A neighborhood school with a

tradition of academic excellence

Minutes of Westwood Band Meeting

March 20, 2008

Gator Dockside Fundraiser (this Saturday!)

1. If there is any money owed or unsold tickets that need to be turned in, please do so immediately!
2. Approximately 350 tickets have been sold.
3. Arrival time for scheduled volunteers is 7:00 am. There will be one shift only, as the Gator Dockside staff strongly recommends this method.
4. Breakfast will be served from 8-10am. Please be on time. Gator Dockside will most likely shut down the kitchen at 10 as they need to prepare for lunch. DON’T BE LATE! We’d hate for anyone to miss out on a meal that they paid for in advance.
5. Thanks goes to Mrs. Guthrie (kguth1@cox.net) for all of her efforts to plan this event!

Atlanta Trip

1. There will be a special meeting for the Atlanta trip in April. Look for it!
2. All money will be due by 4/11/08 (for students and chaperones). The chaperone fee is $100. Mrs. Guthrie will send home letters next week informing families how much they owe. If your student did no fundraising, the fee is $235. If your student didn’t participate in the Gator Dockside fundraiser, you should already have been informed of what you owe. If there are questions, please contact Sherolyn Spencer, sherolynspencer@hotmail.com .

Miscellaneous

There will be NO Jazz Band practice this Monday. Dixson has to participate in the Honor’s Band rehearsal.

• Band pictures went well. Proofs should be back next week. Parents will have an opportunity to order at that time.
• Per the financial report, the closing balance, as of Jan 31, is $19,152.97. There are still many ATL payments coming in, and a few big checks going out to cover field trip expenses.
• Dixson is considering charging a higher price for end of the year trips to those who do not fundraise.
• Date for the Spring Concert is May 15. There will be a concession stand. Karen Lee-Pack volunteered to coordinate. Pizza, drinks and pre-bagged cookies will be sold. An attempt to collect donations will be made at a later date.
• For those who don’t make the ATL trip, they have an option to go to Wild Adventures in Valdosta, GA. The proposed date for this field trip is May 21.
• End of the Year Cookout will be held on June 5 (the last day of school). Hopefully, this date won’t conflict with any High School graduations.

February 21, 2008

1. March 22, 2008 Gator Dockside fundraiser was discussed. Tickets are on sale now. Parents please sign and return the permission slip so your child can participate. The permission slip can be used to order tickets, as well.
2. 5 Adults are needed, along with 15 kids to run the fundraiser.  Interested adults should contact Kathy Guthrie at 335-4226. Parents will help serve and clean up. As for students, 8th graders will receive priority, but all that are interested should sign up. Students will serve, clean tables, and possible advertise. Again, contact Mrs. Guthrie if you’re interested.
3. $2.00 of pre-ticket sales will be applied towards FairShare (this means that every student who sells tickets will benefit. Not just Symphonic and Jazz). Kids who actually work the event will split tips evenly. Please make checks payable to Westwood Band Boosters. If possible, send checks ONLY. No cash. Please convert all you cash sales into one check.
4. Mr. Dixson will check into doing a “phone home.”
5. Deadline for pre-ticket sales is 3/12/08. Tickets will also be available at the door.

How to calculate Amounts Due

1. Mr. Dixson explained how the Amounts Due are calculated. Profit from Fundraiser A + Profit from Fundraiser B = Total Profit.  Total Profit - $50 FairShare = Net Profit. Cost of trip (ATL, or Wild Adventures) – Net Profit = Amount Due.
2. Mrs. Guthrie and Mrs. Plaza will calculate Amounts Due. An email will be sent notifying parents when that information is available.

Middle School MPA (for SYMPHONIC ONLY)

1. March 8, 2008. Meet at Westwood at 7:00 am. Leave school by 7:30am. 30-45 min drive to Starke. Warm up at 8:30am. Perform at 9:00am. Site read at 9:30am. Finished by 10:00am. Kids will have the opportunity to observe other bands for about 2 hours. Leave for Westwood around 12:00pm. Return to school by 1:00pm. Hospitality will provide water and small snacks. Students can bring money. A concession stand will be available. Kids will ride bus. Mrs. Van Antwerp volunteered to transport instruments. No stands needed. There is no entrance fee for students to participate this event. Uniform is: black shoes, socks and pants; white tuxedo shirt; green vest and bow tie (these will be distributed at school).

Miscellaneous

1. Last installment payment for ATL trip is due tomorrow, February 22, 2008.
2. A BIG thank you to Mrs. Cendan! She ordered 420 green and white labels for instruments, stands and equipment. They all say “Westwood Middle School” and include the school’s phone number.
3. Thank you to Mrs. Heffington for working so hard with our kids on Solo and Ensemble. What will we do without you next year?!
4. Band pictures are still coming. The date will be advertised once it becomes available. Students will take individual pictures. Symphonic band will take a composite photo.
5. If you haven’t paid $5 for Solo and Ensemble, or $25 to Mrs. Heffington for accompanying at Solo and Ensemble, please do so ASAP. Send all checks to Mr. Dixson.
6. Mr. Dixson confirmed that Concert Band and Beginning Band will go to Wild Adventures in Valdosta, Ga this spring. A firm date will be published when it becomes available. Costs have increased drastically. For last year’s trip, the kids paid $40, with Booster absorbing much of the cost.
7. Mr. Dixson is also searching for a date for the End of the Year Cookout.
8. Possible date for Spring Performance is 5/15/08.

Thank you for your support!!!

October 18, 2007

1. 10 parents attended.

2. Booster guidelines, as determined by the County, are still in the works. More info to come soon.

3. Mr. Dixson passed out volunteer applications. If you haven’t already, please complete an application and submit to Mr. Dixson. The form can be found on the School Board’s web site, www.sbac.edu.

4. Great American Cookie fundraiser- there is a small issue with the fundraiser. The catalogs we received had lower than actual prices. Mr. Dixson is pushing the representative to give us 50% profit, regardless of the error. Potential profit looks to be approximately $6000 to $6500 (one of the most profitable ever!). Mr. Dixson thanked parents for their support of this fundraiser. Items should arrive in 2-3 weeks.

5. Mr. Dixson wants to reward kids who participated in the fundraiser with a Pizza party held during lunchtime. Tentative date is November 16. Hospitality Committee is taking lead on this item.

6. Discussed fundraisers. Parents voted to pursue a Gator Dockside fundraiser. Mrs. Gutherie (fundraiser co-chair) took charge of this project and will do some research. More info to follow.

7. Jazz Band will perform at Reichert House sometime in November. This is an excellent opportunity for the kids. They will be performing at a special event whose guest list includes some of Gainesville’s finest. Transportation committee will help to get students to the site. If you are able to drive, please contact Mrs. LeePack (leepack@atlantic.net), as she needs additional drivers. Mr. Dixson and Mrs. Carter are checking into transportation for instruments. Reichert House will supply snacks for the children. Hospitality Committee may be called upon to provide bottled water for the kids. The event starts at 4pm, so kids will miss 6th period. Performance should end around 5 or 5:30pm. All kids in the Jazz Band will perform. Uniform will be Polo shirt, black pants, black socks and black shoes.

8. Polo shirt order will occur in November. Beginning Band students need this item.

9. Winter Concert tentative date is December 13. This is for all Bands. Students will need full uniforms for this event. Pizzas and drinks will be sold. This could be a Fundraiser/Hospitality committee function.

10. Please sign up for a committee, if you are interested and have not done so already.

11. Parents, some kids are leaving their instruments outside. Please remind your children that instruments should be left inside the Band room ONLY.

12. Fair Share was discussed in further detail. Currently, only parents who fundraise are paying Fair Share ($50). To make it more equitable for all, parents who opt out of fundraising may voluntarily pay the $50 Fair Share. Simply send in a check to Mr. Dixson.

As always, thank you for your support. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Mr. Dixson at ddixson@sbac.edu.