August 2023




Dear Foothill Families,


We are hopeful that this year will be just as successful as last year. Our mission of bringing the community “Back Together Again” was accomplished last year and now we are “All In” for 2023/2024! We hope to power charge the energy around campus with this year's lineup of educational programs, family events and fun school-wide activities.

 

Foothill’s educational opportunities are provided through a partnership between the Saratoga Unified School District (SUSD), the Saratoga Education Foundation (SEF), and the Foothill Elementary Parent Teacher Association (PTA). We are a Basic Aid District and our community’s tax dollars support SUSD, our core teachers and the curriculum. However, our tax dollars do not support programs such as Art, Music and specialized Physical Education. Our schools rely on parent support and participation in order to keep these programs running. 


The primary role of the PTA Board is to advocate for our kids and our teachers. The Foothill PTA has historically been responsible for funding several major key programs throughout the years including Teacher Grants and Specialist Grants for our Librarian, School Psychologist, Occupational Therapist, Speech Therapists, Resource Specialist, Reading Specialist, Math Specialist, Music Teacher, Science Lab Aide and Makerspace Aide. These grants provide our staff with essential classroom supplies, special training and classroom activities.


PTA will be providing the funding for Art again this year. We are very excited to welcome Sheetal Seth to our Foothill community. She currently teaches Art at Saratoga Elementary and already teaches many of our talented kids outside of school. Beyond Art, we also will fund Kinder Splash, First Day Coffee, International Night, the Variety Show, Kindness Week, Healthy Earth Week, Project Cornerstone, Playground Pals, Assemblies and Author Visits. We sponsor Foothill’s Lego League, Math Team, Musical Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and our Staff Appreciation Events.




Here is how we are allocating the generous donations we receive this year:



Foothill PTA is a nonprofit that exists entirely to benefit our kids and we have an annual “All In” asked donation of $350 per student. Your “All In” gift is tax-deductible and you can donate through our website or drop a check in the main office. Please also check with your employer to see if they offer Company Matching on your donations as this is our biggest fundraiser of the year. 


Here are some other ways to give back to our kids: 

  • Sign up for Farm Fresh to You (we receive 10% of every purchase)
  • Donate slightly used sneakers to our Got Sneakers campaign (you can leave in the box in the front office; we receive a small donation per pair donated)
  • Attend our Restaurant Give Back night at Jake’s (date TBD)
  • Attend our Parent Night Out Event (date TBD)
  • Attend our End-of-Year Event at the SJ Giants Game
  • Purchase Spirit Gear for your child 
  • Purchase Books for your child at our Annual Scholastic Book Fair in December
  • Purchase Books at Hicklebee’s WG and mention Foothill Elementary at check out
  • Help your child get sponsors for our Read-A-Thon and our Walk-A-Thon. 
  • Ask your employer if they offer a Dollars for Doers program, which matches employee volunteers hours with a monetary donation. (Google matches volunteer hours.)



If you would like a vote where your donation dollars get spent we encourage you to become a member of our PTA. You can sign up on our website. The annual dues are $15 per member. 


Public schools are community schools and you will be asked to join in on all the fun!  Remember, we are “all in” this year. And there will be plenty of opportunities for you to get involved. When our staff, our parents and our kids all come together, it leads to an Awesome Foothill community. 


If you can spare time during the school day, we LOVE volunteers here at Foothill! Studies have shown that children whose parents actively engage in their education have higher grades, and test scores, have better social skills, and are more likely to continue on to higher levels of studies (i.e., grad school). It’s important that our kids see their parents on campus and actively engaged in their education.  


All PTA activities on campus are parent-led. We have many opportunities to volunteer inside and outside of the classroom. Your kids will love seeing you on campus! 


To learn more about volunteering and our Calendar of Events, please visit our website. All volunteers on campus must be cleared through SUSD. Get cleared through the district today! 


Now that we’ve gotten all the business stuff out of the way, let me introduce myself and Jamie. My name is Meredith Patrizio and my children are 3rd generation Dolphins! My mother, sisters and I left our handprints on the school a long time ago and we are excited for the next generation to do the same. The tree that I planted for my 5th grade state report still sits outside Mrs. Eldridge’s classroom. You will often find me busily running around campus with my 4 children in tow. 


Jamie and I have swapped positions this year but we are still very much a team. We are super pumped to get this awesome year started! Jamie has two kids at Foothill in 2nd and 5th grade. Please stop either one of us on campus with any questions that you may have about our organization. We are here to help!


Cheers to an amazing year to come,



Meredith Patrizio

President@saratogafoothillpta.org


Jamie Viggiano

vp@saratogafoothillpta.org


Upcoming Events: 

Wednesday, 8/16: Kinder Splash

Thursday, 8/17: Welcome Back Coffee

Friday, 8/18: Ice Cream Social