I would like to welcome all the new and returning students to Mariano Castro for the 2020-21 school year. My name is Donna Childress, I am honored to be your PTA President for this school year. I hope everyone is safe and hopefully hasn’t been directly affected by COVID-19. This has been a difficult time for not only our community, but it is affecting people everywhere globally. I want to let families that know that we are here for you and the students. If you are in need of assistance or help I encourage you to please reach out to me or any faculty member at the school, so we can find you the resources you need. The PTA motto is that we are all one family, we look out for one another, and we try to make sure that we are all given the best opportunities available.
This year will be a tough year for our students, as well as for our teachers. The teachers, principal, and district have all been working together to ensure that even though students will not be in the classroom, they are still being taught the necessary skills, tools, and curriculum for their grade level.
Families that need help with the distance learning, logging in, or understanding the material, I encourage you to please reach out to your child’s teacher, the school, or even the PTA so we can help. It is very important that our students are attending every class, doing their homework, and most importantly understanding the material they are learning.
I am personally looking into finding tutoring and corporate donations for our school. I cannot make any promises but I want to assure you that we are looking into free resources for our students, to ensure they are getting the best education possible. Corporate donations could be very helpful for our school, it would help us obtain the resources and materials not only our students need but our faculty at the school as well. If you are currently employed I encourage you to reach out to your employer if there is an employee matching program there. Many employers offer this service, what they do is match any donation you give to the school.
This year there will unfortunately not be a class posting due to safety/health concerns. We will also not be having our school shirts due to there not being a walk a thon. We are still however asking families if they are able to please donate to the school or PTA. I want to remind you that you are not obligated to donate and it is 100% voluntary. We will also accept any amount in donations. These donations will help the school to be able to obtain and distribute any extra materials for the students, and to help teachers get the materials they need to teach our students. Donations are also 100% tax deductible and we can provide you with a donation receipt for your taxes.
I want families to know the beginning of the school year will have a few bumps in the road, things will be tough, and it will be a learning process for all of us. But I know we will persevere, we will succeed, and we will do this together.
I want to end my speech by saying that I have created a website for our families to not only be able to donate online but to create an open platform where you can look for up-to-date information form the district, PTA, or school, but to be able to ask questions that they have, to be able to come together and have discussions, and have a place where we can still come together for our students.
I ask that if you do donate online please send the green donation letter back completed. We need these records for multiple reasons. So the website for the PTA is now https://mcastroptapresiden.wixsite.com/website or you can return the completed form and cash or check to the school at 500 Toft St. Mountain View, CA 94041. You can also send it to my email mcastroptapresident@gmail.com. I do want to say that I am here for our students and families, you can reach out to me anytime via email listed above or by phone at (650)282-5064.
Best wishes,
Donna Childress