School for the Arts Community Organization (SACO)

SEED – Student Education Enhancement Drive

August 23, 2021 By SACO Board

Donate to the 2021-2022 SEED campaign between August 23rd and October 1st to support a high quality arts integrated education for our students. Each year funds raised are divided between all classes including K-8th grade, music, art, theater, dance and rsp. Your donations allow our teachers to purchase supplies to enhance the educational experience of all our students. In the past SEED funds have been used for classroom supplies, art supplies, software subscriptions, books, field trips, and more!

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: fundraiser

Art Walk is Friday Oct. 11!

October 8, 2019 By SACO Board

Art Walk is SRCSA’s annual walk-a-thon and our largest fundraiser of the year! In addition to raising money for our school, this is a really fun community building event. It takes a village to put this one on, so please consider signing up to volunteer (the first 50 all-day volunteers get a free event t-shirt). Click here to volunteer on Sign Up Genius.

This year’s event is all about our students imagining the impossible in order to make the world a better place. As Arthur C. Clarke said,

The only way to find the limits of the possible is by going beyond them into the impossible.

Some suggestions for Art Walk:

  • Make sure your child is wearing comfortable shoes and clothing.
  • Sunscreen up in the morning! This is an outdoor, all-day event!
  • Start collecting pledges. Pledge envelopes went home last week. Donors can pledge per lap, or a flat amount. Envelopes will be due Oct 25.
  • Get ready to have FUN!


Filed Under: Uncategorized

SEED in the Garden

August 28, 2019 By SACO Board

Visit our new school garden and make your SEED donation in person!
Join us Friday morning, August 30th, right after drop off in our school garden for coffee and treats. SACO volunteers will be on hand to take your cash, check, or credit card SEED donation.

Why SEED? SEED stands for Student Education Enhancement Drive, and all of the money collected by SACO for this fundraiser goes directly to the teachers to help fund their classroom needs. We feel this is very important at a time when funding from the school district is just not enough, and teachers end up spending money out of their own pockets to fulfill their classroom needs. We are aiming for 100% participation this year, so please give what you can. Every dollar counts!

Our Garden: You may not realize we even have a school garden because it is quite hidden behind the kindergarten classrooms. Well, a dedicated volunteer committee of teachers, parents and community members have worked incredibly hard over the last 2 years to make our school garden a reality! And there’s more work, yet. Please let us know if you would be interested in helping out with maintenance and care.

And, please come visit our secret garden and plant a SEED!

Friday, August 30 from 8:00 – 8:45 AM

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Garden, SEED

The first day of school is just around the corner, and that means…

July 31, 2019 By SACO Board

Monday, August 12th from 4 – 6 PM

You’re invited to the Santa Rosa Charter School for the Arts Welcome Back Ice Cream Social at our campus! Please join us for an ice cream sundae (free to SRCSA students & families) to celebrate the beginning of the 2019-2020school year. This community event is a chance to meet and reconnect with other SRCSA families and learn more about the upcoming year.

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Talent Show! Tuesday, April 30th, 2019

April 16, 2019 By SACO Board

2019 Talent Show Flyer

Pre-Sale Talent Show Tickets:
 $7 individual
$20 Family Pass for 4

Limited quantity – Premium Reserved Seating – online in advance only – $20 per person

**At the door all seats will be $10 per person

Pre-sale only Concession Stand Prices
:
Single slice of pizza: $2.50
Whole pizza:  8 slices $15 ($5 savings over 8 single slices)
Beverages: $2
Bake sale:  $2
Family deal: whole pizza, 4 beverages & 4 bake sale items $30 ($11 savings)

We hope that you will join us!

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Art Walk! Friday, October 12, 2018

October 9, 2018 By Erin Morris

Art Walk is this Friday! This year’s theme is “Born to Stand Out” and we are so excited to celebrate our unique school community in a fun, sunny day of exercise and fundraising.
Please COLLECT PLEDGES for your SRCSA student. Any contribution helps our school!
We hope that you will join us!




Filed Under: Uncategorized

Odyssey of the Mind Information Night this Wednesday, September 19!

September 16, 2018 By Erin Morris

 2018-2019 will be our school’s ninth year participating in Odyssey of the Mind (OM). OM is the largest worldwide creative problem-solving competition for children from kindergarten through college. OM’s mission is to foster the development of creative thinking and problem-solving skills.

Each year, SACO pays for our school’s membership in the program. This allows SRCSA to have up to 10 competitive teams and as many primary (K-2) teams as desired; teams then pay a small amount to register their individual team. SACO’s OM Program Coordinator is the conduit for communication between the local OM organization, our school, and the team coaches. Also, the Coordinator serves as a resource to new coaches. While at many schools teachers lead the OM program, we are very lucky to have SRCSA parent and Odyssey veteran Kerri Izen filling this key  role so that our school can participate!

The Odyssey of the Mind program is 100% volunteer run, and each team of 5 to 7 kids needs a coach, typically a parent volunteer! Coaching is not an insignificant time commitment but it can be a very rewarding experience. The OM coordinator is available to support communication between prospective coaches and team members, but ultimately coaches decide their team’s members.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Odyssey of the Mind?

Imagine a combination of theater and problem solving with a creative twist. Through the writing of original scripts, the creation of costumes, props, scenery, and technical elements, teams of students work together to produce incredible solutions to creative problems. Students with talents in many areas find a unique opportunity to showcase their gifts in script writing, costume creation, music, dance, visual arts, props and scenery construction, engineering, problem solving, leadership, critical thinking, and more!

Who can participate in OM?

With our school’s membership in OM, we can have 10 teams for grades 3 through 8—the limitation is that each of the five problems can only be assigned to one Division I (grades 3-5) and one Division II (grades 6-8) team. We can have unlimited primary teams (grades K-2). All students are welcome to participate in OM, but each team needs a volunteer coach and for the past several years, we have more interested participants than coaches.

How do I learn more about the OM program at our school?

Parents of prospective participants, and their students, are encouraged to attend the Informational Meeting scheduled for September 19, 2018 at 6:30 PM in the MPR. The purpose of the meeting is to provide a brief overview of the OM program, explain how OM works at SRCSA, share the new long-term problems, and hear from several veteran coaches about their experiences leading teams. At SRCSA, team formation is led by coaches with support from the OM Coordinator. The best way to ensure your student’s participation is to sign up to coach!

How much does it cost to participate in OM?

SACO pays the national ($135) and state ($75) membership fees. Each team is responsible for paying their team’s regional tournament fee, which is $65/team for grades 3-8 and $45/team for grades K-2. Coaches may request $20+ from each team member in order to purchase materials for practices, and teams often share snack responsibilities. With five to seven team members, the cost per student participant is typically around $50.

How much time does it take to participate in OM?

This is an individual team decision, but most teams begin meeting in October and continue until the Regional Tournament in late February (and beyond, if they advance past Regionals). Most teams start out meeting once or sometimes twice a week. Many teams meet from 1½-2 hours per meeting, depending on age and frequency of meetings. As the Odyssey season progresses, most teams will have lengthier work sessions to finish up props, backdrops, costumes, and so forth. A couple of extended work sessions (three day weekends) in January and February are customary. All meetings must be at the convenience of the coach and their team, of course! Parents of participants are required to complete volunteer hours at the tournament.

I’m interested in being a coach. But I’ve never done it before. How do I learn more?

We are lucky that the Redwood Region, which extends all the way north to the Oregon border and south to encompass Marin County, is largely based in Santa Rosa. Each year, the Region offers coach trainings on Saturdays in October and November. The Redwood Region provides a ton of information about Odyssey of the Mind on their web page. If you are interested in more information, please visit: http://redwoodomer.org/

Are there other ways to help SRCSA’s OM program?

Yes! Thanks for asking. Coaches will be looking for practice spaces and we count on SRCSA’s teachers to share their classrooms after school. Also, each coach-led team has to provide a volunteer judge to participate in the Regional Tournament. This volunteer is ideally not the coach or a parent of a team member since the volunteer will be working during the entire tournament (8:00ish – 3:00ish). If you’re looking for volunteer hours to support our school, this is a great way to earn a large chunk. More information at the Information Meeting or contact OM Program Coordinator Kerri at srcsavolunteer@nullgmail.com.

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Thank you ice cream socializers!

August 10, 2018 By Erin Morris

Really appreciate the positive community energy at today’s ice cream social! Parent volunteers served ice cream and handed out an information packet to attendees that will be sent home within the first two weeks of school… check out the “Forms and Flyers” link if you would like, or expect some paper soon. The Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition, our school’s aftercare program, and the restorative justice specialist were also present.

It was great to see so many teachers handing out class lists and meeting students. One of the joys specific to our K-8 school is being able to see friendly eighth graders selling Narwhal spirit gear while simultaneously witnessing adorable incoming kindergartners check out the playground equipment with their parents.

If you couldn’t attend the ice cream social, here are some key info points:

  1. School starts at 8:05 AM on Wednesday 8/15 and ends at 1:20 PM for all students. Arrive early because you will need to park in the surrounding neighborhood and walk your student onto campus.
  2. Need a student planner? You can buy one during the first week of school for $5.
  3. The closed Facebook group for SRCSA parents is a great place to get copies of class supply lists. If you’re not a member, just fill out the short questionnaire and we’ll add you.
  4. Please fill out the Family Directory Form to be part of it AND to make sure you receive weekly emails from SACO.
  5. Like “School for the Arts Community Organization” on Facebook for other updates.
  6. Class assignments were printed on last year’s final report card. Ms. Cookman is teaching homeroom for those sixth grade students with “TBD” on their final report card and Ms. Bearden is teaching 7th grade homeroom. If you’re not sure who your teacher is, contact the school office on Monday.
  7. Middle school electives will be announced the first week of school.
  8. The principal sent out the first email of the school year. Completing your school paperwork (to be distributed Wednesday, or already distributed to kindergarten families today) is the best way to get added to the school’s email list.

It’s SEED season! Please consider making your SEED donation ASAP to help fund our classrooms. The forms are on this web page under “Forms and Flyers.” Or, check out the DONATE button for online payments by credit card.

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Volunteer help needed on some key tasks for 2018-2019!

July 23, 2018 By Erin Morris

2018-2019 at the Santa Rosa Charter School for the Arts: Call for Volunteers

The School for the Arts Community Organization (SACO), our school’s version of a parent-teacher organization, is hoping to broaden participation in our organization to benefit the school during the upcoming school year and beyond. We would love to see more familiar and new faces at our monthly meetings, but if you aren’t able to attend monthly meetings, there are many ways to contribute your time and talent in support of SRCSA’s wonderful kids and teachers.

In addition to classroom activities and arts-integrated education, there is a certain rhythm to the school year: we start with an ice cream social, where everyone is invited to come together before school starts. The SEED campaign, where we ask school families to donate $100 per student, always starts in August and ends in September. Art Walk, our school’s major fundraiser, is always in October and it is one of the most fun days at school. There is an annual canned food drive. Every year, parent volunteers organize a school yearbook, which is loaded with beautiful photographs of our students and school community. A weekly email from SACO goes home outlining events and activities; this email is deployed 40+ times during the year. The students enjoy a fantastic Book Fair/Literacy Week in late February/early March. There is an evening adults-only Spring fundraiser that brings us together for community and to raise funds for special projects. We appreciate teachers year-round and especially the first week of May. 

This rhythm, and the events and activities that comprise each school year, happens because parent volunteers make it happen, in partnership with the school. The fundraisers are more successful each year, thanks to the broad support of school families, but the organization and execution of all these activities is managed by a small group of parent volunteers. We need your help! In order for SACO to remain a viable support system for the school, we recognize that we need to grow involvement from more families, and specifically from more individuals choosing to get involved in organizing, leading, and volunteering in school activities. Together, we can sustain the kind of community events and regular activities that add so much value to our school.

People often worry about volunteering because they think that they’ll sign up to help with one thing and suddenly will find themselves spending all of their free time helping our school. It can happen—it has happened to some of us—but it doesn’t have to happen. Over the years, we have developed a series of tasks that are relatively discrete that give parent volunteers a chance to help with a key event or activity without becoming fully involved in the day-to-day work of SACO. Some of our volunteers literally do the same activity every year—and we need their passion and dedication—but we also need others to get involved. Families transition out of our school as students get older and move on to high school. Our school and SACO is strongest when everyone contributes.

Here are the specific tasks where volunteer power is needed:

SEED Coordinator

The SEED Campaign has resulted in more than $125,000 since it began in the 2011/2012 school year—and all of the funds raised have gone directly into the classrooms. In 2017-18, we raised $22K+ with 53% percent participation. We’re hoping to have another strong year!  We are looking for one or two trustworthy parent volunteers to coordinate the annual SEED campaign with support from the SACO Board. The SEED Campaign will begin August 10 and end September 30—so we are hoping to find a volunteer ASAP! This is the annual fundraiser that infuses SRCSA’s classrooms with funds for materials, special field trips, or whatever the teacher decides. The SEED coordinator helps develop the campaign, checks in with teachers, tracks participation, and keeps the Board and teachers updated on progress. This involves relatively frequent trips to the school office during the course of the campaign to log donations, and integrating online donations into the SEED database. If you sign up to help, you will be paired a mentor and will also be assisted by SACO’s treasurers.

Campus Directory

Each year, SACO publishes a campus directory consisting of contact information for SRCSA families who wish to share their information with the community. We are looking for a coordinator to lead the gathering of the data and to complete the mail merge, document design, and final layout, with support from the SACO Board and another parent volunteer who will assist with data entry. We begin gathering data at the Ice Cream Social and the goal is to finalize and distribute the directory to all participants by mid-October. This task is fairly time consuming but is a great way to satisfy volunteer hour requirements while working from home.

Newsletter Coordinator

SACO sends a weekly email newsletter that includes weekly reminders and updates. In past years, SACO prepared a monthly or semi-monthly school print newsletter. Ideally, the print newsletter editor receives articles and information from the school and from other parent volunteers. The project would benefit from a small group of volunteers who would work together to gather up and write the content and then lay it out. This is a great project for people looking for evening volunteer hours, and/or gaining resume-building writing, layout, and publication experience.

Web Site

Ever wonder why the SACO web site isn’t up to date? We could really use a volunteer to take over ongoing maintenance. This could begin by refreshing the materials available on our web site. Depending on time and interest, the role could also consist of updating it semi-regularly with information and even to refresh the look and feel of the Word Press template. This role is perfect for someone who can dedicate some time now and in the lead up to August 15, and then will be available throughout the year to assist with updates.

Yearbook

The Yearbook Team does an amazing job photographing events, gathering photos from parents and teachers, facilitating an annual cover contest, putting together the pages of our school yearbook, and promoting book sales. Like other SACO tasks, we have a small core group of parent volunteers who make the yearbook happen—and would love to find more people to join the team. We have a parent volunteer willing to co-chair the yearbook and handle an assortment of tasks including setting the production and sales schedule, facilitating the cover contest, and leading production of the final book. We’re looking for another key volunteer to organize parent volunteers from various classes, and other photographers, to help put the book together. If this sounds like something you can help with, please let us know!

Art Walk

We have two parent volunteers who have agreed to chair the 2018/19 Art Walk event, our school’s annual walkathon, and other experienced volunteers who will help support them and the team, but we need others to join “Team Art Walk” at the beginning of the school year. The team will find t-shirt sponsors, organize shirt orders, distribute pledge envelopes, organize class prize baskets with help from volunteers in each class, promote the event, organize the course and its fun components, and ultimately help run the day-long event that typically involves managing 50+ volunteers and facilitating participation by 450+ students, teachers, and staff. After the event, the team collects pledge envelopes and prepares for the award ceremony and gift basket drawings. We are specifically looking for a shirt captain– someone to organize shirt sponsors, printing, and distribution of the free event shirts.

Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinator

Each year, parent volunteers coordinate Walk and Roll to School days, and related activities, with support from the Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition. The coordinator role could be a great fit for someone who cares about reducing greenhouse gas emissions and/or who is interested in helping our students get more daily exercise. We have an experienced volunteer who has managed the program for the past 5+ years. We’re looking for one or two people to serve in a Co-Coordinator role.

Library Volunteer Coordinator

We are so lucky that the library is staffed by a talented, dedicated school employee, but the time she gets to spend in the library is limited due to school budget issues. Would you like to work with the school and SACO to support the library and to continue to improve its offerings? Seeking a small group of parent volunteers to make this a focus. One component could be setting up a schedule for volunteers to assist in the library, or to setting up work days, as needed, to take on specific tasks. This project will be defined by those who accept the challenge!

Halloween Carnival

The beloved Halloween Carnival will return as an after-school event on Wednesday, October 31. We have an experienced event chair and are looking for people interested in helping organize and staff the carnival.

Literacy Week/Book Fair

The annual book fair typically coincides with Dr. Seuss’ birthday on March 2. We begin planning the week-long Literacy Week in January. Partnering with Scholastic to host a book fair that week provides a relatively easy center piece for the week, but there is always plenty to do ahead of time and during the fair including organizing a volunteer schedule, recruiting volunteers, staffing the fair, and planning fun events to expand the focus of the week beyond shopping. We have a seasoned Literacy Week chairperson and an incoming co-chairperson, and are looking for a couple more people who would like to help with this project.

Canned Food Drive

For the past eight plus years, SACO has organized the school food drive in November. We’d like to select a less hectic time of year for this event, and are seeking a new event chair or co-chairs. Organizing this event involves coordinating with Redwood Empire Food Bank to select a date, advertise the event with support from the SACO Board, distribute the bins to the classrooms, tally the results, and arrange for the bins to be picked up. The food drive typically operates over the course of one week.

Odyssey of the Mind Team Coaches

Each year, SACO pays for our school’s membership in Odyssey of the Mind. This allows our school to have up to 10 competitive teams and as many primary (K-2) teams as desired; teams pay a small amount to register their team and furnish their own materials. The OM coordinator, a parent volunteer, is the conduit for communication between the local OM organization and our school. Also, they arrange an informational meeting at the beginning of the school year and serve as a resource to new coaches. We are lucky to have an OM coordinator for the 2018-2019 season but coaches are needed for each team. 2018-2019 will be our school’s eighth year participating in OM!

School Garden/ Campus Beautification Coordinator

We have a small group of interested parents, and a teacher, interested in organizing garden improvements and other campus beautification activities this year. If you have expertise with drip irrigation or other garden systems or just have a passion for garden and landscape projects, please let SACO know and we’ll connect you with the group. We will be seeking volunteers for the first weekend work party tentatively planned for late September.

Spring Fundraiser

The Spring Fundraiser is held each year with a particular project in mind. In past years, this April event raised money for musical instruments, visiting artists, and playground equipment . If your work/family schedule allows you more time to volunteer in the second half of the school year, you are very welcome to join the Spring Fundraiser team! We have several experienced people who will lead the event so this is an opportunity to learn while you help.

Teacher Appreciation Week

We celebrate our teachers and staff the first week of May every year. Planning typically begins in early April and then the planning team facilitates fun activities, snacks, surprises, and a luncheon during the event week. This is a great way to get to know other parents while helping recognize our school’s amazing teachers. If you are interested in co-chairing this event, please let us know.

The easiest way to reach SACO is via email at srcsavolunteer at gmail dot com. Current families are welcome to join SACO’s email list by writing to us. Everyone is welcome to attend the first SACO meeting of the year, planned for Wednesday, August 22 at 6:30 PM in the MPR.

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Join us for the annual ice cream social!

July 15, 2018 By Erin Morris

SACO is pleased to announce the date of the annual “Welcome Back!” ice cream social. We will hold this year’s event on Friday, August 10 from 4:30 to 6:00PM. All current families are welcome and encouraged to attend! Postcards will be sent home in early August with more details.

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Next Page »

WE ARE ON FACEBOOK

About Us

SACO is a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation that supports the Santa Rosa Charter School of the Arts, a public charter school for K-8 students located in Santa Rosa, CA. More...
  • HOME
  • Contact Us
  • About SACO
  • SACO/SRCSA Annual Calendar
  • Volunteer Opportunities
  • Yearbook
  • 2018-2019 Back to School Checklist
  • Forms and Flyers
  • SACO/SRCSA Newsletters
  • Donate
  • Forms and Flyers

Recent News

  • SEED – Student Education Enhancement Drive August 23, 2021
  • Art Walk is Friday Oct. 11! October 8, 2019
  • SEED in the Garden August 28, 2019
  • The first day of school is just around the corner, and that means… July 31, 2019
  • Talent Show! Tuesday, April 30th, 2019 April 16, 2019

Archives

  • August 2021
  • October 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • April 2019
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • January 2018
  • October 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • March 2017
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • May 2016
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • August 2014
  • August 2013
  • March 2013
  • January 2013
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • June 2012

Copyright © 2022 · eleven40 Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in