The meeting was called to order at 7:10 p.m. in the Chef’s Hat Restaurant by Laurie Vertefeuille.

Attendance: Kristen Michaud, Lisa Ward, Tina Abell, Angie Chirico, Laurie Vertefeuille (PFO President), Karen Ford, Al Wilder (PFO Treasurer), Maggie Ashton, Mary-Paule Monks (Guidance), Carrie Leib (Central Office), Kirk Murad (Principal) , Corinne Fitting (PFO Secretary)

Special Presentation: Ms. Carrie Leib, Education Consultant with CTHSS from Central Office did a presentation on Connecticut’s Technical High School System. She talked about the tech schools, how they work and offered tips for getting the most from this education system. (She particularly stressed that a good attitude is key, and to always ask questions.) There are resources for parents through the State Education Resource Center (SERC), at www.ctserc.org, and at the Parent Assistance Line at 1-800-842-8678. Ms. Monks mentioned that at the school, the guidance counselors should always be the first point of contact: last names beginning with A-L are under Ms. McLean and M-Z are under Mr. Calixto.

Treasurer’s Report: Checking Account Balance is $1886.37. Membership dues are coming in. Mr. Wilder proposed a fundraising goal of $3000 for this year, to cover approx. $1000 for scholarships, $500 for Skills USA, Field Day and other activities, and additional funds to begin building a reserve for future efforts.

Mr. Wilder asked for volunteers for Treasurer, and if someone comes forward, he would like to become Vice President. Karen Ford later stepped forward for Treasurer, thank you Karen! And
Mr. Wilder will now become Vice President, thank you Al! (No other candidates stepped forward for either position.)

Old Business: The website will be updated with new information on PFO. Ms. Vertefeuille has updated the text and Ms. Fitting will get that and the new officers to Mr. Murad for publication.

Breakfast with the Principle was held on October 5. Mr. Wilder represented the PFO. The breakfast was very well attended. About 70 people were there, exceeding attendance within the last five years.

Open House for 7th and 8th graders is October 26. Ms. Ward, Ms. Chirico, Ms. Fitting, Ms. Vertefeuille and Mr. Wilder volunteered to man the Tech Wear table. Holding a bake sale was discussed, but because of all the food offered by culinary that evening, it was decided just to sell the Tech Wear. Additional Tech Wear supplies have been ordered by Ms. Vertefeuille, and they should be here in time for the Open House.

Parent Conferences are November 16, and we will also need volunteers for Tech Wear sales and possibly a bake sale that evening.

Tina Abell and Cindy Hair looked into two types of fund-raising opportunities for PFO: (1) wreaths for the holidays and (2) cookbooks. Ms. Abell presented and passed around information on both possibilities. However, Ms. Monks noted that Skills USA is already running a wreath fund-raiser. The PFO doesn’t want to interfere with the other fund-raiser, so we won’t pursue that one further. There was a great deal of interest in the cookbook idea. We could ask parents for their favorite recipes and possibly get the chefs in culinary, or perhaps each school department to contribute theirs. Ms. Abell offered to explore the idea further with Ms. Hair for the next meeting.

New Business: Mr. Pascone and Ms. Foisey requested the help of the PFO in fundraising efforts for the Junior class in January. They want to sell candy bars. The PFO responsibilities would consist of ordering the candy and collecting the money at the end. There was agreement that the PFO could help in this manner.

Chef Dunnack asked for assistance from PFO with the Spaghetti Dinner on October 27 to benefit the Sophomore Class. They need volunteers to help that night - Ms. Ashton, Ms. Ward, Ms. Michaud, Ms. Vertefeuille and Mr. Wilder volunteered. Ms. Fitting will send an e-mail to PFO members asking for additional volunteers for that night and for donations of food for the event. There will also be a raffle that night to benefit the Senior Class and a Scholarship in memory of Alex Bousquet, a WT student who was killed in a car accident last summer. It was suggested and agreed upon that PFO sponsor a basket for the raffle. We can use a gift certificate we have to purchase items for the basket. Ms. Vertefeuille offered to take care of the basket. Ms. Ashton also suggested a good idea for a raffle is to offer use of a special parking spot for a week.

Ms. Monks asked if there are any PFO members who are residents of Windham. The Sophomore Class wants to conduct a “cow chip raffle” in the spring. Such an event requires considerable paperwork and a sponsor who lives in town and who is not a state employee. Ms. Fitting will check through the PFO membership list to see if any members live in Windham.

Mr. Wilder asked for volunteers for a committee to evaluate the PFO By-Laws and Constitution. Ms. Chirico and Ms. Fitting volunteered.

Mr. Wilder suggested it would be helpful if we had PFO members who are willing to serve as point-of-contact for the Athletic Department and the Student Council.

The next meeting is scheduled for November 14, 2006.