March 19, 2013
. . . Notes from Jacquie
The staff and I are deliciously stuffed with the unbelievable lunch that you provided today. Thank you so much! Your culinary creations were amazing – the variety, the tastes, the presentation – all so perfect. And thank you to the group of moms who prepared the table, served and are now cleaning the kitchen. Thank you Lisa Dowling for another perfect planning of this annual treat.
As we prepare for conferences, teachers are enjoying bringing all of your children’s work together, admiring their accomplishments and looking forward to our conversations with all of you. I am always struck by the enormous feeling of love and support that fills the classrooms as you and the teachers take time to reflect on the development of your children.
The Annual Giving committee has been busy keeping this annual fund drive at the center of attention. We launch this annual campaign with both a financial as well as a 100% participation goal. The most important one is the participation. If everyone participates at the level that is affordable we will make it to both of our goals.
There are three critical reasons for asking all of you to support our Annual Giving campaign: first, it allows us to maintain a very moderate tuition level supported by small annual increases; second, we are able to sustain a tuition assistance program for families who need financial support; and third, because we can count on our families to give to the Annual Campaign, we are able to have confidence in our ability to maintain salary increases and to provide medical and dental insurance for our staff.
I realize that this year we surprised you with the increase in our tuition deposits and just two weeks later asked you to give to the annual fund. No worries, you can simply make a pledge today and pay up after enrollment and tax time.
And now the details:
We do need 100% participation – this is a tradition that we have held for the past ten years or more. Consider this one more tuition payment – it is a sliding scale – you determine the amount; it is tax deductable; and for many families it can be matched by your employer.
We are not close to achieving this goal. Remember we have a level contest underway. Last year, middle school parents came forth and won this contest. To date, however, middle school is only at 21% of families who have contributed. Elementary comes in next at 30% and primary at 38%. That computes to 33% for the entire community.
On Tuesday we launched into a discussion of cell phones which then went on to the many available devices and how as parents we help ourselves and our children navigate the emerging information/technology age. This too is a complicated subject, with no clear black and white answers. I hope we can continue that discussion in weeks to come.
We would love to have all of the pledges in by April so that we can wrap up another successful year.
Thank you so much for all that you do for Pacific Crest, the children and the staff. I look forward to seeing you over the next few days of parent conferences.
Best Wishes,
