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Writer's pictureChatham Park HASA

Chatham Park Elementary School - Home and School Association - Monthly Meeting, November 6, 2024

Updated: Nov 21

Location: In-person at Chatham Park Library and Virtually on Zoom


In attendance:

In person: Stella Frederick, Dario Mescia, Stacey Tomaschik, Pete Freind, Lauren

Perry, Abby Shapansky

Virtually: Dr. Jabari Whitehead, Janelle Lacey, Katie Holder. Amanda DiDomenico,

Amy Mescia


  • Principal’s Remarks from Dr. Whitehead

    • Thanks to the community for a successful Halloween Parade. Music was missed but will play again next year when construction is completed. 

    • Reminder that parents entering the school building must be input into the Raptor system, which can be done at anytime. They will need to be in the system to participate in American Education Week. 

    • American Education Week is happening over two days. Grades 3-5 on 11/19. Grades K-2 on 11/20. Any specific questions families may have about the activities that will occur should go to the classroom teachers directly.

    • Strategic Planning surveys are being circulated by the district. Keep an eye out in your emails for those.

    • Surveys and focus groups are being held by the district and the DCEI in relation to the superintendent search. Keep an eye out in your emails for those.

    • New Fitness playground equipment is receiving great activity. Nice to see younger grades enjoying it at dismissal time. 

  • Construction update

    • Next official update from the Construction team will occur in January. There are no major changes at this time. Some manholes in the back field have cut into the children’s playing field. Heavy machinery work that has caused class time disruption is set to stop soon.

  • Completed HASA Events

    • Movie Night

    • Park Playdate

    • Pumpkin Contest

    • Volunteer Night at McGillicuddy's — This is now a recurring monthly event — Quizzo with HASA on the third Thursday of each month. Next gathering is Thursday, November 21. 

    • Boosterthon Review

      • Financial review

        • Families raised approximately $41k, HASA profited over $23k

        • Plans for funds - to make the following events free or at a greatly reduced cost: pancake breakfast, someone special dance, and MayFair. We will continue to provide support to Chatham Park operations as usual, supporting classroom needs, bringing back Young Author’s Day, etc.

        • Survey results - Click here to view

        • Note from Dr. Whitehead — keep in mind that the cost of Boosterthon removes the effort needed by individual people to fundraise money for HASA activities, which can cause infightings and resentment. MayFair used to be a large fundraiser. HASA needs to ensure avoidance of this internal conflict, which would inevitably bleed into the school and student atmosphere.

        • Board Vote on Future Use of Boosterthon — unanimously decided to note use Boosterthon next year. 

      • Upcoming/Current Events

        • Clubs - next session will begin in January

        • Spirit Wear Sale - currently extended, ending soon.

        • Philly Sports Night - February game 76ers tickets are still on sale. Still seeking a Sports Night Chair — lots of Philly sports to attend and it’s very popular.

        • Pancake Breakfast — the morning of December 7 - ask Adam Gibson for capacity limit. 

        • Young Author’s Day — December 13 during the school day

        • IDC - Next meeting is happening on Monday, November 11. The topic is transportation. Call for feedback and questions. 

        • Sponsorships - Looking for sponsorships within the community to help with costs of planned events

        • Fifth Grade UPdates - still looking for yearbook volunteers. School is planning: field trip and winter party at Skatium

      • Treasurer Report

        • Some merch sales at Movie Night and Boosterthon funds are being budgeted.

        • Working on submitting form 990 (nonprofit IRS filing, which details all the money we have raised and how we spent it). This is a public document and will be able to be viewed by anyone once submitted.

  • General Questions/Feedback 

    • Dr. Whitehead requested the replacement of recess equipment - footballs, soccer (came with mesh bags). HASA will inquire with Karen Carano for invoices and will determine if funds are available.

  • Adjourn

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