2019 09 03 Current Activity

Periodically, we'll summarize program status. This is mainly intended to support staff meetings and project management. Detailed information about programs, including key contacts and communication history, can be found in google docs or Salesforce.

Note 9/3/19: Peter and Barb have also drafted summary sheets in Google Drive, and we are still working out the best location for these as well as content. 

September 1, 2019

Last update: 9/4/2019

For each item, we provide recent progress and key next steps.

Grant Applications

• 9/6 5:00 p.m. Cummings Foundation Letter of Inquiry deadline

• 10/1 Cambridge Community Foundation - fall grant cycle deadline

Classes, Teams and Events (SF Campaigns)

• Cambridge 3rd Grade PE 4-lesson unit (Ethan)   K-5 classes -- Jamie McCarthy, Joel Burke

  • • Progress: Mary negotiated rate. Ethan sent email to the teachers we know and heard back from 3-4. Barb made Dana Park isometric drawing and is working with Geoff to see if we can use Sketch-Up for these drawings. We received the $6k check for the spring.

    • Next: Make spreadsheet with teachers contact info and summary of communications. Find out all teachers' names and dates of PD (from Jamie). Finalize lesson plans. Make isometric drawings for all locations. Communicate back to Jamie with updated invoice and summary of phone call. Ethan and Barb re-update curriculum. BB work on OUSA program. BB document process for making the isometric drawings. Confirm we will be taking video. Ask Jamie how to make large blown up maps.

    • Financials: close to cost, except isometric drawings and new maps are subsidized by us. Barb providing drawings as volunteer, which is the donation covering the grant we are giving Cambridge.

• Community School classes. (Ethan)     K-5 classes -- Roslyn Shoy, Lissette, ?

  • • Progress: Got contract. Ethan checked in with Amigos director. Peter sent email to Carolyn.

    • Next: Sign and return contract. Find teacher. Call Fitzgerald director. Update the curriculum for the fall.

    • Financials: almost break-even if we can limit prep time - do need to continue logging reflections! We have lost a lot on these in the past but were paying lots of prep time and multiple teachers.

• CRLS team (Ethan)     Coaching -- Tom Arria

  • • Progress: held parent meeting, first session. Did some planning. Permit denied to train in the Fells. Identified parents for transportation & fundraising. Backup locations found for training.

    • Next: get parent volunteers up and running. Recruit a main parent volunteer. Continue working on permissions for training. Schedule check-in call/meeting Wed during or after park series.

    • Financials: Cambridge pays Ethan directly. Barb volunteers; David L volunteers (would get paid if we have enough people); Peter helps occasionally.

• Middle school teams (Barb)    Coaching -- Dan Fusco

  • • Progress: Talked to Dan Fusco; agreed on plan.

    • Next: Barb reach out to Dan! CSUS team - work with their coach to set them up. Contact other schools with plan and requests; get a meeting with them. Encourage racing on Wednesday evenings.

    • Financials: Cambridge pays coach directly. Barb and other NG people help with designing practices and final race. 

• Wednesday night score-Os (Barb)    Public events  -- CSU (Ed Despard, Larry Berman)

  • • Progress: Got permission for Danehy. Connected with MIT OC; meeting 6:30 pm. Talked to Fresh Pond ranger & submitted written thing; heard back - all OK. 

    • Next: web pages. registration. Permissions final. Send in map to Fresh Pond ranger. DCR permission for North Point Park. Marketing. Follow up with Harvard OC; propose we attend the meeting. Send flyer out through Community schools.

    • Financials: Ideally net positive

• Chelmsford PE (Ethan)  Grade 6-12 classes; Professional development -- Katie Simes

  • • Progress: Barb & Ethan met in person with Katie Simes and visited the school. We arranged dates for 2 half-day PD sessions (12/4 and 2/12, 11:30-2; can use gym in middle school and school campus), and agreed to provide one day of introductions for middle school PE teachers. Negotiating with Ed about cost for making the map.

    • Next: Mary finalize terms and contract. Get map made. Send Katie possible dates for in-school intro (a Wednesday in early October). Barb find written notes. (Found - would do intro all in one day - first start at Parker 8:30-9:10, 9:33-10:17, 10:21-11:05, then go to McCarthy detailed times TBD).

    • Financials: cover costs; net positive

• Morse School Program (Ethan)  K-5 classes -- Julia Bishop

  • • Progress: 

    • Next: Check in with Julia and schedule fall portion of the program. Get to Julia's parent night to talk with the parents.

    • Financials: cover costs; net positive

• Peabody Terrace 9/15 5-6pm (Ethan)  Private Children's Events -- Eva

  • • Progress: Ethan confirmed date

    • Next: Confirm they're OK with requested $300. Ethan needs to get back to them - we need a COI.

    • Financials: should cover costs. Track negotiation and prep time carefully.

Kits, Materials, Lesson Plans

• Videos (Peter)   Lesson plans

  • • Progress: drafts of 4 videos

    • Next: finalize videos; post them along with lesson plans on our google site.

    • Financials: Direct loss but indirectly helps us sell our consulting and PD programs.

• Publish update to curricula and lesson plans (Barb) Lesson plans

  • • Ethan made updates.

    • Ethan make updates to K-5. Barb review/revise 3rd gr lesson plans and publish. Barb & Peter publish other series like Forest Team Games. Goal: updated curricula end of December, including marketing and print version for sale. Connect to PD and consulting. Ideally, roll out over the fall so there are numerous announcements and we get credit.

    • Financials: Direct loss but indirectly helps us sell our consulting and PD programs.

• Professional Development Workshop for teachers  (Brenda, Ethan) Professional Development

  • • Progress: Brenda and Ethan have been working on it.

    • Next: Review progress; make timeline for completion. Start working on test run, and scheduling actual PD for the spring?

    • Financials: Estimate for Brenda's time: $XXX; Estimated income: $XXX / workshop

• Accreditation to give PD credits (Brenda, Barb)  Professional Development

  • • Progress: we've looked at the application

    • Next: Barb draft next draft.

Outreach

• Land Access (Mary)   Land manager relations

  • • Progress: (backwards) - we lost off-trail access to the Fells. Barb spoke with Jeff Saeger (NEOC), Jon Campbell (NEOC), Ed Despard (CSU), Larry Berman (CSU) and sent email to a bunch more folks. Mary spoke with her friend who does environmental work for DCR.

    • Next: Mary talk with ranger to find out more. Check in with NEOC and CSU. Ethan has contact email that Mary can also reach out to, from Joe Rotondo. Less urgent: check in with land managers for all land we use, and work on partnership. 

    • Financials: Boojum Rock and Long Pond are the most convenient forest maps to train on.

• November conference for School Committees (Mary) Develop new opportunities

  • • Progress: got a free table via Fred Fantini

    • Next: Thank Fred. Plan how we'll use our space. Reply to email from conference person.

    • Financials: Expense - registration fees and staff time. Indirectly helps us network and sell our fee-based programs.

• MAHPERD (Ethan, Mary)  Develop new opportunities; Staff education

  • • Progress: We confirmed our spot. Requested to see what our application was.

    • Next: Plan how to use our slot.

    • Financials: Expense - registration fees and staff time. Indirectly helps us sell our fee-based programs.

Organization

• Finance Committee (Barb)

  • • Progress: David Gibbs and David Yee said they'd be on the committee

    • Next: Start meeting and set out goals. Barb Prep for board meeting

• Business Plan (Mary, team)

  • • Progress: Mary and others are drafting the plan in a google doc. Gint worked on comparables for corporate events and proposed a rate ($400 / 2 hour event...). Gint drafted a Gantt chart (purpose: stage work so that we effectively prioritize our available resources). 

    • Next: Pull together 1-page program descriptions, cost/price/budget for each. Flesh out community outreach. Gint review 2018 $ doc draft and suggest changes. 

• Board Meeting (Mary, Gint)

  • • Progress: set date. Peter emailed Dave Gibbs asking about 9/11 3:30pm

    • Next: schedule pre-meeting with David Gibbs. Check that all Board members have RSVPd.

• Operations and processes (Peter, Barb)

  • • Progress: Mary would like short summaries of each program including recent activity and key contacts. Peter & Barb prepped some one-pagers to find out the content that she'd like. 

    • Next:  See what we can do natively in Salesforce. Propose using this google site. Talk to Mary about content.

• Financials (Barb)

  • • Progress: Redesigned the program accounts for Quickbooks. Drafted the 2018 Financial report. 

    • Next: 2019. Meet with John Merchant after 9/15.

Opportunities (we are in communication with partner or are considering a project)

• Belmont Boys & Girls Club. Mary

• Newton PE. Need to call/email this week - Barb.

• Boston Public Schools. Schedule a meeting with Outward Bound. Peter check with Brenda about that meeting.

• Outward Bound. See above.

• Constellation Pharmaceuticals. Street-O is planned for October 15th ish. Barb will do this pro bono. Hope: plant seed for larger outing.

Leads (possible partners, but we haven't communicated with them or heard back from initial outreach)

• Corporate event.

  • • Progress: Gint pricing

    • Next: Plan it! Put timelines around the planning.

• Birthday parties

  • • Next: pricing - plan. Marketing materials. Find out permission process for birthday parties in parks.

• Google

• Facebook