3/4/14

March, 2014

"Then from the cloud came a voice that said, 'This is my chosen Son; listen to him.'"  Luke 9:35
 Principal's Corner
March 2014

Dear Parents/Guardians,

It is March already; there is only three months (including March) to the end of this school year.  The year is flying by. 
As you know, this Wednesday (March 5) is Ash Wednesday.  There will be an all school mass for this day in addition to Friday which is First Friday and our virtue mass.  Following Wednesday's mass, Father will be blessing our outdoor Stations of the Cross.  If we ever get nice weather again, please feel free to pray these stations.  We still have to add signage, but the stations themselves are all up and ready; they are located across from Nature's Place on the outside wall of the gym.  Thank you, Mrs. Meinert, for all the work and planning you put into them, and thank you to the creators of the plaques. 
The following are some of the events coming up this month:
·         We will be administering the NCEA (National Catholic Education Association) religion assessment to all 5th and 8th grade students.  This will take place on March 12 & 13.
·         We will take our 8th graders to Washington, D.C on March 17th.  I certainly hope the weather is better by then.  Please pray for us. 
·         There is no school for the students on the 14th; the teachers of all three Catholic schools will be having an in-service that day. 
·         The end of the 3rd nine weeks is the 13th, and report cards will be sent home on the 19th.
·         The 19th will be $1.00 out of uniform day.
·         March 31st will be the start of the IOWA tests for all students in grades 1-8.
I have addressed student drop offs and pick-ups many times, but it seems I must again.  I have gotten a couple of calls from parents telling me about some very frightening experiences while dropping their children off for school.  We have a 5 mile per hr. maximum speed limit in our parking lot which needs to be followed.   If a car door is open and/or a child is outside the car, no one should be passing that car until the child is in a safe place.  No child (no matter what age or grade) should be walking in the parking lot without adult supervision.  If a child gets here before 7:45, he/she needs to go to the cafeteria.  Our ramp door is open in the morning for easy admittance.  Our front door does not open until 7:45.   
For afternoon pick-up, all students are to go to the car line unless the parent is present to pick them up at another location.  If a parent is not present when the classes are dismissed, the student is NOT to wait for the parent; he/she is to go to the gym or car line with the class.  If a parent picks up the child at the ramp, we ask that they not be standing and blocking the ramp access for other students and teachers.  If a teacher asks you for identification, please do not get upset?we are responsible for the safety of the children, and not all teachers recognize all parents.  This is why we issued car tags. 
Finally, thank you to all of you who helped make ChattiGras such a success.  I have heard from many who thought that this was the best of the three, and I agree.  We had several staff members from the three schools who worked especially hard on this event, but we could not have had such a success without all the parent help, contributions, and participation. So, thank you.  The final figures will be given as soon as we can.  There are still some outstanding money and paperwork which needs to be taken care of. 
 Have a wonderful March and beginning of Lent.
 God bless,
 Jeri McInturff