Newsletter

ST. MARY’S NEWSLETTER FOR SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

NEW NEWS THIS WEEK:

PLEASE NOTE DATE CHANGE!!!
HOME & SCHOOL - The Home & School Association would like to invite all parents/guardians to join us in welcoming our new principal, Mrs. Melanie Selmi.  Please join us Friday, September 4th from 2:15-2:45 to meet Mrs. Selmi and chat with her. We will meet in the parking lot on the west side of the school. Please wear a mask. If we have a group larger than 50 people, we will separate into smaller groups.  At 2:45, the students will be joining us in welcoming Mrs. Selmi by walking by and waving with their class. The classes will be spaced out and the children will stay with their class the entire time. They will exit the building using the south staircase on 6th street, head west, turn right on Avenue B, enter the parking lot and go back in the building using the preschool doors and north staircase. Hope you can join us!!
    Julie Penne and the St. Mary’s Home and School Association

SCHOOL PICTURES - will be taken Tuesday, September 8th.  Envelopes will be sent home today.   Students need to be in uniform on picture day. This would be a polo shirt with a collar. NO spirit wear t-shirts on this day.  Students will be able to dress down when spring pictures are taken. Please send your order envelope to school on picture day. Thanks! And smile pretty!

COVID SYMPTOMS- St. Mary's School is following guidance from WCHD and IDPH by using the decision tree that was linked in the Selmi Spotlight newsletter last week.  For your convenience, we will be printing and sending home a packet with the IDPH decision tree as well as some helpful flowcharts recommended to us by the Diocese of Rockford.  We hope this will give you all the information you need when making decisions about your child's health and wellness this year.  We will continue to follow the decision tree from IDPH and will update you as new information comes available.  Thank you for continuing to keep our school safe and well by following guidance for healthy habits during the coronavirus pandemic.

FIRST COMMUNION - Parents - Please watch for an additional email with more details by the end of this week.   Please keep our 3rd graders and their families in your prayers as they prepare to receive the Sacrament of First Holy Communion on Saturday, September 26th. These students are last year’s 2nd graders who were not able to celebrate this sacrament last year due to the school being closed for COVID.



OLD NEWS:
HOME & SCHOOL - Due to popular demand, the St. Mary’s Home & School Association will be offering families the option to order “Faith Over Fear” t-shirts. These are the same t-shirts we purchased for the staff for Teacher Appreciation week last year. What a great message to unite us during this unique time! The students will be able to wear the shirts on Spirit Wear Days and us a uniform shirt during warm months (i.e. August, September, October, April, May and June) per the parent/student handbook. The shirts are available in adult sizes for $12 and youth sizes for $10. Please look for the order form to come home tomorrow. Orders forms and money are due back by Thursday, September 3rd.

NO SCHOOL - Monday, September 7th in honor of Labor Day.

EARLY DISMISSAL - 11:15AM on Wednesday, September 16th for Professional Development.

EDUCATION COMMISSION - The Education Commission is an advisory board for St. Mary’s School. Meetings are held every other month, on a Wednesday night. The first meeting of the Education Commission will be held September 23rd at 6:00PM in the staff lounge. Future meeting dates will be published in the newsletter. All are welcome to attend.

EARLY DISMISSALS FOR HEAT - Hopefully, the weather will cooperate ~ nice and cool. However, in the past we have occasionally dismissed early because of the heat. We will send notification out by text and email if this is necessary. Please make sure you are signed up for our TEXT ALERTS. The directions are on the website.

FUNDRAISING - We would like to thank everyone for signing up for their fundraising shifts. Those that missed our table, please contact Michelle (815-441-8655) or Erica (312-339-5436) to get signed up for your Fruit Sale shifts.  We will send out information about the remaining two fundraisers as soon as we have more details to share. Remember to save those dates: 5K - May 7, 2021 and Auction - May 8, 2021. Please be patient with our committee chairs as they are doing an amazing job navigating and organizing during this time. We couldn’t reach our fundraising goals without all of our dedicated chairs!!

TUITION - Statements were mailed for Annual, Semi-Annual and Quarterly tuition payments. They are due now. Monthly payments began this month.

SAFE ENVIRONMENT - Anyone who plans on being in contact with students at St. Mary’s School must sign safe environment papers, have an FBI background check and view the video Protecting God’s Children. Anyone who is a room parent, helper, coach or plans on attending field trips is required by the Diocese of Rockford to complete the Safe Environment guidelines. The verification packet is available in the office.

PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS - Please notify the school/teacher at the beginning of the school year if your child has a pre-existing condition such as allergies, migraines, seizures, etc. Because COVID19 symptoms are so broad and other diseases can also mimic these symptoms, it will be helpful to know the context of your child’s symptoms.

YARD SIGNS - Official St. Mary’s Yard Signs are available for purchase for $10. They are double sided and come complete with a sturdy steel holder to keep the sign in place in the ground! Great way to market our school!

UNIFORM EXCHANGE - At this time, we are not taking donations, however, you may shop from the selection of donations we currently have.