Our PTO has several committees to serve the many needs of our school community.
Book Fair & Book Vending Machine
Our Scholastic Book Fair takes place in April. During preview days, students visit the book fair with their class and both students and teachers create wishlists. Students may purchase from the book fair during the school day (at the teachers' discretion) or at one of our book fair family nights. In addition to books, our book fair also sells posters, journals, bookmarks, and pens. Last year we offered popcorn for purchase and ran a lollipop tree where selecting a marked lollipop earned students a special prize!
Up to 50% of book fair profits are returned to us from Scholastic and are used to purchase books for the book vending machine, summer reading program, and to stock teachers' classroom libraries.
Our book vending machine is just what it sounds like! Every month, a different grade level visits the book vending machine and has the opportunity to select a brand new book to take home and add to their collection. Our goal is for every student to receive one free book by the end of the school year.
Cougar Cub Fun Run
Formally known as Boosterthon, this is our largest fundraising event of the year and takes place in March. Students are bussed to Cole Middle and High School to see how many laps they can run around the track! Parents are invited to spectate.
Parents, friends, and family members from all over the country can donate either per lap or a flat dollar amount. Students and classes are awarded prizes for reaching specific fundraising milestones. This year we will be sponsoring this event 100% ourselves. Last year we raised over $40,000 for campus events and improvements!
Fall Fest
Taking place in October, Fall Fest is a fun carnival where each grade's staff designs and operates different activities. Each activity costs a varying amount of tickets, which are sold to students in the weeks leading up to the event. This event is facilitated by PTO, with 100% of proceeds going directly to the teachers and staff. Teachers often use these funds for end of year parties for their classes and for other supply needs throughout the year.
Activities from previous years include:
Snow cones
Dance glow party
Lollipop tree
Petting zoo
Make your own slime
Pick Frankenstein's nose
Cake walk
Bake sale
Ring toss
...and many more!
Helping Hands
FSHE has wonderful teachers who work so hard for their students. Teachers are responsible not only for teaching and lesson planning, but for making copies, laminating, sorting papers, cutting activities out, etc. Helping Hands aims to take some of this time-consuming work off of their plates so they can spend more time planning activities for their students and less time doing these tasks at home during non-school hours.
Purple Up
April is the Month of the Military Child, and we here at FSHE love to celebrate our military students! Every year features a limited edition Purple Up spirit wear shirt for purchase and purple decorations throughout campus. On Purple Up Day, soldiers come out in uniform to 'clap in' students and hand out goodies as they arrive for the school day.
PTO also sponsors a STEAM Night each April for all students with multiple activities in the science, technology, engineering, art, and math fields. Last year, activities offered included making lava lamps, mining for gems, magnet painting, art show, and many more!
Spirit Wear
Show your Cougar Cub pride with spirit wear! We have a variety of apparel available in youth and adult sizes for purchase, with new designs released throughout the year. We also boast a large catalog of spirit sticks for sale so your student can proudly express themselves via spirit sticks on a keychain for their backpack! Spirit wear is sold in-person at most large events and 24/7 in our online storefront.
Student Awards
The student awards committee plans events to celebrate the hard work of our honor roll students. Their are three events, taking place quarterly. A few ways we've celebrated in the past include snow cones, popcorn, ice cream sundaes, and a trail mix bar. Honor roll students also receive a certificate for a free meal from a local restaurant.
Student & Teacher Appreciation
Rotating monthly, students and teachers are celebrated and appreciated in many different ways, including with goody bags, snacks, and bookmarks for students and lunchboxes and holiday meals for staff. Teacher Appreciation Week in May is always a huge themed event with daily goodies for our teachers and staff.
Yearbook
What better way for your student to remember their time at FSHE than with a keepsake yearbook? PTO staff designs and sells a yearbook for purchase each spring.
