Genesee Hill PTA News

March 13, 2023

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March events


March 15: PTA General Membership Meeting


March 17: Hot Beverage Day at Hotwire


March 17: 80s event: Preview of community experiences 


March 21: 80s event: Community experiences are for sale


March 25: ‘I Love the 80s to Death!’ fundraiser occurs


March 27: Undoing Racism Workshop


March 28: School Nights at The Good Society


March 30: Kindergarten Moosical



Looking ahead


May 3: Walk, Bike & Roll to School


May 4: 2nd Grade Poetry Slam


May 11: 1st Grade Musical


June 7 & 8: Spring musical for 4th & 5th graders 


June 20: PTA General Membership Meeting


June 23: Moveathon


June 27: Field Day & Pride celebration


June 28: 5th Grade Graduation


June 30: Last day of school potluck



Hi Genesee Hill families,


I’m sure you’re all looking forward to Daylight Savings Time as much as we are. Spring is upon us. We hope you had time to enjoy some student celebrations this past month by attending Unity Night and Art Walk.


Spring also brings the start of next year’s PTA budgeting process. The creation of the PTA’s budget doesn’t occur in isolation. We are reliant on what the school’s administration projects and needs for the upcoming year. As you are aware, the Seattle Public Schools is faced with a $131 million budget deficit, fueled by declining enrollment, rising labor costs, and increasing student needs in the wake of the pandemic. The District’s response to the deficit will have significant impact on Genesee Hill, as well as every school within the District.


At Wednesday’s General Membership Meeting, we’re going to hear from Principal Dunn about the budget impact for 2023-24 on Genesee Hill Elementary. Additionally, we’ll provide information to membership about how schools are funded and the role of PTAs in addressing systemic school district deficits. In preparation for this important work, please see the Citizen’s Guide to Washington State K-12 Finance. Another important resource we would like you to review is the 2019 Seattle Counsel PTA resolution.  


We understand that anytime there are budget cuts that impact educational programs and potentially people within the school, it triggers a broad range of reactions and attempts at problem solving. Ideally,  SPS would give key stakeholders sufficient time to review resources and design thoughtful solutions. However, SPS provided budget allocations to Genesee Hill on March 6th with a requirement for all PTAs to confirm any PTA grants for staffing positions by the Principal's budget arena meeting, March 22nd. We acknowledge this is not enough time and we strongly share your frustrations with this forced system. In order to meet this deadline, we will be splitting the budget into two phases, funds for staff positions in phase one and all other budget items for phase two. We invite you, urge  you, to attend our next general membership meeting on Wednesday March 15th at 6pm in the school library to discuss what the Genesee Hill Elementary Building Leadership team is asking of our PTA community for phase one, staffing grants. We will hold an additional community meeting March 20th to continue discussions before a Phase 1 vote on the staffing budget March 21st.  We will also be discussing steps for how to advocate for a better budgeting and funding system from SPS. View a budgeting timeline.


Lastly, we want to say thank you to the families who went to Olympia on February 20th for Advocacy Day. The 34th District legislators were appreciative of the turnout and the voice of support for education. It’s going to be vitally important for the Genesee Hill community to build its advocacy voices in Olympia, but also in Seattle School Board meeting to ensure that education in the State and the District is funded fully, so PTA’s across the state are not filling gaps in services. If you have not signed up for WSPTA action alerts yet, you can sign up here.


We look forward to coming together this Wednesday. We can only be as strong as we are engaged. 


Sincerely,

Michael and Lia, PTA Co-Presidents

PTA General Membership Meeting info

You’re invited to attend the next PTA general membership meeting on Wednesday, March 15, at 6 p.m. in the school library. We’ll share updates on the work of the PTA and upcoming events. To join remotely, log in via Zoom:


Join Zoom Meeting

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86259057513?pwd=Y2c0bUlRTERFT2toWS9oTnNONGh1UT09

Meeting ID: 862 5905 7513

Passcode: 894485


March events

I Love the 80s to Death! Community Experiences coming soon...


Not attending the 80s' murder mystery fundraiser? You can still join in our spring FUNdraising by purchasing a spot (or two!) for some of our unique one-time community experiences, set to go live for sale March 21! There will be lots of fun events hosted by some of your favorite local businesses and other Genesee Hill families for you (or your kids!) to join. We'll release a preview here on Friday, March 17! 


For those of you who are attending the 'I Love the 80s to Death' event, we can't wait to see you March 25th in your 80s best! Registration and Happy Hour is from 5-6pm that evening with the Murder Mystery show starting promptly at 6. Thank you to everyone who is donating their time and efforts to make this event happen!


Hot beverage day at Hotwire Friday, 3/17


Hotwire Coffeehouse will donate 20% of hot beverage sales to the Genesee Hill Elementary PTA on the third Friday of each month. Try the Foxy Latte, designed for Genesee supporters. Order your drink in person at 4410 California Ave SW or through textwire at (206) 321-0387. Check out the menu at https://www.hotwirecoffee.com/our-menu.


Workshop Monday, 3/27: Undoing Racism & Teaching Equity to Our Children 



Please join the PTA in the school cafeteria on Monday March 27, 6:30-8:30 PM for a workshop presented by Families of Color Seattle titled "Undoing Racism and Teaching Equity to Our Children." Facilitators will lead this interactive workshop providing tools for parents to talk with children and each other about race, bias, racism, and anti-racism. They will explore systemic racism and parents’ own understanding of their racial identity, power, privilege, and oppression. Registration is required here and space is limited. Childcare will be available for Genesee Hill students for those who register in advance here. In partnership with South Seattle Cooperative Preschools.

Volunteer opportunities

Volunteer at the spring fundraiser:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080A4DA5AD2BABFD0-ilovethe


Be a recess volunteer:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080A4DA5AD2BABFD0-recess


Sign up to be a room parent:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080A4DA5AD2BABFD0-room


Volunteer of the month hours matching:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/5080A4DA5AD2BABFD0-volunteer

Membership news

Washington State PTA Recognizes our PTA with the Gold Membership Growth Award


Genesee Hill PTA has recently been recognized by Washington State PTA as a Gold Membership Growth Award recipient! PTAs are presented with this award for enrolling at least 10% more members this year than last year. That means our PTA is growing and we are at 208 members so far! Thank you to everyone who has become a member so far this year: YOU are the reason our PTA achieved this award.


If you haven’t yet signed up for a PTA membership or renewed from last year, please consider joining today! By doing so, you are demonstrating your support for our PTA and all it does for our community.


Join the PTA | Genesee Hill Elementary PTA (geneseehillpta.org)

Community

Ambassadors of Kindness: Donation drive


The Kindness Council is excited to host a toiletries drive for this month's schoolwide challenge. To show that we care for those in our community, we are collecting essential supplies for people experiencing homelessness. The toiletries and supplies that students donate can be placed on the table and bins in the front atrium at school, near the kindness display case.


We will be donating the items collected to The Facing Homelessness Organization, specifically to their Window of Kindness program. Because this organization emphasizes putting as little waste out as possible, The Kindness Council has purchased 100 reusable nylon backpacks to fill rather than using Ziplock like bags, thus becoming care packages for those in need. We are hoping to fill all 100 bags, becoming our kindest and most impactful challenge to date! Last Thursday’s email from Ms. Dunn included a flyer and links to items that Facing Homelessness has provided us. Check the QR code for more info.

Summer Fun Camp is back at Whale Tale Park


Ms. Sealey is back running her fabulous camp that includes science, art, and sports. There truly is something for everyone! The camp is open to K – 5th grades and run 9am to 4pm for five weeks this summer. Space is limited but at this time we have spots in all weeks. Please email Summer_fun_camp@yahoo.com to receive registration information.


See all the Seattle summer camps in one place


Still looking for summer camps? A new Seattle summer camps website has been created by a few SPS parents to help the community plan your summer with ease. See ALL Seattle summer camps in one place, and search/filter based on your needs. Check it out now: https://www.onestopcamp.com/


West Seattle Little League Spring Season 2023 Registration Open


Players with physical or intellectual challenge may join the Challenger Division Adaptive Baseball program. Typically games are 1-2 innings long and last about an hour. All players play defensively and bat every inning. We provide a range of accommodating equipment to enhance your baseball experience, including adjustable batting tees, traditional and large plastic bats, as well as wiffle and soft baseballs.

Genesee Hill Elementary| 5013 SW Dakota St | Seattle, WA 98116| 206.252.9700