Grace Families,
One of my favorite spots on our campus is the courtyard in the administration building, with our statue of Mary and benches on which to meditate. I use this space at least weekly, sharing it with students, a place to calm down and re-center, a place to pray and help truly root our education in faith. This fall, our Preschool Students planted bulbs in the hope of the unseen spring. This month, they bloomed beautifully, honoring the Holy Mother, and providing a beautiful reminder of the faithfulness of the Lord.
Today, we crown Mary at Mass, as another offering of love and devotion to the mother who, chosen and given by her son, acts as our champion and our protector. Someone to remind us to slow down, even in this busy, frenetic season that May can be.
Please take the time this week to talk to your students about Mary, and how we offer devotion to her, the same as we do to our ancestors, and those who love us, but different from how we pray to Jesus. Talk about how she always said yes to that which God asked of her, even when it was difficult or made those around her uncomfortable. And ask for her help in seeking the goodness that God has planned for each of us.
Illness
There has been a surge of STREP and FLU that is presenting a lot like a stomach bug, without a sore throat and oftentimes without a fever.
Please remember that a student needs to be 24 hours symptom free without the use of medicines (other than antibiotics) before they can return to school. This will help slow the spread of the germs, and keep our students and staff healthy and in school for the remainder of the year.
Tuition/Registration
A friendly reminder that our registration fee goes up again a final time on June 1st, 2023.
Financial Aid/Scholarships
We are hoping to have round one of financial aid done well in advance of June 1st, so families can accurately know that for which they are applying. We are currently waiting for scholarships to arrive from the diocese, and once Kremer and Lancaster Scholarships are distributed, we will do round 2 of financial aid.
ONLY families who have applied for ALL external scholarships for which they are eligible (including Empower, Kremer and Spalding as applicable) by April 28th will be considered for “in house” financial assistance. You will also need to be current on your tuition for this year no later than June 1st, 2023 to keep financial aid that you are awarded.
Play Space update:
Now that we know how much money we have raised at the Gala, we have begun the process of connecting with playground companies to see what costs are likely to be for a new play-space. We’ve asked the kids what they would like, and we can see that we would like to offer some updated options to our program for everyone! It is my hope that we are close to being able to install some new equipment, and add opportunities for the older students as well. More updates to come as they become available.
Important Dates Coming Up:
Teacher Appreciation Week May 8-12. Please join me in celebrating our teachers and staff. Please don’t forget our non-homeroom teachers and paraprofessionals who work with all of our students as well! Students are certainly the heart of a school, but the staff is the skeleton- without their tireless dedication, we would be a big, unproductive blob.
Tuesdays at 2:15pm in May- Rosary in the church led by our amazing students.
5/23 8th grade Graduation Mass- St. Anne’s Church, 5pm. Please join us in celebration of our students moving on to high school.
5/24 Field Day - Here at school.
5/26- Last day of school, 9:15am School Mass with Awards to follow, Dismissal at 11:30am.
May the Fourth be with you, today and always. 🙂