To Recieve

“It’s just so nice to give a gift to someone in your family and have it be a total surprise.”

“I like picking something out to buy that I think my dad will love to open.”

“It was so fun to shop without my parents or grandparents. Then the present was a secret for everybody.”

As adults we understand the joys of giving. Of spending time considering the gift and the recipient. Of anticipating the reaction and enjoying the surprise. It’s no wonder that our children want in on this action! The quotes above are from current and recently graduated Summit students talking about Summit’s Annual Holiday Gift Market. Every year, Summit volunteers create a shopping experience for our students. We transform the multi-purpose room into an eclectic gift shop featuring gifts for parents, siblings, grandparents and even pets!

Here’s how it works: for two days in December, the MPR (multi-purpose room) is magically transformed into a gift shop. Gift prices range from a quarter to a dollar, so kids come to school with around $5 and then get down to business. “Personal shoppers” help our kids select gifts, check out and wrap and tag their treasures. Fast forward to your holiday celebration and get ready for your surprise!

To pull this off, we need your help. We estimate it takes around 50-60 volunteer hours to make the Summit HGS work. We’d love your help setting up, shopping with the kids, wrapping gifts (don’t worry if you’re not a great wrapper…we use lots of gift bags!) and finally tearing down. And the benefit to you? Helping our kids pull off a holiday gift exchange they can be proud of (and that just might turn into an annual holiday story!)

“As a volunteer, I love interacting with the kids. Preschoolers are focused on the wonder of buying gifts all by themselves. First graders are looking for the best gift. The fifth graders are trying to use their money to their best advantage.”

How can you help? Two ways:

1) Volunteer your time! We need help setting up on Wednesday, December 10th, starting at 5:30PM. “Many hands make light work” and if we have a some great hands, we think we’ll have everything set up within an hour and a half.  We also need personal shopping assistants, check-out help and gift wrappers on Thursday, December 11 from 8:40AM-2:30PM (with a break for lunch) and again on Friday, December 12 from 8:40-10:30AM and from 12:40-1:50PM. Stop by the front desk or email Molli (molli.cunningham@summitschools.org) OR look for the VolunteerSpot sign up form coming soon to your email box to sign up for a spot. Join us for as little or long as your schedule allows.

2) Make a donation: While we’ve got a small collection of gifts already, we can use more! Our goal, of course, is to have enough gifts so each child can purchase a gift for all of his/her immediate family members. If you have gently used, no longer wanted items (books, flashlights, decor, stuffed animals) or would like to donate a few new things (lotions/soaps, cards, candles, hot chocolate or other holiday foods/mixes) please drop them off at the front desk by Monday, December 8. If you’re short on collecting time and would like to donate cash, we’ll shop for you!

Thanks for being part of this Summit holiday tradition!

It takes a village…

to make our school a success! As a small, not-for-profit independent school we rely on volunteers…a lot!  The strength of our school isn’t in the bricks or the books or the lesson plans, it’s in the people. From our dedicated staff to the dedicated parents, grandparents and friends that share our community, it’s true – the power is the people!

Working together to wash windows at the Fall Clean Up/Harvest Festival 2013.

Summit gains a lot from your involvement: your time and expertise help us accomplish tasks and plans we might not be able to tackle without you. We all benefit from multiple perspectives and experiences and view points. And you show your kids it’s worthwhile to participate in a community and you consider their school a worthwhile cause. Summit has several “standing committees” that meet on a regular basis. If you’re new to the Summit community or just new to the idea of joining a committee, feel free to “try on” a few. Come to some meetings or email/call a committee chair and find out what’s going on. Don’t feel as if you’re committed for life if you come to a meeting or two just to check things out!  And, these standing committees aren’t the only place we need you: watch your email for specific call-to-action volunteer opportunities that sprout up  throughout our school year: from school improvement days to helping in individual classrooms to decorating for events and more.  We know we have a place for your talents at Summit!

Summit Standing Committees

Buildings & Grounds: got a green thumb? Handy with a hammer? Have a vision for a building and it’s long life? The B&G Committee tackles everything from making sure the roof doesn’t leak to ensuring our interior is beautiful and inviting for all members of our community. This group keeps an eye on the long term development and maintenance of the building and grounds, while making sure current plans are executed thoughtfully and inline with the school’s mission.

Development: The Development committee’s main purpose is to help fill the gap between what our tuition covers and the real cost of operating our school. This committee supports the school in more ways that just financially, though. Activities planned by Development draw our families together through social occasions, while supporting the yearly and long term needs of the school.

Technology: While Summit strives to stay abreast of thoughtful and integrative educational technologies, this committee helps push us forward. The Tech Committee works with the staff to make sure technology needs are in place for staff and student success, while planning for the near and not-so-near tech needs of the school.

Marketing: Help us make Summit known! Work in this committee centers around getting our name and mission known in the area. Help us communicate the quality of our school and programs to the public.

SIAC: School Improvement Advisory Committee was formed as a requirement of our school accreditation by the State of Iowa.  SIAC analyzes school data, looks at educational needs, learning goals and long range indicator goals and makes recommendations for improvements. This committee is the only committee required to report data outside of the Summit Community, and the only committee with mandates on membership (we must have student, alumni, staff and parental membership).

If you are interested in learning more about ANY of these standing committees, please email Lisa Wiebenga Stroschine (lisa.wiebenga@gmail.com) or Molli Cunningham (molli.cunningham@summitschools.org) and we’ll get you in touch with the right people. Be sure to let us know WHICH committee you’d like to connect with.

Have a GREAT week!

Lisa Wiebenga Stroschine