• LJES PTO Meeting Called to Order at 7:44 am
• Meeting adjourned at 9:08 am
Executive Board Members Present: Dana Hourani, Sarah Topol, Christal Duimstra,
Cher Jabbari, Liz Copperman, Dorothy Tse, Diana Brunmark, Stacey Gubernator, Erin
Sullivan, Principal Rebecca Vogel
Absent: Virginia Price, Kaitlin Barr, Anna McDivit, Amani Bernstein, Ashley Schell
Approvals:
March Financials approved at 8:34 am. Dana motioned first, Liz seconded – All in favor.
March 2026 Meeting Minutes approved at 8:35 am. Dana motioned first, Christal
seconded – All in favor.
Co-President’s Report: Dana Hourani and Sarah Topol
A motion was made for room parents to collect funds for teacher gifts all at once at the
beginning of the school year. Dana motioned first, Stacey seconded. All in favor. Motion
approved at 7:51 am
Discussed having a later start time for future PTO meetings at 8:20 start time on 2nd
Wednesday of every month. This is pending Principal approval and coverage for the
teacher representative. Dana motioned first, Dorothy seconded. All in favor. Motion
approved at 7:54 am.
Discussed the benefit of having a Nominating Committee to help recruit for positions in
the future. It would be beneficial for the committee to be composed of someone from
each grade level. This would be a non-voting position. Dana motioned first, Liz
seconded. All in favor. Motion approved at 8:02 am.
Teacher Representative Report: Erin Sullivan
Staff are already so excited to welcome the new principal. Principal Vogel is already
working on things to close out the year.
Fifth Grade Committee: Elizabeth Van Clief
Food sales have decreased at events because of the use of food vendors. The fifth
grade committee is still doing well with fundraising efforts, but in future years it might dry
up. Discussion about the importance of a board position so the committee can
communicate issues like that.
Principal’s Report: Principal Rebecca Vogel
Bit of whirlwind plus still helping with other site. Have three full days of interviews, so not
able to be super present like want to be. District overall is declining.
Treasurer’s Report: Christal Duimstra
Everything looks good.
Book Fair: Liz Copperman
Bookfair was very successful and a lot of fun. Got financials this morning. Beat sales of
last year. Do a mixture of getting money back from Scholastics and cash. Did Share the
Fair this year. The quiet hour went really well.
How to Grow a Reader. Sonia from Warwick’s will talk about how to promote reading in
our kids. Reminder that Social Media posts are meant to be kid centric.
VP Communications (E-blasts): Dorothy Tse
Everything is going according to plan. Dorothy is currently in a paid position working in
cafeteria. Maria prepares 100 breakfasts and 200 lunches on her own. Dorothy is there
two days a week to help, but need more people. 2 hours a day. Without the help food is
being prepared off site and brought over next day, but if they had help they could do it
the day of and have fresher food.
VP Tidings: Stacey Gubernator and Anna McDivit
New issue is out with a feature on Principal Vogel.
International Festival Committee: Cher Jabbari and Stacey Gubernator
The International Festival is coming up on the 17th. We still need volunteers to help with
check in and perimeter monitoring. Given the current political climate, all booth reps
were asked to keep politics out of the festival. A parent crossed that line. Working with
Principal Vogel to determine how to best proceed.
Logo Wear: Renee Loomis Zhao
Renee is looking to rebrand the logo wear. She sought feedback from the committee
regarding what has been popular.