| | | | Dear Parents:
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. taught valuable lessons of equality, compassion, and understanding to people everywhere. King is perhaps best remembered for delivering his 1963 "I Have a Dream" speech in front of a quarter of a million people in the Mall in Washington, DC. His famous line, "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character," still resonates today. Dr. King continually encouraged everyone to make a difference. Let us all continue to become more active, concerned citizens who care for others and become involved in acts of charity and work towards a more just society for all. We can enjoy a three-day weekend this weekend thanks to the observance of Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday. | | | Cold and Flu season is upon us. We have many students and several staff member ill this week. Many are presenting with fever, chills, and severe coughs. Students need to be fever free for at least 24 hours before they can return to school.. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE - if your child is showing ANY symptoms of illness such as headaches, cough, dizziness, fever, or stomach aches, keep them at home. This will avoid spreading these symptoms to others. | | | REPORT CARDS/HONOR AWARDS: This Friday marks the end of the second quarter. Report cards will be sent home with your child on Friday, January 23rd. We would like to invite everyone to join us at the honor awards ceremony on Friday, January 23rd immediately following the 8:30am mass. | | | PM EXTENDED CARE: Do you need a 2014 payment summary from Afternoon Extended Care for your flexible spending account or your 2014 tax return? Please contact John Kavanagh at JKav@stmsf.org and he will provide one for January through June. A payment summary for August through December is available through your FACTS account. | | | | CIOPPINO 2014: Work continues in preparation for our BIG fundraiser on Saturday, February 28th. Consider getting together with other parents from your child's class to purchase a table. This event is a lot of fun. Remember, childcare is available for a nominal fee. Please respond as soon as possible as we believe this will be a sell out event again this year. To purchase tickets, please use the flyer you are receiving today and return it to the school office. Additionally, we need your auction donations to make baskets or balloon prizes. As a bonus, every school parent who buys a ticket or makes a donation (value $20 or more) for Cioppino will receive a FREE DRESS PASS for their child/ren to be used on Monday, March 2nd. | | | SANDWICHES-FOR-THE-NEEDY: Our first collection for the new year is this Friday, January 16th. Thank you again to the Kindergarten and 4th grade classes who will take the lead. We encourage ALL families to provide an extra sandwich for this first collection of the year. Some of our older students will prepare 50 additional sandwiches in our school kitchen to add to this collection. Please remember that in order to facilitate the distribution of sandwiches, we have been asked to provide just one type of sandwich: turkey on sliced white or brown bread, no mustard or mayo.
USF CLASSES: There are still a few spaces available for students in grades 6, 7 and 8 to work in collaboration with USF graduate students in an exciting course entitled, Digital Media and Learning. This will look great on the resume of students applying for high school next year! Please let Mrs. Fitzpatrick know if you are interested. | | GRADUATION PICTURES: 8th grade graduation pictures are this Friday. Please follow the appropriate dress guidelines given by Mrs. Girlich. As a reminder, boys should wear white-collared shirts and ties with either a suit or dress pants and dress shoes. Girls are reminded that there is to be no make-up, dangling earrings, or nail polish.
NATIONAL CATHOLIC SCHOOLS WEEK: This runs from January 25th through January 31st. Please mark your calendars for our Family Mass, Open House, Book Fair, and other exciting events on Sunday, January 25th. We are asking our kindergarten class to provide breakfast pastries and treats for our Open House. Please send these items to the front office on Friday, January 23rd or bring them to the school office before Mass on Sunday, January 25th. Thank you for the great response to Grandparents Day (January 29th). So far we have over 50 Grandparents and other special friends joining us for a special pasta lunch and other fun activities. There is still time to sign up! Send in your reservation form by this Friday. We are also looking for donations of breakfast pastries and treats for Grandparents' Day. Please drop your donations to the school office on the morning of January 29th.
STM TAP: We are happy to announce that we have again this year received a $20,000 grant from the Carl Gellert and Celia Berta Gellert Foundation to be used for tuition assistance. Funds will be distributed on the basis of those families who need the most help. To qualify for temporary tuition assistance, families will need to show proof of financial hardship and funds will be distributed on a discretionary basis by the school administration. Please let Mrs. Fitzpatrick know in writing by next Tuesday, January 20th, if you are interested in receiving an application form. Applications will be sent home in next week's envelope. Thank you once again to the Carl Gellert and Celia Berta Gellert Foundation! | | ONLINE BOOK FAIR: Our Online Book Fair is now LIVE! Click here to purchase books. All orders will ship directly to school for free when the Online Fair has ended.
KINDERGARTEN SCREENING: We have received many kindergarten and preschool applications for the 2015-2016 school year. Many thanks for your referrals of new families. A reminder that again this year we will be screening all kindergarten applicants in order to assess their readiness for our kindergarten program. Screening day is set for Saturday, January 24th. | | SPELL-A-THON: Today you will receive a flyer for our second annual Spell-A-Thon in support for our technology program. We anticipate a 100% participation from all families.
PANORAMIC PHOTOS: Those who preordered panoramic pictures will be receiving your order today. If you missed the ordering deadline, extra unframed photos are available through the office for $30 each. | | Sincerely,
Marie Fitzpatrick
Principal | | | | | | | |
