Welcome back to St. Teresa of Avila School! We are proud of our school and thankful for your dedication to the success of St. Teresa and your commitment to your child’s education.

This letter is to introduce you to the 2009-2010 Parent Teacher Group (PTG) at St. Teresa. The PTG is involved in many activities and can be an avenue for you to become involved in the school community. The PTG has a theme this year and it is “FAMILY.” We are all one family at St. Teresa and we want all to feel welcome and a part of the community.

Our stated mission is “to provide support to the faculty and staff of the school, to serve as a voice for parents and to offer community building opportunities for the mutual benefit of the children, parents, and educators.” We work towards this mission in the following ways:

Supporting the educators and staff by providing financial support for: · Field trips · The school library · Continuing education for teachers · Start-up money for each classroom · Providing various holiday celebrations for faculty and staff

Support our students with the following services: · Organize alternative lunch and snack options for purchase in the cafeteria (fast food days, popcorn days, hot dog days, ice cream days, healthy snack days) · Provide holiday lunch · Support activities such as History Fair, Science Fair, School Play, Bible Bowl and Jesus Day · Offer incentives for the students to raise money for the school by collecting box tops, Campbell soup labels and Tyson Food labels.

Support and promote the family unit that is such a wonderful aspect of St. Teresa by hosting: · Family Fun Nights and Parent Night Out activities. · Family fundraising activities such as Pumpkin Carving, Winter Wonderland and Children’s Bingo.

Our primary source of financial support comes from the Major Fund Raiser. You should be receiving the tickets for this fundraiser in the mail mid August. Your continued support is vital to the success of our mission and we thank you in advance for your participation.

PTG meetings are held four times per year and last approximately one hour with childcare available. There is a fifth meeting in May that includes a cookout and election of new PTG Board members. The meetings provide updates on PTG activities and the status of the budget. We will continue to provide guest speakers on various topics that pertain to our students and their families. This is also an opportunity to offer input, ask questions, or to voice your concerns about topics related to school. Your input is invaluable to our school’s success.

You will receive several PTG items the first week of school – they will come home on yellow paper. Please look over these items closely, they will offer you the opportunity to sign up for various activities including Room Parents and Room Helpers, committees for our various functions and opportunities for you to get involved in your child’s school.

One of the easiest ways to keep informed about PTG events and activities, and to contact the PTG board members, is to visit this website. Navigate through the site to find information on all of the latest PTG events and activites.

The PTG Board Members for the 2009-2010 school year are as follows: Shannon Darnell, President Linda Collins and Maria Williams, Co-President-Elect Andrea Teal, Treasurer Jennifer Collett, Corresponding Secretary Kimberly Frondorf, Recording Secretary Julie Dudley, Communications Representative JoAnn Winters, Teacher Representative Sharon Willmes, Principal

Again, welcome back to St. Teresa of Avila School. If you ever have any questions related to PTG, please feel free to email Shannon Darnell at ptg0910@yahoo.com. We look forward to reconnecting with you and working with you to continue to make St. Teresa School the best it can be.

Sincerely,

Shannon Darnell and the PTG Board