Hello Adams families,

It was great to see so many of you at the Disco Party! We had a great time and I received a lot of positive feedback. Hmm...perhaps we'll go for an '80s theme next year? :)

At the start of this school year, Susan and I began our new PTA roles of President and Vice President. We started out with a plan for the year, and we sit down frequently to review what we have accomplished so far, evaluate our progress, and refresh our strategy for the future. No matter what we have accomplished or need to do for the future, we keep returning to one overarching theme: we want to make things easier for our Adams teachers, families, and volunteers. Early on, Susan coined our mantra: Simplify. As the PTA moves through the year and builds upon our experiences, we continue to re-evaluate and look for the best ways to support the school and community, and also work to simplify the way in which we do it.

With that in mind, we would also like to hear from you. How are things going? What ideas do you have based on your experiences at Adams (for example, communication, events you've attended, fundraisers, etc.)?

Each grade level has a Grade Representative (Grade Rep.). The purpose of this role is to help communicate, reach out to, and also to gather feedback from all the families in each grade. I encourage you to reach out to your Grade Rep. or to any member of the PTA team and share your feedback and ideas.

Click here to find contact information for your Grade Rep. and the PTA leadership team. It would be great to hear from you!

Jen Engelke
Adams PTA President | jen.engelke@septon.net

Important Announcements


We need your help to make our auction a success! Deadline for donations is Feb. 5, 2010
You have two weeks left to make a donation to the Adams Auction. Remember, money raised at our auction goes towards our kids! You can either go out and get businesses to make a donation, or you can donate something yourself...


Help Us Fill Our Big Auction Specialty Baskets!
We are creating gift baskets to sell at the auction and would like your contributions to help fill them! Just bring your donation to the office and put it in the appropriate basket. If you're not able to come in to the school, you can send your donation in with your child and your child's teacher will make sure it gets to the office...


Mr. Allard, Adams' New Arts Czar
Mr. Allard, one of our 3rd grade teachers, was recently named our school's Arts Czar. "The term czar," explains Dr. Johnson, "just came out of staff joking around." The term stuck as a way to identify Mr. Allard as the school's leader in integrating arts at Adams...


Adams Reads the Same Book Event
Author Reading, Fri., Feb. 5th at 6:30 PM

Did you enjoy the mind-bender stories in George Shannon's collection of folk tales from around the world?

Curious to know more about them? Join Adams Reads the Same Book author, George Shannon, in the lunch room to share his wonderful stories with Adams families. Secret Garden Book Shop will be there and will have his other books available for purchase.


3rd Grade Happenings
What's happening in... Ms. Vokey, Ms. Alward, and Mr. Allard's Classes...


Renew Seattle Public School Levies February 9, 2010
The Seattle School Board voted to place a $442.7 million operations levy and a $270 million capital levy (BTA III) on the Feb. 9 special election ballot. You will begin to receive your Mail In Ballots Jan 20. Ballots must be postmarked Feb 9.

The Adams PTA Board has voted to support both school levies - PLEASE VOTE YES ON PROP 1 AND 2 TO CONTINUE FUNDING TO OUR SCHOOLS!

The OPERATIONS LEVY covers 23% of our schools' budgets and supports educational services not fully funded by the state. This includes the sixth hour in middle and high school, libraries and textbooks, and competitive salaries for staff.

The CAPITAL LEVY (BTA III) funds building repairs, maintenance, and upgrades. It pays for such items as new roofs, playfields, and science labs. The BTA III also includes money needed to reopen schools in over-subscribed areas, build facilities for on-site preschools, and open a skills center for vocational students. 100 percent of our capital budget comes from BTA and BEX levies.


THANKS TO BUSINESSES FOR DONATING TO OUR AUCTION EFFORT! SEE THE LIST...