I'm just learning this HTML stuff so bear with me as I reformat this thing. OK, Finished. This is the bulletin from last meeting, please offer suggestions below. Be as specific as possible. Remember you can copy & paste using CTRL C and CTRL V.

PS/IS 187 Focus Bulletin

June, 2000

Who we are: We are a group of parents living in Hudson Heights. Our ethnic backgrounds and income levels are diverse, as are our professions; some of us are long-time residents while many of us are recent arrivals. The ages of our children vary--some are infants, some are pre-schoolers, and several are already enrolled in school.

Our Purpose: Our common interest is in exploring and, where possible, enriching the relationship between PS/IS 187 and our community. We see the school as a key institution within the neighborhood of which it is already the geographical center. Not least, many of us would value the opportunity to have a strong, local, public school as a viable educational option for our children. Our efforts so far have been aimed at improving communication between the schools administration and the public, at exchanging information with 187 parents, and the greater community of parents in the neighborhood.

Who We Arent: We are not a search committee. We recognize that there are a myriad of options for parents of school-age children in NYC and that exploring these options can be a time-consuming venture. We are not however, investigating other schools or educational choices. The focus of our group on PS/IS 187.

Previous Activities

We have met as a group several times. On May 24th we met for approximately one and a half hours with Assistant Principal Schafran. The Principal, Ms. Arrevina, was also in attendance at this meeting which took place in the schools library. Some of the topics that came up were:

Upcoming Community Meeting

We have scheduled a town hall type meeting to coincide with the end of the school year. If you are interested in the issues raised in this newsletter, if you have something to suggest or contribute, or you just want to find out what is going on please attend! This will be a unique opportunity to talk with other parents and to meet new neighbors. Please tell any interested neighborhood residents about this meeting.

-- Anonymous, June 08, 2000

Answers

I think this notice is excellent and really represents the focus, composition and issues of this group. Thanks for putting it together.

-- Anonymous, June 09, 2000

Ruth, I am basically quite happy with your formulations. The most critical issue, our identity as a group and our purpose needn't to be content oriented, i.e., that we should formulate an educational agenda around which we could rally. I would find this kind of purpose definition very difficult and even somewhat problematic in view of recent experiences in the neighborhood.

So my suggestions are a sort of fine tuning of your draft: 1. The title could be: Parents interested in public education in the neighborhood/ Parents interested in PS 187

2. Who we are: Instead of Hudson Heights, which is a politically charged term, we should use a more neutral name such as "the neighborhood of PS/IS 187." 3. The last sentence "Our efforts . . ." should be moved into the section on "Previous Activities."

4. Who we aren't: In the last sentence word "is" is missing.

5. Previous Activities: a.Correct spelling of names: Ms. Shafran and Ms. Aravena. b. I think you should add our meeting with Howard Johnson to the list. It was an important meeting because several people now joined the group. It also shows our independence from PS 187 and increases our credibility as a forum. Finally, have you discussed about the Russian translation? Do you know any Spanish speaking person who could write a smooth translation of the text? It would be excellent if all the text with translations could fit to one page.

Best, Heikki

-- Anonymous, June 10, 2000