August 31, 2009

Dear Parents,

It’s hard to believe the summer is over, and we are again welcoming everyone back, after the longest summer vacation we could possibly have had!   I enjoyed every minute of it!

Pope Benedict has declared this to be the Year of the Priest, during which we offer special prayers and support for all of our priests.  At St. Joan of Arc, we are also focusing on the Eucharist as we prepare for liturgical changes coming up in the next year.  And so, our theme for the year will be “Many Parts….One Body.”  This enables us to focus on the Eucharist which comes to us through our priests.  At. SJA we will be more conscious of the many parts of the school and parish and community working together in a united way to better share the Gospel message.  Our logo depicts our many personalities, activities, professions, and perspectives coming together to make SJA shine!

Thanks to Dr. Hasson and our Maintenance Staff, our school looks beautiful.  The floors shine like glass!  Our middle school has new carpet, a new paint job, new tile in the science lab, and a new big screen TV.  The staff really worked hard throughout the summer.

We welcome Father Walter Guzman, our new Associate Pastor, a native of Columbia in South America.  He will continue the tradition of teaching Religion to Grades 5-8 on Tuesdays. 

Mrs. Laura Gagliano is our new Pre School teacher, who is a familiar face at SJA.   We welcome her to our staff, and know that she will work wonders for our Pre School children.

We also welcome Mrs. Debra Rizzotto as our new Development Director.  She is very enthusiastic, and promises to do great things for SJA, with everyone’s help, of course!

As you all know by now, this is an extremely important packet, with all of the important papers for you to sign or read.  Please make every effort to return the forms as soon as possible.  If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to call the school office.

Needless to say, you are all well aware of the H1N1 flu.  Enclosed in this packet is a packet of recommendations for parents.  The most important thing to remember is to keep your child(ren) home if they are sick.  That is far more important than trying to get Perfect Attendance.

We are very excited about our new computerized sign-in system, which will replace our sign-in book.  It’s very simple.  We’ll be able to talk you through it as you come in.  It works for visitors, volunteers, tardy students, and for students who sign in and out for appointments during the school day.  Each has its own category.

As always, Derry Twp will be picking up their bus students at 2:10 instead of 2:40 for the first week of school.  It seems to take them a very long time to get their first and K students on the right bus.  Our dismissal will be at the regular 2:45 for the rest of the school. 

May the Lord bless each of you in a special way as we all continue to work together to make SJA shine.

Sister Eileen