This quote ties in closely with Pleasant Union’s vision to create a safe, supportive learning environment that inspires students to attain personal success by becoming inquisitive, confident 21st Century learners.

In order for this to happen we believe that staff and students should have a “growth mindset”.  What does that mean?  The image, courtesy of CRAfT Educational Videos paints the thought that all of us can change our intelligence through learning.

Have you ever heard your son or daughter get caught in the “I’m not good at this.” or “This is too hard” or better yet “I just can’t do math.” syndrome?  Carol Dweck, author of the book Mindset states, “Students who believe their intelligence is simply a fixed trait fare more poorly, especially as school becomes more challenging, than students who believe their intellectual abilities can grow.”  That being said, it is important that educators, students and parents encourage a growth mindset which can enhance the process and persistence toward completion of the task.  Dr. Julie Schell, Director of OnRamps and Strategic Initiatives at the University of Texas in Austin shares in “Helping Students Learn: Growth Mindset” examples that we can all use to encourage students toward a growth mindset.  The TED Talk The Power of Belief-Mindset and Success: shared by Eduardo Briceno goes further to share research studies on how mindset is not only the source of success in school but, carries over into athletics and life in general.

Want to find out more?  Go to:

• What Every (Great) Parent Should Know About the Mindset of Success
• The Brainology Program
• mindsetonline.com
• Growth Mindset: A Driving Philosophy, Not Just a Tool

Great things are going on at Pleasant Union this month:

• Spooky Science/Pizza Dinner Family Fun Night, Thursday, October 23 Dinner @ 6:15, Program 7:00
• Veteran’s Arts Night, Monday, November 10, 6:30-8

The Ice Bucket Challenge is happening throughout the United States these days.  Even Mr. Biles took on the challenge (See link on PUE website).  An important take-away from this is that the nation is getting behind a worthy cause to help the many ALS patients in need.  I would like to offer an additional educational challenge that we, as a school community make it our goal to reach out to every student in our school to assure that each student be the best that they can be this year.

Boosterthon, our major fundraiser for the year begins this week.  I encourage you to go to the website to see and hear about 5 community challenges that we will embark on.  We hope that you will participate in this important fundraiser.  Tess Freer, our PTA President has created a specific list of how we will spend the raised money to enhance our school.

Communication is critical for us at Pleasant Union.  Along with my Sunday voice message I send home a transcript of the message which includes more in depth information and links for you to use in response to my message.  If you are not getting the transcript please email me at kbiles@wcpss.net with your teacher’s name so that I can correct or add your email address to the group list.  Also, I have asked our staff to communicate with you at least every other week with curriculum being discussed in class, upcoming events and student celebrations.

Thanks to our PTA parent cultural arts rep Jenne Kendziora for arranging the following events and residencies.  A big thank you to PTA for budgeting for these special events–BTW this is just one of the many things that our Boosterthon Fundraising dollars support.  If your family is tracked out for any of the group events please feel free to come in with your child to see the events.

Date               Artist/Residency                           Grade Levels

Nov. 13         Donna Washington, story teller    K-5 (2 Shows)

Nov. 17-21   Howard Croft (Writer)                    3rd/4th

Dec. 16         Silver Trout Arts Music                 K-5 (2 Shows)

Feb. 17-19    Allen Montague (Visual Arts)        5th

Feb. 24         Bay Street Brassworks                 K-5 (2 Shows)

March. 18     Rick Brown-Science                     K-5 (2 Shows)

Recently, I while on Twitter and “Feedly” I came across an interesting article from “edutopia” titled “7 Questions to Ask Your Parents at the Beginning of the Year”.  The post was written by a teacher from both the teacher and parent point of view.  The article listed some great “whole child”questions to consider as we work together to make this an outstanding year.

Ever ask your child “How was school today?” only to get the “Ok or fine” response?  Author Annie Fox has some end of the day re-connection suggestions to for you consider.

Are you following the @PleasantUnionYR, or @PUEbusUpdates Twitter feeds?  They’re a great way to get announcements and info on upcoming events of note or simply to find out if your child’s bus has left the school.  Twitter is full of information for parents.  Check out this Parents Guide for more.

Many outstanding activities that took place at Pleasant Union this year.  Here are just a few that stand out:

• PUE Chorus selection and performance in Pieces of Gold
• Authors Nick Bruel and Mike Artell visited the school to share their love for writing and to encourage our students to read and write.
• A Harlem Globetrotter entertained and taught our students at an Anti-Bullying assembly.
• Two writers in residence, Barbara Cleary and Howard Croft, as well as a clay artist in residence, Cindy Biles shared their knowledge and skills with the 3rd, 4th and 5th graders.
• Pleasant Union’s Kiwanis K-Kids, sponsored by the Highwoods Kiwanis Club and composed of 4th & 5th graders, addressed three types of services projects; hands on helping, fundraising and philanthropy.  They served the school by promoting good character throughout the building, advocated for a bully-free climate at school, supported teachers and students, held fundraisers on behalf of the Eliminate Project and Backpack Buddies Program, and developed individual Good Deeds Projects as K-Kids Members.
• Parents and staff participated in the 7th Magnificent Mile to help find a cure for Primary Lateral Sclerosis and Cranks for Cancer to raise money to find a cure for cancer on behalf of two of our parents that have cancer and PLS.
• The holiday season was made brighter for numerous families due to our school community’s generosity through the “Giving Tree Kindness Project”.
• Family Fun Nights at Barnes and Noble, Chick-Fil-A, Mom’s and Dad’s breakfasts, the Annual Talent Show, Valentine’s Day Dance, Mad Scientist, Goodberries, PDQ’s and rock climbing at Triangle Rock Club gave families and the PUE staff opportunities for fun, food and fellowship.
• The first and hopefully annual Panther Golf Tournament was held to raise money for the school and to build connections with the business community.
• Boosterthon was the leading school fundraiser.  It helped pay for visits from our authors, writers and artist in residence, instructional supply stipends for the classroom teachers, resources in the media center, staff appreciation luncheons, periodic “thank you” treats during the year, and field trip financial assistance for students in need.
• Numerous before school and after school programs spotlighted Pleasant Union’s extra-curricular menu. The Lego Club headed up a long list of activities such as KidzArt, Safety Patrol, Chorus, Bowtime, TGA Golf AND Tennis as popular extra-curricular activities.  The Math Olympiad Team remained nationally competitive, and our two Odyssey of the Mind teams participated in the regional Odyssey of the Mind competition in Chapel Hill.

Cathy Parrish was named Finalist for Wake County Teacher of the Year.  Mrs. Marilyn LeCuyer was recognized as the PUE Teacher Assistant of the Year.

I want to share a special thank you to Tess Freer, for doing a super job as PTA President.  Lots has happened this year, thanks to her efforts.  Thank you for a JOB WELL DONE!  Thanks also to our Purple Panther Press editor, Jennifer Dorsett for her continued great work putting the monthly newsletter together and for just recently creating a PUE PTA Facebook page.

Last but not least, thank you to all of the parents that have donated time to help make a difference with our children.  Your efforts have been greatly appreciated.

In closing, I want to say a special thank you to our teacher assistants that are retiring this year.  Mrs. Baker, Mrs. Rhyne and Mrs. Miller.  We appreciate all that you have done to help our teachers, the students and our school.  Your contributions have made a positive difference in all of our lives.  Best wishes to you in your retirement.  Come back and visit.

Best wishes to all of our students and families a restful and safe track out.  We look forward to seeing you in the new school year.  Tracks 1, 2 and 3 return on Monday, July 7th.  Kindergarten will have staggered during the first week of school.

It is hard to believe but we are closing in on the end of another school year.  I’d like to alert you to a couple of important announcements prior to sharing my monthly message.

To assist parents whose children ride the bus please take advantage of our  @PUEbusUPDATES twitter feed.  We will be posting bus departure times and any delays or transportation information of importance.

Muffins with Moms is next Friday, May 9th. Please RSVP by May 7th on the PTA website.

As mentioned earlier in the year, our classroom teachers and office staff need your help with arranging appointments and picking up at or before 3:15 each day.  It is a given, with the nice weather, that students will be going to another activity after school and that there will be periodic medical or dental appointments.  However, it becomes a major instructional distraction each time a student is called down to the office at the end of day, simply to beat the carpool line to attend an after school activity. Between 3:15 and the end of the day staff is still instructing, summarizing the day, and making sure students are clear on homework assignments.  As a result, your child needs to be picked up at or before 3:15 when there are appointments.  After 3:15 our office staff WILL NOT be interrupting end of the day classroom instruction for end of the day pickups.  Our staff tries to maximize the instructional day and cannot do this if there are end of the day interruptions.  Thank you for supporting our school’s primary purpose to prepare our students for the next level of learning.

Speaking of learning, Wake County Superintendent, Dr. Jim Merrill submitted his proposed school system budget to support learning to the Board of Education last Tuesday night.  It was unanimously approved.  Please take time to review the budget and how it provides clear information on how the proposed resources will be used to improve student instruction.  It also makes a strong statement as to how salaries are necessary to attract and retain quality personnel.  For more specific information and details as to why the approval of this budget is important please review the uploaded presentation to greatschoolsinwake.org.  You may also want to read the Letter of Support from the Wake County PTA Council-Link support letter.

Consider the following snippets from the presentation:

Did you know that…

• 85% schools met or exceeded expected growth on common core standards, 2012-13
• SAT results up 7 points over prior year
• SAT results surpass state & national averages by 93 points and 74 points respectively
• 81% graduation rate highest point since 2005-06
• ACT results exceeded state average

And of the Wake County Teachers that…

• 1,850 (16%) are National Board Certified (Pleasant Union has 10, one of the highest percentages in the school system)
• 84% are Highly Qualified (All of the Pleasant Union staff is highly qualified)
• 47% hold Masters Degree (Many of our staff have a Masters Degree and/or are National Board Certified)
• 91.6% (rated based on estimates of student growth) met or exceeded student growth standards (Pleasant Union was one of the schools meeting this standard)

However, since the 2008-09 school year…

• Wake County has had a 10.9 percent increase in number of students but have received a negative 6% in county funding appropriation.  We have actually gone down in county and state funding.  North Carolina is now 48th in the nation in per pupil funding and in state teacher salaries.
• As the 2013-14 school year, we are the 16th largest district in the United States (152,684 students).  We recently passed the Charlotte Mecklenburg in student population.  Unfortunately, the Wake County Schools lag behind other urban districts in per pupil expenditure (PPE).  Consider the data below.  149,127 (152,684 students now) times the $485 (the amount different from the state average) equals $72,326,595.

Per Pupil Expenditure Comparison in the State

Need I say more as to how our students and schools would benefit if they were funded at the state average. Further, this is significantly behind other similar sized districts in the nation.

Per Pupil Expenditure Comparison of WCPSS versus other similar size school systems

Why consider a 3.5% increase for WCPSS school staff?  Consider the following.

• 2008-09 Salary Beginning Teacher –$ 34,462
• 2013-14 Salary 5 year Teacher – $35,189
• 2013-14 Salary 5 year Teacher w CPI (Consumer Price Index) adjustment – $32,432
• Loss of $2,030 in effective wages
• Does a 3.5% locally funded increase get the teacher back to 2008-09 levels?

3.5% increase = $1,232

Why should we invest in our personnel?

• Is a strong school system essential for our county’s health & economic vibrancy?
• Do successful businesses continue to re-invest resources back into their organization over time to maintain competiveness & grow?
• What happens when businesses stop re-investing into their organization over time?
• Is the vast majority of the WCPSS county appropriation request to reinvest in its work-force, with the remainder targeted to literacy, pre-k expansion, and other core business functions?

Why should Pleasant Union be concerned about the lack of reinvestment into the school system?  Look at the data comparison over time…

Pleasant Union has had one of the lowest turnover rates in the WCPSS system but that will not remain given the current financial conditions.  Staggering information considering that there have been 612 resignations/retirements and it is only the end of April. This is a 46% increase since last year.

• 81% increase – retired w/reduced benefits
• 180% increase – dissatisfied with teaching
• 50% increase – career change
• 131% increase – moved to employment outside of education
• 270% increase – to teach in another state

So why do I bring this to your attention? 

If our school and system want to support our students, and future community leaders a better than average education resources they deserve better than average resources (human and physical) and to be able to attract and retain the very best instructional leaders.  The best industries and businesses offer the most competitive wages and support resources.

The Wake County Commissioners will be considering whether to fun the proposed WCPSS budget in the upcoming weeks.  They need to hear from you as to how you feel about the proposed budget.  We do not have to make excuses for wanting the very best for our children.  THEY ARE the future.

Our world is so full of responsibilities, commitments, and accountability that we often forget the “what if” possibilities.  Too many in our world dwell on all that is going wrong, often pointing fingers at others as if they have caused our lot in life.  How many times have you heard or read on the news about a crime story, something negative about an individual, a celebrity or institution for something that they did wrong?  On the other side of the coin when was the last time you heard about all the wonderful things that are happening in the world?

I would like to propose that we all take time during 2014 to reflect on all of the things that are going well in our lives.  I would propose that we take time to ask ourselves some reflective what if questions.  For example:

What if I took time to write a special note to our child, a spouse, a teacher, a doctor, mechanic, plumber about what they mean to us or what they have done to make a positive impact?

What if I went to bed a half an hour earlier at night so that I could get up half an hour earlier in the morning to take a walk or a jog?

What if I found time during the day to pay a compliment to a friend or someone in the family, either in person or by phone?

What if I took time to just step back to reflect on all that is going well in my life; my health, my family, my ability to be able to work, or my ability to give of myself to others?

What if I surprised a family member by taking the afternoon off or better yet the day off to have lunch or go somewhere together?

What if, instead of going out for lunch you spent it serving lunch at the local soup kitchen?

What if you set aside 1-2 hours per month to volunteer or tutor at the school?

What is your 2014 what if question?

As a side note I was watching an infomercial the other day from the Tommie Copper company. One of the statements made was “Do something today that your future self will thank you for.”  Sounds good to me.

Thank you to Dewitt Jones for his inspiration in the video “What’s Right With the World?” and the SoulPancake organization for their videos “Street Compliments” and “Snap Your Joy” that create inspiration, positivity and simply put a smile on my face.

By the way did you know that…

• Graduation rates are the highest in history.
• Drop out rates are the lowest in history.
• Pleasant Union’s chorus was chosen for the March 12 Pieces of Gold Performance. Get your tickets at Ticketmaster ASAP before they sell out.
• First Grade Teacher Cathy Parrish was chosen as PUE’s Teacher of the Year.