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Montessori Education Benefits Children
- 1. WHILE WE TRY TO TEACH OUR CHILDREN ALL ABOUT LIFE, OUR CHILDREN TEACH US WHAT LIFE IS ALL ABOUT. - MARIA MONTESSORI All-School Meeting
- 2. Sara Vipond – Board President 2013-2014 All-School Meeting
- 3. Agenda Our School Who are we? What can we offer? The 2013-2014 budget at a glance WBMS Fundraising Annual Fund Drive Kick-off Meet the Dohmeier family
- 4. 2013-2014 Board Members President – Sara Vipond Finance – Dan Evans Emeritus – Jen Esnough Personnel – Kjel Johnson Marketing – Ching Lo Facilities – Michael Schmidt Volunteer Coordinator/Parent Relations- OPEN Funds Development – Donna Sommerfeldt Staff Representative – Amanda Puchreiter Member-at-Large – Tiffany Cavegn Member-at-Large – Sabrina Fay
- 5. Demographics of WBMS 63 Families 10 New Families (16%) 53 Returning Families (84%) 86 Children (full capacity with current staff = 120 children) From 25 Communities across the Twin Cities! 13 Families from White Bear Lake 8 Families from Maplewood 6 Families from Mahtomedi 5 Families from Vadnais Heights Some other communities include: Stillwater, Woodbury, Dellwood, Hugo, Lake Elmo, St. Paul, Lino Lakes, Mounds View, Little Canada, Mendota Heights
- 6. Enrollment Comparison 2012-2013 Enrollment (end of year) 2013-2014 Enrollment Toddler 12 11 Children’s House 45 37 Extended Day 24 16 Elementary 22 22 Total 103 86
- 7. On Solid Ground WBMS is financially healthy Making fiscally responsible decisions A school with superb Guides Extremely active and vivacious parent community
- 8. The Finest Education In 2002, WBMS became the third Montessori in the Twin Cities Metro Area to become AMI certified. Guaranteeing a consistent, quality, and professional Montessori education for your child Over 8,000 AMI accredited schools around the world in over 6 continents, 110 countries. There are only 10 in Minnesota.
- 9. Strong work ethic Children regularly do more than what is required Time management skills Learn to take initiative Social skills with both adults and children of all ages Not afraid to ask questions Know how to make good choices Superior academic achievement Montessori Outcomes
- 10. Dan Evans – Board Treasurer 2013-2014 All-School Meeting
- 11. WBMS 2013-2014 Financials Expenses Payroll $ 526,500 Mortgage $ 81,000 Classroom $ 22,500 Building $ 76,500 Admin $ 53,500 Misc. $ 9,000 TOTAL $ 769,000 2013-2014 Projected Expenses Payroll 68%Mortgage 10% Admin 8% Building 11% Classroom 3% Misc. 1% (non payroll)
- 12. Income Tuition $687,500 Grants $31,500 Annual Fund $24,000 Auction $26,000 TOTAL $769,000 2013-2014 Revenue Goals WBMS 2013-2014 Financials Tuition 90% Grants 4% AFD 3% Auction 3%
- 13. WBMS 2013-2014 Fundraising 1. Grants 2. Annual Fund Drive 3. Annual Spring Auction Event *100% community participation in these events sets a standard that any potential donor will respect.
- 14. Oh, AND Target Red Card Encourage friends, family, neighbors to designate WBMS General Mills Box Tops Request that Grandma and Grandpa save their Box Tops
- 15. Annual Fund Drive 2013-2014 “Everyone Counts!” Donna Sommerfeldt Funds Development Board Member
- 16. What we’ll Cover ● Theme “Everyone Counts!” ● Why Fundraise? ● Why not just raise tuition? ● How do we determine how much money to raise? ● How will we fundraise? ● Focus on Annual Fund Drive
- 17. Everyone Counts! ● Children ● Families ● Staff / Faculty ● Extended Family and Friends ● Alumni ● Community
- 18. Why Fundraise? Normal part of being in a school system Giving back Covers cost to run the school
- 19. Why Not Raise Tuition? Actually, we do As Affordable as possible Tax Credit / Deduction
- 20. How Do We Determine How Much? In 2013-2014: projected expenses are: $770,000 projected income (tuition) is: $ 720,000 $ 50,000 gap
- 21. How Will We Raise It? Annual Fund Drive: $24,000 Annual Auction: $26,000 $50,000
- 22. Previous Years AFD 2012-2013 Goal: $27,000 Total Collected: $29,295 Families: $25,850 Friends, Ext Family, Alumni, Contactors: $3,445 2007-08 Goal: $40,000 2008-09 Goal: $40,000 2010-11 Goal: $30,000 2011-12 Goal: $27,500
- 23. Donation Request Amount Annual Fund Drive: $24,000 Number of Children: 85 Guidelines for Donation $ 300 per Child
- 24. Participation Goal Our Participation Goal is 100%
- 25. Board and Faculty Donations Total: $4,540
- 27. Corporations that Match your Donation Ameriprise Financial BEA Systems Blue Cross Blue Shield Minnesota Boston Scientific CSI Deluxe Corporation Ecolab Glaxo Smith Kline HB Fuller Medtronic NRG Energy Piper Jaffray Securian Travelers US Bank Verizon Wells Fargo
- 28. Extended Family, Friends, Alumni, Contractors and Vendors • Last year we invited extended family, friends and alumni to participate in our AFD • We also invited contractors/vendors • With their generous support we surpassed our goal • Inviting them to participate again this year
- 29. Contractors/Vendors • Please patron these businesses •Abbot Paint •Adam’s Pest Control •Audubon •Carlson Print Group •King Lawn & Landscaping •Maplewood Community Center •Metro Sales, Inc •Pine Tree Apple Orchard •Polka Dot Yoga •Premier Bank •Raptor Center •Trader Joe’s •USA Inflatables •White Bear Glass
- 30. When? Annual Fund Drive: Tuesday, October 8 – Thursday, October 24 Annual Auction Event: TBD
- 31. Annual Fund Drive Starts today! Ends Oct 24 How it Works / Process Communication toward our goals $24,000 = $300/child 100% participation Confidentiality
- 32. Dan Dohmeier & Sam Jenniges Olivia, Ben and Simon
- 34. Work on What Interests Me Personal Relationship with Guides Independence Learn at Own Pace High Expectations of Self Not Motivated by a Grade-Want to Learn Small Group Teaching Respect Responsibility Creativity Encouraged Learn High Level Skills Hands on Experience What a Montessori Education Means To Us
- 35. Freedom of Choices with Responsibility A Good Investment
Editor's Notes
- Welcome, we are glad you are here, we are glad you are part of this community.
- Here is our agenda for tonight. First, I’ll take a few minutes to talk about our school. Then we’ll hear from Dan Evans, who will speak briefly about our finances. Then we’ll get to the main purpose of this meeting – Donna Sommerfeldt will kick off the Annual Fund Drive. And to wrap up the meeting, we’ll hear from the Dohmeier family, who are longterm members of our WBMS family. Hopefully at the end of the evening you will have a solid appreciation/understanding of what YOUR child is getting out of a Montessori education here at WBMS and why it’s important for everyone to participate in our Annual Fund Drive.
- Before we get too far into the evening I would like to introduce our 3 new members of the Board
- 84% of WBMS families have chosen to be back hear this year and we could not be more delighted or prouder of that return. I think it speaks volumes to the quality of education we are providing here at WBMS.
- Our total enrollment this year is comparable to what we saw at the end of year last year. As you can see, our numbers are down, but we are still enrolling. I expect this number to increase throughout the year. For comparison purposes, we were at 96 children at this time last year.
- Even though enrollment isn’t where we want it to be, we are in a good place financially. As a non-profit and a parent run organization WBMS provides an annual report with an overview of its finances that will be available this winter. Time and time again we hear feedback through our WBMS community surveys complementing the faculty and staff on their professionalism, dedication and heartfelt love for each child here at WBMS. We are fortunate to have the unparalleled, quality staff we have here. And I also want to thank all of the families who came out for the hoe-down and for the parent education night last week. We had a great turnout for both events and this high level of participation demonstrates the level of community we have achieved. Fundraisers and community events bring out the best in our community.
- Being a part of WBMS makes you a part of the AMI Montessori parent community in MN. There are over 100 schools in the Twin Cities that claim to be Montessori; however, only 10 are recognized by the Association Montessori Internationale as meeting the standards that Maria Montessori developed from her research over 100 years ago. The AMI accreditation and the standards that are ensured by that accreditation are something as a WBMS community that we can be proud of. AMI sets guidelines for a pure Montessori experience and class size as mentioned earlier is one of the elements that is regulated by AMI.
- From this Montessori experience the way Maria intended, your children will acquire the skills, experiences and knowledge that will carry them through life and its challenges. And beyond those life skills your child is also getting a solid educational experience. WBMS elementary children have consistently scored on average at or above the 85 th percentile on the standardized tests they take each year. Last year they were at the 89 th percentile! While have consistently high scores, this is just one piece of what our children experience here. Everything your children do in Toddler and CH, leads them to achievement. And Elementary continues this achievement. Research has proven that children in a Montessori environment exhibit the following outcomes: our children are thoughtful, resourceful, independent, responsible and they tend to make friends easily. Hopefully you are seeing these qualities in your child at home. Research shows that your child is exhibiting these traits more so than children educated in another system. Your child is receiving an educational experience that in unparalled than any school around. To maintain this continuously, it requires a significant budget.
- It takes just almost $770,000 to run our school. As you can see, the majority of our expense, almost 70%, is for our staff, as it should be. Looking at this slide, If you’ve been with WBMS for a few years, you will see that our expenses are down from where they have been. We have had to tighten our belts, just like many of you have had to do in your own homes and businesses.
- You can see on this slide that a majority of our income comes from tuition; however, tuition alone does not cover all of our expenses. And that is another reason why we are here tonight to talk about our fundraising.
- We have been working hard to find money outside of this community. Last year, this included a grant from Target Corp for field trips and a grant for our wonderful new rain garden. This year, it includes several thousand dollars toward a new web and marketing initiative, thousands toward energy-saving initiatives for our facility, and over $30000 (from Hiawatha Education Foundation) to supplement our scholarship program to allow a more financially diverse population to have access to our wonderful AMI education. Lots of school organizations use many small fundraisers (like selling candy, wrapping paper, etc) to make ends meet. Feedback from this community has suggested that this is asking too much from our families – so we instead hold two fundraisers a year and ask for 100% participation in both. These two fundraisers are critical in meeting the operational needs of our school.
- Oh and….we do ask you to participate in collecting box tops. Because these things are so easy and don’t cost us anything it almost seems fiscally irresponsible for WBMS not to do them. And if you haven’t designated WBMS as the recipient of your Target Charge Card please do so as WBMS receives 1% of everything charged. Now I would like introduce Donna Sommerfeldt, board member and parent and she will tell you more about our Annual Fund Drive.
- Introduce myself; Joe Allaben husband, Jack allaben son 2 nd year of elementary and our 2 nd year w/ the school
- The items that I will cover tonight are…..
- A little bit about our theme. This is the first time in our AFD that we have a theme. Everyone Counts! Our children – the bedrock of why we are all here And it takes EVERYONE working together - the families, the staff and faculty and extended family and friends, alumni and our community - to create the best possible education and experiences our children can have in these early, formidable years. We need the support of everyone to make our school successful, and in turn help our children thrive. So, Everyone ….. Counts! Another ‘twist’ on our theme is how will be communicating our progress against our goals. The children will be using Montessori math and counting materials from the classroom to help in this communication to our community….more about this later…..
- NORMAL PART OF BEING IN A SCHOOL SYSTEM : In fact every school public and private does fundraising In every school there are even board roles created for this and it’s an expectation of every parent at every school – so this normal. Fundraising is a way of GIVING BACK. It’s a great way to show support of your guides and the staff for the quality experience your children receive. COVERS COST TO RUN THE SCHOOL Our expenses exceed our income; so the amount we are requesting is the amount needed to run the school – no extra
- Tuition increases have been about 1.5% for the last couple years But at the same time, we need to make tuition as affordable as possible Donations are 100% tax deductible whereas tuition is not
- Run thru slide REITERATE SARA’S POINT: A number of years ago the school ‘made a promise’ of 2 fundraisers a year – the Annual Fund Drive and the Auction; we will not solicit any further requests as long as we make our goals. Many schools ask throughout the year with varying sales: scholastica book sales, t-shirts, catalog sales, candy bars, discount cards, magazines, etc…this list goes on and on. Inundated constantly. Once check now…done. Auction in spring…done.
- The amount asked from the families has substantially decreased over the last number of years. Last year our goal was $27,000 and we INITALLY fell just short of our goal as we collected about 95% or about $25,850, from our families For the first time we invited extended families, friends, alumni and even vendors and contractors to participate in our AFD. We received many wonderful donations from these groups which helped us EXCEED our goals. As you can see we collected over $3,000 from these groups to exceed our goal and raise $29,295!!! However, in the spring we fell $1,700 short in our auction goals … so we needed every bit of that $2000 from the AFD to surpass our overall goals last year. So I am happy to report that between the AFD and the Auction last year we exceeded our goal by $866. Add: examples of what we would have to cut if did not make our goals. Staff development and training Maintain current staffing levels; layoff 1 person
- Read slide So we ask that you please give within your means and No amount too small or too large;. But, if we were to receive $300/child we would meet our goal.
- Besides $$ goal…participation goal… 100% Participation – more chance of getting grants! As Dan mentioned: we were awarded the vadnais heights rain garden!! When applying for grants; a factor that is considered is how supportive are our families and a way to measure that is through participation in giving. A participation rate of 100% is a powerful statement in support of the school. Last year we had 93% participation The year before that we had 92% participation. The year before that, greater than 95% And four years ago we had 99%. My understanding is that this FAR exceeds other schools in the area. Again, I want to emphasis that no donation is too small or too large. Every donation is greatly appreciated and helps in so many ways. The participation rates are just as important as the $$ amount.
- I’m very please to announce that we have already received 100% participation from our board of directors and many of our staff and faculty have ALREADY contributed to the AFD. As an example of their profound commitment, $4,340 has already been contributed toward our goal!!! I just want to give a BIG thank you to those who have already donated for their support and to a tremendous start to our AFD!
- As parents, WE ALL need to only raise minimum of just $19.660.
- Give example of matching. So you pledge $600, your company gives $600 and WBMS gets $1200. All that goes toward our goals. Last year , our matching pledges came to $1,500 (source: 2012-13 spreadsheet).
- Last year was the first year we invited ext fam, friends and alumni to participate; as well as vendors and contractors As I mentioned earlier, these wonderful supporters of our school donated over $3,000 which help push us BEYOND our goal!! We will be inviting these groups to participate again….who are they? The extended family and friends contacts are from a form you may have submitted at the beginning of the school year; these folks may be grandparents, aunts, uncles, close friends. So… Shortly after the fund drive, they will receive a letter and pledge card. If there are any others you would like to invite to participate, that may not be on your list, we have extra pledge cards you may take and distribute. And the alumni, of course, are the families of the children who no longer attend. We will be updating that list and mailing them invitations to participate as well We sent letters to 70 vendors and contractors that have done business with us over the last couple years. 14 responded either with a dollar donation to the AFD or donated an item to our action. Almost a 20% return rate; not too bad for our first year.
- I just wanted to give a little shout out to all the vendors and contractors who donated either to our AFD or Auction. Between the two (afd and auction) we raised almost $1,200. I’m not going to name them all, but you can see them here. So…between all these groups, extend fam, friends, alumni, cont/vendor we sent out 227 letters. And over all received a 17% return rate….raising $3,345 for the AFD. So I just felt it was important to cover that with you to show you the extent to which we are fundraising and the incredible support we are receiving from our entire community. EVERYONE AND EVERY BIT COUNTS!!!
- It’s brief, and families have told us that it keeps the fire going and move very quickly through this. How many schools do you know that drag this for months and months. Please give or pledge within this timeframe and we want 100% participation within this timeframe, but some families have done so and given more after AFD closed as their budget allowed. Remember, to get a 2012 donation, you need to contribute by the end of the year. To be clear, WBMS will always take donations! Any time!! And in the Spring: Auction! Mark the date!! 100% participation is also required for the auction; more info at a later date on this.
- Just a couple logistics before I turn it over to Sam and Dan….. How it works / Process School mailboxes: letter and donation card; fill out tonight or next 2 weeks; basket in lobby reserved for your completed pledge cards You can either write a check or auto deduct thru Smart Tuition Through Smart Tuition you can either do a one-time auto-deduct or set up monthly installments which some families found very convenient. Also, if you don’t want to dip into cash, families in the past have given stock and that’s been a wonderful gift! If that is something you would be interested in doing I would be happy to talk to you about it after the meeting. It’s a great way to give while getting a tax deduction instead of paying income taxes on any gain. Remember there are also additional pledge cards here tonight if there are others you know who may want to donate. Communication – How we are progressing against our goals Thru the Wednesday weekly; other e-mail communication With our theme of ‘everyone counts’ we will be communicating our progress in the lobby with the various counting and math materials from the classroom. For the % participation we will mimic the number rods, in construction paper, on the wall above the counter. Every time a family submits a pledge card, their name will be entered into one of the segments until all 74 segments are filled. Filling all 74 segments means 100% participation. As for the $$ amount against our goal, we will be using a variety of different Montessori counting and math materials. The children will be given the $$ amount raised and they will select and complete the ‘work’ to communicate our progress to you. So, during pick-up or drop-off, please notice the displays in the lobby. Every few days or so, we will be changing out the materials with an updated $$ amount. The work will be rotated throughout the different classrooms. Lastly, Confidentiality – a word about this – amounts are confidential. Everyone will know WHO gave, but not how much. Your names only will be on the ‘number rods’. The amount you give will only be known by those who need to administer the donations. Button this up so our school leaders can focus their addtional top priorities. How much to give? $300/child – Look at schools goal, your family budget and do what’s right for you. No amount too small. No amount too big. Everyone can participate. EVERYONE COUNTS!!! Before I turn it over to Sam and Dan…are there any questions? If not, I thank you for your attention and it is my pleasure to introduce WBMS parents, Sam Jenniges and Dan Dohmeier and their children, Olivia, Ben and Simon who will close the evening with what the school has meant to their family.