STEM K-8 PTA

Giving Tree 2020

Permanent link to this article: https://stemk8pta.org/2020/11/23/giving-tree-2020/

Follett Book Fair Nov 10-30th

Our First STEM e-BOOK Fair! https://efairs.follettbookfairs.com/guest/home?classCode=RK9LW

Thank you to STEM PTA for hosting our first ever STEM e-Book Fair November 10^th – 30^th!

Over the last few years, we were seeking a book fair vendor that offered a more diverse variety of books to better represent our students and families. We had planned to offer an in-building Follett Book Fair last spring, but then COVID happened. Special thanks to Angela Wallis for stepping in as our e-Book Fair chairperson.

This is an opportunity to get books to our students to READ! READ! READ! READ! READ!

Direct Link to STEM’s e-Book Fair https://efairs.follettbookfairs.com/guest/home?classCode=RK9LW

How to Shop the e-Book Fair Video: https://players.brightcove.net/1464976798001/default_default/index.html?videoId=6183300179001

Love those book fair flyers from your childhood, check this out!: STEM Book Fair K-8_Flyer.

Permanent link to this article: https://stemk8pta.org/2020/11/10/follett-book-fair-nov-10-30th/

Global Reading Challenge

Global Reading Challenge Titles will be announced on November 1^st.

They will be available at STEM Outdoor Library as soon as we have received, quarantined and processed them.

4th and 5^th grade students have priority from Nov. 1^st until the end of February. After that, all STEM Scholars may check out this year’s titles.

Permanent link to this article: https://stemk8pta.org/2020/10/26/global-reading-challenge/

More information about last Friday’s auction

Hello STEM Friends,

Thank you all so much for your generosity and giving – in time, treasure, and talent during the MacGyver Auction on Friday.

We are just over $40,000, which is shy of our goal – so if you haven’t donated you still can.

There are a few (FEW!) items still open and the link for making a tax-free donation is still OPEN!

You can access all of the videos on our YouTube Channel.

The individual movie links are here and are a great reminder of why we need these funds, and why Louisa Boren STEM K-8 is such an amazing community.

We are all in this Together.

Mrs. B and READ READ READ!

We <3 our Teachers!

Band Intro ABC

PICK UP!

If you won an item we are working on getting it ready for pick up:

Wednesday, October 14^th 5-8

Or

Saturday, October 17^th 10-2

If you are unable to make these times, please try to find a friend & respond to the email that you will get with details about your arrangements.

Thank you again, and please consider giving if you haven’t already. Every dollar supports your student, even as we are remote learning. We need your support. We are all in this Together.

Permanent link to this article: https://stemk8pta.org/2020/10/12/more-information-about-last-fridays-auction/

Silent Auction is now open!

T-Minus 5 DAYS!

The Auction is OPEN!

The Silent Auction is LIVE and you can bid now on the Live and Dessert Dash – which then rolls into the Live Virtual Auction October 9th @7.

Don’t miss out on ordering wine for delivery before the 6th.

You have the option of ordering dinner at Auction Sponsor Circa: Circa order form (complete by October 6)

Or at Anju.

You can “see” all your STEM friends starting @6 October 9th at the “pre-funk” pre-auction zoom. Have dinner, talk, share how things are going, what you are winning, or bidding on – a chance to just meet as if it were real life! Introverts welcome to hang – no games we promise!

Join Zoom Meeting
https://zoom.us/j/91551852026?pwd=bHR5YWJxbXhmdmN1NHgzN1BZQVZHZz09
Meeting ID: 915 5185 2026
Passcode: 5950

At 6:50 we are moving to the LIVE VIRTUAL AUCTION on YouTube where our goal is $60,000 for your kid, our students, our teachers & our community!

So grab a spoon, a magazine, and a shoe box – we are going to MacGyver this Auction to the finish line!

Auction Committee

Also if you can please support our sponsors for this year

Gold: Jayme and Gini Johnson with The Johnsons at Windermere Real Estate Wall Street Group

Silver: Resting Waters Aquamation, Seattle’s Pet Funeral Home

Bronze: Evie Knoke, Senior Loan Officer with Guild Mortgage

Permanent link to this article: https://stemk8pta.org/2020/10/05/silent-auction-is-now-open/

Auction is fast approaching!

Dear STEM Friends,

Our annual Auction is October 9th! We are likely all feeling the strain of the pandemic; this fun event is a time for us to gather and celebrate our community that we haven’t seen since March. Your support of this event goes directly back to your students: funds raised at the auction pay for remote learning resources, teacher support, supplies for your students, and much more.

The best parts:

You don’t need a babysitter! Anyone can join in from the STEM community – there are NO tickets and it’s free to register. Anyone who cares about our kids – grandparents, aunts, uncles can be in on the fun so please send this information to your friends and family who care about your student.

Please join us by doing the following:

Sign up! There is no cost to register; this is not a ticketed event: https://louisaborenstemk8.schoolauction.net/cartoons
Like wine? Buy our STEM K-8 wine and we will deliver it to your door. After signing up using the link above, you can buy 2 bottles for $30.
Mark your calendar for October 9th at 7 PM for the Live Virtual Auction. After you sign up, you’ll receive auction communications, including our YouTube link to participate in the live event.
Consider ordering dinner to enjoy during the auction: choose from STEM Sponsor Circa (who is donating 10% back of Auction night sales) or Anju!

Circa order form (complete by October 6): https://forms.gle/S8iPX9Dk7dFL8ihi8
Anju order form: http://www.toasttab.com/anjuseattle/v3

Our goal is to raise $60,000.

For your kid, for our students, for the teachers – for today, tomorrow, and all the amazing that is still to come. We look forward to celebrating with you – the first step is to sign up: https://louisaborenstemk8.schoolauction.net/cartoons

Sincerely,
The Auction Team

Permanent link to this article: https://stemk8pta.org/2020/09/28/auction-is-fast-approaching/

Helpful information for Seesaw and Schoology

STEM K-8 Families,

I am sharing the links for three different training sessions we are offering on Wednesday and Thursday this week for STEM families to support access to Seesaw and Schoology by parents/guardians. Click on the class title below to join an online training at that time.

Additionally, self-guided and translated support videos for SeeSaw and Schoology can be found at:

SPS Remote Learning Tools.

Hope you are breathing (shallowly) and staying healthy, brilliant, and sane!

Ben Ostrom

STEM Principal

STEM Schoology and Seesaw classes for families:

Wednesday, 9/16 6-7pm:

Schoology for Middle School Families (Mr. Bleeker)

Thursday, 9/17 6-7pm: (if you have primary and intermediate students choose one to attend).

Seesaw for Kindergarten-2^nd grade families (Ms. Wasser)

Seesaw for 3rd-5^th grade families (Ms. Ollerenshaw)

Permanent link to this article: https://stemk8pta.org/2020/09/15/helpful-information-for-seesaw-and-schoology/

2020 Auction News

Dear STEM friend,

Update on the Saturday Morning Cartoons & PJ’s Auction – originally scheduled for March, then May, then October. We are changing the TV channel off of Animaniacs (it’s much to Wakk-o!) and changing it over to MacGyver!

The past six months we’ve had to be problem-solvers, innovators, flexible, and improvise under unpredictable circumstances. A swiss-army knife isn’t SUPER helpful for COVID, but it will help you open up your Auction winnings – so get ready for the STEM MacGyver Virtual Live Auction!

The silent auction items will be online before and after October 9th, and live virtual auction will be October 9^th @7pm and open to all – no tickets will be needed for this event.

Just this year we are flipping things around with the Auction in the Fall and the Direct Give in the Spring.

Thank you for your patience and your understanding during this time – the students, teachers and community depends on the monies raised and we are grateful for your support. Every year we say it’s imperative – this year more than ever every line-item has been carefully budgeted for supporting the needs of our community.

If you can help with auction planning, email robingraham26@gmail.com and save September 14^th @7 for a zoom auction committee meeting. The zoom information will be on the calendar event.

We have always been the school that “made it work” and we will this year too.

We’ve got this.

More information soon,

Robin Graham – Auction Chair

Permanent link to this article: https://stemk8pta.org/2020/08/26/2020-auction-news/

Back to school bash 9 Bingo!

Back to Back to School Bash 9 at Lincoln Park where we sneeze all over a Potluck Dinner?! Nope! It’s Bingo!

We are taking our oldest community event online!

Join us for a family/friends Bingo night!

You can join for a few rounds, or for the whole night.

Prizes include t-shirts, stem swag, trinkets, owl swag, and a night of fun.

Free to play!

1. RSVP by 9/10 @5pm via the facebook event

https://www.facebook.com/events/807458683417546/

OR

https://forms.gle/eiwB9WbrkSbwW7xW8

You can use the same card the whole night, but each family member will want their own. Pre-readers will need support for this activity – the BINGO cards are “STEM themed.”

2. You will receive an email with a Bingo link for either; 1. following along online (you can “daub” the bingo numbers online and then reset each game) OR 2. you can print out your card(s) and go old school by printing out copies of how many games you would like to play.

3. You will receive a zoom call invite from the PTA. Join us when it works for you and play as many or as few games as you would like. PTA meeting / school rules in affect so please no swearing, etc… since a bunch of owlets are on zoom call / chat.

4. If you win: enter your email into the chat section of the zoom call OR email: robingraham26@gmail.com to connect about your prize!

Permanent link to this article: https://stemk8pta.org/2020/08/11/back-to-school-bash-9-bingo/

Looking for someone to fill our new Race & Equity Committee Chair

Greetings STEM Community,

Our PTA statement on anti-racism: “Louisa Boren STEM PTA is an anti-racist organization. Our PTA is enaged in anti-racist work and will continue to listen, learn, and speak out against racism and violence. We seek to center the voices of the Black community and communities of color at STEM, and look to them for guidance and leadership in achieving our mission and staying true to our values.

In the coming 2020-21 school year, we will explore concrete actions to identify systemic racism and the ways it affects families of color. The PTA will review all policies and procedures, including stating this position on our enrollment form, prioritizing engaging with anti-racist vendors, and educating our students and families on racism. We will review resources, including statements by Superintendent Juneau, the district and school board, national and state PTAs, the Academy of African American Male Achievement, and other respected sources, to inform our decisions.

We strive to remove all forms of racism–structural, institutional, and individual–at STEM. This work will never finish, but will be ongoing.”

While our Advocacy Committee has supported and led many initiatives in the past, we feel our community would be better served and the work taken further with a dedicated Race & Equity Committee. The Chair of the committee will be a member of the PTA board and be highly influential in steering the entire PTA to a more equitable space. A rough outline of the volunteer duties is below, but the Chair will be able to shape the role as they see fit.

We STRONGLY ENCOURAGE a BIPOC (Black/Indigenous Person of Color) of our community to take on this role. If more than one person is interested, there will be a vote as required by PTA by-laws. If there’s only one person interested, there is a perfunctory vote, but it’s all yours! All members of our community are encouraged to join the committee. The time commitment of the Race & Equity Committee Chair will vary; estimated to be around 2-10 hours per month, depending on the Chair’s availability.

Description:

The Louisa Boren STEM K-8 PTA Race & Equity Committee Chair works to bring equity and justice to the students and families of our school committee. This may include community education, leading letter writing campaigns, and holding events at school or elsewhere. The Race & Equity Committee Chair will seek to further the anti-racist work of the PTA and view all decisions through an equity lens. The Race & Equity Committee may work with the Advocacy Committee and the LGBTQ+ Committee on events and initiatives. The Race & Equity Committee Chair will serve as a liaison to the school’s Race & Equity Committee (comprised of school staff and community members, separate from the PTA).

The Race & Equity Committee Chair may and is encouraged to attend local conferences and educational events that further their work and understanding, as funds allow.

The Race & Equity Committee Chair is a member of the PTA board and assumes all board responsibilities as follows:
Each board member of a local PTA unit shall be a member in good standing of that local PTA unit prior to assuming the roles and responsibilities of the position.
The board shall:
Consist of the executive committee and appointed positions as specified in the local unit standing rules;
Review the budget prior to its annual submittal to the general membership;
Approve committee plans on an ongoing basis based on current budget forecasts and financial conditions.
Transact necessary business between meetings of the membership and other such business as may be referred to it by the membership; and
Present recommendations to the general membership for action.
A majority of those currently serving on the board shall constitute a quorum.
Special meetings of the board may be called by the president(s) or upon written request of the majority of all members of the board. Written notice stating date, time, place and purpose of the meeting shall be delivered to each member of the board at least ten (10) days prior to the special meeting. If less than 10 days notice is given, documentation of each member’s consent to conduct business must be obtained in writing or via email. A quorum of the board must be present to conduct business.

The time commitment of the Race & Equity Committee Chair will vary; estimated to be around 2-10 hours per month, depending on the Chair’s availability.

For more information, contact PTA President Elect president@stemk8pta.org; or Advocacy Chair Alicia Every aliciaevery@gmail.com

Permanent link to this article: https://stemk8pta.org/2020/06/22/looking-for-someone-to-fill-our-new-race-equity-committee-chair/