Parent Support Committee Monthly Meeting Minutes
Parent Support Committee Meeting Minutes
Email: [email protected]
April 11, 2025
Mission Statement: We are parents, grandparents, and community members dedicated to supporting staff, scholars, and programs at ASK. We accomplish this through fundraising, volunteer efforts, donations, and community events.
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Present |
Member |
Title |
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Giselle Bango |
PSC Co-Facilitator |
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Mary Harper |
PSC Co-Facilitator |
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Shelly Kristensen |
PSC Secretary |
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Rafael Bango |
PSC Treasurer |
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Edward Garcia |
ASK CEO |
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Bill Barrett |
ASK HS Principal |
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John Keelin |
ASK MS Principal |
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Cybil Hott-Clark |
NHS & Scholar Gov’t President |
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Aaron Lopez |
Scholar Gov’t VP |
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Angel Gajurel |
NHS VP |
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Wyatt Calder |
NJHS Co-President |
Wyatt Calder - NJHS Co-President
Scholars applying for spring NJHS induction completed their essays on Friday. Induction will take place in late April or early May. Any questions about applying to NJHS can be directed to Wyatt Calder - [email protected] or Mrs. Donlin - [email protected].
PSC Updates
Budgeting Class, Seed Money Update
Club Support Financial Guidelines - viewable here: Club Financial Guidelines
Thank you to our Middle School Robotics club for completing the budgeting class and submitting your budget and seed money request to the PSC. PSC will still help with school sponsored events that do not have a fundraising arm - Poetry Night. The PSC is looking for feedback on the process and suggestions for seed money funding for next year. Email the PSC at parentsupportcommittee@
Treasurer Report
Staff Appreciation (see dates below) - May 5th - 9th
The PSC is starting to plan now. We are looking for help with putting together ideas or shopping for teacher gifts and ideas for meals. We will need to provide for a staff of 50. We may utilize Sign Up Genius for donation requests if needed.
Principals day - Monday, May 1st
Mr. Keelin - we would like to get everyone to drop off instant soup and bottled water for Mr. Keelin to pass out to scholars who need it.
Mr. Barrett - when asked he said he didn’t need anything but that his pens are always missing. So, let’s get Mr. Barrett a pen collection he can never run out of! The more unique the better!
6th grade orientation (Fall 2025) - if PSC help is needed at 6th Grade Orientation Day we would like more advanced notice. We want to share all our PSC information with the new ASK families but need time to prepare materials and find volunteers.
Spanish Translation of Meeting Notes/Agenda - a huge thank you to Mrs. Vollmar who has volunteered to translate our meeting notes and agenda for our Spanish speaking families. You can find them as an email attachment to this email.
Meet the Manager - Mr. Bryan, Model UN
Thank you to the PSC for the funding to purchase fish for the fish tank in my classroom for scholar enjoyment.
Seviana Montforte and Owen Peterson are the leadership team for the Model UN. They presented a wonderful overview of the club and activities. In the Modul UN scholars pick a country and have to debate issues with other countries based on a real government official's position in that country. During their debate they must come to a resolution and vote on it just as the real UN functions. These debates improve interpersonal communication skills and teach research and policy analysis. Model UN is a great opportunity for scholars to fill out resumes and enhance college applications. Model UN is one of the few opportunities for students to participate in humanities based activities as the schools and state policies are moving more towards STEM education.
The Model UN participates in 2 main conferences each year. The state conference is in the fall and held at the Roundhouse in Santa Fe. It is a state wide, competitive conference with judges from various organizations including UN delegates. It is closely monitored after the UN. Attendance costs approximately $3,000. The 2nd conference is the Lobo MUN which costs approximately $1,000. This takes place at UNM in February. Model UN is hoping to host a Model UN conference here at ASK in May.
The club has 25-30 members every year. It is one of the only clubs that accept 8th grade students giving them a leg up in joining other high school clubs. Students participating in the Model UN learn speaking skills, confidence and leadership skills thrive in a professional environment. Applications open in November or December each year. The club takes 12 new scholars each year. There is a 2.75 GPA requirement to apply and require teacher recommendations. They are looking for engaged students who can work well with others. The membership cap is based on finances and logistics of attending conferences.
More information on the Model UN can be found here.
Award won by Model UN this year: Best Delegate is 1st place, Outstanding Delegate is 2nd place, and Honorable Mention is 3rd place. Here is the list:
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LoboMUN: Lauren Kerns-Best Delegate in JCC; Seviana Monforte-Outstanding Delegate in JCC; Ashlyn Welz-Honorable Mention in Holy Grail
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Santa Fe: Darren Paredes-Best Chair; Seviana Monforte & Owen Petersen- Honorable Mention in Security Council
Mr. Keelin - Middle School Dance
The MS Dance is tentatively set for May 8th but scholars still need to complete the 25 uniform challenge to earn it. As the venue and DJ need to be reserved and paid in advance the date has been set. They will need snack and drink donations again this year. An email with sign ups will go out closer to the date. Snacks can get dropped off at the school in advance. The dance will be held at an event center in Corrales again.
CEO Report - Mr. Garcia, Calendar 2025-2026, Lottery Update
Currently the ASK Academy has 532 scholars registered for next year. 6th grade has about 25 seats left. There are a few spots left in 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th grades as well. Please share the word that we have spots open with any interested families. Interested students/parents can email Mr. Garcia to begin the enrollment process - here. The lottery and waitlist has been completed so interested scholars can enroll directly now.
This year the ASK Academy will graduate 51 seniors. The administration has been working hard to retain students moving from MS to HS. 9th and 10th grade retention rates have improved for next year. We know that the ability to participate in sports is an issue for HS scholars. Mr. Garcia and Mr. Barrett are going to work on sharing info about how ASK scholars can stay at ASK while participating in sports at the public high schools. There are also opportunities for scholars to participate in music programs outside of ASK as well with the Albuquerque Youth Symphony Program. You can get more information here or email Dorothy Whisler at [email protected] with any questions.
Calendar - the draft calendar will be shared with the governing council next week. Then it goes on to NMPED for approval. The 180 day requirement is still in litigation so it looks like the draft calendar should be approved. There are some unique changes to next year's draft calendar (attached to this email). Note that there are five gray colored days. These are on Fridays where scholars will have some form of school. The first gray day is September 5th and will be a full, in person day of school. At this time the other 4 gray days (11/7, 11/14, 1/23, 2/20) will be a ½ day 8am - 12pm at home synchronous work led by teachers via Google Meets and 1/2 day 12pm - 4pm asynchronous scholar led work. As of now the school day will still be 8am - 4pm but may shift as needed due to construction traffic with the new building. Mr. Garcia hopes to break ground on the new building in June. The draft calendar is attached to this email.
Note that Seniors are required to have 1440 hours to graduate which means their last day is typically a week before graduation if no make-up exams are needed. The school needs a week to certify that scholars have met state requirements to graduate which then has to go to the state to be certified as well.
Janisse Vasquez - Testing Requirements
Schools are required to have 100% completion of scholars testing or it brings our entire school's score down. If students miss testing days they will be required to come in on the Friday Support days or miss valuable class time during the regular school day to complete testing. It is imperative that students are present on testing days, get a good night's sleep and have a good breakfast to be ready to test. Parents can follow the school calendar on the website to get advanced notice of testing dates here.
Events -
Testing
Monday, April 14 - SAT for 11th graders, all others asynchronous
Tuesday, April 15, Wed April 16, Th April 17 - MSSA Testing for 6th-8th grade. See attached schedule.
Tues, 4/15 and Thurs, 4/17 - 2 hour delay for HS. Gates open at 9:45 am and classes begin at 10:00am.
Wed, 4/16 - 2 hour delay for HS. Gates open at 10:20am and classes start at 10:40am.
Monday, April 21 - NM-ASR Testing for 8th and 11th grades all others asynchronous. Students will be released at noon tentatively. If release time is changed parents will be notified via text/email.
Color Run/Walk-A-Thon - Friday, April 25th, 10:30am - 11:30am
Poetry Night - Wednesday, April 30, 4:30pm - 5:30pm
May 1st 5-7pm
You're invited to our End-of-Year Biomedical Pathway Showcase!
Join us as we celebrate our scholars and all they've accomplished this year with an exciting, interactive Health & Education Fair open to parents and community members!
Vitalant Blood Drive --> Make your appointment here: Make an Appointment
Free veggie plant starts from our Community Health class
Health screenings including EKGs, blood pressure, and blood glucose checks
Live demonstrations and interactive lessons in suturing, phlebotomy, CPR, first aid & more—led by our talented students!
This is a free, family-friendly event you won’t want to miss. Come support our future healthcare heroes!
See attached flyer for more information
Staff Appreciation
Administrative Professionals Day - Wednesday, April 23
Principal Appreciation Day - Monday, May 1
Mr. Keelin - instant cup of soups & bottled water
Mr. Barrett - fun and unique pens
National School Nurse Day - Wednesday, May 7
Teacher Appreciation Week - May 5-9
It’s gonna be May…
Friday, May 9 - 8th grade promotion, 10-11am
Friday, May 16 - Graduation, 10 AM – 11:30 AM (National Hispanic Cultural Center - 1701 4th St SW, Albuquerque, NM 87102)
Next Governing Board Meeting: April 17, 6:30pm, Commons
Next PSC Meeting: August 2025
KEEP SCROLLING
Misc/ongoing information on the next page
Misc Information
How to be a volunteer at The ASK Academy?
There is a mandated state process to get approved as a volunteer or to be a chaperone for any school sponsored events. Please click on the hyperlink https://www.theaskacademy.org/
Or scan the QR Code, or go to https://tinyurl.com/
Once you click on the link, you will be emailed the steps on what to do once you complete the interest form. Stephanie Munoz is the point of contact for this process and her email is [email protected]. You will also receive information on the computer based courses and how/where to get fingerprints completed.
The PSC is comprised of committees with co-chairs to support each other at school events and roles. Any questions for the PSC please email us at [email protected]
Be in the know…
Middle school has newsletters for each grade. They are monthly newsletters and are released on the day of the month that corresponds to the grade levels. For example, 6th grade newsletters come on out on the 6th, 7th-the 7th grade, 8th-the 8th grade. Below are their respective websites:
6th grade: https://www.theaskacademy.org/
7th grade: https://www.theaskacademy.org/
8th grade:
https://www.theaskacademy.org/
Mr. Keelin’s page called Keelin’s Corner:
https://www.theaskacademy.org/
Pizza Thursdays:
Thursdays at ASK involve the selling of Dion’s pizza, drinks and desserts. Volunteers are needed every week to serve the scholars and keep this ongoing fundraiser a success. Please contact Kristina Calder at [email protected] if you can help. Even helping 1 Thursday a month is a great help.