Principal's Letter - November 28, 2012

Dear St. Monica Academy Families,

Advent is beginning, and our students are preparing for Jesus in many ways.  All will participate in school-wide Masses, prayer services, special activities, and service projects in the weeks ahead. 

One such service project, called Joseph’s Workshop will allow our students to help families in crisis.  Collection banks will go home this week with the weekly folders.  We will also create a Jesse Tree that will be displayed in the main entrance of the school, and classroom doors will be decorated with Advent themes as part of a contest sponsored by the school newspaper.  In addition, everyone will participate on December 17^th in Las Posadas, which models the pilgrimage of Mary and Joseph looking for a place to stay.  They will travel around the school picking up each classroom.   

We are looking forward to our all-school Christmas Program led by our 1^st grade class, who will be performing as actors with other classrooms singing Christmas songs.  There are two performances held in the Church on Thursday, December 20^th at 1:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.  This is a special time to share the spirit of the season with the whole school community.  Each grade level will be involved in retelling the “Story of Jesus”.  We hope you can share in this wonderful program presented to you by our school children.  December 20^th is also “Dress Up Day”, an opportunity for our school children to dress up in their best Sunday clothes.

An important academic event will be held Tuesday, December 6th.  The St. Monica Academy Science Fair is in its 12^th year and is an opportunity for our 7^th and 8^th grade students to share and present their science fair projects.  Our students have been working hard for months preparing their projects.  Top finishers will have a chance to advance to the regional and state competitions.

The Science Fair challenges our students to pursue a topic that is all their own under the guidance of Mrs. Kiszynski, our junior high science instructor.  The projects challenge our students to design an experiment, do research on a topic of their choice, create a display board, and then present their work orally to visiting judges.  Judges are represented by local grammar schools, high schools, area universities, local military personnel, and various industries and organizations.  We are looking forward to this educational event.

Congratulations to 7^th grader, Marty Dawson, who finished 11^th out of 340 students participating from 29 different schools in the Fenwick Junior High Science Contest held two weeks ago.  This is a tremendous accomplishment for one of our very own!

In sports, basketball season is coming to a close for all of our teams, and we are proud of all of them.  Our 8^th grade boy’s team won the Knights of Columbus Tournament and the Thanksgiving Shootout at Guerin Prep last week.  Currently, they have 13 – 1 record and are looking forward to their Conference Tournament as well as the 8^th grade Rose Game scheduled for Friday, December 14^th in the St. Monica gym.  Volleyball sign up went home last week.  Please return forms before the December 3^rd due date.  Lastly, check out all of our new team banners in the gym celebrating championships and winning seasons over the past two years! 

Reminders: 

• If you are interested in speaking to a teacher, please call in advance or email the teacher.  Teachers cannot meet during their teaching periods or during arrival time.  All visitors to the school need to check in with the office and sign in with a destination.

• If your child is absent, please call the office by 9:00 a.m. on the day of the absence.  It is important that the office is informed of absences even if you have contacted your child’s teacher. 

• With regard to parking around the school during arrival and dismissal, please make an effort to use parking zones.  Please do not leave your car unattended in the drop off zone on Carmen Ave.  We realize that it is sometimes difficult to park at busy times, so please try to park in areas that may involve a short walk.  This will only make our drop-off and pick-up times safer for our children. 

• In the Church parking lot, please attempt to park only in designated areas and avoid parking lot entrances and the canopy area by the church.  This area is congested at times, and I appreciate your patience during drop off and pick up times.  Again, our first priority is to keep our students as safe as possible.

Lastly, remember to follow the traffic pattern outside during arrival and dismissal time.  The following is a reminder of the traffic pattern 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.

Important Upcoming Dates

Nov. 30^th to Dec. 2^nd (3 Days) Holiday Gift Shop Open - Rzany Hall

Dec. 1^st      Late Night Catechism – ‘Til Death Do Us Part in Beyenka Hall 7:00 p.m.

Dec. 3^rd     Advent Prayer Assembly 8:30 a.m. - Gym

Dec. 6^th     St. Monica Academy Science Fair – Beyenka Hall

Dec. 7^th     School Mass 9:15 a.m. - Church

Dec. 7^th     Sock Hop – Gym

Dec. 8^th     Lunch with Santa – Beyenka Hall

Dec. 9^th     Classroom Family Mass 10:30 a.m. 8^th Grade - Church

Dec. 11^th   Christmas Band Concert 7:00 p.m. - Beyenka Hall

Dec. 17^th   Advent Prayer Service 9:15 a.m. - Church

Dec. 20^th   Christmas Program 1:00 p.m. & 7:00 p.m. - Church (Dress Up Day)

Dec. 21^st   Confessions Grades 3-8  Church

Jan. 7^th      Classes Resume

Thank you for your continued support!

Blessings to All,

Ray Coleman, Principal