LISD Academic Advocates

1. Call to Order. The meeting came to order at 7:05 pm. Board members present included E. Frey, E. Mittag, C Kay, M. Hosier, C. Cavalli and R. Cowperthwaite.

2. Secretary's report. Minutes of the September 24 meeting were approved as read.

3. Treasurer's report and budget. F. Hashimi reported a balance of $579.08 as of October 13. Additional memberships remained to be deposited. After considerable discussion on the various line items in the budget, the board approved a draft budget totaling $1550. A final version of the budget will be presented at the November meeting.

4. Membership report. R. Cowperthwaite reported that he had obtained three business memberships: M/D Totco, Wells Fargo Bank and First Texas Bank. In addition, E. Frey noted that College Aid Advantage will be donating $500 in conjunction with the two college financial planning sessions they are providing at CPHS & LHS on October 28 and November 4. The brochure that Chris Kay designed has been very effective with the businesses however we need more visibility. We agreed to put corporate donation solicitation on our calendar for the first quarter of the year to take advantage of the corporate budget cycle. It was suggested that we consider raising the membership to $10. This will be revisited in the spring when we elect new officers.

5. Discuss potential activities: spelling/geography bee; other ideas. We want to emphasize academic achievement so spelling bees and similar activities seem most appropriate. Chris Kay will investigate the UIL spelling materials. We'd like to encourage competition among at least a few schools. Will need to work with the principals and language arts teachers. Fourth grade is considered a good target group. Erika Mittag will contact a couple of fourth grade teachers for their reactions to the idea. We will consider approaching corporate sponsors for prizes.

6. Discuss future speaker topics. Chris Kay has arranged for students from the CPHS Latin program and the LHS IB program to present next month. Valerie Taylor of Eanes ISD will present in January on an innovative writing program she has developed. We would still like to hear from a state legislator, possibly Dan Gattis or Ken Grusendorf, about the school finance situation. We also want to contact recent award winning local teachers as potential speakers.

7. Announcements:
a. Next meeting, Wednesday, November 19, 2003, 7 p.m., CPMS Library
b. College Financial Planning Workshop, November 4, 7 p.m., LHS Little Theater

8. The meeting adjourned at 8:25 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,
Erika Mittag
Secretary