Hello Falcon Families,
Happy April and happy Arab American Heritage Month! This month we celebrate the families who have come from or are descendants of the 22 Arab countries. You can celebrate Arab American Heritage Month by exploring the diverse and delicious cuisine including dishes like: hummus, falafel, shawarma, and various sweets like baklava and knafeh, to honor the rich cultural heritage of Arab Americans.
Their achievements, contributions, and presence in this country have helped to enrich our collective culture. To learn more please check out these articles and videos!
A lot is coming up at Franklin after Spring Break! In this newsletter we’ll cover:
April 15: Executive Board elections 🗳️
April 18: Deadline to enter the Yearbook Cover Artwork contest
April 25: Falcon-Palooza 🤘
April 26: Bike Festival 🚴
May 3: Science Festival 🧪
May 4: Star Wars Day / Giants game at Oracle Park 💫🧑⚾
May 5-9: Teacher Appreciation Week 👩🏻🏫
PTA Meeting. April 15. 6:30pm – 8:00pm on Zoom
The agenda and Zoom link will be sent out through Konstella soon.
Elections for the Executive PTA Board for the next school year (2025–2026) will happen at our PTA meeting on April 15th. Below is our slate of nominees. Additional nominations will be called from the floor at this meeting.
Thank you so much to the parents below who are able to volunteer their time to be on the board. It takes many, many folks to help the PTA run and we so appreciate those who can take the extra step of taking on a board position.
There is one important role that still needs to be filled, the Executive Vice President. This role is crucial to the functioning of our PTA as they serve one year as EVP and then transition into the role of President the following year. Please email president@franklinpta.org if you'd like to learn more about this role!
President — Ann Miyashiro
Vice President — STILL LOOKING!
Membership Chair — Chelsea Guillen
Fundraising Chair — Hazel Archer
Hospitality Chair — Jennifer Denton
Communications Chair — Amanda Breeding
Legislative Advocacy Chair — Qomil Davis
Recording Secretary — Anthony Williams
Treasurer — Ben Montgomery
Financial Secretary — Nick Parker
Financial Reviewer — Aly Karnath
Historian — Naomi Weisenberg
Yearbook Artwork Cover Contest — enter by April 15!
Each year we ask our community to share your photos and invite students to create an inspiring cover. Every Franklin Falcon is invited to participate in the Yearbook Cover Artwork Contest.
This year’s theme is, “Soaring to New Heights”. Enter your student's artwork by April 18. Instructions and the form can be found here.
We'd love to include your photos in the yearbook as well! If you have photos that you'd like to share, please follow the link below and add them to the appropriate folder:
Franklin Elementary Yearbook Photos (2024-2025)
We'd love to see your photos from any school events including our:
- Back-to-School Social
- Family Bike Ride
- Walk-a-Thon
- Spooktacular
- Halloween Parade
- Snowflake Shoppe
- Heritage Night
- Franklin Book of Records
- Classroom Photos (can include art docent, field trips, etc.)
- Photos of students with teachers and staff and more!
Please feel free to reach out to Lindsay Revelli or Jen Denton via Konstella with any questions or suggestions.
Falcon-Palooza 2025! Friday, April 25. 4:30 – 8:00pm
We're thrilled to announce Falcon-Palooza, our FREE and ALL AGES concert featuring 5 (!!) Franklin parent bands!
Come for an evening of music, fun, and community spirit where kids can roam free while parents show off their musical talent. Grab some food (or a tipple) from one of the fine establishments nearby and enjoy the music- we'll keep the kids entertained with arts & crafts (please note that this is not a drop-off event).
When: Friday, April 25, 4:30PM- 8:00PM
Where: Al Fresco Dining Park, 1435 Webster St (corner of Taylor St.)
What: Pop, dance, 90s alt, pop punk, ska, and a lovin' spoonful of good vibes
Franklin Science Festival. Saturday, May 3 
The Franklin Science Festival returns on May 3! Grab your baking soda & bring your beakers for a hands-on afternoon of experiments. Collect station stamps or submit an experiment of your own to the Hall of Wonders to win ribbons and prizes. We'd love to have some volunteers to construct catapults and set off volcanoes. Please join the Science Festival Committee or reach out to Amanda Glasser via Konstella to get involved. More details and sign ups to come!
Giants Fundraiser. May 4th. 
Gather you (Millennium) falcons and join us for Star Wars Day at Oracle Park.
Visit https://fevo-enterprise.
Teacher & Staff Appreciation Week. May 5 - 9th
We appreciate our teachers every day, but during Teacher Appreciation Week we really show them how special they are! This year we will celebrate our teachers and staff the week of May 5-9. Your room parent will be sending out a class specific message about the plan for the week. The PTA is also planning a few special meals for the teachers and staff as well. If you'd like to help deliver meals to the staff during this week, or help decorate a classroom door, please reach out to Hospitality Chairs Naomi Weisenberg and James Kim or Room Parent Lead, Grace Lee through Konstella.
AUSD Jewish Round Table Meetup! Franklin Park, Saturday, April 26. 11am – 1pm
What's better than biking this summer? Biking with with a tuned-up bike this summer. Bring friends and family to this free, citywide bike festival for all ages!
Sign up to enjoy:
Free Bike Repairs
Helmet Fitting and Giveaway
Decorate your helmet
Test your safety knowledge
Bike rodeos (start times: 11:30, 12:30, 1:45. No registration required.)
Cargo + Electric Bike expo
Free bike goodies
Food Trucks + Music
And much more!
Free workshops are also available! Pre-registration is required. For more info, please visit: https://tinyurl.com/ku9bwxbw
Disco Cowboy Auction Fundraiser
YeeHaw! What an incredible night of BBQ, entertainment, games, dancing, and FUNdraising! We not only met, but surpassed our fundraising goal! 🎉 Thank you to our fantastic Auction Fundraising Committee — Brittany Lasky, Hazel Archer, Tyler Fuentes, Chelsea Guillen, Amanda Breeding, Kylie & Justin Gabbard, Amy Dabrowski, Ms. Pieri, Erin Lae, James Kim, Lindsay Kemp, Michelle Gordon, Qomil Davis, Carolyn Thamkul, Deborah Goldberg, Julie Casey, and everyone who helped in innumerable ways to make this event a success. It takes a village!
A very special thanks to our sponsors Team Schuler, Alameda Pediatric Dentistry, Michele Senitzer Real Estate Group, and the Kate McCaffrey Group!
Questions? Email fundraising@franklinpta.org 
Whether you’re a seasoned Franklin parent or are new to our community (welcome!) we want to hear from you. Please feel free to reach out to any PTA Exec Board member, or email ask@franklinpta.org.
Still Hankering for More PTA Content? We Got You Covered!
- The Franklin Elementary PTA's website
- Franklin Elementary School PTA Facebook Page
- Franklin Falcons of Alameda Facebook Page (this is private group managed by the school office staff- you must request to join)
In gratitude and appreciation,
Your Franklin Elementary PTA
2024–2025 Franklin PTA Executive Board:
Karen Reuel — President president@franklinpta.org
Ann Miyashiro — Vice President ann_m@franklinpta.or
Brittany Lasky — Fundraising Chair fundraising@franklinpta.org
Naomi Weisenberg — Hospitality Chair
Steve Perez — Communications Chair communications@franklinpta.org
Michael Cianfrani — Recording Secretary
Ben Montgomery — Treasurer
Nick Parker — Financial Secretary
Aly Karnath — Financial Reviewer
Jen Gross — Historian
Grace Lee — Parliamentarian
Tyler Fuentes — DEI Chair
Laura Kingston — Art Docent Chair artdocent@franklinpta.or