Be in the know.
Volunteer for Field Day on Tuesday, 6/21
Our final volunteer event for the school year will be helping staff run field day on the last day of school (Tuesday 6/21). There are shifts available for each grade level, as well as shifts for those who want to volunteer for the full day. Links to the volunteer opportunities are shown below.
Volunteers must have their COVID vaccine record/exemption approved by the district in order to view, sign up and volunteer for these shifts. If you have any questions about volunteering for this event, please send our Tumwater PTO Volunteer Coordinator, Kristi Nelson, an email at volunteer@tumwaterpto.org.
If you are unable to view these volunteer opportunities . . .
Or if you get an error when you click on the link, then it is very likely that you do not have your COVID vaccine record/exemption approved by the district. Only volunteers with an approved COVID vaccination/exemption are allowed to volunteer in person, thus the opportunities are not visible to volunteers missing this approval.
You can now check your profile to see if your vaccination status has been approved. Click on MY PROFILE → Qualifications. Select “Tumwater Middle School” as the organization, and the qualifications should state if you have an approved COVID vaccination status.
More info can be found at www.tumwaterpto.org/volunteer.
Volunteers Needed for 8th Grade Celebration on 6/17
Volunteer shifts are now available for the 8th Grade Celebration, scheduled for Friday, 6/17.
As a reminder, all volunteers must be in our TMS volunteer system. If you log into mIP and are unable to see these shifts, then you have not requested your profile be moved to the TMS system or have not completed the vaccination/exemption process. More info can be found at www.tumwaterpto.org/volunteer. Questions regarding mIP can be directed to Kristi (volunteer@tumwaterpto.org).
Candywalk Donations: Sign-up to make the candywalk more fun by donating one (or five!) sweet treats.
Haven't donated yet? There's still time via Paypal.
Questions about the celebration? Email Amber (amber.fer@frontier.com)
NEW DATE: Final Community Meeting on 6/9 to Include Board & Budget Vote
NEW DATE! Join your PTO leadership in the final community meeting of the year on Thursday, 6/9 at 6:30pm in the TMS Library. Principal O’Neil and your PTO Board will be on hand to offer Tumwater & PTO updates, and community members will vote in next year's officers and approve next year's budget.
2022-23 Proposed Board Slate:
President: Hannah Wood Donohue
Vice President: Kelly Kinzer
Secretary: Eva Novick
Treasurer: Heather Vonk
Director of Volunteers: Kristi Nelson
Member at Large: Peng Ge
2022-23 Proposed Budget:
Your PTO Board, together with Principal O’Neil, went line by line through this year’s budget to discuss the value of each item and to craft a proposed 2022-23 budget that aligns with our TMS goals & aspirations.
Significant changes from the previous year’s budget include:
Increased income goal; adding in matching funds
Increased community grant & evening event budgets
Addition of printed student planners
**Please note: this is a rescheduled date due to the conflict with the Matilda production.
A zoom link will be provided for those who would like to listen in only. As a reminder, all TMS parents & guardians are automatically voting members of the Tumwater PTO. Looking forward to seeing you on 6/9!
Questions? Email Hannah (president@tumwaterpto.org).
May 2022 Board Meeting Minutes
Your Tumwater PTO Board worked on plans for the 2022-2023 school year. Read the latest meeting minutes here.
Volunteers & Cakes Needed for Student Social on Friday, 5/20
Our first TMS Student Social is on the calendar for Friday, 5/20 from 2:20-3:40pm.
Students will have free choice to participate in the many planned activities, including arts & crafts, board games, dancing, basketball, cakewalk, & musical chairs.
Food will be available in the Commons. Volunteers will have staff support in supervising various stations.
Check out the remaining open volunteer shifts below:
DONATE TO THE CAKEWALK: Cakes, cookies, & donuts are needed for the cakewalk. This is ALWAYS a popular destination, so the more goodies, the longer we can play! Sign-up here to bring a store-purchased & packaged baked good.
Art Lit Discovers Frida Kahlo, Volunteers Needed
The time has finally arrived and we are in need of Art Literacy volunteers!
We have an AMAZING Art Literacy lesson planned for the students of Tumwater to finish off this school year. They are going to get to put their unique spin on a self-portrait, just like our artist Frida Kahlo did. But only classes that have someone to run the lesson will get to participate...and we want that to be EVERYONE!
Training Session - Tuesday May 3rd from 6-7:30
Please join us TUESDAY, May 3rd from 6-7:30 for a training you are going to LOVE! Create a frameable piece of art, for FREE! We just ask that you volunteer to teach (at least)one 1 lesson of Art Lit at Tumwater the week of May 9th-13th and/or May 16-19th. The artist is edgy and the art is STUNNING! Get out of your head and into your heart and help us make this happen for all the kids at Tumwater Middle School!
Sign up here: 2022 Tumwater Art Literacy Training
Art Literacy Volunteer Shifts
The weeks of May 9th and May 15th will have special bell schedules to accommodate state testing. Since the class periods are longer, they are the ideal time to teach art literacy lessons, which will be happening during their science classes!
Please ask your child who their science teacher is and what period they have them! (or, surprise them the day of - you can find their class schedule in ParentVue.) A few of the class periods span across two days, and some are divided across the lunch period. Those are noted in each volunteer opportunity.
Feel free to sign up for as many shifts as you can! We need at least one1 person for each class to teach the lesson. If a class is without a volunteer, the lesson will not happen.
Sign up here: Frida Kahlo Art Literacy (listed by teacher) **Pro tip: Filter by Tumwater Middle School
All volunteers must be eligible within our TMS volunteer database. Head to www.tumwaterpto.org/volunteer for requirements.
Huge thanks to all our Rising Tides donors and our Art Lit chair, Melissa Manos, for making this opportunity a reality.
QUESTIONS? Please reach out to our fabulous Art Lit chair, Melissa Manos at melissa@mkmdesigns.biz or our Volunteer Coordinators, Jyothi & Kristi, at tumwaterpto.volunteer@gmail.com.
Tumwater PTO Receives 501(c)3 Status
We are proud and excited to announce that Tumwater PTO has received 501(c)3 status from the IRS, after a months long wait.
Huge thanks to Rachel Arnold, our parent volunteer who did the heavy lifting in submitting the initial IRS application last summer.
What does this mean for TMS PTO? Now that we are officially recognized as a 501(c)3, we will be registering with Benevity and other matching fund programs as soon as possible. Look for more info soon as we complete that process.
Why is this a big deal? Having a 501(c)3 status is necessary in order to take advantage of many nonprofit discounts & programs, such as Benevity and Google for Nonprofits. Additionally, it allows us to take advantage of our donor base’s employee matching fund programs, which is a huge boost in our fundraising process.
What took so long? The IRS receives over 95,000 applications a year. With COVID-19 restrictions & delays, the backlog was especially high this past year.
Is my Rising Tides donation from last fall now tax exempt? Yes. All donations are retroactively tax-exempt. Please email Hannah (tumwaterpto.president@gmail.com) if you are in need of a donation receipt.
Thank you to all our donors for your patience these past months. We are excited for this awesome step in developing this organization.
April 2022 Community Meeting Minutes
The April Community Meeting included updates from Principal Jill O’Neil and your Tumwater PTO Board. We also discussed planning for next school year. Highlights include:
An update on school activities and events.
An update on state testing and summer school.
A report on additional grants that your support funded.
A discussion of volunteer opportunities, including on next year’s PTO Board
A discussion of what went well this year and ideas for next year.
Read the full minutes & click through the slideshow to learn more. Remember to check out the action items for parents/guardians.
We look forward to seeing you at our next Community Meeting on Thursday, 6/2.
Questions? Email Hannah (tumwaterpto.president@gmail.com)
April 2022 Parent Checklist
Take a look at our parent checklist from last night's community meeting & prepare yourself for an awesome spring at TMS this school year!
8TH GRADE FAMILIES: Look over the volunteer requirements & ensure you are in our database BEFORE you show up to the 8th Grade Celebration, scheduled for Friday, 6/17.
BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR SIGN-UPS: Some awesome things are in the works, including art lit, our first social (5/20), and staff appreciation week!
ORDER YEARBOOK: Check the last newsletter for the ordering link or take a peek over at @tumwatermiddleschool.
SUBSCRIBE OR FOLLOW US: There's no reason not to be IN THE KNOW!
SAVE THE DATE: Yes, hard to believe but our next meeting will be our last of the year on Thursday, 6/2 & it's a biggie! We'll be voting in next year's Board & budget!
Donations & Volunteers Needed for 8th Grade Celebration
The first annual 8th Grade Celebration has been scheduled for Friday, 6/17 from 12pm-3:30pm. We will have all the usual party elements: music, a photo booth, games, lunch, and other fun surprises to send off this crew in style!
DONATIONS: In order to support the 8th grade celebration, we are asking parents to make a $25/student donation that goes directly to funding this event. We recognize that not all families will be able to donate this amount, so if you are able to be a hero & “sponsor” another child, that would be amazing.
Donations can be accepted via Paypal. ALL students will participate in the festivities, regardless of financial participation.
If you have any questions or would like to pay by check, please email amber.fer@frontier.com.
VOLUNTEERS: Parent volunteers are needed! If you would like help with planning this fun event on 6/17, please reach out Amber at amber.fer@frontier.com. Many volunteers will also be needed on the day of the event. Look for volunteer sign ups in your email several weeks before the big day.
Mark your calendars now!!
SAVE THE DATE: April Community Meeting & Listening Session on 4/7
Save the date for April's TMS PTO Community Meeting on Thursday, 4/7 at 6:30pm IN-PERSON! Join us in the TMS Commons to hear school & PTO updates with principal Jill O'Neil and your Tumwater PTO Board. A zoom link will be provided for those who would like to listen in only. A tentative meeting agenda can be fund HERE.
LISTENING SESSION: This meeting will include a listening session to spark conversation & exchange ideas with your TMS PTO Board as they begin drafting next year's PTO budget. Come prepared to share in small groups!
SUBMIT YOUR QUESTIONS: In an effort to communicate effectively & efficiently, the Tumwater PTO will be taking questions BEFORE our community meeting on 4/7. This will ensure that our meeting agenda and topics will clarify any questions for our parent community. You can submit your questions at https://forms.gle/JPNSHmo6p6FKZ4eH7
Zoom info, for those just listening in, will be sent on 4/7.
All parents are automatically members of the Tumwater PTO and all are encouraged to attend.
Questions? Email Hannah (tumwaterpto.president@gmail.com)
March 2022 Board Meeting Minutes
Your Tumwater PTO Board reviewed the final set of Community Grant Applications for this school year and awarded funding to two additional projects. Read the latest meeting minutes here.