Just the Facts

Woodland Star Weekly Update

Thursday, May 8th 2008

Learning to think, to care, to create

 

UPCOMING SCHOOL EVENTS

Now-May 16^th, Accepting Nominations for Charter Council

Thursday, May 8^th, Coffee with Barbara Warren, 8:30 AM

Thursday, May 8^th, Parent Council Meeting, 6 PM

Thursday, May 15^th, The Importance of Forgiveness and Trust in Building Conscious Community presented by Karen Rivers , 7 PM

Friday, May 16^th, Deadline for Charter Council Nominations

Wednesday, May 21^st, Charter Council Meeting, 6:30 PM

Thurs-Fri, May 22-23^rd, 2^nd Grade Play

Tuesday, May 27^th, 5^th Grade Parent Meeting, 6 PM

Thursday, May 29^th, Charter Council Elections

Saturday, May 31^st, 9:30-11 AM, All School Parent Meeting in the Main Hall

BUDGET UPDATE

Budget Update:

We did it!  At our last meeting, the Charter Council passed a budget the major details of which I have outlined below.  We appreciate all of you who came forward with ideas and input regarding our budget for next year, and hope that we can count on your continued support.  As you know our school runs on the strength of volunteers and we welcome all of you to have your voices heard by volunteering to be active in our community.  We are currently accepting nominations for the Charter Council.  Parent Council has vacancies for many grade levels and we have many committees that can use help.  So let's use the momentum from this experience and the passions brought forth to a good and productive end.

On Saturday, May 31^st, we will be hosting an all-school parent meeting from 9:30-11.  At that meeting we will discuss many things including a 15 minute presentation on the budget.  So please plan on attending and bring any questions that you might have.   I look forward to seeing many of you on May 31^st.
Thank you,  Sheila

 
With the exception of violin, all of the specialty programs will be maintained and are listed below:

• Handwork program unchanged and will continue in grades 1-5, taught by a specialty teacher, twice per week
• Movement taught by the class teachers in grades 1,2,3 and by a specialty teacher, twice per week, in grades 4-8
• Spanish in grades K-8 (twice per week in grades 1-8), taught by a specialty teacher, Spanish in Kindergarten taught by a volunteer
• Singing/music, taught by a specialty teacher in grades 4-8 (twice per week with extra classes for recorder).  All classes will continue to have music taught by the class teachers i.e. pentatonic flute in first-third grades
• Math in grades 6-8 taught by a specialty teacher (three times per week)
• Eurythmy in grades K-5 (once per week) taught by a specialty teacher
• Sewing in grades 6-8 (twice per week) taught by a specialty teacher
• Woodworking in grades 6-8 (twice per week) taught by both class and specialty teachers
• Gardening in grade 3 (twice per week)

Staffing:

• Administrator (full-time)
• Assistant Administrator (1 day per week position)
• Curriculum Director (part-time)
• CFO (part-time)

Income:

• Increased revenue from fundraising
• Increased revenue from Aftercare

2008-09 SCHOOL YEAR

We are looking ahead to a wonderful 2008-09 school year, see below for the details.

Woodland Star Administration, 2008-2009

Next year, Woodland Star will follow through on the administrative transition that began this year. Chip Romer will step back to one day per week at Woodland Star in order to spearhead the development of a regional Waldorf charter high school. Sheila Reilly will step into the full-time administrator position. Barbara Warren will leave as Curriculum Director in order to return to the classroom, taking a first grade class at John Morse School; our Hiring Committee is in the process of choosing a new, half-time Curriculum Director for next year.

Administrator: Sheila Reilly

Ms. Reilly Served as Assistant Administrator at Woodland Star during the 2007-2008 school year, leading our school successfully through its WASC accreditation and leading the five-year charter renewal. Ms. Reilly earned her BS at Eastern Illinois University, and she has nearly completed her MBA at Sonoma State University. She is also currently enrolled in an MA program in Waldorf Education with Administrative Emphasis at Touro University. Independently, she has studied Waldorf education for ten years. A parent of two Woodland Star students, Ms. Reilly has been actively involved with the school, heading the Parent Education Committee for two years and serving on the Charter Council, Parent Council, Grant Writing ,Hiring and Admin Finance Committees.

Assistant Administrator: Chip Romer

Woodland Star Lead Faculty 2008-2009

Current fourth grade teacher Patrick Lilley will leave at the end of the year to live closer to his sister. Sixth grade teacher Denise Long will leave Woodland Star to continue the development of Chinese language instruction in the Sonoma County public schools. The rest of our class teachers will return. We will report updates about specialty faculty in the next few weeks.

Sweet Pea Kindergarten Teacher: Monnica O'Grady

Morning Glory Kindergarten Teacher: Katie FitzGerald

Grade One Teacher: Carrie Reuther

Ms. Reuther earned her Waldorf Teaching Certificate and MEd in Waldorf Education at Antioch University New England; her BS from Eastern Michigan University and her California Multiple Subject Credential from San Francisco State University. Her most recent teaching experience was as a class teacher in first and second grade at Yuba River (Waldorf-inspired) Charter School in Nevada City, CA. Ms. Reuther's other teaching experience includes K-8 substitute teaching, assistant teaching in a fourth grade and student teaching in sixth grade. She also has experience directing after school creative arts programs and children's summer camps. 

Grade Two Teacher: Dorothy Iselin

Grade Three Teacher: Ariana Kanwit

Grade Four Teacher: Carol Nimick

Grade Five Teacher: Mary Alice Reis

Mary Alice Reis was a class teacher at Summerfield Waldorf School for ten years, teaching grades one through eight. She earned her Waldorf Teacher Certification and also her Handwork Teacher Certification at the Waldorf Institute at Sunbridge College in New York; she earned her BA in Early Childhood Education from Southern Oregon University and her MA and Multiple Subject Teaching Credential also from Southern Oregon University. Ms. Reis also taught for four years at Sonoma State University and as a preschool teacher for four years.

Grade Six Teacher: Phil Stone

Grade Seven Teacher: Bob Harrington

Bob Harrington earned a BA in History from UC Santa Cruz, an MA in International Affairs with an emphasis in History from Ohio University and his Multiple Subject Teaching Credential from Dominican University. He taught grades five though eight at Novato (Waldorf-inspired) Charter School. Prior to discovering Waldorf Education and teaching at Novato Charter, Mr. Harrington taught at the University of West Virginia, Ohio University; he has studied and taught at the university level in Indonesia, Japan and Russia.

Grade Eight Teacher: Johnny Graham

GRATITUDES

• Great job Festival Committee!! Thank you for representing WSS at  Cinco de Mayo!  The food and craft booths were amazing as evidenced by the constant crowds at both.  Special thanks to Cindy Riley, Heather Zavaleta, Anne Cassidy and Juana Corona for organizing the booths-muchas gracias.
• Thank you Ms. Gaylan for donating the Aftercare room to the Character Education Group on Friday mornings.  When we arrive the room is softly lit, fresh coffee is brewing and a bounty of food is laid out....it doesn't get any better!
  

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Thursday, May 15^th, 7 PM: The Importance of Forgiveness and Trust in Building Conscious Community with Karen Rivers . 

Join us for an insightful evening with Waldorf educator and master teacher Karen Rivers.  Bring your family, friends, neighbors...all are welcome! Free childcare for those with an advance reservation! Talk will be in the Main Hall, childcare sign up in the office, see you there!

 

Charter Council Member Nominations Due by May 16. Elections will be held May 29.  We have two parent-held seats coming open on our primary governing board, the Charter Council. These seats are currently held by Sixth grade dad, Rick Love and Seventh grade mom, Jennifer Zur. The council meets monthly (typically on the third Wednesday) with occasional additional meeting in the spring. This is a two 2-year term that begins July 1. Any parent who has been with the school for one year has the right to run. Candidates may self-nominate or be nominated by others. Please deliver a brief letter explaining who you are, why you want to run and why you would be effective as a Charter Council member to Susan in the main office. Self-nominations are welcomed; if you nominate someone beside yourself, please first confirm their willingness to serve.  If you need additional information regarding the roles and responsiblities of a Charter Council member, please contact Sheila at: asstadmin@woodlandstarschool.org

STAR testing: Our window for STAR testing is the two weeks of May 5 through 16th this year. Individual class teachers will determine their specific schedules, and inform parents. You may be asked to help by bringing special snacks. Tests are administrated in Grades 2 through 7. Studies have shown that the single most important factor in students' success is parent attitude-so, please help your child by:

• Feeding them well
• Getting them to sleep at a reasonable hour the nights before testing
• Relax. Assure children that they only needs to do the best they can

STAR scores will be mailed to parents at the end of August. Thanks for your support!

Here's an Idea:

Hi Everyone!  A friendly message from the Parent Council...If you've been wondering how to spend your Federal Tax Rebate checks which will be arriving shortly, we may have the solution for you!  How about donating all or a part of your check to Woodland Star?  You would feel good about it, you would be donating to a very worthy cause, it's probably tax deductible (we do not give tax advice, so check with your accountant), AND you'd be helping the economy because you know the school would spend it wisely!  Just an idea we thought we'd pass along!

 

Doll Making with Truth Almond
An experience that must not be missed!  At the end of the day, you will have not only experience something magical, but you will go home with a wonderful doll for your child, you or you can donate it to the school!  Truly wonderful.  Truth is like Lady Spring!
WHEN:          May 24th, 9-5pm
WHERE:     Ruby Morning Preschool on Railroad Ave.
RSVP:          Nicole   495-6707

 

Got Gratitude?  We are offering a new feature in the JTF....a Gratitude section. If you are feeling appreciative of someone in our community, let me know and we'll honor their contribution in the JTF.

 

Grant Workshop ~ On Thursday, May 15^th, 10:30-Noon, the Sonoma County Library is holding a free Grant Workshop in the Central Library on 4th Street in Santa Rosa. For more information go to:  http://www.sonomalibrary.org/programs/GrantClasses.html

 

Character Education Meeting ~  An invitation to all community members interested in developing and implementing a character education program (conflict resolution, community building and conscious communication) on our campus.  This meeting will be our second and continue with information-gathering as the first step in our process.  Join us on Friday, May 9^th from 8:30-9:30AM in the Aftercare Room.  If you are not able to attend this meeting but have ideas and want to be involved, please let me know by e-mailing: asstadmin@woodlandstarschool.org  Thanks, Sheila

 

Get connected ~ If you are interested in seeing the agendas and minutes for Charter Council meetings, go to our webpage: woodlandstarschool.org and click on the Documents tab on the left side tool bar, and then Charter Council.  Also, do check out the calendar for on-going events, plays, class meetings and other important events at the school.  If you've missed an issue of Just the Facts, all issues are available on-line and by signing up on the webpage, you'll automatically receive it via e-mail.  We want to keep everyone in the loop and are doing out best to do this in an environmentally responsible and efficient way, thanks!

New Distribution for Just the Facts ~ In the spirit of saving paper, we first of all, encourage all to sign up to receive the Just the Facts electronically by simply signing up on our homepage.  If that doesn't work for you, we are going to be making the Just the Facts paper editions available in the office on the front counter instead of having the copies go home with the children.  Thanks!

CLASSIFIEDS

Free Trees in Containers ~Rescued trees in containers free to good homes.  Trees are mostly plum and olive, and container sizes vary from 2 gallons to 20 gallons.  These trees were put in containers a year ago, have been watered regularly and are quite healthy.  We just don't have enough room to replant them all.   Call John or Carol Arntz at 935-8789, or email jwarntz@pacbell.net <mailto:jwarntz@pacbell.net>

Yoga Class ~ Join Ariana Kanwit for a relaxing afternoon yoga class, Tuesdays from 3:30-5 PM.  All levels are welcome to this intimate and friendly setting.  Classes are held in the home of a WSS parent, for more information see Ariana.

 Afterschool Tennis Program ~ check out the attached flyer for an after-school tennis program coming to WSS beginning on May 15^th.  Sign up now as the deadline to turn in your application is May 14^th. 

7^th Grade Garage Sale ~ Fundraiser for the class trip funds. Saturday, May 17^th at the Marenec's home, 20220 5^th Street West from 9-5.  If you would like to donate any items please call Marcella at 292-1026 to arrange for pick up. 

Circus Equipment Sale ~   This is your chance to buy the circus equipment (and possibly javelins and archery equipment) that you've been asking about and to support  the Movement Education program at the same time. The school will purchase the equipment at wholesale price and sell it to you at the same retail price that you would pay if purchasing on your own.  The funds raised by this order will go to purchasing new circus equipment for the school.  Look for a pre-order form in next week's JTF.