FROM THE PRESIDENT                      

Thanks to all the parents and teachers who attended last week’s PTO meeting to hear Tom Fry’s presentation on how Liberty Tree students performed last year.  We had the extra bonus of also hearing from Jeff Brown, Executive Director of Elementary Education for the district, along with Dr. Wade Lucas, Superintendent of Olentangy Schools.  I walked away with some useful information about our school, and I’m sure the other attendees did as well.

I hope you can make February’s PTO meeting, which will be held on February 2^nd at 9:15 a.m. in the LTE Commons.  If not, the March meeting is definitely not one to miss, as it will feature Justin Syroka, newly appointed principal of Cheshire Elementary.  This will be both a sad and happy occasion for me personally.  It is definitely going to be tough at the end of the year when we say goodbye to students (and parents!) who will be leaving for Cheshire.  However, I am delighted they are going to have a new school much closer to their homes.  Justin is looking forward to meeting some Cheshire parents, and I’m sure we’ll dazzle him with our LTE hospitality!

“Changing the world, one second grader at a time” is the theme of the second grade’s 2^nd Annual Paying it Forward Unit.  The next event in their year of giving to others is a Red Cross blood drive scheduled for Thursday, February 2^nd from 1-7:00 p.m.  The bloodmobile will be parked outside LTE as it was last May.  Donors will register in the LTE lobby and then wait there until their appointment time.  We will again be taking part in the “Pint Size Heroes” program.  Parents or friends and families may specify who their LTE heroes are, and those children will receive a gift from the Red Cross.  You can go to www.givelife.org to schedule your appointment.  Thanks in advance for being a hero for our community and paying it forward.

I hope to see many of you at Family Pizza Night on Friday, January 29^th from 5-8:00 p.m.  If you don’t have time to join us for pizza, you may still attend with your family to take part in the activities.  I know Michelle Dethlefsen and Amy Koehrsen have a lot of fun planned for all.

Finally, I know I may sound like a broken record, but as Mrs. Caton always says, LTE would not be as great as it is without all our parent volunteers.  Thanks to Jill McBride, Cindy Marks, Jody Achor, Jen Suozzi, Tracy Cera, Kate Dimantova, Judi Kipfer, and Rachael Duelley for providing major volunteer support for recent events.  Without you, we couldn’t do all we do for LTE – thanks!!

“I am not a teacher, I am an awakener.”         – Robert Frost