Dear Hillview Parent,

The school year is off to a great start! There is a wonderful buzz about campus and I hope you have adjusted well to the new academic year and have noticed the positive and hopeful vibe that has characterized the last several weeks.

I am writing with a sincere request. There are just three more days left in the Hillview PTO membership campaign. While our progress has been good we are still short of our goal of raising $160,000 to fund all of the PTO programs for the year. This financial goal allows the PTO to spend $250 per child. With only 21 percent of our families yet to make a donation, we can easily reach our goal if we come together around our shared vision. I know that not all families can donate at the same amount, but all families can donate. When we all join together in supporting our students through the PTO it sends a powerful message to the kids, the staff and the community - we are in this together!

If you haven't already, please consider donating before the end of the day, Thursday, September 26. To give, simply click on the link.

I hope that every family will also support the MPAEF by the close of their Annual Parent Campaign on Thursday, November 21. Your support of the MPAEF funds more than 32 teachers this year. Without this funding, we would have fewer classroom teachers and six additional students in each class. Our programs for art, music, drama and library would not be robust and expanding. Last year 85 percent of our families joined together to make this possible and I hope that you will make that commitment again this year. Learn more and make your commitment at www.mpaef.org.

You hear enough dire reports from the news media about the state of public education. I don't want to overwhelm you with more. I want you to consider how fortunate we are to not have to worry about those reports when we are confident our community will do whatever it takes to define our own destiny.

Thank you for allowing me to serve this community and thank you for putting kids first.