Greetings, Brentwood families,

We hope you had a lovely Mother’s Day weekend. This is our last edition of the Bark for this school year!

Since the earliest days, Texas PTA leaders and members have sought to fulfill our mission to make every child’s potential a reality by engaging and empowering families and communities to advocate for all children. We are proud to share that Brentwood PTA has been recognized by Texas PTA’s Advocacy Impact Award program for our work this year! With the next Texas Legislative session kicking off in January, expect Brentwood PTA to continue to focus on advocacy opportunities for and with our community next school year. Texas PTA will need our support—both in membership numbers and effort—to help increase vital funding for public education.

Thank you for joining the fun at The Violet Crown Wine Bar & Coffee Shop for this year’s Brentwood After Dark fundraiser! We had a great time hanging out together, and we appreciate the many silent auction contributions that came from this community—especially the experiences donated by teachers. And how about all the art that our students made with their amazing art teachers! 

A big thank you also goes out to Principal Hosack for contributing the “Principal for a Day” experience to the raffle. In addition to the raffle tickets sold for this fun opportunity, each Brentwood teacher also nominated students for inclusion in the drawing. Our winner was Sara Glakas—congratulations Sara!

Another note of thanks goes to our Title Sponsors, The Violet Crown Wine Bar & Coffee Shop and Ally Medical. Their donations made so much of our event possible—we’re grateful for the support! Many thanks to them and all of our other sponsors, including Make at Rosie, Teal Seal Swim, Gelato Paradiso, New Belgium Brewery, Allandale Vet Clinic, Eldorado Cafe, Dia’s Market, Sherwood Pediatric Dentistry, and Kosmic Kombucha.

WHO: Brentwood Bulldog alumni graduating high school seniors and their families!
WHAT: Bulldog Alumni Senior Walk
WHERE: Brentwood Elementary (entrance now on Yates). Check in at the front office then gather in the cafeteria.
WHEN: Thursday, May 16 starting at 7:45 a.m. to assemble and line up. Then walk halls at 8 a.m. to cheers of 700 current Bulldogs along with teachers. Coffee, donuts and bagels will be served following the walk.
WHY: Memories, photos, parent tears, and gathering of old elementary school friends as you get ready to graduate!
HOW: Just show up! Bring your grownups. Wear your cap and gown! Or your tie dye   

Questions? Contact Laura Beck, 5th grade teacher, at laura.beck@austinisd.org or 512-786-1098. Please spread the word!

Get ahead of next school year while helping to raise money for our Bulldogs and participate in our school supplies fundraiser. If you order before June 9th, your supplies will arrive at Brentwood Elementary in time for Meet the Teacher night in August and will be the best deal. (Be sure to order your student's next year's grade level!) Supplies boxes are still available after June 9, however, they will be more expensive and will be shipped directly to students’ homes.

Families are also welcome to purchase donation boxes if they’d like; simply indicate “donation” in the name field and please send an email to stephanie.slakey@gmail.com so that the PTA can keep track. Please contact direct@schooltoolbox.net or stephanie.slakey@gmail.com with any questions. Thank you for supporting our Bulldogs!

Mrs. Wood, one of our beloved 2nd grade teachers, is retiring after dedicating 27 years to teaching—12 of those at Brentwood. Coach Marshall is also retiring after 28 years of teaching, pouring her heart into Brentwood for 8 of those years.

Join us on Saturday, May 18th from 3-5:30 p.m. at Top Notch (7525 Burnet Road). Please tell everyone you know—we’d love to see current and former Bulldogs. The best gift to bring is your favorite memories with Mrs. Wood and Coach Marshall, however, if you wish to bring a little something, here is a list of a few of their favorite things:

Mrs. Wood
Restaurants: Eldorado Cafe, Brooklyn Pies, Little Deli, Sammies
Stores: Amazon
Scent: Lavender
Snacks: Peanut M&M's, Nestle Crunch bar, chocolate cupcakes
Beverages: Lemonade
Hobbies: yoga, mountain biking, hiking, snowboarding, snorkeling, and taking vacations by any body of water

Coach Marshall
Restaurants: Hoover's Cooking
Stores: Amazon
Scent: Lavender, Vanilla
Snacks: Chocolate
Beverages: Green Tea, Fruit Smoothies
Hobbies: Word games, time with grandson

The Retreat by Mantra Yoga Collective would like to help Brentwood celebrate its wonderful volunteers with a free 45-minute slow and stretchy yoga class. Their neighbor, Flora, will provide free coffee and tea. Wear comfortable clothing and head on over Thursday, May 16, from 1-1:45 p.m. This event is for ALL volunteers (ages 12 and older), including room parents, event volunteers, Math Pentathlon and Science Fair volunteers, lunch and library helpers… It takes a village!

We have good news! Volunteers are needed to lead their grade level in our great T-shirt tie-dyeing tradition. This time-honored commitment includes a 2-hour weekend morning meet-up along with 3 hours on a school day to lead and support your grade’s tie-dyeing event. Approximately 2 to 3 captains per grade would be optimal. Please reach out to gnellprice@gmail.com with your interest and/or any questions. Additional volunteer sign-ups will happen in the fall for those who want to join the tie-dye fun! 

Thank you Teal Seal Swim School for sponsoring the Brentwood PTA! And for all those Bulldogs looking for swim lessons this summer, Teal Seal is offering Brentwood families 15% off of lessons with the code BRENTWOOD. 

A huge shout-out goes out to Einstein Bros, Kosmic Kombucha, and Central Market for donating yummy foods and drinks to all of our teachers and staff during Teacher Appreciation Week!

Brentwood PTA will kick off its annual, no-hassle fundraiser in August. Next year’s Bulldog Fund will help us provide each and every teacher with a $300 stipend for the classroom supplies they need! Feel free to get a head start on next year and donate HERE.

The Bulldog Bark will be back in early August with dates and information about back-to-school activities. Keep up-to-date by subscribing to the PTA calendar and follow us on Facebook and Instagram. Have a happy, fun, and safe summer!