Dear MLS Community,

As the school year comes to a close, we thought we'd keep to PTO tradition and offer a report on MLS PTO spending. As we shared in January, the MLS PTO had a very successful fall Annual Fund campaign. By mid-year, we were able to fully fund two of our three 2014-15 Strategic Priorities: 1) the purchase of 30 tablets for classroom use and, 2) the establishment of a Professional Development fund for our teachers.

After this spring's successful Silent Auction, we are excited to be closing the year with over $25,000 earmarked for the 3rd-5th grade playground refurbishment project! Dr. Irani and his team have been working diligently on playground research and coordinating with ACPS on feasibility and pricing. We expect to share much more detailed information regarding the playground at Back-To-School night in September.

In addition to funding our 2014-15 Strategic Priorities, and funding our annual operating budget, our fundraising has allowed us to make other year-end purchases for the benefit of the school. These funding requests were submitted by teachers and administrators and voted on by our PTO Board earlier this month. Here's an overall summary of our major 2014-2015 spending:

2014-2015 MLS PTO Major Spending

As we head into the next school year, Dr. Irani and the grade level teaching team leads will work with next year's PTO Board to determine the strategic priorities for 2015-2016.  We're excited to hear next year's goals!

In the meantime, we'd like to share that it's been an honor to serve as your PTO Presidents this school year. We've worked with many dedicated and tireless volunteers, and we've seen the MLS community at its most generous, caring, and involved. The best part? It's been a lot of fun! Thank you for having confidence in us and allowing us to "man the ship" this year.

Warm Regards,

Laurel Geis & Holly Stancil

The election results are in and we're happy to report that the following individuals will serve on the Meriwether Lewis PTO board next school year.  Thank you for your votes!

Co-Presidents:  Mindy Goodall, Peggy Williams

Co-Vice Presidents: Sarah Kelsey, Carleen Kupcis

Secretary: Richard Monroe

Treasurer: Helen Boyd

Volunteer Coordinator: Kenna Boyd

Communications: Laurel Geis, Holly Stancil

Faculty Representative: Cheryl Wetmore-Simpson