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Show A-18 Jeremy Ranch RT.O. responds to critic by Stephanie Howell OF THE RECORD STAFF A seemingly innocuous article which ran in the Jan. 14 issue of The Park Record ignited sparks at the Jeremy Ranch Parent Teacher Organization. In a Profile of Eva Tobie, Tobie was quoted as saying, "I spent a couple cou-ple of frustrating years on the P.T.O. which seemed to be more interested in purchasing things like playground equipment rather than enhancing the kids' education." Tobie is a longtime long-time advocate of arts education, and an active volunteer. Members of the Jeremy Ranch P.T.O. were not pleased with the statement, reacting with heated letters let-ters and phone calls to The Park Record. "The objective of the P.T.O. is to promote the education and welfare of the children of Jeremy Ranch, support the Park City School district, and support the link between home and school." said Karen Scott, Vice President and teacher liaison of the Jeremy Ranch P.T.O. The P.T.O. strives to meet these goals through numerous programs funded by and organized by the P.T.O., which is headed by a six-person board. Enrichment programs in pottery, beadmaking, science and exploring, and the Internet introduce children Jeremy Ranch P.T.O. President 0 M. recas 'r'es.. une at,ete i k Al i " r r lw'v "" N ) i For Information and tickets, please call to new subjects, and add variety to the educational experience. The "Read For The Gold" reading program pro-gram encourages children to turn off the TV and read for enjoyment and pleasure. Students earn medals bf sed on the level of reading they attain, and attend special assemblies. A member of the Jamaican bobsled team, for instance, was at Jeremy Ranch on Jan. 15, promoting this program. A Friday snowboarding and ski program is available at Park City Mountain Resort and The Canyons. Students at Jeremy Ranch can also participate in the Foreign Language Program, the Science Fair, and "Habits of the Heart", all P.T.O.-sponsored P.T.O.-sponsored activities. The Jeremy Ranch P.T.O. is not alone in it's goals. "In a close community com-munity like Park City we are able to share ideas with other schools." Scott stated. It is an effort that she feels works well for everyone. Three times a year, leadership meetings are held, during which P.T.O. leaders from each of the district's schools meet with the superintendent to brainstorm and share information. One example of this sharing of ideas is the Foreign Language Program, which was first launched at Parley's Park Elementary. It was an idea that appealed to the other schools, and McPolin and Jeremy Ranch were quick to initiate similar programs. SCOTT SINEPARK RECORD Beth McCann defends P.T.O. spending decisions. Qrand Opening of 'Par City's 0? 'Egyptian Theatre featuring ' 1 The Park Beth McCann, president of the RT.O. at Jeremy Ranch, said the Foreign Language program has been a success. "We started off offering classes in the mornings. We got such a huge response, that we've expanded expand-ed and added afternoon classes." Raising the money for these programs pro-grams is no small task. At Jeremy Ranch, it is accomplished primarily through two large scale fund-raisers, and several smaller ones. The Fall Fun Festival is a yearly fund-raiser orchestrated by the P.T.O. It is a carnival car-nival event for 700-plus students, parents and siblings. This year, students stu-dents sold gift wrap and raised $11,000. The money which comes in through fund-raising is immediately put back into the programs. This year, $2300 was allocated to the Art Program, $1,000 for the Science Fair, and $3,000 for assemblies. The Enrichment Program was allocated $5,600 to pay teachers and cover the costs of busses. "The P.T.O. does not decide how to spend this money," said McCann. "It's a membership decision, which is decided through a vote." McCann stresses adamantly that the P.T.O. role is organizational. For example, with the ski program, McCann stated, stat-ed, "We make the arrangements, bring in the money, and charge what it costs for busses and lessons." Money allocation is the main r3 ftotw ewVotV London aro A6 eYo "ties Record issue Tobie found frustrating during her time with the P.T.O. She said poorly attended meetings led to decisions deci-sions being made by as few as six or eight RT.O. members. "With 800 students stu-dents and tens of thousands of dollars dol-lars at stake, we can no longer have decisions made at poorly attended meetings," said Tobie. She suggested suggest-ed sending out ballots to enable all members to vote, not only members who attend the meetings. She also suggested implementing a grant application process, and setting up a committee of teachers, students, and parents to review the applications. Tobie feels the problems with the P.T.O. are not with the people, but with the processes. She said the P.T.O. needs to accept the growth of the school, and change it's procedures proce-dures accordingly. "There are many wonderful people on the RT.O.," Tobie said. Running an all-volunteer organization organi-zation is not without it's challenges. Though the Jeremy Ranch P.T.O. has approximately 350 members, Scott admits meetings are poorly attended. "Whenever we have a call out for parental volunteers, there is never a problem." Scott says, "Still, we'd love to see more parents at the meetings." meet-ings." Meetings are held at the school on the third Tuesday of every month. "The biggest challenge is balancing balanc-ing the needs of everybody," said Scott. "It's important to keep the lines of communication open between people in order to come to a consensus on how to spend the money." The school is growing and has many needs. According to Scott, one of these needs is the playground equipment Tobie mentioned. "People become passionate about what they think is important." Scott stated. That passion can be both rewarding and challenging. It is how programs get off the ground. "When something is important to someone, he or she finds the money and the volunteers to make it happen." On the other hand, there are many useful, important programs pro-grams which do not get off the ground. "We can only do programs that we have people volunteering to head up." noted Scott. Jeremy Ranch is growing, and with that growth comes the need for additional programs, more playground play-ground equipment, and more money to fund these programs. According to Scott and McCann, the P.T.O. at Jeremy Ranch will continue to strive toward the goal of promoting the education and welfare of the stu-. dents by trying to meet the needs of all involved parties. Tftahittt Summit TVatch students enjoy Hansen Planetarium by Molly Miller TMMS EIGHTH-GRADER On Wednesday, January 14th, Ms. Walker-Sharp took 47 eighth-grade students to Hansen Planetarium in Salt Lake City. The students first went to a show about rocket fuel and then headed to the planetarium for a show called "Jewels of the Winter Sky." The students learned all about the constellations and the Student winners receive Sundance film tickets Continued from A-17 seen." Secondly, Volheim judges on format. "Screenwriting is a very structured art form. We've tried our best to teach them the correct form." In order to achieve this, Volheim meets with the English teachers to guide them. Volheim stresses that in order for the program pro-gram to be successful, the teachers must take it seriously. He and Beall have compiled an extensive teaching materials packet including includ-ing a tips sheet, overheads, writing samples, and suggested lesson plans. Finally, Volheim's personal emotional reaction comes into the picture. There is an element of subjectivity in judging any art form, he admits. This year, Treasure Mountain Middle School supported the program pro-gram by purchasing a screenwriting screenwrit-ing software program recommended recommend-ed by Volheim. Beall said she is pleased with this addition, and feels that the school is supporting her creativity, and enabling her to support the student's creativity. Beall stressed the importance of creativity in a child's life. Before the program began, Beall was finding that many of her male students "were not really into English. This was a way to find something that appealed to them." Now, she is finding the program cuts across gender lines, and is equally beneficial to both boys and girls. She says that screenplays are something that most kids can relate to, and they Mikado Restaurant Sushi Bar mm 1 ill. Saturday, January 24, 1998 field tnp major stars visible from our area in the winter sky. After the show, they had a question-and-answer session to review what they had learned. Then, the operator "presented a special show at the end that made the students feel like they were flying fly-ing in space. After the show, many of the students purchased some astronaut astro-naut ice cream and strawberries. It was truly a memorable experience. experi-ence. enjoy the freedom of expression. She states, "There are a lot of kids who need to let their creativity go." In several situations students who were having problems in school found this program to be something at which they could excel. Though there is a specific form to screenwriting, "the sky is the limit" as far as content is concerned. con-cerned. Beall does not censor the students (except for profanity). She doesn't feel she needs to. "They learn that they wont win if it doesnt work," she says. Though no Golden Globes or Oscars are awarded, the winning writers receive a "trophy" nearly as difficult to acquire. ..tickets to a screening at the Sundance Film Festival. Amanda saw 247, and said she saw elements in the film about which she learned. Jessi will be seeing A Letter Without Words, and Neal will view The Farm. Other winning entries were submitted by the following students: stu-dents: sixth-graders Jeff Guay, Robby Stedman, Annie Simpson, and Paul Novak; seventh-graders Megan Warren, Lauren Mueller, Taylor Webb, and Cristin Costello; and eighth-graders Jared Rodriguez, Erica Demkowicz, Jeremy Onysko, Jessie Meehan. Honorable mentions men-tions were awarded to sixth graders Emma Sawyer, Nathan Quinn, Alyson Shinn, Jessica DaBell, Garrett Silvestri, and seventh sev-enth graders Anna Piepmeyer, Zach King, Ryan Dark, Sam White, and Alissa Ann Smith TlenJ teujen, Iflun 649-9371 |