WEEKLY BROADCAST FEATURED NEWS Dear Saint Francis of Assisi School Families,
We recognize that there are no risk free options for bringing students back to the building. We also believe that at the heart of Catholic Schools is relationships and community - with Jesus Christ , peers, teachers and staff. These relationships flourish when we are together. That is our deepest desire. The pandemic has shown us we have to be flexible and adapt quickly to ever-changing dynamics. So, we continue to plan! All of the information you need to start the school year can be found by accessing the links in the following Broadcast. It is helpful for you to keep this email for reference and use it throughout the school year. We have planned the dates and events of the school year similar to how we have laid them out in the past. They are all subject to change, cancellation and may be formatted differently than in the past. We will do our best to inform you as the landscape continues to change. I hope you are enjoying the many blessings of summer and look forward to seeing you during Welcome Days. We have so much information to share that it will not fit on one Summer Broadcast. You will be receiving two Summer Broadcast emails. Please be sure and read both Summer Broadcasts. I want to offer my thanks to Mrs. Deb Hatzenbihler for assisting us with this Broadcast, and welcome Mrs. Jessica Falk to the Office Staff. I know you will make her feel welcomed! Respectfully,
SCHOOL NEWS Families should plan to stop by the school lobby and pick up your family packet during Welcome Days (August 10th - 13th, 7:00 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.). (One member per family, please. Plan to wear a mask and observe social distancing) These packets contain many important forms that must be returned prior to the start of the school year. Please plan to return them via a drive through drop off on Wednesday, August 26th. Details will be shared prior to the date! Your cooperation in this helps begin the school year in a positive way. Please click here to view the RCS Dress Code. Please click here for the Donalds Uniform Website. We will resume regular office hours (8:00 a.m.- 4:00 p.m.) beginning August 3rd, but may be in different parts of the building. We will leave a sign on the door if we are not in the office to assist you. If you have questions, please do not hesitate to call (288-4816). If you are unable to reach us by phone, please leave a message. Enjoy the rest of your summer! Classes for grades 1-8 begin on Monday, August 31st. The format is yet to be determined! If in person, the school day begins promptly at 8:50 a.m. Students must be in their classrooms for announcements and prayer by 8:50 a.m. or they are considered tardy. Dismissal is at 3:35 p.m. We ask that students be picked up promptly by 3:35 p.m. Busing information will be forthcoming. The preschool students will attend a small group session on August 31st or September 1st. Information has been sent through the mail regarding this. Monday through Friday afternoon preschool will begin on Tuesday, September 1st, 12:45 pm - 3:30 pm The kindergarten students will attend a small group orientation on August 31st or September 1st from 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. Kindergarten students will begin their full day schedule on Wednesday, September 2nd. A letter with more information was mailed to families this week. Bussing information will be forthcoming. The Kindergarten Family Picnic has been canceled for this fall. There is no good way to socially distance at this event! Please click here for the 2020-2021 St. Francis of Assisi School Calendar of Events. Please save this calendar on your computer for quick reference. Please note: we scheduled dates for events as we typically would during a school year. Events may need to be canceled or formatted differently than they have been in the past. Please use the dates as ‘place holders’ until more specific information is available. Our arrival and dismissal plans will be modified in order to allow for social distancing and possible health screenings. We will communicate them prior to the start of school. Please click here to visit the RCS website for St. Francis of Assisi School K - 8 School Supply Lists for the 2020-21 school year. The cost of lunch for the 2020-2021 school year is $3.05 per meal (adults $4.05). Milk cost is $.50 per carton. A carton of milk is included with the full meal price. We are working on a plan to allow for hot lunch in the cafeteria. At this time plans and menus may need to be modified. Please click here for information on the St. Francis of Assisi School Lunch Program. Please mark your calendars for Parent Information Nights. While we likely will not be ‘in person’, teachers will be planning ways to share this important evening once they return to school. They may involve live Zoom Sessions or taped presentations. Setting time aside now, will ensure your availability. Grades 7-8 will be held on September 8th, Grades K-5 on September10th and Grade 6 will have a Parent/Student Chromebook Night on September 21st. These programs will begin at 6:30 p.m. Watch for more information to come as plans are made. Student Council information for students in grades 5 - 8 will be available for students on September 3rd. Forms will be due back no later than September 15th. Although we may be limited in our activities and ability to have volunteers in the school, we want to make sure everyone is current and we have lists of potential volunteers in the event we can resume activities and restrictions ease during the school year. Our Home and School Association (HSA) is always looking for ways to involve parents in activities. Please click here for a letter from our HSA Co-Presidents.
Picture Day is scheduled for Wednesday, September 9th. This is a non-uniform day for students. Picture retake day is Thursday, October 22nd. The Diocese of Winona requires volunteers to take the Virtus training prior to volunteering. Due to the pandemic, you may now register for an in person or virtual training option. Please visit www.virtusonline.org to enroll for a training of your choice. After you have completed the Virtus training please bring your Virtus Certificate, Criminal Background Check and Volunteer Code of Conduct sheets to the school office. Previously trained volunteers are required to update their training and Criminal Background check every 5 years. If you needed this update, you were previously notified last spring. If you did not complete the updates, you have been removed from our volunteer list and will need to contact the school office to be reinstated. A Family Activity Fee Statement will be included in your Welcome Day packet. This statement reflects an activity fee for each child in your family. The goal is to collect the fees up front for field trips, parties, art projects and other special materials. This should eliminate the need for other classroom fee collections throughout the year. While we try to budget accurately, sometimes costs for activities are less than what we budgeted, and there is a surplus in these accounts. That surplus assists families who are unable to pay or goes towards the current school project (classroom closet remodel). Each teacher will send a letter outlining what their classroom fees will be used for at the beginning of the school year. Some grades take out of town field trips, which add significantly to the fee. Please Note: Due to Distance Learning last year, we moved remaining balances forward to the next grade and were able to significantly decrease the amount asked for in some grades. Students in grades 7-8 will be going to Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center September 23rd - 25th. (We hope!) Medication permission forms and medications are due to the office no later than September 6th. Medication permission forms are available in the school office or by clicking here. Please do not use the medication forms found on the Eagle Bluff website. Additional Eagle Bluff information will be in your Welcome Day folder. The last Tuesday of each month, we come together as a school community for a school-wide “class meeting”. We get a preview of our upcoming virtue of the month, hear a bit about the saints we will be learning about, and discover how growing in virtue helps us eliminate bullying language and behavior. We wear our HERO tshirts that day with uniform pants, shorts, skirts or skorts. Tshirts are purchased annually for all the new staff, new students and kindergarteners. If your child has outgrown their shirt and you need to purchase a replacement, please access the order form by clicking here. Shirts will be ordered the first week of school, and again in January. Students who need updated immunizations were sent communications last spring. You must have completed those requirements or have a notarized Conscientious Objector form on file or there will be no admittance to school until the requirements are met. Summer Reading requirement information came home in June with students in grades 6-8. Please click here to go to the RCS website for information on the Summer Reading requirement. Please take some time to review the Medication Notes and When Your Student is Ill information. Returning students and families: New students in grades 4-8 and families: Please read the Technology Use Policy and Agreement by clicking link below, and the Chromebook Loan/Use Agreement by clicking link below. Copies of the forms will be in your Welcome Days packet for you to fill out and return. RCS Technology Use Policy Link - RCS TECHNOLOGY USE POLICY - Policy 4055 RCS Chromebook Loan Agreement Link -RCS Chromebook Loan Agreement The forms you sign this year will be applicable to your student for their entire time with RCS. However, you will be asked to review the updated RCS Technology Policies annually. Our 8th grade students have several opportunities to dress up during the school year, Please click here and take a moment to review this letter from Mrs. Plenge, outlining the expectations regarding modest dress. Every classroom in the Diocese of Winona is required to participate in a Safe Environment curriculum called “Circle of Grace”. Most classrooms cover this curriculum at the beginning of the year. Homeroom teachers will send home information prior to teaching these lessons. More information is available by clicking here. Students in grades 7 - 10 are required to change for Physical Education (PE) classes. RCS has a standard PE uniform available through the Spirit Shop at Lourdes. Sixth graders may change for PE as well. They are also expected to use the RCS PE Uniform if they change for PE.
SYSTEM NEWS As we are quickly approaching the 2020-2021 school year, Rochester Catholic Schools (RCS) is reminding families to get your children up-to-date on required shots before the school year begins. Pursuant to Minnesota law, RCS requires written proof of scheduled shots for all students in preschool-12 before the first day of school. This policy is also known as “No Shots, No School.” This means that if your child will not be allowed to begin school until this information is verified. If your child has a medical reason, or if his or her parents are conscientiously opposed to any of the scheduled shots, a legal exemption is available. This legal exemption would also need to be received prior to the the first day of school. Additional information can be found on the Minnesota Department of Health’s website. The Minnesota Required Childhood Immunization Schedule can also be found on MDH’s website. If you are not sure if your child is up-to-date on his or her immunizations, please check with your health care provider. If your student requires medication at school, please work with your child’s provider to get up to date Action Plans and Medication Authorizations if needed for the upcoming school year. Many providers will generate Action Plans in the office, but if needed Action Plan forms, along with Medication Authorization forms, can be found on the RCS website. Prior to the beginning of the school year, you can bring your child’s current plan and medication to the school’s health office. The medication must be brought into the health office by the parent/guardian in the original packaging. Prescription medications must be labeled for the student by a pharmacist in accordance with the law. Please contact your child’s Licensed School Nurse with any questions or concerns you have regarding your child’s health condition or medications needed at school. Licensed School Nurses are available beginning in mid-August. In light of the current health concerns, the VIRTUS® Protecting God's Children training has been made available online. Click here for information on how to register for the online training. It is the same process as signing up for a live training. The difference is once all the personal information is entered and the background check is completed (volunteers ONLY) the online training is available to launch. The training takes 60 to 75 minutes to complete. Please note that this is NOT the recertification training. ACTIVITIES NEWS Our hope is to have sports registration open the week of August 3. The Governor will release education plans on July 27 and the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) is scheduled to meet on August 4. We will know more about fall activities at that time. As of now, plan for Fall Activities to start on August 17. Captains Cheer Practice for Grades 9-12 will be held from 8:00-9:00 a.m. on the following days: Monday, July 27 These practices are mostly for stretching and conditioning and answering questions about the upcoming season. Please meet by door 10. Watch the Lourdes Eagles Facebook and Twitter pages for cancellations due to weather. We are looking for JV and C Boys Basketball and JV Boys Hockey Coaches. To apply, click here. Per MSHSL Physical Requirements: * All incoming seventh grade students and most athletes entering their sophomore year will need a physical. PLEASE NOTE: UPCOMING EVENTS
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