From The Principal’s Desk 8/14/2023

Dear Parents and Families,

Welcome back! I hope that all our students had a great first week of school and that we are all successfully getting back into our school routines. We are so thrilled to have the children back in the building again. They make a joyful noise!

Parent Orientation Nights are coming up fast. Our format will be slightly different this year, so I thought I would give you all a quick update.

Thursday, August 17th Parent Orientation
5:30 pm-6:20 pm: Parents of Little Eagles & Kindergarten students meet their teachers in the classrooms.

6:20 pm: Everyone walks to the Cathedral to gather for prayer and a blessing to begin the new school year.

6:30 pm-6:50 pm: Welcome, Prayer, and a Blessing for Parents of Little Eagles, Kindergarten, and Grades 1-4 students.

7:00 pm-8:00 pm: Parents of Grades 1-4 students meet their teachers in the classrooms.

Tuesday, August 22nd Parent Orientation
5:30 pm-6:20 pm: Parents of Grade 5 students meet their teachers in room 309.

6:20 pm: Everyone walks to the Cathedral to gather for prayer and a blessing to begin the new school year.

6:30 pm-6:50 pm: Welcome, Prayer, and a Blessing for Parents of Grades 5-8 students.

7:00 pm-8:00 pm: Parents of Grades 6-8 students meet their teachers in the classrooms.

We hope that this new format will allow parents who have students in several different grades a greater opportunity to learn more about each of their children’s teachers /classrooms and for all of us to begin our school year united in prayer and community. My comments will be limited on Parent Orientation Night, so I wanted to share some exciting news with you about the state of the school.

The playfield is complete, and the students are loving it! It has provided us with an expanded play area that drains efficiently, allowing us more days to play outside and fewer days with inside PE and recess. We are organizing a ribbon-cutting ceremony with the Coulter family, where we will take the opportunity to dedicate the field and thank them again for this incredible gift.

The Government Emergency Education Relief (GEER) Grant has begun releasing the allocated funds to the vendors we have contracted with for school improvement initiatives. Some of the projects that have taken place so far include the delivery of  200 Chromebooks and 51 laptops to replace outdated technology. We have also received 35 document cameras that will project images of hard copy and 3-dimensional materials on the Clevertouch screen during instruction. We have received access to our new online science curriculum, AMPLIFY, and have begun receiving the science kits and manipulatives that will allow our K-8 students greater opportunities for labs and hands-on science. We have renewed our annual subscriptions for GoGuardian (a software filter and alert program) and IXL (our reading and math support, practice, and assessment software). A new sink has been installed in our preschool building, and some new furniture is on its way there as well. The GEER grant will also cover the cost of the new sound, lighting, and video equipment in the gym, providing us with a state-of-the-art performing space.

The majority of the grant money is allocated for safety and security initiatives. We are in the process of installing the remaining shades on all ground-floor windows. This allows light into the classrooms, but when pulled, will not permit anyone to see into the room from outside. The next project involves window glazing and replacing some old windows prior to treating every ground-floor window and door with shatterproof/mirrored film. This will protect students, teachers, and staff from view even when the shades are up and has the added benefit of helping us efficiently maintain the desired temperatures in the classrooms. We are still waiting for completed contracts between our vendors and the State of TN for several other safety and security initiatives, so there is more good news to share about security measures at SHCS in the near future!

QAR

This spring, SHCS will complete a Quality Assurance Review (QAR). Within five years of our diocesan accreditation, each DoK school will complete a QAR to ensure that continuous school improvement is assessed and monitored for adherence to a set of standards in support of teaching and learning, along with organizational effectiveness. This serves two main purposes: quality assurance (a status) and quality improvement (a process). While assurance means that schools meet the standards, accreditation status and self-review tools are leveraged to ensure that schools are improving outcomes.

Our school community will be an integral part of this process. We will gather your feedback throughout the year through surveys, interviews, and other means of communication. Thank you in advance for helping our amazing school continue to grow to its fullest potential!

Gym and Performing Arts Project

We are underway! Work is happening every day in the gym. We are still in the demolition and removal phase, but steady progress is being made. We will continue to update you and share additional photos of our progress.

We are so excited about this new school year! There are great adventures ahead! We are looking forward to working with you and supporting one another as our students grow in body, mind, and spirit. Thank you for all that you do to make this an incredible school community! GO EAGLES!

In Christ,

Mary Sue Kosky
SHCS Principal