Wildchat: 1/30/24
January 30, 2024
Volunteer Opportunities
Our community makes Whittier amazing. Please consider a volunteer opportunity; lots of time commitments and types (in-person, one-time, remote, and more) are available!
- Gaga Ball Pit Install Crew
- Spring Fling Planning Committee
- Spring Fling Class Bucket Coordinators
- Spring Fling Class Art Project Coordinators
- PTA Budget Committee
- Yearbook Coordinator – Please contact the Front Office for more info or to volunteer!
Questions? Contact us!
Upcoming Events
Mark your calendars! Lots of opportunities to learn and connect with your Wildcat community!
- Jan 31: Great PTA Sign Up Day
- Feb 5-9: Black Lives Matter Week
- Feb 6: Safer Internet Day
- Feb 10: Introduce a Girl to Food Science
- Feb 12: North Beach PTA Meeting with School Board Director Lisa Rankin
- Feb 13: New Family Info Session (9-10am) and Open House (6-7pm, Whittier Library)
- Feb 13: PTA Meeting (7pm, Whittier Library and over Zoom)
- Feb 27: Pints with Principal Watters (6pm, Stoup Brewing)
- Feb 29: Coffee Chat with Principal Watters (8am, Whittier Library)
- Mar 1: Family Dance and Game Night (Whittier)
- Mar 7: Budget Info Session with Principal Watters (Zoom)
Looking for 5 Budget Committee Volunteers
Hello Whittier Families!
I’m looking for 5 volunteers to be part of the PTA Budget Committee this year. We have the opportunity to meet in Feb/March to look at this year’s budget and make recommendations for next year’s budget. I would love to see some new faces who want to get involved with the PTA and better understand the budget. Please email me directly if you are interested.
Thanks! Michelle (PTA Treasurer)
Safer Internet Day: February 6, 2024
Explore The Smart Talk, a free tool that helps families set digital safety ground rules together. Developed in collaboration with the National PTA and Norton, The Smart Talk helps children and families feel safer and more empowered in their digital lives.
Tomorrow is the Great PTA Sign Up Day!
The Washington State PTA invites you to join our local PTA tomorrow to reach their statewide goal of 5,000 members signed up in just one day! Whittier currently has 136 members–we would love to reach even more families. Tomorrow is the perfect day to sign up! Read below for some information from the Washington State PTA:
- Did you know when you join the Whittier Elementary PTA you also become a member of the Seattle Council PTA, Washington State PTA, and National PTA?
- You’ll have access to special discounts offered through WSPTA and National PTA – just some of the many benefits of membership!
- Be a part of something bigger – the more members we have in the Whittier PTA & Washington State PTA, the greater legislative voice we have on issues affecting children.
- Being a member helps you stay connected with what’s happening at Whittier and allows you to vote at monthly PTA meetings.
- If you haven’t yet, please join us and sign up today!
Follow the Call of the Disco Ball and Move! to Fund Programs at Whittier
Fundraising at Whittier is essential to maintain the staff and services our school community needs. Due to the Seattle Public Schools funding model, Whittier receives one of the smallest per student flexible funding allocations across SPS, with the expectation that our PTA community will fundraise for our unfunded school needs.
What is flexible funding? These are unearmarked funds provided to school administrators to pay for needs specific to their school that are otherwise unfunded. In the past, we’ve used flexible funds to support staffing, to extend differentiated learning, and towards staff to reduce class sizes. PTA budget funds our literacy specialist, our PCP specialists (art/performing arts/PE), and other staff. Additionally, with funds raised, we are able to pay for enrichment programs for all students, including Raz Kids Reading and IXL math apps, as well as a host of assemblies and residencies, such as Massive Monkeys, Reptile Man, Nature Vision, and more.
This Fall, we raised over $83K from annual give! Great job Wildcats! To meet the annual PTA budget, we will be holding two more fundraisers this Spring: Move-a-thon (with a fundraising target of $15,000) and Spring Fling ($60,000) for a combined goal of $75,000.
April 26th – Move-a-thon
A fundraiser driven by students reaching out to their neighbors and extended family for donations for each lap run on the blacktop.
May 18th – Spring Fling: this year’s theme is Follow the Call of the Disco Ball!
A fun, block party-style, community event where classroom art will be on display and for sale, themed classroom buckets will be auctioned off and a variety of hosted parties will be available for purchase. Past hosted parties have included items such as First Day of School Brunch, Whiskey Tasting, Backyard Movie Night for Kids, and more!
Stay tuned for more details on these fundraisers in the coming weeks!
Other ways to get involved with fully funding Whittier:
- Join the PTA!
- Learn more about the Whittier budget from Principal Watters
- February 27th at 6 pm – Pints with the Principal
- February 29th at 8 am – Coffee with the Principal
- March 7th at 7 pm – Virtual Budget Roadshow with Principal Watters (over Zoom)
- Engage in Advocacy at the District and State level for a more equitable funding model:
- Email the Advocacy team to get involved!
- Communicate with your school board to advocate flexible funding at schools like Whittier and, in the meantime, not restricting PTA funding to fill current budget gaps:
- Attend and submit a Q&A for Lisa Rankin at North Beach PTA’s meeting on 2/12
- Contact our school board director, Lisa Rivera Smith, directly (lisa.rivera@seattleschools.org, facebook.com/LisaRiveraSmithSPS)
Gaga Ball Pit Update
We are so excited to announce we’ve got an estimated delivery date for our playground’s new Gaga Ball pit–pieces should be arriving on Thursday, February 29th!
Thanks to everyone who offered to help with the install so far. Please see this sign-up sheet to help coordinate the little prep work we need to complete before delivery and/or the more concentrated effort immediately following delivery. Lots of roles and many don’t require any construction or power tool experience/know-how!
Reach out if you have any questions, ideas for how to make the process smoother (we’ve never installed a Gaga Ball pit before!), or if you need more information.
Save the Date: Spring Fling 2024
The Spring Fling is Whittier’s yearly event that raises necessary funds for essential staff and services at our school. This includes staffing grants to support literacy and art programs, scholarships, teacher discretionary funds, school-day enrichment, and much more.
Details
- Date: Saturday, May 18 5:00-9:00
- Location: Whittier Elementary Block Party (13th Ave NW)
- Theme: Follow the Call of the Disco Ball! Come dressed to shine in sequins and silver, or disco glitz and glam to get you in the groove! No sparkles? No problem, come join the party as you are.
- Auction: All bidding will be done online again this year.
- More Fun: Once again you can expect to see live music, food trucks, and a bar at the party!
Stay tuned for additional details!
Friday, March 1st at Whittier (6-8:30pm)
Put on your dancing shoes for the Whittier Dance & Game Night Friday March 1st. The party begins at 6:00pm and will wrap up at 8:30pm. Grab an early dinner and come ready to play, twist, shake & party with your Whittier family & friends. You bring a water bottle & we’ll provide a treat to go with it!
Save the Date!
The Whittier PTA 2024 Move-a-thon is Friday, April 26th!
This event supports the 2023-24 Whittier PTA budget–student enrichment, staffing support, equipment upgrades, and community events. Students raise personal sponsorships from family, friends and/or neighbors. More details to follow on Move-a-Thon schedule, fundraising information, and volunteer opportunities.
Introduce a Girl to Food Science: February 10, 2024
Join us for the 8th annual Introduce a Girl event organized by Women in Chemical Engineering at the University of Washington! This year’s theme is Food Science, and Introduce a Girl is completely free!
This STEM outreach event is geared towards girls and gender-expansive youth ages 5-15. Students have the opportunity to explore science and technology through a variety of interactive demonstrations and hands-on activities. Our theme this year is food science! This event is free for all participants and is a great way to get youth excited about STEM!
Event Details:
- Date: Saturday, February 10th, 2024
- Time: 12 pm – 3 pm
- Venue: University of Washington HUB Lyceum
Register to reserve your tickets. A parent/guardian will need to register all students participating in the event.
For more information, visit the Introduce a Girl website.
Do you want to join a Spanish Afterschool Program next fall?
¡Hola! We are thrilled to announce that registration for our Spanish Afterschool Program (hosted at the PNA) for the upcoming Fall will open soon. If you’re a new family, sign up on our inquiry list on February 1 and we’ll reach out to you once registration is open.
If you want to give your child a head start in Spanish exposure in a fun and interactive environment, this program is perfect for you.
Registration Timeline
- February 1 at 9AM
- New families can join the inquiry list posted on our website.
- Registration for current families will open.
- February 12
- Our team will start contacting families on the inquiry list to offer available spots in our Spanish Afterschool Program.