Rowe PTO News

Monday, 6/3; 6:30- PTO Meeting on ZOOM

Thursday, 6/6 - Field Day

Tuesday, 6/11 - PreK Celebration

Thursday, 6/13 - Fifth Grade Graduation

Friday, 6/14 - Last Day of School and Early Dismissal!

The PTO will host our last meeting of the year on Monday, June 3, via Zoom at 6:30pm. Join us here.

A member of our administration will be on hand to give a year-end update and answer questions. We will then cover regular business including a recap of our year, and plans for next year.

Most importantly, we will nominate and vote on the slate of officers for next year. If you are someone who has some great ideas for the PTO and how we can continue to contribute to the Rowe community in meaningful ways, we need you!

All positions are up for nomination each year including President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Community Building Chair, and Fundraising Chair. Many of these positions can be filled with co-chairs as well.

At this time, the President and Fundraising Chair positions have no nominees.

Please let us know in advance if you're interested in joining us in any of these positions by emailing president@roweschoolpto.org. We will also accept nominations "from the floor" on Monday.

Save the date and dust off your sneakers! We’re helping our friends at Lincoln Middle School spread the word about their annual School’s Out 5K run, walk, and end of school celebration on June 8th, 2024 at 9:00am! This is a fun community event and a great chance to connect with one of our neighborhood middle schools.. The 5K is open to runners, joggers, walkers, and enthusiastic supporters, and goes to benefit the Lincoln PTO. Sign up here and help us spread the word!

Field Day will take place on Thursday, June 6th. This year, there are an array of exciting stations planned and each station is vital in creating a memorable and enjoyable experience for our students.

Mr. Custeau is seeking enthusiastic and responsible parents to volunteer their time to facilitate these stations, especially during the afternoon sessions (1:00 - 2:20 pm - 4th Grade & 2:00 - 3:30pm - 1st & 2nd Grade)

No prior experience is necessary – just a willingness to have fun and engage with our students. Whether you're a seasoned volunteer or new to the experience, we welcome your participation!

Please sign up here!

Families of Pre-K students are invited to join a celebration on Tuesday, June 11, 2024, at 2:15 pm in the Rowe Cafeteria to acknowledge the students’ hard work! We will celebrate with a slideshow, song, certificate of completion, and light refreshments.

If you are able to help by donating materials/food for the event or volunteer with set up or clean up, sign up here. Contact Ashley Eiler (eiler.ashley@gmail.com) or Leah Spinrad (lspinrad@gmail.com) with any questions.

The sunshine has arrived and the heat is on! Our Rowe friends are looking for shorts and dri-fit style shirts as we approach the summer season. If your family has gently used shorts or t-shirts to donate, our students will be grateful! Donations can be dropped off in the main office or to the social work office.

A request from Leigha Hart, our Environmental Literacy Teacher:

I'm working on creating an outdoor classroom in the schoolyard at the school. I'm reaching out to see if there are any Rowe families who might have some stumps I could use for the base of the benches. The picture is similar to the vision, plus a stand-up board to talk with/write on.

I've seen some around the neighborhood. Seems like many of them are from the ice storm a few months ago. I need 12 right now, one for each side of the six benches. Ideally 12 inches or more in diameter and 18-24 inches tall. MEEA grant money helped me purchase hemlock boards for the boards across the top.

I'm asking in hopes some folks in the PTO feel inspired and want to help in the next two weeks to make it happen!! Please reach out to Leigha at hartm@portlandschools.org

Thank you again to everyone in our community who has remained engaged in the PPS budget process. The Portland City Council unanimously approved the FY25 PPS budget at their meeting on Monday, 5/20.

Don’t forget to vote on Tuesday, June 11th to have your own voice heard concerning the budget.

And we will try to maintain the Community Involvement portion of our website up to date with how you can stay engaged with this process all year long.

Thank you to everyone who donated flowers, breakfast goods, or gave their time and effort towards making Teacher Staff Appreciation Week a resounding success. Your donations and support have truly made a difference, showing our educators how much they are valued and appreciated. We couldn't have done it without you.

What a fantastic Springfest we had this year! Thank you to the 70+ volunteers to the crowds of students, friends, and families who enjoyed the food, fun, and games at Springfest. Despite a little weather surprise, the Rowe community embraced the change and had a blast! The energy and enthusiasm started at the ticket table and carried throughout the gym, cafe, hallways, and all the way to the literal Prize Tent in the library rotunda. It was so fun to see the smiling faces, tattoos, cakes, and joy! We are so grateful for our Rowe community for making Springfest another great success!

The PTO would like to give special thanks to several people who, throughout the year, went the extra mile for our students and staff:

Room Parents

Brie O’Malley - Walk-A-Thon Chair

Laura Paul - Spirit Wear Lead

Molly Hemkens - Design work

Mike Best - Pokemon Night and Craft & Quest Chair

Brittany Peats and Lara Rosen - Advocacy work

Jay Weinberg, Katie Howard and Jodie Ureneck - Calendar Raffle

Nikki Anderson - Bike to School Day

Meghan Torrieri - Springfest Chair

Springfest Committee - Sandy Illingworth, Mary Labady, Bianca MacDonald, Sarah Stebbins, Louis Torrieri, and the PTO Board

Speaking of the PTO Board - a very hearty thank you to our board (Steph Walsh, Ashley Eiler, Janna Stefanowicz, Audrey Bartholomew, Emily Davis, and Kayla Theriault) for making it all run. This was an especially challenging year without a Fundraising Chair, and every one of these dedicated volunteers helped fill in the gaps. Thank you!

Each year we raise approximately $30,000 (about $65 per student) to support classroom supplies, books, field trips, families in need, ad more.

You can help by:

Make a direct donation

Buy spirit wear

Use PTO Clynk bags for cans and bottles

Support our fundraisers