Superintendent Gerlach to attend November Cottage Grove PTO meeting

Just an update. Mr. Gerlach has confirmed that he will join us at the next Cottage Grove PTO meeting on November 8th.

More on Teacher Contracts

It has come to my attention that the following letter has been sent to parents of Senior Students:

Dear MG Senior Parents:

You may be aware that the Monona Grove Education Association (MGEA) is “working the contract” as a result of an unsettled contract.

At the September 8, 2010, Monona Grove Board of Education meeting, the MGEA presented a petition to the School Board stating that they will not be writing letters of recommendation requested by students for college applications.

It is the district’s position that writing letters of recommendation for students’ college applications is a required professional responsibility. I recently notified the teaching staff of my expectations of providing such letters at a student’s request.

If your child is denied a letter of recommendation, either verbally or in writing, beginning October 1, 2010, please contact me or high school principal, Dr. Paul Brost. Please keep these communications regarding this issue between you as parents and district administration. I find it very disheartening that students are placed in the middle of this difficult situation and would like to minimize their involvement.

Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Respectfully,

Craig Gerlach, Superintendent

In response to a letter from MGEA

I am writing to let the people of our school district know that, despite MGEA's decision to work the contract, the Cottage Grove PTO (Parent Teacher Organization) will continue to work towards raising money for our schools and supporting our children. Now, more than ever, parents and our community at large need to band together to give our children the best educational experience possible. While I did receive a letter from MGEA indicating that they are encouraging their membership not to participate in the PTO Fall Festival on October 2, we will remain focused on our mission and use this event to raise as much money as we can to put SMART Boards in our schools, as well as providing the many other services that we offer both teachers and students.

Our goals will not change. Our focus will remain on providing valuable and much needed resources to our children.

Cottage Grove PTO Fall Festival

The Cottage Grove PTO is gearing up for it's annual Fall Festival on October 2. The Festival will once again be held at Taylor Prairie from 10 am - 4 pm and will include a lot of family fun! There will be games, food, a silent auction and, back by popular demand - a raffle. There will also be a Silly String Corral where kids and teachers will be able to have a good-natured silly string fight! The Monona Grove football players will be running a football toss game and the Monona Grove Pom Squad will be painting faces from 12-3. The EMS team will also be on sight to do some community education! New this year will be themed baskets created by each classroom. These baskets will be available at the Fall Festival, so be sure to come on over and check them out!!

This year, the Cottage Grove PTO will continue it's campaign to raise money for Smart Boards. Please mark your calendars and join us for this fantastic event!! See you then!!

Cottage Grove Kid's Park

If you haven't heard, the Cottage Grove Kid's Park is participating in the Pepsi Refresh Project. While the original contest ended on July 31st, the Cottage Grove Kid's Park was given one more month to rally enough votes for the big $25,000 prize. Here is the information on how to vote:

1. ) Sign up to get daily reminders through the Cottage Grove Kids Park Facebook page: http://bit.ly/Join-CG-Park-on-FB

2. ) Text 100296 to Pepsi (73774)

3. ) Vote online at http://www.refresheverything.com/cgkidspark
*iphone users can search "cottage grove" at http://www.refresheverything.com

-- Vote once by using your Facebook account
-- (then sign out), then by signing in with multiple email accounts

You can easily vote 2 to 4 times a day (Every Day).

Hopefully, you can help make a difference. To get the grant, the submitted project must finish in the top 10, so keep voting!!!!

It's Salsa Time!

So, I asked my 10 year old son whether or not I should enter the Salsa Contest that the Cottage Grove Kid's Park is sponsoring on August 15th. He looked at me kind of funny and said, "Well, what kind of salsa? You're not going to dance, are you?" Isn't he just the funny one....

Well, I am going to enter the contest with my oh-so-awesome salsa (n. A spicy sauce of chopped, usually uncooked vegetables or fruit, especially tomatoes, onions, and chili peppers, used as a condiment) so stop on by and check it out! The event will be on August 15th from 12:00 pm to 3:00 pm at Fireman's Park. Tasting kits, which include chips, each salsa entered in the contest and a ballot, will be available for $5. Enjoy some great local recipes and help raise money for the Cottage Grove Kid's Park. This is clearly a win-win folks!!

See you on the 15th!!

The Little Engine That Could....

The Cottage Grove PTO has a goal. We want to put SMART Boards in our classrooms. Today, we came a little closer to our goal. I had the extreme pleasure of dropping off two checks today - one for Taylor Prairie and one for Cottage Grove School. Needless to say, I was received whole-heartedly by both schools. It was definitely the highlight of my day!

We are well on our way to our goal, but we have far to go. And just how do we plan on raising the money? A big part of it will be our annual Fall Festival. This year, the Festival will be held at Taylor Prairie on October 2 from 10-4. Mark your calendars!! If you want to be a part of this, feel free to contact me at cgrovepto@gmail.com. We will need a lot of people to help us make this happen, but I know we can do it! So join in the fun and help us attain our goal!!