Dear Leopard Families,
As the PTA Co-Presidents of Lafayette Elementary School, we would like to welcome you to the 2024-25 Academic School Year! We are two working parents, married for almost 10 years, with a rising 3rd grader and TKer. It is our honor to be able to serve this community.
Last year, Amy was PTA Vice President, and Gabe was Odyssey of the Mind Co-Chair and LES Dads Club Co-Chair. In these roles, we have formed and deepened many great friendships, and we look forward to continuing to build more connections with our community. As working parents, we wondered how we could balance PTA work with the rest of our personal responsibilities as parents, partners, and working professionals. For us, the answer is that it takes a community. Coming into this year, we have an amazing team of PTA chairs and volunteers, as well as support from last year’s PTA Co-Presidents and Executive Board. That said, we can always use more input and help from the rest of our community.
Why get involved? The PTA is a steward of the funds that come into our school, whether they come from the state or from LPIE (Lafayette Partners In Education), which is a non-profit organization that was formed to supplement gaps for an enriched quality education that the state cannot provide. As a member of the PTA, you have a vote on how our funds can be used for our LES school community. This includes how school field trips can be supported, how to fund additional extracurricular activities (e.g. Odyssey of the Mind), how community events can be organized within our budget, and more. There is so much work, and it takes a village. We need you all to help make this school a success. Even if you aren’t sure how much time you can commit to the PTA, there are many ways you can contribute. Even the small membership fee of $15 contributes to our revenue to fund the events for the year. Plus, there are always volunteer opportunities that can be done at your own pace. Reach out to us if you’d like to learn more.
For returning families, you will also notice new volunteer screening requirements for volunteering in any capacity for our school. These are new requirements implemented by the district to keep our children safe. Many of these requirements take several weeks to complete, so we strongly encourage you to get started now.
On a final note, we still have some vacant PTA leadership roles that we need filled. Many of them can be found on our Volunteers page that show various Chair positions that are currently available. Additionally, there are a couple opportunities that we would would like to call out:
- PTA Vice President: We still need a VP. This is an excellent role for someone who would like to shadow and learn the ropes before rising into the official role as President the following year. This role is not listed on the Volunteers page, but if you are interested please contact us at president@lafayettepta.info.
- LPIE Committee Gala Chair & Committee: This is a new opportunity this year. For context, especially for those who are new to our community, every spring LPIE hosts a gala, which is a major annual fundraiser that supports educational programs for all schools across the Lafayette School District. However, hosting this event takes a lot of work, and in order to continue this annual event, each school is being asked to create a committee to help organize auction items and recruit volunteers to keep this event going. Please check out our Volunteers page for more information, and please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have questions. As we said, it takes a village, and we hope you join us to create and foster an incredible and memorable experience for all of the children in our community.
We are here to serve you. Please let us know if you have feedback on making participation easier, or if there are ideas you’d like to partner with us on to bring your idea to life.
Sincerely,
Amy Truong and Gabe Westmaas
Lafayette Elementary PTA Co-Presidents, 2024-2025
