Principal's Letter - March 28, 2012

Dear St. Monica Academy Families,

Lent preparation is on our minds as we approach Holy Week.  On Monday, the school gathered together for a “prayer assembly” in the school gym with another scheduled for the Monday of Holy Week.  As the most faith filled time of the year, these experiences help us make the connections to Jesus in a prayerful way.

Over the course of this school year, the St. Monica students have made great strides in their development and academic progress.  Amazingly, there are only 2 months of school remaining.  There have been many opportunities and student successes to highlight recently.  Here are some examples.  

The I.J.A.S. Region 2 Science Fair Project Competition was held at the Museum of Science and Industry.  Five St. Monica Academy 8^th grade students received gold awards (the highest possible award) in the science project session.  They are Blake Rosenbusch, Nigel Castelino, Colleen Gale, Ben Ranft, and Elijah Irrizary.  Ben and Elijah will be moving on to the State Competition at the University of Illinois in downstate Champaign on May 4-5.  Elijah Irrizary earned an additional award from the Illinois Association of Heating and Refrigeration Engineers.  Six more students received gold awards for their science fair papers:  Emily Boehm, Maddie Larsen, Annie Valenziano, Grace Torres, Julia Swider, and Lexie Ippolito.  All of these St. Monica 8^th graders will be competing downstate as well.  Thank you to Mrs. Kiszynski for leading such a great Science program.  Great job to all of our students.

In another important event, the St. Monica Speech Team competed at the West 40 Speech & Poetry Competition at Elmwood Park High School earlier in the month.  They came away with a second place trophy out of almost 20 schools entered in the competition.  All of the following students competed individually or in group performances to receive perfect scores:   Dan Nieves (8^th gr.) in Serious Presentation; Sydnee Brown (8^th gr.) in Serious Monologue; Ryan Pesole, Lucas Krystyn, Paul Saad (8^th gr.) in a Trio Presentation; Cristina Gamboa and Yalitza Ruiz (8^th gr.) in Serious Duet; Sophia Acevedo and Cherryshe Sinfuego (7^th gr.) in Humorous Duet; Sydney Ryan (7^th gr.) in Serious Monologue; Gavin Mills (6^th gr.) in Humorous Poetry, and 4^th grade class members Daniela Badami, Angelina Giovannielli, Joseph Laera, Johnathan LaVecchia, Kelly Moritz, Charles Rademaker, Nikki Rasmussen, Randy Ryan, Michael Siemiaszko in Readers Theatre. 

There were more than 60 St. Monica students competing at West 40 and many more received 1^st and 2^nd place ribbons.  Congratulations to all of them.  Our Speech Team continues to display tremendous poise and confidence in their ability to speak and perform in front of a crowd and judges.  Thank you to the Speech Team coaches, Mr. Sheehan and Mrs. Wiss for all they have done to prepare and guide our students in their performances.

The Talent Show is only two days away and is “sold out”.  The big event will take place this Friday, March 30^th at 1:00 and 7:00 p.m.  We have added extra seating and standing room space to accommodate the high demand for tickets.  As a result, seating will not be available to everyone in attendance.  Doors will open no earlier than 30 minutes prior to showtime.

A belated congratulations to the winners of the Keep Christ in Christmas Poster Contest.  The winners were Connor Sturt (1^st gr.), Cherryshe Sinfuego (7^th gr.), and Brian Guratowski, (8^th gr.).  Congratulations to all of the winners and thank you to the St. Monica Knights of Columbus for taking an interest in our students and sponsoring this contest.

In Sports, four St. Monica Academy volleyball teams have made the playoffs.  Good luck to all of them.  The 8^th grade boys team is playing in the championship match at Loyola Academy.  Baseball, softball, and track season will be starting soon.

Lastly, more than twenty band students participated in the Solo Adjudication held at St. Patrick High School in late February.  Each student performed a piece before a judge and was scored for their performance.  St. Monica Academy had four students, who earned perfect scores.  They were Nick Amati (6^th gr.), Joey Valenziano (6^th gr.), Sophia Haloulas (5^th gr.), and Bobby Stempien (5^th gr.).  Great Job!

Reminders
      Parking

• With regard to parking around the school.  Please make the extra effort to park in areas that may involve walking a few blocks.  This will make our drop-off and pick-up times safer for our children.  Avoid parking in the areas marked with cones on Carmen Street and under the canopy in front of the Church.  This area must be made accessible for emergency vehicles.

Traffic

• Remember to follow the traffic pattern outside during arrival and dismissal times.  The following is a reminder that parents are asked to follow:  South on Nottingham, West on Carmen and North on Mont Clare.  The traffic pattern is in a clockwise direction so that students can exit or enter vehicles safely on the school-side curb. 

Child Safety

• Please remind your child(ren) about keeping themselves safe and “stranger danger” precautions.  St. Monica Academy teaches the “Child Lures” program to assist children to protect themselves and inform them of various lures that are out there.  Here are a few reminders:  teach your children not to talk to strangers, tell them not to approach a motor vehicle of someone they do not know, and tell them they can say “no” to strangers and avoid them.  The safety of our children is our number one priority.

Registration

• We are in the process of making preparations for the 2012-13 school year, and it is important that we have an accurate number of student enrollment to properly plan for the new school year.  We will be sending home student registration forms and tuition agreements after Easter Break.  Please return all forms to the school office upon receipt.  If not returning to St. Monica Academy, please inform Mrs. Pellegrini in the school office.  Our planning for classrooms depends on actual numbers of registered students. 

State Required Examinations

• Every student entering Preschool, Kindergarten, and 6th grade is required to submit a complete physical exam and immunization record by the first day of school in order to begin school.  This is a requirement of Illinois State Law.  We encourage you to beat the summer rush and make your physical appointments now.  Here is a summary and additional requirements for children entering Preschool, Kindergarten, 2 grade, and 6grade.^ndth
  • Preschool – completed physical examination
  • Kindergarten – completed physical examination, vision examination, and dental examination.
  • 2^nd Grade – completed dental examination.
  • 6^th Grade – completed physical examination and dental examination.

May the season of Lent be a time of blessing upon all of you.

Sincerely,

Ray Coleman, Principal