Paid Leadership Training for Rising 11th and 12 Graders

/

Coro's Participatory Budgeting Youth Fellowship (PBYF) program is recruiting! This is an exciting opportunity for our future youth leaders. 

What is the Participatory Budgeting Youth Fellowship program?
PBYF builds the leadership skills of young New Yorkers who are committed to lifting up youth voices and leading change. This paid program offers high school students intensive leadership training, hands-on work experience, and ongoing support to promote greater youth involvement in New York City’s Participatory Budgeting (PB) process, in which City Council members dedicate at least $1 million for local residents as young as eleven to decide how it is spent. Youth Fellows serve as ambassadors and advocates, working to promote PB and engage other youth and underrepresented groups throughout the process. By preparing a growing cadre of young civic change leaders, PBYF aims to make a lasting impact in communities throughout New York City.

We're looking for young people who are:

  • Entering 11th or 12th grade next school year (10th graders will be considered on case by case basis)

  • Passionate about issues relevant to their community 

  • Live and/or learn in one of the participating City Council Districts 

  • Be able to commit to a rigorous program schedule from July 2019-May 2020:

Summer

    • Three-week Leadership Institute (July 29 - August 16, 2019) 

    • 20 PB service hours in City Council district (August 19 - August 30, 2019)

  • School Year

    • 10-15 hours of PB service per month (after school, evenings, some weekends)

    • Monthly full-day training sessions on Saturdays or non-instructional days

    • Other projects and activities as assigned


Ultimately, the Youth Fellow's goal is to educate and engage more young people in PB, especially underrepresented populations, throughout the program. Through the process they'll also gain knowledge about local government and democracy, build a network with their fellow Coro PB participants, and establish themselves as key figures in their own community. Participants will also receive a stipend of up to $1000 upon successful completion of the program.
 

Applications for the 2019-20 program are online and will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Interested individuals can browse through our program brochure, youth friendly flyer, and mid-year newsletter. 

Send an email to Isabel Luciano for questions about the program.


ICE Summer Camp Fund

/

Dear ICE families, last summer the ICE Summer Camp Fund raised close to $8,000 and sent 16 kids to sleep away camp. It's that time of the year again and we want to do as much or more this year. Please help us by reaching out to your families, friends and communities. 

Here is a sample letter you can send out to everyone you know, to solicit donations for our Go Fund Me page for the ICE Summer Camp Fund. 

Many people have great memories from summer camp and would gladly help make that possible for others. You can also share the page through Facebook or other social media. 

Thanks! Lisa
lisableyer@iceeducate.org

Dear ---,

Summer is coming!

Last summer, my child's school [or insert child's name], the Institute for Collaborative Education, sent 16 kids to sleep away camp. Some went to wilderness camps where they swam, played sports, did arts and crafts, and sang songs in the firelight. Others went to sports camp to improve their game. They all had amazing, life changing experiences in the way that only summer camp can do. 

In order to keep this going for Year 2, we need lots of help, in the form of MONEY! 

We have established a Go Fund Me page to raise money for the ICE Summer Camp Fund. 

Won't you please donate to support ICE kids! We love our school and appreciate your consideration. No amount is too small. 

https://www.gofundme.com/ice-summer-camp-fund


Thank you [OR hugs and kisses OR You owe me! OR ...]

Parent/Guardian Surveys 

/

Parent/Guardian surveys were distributed to your child to backpack home on Tuesday, March 5, 2019.  Surveys can be completed and mailed back in postage-paid pre-addressed return envelopes or survey can be done online using the eight digit survey access code that appears on the bottom right-hand corner of their survey.  

Surveys must be completed on line or mailed by APRIL 3, 2019.

ICE encourages families to fill out the surveys which play an essential role in the feedback process in supporting school improvement. Surveys are completely confidential.

Thank you.

ICE Students Participate in NYCSEF

/

On Sunday, March 3, eight ICE seniors, Albert Jurkowski, Andy Zheng, Asha Karmen-Chan, Harmony-Cree Morgan, Josephine Ingall, Jules Walzer-Goldfeld, Katya Naphtali, and Lila Cooper, presented their science research, along with 300 other students, at the preliminary round of the New York City Science and Engineering Fair (NYCSEF). Each one of these students worked hard on original independent experiments in order to be accepted into the fair and deserve to be recognized for their excellence!
 
Seven of the ICE projects scored within the top 25% of their categories, permitting their advancement to NYCSEF Finals! This coming Tuesday, March 19th, these students will be presenting their projects under the great blue whale of the American Museum of Natural History.   Public viewing (10:00 am - 12:00pm) precedes judging, so if you're available, come by and give them some encouragement!  10th & 11th grade students who think they might be interested in submitting their original research to NYCSEF when they are seniors are also invited to the attend public viewing and should contact JD, Chelsea, or Sammi for a permission slip.

ICE Community Lunch 

/

Our community lunches have been a huge success this year! Thank you so much to all of you who have so generously contributed food! Kids from all grades and advisories have come together to eat beautifully cooked food and spend time in community. Thank you so much for all your support in making these happen! 

If you would like to contribute for an upcoming meal, please fill out (the very short) form. 

Thank you as always for your time, commitment and love! If you have any questions please feel free to reach out to Marlyn Gomez. 

ICE PAC (Parent Action/Education Advocacy Committee

/

Middle school families:  

Be on the lookout for an email message from your grade rep from ICE PAC regarding the upcoming state tests. So that the teachers and administration can plan how many rooms are needed for test takers, please make your decision about whether or not your child will take the ELA (April 2-3) soon!

If you decide that your child will refuse the tests, use this online form to submit your letter to Principal Peter Karp, When you submit the form an email will be generated automatically and sent to the administration informing them of your decision.

If you want to understand some of the reasons why the vast majority of ICE families have rejected the exams in the past, here's one place to look.

Upcoming PTA Meetings 

/

March PTA meeting
Wednesday, March 20th at 6pm in room 518
Pete will lead a conversation about parent-child-school communication and how to work together to keep our children safe by sharing information with each other. 

In addition, Dr. Robin Goodman, the director of A Caring Hand, will speak with parents on how to support yourself and your child through grief as well as how to monitor and check in with children as they experience distress, whether you or your child is in need of support or not. 
Looking forward to seeing everyone there!
 
April PTA meeting
Wednesday, April 17th at 6pm in auditorium (see flyer attached)
The PTA will host a screening and discussion of Screenagers. Purchase your tickets now.

ICE Parent Volunteers Needed 

/

The Spring Fling Raffle Coordinator needs a few volunteers to help with raffle tickets sales at the following events:

If you can help, please click the corresponding links. The more volunteers the merrier.
 

TREASURER-IN-TRAINING
Treasurer-in-Training – This is a shared role for which we need 1 more volunteer. You will share all the treasurer stuff which includes two hours a week at school during school hours; attending monthly meetings to present reports and attending fundraisers. Everything else can happen at home using QuickBooks Online and PayPal. We will show you everything you need to know.


FUNDRAISING COMMITTEE
We are in need of a few more volunteers to join the fundraising team to help with our current fundraisers and bring in new fundraisers. Fundraising Committee Team Members  (3 volunteers)


VOLUNTEER COORDINATOR
Volunteer Coordinator – Call for volunteers for event as needed, update volunteer page on the website; all online work.


More volunteer roles will be added within the next few months so visit our website to view the "Parent Life" tab or click Volunteer Opportunities for updates.


SPRING FLING DONATIONS

/

Don't know what to donate, here are a few suggestions...

Museums, Music, Art, TV shows - Cultural activities, whether a private museum tour or a night at a jazz club raise lots of money for our school and your kids.  Can you drum up a donation for:
 
* tickets to a musical event - any genre!
* a museum tour
* seats to a Broadway show
* tickets to a late-night show, a la Colbert Report

Please visit a theater, a club, a museum or gallery and ask for a donation today.  NYC cultural institutions donating to a NYC public school, how could they say no?
 
ICE families love bling!  Maybe not diamonds and rubies, but beautiful, often handcrafted jewelry are big favorites at the Spring Fling auction. 

Do you know an artist who might donate an item or two?  Is there a store in your neighborhood that would like to contribute to a NYC public school?  The jewelry donations have been very successful in the past, we'd love to have a table of beautiful items to tempt this coming May.


We are looking for vacation homes/trips - ICE families love travel! Please donate a vacation home for a few days or more - local or international. 

 We are hoping for at least 1 donation per grade, please donate that trip today!  

Past trips include Jamaica, Israel, Italy, The Catskills - the sky is the limit. Yes, we will even travel to Mars. 


Another good donation is dining experiences, we are hoping for 5 donations per grade.  Typically, these are some of the most coveted items. 

They generate lots and lots of dollars for your school PLUS: new dining experiences for our community.  Restaurants are often happy to donate a dinner for 2 or 4 - they win over new repeat customers while giving back to a local public school.
 

Use the Online Donation Form  or the Printable Donation Formwhen asking for donations. Be sure to give your donors the Merchant Letter which includes our tax id number for those who are donating.

Contact Liza and Imebet at icespringfling@gmail.com if you have questions.

Last Call for Cell Phone for Nepal Trip 

/

THE NEPAL AND MALAYSIA INTERNATIONAL YOUTH MEDIA GROUPS
ARE ASKING PARENTS, STUDENTS, AND FRIENDS OF ICE TO DONATE
THE CELL PHONES THEY NO LONGER USE.

THE NEPAL TRIP IS NEXT WEEK!

SO PLEASE, IF YOU HAVE ANY OLD CELL PHONES, SMART PHONES ETC. WITH PICTURE TAKING CAPABILITY, PLEASE HAVE THEM BROUGHT TO JEFFREY (the International Youth Media Advisor/Program Director) in room 419B. 
• Please be sure the phones – as cameras – work.
• It would also be helpful if each phone-camera donated came with a charger.
• Also, VERY IMPORTANT, please be sure to include the code to access the cell phones.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact Jeffrey.


PTA Meeting

/

The next PTA meeting on Wednesday, Feb 13 @ 6:00PM is being intentionally designed for the families of middle school students and those families of students who are recent transfers to ICE. We will explore the underlying philosophies and practices that distinguish our school and make it tick--including standardized testing (or lack thereof), “panels,” middle school-high school continuity and curriculum. 

So, families of middle school students and families new to ICE (regardless of grade) you are strongly encouraged to attend! Other families also welcome to share experiences, respond to questions, etc.

ICE Has a Social Story

/

Hello ICE Community,

We are very proud to announce that ICE now has its very own Social Story and it’s posted on our homepage for your viewing pleasure!

You might be asking yourself: What is a Social Story? Social Stories are essentially helpful guides to various social interactions and spaces. They can be written or visual, and they gently offer accurate social and spatial information.  Many cultural institutions provide them to visitors that might have questions or anxieties about what their experience will be like. With this, we think that it’s only fitting that ICE create its own social story about our unique educational community.

It is our greatest hope that this video provides a calming and reassuring feeling to anyone entering our space. We are also hoping that our video sparks the making of more social stories from schools and educational facilities around the city and beyond. After all, everyone should feel safe and comfortable in their school space, and if a short video can help with that, that’s a wonderful thing.

This Social Story was made with the invaluable help and artistry of two students: Shane Fleming and Spencer Berg. In the wise words of Mr. Rogers, “You will always find people who are helping.” Those people are luckily all round our community here at ICE. Thanks for being those people, and enjoy the video.

Sincerely,

Natalie, Sammi, Pete & Mark