Welcome Back to School! This will be an incredible year at Palmetto Middle School. In the fourth largest school district in the nation, Miami can be a city with life in fast forward, but Palmetto Middle School incorporates all stakeholders in building an oasis for growth and learning. This year we will continue to develop green gardens with orchids and butterflies, a media center teeming with books, classrooms with the latest technology, and a fine arts and athletic program that rivals many middle schools in our county. There are new initiatives to help every grade level, every special student population, every teacher, and each student achieve their full potential. Doors are open for parental involvement, community partnerships and advocates of all ages. In Malcolm Gladwell’s book, The Tipping Point, he highlights, …that children are powerfully shaped by their external environment, that the features of our immediate social and physical world – the streets we walk down, the people we encounter – play a huge role in shaping who we are and how we act.

I invite you to actively join in building a positive learning environment and directly contributing to our children’s success and overall well being. Volunteer your time, energy or talent to create a climate conducive to learning, not only for our students, but also our staff and our parents. Support from the community and the Village of Pinecrest has been a cornerstone for bringing resources and expertise to our campus. I hope we can add four new community businesses or organizations as partners with our school. During this election year, it is critical that our PTSA increases membership by ten percent in order to make sure our newly elected officials recognize our strength in numbers. Our PTSA members should have 100% participation in the 2010 election of local, state and federal officials. This will be an incredible year, indeed! Our PTSA general meetings are open to all stakeholders. In order to make the PTSA accessible to each and every parent, our first meeting of the year will be both a morning meeting on August 26 at 9:15am in the Media Center. OR you may attend the evening meeting at 7:00 pm that same day. If you have questions or concerns, please contact me at darla.march@bellsouth.net. In my time as a member of Palmetto Middle PTSA, I have learned the needs and abilities of each of my children, the role of parents in supporting our teachers, and the importance of sound education practices for the betterment of our society. I ask that you join me on that journey! I look forward to a great year!