mediator. Ms. Poole developed a peer-to-peer mediation program for the Boise School District and it’s possible she may be able to help Sage develop a similar program.
Volunteer debate judges
- The Middle / High School is looking for volunteers to judge debate tournaments on Fridays and possibility Saturdays. Soren will have more information in the near future but please contact him if interested.
Teacher appreciation
- Two individuals have volunteered to be the teacher appreciation coordinators: Kerry Marshall at the Elementary School and Heather Bennett for the Middle / High School.
- At this time, four other individuals have volunteered to help with the first teacher appreciation luncheon.
Website update
- A working group has been formed to update the website following concerns about readability. The working group hopes to have the site updated by October.
Volunteer meeting
- A reminder about the meeting will be sent on September 16. A question was asked about the date and Soren confirmed that the meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, September 24.
- In the absence of a volunteer coordinator, Petra and Soren will plan the meeting.
- 80 individuals volunteered after receiving the last SCN email.
Mind the Gap kickoff
- Soren has been discussing the kickoff with the school and the school would like to separate the event from all Mind the Gap efforts. As such, the school has suggested that the event be focused on community building and be considered a social opportunity.
- The event is now tentatively scheduled for Friday, November 15 at the Mardi Gras. Moving the location of the event will increase the cost and the school has offered to help offset the increased cost.
- The possibility of childcare is being looked into. Middle / High School students might provide that service.
- In the past, costumes have been part of the event but there has been some thought as to whether more people would attend if costumes were not involved. There was a brief discussion in support of no costumes.
Activities webpage
- Jacque Bettencourt (Elementary School Director) asked SCN to host a webpage with information about extracurricular activities available to students. Right now chess, soccer, Boy Scouts, and Girl Scouts are activities available and posted on the website. However, there could be more activities.
Middle / High School community building update
- Justin explained that he and Lynn met with the board about things like school colors, a mascot, formal clubs, and other activities like football that students could gather around. Justin pointed out that teachers and administrators have been very busy developing the school and have not had the opportunity to focus on these types of opportunities or interests. The board requested that Justin and Lynn work directly with the school administrators and now they are working with Keith Donahue (Facilities and Operations) and Melissa Hegg (Secondary School Director). A survey was just given to the 10th graders while at the Sawtooth Lodge this past week and they are waiting for the results. Although there is not an official committee, please contact Justin or SCN if interested in helping develop a high school experience at Sage.
- Lynn added that they would like to take directions from the students. Freshmen will also be taking the survey at the Sawtooth Lodge. To prom or not to prom? That is the question. Some ideas will be implemented this year and others implemented next year. They are putting together a budget. Lynn reiterated that they are looking for volunteers. If you filled out the volunteer form but are not receiving information from either Justin or Lynn, please contact Petra.
Miscellaneous
Soren reminded people to complete the sign-in sheet. 1) We want to know who is here tonight, and 2) there will be a random drawing for a gift certificate at the end of the meeting.
- Soren announced that SCN is still looking for a volunteer coordinator and an event coordinator for monthly gatherings.
Questions
The meeting was opened to general comments or questions.
- Someone asked whether Don Keller (School Administrator) would be attending. Yes, he is scheduled to be at the Skyward presentation.
- Someone asked about the activities page on the website and whether those activities were currently available to students or just ideas for activities. Petra clarified that some of the activities, like chess, are currently available through the school. Other activities, like Scouts, will have information coming soon. Still other activities are not related to the school. Petra added that Jacque Bettencourt asked if SCN could post student activities on the website rather than promoting activities with too many posters or advertisements at the Elementary School. Petra is unsure whether to include community activities or limit the activities to school specific activities. The parent who asked the question followed up with a question about the opportunity to form a committee or vote about which activities to include. Petra agreed that would be a good idea but no formal action was taken.
- Someone asked about the Mind the Gap campaign and commented that the message is not always clear. Don Keller was not available to answer the question. Soren answered that he thought the school administrators were looking into possibly rebranding the campaign or trying some new ideas. In response to a follow-up comment that the school could find other ways to convey the need for funding, Reham Aarti added that she thought the school originally liked the play on words and that any suggestions or ideas about changing the campaign should be presented before the board.
Other
A representative from the Tour Boise scavenger hunt presented the date and time of the event. She had flyers for interested persons and teacher packets for those teachers who might be interested in extra credit or supplemental activities.
The Skyward presentation followed the close of the SCN business meeting. See the attached handout materials.