During the Aug. 15 Catasauqua Communities That Care meeting, coalition members discussed a potential change in the meeting time.

This matter has been brought up before, but it was thought this could be a good time for the change as the district heads into the new school year. The hope is to get more people attending the meeting in person, versus joining virtually, to encourage more active participation.

The previous meeting time was 9:30 a.m. the third Tuesday of the month. The new proposed meeting time will be 2:30 p.m. the fourth Monday of the month.

In other business, CTC members discussed the coalition checkup project they have been part of for a few years. The latest initiative through this project is to increase knowledge of and familiarity with the various programs and activities taking part in the district.

Some of the coalition members said they were not fully informed about all the programming for students, so the group decided to implement presentations at the monthly meetings to continue the education and understanding. These presentations may also be shared with the school staff members or community members on the district website.

Denise Continenza, Penn State Extension educator and CTC coordinator, noted summer has been a challenge for scheduling since some of the coalition members do not work during the summer months. The group discussed reworking the proposed schedule.

One presentation, shared by Amy Dymond-Jones, Catasauqua Middle School counselor and CTC coordinator, had already been held at an earlier meeting. There was discussion about getting that information shared to the website.

The presentations are expected to continue at the September meeting.

Continenza continued her push to have students attend the meetings. It can be helpful to have the perspective of current students while discussing and planning programs. Ideally, she would like representatives from both the middle school and high school levels.

Additionally, Continenza noted it would be helpful to have more community representatives or district parents around the table. Holy Trinity Memorial Lutheran Church Pastor Brian Riedy and Dymond-Jones both said they might have some people in mind and could reach out.

The coalition discussed the administration changes happening in the district, with the superintendent retiring and the upward shuffle in positions for many members of the administrative team. Continenza mentioned inviting these administrators to a future meeting. She said September might be difficult, so they are considering October.

It was also noted the soon-to-be former superintendent, Robert Spengler, might be interested in joining as well.

Group members discussed the recent National Night Out in Catasauqua. The coalition had a table at the event to connect with the community.

“It was awesome,” Riedy said.

He and Holy Trinity also had a presence at the event.

Continenza said it there was a great turnout.

“I think we got some good exposure,” Continenza noted. “We talked about the PAYS data and how good the kids are in Catty.”

She also credited the efforts of some of the young Holy Trinity parishioners who attended and assisted.

There was discussion about taking part in Hanover Township’s Community Night, which was Aug. 22.

Riedy reported Holy Trinity is preparing for its new after-school arts program, set to begin in September. The program will be geared toward youths in grades 1-4 and will include classes in art, dance, music and drama. He noted they are partnering with Holistic Awakenings in Catasauqua, so the program will include social-emotional learning for the children, guided by a child therapist.

He said the church is also working on other programs for local youth, including a living library initiative where community members would come and tell their stories to students.

The next Catasauqua CTC meeting is set for 2:30 p.m. Sept. 25 at the administrative board room, 201 N. 14th St., Catasauqua.