A welcome back message from the PTA

Dear Muir Parents, Caregivers, Teachers, Staff, and Community Members:

We made it! Congratulations on making it through one of the hardest imaginable school years. Collectively we have endured and learned so much, and we (adults and kids) have displayed incredible amounts of resilience. We are SO GRATEFUL to our dedicated teachers and staff for all you have done this year to invest and love our kids. Thank you, thank you!!

We are so excited to be BACK! As we think about the upcoming school year, the return to full-time in-person instruction, and the unknowns ahead we wanted to reach out and let you know the John Muir PTA is here and continuing to support our community. Our mission is to advocate for kids furthest from educational justice.

This is where you come in! We welcome everyone to join our meetings and to take part in making our school community all it can be.

Updates:
School supplies have been ordered for all kids, and teachers will be picking them up on Thursday August 26 to get ready for welcoming all kids back to class. If you’d like to contribute to this effort you can donate here. By purchasing school supplies in bulk we dramatically reduce costs for everyone.

Meetings:
We want to be more transparent about when meetings are happening and sharing minutes. Going forward ALL our meetings will be public, accessible via Zoom when remote, with interpretation available.

The next two meetings will be online - links to come!
- September 14th, first business meeting - for volunteers to connect and plan for the year
- September 21st, first community meeting - to welcome everyone back and introduce the PTA board

Keep your eyes peeled for a full calendar of events coming soon.

Who we are:
The PTA is excited to announce that we recently elected our 2021-2022 school year PTA Executive Committee:
President: Anetria McCraney (president@themuirpta.org)
Co-Vice President: Maymuun Aden (president@themuirpta.org)
Co-Vice President: Catherine Seaver (president@themuirpta.org)
Co-Secretary: Karen Woodburn (secretary@themuirpta.org)
Co-Secretary: Karina Derksen-Schrock (secretary@themuirpta.org)
Treasurer: Dashel Schueler (treasurer@themuirpta.org)

Thank you also to those of you who volunteered for other crucial roles with the PTA. Below, please see current opportunities (many - in BOLD - still in need of volunteers! ):

1. Building Leadership Team (BLT) representative (1 person): Meagan Dixon

2. Race & Social Justice (many members):

3. Communications (1-2 people):

4. Fundraising (need chair): Julia MacCracken, Ali Swift, Amy Stelljes

5. Events (3-4 people): Emily Miller, Kate Schueler, Habone Ahmed

6. Welcome Committee (3-4 people): Jeremy Kraft

7. Advocacy (1-2 people): Lul Ali, Fatiya Mohamed

8. School Supplies (3-4 people): Chelsea Dziedzic (support)

9. Staff Appreciation (many members): Habone Ahmed

10. Translation & Interpretation Coordinator (1 person):

11. John Muir Garden (many members): Jill Newton, Karen Woodburn

12. Volunteer Coordinator:

13. Membership Coordinator:

14. Grant Writer (paid position):

Our incredible community thrives when we all can participate and when the work is shared among many. Would you please consider investing in one of the volunteer opportunities above? We are a community that strives to center relationships over productivity, connection over efficiency, and advocacy over fundraising. We strive to live out anti-racism values in our work.

If you are interested in getting more involved or have questions, please email Anetria and the PTA Executive Committee at info@themuirpta.org.

Warmly,
Anetria McCraney, PTA President
Maymuun Aden and Catherine Seaver, PTA Co-Vice Presidents