The Horseshoe Review
The Copeland PTO Newsletter - September 18, 2020
President’s Corner By Amanda Ball
Welcome back to all returning families and a big welcome to all new families! I’m looking
forward to an exciting school year for 2020-2021!
Thank you for taking the time to read the “The Horseshoe Review” our PTO Newsletter. It will
be published every 1st & 3rd week of the month and will have important news and information regarding upcoming events, programs and volunteer opportunities. We will also utilize our PTO website, Facebook page and Remind, so please see the ‘Parents Stay Connected’ section below to make sure you have signed up to receive notifications.
I would like to thank all the volunteers who helped on the first day of school. Your time and help were greatly appreciated and it wouldn’t have gone so smoothly without each of you. I would also like to thank the volunteers who stepped forward to fill committee chairman positions. We are still in need of a Fundraising Chair on the Executive Board and Homeroom Coordinators for each class. See details below on how to volunteer or get more information. The families, teachers, and staff of Copeland appreciate all your energy and efforts. The programs offered at Copeland would not be possible without your contribution.
The very best way you can support Copeland right now is by joining the PTO. We spend, on
average, about $50 per student per year in various programs and support. We hope this helps
you see that your $12 per family membership is a great investment to help us continue these
great programs and support for the students and staff. Please check out our website at CopelandPTO.org to see all the programs we fund for our students.
If anyone has any comments, suggestions or questions about Copeland PTO or volunteering at the school, please feel free to contact anyone on the PTO Executive Board. Their phone numbers and email addresses are included below. We all look forward to working with you and I am looking forward to a great school year at Copeland.
Thanks,
Amanda
PTO Executive Board
President: Amanda Ball 713-557-0316 CopelandPTOPresident@gmail.com
Vice President: OPEN
Cultural Arts: Penelope Miller 914-433-3050 CopelandPTOCulturalArts@gmail.com
VIPS Coordinator: Deepa Ozarkar 214-562-3337 CopelandPTOVIPS@gmail.com
Social Media: LaKishia Edwards 409-338-7667 CopelandPTOSocialMedia@gmail.com
Fundraising: OPEN CopelandPTOFundraising@gmail.com
Secretary: Jillana O'Dell 210-845-3918 CopelandPTOSecretary@gmail.com
Treasurer: Valerie Effinger 281-685-6275 CopelandPTOTreasurer@gmail.com
Stay Connected and Get All the Latest Information
Join Copeland PTO. Go to CopelandPTO.org or return the form sent home with F2F students with your payment. Join by midnight on October 2nd for a chance to win your student’s homeroom teacher a $25 Amazon gift card for their classroom!
Copeland PTO Facebook - @CopelandElementaryPTO
Copeland PTO Instagram - @CopelandElementaryPTO
Remind App Copeland PTO Volunteers – Text @2868g4 to 81010
Copeland PTO Events – Text @aeb664 to 81010
Volunteer Opportunities
The HRC can be a parent of a CFISD Connect or Face to Face student. If you are interested in serving as the Homeroom Coordinator for your child's class, please send an email with your contact information, including your name, your child’s name and your child’s homeroom teacher to Deepa Ozarkar at CopelandPTOVIPS@gmail.com or go to CopelandPTO.org and choose HRC under volunteer opportunities.
There is also an opening for a Fundraising chair on the executive PTO board. The fundraising chair investigates options for major and minor fundraisers, coordinates & oversees all fundraising activities. If you are interested or need more information about this position please contact Amanda Ball, PTO President, at CopelandPTOPresident@gmail.com.
Spirit Gear By Amanda Ball
F2F students will be bringing home a spirit gear order form this week if you would prefer to fill it out and return with payment to place your order. We also have hoodies, caps, tumblers and vintage spirit shirts! Please order soon to guarantee you get the size you need.
If you have any questions please email Amanda at CopelandSpiritWear@gmail.com.
Extra School Supplies Available for Purchase
Are you in need of school supplies for your student? We received extra pre-packaged supplies for every grade level and they are available for purchase on our website while supplies last. Go to CopelandPTO.org and click on school supplies under fundraising to order.
The Garden By Tracy Reynolds
The Copeland garden is cared for by the 3rd grade class! They will learn how to plant, maintain and harvest different vegetables. The first garden day is set (tentatively) for September 24th. All CFISD Connect kids and face to face kids will be able to participate in the garden lessons. We want all 3rd graders to be a part of the garden experience. On garden days please make sure your student wears clothes they don’t mind getting dirty.
Do you like to garden or want to learn more about the garden? The garden is in need of a garden co-chair. If this sounds like fun or you would like more information please contact Amanda Ball at copelandptopresident@gmail.com.
We will also need volunteers to help weed the garden before the first garden day this weekend or after school hours. The garden will need parents to be willing to water on the weekends and during the week, but not during school hours. If you can help, please email tracy.b.reynolds@gmail.com.
Art needs Egg Carton donations!
2020-2021 Yearbooks ON SALE NOW! More info to come...
Birthday Marquee
Support your Copeland PTO and wish your Copeland Colt a HAPPY BIRTHDAY by featuring them on the Copeland Elementary Marquee the week of their birthday.
It's Simple and Easy...
- Choose the week you want to feature your Copeland Colt
- Complete the Birthday Marquee Form
- Submit the $20 Birthday Marquee Fee
- Watch the look on their face when they see their name
Spots are limited to 5 listings per week. You must submit the form and payment by noon on the Friday prior to the week selected. So sign up your Copeland Colt TODAY!
Does your student have a summer birthday or is the week of their birthday already filled up? You can choose any week that is still available.
Due to processing, payments must be made online or by cash to guarantee your spot on the birthday marquee. If you are paying by cash; complete this online form, choose the "pay later" option then submit the payment within two business days to the school, either to the front office or send it in with your student.
Volunteer of the Month
Logging in as a Volunteer
Working for our kids as a volunteer is both rewarding and important. Please log your volunteer hours in our Raptor Portal.
CFISD has provided an online program to make it easier on volunteers to log and track their
volunteer hours. This program is called Raptor, which is part of the V-Soft security software
that helps keep our schools safe.
Copeland does not have logbooks in the front office to record your hours. So, in order to
log your hours, you will need to establish a raptor account. This is quite easy and will allow
you to log your hours at home.
The steps to register online are as follows:
1. Go to https://www.cfisd.net/en/community-involvement/community-engagement/volunteer/# or click on the "New to Raptor" button below.
2. Complete this form in its entirety and submit (you must have an email address to do this)
3. You will receive an email from support@raptorware.com with your account information and password.
4. Once you receive the email use the button below to log in to your account.
5. Add this website to your favorites (this is where you will log hours)
6. Log in with email and password
7. Select campus
8. Select the tabs you will need
This program will be used to determine volunteer of the month and reporting our total volunteer hours to the district, enabling them to apply for various grants and programs.
FREE MONEY for Your Kids!!!!
Link your Kroger Rewards card to Copeland Elem at www.KrogerCommunityRewards.com.
Are you a big Amazon shopper? Start using Smile.Amazon.com or turn it on in your app settings and select Copeland Elementary as your charity.
BoxTops went digital. Just scan your receipts on their app from any store and they give a donation to Copeland Elem. There are a few products that you can still clip the BoxTops for. Send these to the school and they can feed the shark in the front office!
Does the company you, or your spouse, work for match donations or pay for hours you volunteer at Copeland Elem? These companies do: Shell, BP & Microsoft. If you don’t know if your company does, please ask your HR Dept.