Junior League & EPACS

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2004-03-01T00:06:00.000-08:00

EPA Charter School: PANCAKE BREAKFAST ~~ Nov. 1st

2003-10-23T23:27:00.000-07:00

Just a reminder that all of us are invited to the EPA Charter pancake breakfast! I went to this last year, and its an incredibly FUN event. All of you are encouraged to come, and bring a friend/husband/guest, but this is not a required activity.

Here's the details:
When: November 1st, 2003
Time: 10:00 AM to 12:00 Noon
Where: EPA Charter School, 1286 Runnymede Street

Hope to see many of you there!

back to School!

2003-10-20T23:01:00.000-07:00

Sessions start up again this week. Good luck with your roundtables.
We have ordered new journals for the kids, they should arrive this week/next week. An update will be sent regarding distribution.

September 22nd - Meeting Agenda

2003-09-19T00:24:00.000-07:00

7:00 - 7:30 Social & League Presentations:
Holiday Boutique, Member Resources (Lynn Holthaus), Nominating (Suzanne Zaino)
7:30 - 7:45 Individual Roundtable Summaries
7:45 - 8:15 Check-in & Feedback w/ EPACS (Kristyn/Tom/Nick?)
8:15 - 8:45 General Discussion
8:45 - 9:00 Next Steps

Food & Drink? All members are invited to bring something to drink. Jill & I will provide something sweet and something to munch on.

Conference Call - Friday! 9.12.03 9 a.m.

2003-09-10T01:20:00.000-07:00

Hi! We are going to have our first conference call this friday. Dial-in Information is below:

US Number: 888-392-1013
International Number: 706-679-8097
Conference Code : 557-331-5162

Participants:
1. Dial the 800 number at the time of the conference
2. When prompted, enter the Conference Code
3. Press the # sign
4. You will be placed on music hold if conference has not began
00 for individual operator assistance
*6 to mute your own line
#6 - Unmute your own line

Roundtable Guidelines:

2003-09-09T07:32:00.000-07:00

Conduct Guidelines:

Confidentiality: everything that is said here, stays here. Sometimes a staff member must break this confidentiality in order to intervene on behalf of a student's safety.
Respect the Speaker: no side conversations or distractions.
Get honest: we will only grow if we are honest with ourseleves and all who are in our lives.
Do not respond to feedback except to clarify facts: if the shoe fits, wear it; if not, throw it away.
No advising, blaming, defending, explaining or protecting.
We each have a personal obligation to make this group work: we will actively participate.

Conduct Guidelines.Jill.9.9.03.doc

Jill has also created an awesome Roundtable Format.
Round Table Format:

Read the Conduct Guidelines. (3 min)
Clear the Decks. (0-5 min)
Activity: New risk/challenge. (15-20 min)
Journaling. (5-10 min)
Reflection/Feedback. (20-30 min)
Action Steps (0-5 min)
Download a copy of this format here: rtformat.9.9.03.doc

Sept. 8th Breakfast Meeting (optional) Agenda

2003-09-07T23:16:00.000-07:00

Introductions: Committee, Tom Madsen (Site Coordinator), Kristyn Klei (Principal)
Updates: league notices, finger printing, retreat, confidentiality
1st Session Review: what will happen, discussion of first day activity, role play & practice
Classroom management: overview w/ EPACS administration
Questions

2003 Project Matrix -- for Advocacy

2003-08-29T22:02:00.000-07:00

We needed to submit a "project matrix" for SPAC. Here is the document i submitted. 2003.EPACS.Community Projects Matrix.8.28.03.doc

Fingerprinting -- required for being in classroom alone -- UPDATE

2003-08-28T21:31:00.000-07:00

At our meeting this week with EPACS we found out that we are required to be finger printed by the San Mateo County Office of Education in order to be in the classroom alone with the kids. Ideally, we would all be able to get fingerprinted before our first session with the kids, but given the short time frame and the holiday, i'm not expecting that. Unfortunately, you cannot lead your roundtable session without a teacher present in the room until you have been finger printed.

UPDATE (9/2/03): I've contacted the school, the county and here's the latest information...

How do you get fingerprinted?
-------------------------------------------------

(1) Complete the "form" from EPACS to become a certified volunteer. This form is being mailed to you and is also available in the EPACS main office. I will also have copies of the form at the divertsity training. Bring this form with you to your fingeprinting appointment.

(2) Schedule an appointment with the San Mateo County Office of Education.
-> Call 650-802-5343
-> fingerprinting hours: 8:00 am - 11:50 am, 2:00 - 4:00 p.m., M-F

(3) Where do i go to get finger printed.
101 Twin Dolphin Drive
Redwood City, CA 94066
Tel: 650-802-5300

What will happen?
You will give them the completed EPACS form. They will scan your hands. When you are done they will give you a copy of your results for you to keep and a copy for the school. The county will also keep a copy. Please bring one of the copies to the school administration office for their records. They will bill the school $12 for "rolling" fee. They will also conduct a background check on you. Results will be shared with the school.

UPDATE: You are not required to get a TB test.

UPDATE (9/3/03): I've mailed documents to everyone. Here is the memo sent with the documents. EPACS.FingerPrintingMemo.9.3.03.doc

Rand Report on Charter School Operations and Performance: Evidence from California

2003-08-20T00:56:00.000-07:00

A new report on Charter School education has been released by Rand. Its an interesting read.
Link: http://www.rand.org/publications/MR/MR1700/index.html

Abstract:
The report analyzes an array of issues pertaining to accessibility, student achievement, governance, and operation of charter schools in California. Four specific research questions were investigated:
(1) What population of students attend charter schools?
(2) Is student achievement higher in charter schools than in conventional public schools?
(3) What oversight and support do the chartering authorities provide?
(4) How do charter schools differ from their conventional public school counterparts in terms of their operation, including finances, academic achievement, and staffing?

2003/4 Committee Meetings Schedule

2003-08-20T00:32:00.000-07:00

September 8th (M) 9:00 - 10:30 AM Breakfast @ Hobee's Town & Country

September 22nd (M) 7:00 - 9:00 PM Dinner @ Gatehouse

November 4th (T) 11:30 - 1:00 PM Lunch @ Google (Location Tentative)

December Holiday Party TBA

January 26th (M) 7:00 - 9:00 PM Dinner @ Gatehouse

March 1st (M) 11:30 - 1:00 PM Lunch (Location TBA)

May Committee End of Year party

For a complete list of Junior League Activities & School Dates, check out the calendar post.

Diversity Training Seminar - September 3rd @ Nordstrom's

2003-08-18T17:51:00.000-07:00

The Habitat for Humanity IDA committee will be hosting a Diversity Training Seminar on September 3rd from 6:30 until 9:00 p.m. at the 3rd floor Nordstrom conference room at the Stanford Shopping Center. Redwood City's Director of Human Resources, Maria Rivera-Pena will be the speaker. It will be a dynamic and interactive seminar on diversity issues that many of us may encounter in our Junior League work, especially if you happen to be serving on a Community Project committee this year. A light dinner and dessert will be provided, so don't miss it!

Please RSVP if you can attend to Gwen Taylor.

Committee Assignments

2003-08-17T22:37:00.000-07:00

A Sessions are from 1:15 – 2:05
B Sessions are from 2:05 – 2:55
Activity

Activity	Committee Member	Additional Responsibilities
Tuesday Sessions
6^th grade girls - A Mr. Berman	Kathy Swart	Holiday Party Coordinator
6^th grade boys- A Mr. Berman	Laurie Gordon	PR Liason – Special Projects / Events
6^th grade girls - A Mr. Romagnolo	Sandy Johnson	General Meeting Presentation – November Meeting
6^th grade boys- A Mr. Romagnolo	Karen Lesyna	General Meeting Logistics – November & March Meeting
8^th grade girls- B Mrs. Leslie	Cynthia Sierra	Training Documentation (?)
8^th grade boys- B Mrs. Leslie	Susan Dassise	PR Liason – Piper
Wednesdays
7^th grade girls- B Mrs. Mading	Jill Horn
7^th grade boys- B Mrs. Mading	Melissa Wilson
Thursdays
7^th grade girls - B Mr. Harms	Dulcy Freeman	General Meeting Presentation – March Meeting
7^th grade boys- B Mr. Harms	Natala Menezes	Meeting Minutes
Floater
Across all roundtables	Laurie Gordon
Non-Round Table	Assignments
Member-at-Large/ 7th Grade Boys	Brooke Adams	November General Meeting Presentation
Provisional/DIAD Liason	Beth Steinberg

NOTES:

If you are unable to lead your session, please contact Tom Madson and CC Jill & Natala.

Additionally students who are disrespectful or otherwise misbehaving during round-table discussions will be sent to Mr. Madson.

You can download a copy of the assignments here: EPACS.Cmte.Assignments.9.17.03.doc

Notes from Training Meeting

2003-07-26T18:26:00.000-07:00

I. What is our role?
II. The Five Principles
III. Core Concepts (attitude, action reflection, EEMO)
IV. Roundtables
V. Roundtable Conduct Guidelines
VI. Additional Topics (concern meetings, evaluations)

I. What is our role?
We are the facilitators – not there to solve problems, but to talk. To get the dialogue going: start the thinking process.
JL is the neutral party (i.e. teachers are not neutral) – the outsider.
Our job is to get the kids on the road to growth in realizing their Unique Potential

II. The Five Principles
These 5 principles guide the dialogue of character development.

Unique Potential	Everyone has a unique experience / path. Realization of our personal gifts and talents. Used to be destiny
Conscience	Kids are good people who know right & wrong – need to respect that knowledge and live by what we value. Courage to continually apply ideals. Conscience is the mechanism to achieve truth.
Truth	Responsibility to expect truth from others, not just themselves. Honesty is the process.
Integrity	Correlate between what you believe and how you act.
Team	Working together to achieve Unique Potential.

III. Core Concepts
(1) Action – Reflection, breaking the habit cycle
This is a thinking process meant to break stagnant behavior. Conscious choice allows us to grow towards goals. Roundtables will reflect on “are we in a stagnant cycle?” and how we can get out of it through active reflection.
3 questions designed to help students reflect on habit cycle:

Who am I?

Where am I going with my life?

How will I get there?

(2) Attitude
Behavior is the demonstration or expression of attitude.
3 types of attitude:
Good Attitude: willingness and enjoyment of doing something
Overt Bad Attitude: obvious unwillingness or resentment for doing something
Underground Bad Attitude (the most problematic): Not obvious undermined without technically breaking rules. Usually involves internal objection and does not address their individual responsibility.
* Attitude is different than aptitude / academics.

(3) EEMO scale
This scale is used to personally measure one’s participation in an activity. This is a self-evaluation tool and is used across the school’s coursework. It will be an important component of journaling.

Excellence	Ef	I get it! Going above and beyond to pursue unique potential.
Effort	Ex	I almost get it all of the time. If I have to do this, I might as well do it well.
Motions	M	I don’t understand it, but if I move the body and mind will follow.
Off Track	O	I don’t want to get it.

IV. Round Tables
The round table group is composed of 10-15 students with a volunteer facilitator. It is an intimate circle of peers designed to experiment with the Action-Reflection cycle, learn the Five Principles and about ourselves and good character.
All Roundtables will follow the same format:
* Structure & format are essential
* Use of a “talking stick” can be helpful
* Build a fun and trust-driven atmosphere

Read the Conduct Guidelines	These should be read at the beginning of every session as they will help focus and remind students of their responsibilities. Sets the tone.
Clear the Decks	Always set aside time for this. It is an opportunity to take out hidden agenda’s from meeting. Kids will not often say anything, be OK with the silence.
New Risk / Challenge	Activity. Curriculums will be given at retreat.
Journaling	10-15 minutes where students respond to journal questions.
Reflections / Feedback	Select students or format for sharing (either verbalizing or reading from journal) of individual reflections. Allow for feedback from peers.
Action Steps	When appropriate, list out next steps for individual action.
Closing	Close session on a positive note.

V. Roundtable Conduct Guidelines

Confidentiality: everything that is said here, stays here. Sometimes a staff member must break this confidentiality in order to intervene on behalf of a student’s safety.
Respect the speaker: no side conversations or distractions. Get honest: we will only grow if we are honest with ourselves and all who are in our lives.
Do not respond to feedback except to clarify facts: if the shoe fits, wear it; if not, throw it away.
No advising, blaming, defending, explaining or protecting.
We each have a personal obligation to make this group work: we will actively participate.

VI. Additional Topics
Concern Meetings: Rare, initiated by student or teacher or leader to help a specific kid who is seriously struggling with something either personal, social, academic or communal. Follows a revised format.
Evaluations: Students will be evaluated by peers every quarter. Teachers and league volunteers will also be evaluated.

Want a copy of these notes? Download this word document: Character Education Training Notes.7.27.03.doc

Slidedeck from Training

2003-07-21T11:37:00.000-07:00

Here are the slides Kim presented at our training. I'll upload my notes to these slides later in the week.
JL.EPACS.Training.7.13.03.ppt

Retreat Information

2003-07-19T19:59:00.000-07:00

From Jill:
Ideally, EPA Charter would like us to participate in the entire retreat, beginning Tuesday August 12th at 11 am and concluding Wednesday August 13th at approximately 2pm. The retreat will be at the Presentation Center, 19480 Bear Creek Road, Los Gatos (approx 30 miles from Menlo Park). You may log on to their website for additional details: www.prescenter.org The Presentation Center has single and double occupancy rooms to spend the night, and it may be easier than driving back and forth.

If you are unable to attend the whole retreat:

Please be at the retreat on Tuesday August 12th from 1:00 to 5:00 pm. If possible, stay for the night time activities which will last until about 9:30 pm. The evening activities are structured to get real personal with the kids, and to get them to begin opening up to their group. For example, one of the activities they will do is called crossing the line. They will say something like anyone who has an alcoholic in the family cross line; any one who knows someone in the neighborhood who is an alcoholic cross the line, etc. The purpose is to expose their background/vulnerabilities.

Please be at the retreat from 9:00am until approximately 2:00 pm on Wednesday August 13th.

Please confirm your participation so that I can get back to Kim Alvarez. Kim will also be handing out the curriculum for the year at the retreat, and will be available to answer questions.

advocacy presentation 7.15.03

2003-07-16T23:34:00.000-07:00

nick romagnolo, mike berman and i presented to the advocacy on the project and how advocacy could help. the advocacy committee was great! they had a TON of questions and were genuinely interested in learning more about EPACS, charter schools in general and what we would be doing at the school. below are the slides presented.
EPACS Advocacy Presentation.ppt

meeting minutes from june 26th

2003-07-14T23:25:00.000-07:00

Meeting Notes.6.26.03 .doc At our meeting we discussed the following topics and made the following decisions. Agreement of Committee Norms:

Starting/ending meeting on time (precede by ½ hour social)

Meetings will be ½ day (1.5 hour meetings) ½ evening (2.5 hours). Evites will be sent for each meeting.

Respect committee members, keep cell phones available or turned off

Create a "parking lot" for off-topic questions (addressed at end of meeting)

Agreed to keep matters confidential to our committee (specifically regarding EPACS students) Committee Goals:

Attend assigned sessions
Make kids feel listened too
Feel personally rewarded
Achieve understanding of character development & how achieved
Recruit new members & educate the league

How do we define success? As part of the goals discussion we addressed what it meant to define success: Quantitatively: Attending required # of sessions Qualitatively: End of quarter student/teacher feedback and self-eval * Committee members were asked to submit questions for the evaluation during the quarter. Committee Communication

2 week notice for planned missed school session

48 hour e-mail / phone responses (tent) The committee meeting was adjourned precisely at 9:00 p.m.

Facilitation Resources

2003-06-28T10:21:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Susan Dassise for sending this very helpful and informative list.
from susan:
Here are some reference materials for facilitation and one book on negotiation and mediation skills.

Negotiation/mediation
Getting to Yes, Negotiating Agreement without giving in.
Roger Fisher and William Ury, Penguin Books

Facilitation
How to Make Meetings work
Michael Doyle, David Straus, Jove Books, 1976

Mediation and Facilitation Training Manual
Mennonite Conciliation Service, Third Edition, 1996

The Facilitator Excellence Handbook
Fran Rees, Jossey-Bass, 1998

The Skilled Facilitator
Roger M. Schwartz, Jossey-Bass, 1994

Additional Training Resources
Interaction Associates, San Francisco
Basisc and Advanced Facilitation Training

National Training Associates, Sebastopol
Steve Zuieback, Trainer

Calendar

2003-06-07T23:22:00.000-07:00

Dowload a copy of this calendar here: EPACS.Calendar2003.2004.xls


2003-2004 EPACS/Junior League Calendar

Key:
	= No Class. Note: classes are ever held on Sat/Sun.
	= Junior League Deadline or Council Event (may/may not be relevant to committee)
	= Junior League Committee Meeting / Event
	= Junior League Event
	= Junior League General Meeting

August-03							Activity
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
					1	2	12th & 13th = EPACS Retreat
3	4	5	6	7	8	9	25th = October Piper Deadline
10	11	12	13	14	15	16
17	18	19	20	21	22	23
24	25	26	27	28	29	30


September-03							Activity
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
	1	2	3	4	5	6	1st - 6th = No Sessions Yet (but school in session)
7	8	9	10	11	12	13	3rd = Diversity Training, 24th = Taking Pictures training
14	15	16	17	18	19	20	8th = Committee Breakfast @ Hobee's Town & CountryÂ
21	22	23	24	25	26	27	16th = General Meeting @ Cabana
28	29	30					22nd = Committee Meeting (evening, 7:00 PM, Gatehouse)
							29th = November Piper Deadline

October-03							Activity
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
			1	2	3	4	29th (Sept) - 3rd (Oct) = Minimum Days (no roundtables)
5	6	7	8	9	10	11	6th - 17th = Fall Break
12	13	14	15	16	17	18
19	20	21	22	23	24	25	League Training Month -- Look for more activities!
26	27	28	29	30	31

November-03							Activity
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
						1	4th = Committee Meeting - Lunch 11:30 (Location TBA)Â
2	3	4	5	6	7	8	11th = Holiday (Veteran's Day)Â
9	10	11	12	13	14	15	13-15th = Holiday Boutique
16	17	18	19	20	21	22	17th = Winter Piper Deadline
23	24	25	26	27	28	29	19th = General MeetingÂ
30							26th - 28th - Thanksgiving Holiday

December-03							Activity
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
	1	2	3	4	5	6	5th = Junior League Staff Appreciation Day
7	8	9	10	11	12	13	22nd - 31st = Winter Break
14	15	16	17	18	19	20
21	22	23	24	25	26	27	* Committee Holiday Party TBA
28	29	30	31

January-04							Activity
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
				1	2	3	1st - 9th = Winter Break
4	5	6	7	8	9	10	12th = February/March PiperDeadline
11	12	13	14	15	16	17	19th = MLK Holiday
18	19	20	21	22	23	24	26th = Evening Committee Meeting (7:00 PM, Location TBA)
25	26	27	28	29	30	31

February-04							Activity
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	* Notify Chairs if continuing Rountable thru June
8	9	10	11	12	13	14	9th = Lincoln's Birthday Holiday
15	16	17	18	19	20	21	16th = President's Day Holiday
22	23	24	25	26	27	28	23rd = April Piper Deadline
29

March-04							Activity
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
	1	2	3	4	5	6	1st = Lunch Committee Meeting (11:30 AM, Location TBA)
7	8	9	10	11	12	13	6th = Spring Gala
14	15	16	17	18	19	20	10th = General Meeting
21	22	23	24	25	26	27	29th - 31st = Intersession (1/2 days) No Roundtables
28	29	30	31

April-04							Activity
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
				1	2	3	1st-2nd = Interssession continued
4	5	6	7	8	9	10	5th - 16th = Spring Break
11	12	13	14	15	16	17
18	19	20	21	22	23	24
25	26	27	28	29	30

May-04							Activity
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
						1	12th = Annual Dinner & Meeting
2	3	4	5	6	7	8	17th = Summer PiperDeadline
9	10	11	12	13	14	15	31st = Memorial Day Holiday
16	17	18	19	20	21	22	* Committee end of year party - TBA
23	24	25	26	27	28	29
30	31

June-04							Activity
S	M	T	W	T	F	S
		1	2	3	4	5	18th = Last day of School
6	7	8	9	10	11	12
13	14	15	16	17	18	19
20	21	22	23	24	25	26
27	28	29	30

Retreat Dates, Training - Confirmed

2003-06-05T17:30:00.000-07:00

Nicholas Romagnolo, our key contact at EPACS has confirmed the following dates and time for the retreat and training:

From Nick:
The retreat is officially Aug. 12-13 and Bess and Kim are going to check out the facilities on Wednesday.

For the training on July 14, we'd like to have it at school, so we can familiarize all of you with the place.
The schedule will be:
10am - 12pm: Teacher Training
12pm - 1pm: Lunch
1pm - 3pm: Teacher Training
3pm - 7pm: Junior League/Teachers Together - Dinner will be provided.

About EPACS & Our First Meeting

2003-05-31T15:54:00.000-07:00

1st Meeting / Social: June 26th
------------------------------------------
Our First meeting will be a social. We want to meet you! We'll go over the committee logistics, review the calendar, committment and expecations. We'll also munch on yummie sweet things and drink some wine.
Jill will be sending out an evite with all the information later this weekend.

About the East Palo Alto Charter School Project:
-------------------------------------------------------------------

We will be working with the junior high school's character development program

Our role will be to facilitate small group discussion sessions

Discussions will likely be held from 1:30 - 2:30 and 2:30 - 3:30 on Tues, Weds, Thurs.

Discussion sessions will be held on a weekly basis during the school year.

The school has invited all committee members to visit and shadow a teacher this summer.

EPACS website: http://www.epacs.org/aboutus/

Association Website: http://www.schoolfutures.org/schestpalo.html

Important Dates

2003-05-31T15:53:00.000-07:00

June 26th (Thurs.): Our first meeting/social. Please join us at Jill's lovely home for drinks & dessert. 7:00 p.m. (336 Edgewood Road, Redwood City --> evite to follow).

July 14th (Monday): Committee facilitation training at East Palo Alto Charter School. We expect the session to start at 3:00 and run till approx. 7:00/8:00. Dinner will be provided.

August 12/13th: Student Retreat (attendence times/options TBA)

September 16th: Junior League General Meeting

2003-05-31T15:06:00.000-07:00

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