PATS Minutes
Fairview High School
April 2, 2014
The meeting was called to order at 9:05 a.m.
In Attendance: Sue McCloy, Ellen Eastwood, Chris Nerthling, Denise Borowski, Colleen Grimm, Shelia Kocan, Principal
Park, Emily Crawford, Deputy Brian Ras
Secretary’s Report
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Minutes from previous meeting were approved, and will be posted online at FHS PATS page
Treasurer’s Report
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The Robotics club received $300 from PATS to support their participation in a district competition. The balance
of the PATS account at the end of March totaled $14,225.79; Treasurer Chris Nerthling noted that May is the
busiest month for reimbursement requests.
To provide a benchmark for budgeting PATS upcoming Prom-to-Dawn event, Chris presented figures from a
previous After-prom event: $3100 donated by the Fairview School Foundation, $1100 from PATS, $1950 in
ticket sales. Total expenses of the event came in around $6784.
Committee Reports
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Administrative Professionals’ Day Luncheon – April 24, 2014. Preparations for this event are being finalized now.
Prom to Dawn – Saturday, May 3, 2014. Tickets for the Prom($25) and After Prom($10) are on sale today –
Spring Break during tutorial, lunch, and after school. Senorita Espata will handle sales for both events, and is
offering a $5 discount to FHS students purchasing both tickets. Volunteers are needed after school April 9.10 &
11 to help with sales. Colleen Grimm announced that she will be applying for a $500 grant from the Erie County
Drug and Alcohol Coalition to help fund Prom-to-Dawn. The committee has received $920 in parent and
business cash donations, along with some gift certificates. Flyers will go out this week in report cards to solicit
additional chaperones and helpers for the event. A Sign-up Genius call for volunteers will go out at the same
time. After break, a third Sign-up Genius will reiterate our request for gifts and prizes for the event. Decorating
committee will meet at The Cakery on April 8 at 7:00pm.
Senior Breakfast/Scholarships – Friday, May 23, 2014. After break, a Sign-up Genius will call for food donations
for the event. Sue McCloy and Ellen Murphy to organize food for the breakfast. Seniors who submit a oneparagraph appeal to the guidance office by May 2, 2014 can be considered for scholarship funds. There is some
money in the PATS budget to go toward scholarships; ultimately, we would like to begin next year with a $5000
surplus to fund such initiatives.
Guidance Department Report
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Our 2014 FHS/FMS Career Day a success. High school counselor Emily Crawford reported that the event’s
keynote speaker, secured with a $3500 grant from the foundation, was very well received, as were many other
career speakers. This year’s “career cluster” format worked well, and will likely be used again for this event –
held every other year.
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Volunteer/Job Fair Event at FHS – Monday, May 12, 2014. Mrs. Crawford announced this new program to
encourage high school students of all ages to get involved/become employed. Organizations and businesses
from throughout the community will be represented, and students will have the opportunity to ask questions,
sign up, and obtain applications.
Speaking to the strength of our AP curriculum and teaching, 40 students have signed up for AP tests this year.
FHS does not require the AP test to receive credit for AP courses on a student’s transcript. For that reason, and
many others, including the varying placement policies of different post-secondary schools, many students are
opting not to take the exam.
To encourage greater participation, the district is currently looking for funds to cover PSAT fees for future
students interested in taking the exam.
Senior Breakfast/Scholarships Assembly – Friday, May 23.
Principal’s Report
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Principal Park introduced Deputy Brian Ras, Fairview’s new resource officer. Students and faculty from all three
schools have been welcoming and enthusiastic. Under Ras’ supervision, the high school had its first lock-down
drill of the year, the elementary students practiced their evacuation drill, and tornado drills are soon to follow.
The school is currently researching additional measures to secure classroom doors during lockdown. Recently, a
car jumped the curb at the high school, damaged the turf and then took off. Staff were able to provide the
deputy with the license plate, and the incident was quickly resolved, with the offender coming in to the school
to apologize and pay for damages.
Core course placements and student class requests are in for the 2014/15 school year. Administration is in the
process of building the class schedule, which could be completed as early as next week. Kristie Karpinski and
Susan Nelson will head our 9th Grade team next year, coordinating the cross curriculum instruction in Honors,
Social Studies, and English.
This week, Principal Park will be reviewing applications to fill 2014/15 positions opened up by the retirement of
several teachers. One criteria to be considered in new hires is the number of certifications held by an applicant.
Following hiring, teaching assignments for the coming year will be finalized.
FMS teachers Nicole Nies and Danelle Ciafre will join our high school English department. Other positions to be
filled include Business/Tech, Math/Science, Social Studies, and Driver’s Ed. FHS teachers retiring are Gerald
Drabina, Malcolm Beall, Linda Graziani, Pamela Hurt, and school nurse, Mary Nelson.
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Curriculum Note: As discussed in past meetings, Computer Apps I will be dropped next year, allowing more
opportunities for incoming 9th graders to fulfil a new FHS Arts requirement. Curriculum for Computer Apps II will
carry a new emphasis on post-secondary planning, job shadowing, and portfolio development to better prepare
graduates for future job searches.
New Business
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Beach Day - Friday, April 11. PATS has contributed $100 to this popular, yearly event, which will include
students in beach wear, a volleyball tournament, swimming, sundae ba,r and more throughout the day.
We would like to have PATS officers in place for the coming school year before our final meeting in May. Loretta
Van Honk will be taking over the Treasurer’s position. We still need a candidate to take the reins on Fundraising.
The meeting was adjourned at 10:00.
Final PATS Meeting - May 7, 2014 at 9:00 a.m.