Dear Families:
Thank you to everyone who took time to attend our first family community meeting of the school year. As promised, everyone in attendance got a gift - Bhaktivedanta Academy bumper stickers!
Below is a recap of the meeting plus some additional information:
Middle School
The preparations for our middle school are on-going. Jaya Sri Radhe is currently working on curriculum development and other aspects of the program, specifically the feasibility of utilizing the International Baccalaureate (IB) Middle Years Program as a framework for our middle school.
At present we project a minimum of $100,000 will be needed to establish the middle school. We have an anonymous donor who has made a matching pledge of $30,000 toward this project. They will donate $1 for every $2 given by others. Over the next year we will need to raise the remaining funds.
We will be hosting an informational meeting about the middle school very soon.
Fundraising
We historically have 3 main fundraising activities each year:
- Roses for Radha (starts next week)
- Christmas Cookie and Fudge Sales
- Spring Dinner/Event
In addition, we have 3 on-going opportunities for families, friends, and others to support Bhaktivedanta Academy all year long:
Box Tops for Education
We receive 10 cents for every box top redeemed. Last year we raised $21 with only a few families participating. Our first redemption period for this year is November 1st, so please start clipping box tops from the products you buy or have at home and bring them to the school office.
Target - Take Charge of Education
Register your Target credit card or bank debit card with Target and Bhaktivedanta Academy will receive a donation of 1% of everything you purchase at Target. In addition, you will get 5% off of everything you buy at Target using your card. With only 6 families participating we earned over $50 last year. There is no easier way to support the school. Sign-up today.
Scrip (New!)
With scrip you purchase gift cards for places you plan to shop, and use those cards instead of cash or credit. Many popular retailers participate in our scrip program including Wal-Mart/Sam’s Club, JCPenney, The Gap, Shell, Amazon.com, and many others. Bhaktivedanta Academy receives 2% - 15% back on all scrip card purchases. With ScripNow, cards from participating merchants will be delivered instantly to you via email. We encourage all our families to sign-up at www.shopwithscrip.com and register using our school's enrollment code: 12AAB82228774. Once registered, you can start ordering gift cards immediately.
A scrip packet will be going out in your child's Friday folder along with another email explaining the program in more detail.
Parent Teacher Organization
We reviewed the responses (linked here) to the the Parent Volunteer Questionnaire that went out in Friday folders and via email a couple weeks ago. The responses are very encouraging, with 21 parents expressing interest in participating in many ways.
If you have not done so already, please fill out the online questionnaire.
One of the areas of interest is in establishing a Parent Teacher Organization (PTO). Some initial purposes of the PTO would be:
- Identify needs of the school
- Build community
- Increase family involvement
- Be a bridge between the parent community and the school
We also shared and discussed a draft purpose statement:
In a mood of cooperation and responsibility, members of the Bhaktivedanta Academy Parent Association serve in partnership with the school's administration, to organize community building activities, encourage a spirit of volunteerism and inclusiveness amongst our families, and to enrich the educational experiences of our children by giving any needed support to their teachers and school.
Those who have expressed interest in being part of the PTO so far are:
- Adi Gopi Kohair
- Ananga Manjari Herrera
- Ashley Khurana
- Baladeva
- Deepa & Tanmay Lele
- Gaura Shakti Allin
- Malati Lewandowska
- Radha Dainton
- Sandra Zappini
- Saradiya Syer
- Vaishnavi Cecil
A PTO formation meeting will be facilitated within the next couple of weeks for those interested in taking part and a Facebook group will be formed to help with communication and organization.
Discussion
A lot of ideas were shared during the discussion portion of the meeting related to promotion of the school, fundraising, and school schedule:
Write an article about the upcoming middle school and publish it online and in Back to Godhead (BTG) magazine to bring broader awareness of the school and to solicit financial support.
Collect and publish testimonials from parents and students.
Speak with Krishna.com about the possibility of putting a Bhaktivedanta Academy donation link into the check-out process on their website.
Research and present the history of the school along with recollections and testimonials from alumni.
Hold a Bhaktivedanta Academy anniversary celebration.
Consider other school scheduling models, like year-round, with shorter summer breaks and longer winter and spring breaks.
Overall, we had a great meeting that generated a lot of enthusiasm and ideas to take forward into this school year. Again, thank you to everyone who participated. It was a pleasure to spend time talking about how we can all be part of taking Bhaktivedanta Academy to new heights together.
Yours in service,
Visvambhara das
Head of School
Si usted tiene alguna pregunta y necesita ayuda en español, puede solicitarla llamando al 386-462-2886 (oficina).
Friday, October 12, 2012 at 9:53AM 
