Leadership (Rudder)

The SMPO is led by a Board of Directors, also known as the Rudder Committee. All Rudder positions are up for election every year, with the exception of President and Business Manager. (The Vice President automatically assumes the President position, and the Business Manager in Training automatically assumes the Business Manager position.) All positions can be shared, except the Business Manager. LSDMC and ILT reps serve two-year terms. Positions are elected at the General Parent Meeting in April for the following school year.

 

The 2022–2023 Rudder Committee

Past Presidents: Heather Gerker

President: Courtney Ryan

Vice President: Kim Fulbright

Executive Secretary: Laura Hughes

Business Manager: Michelle Durban businessmanager@sandsparents.org

Business Manager in Training: Andrea Moneypenny

Parent at Large: Allyse Sonnega

Parent Liaison: Heather Gerker

3–6 Teacher Representative: Beth Tracy-Kaliski

6-9 Teacher Representative: Karen Huneke

9-12 Teacher Representative: Lisa Bowden

Intervention Team Representative: Jake Ottlinger

Teacher Representative: Lisa Martin

Sands Extracurricular Program (SEP) Coordinator: Jen Robbins sandssepcoordinator@gmail.com

Volunteer Coordinator: Amy Hueneman

Fundraising Coordinator: Dave Rolfes

Communications Coordinator: LeAnn Gardner

Technology Coordinator: Jonathan Gardner

Athletics Coordinator: Chris Vockell vockell@fuse.net and Jimmy Franxman

LSDMC: Erin Seidel, Sharice Wood, Jeff Hart, Priya Rolfes

ILT: Alissa Paasch; Kasey Drotar

 

Extracurricular Rudder Officer Duties

President: Presides at all meetings of the SMPO and Rudder. Establishes the agenda and goals for the current year. Represents the SMPO at school board meetings when deemed necessary by the Rudder.  

Vice President: Acts as an aide to the President and is considered “President-In-Training.” The Vice President becomes President the following year.

Business Manager: Receives all monies of the SMPO and serves as primary contact with the bank handling SMPO funds. Keeps records of receipts and expenditures.

Business Manager in Training:​ ​Works alongside the Business Manager and takes over as Business Manager the following year.

Executive Secretary: Records the minutes of all Rudder meetings and maintains the official documents of the SMPO including the bylaws, correspondence, and minutes.

Parent-At-Large: Represents the general membership of the SMPO at Rudder meetings. The Parent At Large acts as hospitality coordinator for SMPO and school functions, including Grandparents Day.

3–6 Team Coordinator: Meets with team teachers on a regular basis to discuss needs and concerns. Assists room parents in developing phone trees and class directories. Coordinates with the Vice-President and the other team representatives in developing a school-wide directory. Assists the Parent-At-Large in his/her hospitality duties.

6–9 Team Coordinator: Identical to 3–6 Team Coordinator, but for the 6–9 team.

9–12 Team Coordinator: Identical to 3–6 Team Coordinator, but for the 9–12 team.

Sands Enrichment Program (SEP) Coordinator:Coordinates after-school enrichment programs for students at Sands Montessori.

Reporter Publisher: Coordinates and compiles minutes, articles, and calendar information for publication in the Reporter.

Volunteer Coordinator: Recruits and deploys parents to perform scheduled and non-scheduled volunteer duties at SMPO and school functions. Serves as the main contact person for volunteer requests from the school and SMPO committees.

Fundraising Coordinator: Oversees all major fundraising events for the SMPO and no-cost fundraising.

Communications​ ​Coordinator:Responsible for coordinating and compiling information useful for Sands families and staff to be distributed via email, website, social media or other relevant mode of communication.

Technology Coordinator: Monitors maintenance and updating of SMPO website. May serve as the parent representative to the school’s technology committee.

Athletics Coordinator: Coordinates sports programs at the school, including coordinating with Cincinnati Recreation Commission. Recruits volunteer coaches for the after-school programs. The Athletics coordinator oversees the management of the soccer, basketball, volleyball and baseball programs.

LSDMC Representative (2): Serves as parent member on the Local School Decision Making Committee, the primary governing body for the school, which gives insight and input into decisions that impact students’ lives and shape their education experiences. Two positions are open.

ILT Representative (1): Serves on the Sands Instructional Leadership Team (ILT), which focuses specifically on improving instruction at the school, including curriculum program, staff training and developing school budget. SMPO does not vote on candidates for ILT, but collects nominations on behalf of LSDMC.