[CabotCommunity] JABBERLITE for Tuesday December 5. 2006

Tue Dec 5 10:03:25 EST 2006

JABBERLITE   Tuesday, December 5, 2006 

This Jabberlite contains information about:
Campaign for Cabot – Where does your money go?
Online Shopping and Learning Express Fundraiser
Cabot Math Challenge
Community Service Gift Drive to The Second Step
Cabot Space Crunch Update
Newton Parent Advisory Council for Special Education
Conversations About Newton North

Upcoming Dates
A complete & updated calendar for all events for the year can be found at www.cabotpto.org   
December 6, 2006PTO Learning Express Fundraiser
December 11, 2006School Committee Meeting, 7:30 PM
December 14, 2006Early Release Day, 12:30 PM Dismissal
December 15, 2006Hanukkah Begins at Sundown
December 19, 2006Affinity Group
December 19, 2006CASP Play 7:00 - 8:00PM
December 20, 2006CASP Play 7:00 - 8:00PM
December 22, 2006CASP Play for School
December 25, 2006Christmas
December 25 to Jan 1, 2006Vacation, NO SCHOOL
December 26, 2006Kwanzaa
January 2, 2007School resumes
January 4, 2007Understanding our Differences Grade 5 1:00 - 2:45 PM
January 8, 2007School Council 6-7:30 PM
January 8, 2007School Committee Meeting, 7:30 PM
January 9, 2007Conversations About NNHS:Part II -The Finances  NN Lasker Auditorium, 7:30PM
January 10, 2007All-City School Chorus Concert, Brown Middle School 7:30 PM

WHERE DOES YOUR MONEY GO? HOW DOES THE PTO USE MY MONEY?
Each week we will highlight a different area to illustrate how your money is spent & the good it yields. First, let’s start with Cabot’s dedicated teachers and faculty. Many of our teachers dig deep into their own pockets to provide necessary materials and supplies for their classrooms and students. To alleviate that & to ensure our children still benefit from outstanding educational experiences the PTO provides each grade and specialty teacher with a lump sum at the beginning of the year. Did you also know that when Cabot has to open a new classroom that Newton Public Schools does not provide any funds to equip that classroom with additional materials. To address this the PTO gives each NEW teacher additional financial assistance. This year some $6,500 was distributed amongst Cabot faculty and staff which were again very gratefully received. Each year the PTO receives many, many notes of thanks from grateful teachers, some of which we thought we would share with you:

“I truly appreciate your support…. I will be able to expand our resources for many children”
“Please know how much Cabot staff appreciates your support”
“With fading funds your donation is even more beneficial”
“Thank you for the very generous check you provide to all teachers to help us offset classroom expenses”
“Thank you so much for the money, I can use it to buy materials to use with my students”
“I have been able to buy workbooks that I can use with groups & individual students”

So if you have not yet contributed to the Campaign for Cabot, please take a moment to think about how much your child benefits from all the enrichment activities provided & financed by the PTO.  To date we have 20% participation.  Thank you so much to those who have contributed already, your generosity is greatly appreciated.  There is still time to contribute and to make that tax deductible donation before the end of the year.  This year we are striving towards 100% participation from our community of families, so please contribute whatever you can.

SHOP FOR THE HOLIDAYS – 
                  AND EARN $$ FOR CABOT AT THE SAME TIME!!!!!
If you are shopping online for the holidays or birthdays don’t forget to go to www.cabotpto.org  first & then click on the Shopping icon!! You will pay exactly the same prices BUT a % of your total purchase will be donated to the Cabot School PTO! All of the main online stores participate, so check it out by visiting http://www.cabotpto.org/shop.html  

Also, on WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 6th the LEARNING EXPRESS store in Newton Center will again run a fundraising day to benefit Cabot School.  Simply shop at the store on December 6th, identify your purchase is to benefit Cabot School  & the Learning Express will donate a % of the total sales generated!!  Our thanks go to Julie Stonehill for organizing this & other small fundraisers like Papa Ginos.

CABOT MATH CHALLENGE - Problem #2 Now Available
We are thrilled to announce that 26% of Cabot students choose to participate in the first Cabot Math Challenge Problem.  Problem #2 is now available.  Copies can be obtained from teachers or the Challenge Page of the Cabot PTO web site, www.cabotpto.org .  Please submit your solution by Thursday December 14, 2006.  Keep up the great work! 
 If you have any questions contact Emily at politicalresources at hotmail.com or Shara at Shara7 at gmail.com .

COMMUNITY SERVICE GIFT DRIVE 
Thank you to so many of you who have signed-up to donate holiday gifts to the families of The Second Step, Newton's Shelter for domestic violence.  By now you shoul d have received your form back listing what was requested.  Please bring all donations to Cabot School on either Monday 12/11 or Tuesday 12/12, where volunteers will be on hand to accept them.  Gifts must be new and unwrapped.  Please put a post-it Note on each gift with the name and age of the recipient on it and the name of the student making the donation. If you would still like to participate, The Second Step is always in need of wrapping paper & supplies and gift cards.  Volunteers will bring the gifts to The Second Step's North Pole where they will be wrapped and tagged until the holidays.  Thank you for your participation and thanks to Rose Coppola Flynn who organized this gift drive.

DECEMBER 11th is thE NEXT School Committee meeting DURING WHICH THEY WILL VOTE ON THE space crunch issue
At last week's School Committee meeting enrollment projections were presented which indicate that Cabot is expected to need another 2 classrooms next Fall in addition to those classes we currently have: an additional K class & an additional 1st grade class. Generally, the report concluded that Newton Public Schools would experience a general growth on student population, particularly at the Elementary School level & especially at Kindergarten. The report contains a lot of information so please take a look at it online at http://www.newton.k12.ma.us/schoolcommittee/docs/11_27_06/Enroll%20Report%2011.06.pdf 
Also at this meeting the Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Jeff Young, made his recommendations on how he would like to see the School Committee address the short terms space needs of the 5 Elementary Schools identified as having space issues. He proposed 8 actions for their consideration, including those listed below which are of specific interest to the Cabot community:
Recommended the School Committee purchase & install 8 modulars for use as classrooms for the start of the 2007/08 school year, 2 of which would be for Cabot – this would protect the art & music rooms as specialty rooms & eliminate the need for co-hort redistricting for Cabot.
Eliminate 3 existing choice zones, effective September 2007, including the 2 choice zones for Cabot & Underwood near Fairmont & Bellevue. He recommends that existing students & future siblings be grandfathered but new students entering Sept 2007 for the Cabot zones would be sent to Underwood.
Commence the process of securing the Carr School for future use  
Points of further interest raised at the meeting:
Mayor Cohen identified that he has included in his capital improvement plan for next year $900,000 for modulars & could raise that to $1million if the School Committee could fund the difference -  Dr.Young’s report estimates the cost for purchase & installation of 8 modulars to be approx. $1.1 to $1.2 million. 
The schools recommended to have 2 modulars each (Cabot, Pierce & Zervas) would need to have them co-located in order to reduce installation costs. Onsite surveys have already concluded 3 possible sites for Cabot - outside the current Kindergarten entrance, on the blacktop, and on the faculty parking area. Of these, the last 2 only can accommodate 2 modulars. Specific site discussions will be had with School Principals to determine the best location. Such details will not be decided until the School Committee’s vote on December 11th but will need to be resolved prior to modular orders being placed during Mar/April.
Dr. Young stated all other non-classroom space needs such as SPED, after schools programs etc,.would be addressed by the long term facilities plan. This long term facilities plan will be started in the new year with a deadline of May 2007 in order for Newton to file requests to meet State deadlines for renovation reimbursement.
What happens next?
December 11th is when the School Committee will vote on their proposals to address the short term space issues, which may or may not reflect Dr. Youngs. You can stay informed by reading his proposal, coming to this meeting or watch it live on NEWTV. Thanks once again to the Cabot parents who showed up last week!

Newton Parent Advisory Council for Special Education 
Meeting Dec 7, 2006 at 7:30 PM –‘Planning for Your Special Needs Child: EstatePlanning, Special Needs Trusts, Preserving Eligibility for Public Benefits and Guardianship’ by Attorney Ken Shulman. 

Ken focuses on estate planning and related issues for people with disabilities and their families.  He has served as a board member for several human service agencies including the Greater Boston ARC.  He has also served as a consultant to the Massachusetts Office of Handicapped Affairs,the Massachusetts Disability Law Center and the Massachusetts Mental Health Legal Advisors Committee. Currently he is co-chairman of the Elder and Disability Planning Committee of the Boston Bar Association.  The meeting is at the Education Center,100 Walnut St, Newton, MA, 02460, Room 210. For more information, please contact Lucie Chansky at 617-244-7310 or luciec at comcast.net .

CONVERSATIONS ABOUT NEWTON NORTH HIGH SCHOOL 
In case you missed the special meeting about NNHS "Part 1:The Site Plan"  last Tuesday, the meeting is being re-broadcast on NewTV Red, The Government Channel: Comcast 9, RCN 13.  Please check www.newtv.org  for broadcast times, under "Special Meeting Coverage: Conversations about NNHS Part 1: The Site Plan."  The second forum will be held on January 9th and will focus on the finances of the project.  It will be held at 7:30 p.m. in Newton North's Lasker Auditorium.  

Compiled for you by the Cabot PTO 

Mary Kathryn Fallon
Cabot PTO Co-President
10 Worth Circle,
Newton, MA 02458
617-244-1821
MaryKathF at aol.com

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