Dear Parents,

As I prayed morning prayer one day last week I wondered if the psalmist who prayed “Ice and snow bless the Lord” ever experienced 40+ inches of snow in a couple of weeks.  However, with the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile we can bless the Lord for His goodness to us and pray for those who are less fortunate.  It will only be a few weeks until we hear and see the welcomed signs of spring but it will be a long time for these people to be “back to normal.”

Too, we have not been entirely “snowed in” thanks to our Student Council who conducted a Valentine Party for our primary grade children and a Talent Show that brought a smile to everyone’s face.  Congratulations to our Student Council for their leadership and for bringing joy to our younger students.  This sense of caring makes our school special!

In thinking about what makes our school special, we have much to be proud of as our newly formed Chess Club will go on to play for the championship after beating Manheim Township last week.  Congratulations to our students: Alex Ringlein, William Schlageter, Grace Ringlein, Chris Beaudoin, Noah Costello, Grant Houston, Tommy Toczek, and Tess Toczek; our interested parents and to Miss Giordano, our moderator.  Also, besides being invited to have an Art display in the Library of Lancaster beginning this Friday, Alex Ringlein has been chosen to display one of his works in the Lancaster County Young Artists Exhibition. Don’t miss these two events in Downtown Lancaster. The Art display will continue during the months of March and April. We certainly appreciate all the time, effort, and talent that Mrs. Hemlick, our art teacher, gives to our school. It truly is our dedicated faculty, supportive parents, and enthusiastic students that help to make our school special.

As we continue our Lenten journey, you are invited to join us in praying the Stations of the Cross every Wednesday at 9:15 a.m. in Church and we pray that we will be able to share God’s love with all those we meet.

Sincerely,

Sister Mary Carmel

School Board Survey

In an effort to improve our school, surveys were sent to all of our families. From 105 families, 23 surveys were returned.  A 20% return is considered to be very good.  Of course, I was looking for more.  However, the answers to the surveys were very encouraging both to what is going on now in our school and to what may be our future plans.  The strengths and weaknesses identified were all in line with what we discovered in our Middle States study and some of the recommendations are all a part of our Middle States Goals.

Technology

First:

One of our goals was to integrate technology into our curriculum.  We  are now in the process of auditing and upgrading all of our equipment and installing the necessary infrastructure. One 2 One Computer is guiding us through the process so that we will be able to participate in the Diocesan WAN project which is a $1.72 million grant that was awarded to the Lancaster-Lebanon IU and the Diocese of Harrisburg this year.  Please see separate flyer concerning this project.

Second:

This part of the goal deals with the funding necessary for this technology to become a reality in our school.  So far, we have received a $5,000 grant which we have designated for four laptops and two projectors.  We are also looking forward to receiving some of the stimulus money which will aid our Title I students.  However, for the remainder of this funding, we are depending on you  and we hope that your Challenge 10 money, Dividends for Technology, is multiplying so that in August when school resumes we will discover a “gold mine” as we celebrate this venture!

Maintain/Increase Enrollment

Expand Development Committee to include:

Publicity-  With the aid of our parents and teachers, we hope to have more pictures and news articles in the local paper, and in the Catholic Witness.  We hope to have a liaison person to St. Philip Parish, St. Catherine’s, Mary, Mother of the Church and St. Richard’s. 

If anyone would like to help with publicity, please call the office.

As an aside, our second grade students will be taking “Stone Soup- A Rock Opera" to St. Philip’s pre-K program next week.

Grant Writing

So far, our grants have come from the city, state, and diocese.  We are still in need of someone who would do research into grants that are available for elementary schools – especially in Science and in Technology.

Recruitment

Our own families seem to be our best recruiters in spreading the “good news” about Sacred Heart School.  However, if you have any other ideas, please let us know. We will be having a meeting to discuss further plans.  Please be on the lookout for this notice.

Tuition Meeting for all Parents

It is important that one parent from each family be present at the tuition meeting on Thursday, March 11, at 7:00 p.m.  At this time, tuition plans will be explained and PSAS forms for financial aid will be distributed.

Adjustments In Our School Calendar

March 1

Updated: 03/07/2010