PARENT COORDINATOR UPDATES

Hello PS 107 Families!

I am taking a moment here to share my appreciation for all that I get to see and experience as a parent coordinator here at PS 107. A collective “shout out” to all of you, for the many different aspects of school community and coming together that happens, large and small. Whether it is watching the administration, staff, and teachers all work together to create order out of the every day chaos of school life (state testing week was something to behold!), to the parents who assist in a multitude of ways (event planning, execution, volunteerism, charitable works, all of it!), to an after school program that ensures continuity and provides joy and a safe haven for your children. I get to watch all of this from the unique perspective of being in the midst of all this connectivity. It really is a special place to be and I wanted to share that.

Please see below for Ms. Joanna’s weekly message and updates from myself and the PTA. 

MESSAGE FROM MS JOANNA 

Dear PS 107 Families, 

As many of you may have heard — or noticed — our beloved school safety agent, Sharon Hosannah, has been unexpectedly reassigned to another school. In January 2022, Agent Sharon sustained a shoulder injury while on the job at PS 107. Although she was in pain, she continued working until she learned that she needed surgery. In January 2023, Agent Sharon took a medical leave to have shoulder surgery and recover. We all expected that Agent Sharon would return to PS 107 when her leave ended, in early April. 

On what was supposed to be her first day back, Agent Sharon sent me a message that she had been reassigned to MS 136/MS 821 in Sunset Park. I was shocked to learn this and reached out to her direct supervisor at the NYPD (note that School Safety Agents are under the purview of the NYPD, not the Department of Education). I was told that, because there is a shortage of school safety agents, Agent Sharon was moved to a school where there was a vacancy and that there was no way to have her return to PS 107. 

I pressed the issue further and the Commanding Officer for School Safety Agents, Tyema Hill, visited PS 107 to meet with me last week. While she understood my concerns, CO Hill reiterated that Agent Sharon could not be moved back to PS 107. She had been moved from the 78th precinct (PS 107’s) to the 72nd precinct (MS 136/MS 821’s), and moving from precinct to precinct was not possible. I was also told that, in the NYPD, agents do not have “rights” to their previous postings when they go on leave. So, once on leave, an agent can be reassigned anywhere in the city upon their return. CO Hill did share that there would be a new graduating class of School Safety Agents on May 1st, which might ease the NYPD’s staffing issues, and it “might” be possible to have Agent Sharon moved back after that. 

While our current agent, Agent Mata, is a hardworking agent who has been a solid replacement for Agent Sharon during her leave, we absolutely want Agent Sharon to return to PS 107. Agent Sharon has been in the PS 107 community for 17 years. She knows all of our students and their families. She knows the neighborhood. She knows who should be in the building and who should not. She has wonderful relationships with the entire community. All of these qualities are incredibly important for keeping our school safe, and we believe the NYPD should prioritize this when considering agent placements. 

So what can you do to ensure that Agent Sharon is moved back to PS 107 after May 1st? Copy and paste this letter into an email, sign it, and send it to the NYPD, DOE, and City Council staff members listed at the top. If you are so inclined, feel free to add to your email any personal stories you may have related to how Agent Sharon is such an important part of the PS 107 community. The more messages we can send in support of Agent Sharon, the better! 

MAY 4TH PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES

You may have noticed on the NYC Public Schools calendar that there is something called “Evening Parent-Teacher Conferences” for elementary schools coming up on Thursday, May 4th. These conferences, which will be held from 4:30 to 7:30 pm, are by invitation only. For these conferences, teachers will be meeting with parents of students about whom they have (or have had) concerns academically and/or social-emotionally. These may be families who received a letter in February indicating their child’s promotion is in doubt or families who have already had additional meetings with teachers this year about their children’s progress. Note that teachers will reach out directly to families with whom they would like to have a conference; please do not reach out to teachers requesting a conference. Thank you for your understanding. 

COVID TEST KIT DISTRIBUTION

As noted in last week’s Parent Coordinator updates, the NYC public schools will no longer be distributing Covid test kits monthly. If you are in need of Covid test kits, please reach out to Parent Coordinator Nadia Benlarbi at parentcoordinator@ps107.org. We can send them home with your child or you can pick them up at school. 

MIDDLE SCHOOL PLACEMENTS

Finally, middle school placements come out this Tuesday, April 25th, after the school day has ended. Some families will be thrilled with their child’s placement and others will be disappointed. This is always an emotional day for our graduating 5th graders. Families, please remember not to speak highly or poorly of any particular middle school in front of your children. We believe that all middle schools have their pros and cons. Ultimately, it is about the “fit” for your child, which is difficult to assess before a child actually attends the school. If you have serious concerns about your child’s middle school placement, please reach out to School Counselor, Sarah Green at sgreen@ps107.org.

Have a wonderful week!

Warmly, 

Ms Joanna

NEWS

PIZZA PARTY WINNERS!

As was announced at the PTA meeting, the PIZZA PARTY winners for 2023 survey completion so far are:

Class 1-201 - Ms. Siobhan & Ms. Kerri's class

Class 2-206 - Ms. Reid's class

Class 3-208 - Mr. Gary & Ms. Nelley's class

I suspect there were some mail in surveys that have not been counted as of yet. I will monitor our online results to see if we can add any more classes and give them this special reward as well.

For now, Congratulations to the Winners!

and ...

Thank you for helping us to help you by completing the surveys :)

SUMMER RISING

Enrollment for Summer Rising began on April 17th.  For more information please click here: https://www.schools.nyc.gov/enrollment/summer/grades-k-8

PARENT WORKSHOPS/FAMILY EVENTS

Tuesday, April 25, 2023 : 5 - 7 pm

Parent Workshop: Gender 101 workshop offered by Ackerman Institute for Families  

Please see the attached flyer.

Wednesday, April 26, 2023 : 6:30-7:30 pm

Parent Workshop: "How Much Money Do You Make?  What to say when kids ask about money " by Ron Leiber

PS 107 4th Floor Art Studio                                                                                                                                        *Childcare will be provided in the 107 Cafeteria                                                                                                    Please register here                                                                                                                                                                     Click here to see the event flyer

Sunday, April 30, 2023 : 10 am - 2pm                                                                                                                            Family Event:  Assemblymember Robert Carroll’s annual Spring Clean and Green event is at 10am to 2pm, April 30th in Prospect Park at the entrance near Machate/Park Circle (across from TD Bank)!  They will have electronic recycling, paper shredding, textile recycling, kid's stop n' swap, and more. There are also giveaways, special services, information and demonstrations, to help you have a greener and cleaner Spring 2023. 

Please see attached flyer for details.

ADMISSION INFORMATION
Kindergarten 

• Families have until May 5th to accept their offers, and until June 27th to provide registration documents.

Middle School

• Middle School offers will be released on Tuesday, April 25th, 2023, after school hours. 

REMINDERS

COVID - 19 TEST KITS UPDATE

As recommended by the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) in alignment with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), COVID-19 test kits should now be distributed upon request for students and staff who are experiencing symptoms and/or have a known exposure to someone with COVID-19. This practice, beginning May 1, replaces the previous guidance of automatic distribution of four tests per month to each student and staff. Please see the attached letter for more information.

LOST AND FOUND 

A special thank you to the following parents who picked up the lost and found bagged items, got them washed and donated them to Gowanus Mutual Aid!

Joanna Lumbang-Dowding

Sarah Foster

Jennifer May Reddy                                                                                                                                                     

Elif Karakurt Franco

Sarah Ladner Gomez

Thank you for your contribution in giving back to our community while supporting sustainability!

*If you would like to be a part of this effort in the future, please email me at parentcoordinator@ps107.org 

Please click here to view the virtual lost and found. 

PTA UPDATES

 UPCOMING EVENTS

• CHiPS Food Drive - April 26th (and every Wednesday)

• Auction/Gala - April 28th 

• Brooklyn Cyclones Game - May 7th, 2pm  (Buy tickets here)

• Movie Night - May 12th

• Art Day - May 13th 

• AAPI Month Snack Sale Fundraiser- May 19th, After School

• Spring Fling - June 7th

OPEN EXEC BOARD POSITIONS
The PTA is looking to fill its open positions ASAP as voting will happen in May. Please take a look at the open positions here. There are roles suited for all types, so please consider joining the best PTA in all of Park Slope! If you are interested in a role or simply have further questions about the role and/or commitment, please email Davina davina@ps107.org or Cynthia cynthia@ps107.org

BROOKLYN CYCLONES GAME 

We hope you'll join fellow PS 107 families in cheering on the Brooklyn Cyclones at Coney Island on Sunday, May 7 at 2:00 PM! There will be bouncy houses, giveaways, festivities, sunshine (we hope!), and of course, baseball! A block of seats for the PS 107 community will be reserved in section 11, behind 3rd base.

You can purchase your tickets here for $20 each (plus a nominal PayPal processing fee). This is a school fundraiser, and 50% of the proceeds will benefit the PS 107 PTA.

See you there! Please contact Nisha, nisha@ps107.org, with any questions.

SPRING AUCTION GALA
The P.S. 107 Spring Gala is SOLD OUT! We thank you all very much for your support and we look forward to seeing many of you at the event this Friday, April 28th! Regardless of whether you are attending the Gala, please check out the online auction open to everyone: THE ONLINE AUCTION WENT LIVE on Thursday April 20th! Click here to see all the great items up for bidding. The online auction CLOSES at 3:00 p.m. on April 28th. You do not have to be a PS 107 parent to bid online.  Share with family or grandparents. There is something for everyone!

WEEKLY GREEN TIP FROM PS107 GREEN COMMITTEE

Actionable Item for Earth Day! Adapted from ReadZero: On Tuesday, a new bill was introduced: Choose to Reuse bill. If it passes, it will radically normalize reuse. The Bill mandates that all corporate-owned fast-casual restaurants offer a reusable option at all points of sale.Here is this ABC 7 segmemt on why the bill is important. Here is a tool to make it easy for you to email your council member in support of the bill. All you have to do is enter your address, email address, and edit the email content as you see fit. Take action here. Happy Earth Day!

SUPPORT THE PS 107 PTA

- Donate to our Annual Fund by clicking here or share this link with friends and family (a special link for non-Konstella users)

- Scan your groceries receipt with the Box Tops for Education app on your phone. It only takes a minute and any purchases with the Box Tops label on them will automatically make money for our school!  

IMPORTANT DATES

• April 26 - Parent Workshop with Ron Lieber 6:30-7:30 pm - click here to register
• April 28 - Spring Auction/Gala
• May 7 - Brooklyn Cyclones Game 2pm

UPCOMING HOLIDAYS

• May 29 - Memorial Day - school closed

Thank you,

Nadia