McNear Falcon Flyer
Keeping Us Connected with Campus and PTA News
Thank you to everyone who bid and donated last weekend! It was so much fun watching the auction live. So much excitement!
Huge congratulations to those who won items. If you purchased McNear swag, we will connect via email at the end of the event to get sizes, arrange pickup options, etc.
🪶We're still $12,000 short! The WISH Fundraiser needs your support.
WOW Falcons! Look at how well our community did in just one week!
But the Wish Fundraiser continues as we still have more to go in order to reach our goal. Let's keep it up! Site will close this Sunday, April 25th.
Don’t forget to ask your employer if they match!
Important Message from your PTA President and Vice President
Seeing all the smiling eyes around campus and hearing kids play brings joy after such a tumultuous year.
As we gradually return to something closer to normal, we want to ask each of you to take a moment to consider what you would like to see at McNear in the future, and how you personally can help to make it happen. We have a small, but mighty, community that makes McNear such a special place -- individual actions make big differences.
Given that most of this year has been spent off-campus, many of our program budgets were slashed by roughly half. Thanks to generous donations from you, and from the broader Petaluma community, we are on track to raise enough to break even for the year, but we are not there yet.
Thanks to our rock star Wish organizers, Heather and Monica, and everyone who contributed and bid on auction items, we are over halfway to achieving our goal. But we need your help to push us over the finish line.
LAST CALL - WISH ENDS THIS SUNDAY, APRIL 25TH!
The fun continues with raffle tickets for the premium parking space, amazing class projects, epic class baskets, and other fun items. The raffle will be held on April 26th, so get your tickets by Sunday for your chance to win some great stuff.
Click the link below to check out the Raffle items and McNear swag. Don't forget the signboard. Only a few weeks are still available.
Also please consider donating directly using the paddle pledge to help make sure we get to the $32,000 goal.
Make sure you do it before this Sunday, April 25th.
Reaching this goal will help to make sure that our amazing programs like MASC, Performing Arts, TIDE, Garden, etc are fully funded for when our kids are back full-time.
Raising money is step 1.
Step 2 is spending it on programs that enrich the McNear experience. In order to spend the budget and keep programs going, we need a PTA Board. We have had several jump in to fill many of the positions, but we still need a President and VP of Fundraising.
These positions can be filled by one or two people. Here is a brief description of what the positions entail:
The VP of Fundraising position mainly involves setting up jogathon (fall) and WISH Benefit (spring). It doesn't mean doing it yourself, but it does mean you recruit volunteers, put up a signup genius, order t-shirts for jogathon, etc.
The President position involves making sure everything gets done by everyone in their roles, and also submitting paperwork, running a monthly meeting, answering PTA emails, and contributing to a weekly newsletter. You don’t need PTA experience for this role. This was my first PTA position.
If you have any interest at all, please contact us so we can discuss further. No experience is required. If you are new to McNear, this is a great way to get immersed in our amazing community. It is super important that we have a board in place for next year, otherwise all programs will stop and any money we have raised will just sit there.
Susan Spaulding (president) and Dave Felix (VP)
Summer School Update
WHO
All current TK-2 students that attend a PCS school
WHEN
- June 14th-July 30th for traditional schools
- June 14th-July 9th for year-round schools
- School will end at 2:00 PM and aftercare will be offered at each site
All PCS elementary school sites
Daily Health Screenings are ESSENTIAL
This is a critical and required step each day your child comes to campus.
Here are the app links if you need to add it to your phone (it's free):
App for Android devices
App for Apple devices
Please set an alarm on your phone, place a few sticky notes around the house, put a chair upside down in front of the door, whatever might help support this essential habit. We will be sending out morning Parent Square reminders and paper forms to those who need them. Please avoid calls from the office and help us all stay healthy, safe and open.
More Important Tips:
- Update your ParentSquare app
- If there are no symptoms, click "I would like to answer "no" to all questions" to avoid accidentally answering "yes" to anything
- Review your answers before submitting as you cannot change your answers once the form is submitted
- Watch this 2-Minute How-To with helpful tips (no audio)
Please review the updated Student and Family Handbook for COVID-19 Safety for best practices and return-to-school protocols. You can find information about how to complete the screening in ParentSquare on the PCS website.
Digital BoxTops Collection
How to redeem Digital Clips (aka Labels)?
You will need your store receipt and the BoxTops App. Remember receipts expire after 14 days!
- Get set up on the app
- Download the BoxTops for Education App in your app store (use this referral link to get an extra 20 points when you scan your first receipt)
- Create an account and select “McNear Elementary School” as your beneficiary
- If you have a paper receipt: scan the store receipt with the app.
- If you have a digital receipt: email the receipt to receipts@boxtops4education.com. Check participating retailers and learn more here.
- Give credit to your student
- Make sure you have the most updated app version.
- In the app, click on the school information box at the top of the screen, then click on the transaction you’d like to credit. Scroll past the list of purchased products and click on “Give Credit” at the bottom of the screen.
- You are done!
How to redeem Paper Clips?
This program is winding down but if you still have unexpired BoxTops clips, bring them to school and we will send them in.
Don’t forget
- Make sure you scan the receipt within 14 days of purchase. Else those BoxTops are lost… forever!
- Still not clear? Check out the BoxTopsForEducation website or watch these videos (BoxTops app, How to scan, How to give credit).
Still Room in Some After School Enrichment Workshops
SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE!!! If you need a scholarship, PLEASE ASK!!!! There are spots for all students, please email me immediately - we want your student to be part of after school!!!
Below is the schedule and other info about all of the available classes. Read carefully, the dates and times are different between the classes. Some classes require online registration, others you email me at lilykreimer@gmail.com. Please reach out with any questions. And sign up quickly - classes are first come, first serve. Ask your kid's friends to join. This is going to be amazing. Hope to see many of you there!
Thank you and take care,
Lily Kreimer
Mama to Pearl (2) and Ruby (K)
Pandemic Benefit Transfer P-EBT Cards
The *State of California* will be sending out new Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) food cards to families who are eligible for free and reduced meals. P-EBT cards are *sent directly to eligible families by the State* and can be used to purchase food for their children, like a debit card. Apply now for free and reduced meals for your students if you have not already done so this school year, as this is the only way you will receive the next P-EBT card.
Families can apply for free/reduced meals through Titan School Solutions in a variety of languages. If you need help applying or updating your address, call the district's Petaluma Family Resource Center (FRC) at 707-778-4697. FRC staff are fluent in both English and Spanish. https://family.titank12.com
Time to Enroll for Next Year! TK or K Siblings? Neighbors?
UPCOMING DATES
WISH Fundraiser - EXTENDED TO APRIL 25th!
Online auction, Raffle and McNear Gear Sales
Friday, April 16th - Sunday, April 25th
Parent & Caregiver Education Night:
Supporting LGBTQIA+ Students
Wednesday, April 28th, 6 - 8 pm
via Zoom
Memorial Day
Monday, May 31st
Last Day of School
Friday, June 4th
Ways to Stay Connected
Email: Leichert@petk12.org
Website: https://www.petalumacityschools.org/mcnear
Location: 605 Sunnyslope Avenue, Petaluma, CA 94952
Phone: 707-778-4752
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/McNear-Elementary-243976945636795/?eid=ARA0ovmGs_7oUxh6_4wadNP1pGIc2snX8ZUqdFtE15ERQBNAa6SYUuk1idGxeccJqxEs6pOYIxmx7MJf
Twitter: @mcnearelement