H-B WOODLAWN SECONDARY PROGRAM

PARENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE

NO-SWEAT FUNDRAISER

Dear H-B Woodlawn Parent, May 2012

The HBW PAC doesn't ask you to buy wrapping paper, magazine subscriptions, candy bars, or host school fairs or car washes. Instead, once a year we ask you to write a check to H-B Woodlawn. That's it!

Why does HBW need to raise additional funds? The School Board's budget doesn't cover all the needs and wants of the faculty and staff of H-B Woodlawn. Check out some of the items that the No-Sweat Fundraiser helped to finance with the $40,000 that you donated:

• BenQ Interactive Projectors
• Cameras and supplies for the photography department
• Library furniture
• Entry fees for academic enrichment programs
• HILT field trip expenses
• Minority Achievement field trips
• Final Cut Pro software for Film/Video Production class
• Special art supplies and figure drawing skeleton for art classes
• Music production software
• Hosting and template for the online school news portal
• Many small dollar purchases in support of our programs and activities

Our goal is to have some contribution from every family. We recommend every family consider a $60 donation. If you can give more than that, thank you very much! Larger donations are gratefully accepted and appreciated. All donations received will be put to good use! In the Fall of 2012, all available donations will be allocated among the many worthy requests we receive from staff, faculty and students.

Unlike traditional fundraisers, there is no overhead and no expenses so 100% of your donation is used. And, every penny of your contribution is tax deductible, so save the bottom half of the form for your records. Consistent with National PTA Guidelines, the PAC endeavors to spend donations in the school year for which the funds are contributed and to maintain minimal carry-over from year to year.

You should have received an envelope with this letter in the mail. Is so, please use the return envelope to send your contribution. If you do not have the envelope, please send your check to:

H-B Woodlawn Program

4100 Vacation Lane

Arlington, VA 22207

Attn: Kathy Funes, Treasurer

Please make your check payable to H-B Woodlawn, and write "No-Sweat" on the memo line.

Frank Haltiwanger, Principal	Richard, Haske PAC Chair

You can download a copy of the form and this letter here.

Rachel Eisley - Photography Equipment

On behalf of the Art and Photography department at H-B Woodlawn, I want to extend my wholehearted thanks for the incredible funds granted to the Photography program at H-B.  We had been mostly using small point and shoot cameras, with a few DSLRs from the county, for all of the photo classes, which was frustrating and didn't allow every student to have in-depth experience with the manual workings of a DSLR camera.  With the money given by the No-Sweat fundraiser, I thought I could purchase about 9 new cameras and their needed accessories.  Before purchasing however, I called the Pentax headquarters and asked if there was anything they could do on pricing since we are a school.  They responded incredibly generously and offered H-B an over 50% discount on each camera, so I was able to purchase 17 brand new DSLRs and all their accessories, and still have some funds left over to purchase ink for the photo printers. Now we are the only high school in the county with an entire class set of DSLR cameras, and my students are making incredible images with them, and are learning about the real principles of photography in the process. These particular cameras also work with the collection of manual film SLR lenses that the previous teacher had amassed, so we are able to use these lenses as well, (to purchase them new would cost thousands of dollars), so these particular cameras (Pentax K-X) were the perfect fit for so many reasons.  THANK YOU!!! Rachel Eisley, Photography 2012

Mignon Kery - HILT Field Trip

I would really like to thank the No Sweat committee for approving funds for our trip to Jamestown and Williamsburg last fall. For many of our students it was their first sense of what life was like during Pre-colonial and Colonial Times. To be able to touch history has really helped them to connect to what they are studying in their American History classes. Without the help we received from the committee our trip would not have been possible.

Mignon Kery, 
Hilt Dept. Coordinator 2012

Theresa Flynn - New Furniture in the Library 

Teri Doxsee & Teachers - Technology Enhanced Classrooms at H-B

The No Sweat fundraiser has generously contributed to our technology enhanced classroom initiative at H-B for the past three years. Four years ago, in the Fall of 2008, we only had two classrooms with mounted LCD projectors and SMARTboards. Now ALL of our classrooms have them!

This year we mounted a new type of interactive projector the six remaining classrooms.  The actual installation took place in March, but teachers and students are already benefitting from the new projectors.

Having a mounted projector made my room safer. Wires were all over the floor and students used to trip. I also find that when I am showing things using the interactive projector, I can MOVE!!! I have a remote and can buzz around the room. This helps with classroom management and it helps me be more animated. Ilike this product over a Smartboard because I can use dry-erase markers on the image and I do not have to worry about keeping the board clean/protected. Meghan French, Biology 2012

The art room’s new BenQ projector has made sharing images with my classes so much easier. For example, prior to creating artwork for the theater production of Aladdin middle school viewed Islamic tiles and the Alhambra Palace thanks to the new projector. The list goes on: the last flower paintings of Manet, M.C. Escher’s tessellation art and papier mache by contemporary artist Dan Reeder - all have been projected with the BenQ and inspired students at HB! Thank you – art is all about images and now I have an easier way to share them! Faylinda Kodis, Visual Arts 2012

To give you an idea the impact of this project in classrooms, check out what Thomas' room looked like before his SMARTboard and projector were mounted, and what it looks like today.

Before the board and projector were mounted, wires were strung all over the room.	Using the SMARTboard after mounting - No wires!

The smart board allows for abstract concepts to be presented to students in a visual and interactive fashion. Notes taken during class can be saved for later retrieval, printed, or e-mailed allowing for greater organization and continuity of instruction. Thomas Sweet, 2011

I depend on and use my SmartBoard and projector every day! They allow us to look at and interact with images, videos, and historical information in a way that is accessible and viewable for everyone. I like to think it brings history to life!, Carolyn Crumpler, 2011

Having a SMARTboard in my classroom opens up a whole new realm of interactive possibilities. Jacob Nuxoll, 2011

The smart board has become an invaluable asset in my classroom and is used almost daily. Thank you no sweat!, Kathy Molina, 2011

Bulbs for LCD projectors just aren't sexy. But they are critical in keeping our large number of LCDs working. And the county budget just doesn't cover them. So thank you to PAC, not only for buying the LCDs in the first place, but helping to keep this growing technology in good working order! Theresa Flynn, 2010

Thank you PAC for our mounted projectors! I cannot tell you how much simpler my day is since getting rid of the excess cords and carts that used to hold my overhead projector and LCD. I use the projector almost on a daily basis and the new, more streamlined integration of LCD and DVD with my computer has saved me (and my students who use it for presentations and projects) a lot of time and hassle. I have also had a chance to use the SmartBoards, and I am so grateful for your generosity and help bringing more of these to HB. Thanks for all you do to support the learning in HB classrooms! Jennifer Goen, 2009

Laurie and Neal want to express their profound appreciation for the mounted projector and SmartBoard we now have to use in Room 309. This technology transforms what can be presented during Algebra and Geometry classes at H-B and we both feel fortunate to have the parental and staff support we enjoy at H-B. We would also like to acknowledge one of our custodians, Lou, who did a great job of helping to reconfigure the room. Lou's carpentry skill made it possible to use the SmartBoard along with the old standby in math classrooms everywhere, the overhead projector. Thanks again for all you to help the staff and students of H-B Woodlawn. Laurie Lewis & Neal Payne, 2009

I am so grateful to the No Sweat Committee for supporting the funding of SmartBoards and their mounting. Before HB, I came from a school that was an all-SmartBoard school. While teaching there I experienced how teaching with the SmartBoard can help to reach students who have become accustom to the digital age. Now that I have one at HB, I have been able to transform my teaching, and enable my students learning. Sight reading has become interesting, graphic and has fostered better readers faster. Music theory classes are now able to use the best software available to teach the intricate art of composing. No matter what a teacher is teaching, the lesson is only successful if the teacher can be efficient, organized and access materials quickly. Not only does the SmartBoard help to achieve these goals, but mounting the SmartBoard has made its use convenient. The mount allows me to teach without interrupting the lesson and maximizing our classroom time. Again, many thanks for offering the students of HB a state of the art education! Bill Podolski 2009