The School Committee’s service project held on February 27th was a great success. Thank you to all of the students, parents, and grandparents who made gift bags to welcome our guests to St. Paul parish for Homeless Week. Tricia Kesteloot also joined us to explain the Homeless Week events and the needs of our guests.
Mark your calendars: The next service project will be held on Friday, April 24, from 3:15 – 4:15 p.m. in the Cafeteria. Students are asked to bring a gently used book to donate to The Children’s Center, which provides therapy for children from infants to age 18 in foster care programs. Students will write a note to go with their book and make bookmarks to accompany any others that are donated by school families. This project is good for students of all ages. Families are always welcome to join in the fun, too. Students are asked to bring markers or crayons with their book; all other supplies will be provided.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Johnathan Rand is coming to St. Paul Catholic School!
Author Johnathan Rand is coming to St. Paul School, Monday April 6th! His presentation will be for grades 1-6 at 10:00 am.
Johnathan Rand is the author of over 50 books with over 3 million copies in print, including the wildly popular American Chillers and Michigan Chillers!
You should have received your order form by now, please fill out the form and return with payment to the office ASAP so that you will not miss the opportunity to have a signed book by this very popular author. Any questions, please call Patty McKee 884-4191. (The books would make wonderful gifts for children as well as for your child's classroom.)
Johnathan Rand is the author of over 50 books with over 3 million copies in print, including the wildly popular American Chillers and Michigan Chillers!
You should have received your order form by now, please fill out the form and return with payment to the office ASAP so that you will not miss the opportunity to have a signed book by this very popular author. Any questions, please call Patty McKee 884-4191. (The books would make wonderful gifts for children as well as for your child's classroom.)
2009-2010 School Calendar
We are still finalizing the school calendar for next year, but the major dates are ready for publication. Those dates are as follows:
Tuesday, September 8—First Day of School
Professional Development Days—October 29-30 (no school for students)
Christmas Break—Two full weeks (December 19—January 3)
Monday, January 18—Martin Luther King Day, no school
Winter Break—One full week (February 13-February 21)
Easter Break—April 2—11
Last day of School—June 11
Tuesday, September 8—First Day of School
Professional Development Days—October 29-30 (no school for students)
Christmas Break—Two full weeks (December 19—January 3)
Monday, January 18—Martin Luther King Day, no school
Winter Break—One full week (February 13-February 21)
Easter Break—April 2—11
Last day of School—June 11
St. Paul School Finances—Update
As you might expect, my last post about this topic generated quite a bit of discussion. Thank you to everyone who contributed to the conversation. I appreciated your honesty and insight. I’d like to follow up and clarify some of the questions that you raised.
The most common concern was that next year’s second grade classes would be too large if we move back to two sections (rather than the three first grades we have this year). Right now we have 56 first graders, and we expect to have 54 move to second grade next year. We have not had any new enrollment in next year’s second grade. This would be 27 students per class. (One more than the current maximum of 26 per class). We can hold to the limit of 26, but I would hate to lose two students because of that cap.
Here are some questions raised by parents:
Does this mean you’re planning to allow 30 students in a class?
We are NOT planning to increase the maximum of 26 in a class—we’re talking about an exception for one grade. It’s important to note that it is not our goal to have all classes be 20 or less in size. As a Catholic school attempting to keep tuition at a reasonable level, we simply cannot offer the very small classes that might be found at private schools charging perhaps three or four times what we charge in tuition.
How will this affect our current third grade? Fifth grade?
If the third grade enrollment holds at 60, I expect that we'll continue to have three sections as they move into fourth grade. However, if it drops by 4 or 5 students, we'll have the same situation as with first grade. We'll need to make this decision before the end of the school year (and typically not everyone has enrolled by then). I just want to make sure that families are not surprised if we cannot accept every student back (If people wait until the summer to register, we may have to make the decision to cap enrollment at 52 per grade). Fifth grade will not be affected. Our policy is 26 students per grade, and I do not expect that to change.
I can appreciate that everyone (parents, teachers, and students) prefers the smaller class sizes. I firmly believe that all of our classes provide a high quality education, and most of them are between 22 and 25 students in size. It's always a balancing act, and Msgr. Halfpenny and I are committed to looking at all alternatives with our primary goal of continuing to provide a high quality Catholic education. My purpose in writing the article was to ensure that the process of decision-making is as transparent as possible, and to invite parent comment.
The most common concern was that next year’s second grade classes would be too large if we move back to two sections (rather than the three first grades we have this year). Right now we have 56 first graders, and we expect to have 54 move to second grade next year. We have not had any new enrollment in next year’s second grade. This would be 27 students per class. (One more than the current maximum of 26 per class). We can hold to the limit of 26, but I would hate to lose two students because of that cap.
Here are some questions raised by parents:
Does this mean you’re planning to allow 30 students in a class?
We are NOT planning to increase the maximum of 26 in a class—we’re talking about an exception for one grade. It’s important to note that it is not our goal to have all classes be 20 or less in size. As a Catholic school attempting to keep tuition at a reasonable level, we simply cannot offer the very small classes that might be found at private schools charging perhaps three or four times what we charge in tuition.
How will this affect our current third grade? Fifth grade?
If the third grade enrollment holds at 60, I expect that we'll continue to have three sections as they move into fourth grade. However, if it drops by 4 or 5 students, we'll have the same situation as with first grade. We'll need to make this decision before the end of the school year (and typically not everyone has enrolled by then). I just want to make sure that families are not surprised if we cannot accept every student back (If people wait until the summer to register, we may have to make the decision to cap enrollment at 52 per grade). Fifth grade will not be affected. Our policy is 26 students per grade, and I do not expect that to change.
I can appreciate that everyone (parents, teachers, and students) prefers the smaller class sizes. I firmly believe that all of our classes provide a high quality education, and most of them are between 22 and 25 students in size. It's always a balancing act, and Msgr. Halfpenny and I are committed to looking at all alternatives with our primary goal of continuing to provide a high quality Catholic education. My purpose in writing the article was to ensure that the process of decision-making is as transparent as possible, and to invite parent comment.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Runners-Up in City Championship
Congratulations to our St. Paul Varsity Girls' Lakers. In spite of a 40-19 loss to St. Michael's of Livonia in yesterday's final game, we are all proud of your accomplishments. Earning the runner-up spot in the City Championship took amazing talent and effort, and we have much to celebrate. The 50 students who rode the bus to Marian High School with me will agree that it was a great day, and a fantastic season.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Pictures from East Side Championship
Here are some pictures from last night's fantastic game. For the full gallery of photos, go to:
Sports Gallery/St. Paul Basketball
http://www.pointepics.smugmug.com
Congratulations Varsity Girls!
Congratulations to our Varsity Girls' Basketball team, who last night defeated St. Isaac Jogues, 29-25, in overtime play, to win the East Side CYO Championship! The girls played an amazing game in front of a packed house (I can't even guess how many people were in attendance - but you couldn't move in the gym, with both sets of bleachers pulled out).
The girls will play St.Michael's of Livonia tomorrow, Saturday, March 14, at 2 pm at Marian High School (Lahser at 14 1/2 Mile Road). If you're planning to attend the game, remember that I-696 will be closed this weekend.
The girls will play St.Michael's of Livonia tomorrow, Saturday, March 14, at 2 pm at Marian High School (Lahser at 14 1/2 Mile Road). If you're planning to attend the game, remember that I-696 will be closed this weekend.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
