Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Principal's Memo



Building Confident Catholic Leaders Through Faith, Community
and Education
           
Jan. 22, 2013


Filming
The church parking lot and kindergarten  play area will be rented out on Wed. Jan. 23 and Thu. Jan. 24.

Pacific 2.1 Entertainment Group Inc. will be filming “Legends.”


Book Fair
The Book Fair will be open for Open House on Sun., Jan. 27 from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.,
Mon. Jan. 28 to Thu. Jan. 31 from 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and Fri. Feb. 1 from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.  If you are interested in working at the Book Fair for service hours, please leave your name, phone number, email, and what day you will work, in our school office. Parents must be Virtus trained and have been fingerprinted.


Progress Reports
Progress reports for the second trimester went home today, Jan. 22 to all students who are earning a C or lower.  This is the time for students to re-examine their study habits; there is enough time to improve grades for the end of the second trimester which ends in March.

Transitional Kinder
We will open a transitional kindergarten class in the fall of 2013. Transitional kinder is a two year program. The students that enter TK have to be 4 years of age by Dec. 1, 2013, and 5 years of age by Dec. 1, 2014 when they enter Kindergarten.

The TK curriculum will include socio-emotional standards, English language arts standards, math standards, science standards, social studies standards, physical education standards and fine arts standards. A TK aide may be hired depending on the number of students in the classroom. We will send invitations to the
preschool parents for a Kinder and TK meeting in February.  

Daycare Aide
We need an afternoon daycare aide in the regular school daycare for the younger children (kinder to 3rd grade).  Requirements for the position are at least 6 units in child development and work experience with 5 to 8 year olds. Hours will average at least 2 hours per afternoon.  Please call the school office ASAP if you know of a qualified person who is interested in the position.  

WCEA/WASC Visitation
On Tue. Feb. 5 to Thu. Feb. 7, we will have six WASC/WCEA team members from four different Catholic elementary schools here at St. Dominic School. These 6 members are here to review evidence of our self-study. The group of educators will visit all classrooms, speak to students and review their work. They will meet with the teachers, pastor and principal. At the end of the third day of observations, review of evidence, and interviews, they will conclude with a report of their findings. The team will focus on student learning, areas of strengths and the goals, and actions plans that we the faculty and administration have planned for the next WCEA/WASC accreditation.

Catholic School Week Activities
During Catholic School Week, all students including the preschoolers, will participate in the following activities:
Monday-Friday: Book Fair in the library
Monday: DEAR (drop everything and read) the last hour of the day; wear pajamas to school!
Tuesday: Science Activity at 1:00 p.m. in the Parish Hall
Wednesday: Art Activity at 1:00 p.m. in the Parish Hall
Thursday: Field day activities in the parking lot
Friday: In & Out in the lunch area; Student Council assembly at 1:00 p.m.

IN-N-OUT
Only 38 students who have pre-ordered the In- N-Out lunch. All pre-order forms for the In-N-Out lunch are due in the school office by Mon. Jan. 28. The lunch truck comes with a pre-order count and cannot fill on the spot orders on Fri. Feb. 1.


Morning Valet
Parents, we need more help during the morning drop-off. Please refer to your school calendar, website calendar and/or school valet banner, to see which grade’s parents are assigned valet duty. This is an easy way to earn service hours for parents who are not able to assist during the school day.

PTO Mandatory Meeting
All school parents, including preschool parents, are asked to be on time for the 7:30-8:30 p.m. PTO meeting on Wed. Jan. 30.

Mike Norman, Associate Director of Religious Education for the L.A. Archdiocese, will be sharing with parents the tools of witnessing our Catholic faith to our children. This task for parents is not easy or simple, especially given all the stresses and demands of our lives. Mr. Norman will be sharing information of a nationwide program which is helping families
and children grow stronger in their Catholic faith.

Marketing Grant
Our SDS Marketing Team was busy during this winter break preparing the 2012 Grant Application – Cycle One, through the MAX LA, Dept. of Catholic Schools.  We are very happy to report that once again our hard work has paid off because St. Dominic School has been selected to receive a grant through this program! There was a total of 44 schools (14 high schools and 30 elementary schools) within the Archdiocese that submitted applications of which 22 schools were awarded grant funds. This award will continue to assist us with marketing our beloved school.
Great job T-E-A-M!


School wide Learning Expectations
These are the Schoolwide Learning Expectations students are expected to review this week.
A student of St. Dominic Parish School will be...

a committed Catholic who:
  • actively participates in the Mass, sacraments, and traditions of the Church.
  • shows respect, tells the truth, and tries to be like Jesus.
  •  willingly shares his/her gifts to serve others in the Church and global community.
a responsible and respectful person who:
  • understands his/her innate value and the value of others as beloved children of God.