Our Community Train is Rolling!

Alejandro Cerda

Oct 5

5 min read

October 2026

Site-President's Top of Mind

Welcome to October, Brisbane Elementary!

It is incredible to see how quickly our community has come together in just the first few weeks of school. I can truly feel the momentum building across our campus, and I am incredibly thankful for the partnership and support you have already given the PTO.

As we get underway, we are thoughtfully trying out new ideas and learning as we go. You may have already noticed some of these administrative upgrades: we have moved to a centralized donation management platform using Zeffy, increased our transparency by posting meeting agendas and recordings on our updated website, and launched this direct-to-parent newsletter to make sure you are always in the loop.

Behind the scenes, I am continuing to focus on advanced planning for our future events while maintaining a close working relationship with Principal Higgins to ensure our goals support the school's vision. I am also working closely with my fellow BEST/PTO board members to improve our policies and operations for long term strategical planning and overall org stability.

Now that the BEST PTO @ BES train is officially rolling, I hope to build on this energy by learning about what might not currently be on my radar. I want to connect with grade levels and parent groups I don't regularly interact with to learn how the PTO can best service our diverse community.

Here is a look at what we have accomplished so far and what else is coming down the track!

Alejandro

BEST/PTO @ BES Site President

PTO Updates

Start of the Year Appeal: Goal Exceeded!

We are thrilled to announce that we have officially surpassed our Start of the Year Appeal fundraising goal of $8,000! As of September 30, we have raised over $10,600 and counting, with some unreported corporate matches still rolling in. We will share the final totals in November, but we want to extend a massive THANK YOU to everyone who contributed.

As a reminder, this campaign was born from a strategic shift to ask for direct donations upfront to kickstart our year, allowing us to minimize the smaller "micro-fundraisers" that can cause fatigue.

Your direct donations are already hard at work. Because of this incredible early support, we have officially booked and confirmed two exciting student assemblies for this year:

January: Lawrence Hall of Science
April: Conservation Ambassadors' Wild Things

Even better? Thanks to exceeding our goal, we are currently searching for a third student assembly program to book for the Spring. Stay tuned!

Lap-A-Thon is Underway

2026 BES Lap-A-Thon Mascot - Super Sierra

Our second major fundraising campaign of the year, BES Lap-A-Thon, is officially underway! While the Start of the Year Appeal was for direct parent contributions, the Lap-A-Thon is a fantastic way for our students to individually fundraise and reach out to friends and family to cheer on the super hero Mountaineers.

We are already closing in on $5,000 raised toward our $18,000 goal! A huge thank you to Renee Russo, our Lap-A-Thon lead this year, for getting this incredible event off the ground.

Don't miss out: Join us this Wednesday right after drop-off at 8:30 AM for a special spirit assembly! We will be premiering a Lap-A-Thon hype video, and parents are more than welcome to attend.

Community: Picnic Day & Incredible Volunteers

Illustration of BES Picnic Day, Oct 2, 2026

Our Picnic Day on Friday, 10/2 was absolutely AWESOME! It was wonderful to see so many families come together to share a meal and connect as one community: BES strong! A special welcome to all of our new Kinder families who brought out their chairs, tables, and picnic blankets and joined this fun BES tradition.

We also want to pause and thank the many people who have already stepped up to volunteer. We had numerous opportunities to fill across the Book Fair, Day in the Park, Walk to School, and the Lap-A-Thon, and so many of you graciously raised your hands. Thank you for your time, and thank you for being diligent about getting your volunteer clearance paperwork in order.

Subcommittees Hard At Work

Our major subcommittees are formed and already making a huge impact around campus:

Staff Appreciation: The team is brainstorming fresh ideas and just delivered a wonderful spread (pictured) for World Teachers' Day on Monday, 10/5. Thank you to Alison Anderson from the subcommittee for organizing parent donations to make this happen!
Delicious food and drinks in the BES staff lounge for World Teachers' Day 2026
Beautification: The beautification project from last year was officially completed a few weekends ago! The bus shelter now has a roof, all thanks to local donations. The school art teachers will have an opportunity to continue the project with student art work later on this year.
After School Club: The Advisory Committee is gearing up for their first planning meeting on 10/10.
Yearbook: The committee is already hard at work. Each student will receive a free softcover copy of the 2026-2027 yearbook courtesy of the PTO. The yearbook committee has opened hardcover upgrade purchasing - visit bpto.link/besyearbook to upgrade your student's yearbook today.

Introducing: Site-President Office Hours

Virtual (Zoom) Office Hours begin Oct 15, 2026.

Since our general PTO meetings are held in the mornings, we want to make sure we are offering accessible ways to connect for families who can't attend during the day.

I am excited to announce a new pilot program: Monthly Site-President Office Hours. Starting Thursday, October 15th, I will be hosting open Zoom hours from 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM at bpto.link/zoom.

There is no set agenda; just drop in to chat, ask questions, or share ideas. This will also serve as a dedicated space for our subcommittee members to jump on and meet with me for ad-hoc planning.

What's Ahead? Shifting Focus:

As we head into October and the holiday season, we’re shifting our focus to some exciting upcoming events: the Lap-A-Thon, Movie Night, the International Feast, and Holiday Staff Appreciation. Bringing these to life takes the continued teamwork of our incredible PTO community. Thank you for making BES such a vibrant, supportive place for our kids to grow!

Upcoming Events

International Walk to School Day: Wednesday, October 7, 2026 from 8:00 AM - 8:35 AM
BEST/PTO District Board Meeting: Tuesday, October 13, 2026 at 6:00 PM (BES MPR & Zoom)
BES Lap-a-Thon: Wednesday, October 21, 2026 (BES Lower Field)
BES PTO Site Meeting: Friday, November 6, 2026 at 8:30 AM (BES Library & Zoom)
BES Movie Night: Friday, November 13, 2026 at 6:00 PM (BES MPR)

Brisbane Educational Support Team
PARENT TEACHER ORGANIZATION

Interested in serving on our board? Our SECRETARY position is open. Contact us for more information.