Holy Family School Norwich, NY

October 15 parent letter

2010-10-15T04:33:00.000-07:00

October 15, 2010

Dear Parents,

Thanks to the kindness and generosity of two of our parents, Heather Bartle and Sue Converse, your child may receive a flu shot here at Holy Family for a nominal fee of $12. The flu shots will be administered during the school day. Parents need to pre-register their child/children by sending in the payment no later than Monday, October 25. Please make checks payable to Holy Family School. When the date of the flu shots has been set, parents will be notified and invited to go with their child while they receive the shot. The clinic will be held during the school day. Students of all grades, including Early Childhood and Pre-Kindergarten, are welcome to sign up for a flu shot. Please note that the flu shots will be available only to HFS students.

Class field trips begin next week. The students in Kindergarten, First, Second, and Third grade will be traveling to Critz Farms in Cazenovia on Thursday, October 21st. As part of the Science curriculum, Second graders will be visiting Howe's Caverns on Wednesday, October 27.

A Walk-a-Thon and Pancake Breakfast will be held to raise money for Pete and Julie Asma. The Walk-a-Thon will be held on Friday, October 22. The students in EC, PK, K, 1st and 2nd grade will be walking from 1:00pm until 1:30pm. Grades 3-8 will walk from 1:45pm until 2:15pm. Please send in all of your donation money in an envelope by Thursday, October 21st to your child's classroom teacher. The top two classes with the highest total donation average will receive a non-uniform day. As of right now, the weather calls for 30% chance of showers with a high of 52. Students are to wear gym uniforms for the entire school day. Have your child dress appropriately and with proper footwear. The parking lot will be closed to all traffic from 1:00 until 2:30pm. Thank you for your support!

We would like to thank all of our students who participated in our second annual MARS Program (Math and Reading Superstars). Please have your child return their forms for reading over the summer and their math work to their classroom teacher by Monday, October 25th. We will be treating all our students who completed the program with an Ice Cream Sundae on Thursday, October 28th in the afternoon. Thanks to Nikki Strano for all her help with this project.

This week, we will highlight Donna Manley, our part-time Pre-Kindergarten Aide. Originally from Norwich, Donna has lived and worked in Norwich all her life. She was with the Norwich Pennysaver for 16 years and here with us at Holy Family for 14 years before retiring in 2007. She and her husband, Tom, raised three sons, Joseph, Patrick and Brian, all of whom graduated from Holy Family. Her oldest son, Joseph, is a Clarkson University graduate with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. Patrick graduated from Canisus with a Business Management and Marketing degree and is currently studying for a Masters in Public Administration at Syracuse University. Brian recently graduated from LeMoyne College with a degree in Marketing. In her free time, Donna likes to research her family's genealogy, tend her flower garden in the summer, and play the piano. Donna's retirement was short-lived as she accepted the part-time position of pre-k aide, working alongside her good friend, Nancy Ritzel. We are grateful for Donna's decision to leave retirement, and rejoin us here at Holy Family.

Have a great weekend!

Mary & Gene

October 8 Parent Letter

2010-10-08T10:30:00.000-07:00

October 8, 2010

Dear Parents,

We would like to remind all parents that all of our children in grades 1-8 will be given an individual reading assessment exam within the next few weeks. The results of this assessment will be shared with you during the parent conferences in November.

Upcoming Events!

Wednesday, October 13
St. Bart's Spaghetti Dinner, 4:30pm
Commission Meeting, 6:00pm
PTO Meeting, 7:00pm

Thursday, October 14
St. Bart's Spaghetti Dinner, 4:30pm

Thursday, October 21
Critz Pumpkin Farm, grades K-2, 8:30am-2pm

Friday, October 22
Walk-A-Thon to Benefit Pete and Julie Asma, 1-2:15pm

Thursday, October 28
Tri-Cities Opera "Billy Goats Gruff" in the gym, 9am. All are invited.

God bless,
Gene and Mary

Friday letter

2010-10-01T10:24:00.003-07:00

October 1st, 2010
Dear Parents,

This Tuesday we had a super successful Open House night with more than 85% of students represented. Thank you parents for showing your commitment to and support of your child's education. We look forward to a rewarding year for both you and your children!

All students in grades K-8 will be given an individual reading assessment during the month of October. The results will be shared during parent teacher conferences in November.

You should have received your password for our new on-line program, My Students Progress. If you have any problems or questions, please contact Mrs. Ann French.

On Wednesday, students were able to make their confession with Father Ralph. Please encourage your children to attend if you would like them to go to confession. Please practice the Act of Contrition with your children. This is the version used at school:

O my God, I heartily sorry for having offended thee and I detest all my sins because they offend Thee, my God, Who art all-good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve with the help of Thy grace, to sin no more, and to avoid the near occasions of sin. Amen.

This week we would like to introduce you to John Jablonski, our newly hired temporary custodian. John is a native of Norwich and graduated from Valley Heights Christian Academy. In his free time, John likes to spend time with Tara and their 13 month-old baby girl, Angelina. John also likes the great outdoors. John is doing a great job helping us to keep our school clean and we want to thank him for that!

All students should be in their classrooms by 8:00am. Students not in their classrooms by 8:05am will be marked tardy.

Today we celebrated our monthly Mass planned and organized by students in grades 6th-8th. Starting today the entire student body will be praying a decade of the rosary after each Mass. Our next school Mass will be 9:00am on Monday, November 1st to celebrate the feast day of All Saints. We hope to see you there!

Sincerely,

Gene and Mary

2010-10-01T10:24:00.001-07:00

Welcome to a new School Year!!!!

2010-09-11T06:11:00.001-07:00

September 10, 2010

Dear Parents,

It was great to see all our children, parents and grandparents back at Holy Family School! We really missed all of you! The first two days of school were great. From my point of view, they could not have gone smoother. There have been many changes at HFS involving the physical structure, new staff and new textbooks. But one very important aspect remains the same – we are truly a family that cares about each other. One only needs to look at the smiles on the faces of our parents, grandparents, children and staff as they enter the school. As an educator, parent and grandparent myself, it’s great to hear so many of our children say how happy they are to be back at HFS!

Vickie Lake, our new cafeteria manager, has made the transition to HFS smoothly. Vickie has made several changes to the daily menu. Students may purchase a peanut butterr/jelly sandwich or a yogurt instead of the main meal. The yogurt may also be purchased separately for $1.00. Ice cream will cost either $.50 or $.75. The juice machine has been removed from the school, so several options will be available for students. A 12oz. bottle of Gatorade may be purchased for $1.00 or a Minute Maid 100% juice box will be available for $.75. Homemade cookies will also be available at different times for $.50. The cost of student lunches will be:

EC – 1st Grade $ 1.75
2nd -8th Grade $ 2.25
Adults $ 3.25

Once again, we ask that parents send in a check or cash to deposit into their child’s lunch account. Please try to make these deposits on Monday, so that Mrs. Hose doesn’t have to count and make a bank deposit every day. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.
Students who have already received the Sacrament of Penance will have the opportunity to do so on Wednesday, October . Our next children’s mass will be on Friday, October 1st. We invite all parents to attend and we hope to see you there.
With six new staff members this year, I thought it would be interesting to highlight one each week. This week we will get to know Sara Chrystie Locke, our new 1st grade teacher.

Although Sara Locke was born in Norwich, she has lived in Oxford her whole life. Sara’s mom is a private day care provider in Oxford and her older brother, Mike, is a Social Studies teacher at Norwich High School. Sports has always been a big part of Sara’s life as she played basketball, field hockey, and track in high school. At Oneonta State, Sara played basketball and majored in Childhood Education, graduating in May 2010. Soon after graduation, Sara married Tom Locke at St. Paul’s Church on July 24 and they now live in Oxford. Sara enjoys reading and loves challenges. This past summer, Sara and her sister-in-law ran the 15K in the Boilermaker for the first time. At some point in the near future, Sara hopes to coach girls’ basketball. Sara is visibly excited about joining Holy Family and we are blessed to have her. When Sara’s dad called to see how her first day went, without a moment’s hesitation Sara responded, “Dad, I know that I am in the right profession.” We couldn’t agree more!

Gene and Mary

2010-06-11T05:26:00.000-07:00

June 11, 2010
Dear Parents,

Wow!!! What a whirlwind year! I can’t believe we’re nearing the end of the 2009/10 school year. So much has happened this year. Thanks go to all the people - PTO, staff, parents, grandparents, children, etc who have graciously volunteered their time and talents to make Holy Family School a nurturing environment for our children. I know I’m leaving out many events, but I’d still be typing if I included all of them.

• Summer Ice Cream Social to welcome new staff and families to HFS
• Boo Hoo Breakfast
• Family PTO picnic
• Open House
• First Friday Masses
• Halloween Float
• Parent Conferences
• Family Thanksgiving Dinner
• Advent Activities
• Christmas Concert/Art Show
• Visit from Santa Claus
• Fall and Spring Book Fairs
• Catholic Schools’ Week Events
• Lenten Fish Fries
• National Day of Prayer Events
• May Crowning
• Golf Tournament
• Spring Disney Concert
• Dessert Theatre
• Olympic Day (next Tuesday)
• PK and K Celebration (next Thursday)
• Educational Field Trips/Assemblies
Howe Caverns
Tri Cities Opera – “Little Red Riding Hood”
“Beauty and the Beast” – Forum Theatre
“The Lightening Thief” Movie
“Looking glass Alice” – Syracuse Stage
Popp Butterfly Conservatory
Step Into Seuss
Ross Park Zoo Mobile
Auriesville Retreat
Binghamton Mets Baseball Game
Farmers’ Museum
Ecology/Fishing Field Trip

Again, I know I left many events out of the list, but it is important to realize how many opportunities our children are exposed to. Thanks for all the help and support.

I hope you had the opportunity to attend the Dessert Theatre Show last week. The students put a lot of time and effort into preparing their acts. The audience seemed to love the performances as the children gave their “all.” Thanks to Ms. Buckley, Rhett Genung (lighting and sound) and all the other people who made this event possible.

Gene

UPCOMING EVENTS

Tues, June 15 Olympic Day – Gr. 1 – 7

Wed, June 16 Olympic Awards Assembly

Wed, June 16 PreK Pinic

Thurs, June 17 PreK – K Celebration 6 pm

Fri, June 18 Kindergarten Picnic

Mon, June 21 Ecology/Fishing Field Trip Gr. 5-7

Wed, June 23 Early Childhood Celebration 9:30 am

Sat, July 2 Annual HFS Rummage Sale - Gym

2010-05-28T11:16:00.001-07:00

May 27, 2010
Dear Parents,

We’d like to welcome a new student to our school, Zachary Vincent XiZhong Marsh. Zac will be joining his sister Riley in the 3rd grade class for the remainder of the school year. He is the son of Cathy and Rod Marsh of Norwich. Zac is 8 years old and was born in Shenzhen, China, which is near Hong Kong. He’s a typical boy – his favorite subject is physical education. During his free-time in class, Zac can be seen playing chess on the computer. Now several of his classmates have joined in. It appears that this is a win-win situation for everyone!

Congratulations to Father Ralph on another milestone birthday today, May 28th. It’s amazing how he seems to look and act younger each year!!! All of our students enjoyed singing Happy Birthday to Father at lunchtime – they also didn’t mind sharing a bit of his birthday cake with him.

Please join us at several important events this week. They include:

• Tues, June 1st Canine Police Dog – Officer Clarke 9 am

• Wed, June 2nd Dessert Theatre Rehearsal 11:30 am

• Wed, June 2nd Flynn & O’Hara Uniform 1 pm
Measurements

• Thurs, June 3rd Dessert Theatre 6 pm
Council of the Arts

• Fri, June 4th 1st Friday Mass – 2nd Graders 9 am

• Fri, June 4th Adoration – St. Paul’s Chapel

Gene

2010-05-20T12:29:00.001-07:00

May 20, 2010
Dear Parents,

Please remember tomorrow (Friday) is a free will offering “non-uniform” day to support the Relay for Life Cancer Event. Classroom teachers will collect the donations. Below are the upcoming events.

Upcoming Events

Fri, May 21 Kindergarten Screening 8am – 3pm

May 24-26 Fountas-Pinnell Reading Assessments

Tues, May 25 4th Gr. Science PerfTest 8:20-10am

Wed, May 26 Father O’Connor – speaking on vocations

Fri, May 28 Science Fair – Gym 10-11 am

June 1,2,3 or Officier Clarke and his canine
last week of All students in gym 9 am
school

Wed, June 2 Dessert Theatre Rehearsal 12:15 pm

Wed, June 2 Flynn & O’Hara Uniform Measurements 1-2 pm

Thurs, June 3 Dessert Theatre 6pm

Fri, June 4 2nd Gr. Mass 9am

Fri, June 4 Adoration TBD

Mon, June 7 4th Gr. Science Written Exam 8:20 – 10am

June 8 or last Fishing – Gr. 5-7 Time TBD
Week of school Sarah Stroh’s property, including a picnic

Wed, June 9 Auriesville Retreat – Gr. 5-7 8:30-5:30pm

Thurs, June 10 Binghamton Mets BB Game 9am-2:10pm
Grades 1 - 7

Fri, June 11 Farmers’ Museum Gr. 2,4,5,7 8:45-3:30pm

Tues, June 15 Olympic Day – Gr. 1 - 7 All Day

Tues, June 15 Police Station Visit – Kindergarten
Surprise Picnic

Tues, June 15 PreK Picnic (weather permitting)

Wed, June 16 Olympic Awards Ceremony Time TBD

Thurs, June 17 PreK and K Celebration 6pm

Fri, June 18 Kindergarten Picnic 11am – 1pm
Parents invited

2010-05-14T17:14:00.000-07:00

May 14, 2010
Dear Parents,

I hope you were able to attend the Spring Concert last night. What a wonderful event! Next up is our Dessert Theatre on Thursday, June 3rd at 6pm. Hope to see you there.

We have a very busy spring with many educational field trips on the horizon. I have listed the events that are now scheduled. Please mark them on your calendar.

Upcoming Events

Fri, May 14 Ross Park Zoo Mobile EC-K 8:45
1 – 3 9:40
4 – 7 10:30

Fri, May 21 Kindergarten Screening 8am – 3pm

May Fountas-Pinnell Reading Assessments

Tues, May 25 4th Gr. Science Perf. Test 8:20-10am

Wed, May 26 Father O’Connor – speaking on vocations

Fri, May 28 Science Fair – Gym 10-11 am

June 1,2,3 or Officier Clarke and his canine
last week of All students in gym Time TBD
school

Wed, June 2 Dessert Theatre Rehearsal 12:15 pm

Thurs, June 3 Dessert Theatre 6pm

Fri, June 4 2nd Gr. Mass 9am

Fri, June 4 Adoration TBD

Mon, June 7 4th Gr. Science Written Exam 8:20 – 10am

June 8 or last Fishing – Gr. 5-7 Time TBD
Week of school Sarah Stroh’s property, including a picnic

Thurs, June 10 Binghamton Mets BB Game 9am-2:10pm
Grades 1 - 7

Fri, June 11 Farmers’ Museum Gr. 2,4,5,7 8:45-3:30pm

Tues, June 15 Olympic Day – Gr. 1 - 7 All Day

Tues, June 15 Police Station Visit – Kindergarten
Surprise Picnic

Tues, June 15 PreK Picnic (weather permitting)

Wed, June 16 Olympic Awards Ceremony Time TBD

Thurs, June 17 PreK and K Celebration 6pm

Fri, June 18 Kindergarten Picnic 11am – 1pm
Parents invited

2010-05-07T05:31:00.000-07:00

May 7, 2010
Dear Parents,
Just last week I read a disturbing story in the newspaper about a Good Samaritan who came to the assistance of a woman being attacked in New York City. The attacker stabbed the Good Samaritan several times and left him bleeding on the sidewalk. Seven people walked by within an hour of the attack and looked down at the Good Samaritan as he lay bleeding. One passerby even lifted up the dying man, laid him back down and then walked away. The Good Samaritan bled to death before help arrived. All of this was captured on surveillance cameras.
Why would I share this disturbing story with you? The reason is simple – we often forget how fortunate we are. We live in a beautiful part of the State where our children can still enjoy the simple things in life and we have a compassionate, caring and supportive community we live in. This once again came to the forefront last week at the benefit for Maureen Walhberg. The show of support and encouragement was phenomenal! Thirty-three beautiful baskets were raffled off, cakes/pies/cookies sold and a free-will offering taken. While these events were occurring, we were treated to the wonderful music of the Sons of Ireland. All of this was donated by the friends in our community. How different from the opening scenario.
As an educator, I look at this as a “teachable moment.” Here we are as adults/parents/grandparents teaching our children by example how to care for each other. As adults, we all know that an education is important, but there’s more to an education than what we learn from textbooks or cyber-space. We just taught our children, by modeling, how to be caring, considerate and compassionate. How fortunate we are to have a supportive community like Holy Family School and the Norwich community.
Gene

UPCOMING EVENTS

Wednesday, May 12 PTO Meeting 7pm
Thursday, May 13 Ascension Thursday 9am
Mass – 1st Graders
Thursday, May 13 Spring Concert 6pm
Friday, May 14 Ross Park Zoo Mobile
EC – Kindergarten 8:45am
Grades 1 – 3 9:40am
Grades 4 – 7 10:30am
Sunday, May 16 PTO Golf Tournament - Norwich
Friday, May 21 Kindergarten Screening 8am – 3pm
Tuesday, May 25 Science Performance 8:20 – 10am
State Exam
Wednesday, May 26 Father O’Connor Visit – Vocations
Monday, May 31 No School – Memorial Day

2010-05-01T12:14:00.000-07:00

April 30, 2010
Dear Parents,

I hope to see everyone tonight from 6-8pm in our gym for the Maureen Wahlberg Benefit. I’ll be glad when I can move around my office again – but it’s a good thing. My office is full of baskets that were donated by the families at our school. It’s nice to know that when someone is in need in our family, we all band together to help out. It should be an awesome event!
I’m not sure what dress to wear to the event – oh, I forgot, Gina doesn’t exist anymore! I hope everyone had as much fun as Pete, Rob and I did at the fashion show. The students (and their parents) certainly earned it by raising over $700 in Box Tops.

Our children have just completed the State ELA Assessment Exams and will take the Math Exams from May 5-7. The students performed very well on the ELA exams and we expect the same for the Math exams. Please ensure that your children receive the proper rest the night before the exams.

I know I’m harping, but please turn in your child’s Enrollment Application as soon as possible if your child is returning next year. Please see me if you have any questions.

Thank you for all the feedback concerning next year’s school calendar. I heard from approximately 30 families and the vote was split right down the middle. After reflecting on this, I have decided to follow the public school calendar for the Spring break. This means we will have off the 2nd week of April (April 11-15) and April 21 & 22 for Holy Thursday and Good Friday.

Please mark on your calendars May 6th and 7th. All parents/grandparents and friends are invited to join us for the National Day of Prayer and May Crowning events.

Gene

Upcoming Events

Wed, May 5th Math State Exams Grades 3,4,5,6 & 7
Thurs, May 6th Math State Exams Grades 3,4,5 & 6

Thurs, May 6th Nat’l Day of Prayer
All American Lunch 11 am
(Parents Invited)
Festivities 12:15 pm

Fri, May 7th Math State Exams Grades 4 & 7

Fri, May 7th May Crowning & Living 1 pm
Rosary - Gym

Wed, May 12th PTO Meeting 7 pm

Thurs, May 13th Ascension Thursday 9 am
Mass – 1st Graders

Thurs, May 13th Spring Concert 6 pm

Fri, May 14th Ross Park Zoo Mobile
EC – Kindergarten 8:45 am
Grades 1-3 9:40 am
Grades 4-7 10:30 am

Sun, May 16th Golf Tournament

2010-04-15T10:31:00.000-07:00

April 16, 2010
Dear Parents,

I wish to congratulate all of our students who have achieved academic excellence this past ten weeks. Whether a student achieves Honor or High Honor status or neither is not the point. What is important is that each child strives to do his or her best and gives 100% effort. Please make it a point to congratulate your child if they have given their best.

I would like to thank those parents who answered my email last week concerning next year’s spring vacation. Norwich has not yet published their 2010/11 school calendar, so I don’t know for certain if they will follow the BOCES calendar or not. Once they publish their calendar, I will share a copy of our calendar with all of our parents.

Once again I’m asking those parents who have not returned the enrollment form for next year to do so at their earliest convenience. Please contact me if you have any questions concerning the form.

Every two weeks you should be receiving a statement from our cafeteria. If you owe a balance, please send in payment with your child or give it to Mrs. Hose. Thank you in advance for addressing this issue.

The New York State ELA and Math tests are on the horizon. The test schedule is as follows:

ELA: Grade 7 Mon, April 26, and Thurs, April 29
Grade 6 Tues, April 27, Wed, April and Fri, April 30
Grade 5 Tues, April 27 and Thurs, April 29
Grade 4 Tues, April 27, Wed, April 28 and Fri, April 30
Grade 3 Wed, April 28 and Thurs, April 29

Math: Grade 7 Wed, May 5 and Fri, May 7
Grade 6 Wed, May 5 and Thurs, May 6
Grade 5 Wed, May 5 and Thurs, May 6
Grade 4 Wed, May 5, Thurs, May 6 and Fri, May 7
Grade 3 Thurs, May 6 and Fri, May 7

Please ensure that your child receives the proper amount of rest and eats a good breakfast prior to the exams.

I hope everyone has a great vacation. Kids Zone will be open for the full week.

Gene

Upcoming Events

Maureen Wahlberg Benefit 6-8pm Friday, April 30

National Day of Prayer Thursday, May 6
Family Luncheon 11am - Noon
Festivities 12:15pm

May Crowning Friday, May 7
Crowning & Living Rosary 1pm

2010-04-09T05:35:00.000-07:00

April 9, 2010
Dear Parents,

Hope everyone had a joyful and blessed Easter. Time is going by so fast, it’s difficult to keep up, but I’ll try. Enrollment for the 2010/11 school year now stands at 88. If you haven’t returned your form yet, please do so as soon as possible. Speaking of next year, I sent out an email concerning the school calendar. Please choose one of the two options and email me your preference. I will weigh all responses carefully before a decision is made. I am also in the process of finalizing the student schedule for next year. I will be sending home a copy of this schedule after the spring vacation with your child.

Please remember that we will be off from school the week of April 19 – 23. Kids Zone will be open on these days.

Congratulations to all our students who did extra chores at home and donated their own money for the Haiti Relief Services. Our children donated $209.82 that will be forwarded to the Catholic Relief Services. Please continue to keep the people of Haiti in your prayers as they struggle to recover from the disaster.

The Friday, April 30th benefit for Maureen Wahlberg is fast approaching. Please send in your items for the baskets to your child’s teacher by April 16th so that we can prepare the baskets over Spring break.

At this time I would like to congratulate our students and parents for exceeding the goal of 6000 boxtops. As a result of this accomplishment, we will be holding our first Debutante Fashion Show on Friday, April 15th at 1:15pm in the gym. All are invited to attend the show as Roberta (Rob Converse), Petunia Pete Asma), and Gena (Gene Chilion) show off the latest spring fashions. Your eyes will not believe what they see (and unfortunately your minds will remember). Photos are not only encouraged, but required – the girls are not bashful and will be profiled in an upcoming edition of the Evening Sun.

Here is a list of upcoming events:

Fri, April 16th Debutante Fashion Show - Gym 1:15pm
OM Celebration Party 1:30pm
Report Cards Sent Home

April 19-23 Spring Vacation – Kids Zone Open

April 26 – 30 ELA State Exams

Fri, April 30 Maureen Wahlberg Benefit – Gym 6 – 8pm

May 5 – 7 Math State Exams

Thurs, May 6th National Day of Prayer
Lunch – Parents Invited 11:15-Noon
Ceremony – Gym 12:15pm

Fri, May 7th May Crowning – Parents Invited 1 pm
Living Rosary – Gym

God Bless,

Gene

2010-03-25T12:51:00.000-07:00

March 25, 2010
Dear Parents,

This week I would like to devote my letter to the changes the state has made to our elementary State Assessment Exams. The social studies and science exams remain unchanged. However, in past years, the ELA exams were given in January and the math exams in March. Schools were given five full school days to administer each exam. This year, the ELA exams will be given in April. The State is requiring all schools to administer all the ELA exams in three days, rather than five. The testing dates are April 26-28. This is, unfortunately, the first week back after our spring vacation.

The math exams will be given beginning on May 5th and ending on May 7th. Administering the exams later in the school year will mean that a larger percentage of the material for each grade will be on the exams. This year the number of questions and format will remain the same as in past years, but the state is considering changes for next year.

Administering the exams later in the school year will mean that schools (and parents) will not receive the results back from the state until a much later date. This may cause some issues with preparing student schedules for the next school year. As always, I will keep you informed as changes and information come my way.

The March 31st date for handing in Tuition Agreement forms for the 2010-11 school year is fast approaching. Please send in your form if you haven’t done so already.

Good luck to both our Odyssey of the Mind Teams who compete in the State competition at Binghamton University this Saturday. We’re extremely proud of each member of the team and their advisors, Kate Conron and Melissa Lawrence. You can watch their performances and the award ceromony via a live video stream available via a link on the NYSOMA website: www.nysoma.org

Congratulations also go out to Michael Trevisani for finishing in 1st Place in the Knights of Columbus State competition for his poster on Alcohol and Drug Abuse. Michael now moves on to the International competition, which is held in New Haven, Connecticut on March 30th. Congratulations go out to Michael and our other students who entered this contest, along with our art teacher, Sarah Mahan.

I will not be writing a letter next week since our last day of school is Wednesday, March 31st. Please remember that we have Thursday and Friday off for Holy Week. See everyone on the Monday after Easter. Have a great Easter.

2010-03-21T07:32:00.000-07:00

March 19, 2010
Dear Parents,

As you are probably aware, Maureen Wahlberg is battling cancer. She began her chemo treatments recently. Our staff is planning a fundraiser for Maureen to help her with the additional costs she is incurring. You will shortly be receiving specific information regarding this fundraiser, which will take place on Friday, April 30th. We ask that you consider helping us with this event in any way you can. All proceeds from the fundraiser will be given to Maureen. Don’t hesitate to contact Cassie Buckley or me if you have any questions. Please continue to keep Maureen and her entire family in your prayers.

Several incidents occurred at the end of last week that I would like to address at this time. I’m not trying to preach or make it sound as though I’m perfect - nothing could be farther from the truth. I’m sharing these events so that we can reflect on them and see if we need to make some changes in our lives. The first involves bullying, which occurs far too often in our society. Parents can try to make all kinds of excuses for their children to try to justify bullying, but the bottom line is that it is inexcusable and unacceptable. What also occurred last week was that several students witnessed bullying and did nothing to stop it, several actually were laughing as it occurred. Children, just like adults, are responsible for their actions. The worst thing that can happen is that parents try to rationalize or make excuses for their children when they bully or allow bullying to occur. This is not the type of parental role modeling we want or should accept. Fortunately, the parents I spoke with were disappointed in their child’s behavior - not standing up when they knew it was wrong and assured me they would deal with their child, regardless of the school consequences. If we want bullying to stop, this is what we need, parents being positive role models and students standing up for what they believe in. We also need to reinforce in our children that they are responsible for their behavior. There are consequences for our actions, and as parents, we can’t make excuses for our children’s inappropriate actions. My hope is that we’ve all learned a lesson from these incidents and if faced with a similar situation, our children will do the right thing.

The second issue I would like to discuss concerns how we, as adults, treat each other. Children are wiser and more observant then we give them credit for. I have previously addressed the concern I have that some adults can walk down our hallways and say hello to certain people, but not to others. It’s not difficult to say a friendly hello or good morning as we pass each other in the halls. If we do this, our children certainly will follow our example. The same holds true for families that no longer attend our school. During the past 1 ½ years, I’ve heard on several occasions that once their children leave Holy Family, some parents don’t say hello to them when they see each other in stores or other places. I hope this is due to not seeing them, rather than ignoring them. Remember, we all represent Holy Family School by our actions, but even more important, I would hope we’d want our children to treat all people with respect. Chances are this will only happen if we model this behavior for them.

Now that spring is only one day away, perhaps the remaining snow will melt and be replaced with green. One can only hope! Don’t forget that students will not have school on Friday, March 26th due to a teachers’ conference day. Kids Zone will be open for those parents needing it. Thursday, March 25th will be our non-uniform day for the month of March. Have a great week!

2010-03-13T06:12:00.001-08:00

March 12, 2010
Dear Parents,

The enrollment period for the 2010/11 school year began on February 1st. If you have not already returned your Tuition Agreement form, please hand it in as soon as possible. I am trying to prepare the budget for next year and of course, enrollment dictates a large portion of the budget. If you are applying for Diocesan Tuition Assistance, the deadline to mail your forms in is March 15th. If you have any questions, please stop in and see me.

This past week our Odyssey of the Mind students were fortunate to meet with Bud Kelleher, a SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry professor who spoke to them about the properties and efficient use of balsam wood for building strong structures. The students found the presentation enlightening and useful to assist them in preparing for the State OM competition on March 27th at Binghamton University.

If you haven’t had the good fortune to savor one of our delicious fish fry dinners, please join us. You only have three opportunities left, counting today. Sit down dinners are available from 5-7 pm. Take out dinners begin at 4:30 pm. You can call 337-2208 for take out ahead of time so that your dinner is waiting for you when you arrive.

We have two special days this week. Students will not be required to wear their school uniform if they wear traditional colors for these days. Don’t forget to wear your “green” on Wednesday, March 17th for St. Patrick’s Day. Weather permitting, our students in Pre-K through 4th grade will be walking down to Courthouse Park for a short St. Patrick’s Day tribute. Our middle school chorus will be singing the National Anthem to begin the ceremony. Please join us if you can. Friday is St. Joseph’s Day and as is our tradition at Holy Family School, we encourage everyone to wear red.

Lastly, Mrs. Hose’s count-down to spring is almost at “zero!” Unfortunately, that means it’s that time of year when we need to set our clocks ahead one hour and “spring forward.” So, on Sunday at 2:00 am, we will set our clocks ahead one hour (and lose one hour of sleep). Have a great weekend!

2010-03-05T05:20:00.000-08:00

March 5, 2010
Dear Parents,

If you haven’t worked at a Fish Fry, you’re missing out! It’s not just one night serving a dinner to 300 guests, it’s an event! It’s what Holy Family School is all about – parents, staff, students and former students working together for a common cause.

This type of event doesn’t happen overnight. The committee has been working for several months planning for this event. Several changes were made this year, including upgrading to haddock and adding potato wedges. But what didn’t change was the commitment of our extended family. Whether it is baking desserts, doing the prep work for the dinner, or working at the dinner, the cooperation and camaraderie is clearly evident. It is great to see how our parents work together and have lots of fun. Fish Fries are teachable moments as parents role model for their children what community service is and how important it is. It should be noted that parents took vacation days off, and took non-paid days off from their jobs to work on our team. This is truly amazing to me. The level of commitment to Holy Family School is extremely high. If you haven’t joined our team yet and would like to help us out, please contact Ann French at school.

We have begun the enrollment process for the 2010/11 school year. Please hand in your Tuition Agreement Form with your deposit as soon as possible. If you are applying for Diocesan Tuition Assistance, your forms must be mailed in the envelopes provided and received by the Diocese by March 15th. Likewise, if you are applying for local assistance, please fill out the Local Assistance Form and return it with your Tuition Agreement Form. Please see me if you have any questions regarding assistance.

Mrs. Hose has alerted me to an issue that arises at times when parents notify the school to inform us that their children are staying after school or someone else is picking up their child. It is fine to email Mrs. Hose, but please do this before noon, as sometimes emails do not get delivered immediately or Mrs. Hose doesn‘t have the time to check her emails in the afternoon. After noon, please call the office to notify us. Thank you for your cooperation on this matter.

Below is a list of upcoming field trips/assemblies at Holy Family School. Please be on the lookout for the permission slips your child will be bringing home. We strongly encourage and invite you to join your child on these field trips when there is room. Please check the list below and let your child’s teacher know if you plan on attending.

Gene

UPCOMING EVENTS

Wed, Mar. 10th “Lookingglass Alice: Gr. 5 – 7 10:30-5:30
Syracuse Stage Theatre

Friday, Mar. 12th Popp Butterfly Conser. 3rd Grade 9 -11:30 am
Oneonta

Thursday, Mar. 18th Popp Butterfly Conser. 4th Grade 11:30-2 pm
Oneonta

Friday, Mar. 19th “Little Red Riding Hood” EC – 7th 9 – 10 am
TriCities Opera – In gym
Parents & Guests Invited to Attend

2010-02-26T04:40:00.000-08:00

February 26, 2010
Dear Parents,

I was fortunate, along with about 40 other members of the Holy Family School community to witness this year’s OM competition in Masonville. This year, under the direction of Kate Conron and Melissa Lawrence, we entered two teams. In the elementary school division, fourth graders Adriana Fratini, Michael Hayes, Elijah Kwasnik, Garrison French, Michael Trevisani, Cole Olsen and Emma Blenis competed in the elementary school division, finishing first. In the middle school division, the team of Danika Tworkowsky, Anastasia Tenney, Josh Wilcox, Pablo Rojas, Ethan French and Bryan French also finished in first place. All team members should be congratulated on the amount of time, planning and effort they devoted to this event. They all represented Holy Family School well. Both teams now have one month to prepare for the State competition, which will be held on Saturday, March 27th at Binghamton University. Congratulations to all our students for a job well-done!

We have begun the enrollment process for the 2010/11 school year. Please hand in your Tuition Agreement Form with your deposit as soon as possible. If you are applying for Diocesan Tuition Assistance, your forms must be mailed in the envelopes provided and received by the Diocese by March 15th. Likewise, if you are applying for local assistance, please fill out the Local Assistance Form and return it with your Tuition Agreement Form. Please see me if you have any questions regarding assistance.

Don’t forget our Friday Fish Fries. If you haven’t savored the great food yet, please don’t miss out this Friday. Take out orders are taken from 4:30-7:00 pm and eat in hours are 5:00-7:00 pm. Also, if you have any bird feeder money that you haven’t turned in, please do so as soon as possible.

We continue to offer our students numerous field trips to extend their learning experiences. Please be on the lookout for the permission slips your child will be bringing home. We strongly encourage and invite you to join your child on these field trips when there is room. Please check the list
below and let your child’s teacher know if you plan on attending.

Gene

UPCOMING EVENTS

Friday, Feb. 26th “The Lightening Thief” Gr. 5-7 Noon
Hamilton Theatre

Tuesday, Mar. 2nd “Step Into Seuss” Gr. K & 1 9 am-Noon
St. Mary’s – Oneonta
Parents & Guests Invited to Attend

Friday, Mar. 5th 1st Friday Mass 4th Grade 9 am

Wed, Mar. 10th “Lookingglass Alice” Gr. 5 – 7 10:30-5:30
Syracuse Stage Theatre

Friday, Mar. 12th Popp Butterfly Conser. 3rd Grade 9 -11:30 am
Oneonta

Thursday, Mar. 18th Popp Butterfly Conser. 4th Grade 9 - 11:30 am
Oneonta

Friday, Mar. 19th “Little Red Riding Hood” EC – 7th 9 – 10 am
TriCities Opera – In gym
Parents & Guests Invited to Attend

2010-02-11T11:02:00.001-08:00

February 12, 2010
Dear Parents,

Well, the second half of the school year has begun. As a type of midyear review, I thought it would be a good time to look at the changes we have undertaken at Holy Family School this year. Too often life gets so busy and complicated that we forget to reflect on our successes and just take them for granted. So, here goes!

• We began by hiring three new staff members, Suzanne Scafidi for the Early Childhood Program, Lisa Halsteter for first grade and Sarah Mahan for art.
• We focused on expanding our Early Childhood Program to a full time program, but still allowing parents the flexibility of half days and 3 day a week options. We worked on creating a curriculum that would academically challenge our students and still create an environment where they could refine their social skills.
• We purchased a new ELA series for our students in kindergarten through 5th grade, including textbooks, workbooks and leveled readers. This is allowing us to coordinate our curriculum from one grade level to the next.
• We purchased a new reading assessment tool and tested all our students in October, sharing the results with our parents. We are just concluding retesting those students that scored below grade level to see if the supports we put in place for them are effective. We will retest all of our students at the end of the school year.
• We remodeled the kindergarten and first grade rooms, adding cubbies and more useable storage areas.
• We added reading lofts in the first and third grade rooms.
• We purchased new tables and chairs for the Pre-Kindergarten, Kindergarten, and first and third grade classrooms for their learning centers. We also purchased new tables and chairs for our middle school social studies room.
• We purchased Smartboards for our kindergarten and first grade classrooms. Now all our classrooms on the main floor have Smartboards.
• We purchased 16 new computers to create computer centers in our elementary classrooms for student use, as well as additional computers for our computer lab.
• We changed our webpage and grading system to Edline and Grade Quick, providing our parents, staff and the entire school with a better system to communicate with each other.
• We painted the gym/stage area and the entrance way. We also installed new lighting and ceiling tiles in the entrance way and the hallway by the library.
• We instituted many energy efficient initiatives to conserve natural gas and electricity that we use to heat and provide lighting to our facility. Although there were upfront costs to these measures, the long-term savings should be significant.
• Additional outlets were installed in many of our classrooms.
• The main fire alarm system was inspected and a new alarm installed in the elementary wing.
• New lockers have just been installed for our middle school students.
• We are in the process of purchasing 12 new computers for our middle school classrooms for student use.

I’m sure I forgot to mention some additional changes we have instituted this year, but even I’m amazed with this list! We have accomplished a lot this year, but more improvements are on the horizon.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Friday, Feb. 12th Non-uniform Day – Box Tops Reward

Feb. 13th – 21st Winter Break – No School

Feb. 15th – 19th Kids Zone is Open

2010-02-05T05:37:00.000-08:00

February 5, 2010
Dear Parents,

Congratulations to all on a very successful Catholic Schools Week! Many people pitched in to make this a very memorable week, one celebrating Catholic education in the United States. It was great to see all the moms, dads and grandparents for donuts and muffins. Once again it reinforces my belief that parents really do care – they just want to be kept informed and feel welcome in their child’s school. I thought it would be appropriate, and possibly enlightening, if I shared a brief overview of the history of St. Paul’s/Holy Family School. Before I begin, please note that all the information I am sharing was found in the documents that I reorganized when I began working here. I make no claim substantiating the authenticity of this history only that it was in a file labeled “History of St. Paul’s School.” Here is that history exactly as it was written. After you read it, please let me know of any inaccuracies. Better yet, if you have any additional information I would appreciate you sharing it with me. I’d like to compile a more complete, accurate history of our school.

Saint Paul’s School was established in 1922 with a staff of three Dominican Sisters. In 1925 a fourth Sister was assigned to the school and in 1926 another Sister. No further Sisters joined the school until 1954. The original site of the school was the Maydole (or Merritt Mansion) Mansion on the corner of North Broad Street and Mitchell Avenue. There were twelve first graders and approximately twenty-five primary students in all under the leadership of the Reverend Joseph S. Tiernan. It was a combination school and convent. The first graduating class consisted of three eighth grade students in 1927.

The Reverend Henry L. Contois was appointed pastor in October 1951 by Bishop Foery. By that time the post-war birth rate was being felt in all schools, and St. Paul’s was no exception. The building, which was adequate in the beginning, now proved to be unsuitable to the needs of the children and the Sisters. In 1952, it was decided that a new school building was needed for the increasing enrollment. Meanwhile, a convent on Prospect Street (were our new playground is) was purchased and renovated and was ready for the Sisters in September 1953. The new building was dedicated on September 19, 1954 with nine Dominican Sisters staffing the school.

Under the pastorate of Father Robert F. Coombs, $278,000 was raised for an addition to Saint Paul’s School. The addition consisted of the gymnasium/
auditorium, the boys’ and girls’ locker rooms, the carpeted Manley Memorial Library containing two thousand four hundred books, the present sixth grade classroom and the cafeteria with a seating capacity of 250 people. The new addition was dedicated in February of 1964.

In 1971, the Dominican Sisters were unable to continue their duties at Saint Paul’s School because of increased responsibilities in New York City. Father Thomas Kiernan searched for a year until he was able to announce that the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Carondelet would assume the teaching responsibilities at Saint Paul’s School.
In 1978, the Norwich City School District included the ninth grade in the high school for the first time. It was decided to drop the ninth grade from Saint Paul’s School at this time to allow an easier transition for the students into the high school. For similar reasons, in 1983, the seventh and eighth grades were dropped from Saint Paul’s School when the new Norwich City Middle School was built next to the high school.

For the 1988/89 school year St. Paul’s became a county school under the name of Holy Family. In January, 1990, Saint Paul’s School was rededicated as Chenango County Catholic School Holy Family by Bishop Joseph T. O’Keefe. The school was not to be a parish school of Saint Paul’s Church any longer, but a county-wide Catholic school for all children of Chenango County.

There were eight Chenango County parishes that took over the financial support of Saint Paul’s School. These parishes were St. Joseph’s in Oxford, St. Theresa’s in New Berlin, St. Malachy’s in Sherburne, St. Agnes in Afton, St. John’s in Bainbridge, Immaculate Conception in Greene, St. Bartholomew’s in Norwich and St. Paul’s in Norwich.

Here are some notes of interest that I found:

• For the 1983/84 school year, the average Diocesan subsidy to schools for parishes was 42 % of their regular collections.
• I was able to find student tuition for the following years:
1983/84 $450
1987/88 $650
1988/89 $700
2001/02 $1,800
2002/03 $1,895
2003/04 $2,150
2004/05 $2,400
2005/06 $2,500
2006/07 $2,600
2007/08 $2,850
2008/09 $3215
2009/10 $3,215

That’s the information I could find on our school’s history. Enjoy the weekend.

God Bless,

Gene

UPCOMING EVENTS

Mon-Wed, Feb. 8-10 Dinner Theatre Auditions

Wednesday, Feb. 10 Kopernick Observation Day Gr. 3 & 4
Perry Browne School 9 – 11:30 am

Wednesday, Feb. 10 Fish Fry Meeting 6:00 pm

Wednesday, Feb. 10 PTO Meeting 7:00 pm

Wed & Thurs, Feb. 9 & 10 St. Bart’s Spaghetti Dinner 4:30 – 6:30 pm

Thursday, Feb. 11 “Beauty & the Beast” K – 4th Gr.
Forum – Binghamton 8:30am-12:15pm

Friday, Feb. 12 Last day of school prior to Winter Break
School resumes on Monday, February 22nd

January 29th, 2010

2010-01-29T05:59:00.000-08:00

January 29, 2010
Dear Parents,

Here we are at the midpoint of the school year and the end of January. Can spring be far off!? I, for one, hope not. Our Science Initiative continues to thrive at Holy Family School. Eric Diefenbacher and our staff have scheduled science experiences for our students for the second half of the school year. Below is the schedule:

Fri, March 12 Popp Butterfly Cons. 3rd Grade

Fri, March 19 Popp Butterfly Cons. 4th Grade

Thurs, April 8 Wolf Mountain 5th - 7th Grade
8:30 – 11:30 am Nature Center

Fri, May 14 Ross Park Zoo Mobile
8:45-9:30 EC , PK, K
9:40-10:25 Gr. 1-3
10:30-11:15 Gr. 4-7

In addition to these activities, Mr. Diefenbacher is scheduling additional activities. These dates have not yet been determined. I will share this information when the dates and times become available. These activities include:

Feb. – April Teddy Bear Clinic EC – 1st Grade

Feb. – April Mr. Bones 2nd – 4th Grade

March Y Fitness Center 5th – 7th Grade

On Monday, February 1st, our public schools have staff conference days. As a result, transportation will not be available on this day for those students riding a bus to school, except those students riding the Oxford school bus. Transportation will be provided as usual for Oxford students. Please try to make other arrangements for your child to attend school on this day.

The PTO is sponsoring a Family Fun Night on Friday, February 5th from
6 – 9 pm. Everyone attending is asked to bring a favorite family game to play and a snack to share. Karaoke and video games will be available for young and old alike. If you have any questions, please contact Steph Coggins.

You should be receiving the enrollment information packet for the 2010/11 school year. The packet will contain a letter from me listing the tuition rates for the next four years, the enrollment form and a letter from the Superintendent of the Syracuse Diocese Catholic Schools, Chris Mominey. Please remember that if you are requesting tuition assistance, all requests must be in writing and handed in by February 28th. Please contact me if you have any questions.

Upcoming Events

Feb. 1 – 5 Catholic Schools’ Week

Wed, Feb. 3rd Blessing of the Throats 10 am

Friday, Feb. 5th Mass 12:30 pm
Coffee/Cake after Mass
for adults

Friday, Feb. 5th Report Cards Sent Home EC – 7th

Friday, Feb. 5th Family Fun Night 6-9 pm

Thursday, Feb. 11th “Beauty & the Beast” K – 4th
Binghamton Forum
10 am performance

God Bless,

Gene

2010-01-22T05:18:00.000-08:00

January 22, 2010
Dear Parents,

There’s so much happening at Holy Family School, I’m not sure where to begin! The twenty-week marking period ends on Friday, January 29th. That’s right – half the school year will be officially over. Report cards will be sent home with the children on Friday, February 5th. Early Childhood and Pre Kindergarten students will be receiving their mid-year assessment. Please remember to sign the envelope and return it with your child to school. This will let us know that you received the report card.

Enrollment materials will be sent home through the mail at the end of next week. You will notice that the tuition rates for the next four years have been established. The purpose of this was to hopefully allow parents to see that a Catholic education is affordable, not only now, but also in the future. If you have any questions concerning the enrollment information, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Catholic Schools’ Week is January 31st – February 6th this year. Many activities are planned for this event. The Catholic Identity Committee has spent many hours planning for this event with the assistance of several staff members and parents. I’d like to thank all of them, especially Nikki Strano, Dianne Fiorina and Paula Trevisani for planning the exciting activities. Your child will be bringing home a booklet listing the activities and dates. Please refer to this booklet when necessary. The culminating activity for the week is a Mass on Friday, February 5th at 12:30 pm. The Mass will be co-celebrated by the priests of our supporting parishes. A coffee and cake reception for adults attending the Mass will be held in the basement of the church after Mass. We encourage all our parents to attend this important event.

The PTO Lenten Fish Fries will begin on Friday, February 19th and run for six consecutive Friday’s. The committee has been meeting regularly to get ready for this important event. Workers are needed for this event. Please contact Kate Conron if you can help us out.

I’d like to remind parents to please be careful in our parking lot. With the snowy conditions that prevail here, the parking lot can become very dangerous for our children. Please drive slowly and shut your cars off when you leave them. Thanks for putting the safety of our children first.

We are once again collecting Box Tops. The contest has taken a different turn this time around. Instead of it being a competition between grades, we have made it a team competition. As we reach each level of 1000 Box Tops, all our students will earn a reward. The rewards are a well-kept secret. As an added bonus, if we reach the 6000 and 7000 level, there will be an exciting event that all will enjoy (except possibly the four male staff members). That’s all I’ll share for now. Bring in your Box Tops and let the fun begin. The last date to hand in Box Tops is April 9th. Let’s see how many prizes our students can earn!

I’d like to thank all those parents/staff who volunteered to serve on Commission Committees. I have met with four of the five committees. The last meeting is scheduled for next week. From my perspective, it’s great having the opinions of many of the parents when decisions have to be made. It also reinforces the fact that we are truly a “community” school, where our parents take an active role in the educational process.

Have a great weekend!

Gene

January 15, 2010

2010-01-15T06:43:00.000-08:00

Dear Parents,

Have cabin fever yet? I have a solution. Wolf Mountain Nature Center in Symrna is sponsoring a “Full Winter Wolf Moon Howl Night” on Saturday, January 30th and Saturday, February 27th from 7-9pm. It involves hiking up the mountain on their new snow shoe trail (or walking up the long driveway for those who don’t have snow shoes) and gathering around a camp fire with hot chocolate. Pre-registration is required. Call 607-627-6784 for more information and to register. Wolf Mountain Nature Center is one of the field trips we conducted this summer as part of our summer Science field trip endeavor. It’s a great place to experience wolves in their natural habitat.

Great news! The new lockers have arrived and are being installed as I write this letter. The students are excited to actually have a locker that their books fit into. Thanks go to the Knights of Columbus and one of our many generous families for donating the funds to pay for these lockers.

Just a reminder that your child will be bringing home a cafeteria statement on the second and fourth Thursday of each month. It will show either a balance due or a credit. Please try to pay any balance you may have in a timely fashion. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Please remember that school will be closed on Monday, January 18th for Martin Luther King Day. On Tuesday, January 19th at 9:00 am, the Tri Cities Opera will be performing at our school. All are invited to attend. Our students will be participating in several of the songs. They have been practicing with Ms. Buckley in Music class for this production.

I hope everyone has an opportunity to enjoy the long weekend with their families. Hope to see everyone at the Tri Cities assembly on Tuesday!

Gene

Happy New Year

2010-01-11T04:56:00.001-08:00

January 8, 2010
Dear Parents,

Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a safe and holy Christmas and was able to spend quality time with their families. The tradition for the New Year is to make resolutions, which often go unfulfilled. Personally, I am not in the habit of making New Year’s resolutions. However, this year I am making an exception to this. I’d like to make a resolution concerning Holy Family School. My resolution is to try to create an atmosphere/environment in our school whereby every student is provided the opportunity to be successful and be valued. Although you may say that every person deserves this (and I would agree), it doesn’t always happen. You can rest assured that I will do everything in my power to fulfill this resolution. Remember, I am always available to discuss any concerns/issues/questions you may have.

The enrollment process for next year will begin at the end of this month. You will be receiving a letter which will include the tuition rates for the next four years, along with the Tuition Agreement Form. If you are applying for tuition assistance, please notify Mrs. Hose. She will provide you with the forms when we receive them from the Diocese. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions concerning the process.

I am pleased to announce that Elaine Genute has been hired as an aide in our 1st grade classroom. Elaine has a Bachelor’s and Masters’ Degree in education. Elaine and her husband Mike have two sons that attend HFS. Lex is a first grader and Athen is in Pre Kindergarten.

Our next Box Tops challenge will begin on Monday. Several goals for the entire school will be set and awards/prizes given to all our students upon reaching these goals. We just received a check in the amount of $679.22 from our last challenge. In addition to the Box Tops, we are also collecting Campbell’s labels for classroom equipment.

Pleases remember that our Lenten Fish Fries will begin on Friday, February
19th. Volunteers are still needed! Please contact our chairperson, Ann French (afrench@syrdiocese.org) or our volunteer coordinator Kate Conron (kconron@syrdiocese.org).

Lastly, we have two Odyssey of the Mind teams this year under the direction of Kate Conron and Melissa Lawrence. One team consists of 4th graders, while the other team consists of students in grades 5 – 7. Both teams are working on the Balsa Wood Project. The project involves building a balsa wood support whose mass is no greater than 18 grams that will support the greatest weight. Each team is also working on a skit for the competition which is scheduled for February 20th in Sidney.

Listed below are the events for the next five weeks:

Friday, January 8th Mass – Gr.5-7 responsible 9am
for liturgy

Wednesday, January 13th Fish Fry Meeting 5pm

Wednesday, January 13th Commission Meeting 6pm

Wednesday, January 13th PTO Meeting 7pm

Monday, January 18th Martin Luther King Day No School

Tuesday, January 19th TriCities Opera Assembly 9am-Gym
All families are encouraged
to attend

Friday, January 29th Non-Uniform Day

January 31st-February 5th Catholic Schools’ Week
More info to follow

Friday, February 5th First Friday Mass/Catholic 12:30pm
Schools’ Week Mass
Dress up day similar to Christmas Mass

Merry Christmas

2009-12-18T11:47:00.001-08:00

Dear Parents,

This is my last letter for 2009! The year has certainly passed by quickly. I’m glad to say that the Christmas spirit of giving is already underway. A parishioner of St. Paul’s has generously donated tissues, handwash and basic medical supplies to our school and the Knights of Columbus has also donated $500 to our school. It looks like the Christmas Season extends throughout the entire year at Holy Family School!

I hope you were able to attend the Christmas Concert/Play/Art Show this past Wednesday. What a great event! It was great to see all of our students participating. I hope you were able to take some great photos. The Art Exhibit, under the direction of Sarah Mahan, was an added bonus. Our children have so many talents. I’d like to thank Cassie Buckley, Ann French, Sarah Mahan, and all our staff for working with our students on this great event. Special thanks go to Helen Cappaccio for working on the children’s outfits.

Our last day of school will be Wednesday, December 23rd with a 10am dismissal. We will be having a visit from Santa Claus on this day. You are invited to bring your cameras for a photo opportunity. The times will be:
EC 8:20am
PreK 8:30am
K 8:40am
1st 8:50am
2nd 9:00am
3rd 9:10am
4th 9:20am
5th-7th 9:30am (for those students wishing to see Santa)
Classroom Christmas parties will be on the following dates:
Grades 1 & 2 Tues, Dec. 22nd in the afternoon
PreK,3,4,5,6&7 Wed. Dec. 23rd in the morning

I wish each of you a joyous, safe Christmas Season!

Gene

2009-12-14T11:58:00.000-08:00

December 11, 2009
Dear Parents,

Fourteen days until Christmas and counting! I hope you have all your shopping done. For me, the Christmas Season is my favorite time of year. In my particular case, it may be because our first child was born on Christmas day. I like Christmas because I love seeing the faces of the children when they open that special gift that they think they can’t live without. I’ve always enjoyed trying to find that perfect gift rather than receiving my own gifts. As I grow older, I also realize that it’s our duty to teach our young children and grandchildren what Christmas really means.

On that very first Christmas Day in Bethlehem, God gave us his most precious gift, his son. We need to continue that tradition of giving, not only to our own family members, but also to the less fortunate in our communities. I have a very good friend who started a tradition with her family when her children were young. They would choose a needy family that lived close by, shop together and purchase gifts for all the family members, and then anonymously drop them off on their doorstep on Christmas Eve. At a time when giving should be the focus, they taught their children to care for the less fortunate.

At Holy Family School, the 2nd grade adopts a needy family and makes ornaments to sell to raise funds to purchase gifts and food for the entire family for the Christmas season. This year, each classroom collected food and clothing for those less fortunate. I’ve also heard of several children requesting donations to the local SPCA instead of birthday presents to save the lives of so many needy animals. These are just a few examples of what can be accomplished. I believe if you had a family meeting and asked your children for ideas to help those in need that they may surprise you with their creativity. The bottom line is that I’m asking each of you to consider involving your entire family in a project this Christmas season that will teach our children, by example, what Christmas really means.

The Christmas Concert/Play/Art Exhibit is scheduled for Wednesday, December 16th at 6pm.

UPCOMING EVENT

Christmas Concert/Art Exhibit Wed, Dec. 16th 6pm

Eyes & Ears Checkup-Gr. K,1,2 Thurs, Dec. 17th 8:30am

Christmas Mass- Dress Up Day Fri, Dec. 18th 9am
Gr. 3 & 4

Last Day of School Dress down day Wed, Dec. 23rd 10am dismissal
Visit from Santa in Gym – Parents invited (Time TBD) – Bring cameras

Gene

2009-12-04T09:30:00.000-08:00

December 4, 2009
Dear Parents,

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving with their families. It’s hard to believe it’s already December. Only 21 days ‘til Christmas! Community service is an important component of our program at Holy Family School. Our clothing drive for Catholic Charities and Social Services has now reached a total of 235 pounds!!! Mrs. Strano’s second graders collected items such as coffee, cookies, candy, razors, toothpaste and other necessities for our troops in Afghanistan. 10 boxes, weighing approximately 12 pounds each, were sent to our soldiers just before Thanksgiving. The project was called GOD – “Giving Others Delight”. The 2nd graders have now adopted a family of four, a mother and three young children, to share the joys of Christmas with. They will be purchasing some articles of clothing and toys for the family. I’m extremely proud of not only our 2nd graders, but all our students for their willingness to help others.

The first Box Tops competition for the year just finished prior to the Thanksgiving break. The proceeds from the Box Tops go towards the transportation costs for our student field trips. Once again, our families have done a fantastic job! Over $669 was raised from the Box Tops. Once again, Mrs. Lawrence’s 4th grade class finished on top. The 2nd graders finished just behind the 4th graders. Each of our 4th graders was given a $10 Scrip card of their choice. All our students should be congratulated for a job well done. The next competition will begin on January 4th. Please start saving those Box Tops over the Christmas break.

Please save the date of Wednesday, December 16th. Our annual Christmas Concert will begin at 6pm sharp. This year, Cassie Buckley has added a play to the festivities. Three Camels is the story of the birth of Christ as seen through the eyes of the camels of the three kings. It should be entertaining as always. Don’t forget to bring your cameras. As an added bonus this year, Sarah Mahan will be displaying some samples of our children’s artwork in the cafeteria. After the concert, we invite everyone to join us in the cafeteria for the art display and refreshments.

Holy Family School has been awarded a technology mini-grant for an online newspaper with podcasted articles. We have received $2,420 to purchase the following:
Toolfactory Podcasting Site License: This allows students to create, record, and upload podcasts with “point-and-click” mouse skills. It also has a music and sound effects library, as well as including a subscription to Clip Art Station, a massive library of pictures and audio. This will enable students to incorporate music and sound effects into their podcasts to keep listeners intrigued.

Two Olympus Digital Voice Recorders which will provide over 1000 hours of recording with 4GB of internal memory and state of the art capabilities such as file move, file copy, sound editing and multi-format recording.

Two Olympus Microphones with Noise Cancellation which plug directly into the computer or digital voice recorder for uni-directional recording in high-noise environments.

Two Olympus FE-46 Digital Cameras with automatic focus and digital zoom.

Olympus Flip Video Ultra HD Series Camcorder with one touch recording and digital zoom. It can capture 120 minutes of HD video on its 8GB of built-in memory. No tapes or additional memory cards are required.

Two instructional books are also included as part of the package.

Kids’ Zone will be open on Wednesday, December 23rd and Monday through Thursday, December 28 – 30.

The Tri-Cities Opera Assembly is being rescheduled for after Christmas. The new date is Tuesday, January 19th at 9am.

Upcoming Events

Monday, Dec. 7 Make Up Photo Day 8:30am
Tuesday, Dec. 8 Mass: Immaculate Conception Holy Day 9am
4th Grade
Wednesday, Dec. 9 Commission Meeting 6pm
Wednesday, Dec. 9 PTO Meeting 7pm
Thursday, Dec. 10 Science Trip to Colgate Planetarium
Grades 3-7 8:15-11:30
Friday, Dec. 11 Grades 5-7
Wednesday, Dec. 16 Christmas Concert/Art Show 6pm
Friday, Dec. 18 Mass: Christmas Celebration 9am
3rd & 4th Grade
Dress Up Day for Students
Wednesday, Dec. 23 Last day of school: 10am dismissal

Gene

2009-11-19T05:54:00.000-08:00

Dear Parents,

Being a good listener is a characteristic we should all strive to attain. For an administrator to be effective, I believe this is one of the most important qualities they must possess. Mind you, I am not stating I am always a good listener, but at times I do surprise myself. At our Commission meeting Tuesday night, I shared with the members that I was disappointed I had only received 23 out of 86 responses from parents that they were reading my weekly letter. One member stated that it shouldn’t matter. They felt that even if only one parent responded, I should want to write a weekly letter to that parent. The point was that each of my parents is important. The bottom line is that I will continue to write my letter.

Please note that I will not be in school next week. My wife Patti and I will be taking our annual trip to North Carolina to spend the Thanksgiving week with our daughter Jen, her husband and their two sons, Hunter and Brady. I hope everyone finds time to spend with their families over the Thanksgiving holiday. You should be receiving a letter I’m sending out today concerning next year’s enrollment. If you have any questions concerning the contents of the letter, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Advent begins on Sunday, November 29th. The Catholic Identity Committee has planned some Advent activities to help prepare our children to celebrate the birth of Christ. Kate Conron has volunteered to spearhead the activities. They will include:
· Each classroom will have their own Advent wreath which they will light each morning while they say an Advent prayer
· Two children’s Masses will be held on Friday, Dec. 4 (First Friday Mass) and Friday, Dec. 18 (Christmas Mass). Children are encouraged to dress in their Sunday clothes for the Christmas Mass.
· Prior to each Mass, our children will sing “O Come, O Come Emanuel” as they proceed to church.
· The hats, gloves/mittens, and scarves on our “Giving Tree” will be donated to Catholic Charities.

I’d like to congratulate everyone on a very successful clothing drive. 232 pounds of clothing was donated to Catholic Charities and Social Services. Donations are still coming in. Thanks also go to our 5-7 graders for collecting and weighing the clothes.

The canned food drive has ended. The food that was collected will be donated to a local food bank.

Great News: The Reading Loft in the 1st grade room is almost complete. Next up is the loft for the 3rd grade.

Have a great, relaxing, family-oriented Thanksgiving vacation!

Gene

Here are the events for the upcoming weeks:

Thurs, Nov. 19 Thanksgiving Mass: 10 am
Thanksgiving Dinner:
EC – 2nd Gr. 11am
Gr. 3-7 12:15pm

Friday, Nov. 20 Report Cards sent home
Non-Uniform Day

Tuesday, Nov. 24 Last day of school prior to Thanksgiving Vacation – Normal Dismissal Time

Wednesday, Nov. 25 Kids’ Zone will be open

Thurs & Fri, Nov. 26-27 Thanksgiving Vacation: Kids’ Zone will
be closed

Monday, Nov. 30 Advent activities begin

Firday, Dec. 4 Mass: Grades 5-7 in charge

Monday, Dec. 7 Make-Up Photo Date

2009-11-13T12:16:00.001-08:00

November 13, 2009
Dear Parents,

It appears that our school community is getting healthier. Our attendance has improved drastically in the past two days. Please continue to err on the side of caution. If your child has a fever/is ill, please keep them home. If they have a fever of 100 degrees or higher, please keep them home 24-48 hours after the fever returns to normal without the use of medication such as Motrin or Tylenol.

Next week, we celebrate Thanksgiving with our community members. On Thursday, November 19th, we have a Thanksgiving Mass at 10am that the 3rd and 4th graders will be in charge of organizing. We hope everyone will be able to attend. The Mass will be followed by our annual Thanksgiving Dinner for our parents, grandparents, students and staff. Dinner times are:

EC – 2 11:00 am

3 – 7 12:15 pm

If you have children in both levels, you may eat with all your children in the session of your choice. Students will be charged the regular lunch fee of $2.00, while there will be a free will offering for all our guests.

The Scholastic Book Fair is open to all our parents and students in the library through Thursday, November 19th. Stop in and begin your Christmas shopping early!

School physicals will be given to our K, 2nd, 4th and 7th graders, as well as all new students to our school, on November 16-18. A Seasonal Flu Shot Clinic will be held at HFS on Saturday, November 21st from 9am – 11am for anyone 18 years of age or older. Chenango County Public Health will be offering this clinic free of charge.

23 out of 86 families responded that they would like to see this weekly letter continue. This means that approximately 1 out of 4 families read it and/or find it useful. Thanks to all who responded. It is important for me to hear from our families.

Please continue to bring in canned food items for our local food banks. This Friday will be a non-uniform day for our students. My only advice this week is to put up your outdoor Christmas decorations soon before the weather changes. Have a great weekend!

God Bless,

Gene

2009-11-06T05:03:00.000-08:00

November 6, 2009
Dear Parents,

Too often we fixate on the things that go wrong in our daily lives, rather than focusing on all the positive things that occur every day. This past week I had the opportunity to spend some time with one of our parents. Here’s what she had to say:

“I just enjoy life…I love to laugh…and I think we just need to be ourselves. Too often in life, we get caught up in things that truly do not matter…what I call “the stuff.” In the mean time, the “stuff” that really matters is ignored…a child’s smile, a friendly wave, a beautiful cloud, or a gentle touch. Things that mattered to us as children get left behind, and we find a new emphasis in life…not always the emphasis we should observe. We need to remember what was important to us when we were children. This is what matters. This is what makes the journey worth the effort…the everyday things all around us, the things that, somewhere along the line, we forgot to appreciate.”

I hope we all reflect on this parent’s thoughts. Maybe then, more of us would be smiling! Here are the upcoming events:

Monday, Nov. 9 - 19 Book Fair – Library After school - During P/T conferences

Tuesday, Nov. 10 H1N1 Clinic 8am
Only those pre-registered
may receive the vaccine

Wednesday, Nov. 11 Veterans’ Day No School

Thur & Fri, Nov.12&13 Parent Conferences Noon - ?
Early Dismissal 11 am

Thurs, Nov. 19 Thanksgiving Mass 9 am

Thurs, Nov. 19 Thanksgiving Dinner
EC – 2nd Grade 11 am
3rd – 7th Grade 12:15 pm

Throughout my years as an educator and an educational administrator, I have found that a foundation in a child’s success in schools is based on parental involvement. A cornerstone of parental involvement is an open line of communication between parents and the school. This communication comes in many forms: emails, phone calls and this weekly letter.

In an effort to assess the effectiveness of the weekly letter that is sent home, I ask that you email me at gchilion@syrdiocese.org if you wish for this form of communication to continue. If you elect to do this, please do not feel the need to write a message. Please just type “please keep the weekly letter” in the subject box.

Thank you for all that you do to further your child’s education here at Holy Family. If you ever have any concerns or comments, please do not hesitate to contact me. Together we can address things in need of redressing and create appropriate remedies and solutions.

God Bless,

Gene

2009-10-30T11:38:00.000-07:00

October 30, 2009
Dear Parents,

Happy Halloween!!! Better yet, don’t forget to set your clocks back at 2am on Sunday (wow, an extra hour of sleep)!

Many times, my topics for the weekly letters will be random, depending on what occurred during the past week. That is certainly the case this week.

Time and again an administrator has to make decisions that aren’t “black and white”, they’re many shades of gray. We use the information we have and our intuition (gut-feeling) to make a decision that we believe is the best for our children with the information we have on hand. Only time will tell us if we made the best decision. Once in a while, we come across a situation that is clear- the decision is simple to make. That was the case this past Tuesday when I was presented with a letter that was written by our fourth graders.

Before I share the contents of the letter, I’d like to share my thoughts on what some of us may remember from our school days. They used to call it the 3 R’s (reading, ‘riting, and ‘rithmetic). I actually believe we should be teaching the 4 R’s, adding respect to the list. I believe all parents want their children to be respectful and to be treated with respect. This is what we should be modeling as parents and teachers. If we model it, there is a greater likelihood that our children will display this characteristic.

Now, for the letter. I was pleasantly surprised to find a letter on my desk Tuesday afternoon. When I opened it, I saw a typewritten letter on nice stationary that was signed by the entire 4th grade class. As I read the letter, a broad smile spread across my face. The 4th graders have been playing a multiplication math game at their math center called “Timez Attack.” They explained that they are using the free download version, which doesn’t allow them to save their scores or play more challenging math games. The letter was extremely well written. It had an opening paragraph, supporting paragraphs containing valid reasons why we should purchase this educational math game and a closing paragraph. As I read the letter, I thought of the 4 R’s. What a great example of what we want for our children. I immediately went to their science class to congratulate them on the letter, asking them a few questions about the game. When I told them we would get the game, they became very excited. I told them they had to go online and print off the order form and we would fill it in together. For me, it was a perfect ending to a great day. This was an easy decision for me, but most of all I was very proud of our children! click on the link to see a copy of the letter https://www.edline.net/files/257e786ebc0b8e1d3745a49013852ec4/4th_grade_letter.mht. Please take the time to read it.

The final piece of information I’d like to discuss this week pertains to the Holy Family School website (hfsnorwich.com) and Edline. The Diocesan Technology Coordinator and the school consultant we worked with last year both recommended that we use the hfsnorwich.com website for perspective families only. Edline would be used for our current families. As a result of this, the homepage of Edline now contains all the news, the PTO blog, my weekly blog, cafeteria menus, the school calendar, and other information that is pertinent to the daily operation of our school. You can still go to the homepage of hfsnorwich.com and in the top right hand corner click on the “edline link.” This will bring you directly to the edline homepage.

A few reminders:

· Congratulations to all who worked on the float. We finished in first place!
· Set your clocks back one hour at 2am this Sunday
· PTO Pampered Chef party at Missy Hayes’ home on Saturday, November 7th. Contact Missy or any PTO member for info. If you can’t attend, you can order ahead of time using the booklet
· The PTO will be selling the bird feeders again this holiday season. Information will be coming shortly
· 1st Friday Mass is Friday, November 6th at 9am. The 3rd graders will be in charge of this Mass
· The Scholastic Book Fair will begin on Friday, November 6th in the school library
· Don’t forget to check out the PTO blog for upcoming events and information

Have a safe and Happy Halloween!

God Bless, Gene

2009-10-23T10:35:00.000-07:00

October 23, 2009
Dear Parents,

Here’s the latest news on upcoming events at Holy Family School:

· Thanks to Kate Conron for chairing the Halloween Float Committee, the Keators for allowing us to work on it at Norwich Beverage, and all the volunteers (old and young alike) who planned and worked on the “Thriller” float. Don’t miss the parade on Saturday, October 24th beginning at 2pm. If you are a float participant or would like to walk next to our float, please meet at Francis Ave. at 1:40pm. Your support will be greatly appreciated!
· Thanks to Melissa Tworkowsky, Sarah Stroh, Stephanie Coggins, Stacey Russell and the entire PTO Committee for planning and organizing this Friday’s Harvest Dinner at St. Bart’s from 5-7pm. This was definitely a team effort with parents baking pies, children and parents bringing in food items for the dinner, and the work force of parents, students and staff.
· Thanks to Eric Diefenbacher, our science teacher and the rest of our staff for organizing last Friday’s trip to Howe Caverns. Our 2nd graders and students in grades 4 through 7 attended the field trip. Many of our parents joined us on this field trip. The feedback was fantastic! The children and parents loved it and the Howe Caverns personnel raved about how polite, respectful and inquisitive our students were. It’s nice to hear compliments like this about our students!
· Our kindergarten through third graders just returned from a fun day at Critz Farms, located outside of Cazenovia. They went on hay rides, picked their own pumpkins and even ventured out into a corn maze! I believe these experiences are so important in the total educational program. While public schools have been cutting or reducing these types of experiences, we’re fortunate at HFS to be able to continue providing these types of experiences. Believe it or not, the Box Tops that you send in help to pay for the cost of bus transportation to these field trips. Last year we raised $991 from Box Tops. We’re off to a good start this year, with the 4th grade slightly ahead of the 2nd grade. It’s good to see our older students in grades 5-7 also pitching in. They’re currently in 4th place.
· Thanks to Dianne Fiorina for organizing the bowling field trip to Plaza Lanes in Norwich. Our 5-7 graders will be bowling during four afternoons as part of their physical education program. Many have shared with me stories of their experiences and good times while bowling. Thanks also go out to Belinda Keator for helping to transport our students and all the parents for changing their schedules to pick up their children at a later time.
· Health items to put on your calendar:
November 5th: All students in grades K-7 will have their eyes
and ears checked
November 16-18th: Students in grades K, 1, 4 and 7 and all new
students who have not had their annual physical will receive them on this date.
· Please note that the Norwich School calendar is incorrect. On Friday, November 5th, we have a full day of school at Holy Family.

Please remember not to leave children unattended in your cars when you
drop off or pick up your children at school.

Hopefully you have noticed that I have begun sending parents individual emails when I need to share information. If you haven’t given us your email address, please do so as soon as possible. If we have a snow day, you will receive an email stating that school is closed.

Please be on the lookout for the consent form and letter concerning the H1N1 Vaccine Clinic. I’m hoping that they will arrive this week. Have a great weekend!

God Bless,

Gene

2009-10-16T10:00:00.000-07:00

October 16, 2009
Dear Parents,

An issue has been brought to my attention that I would like to address. I, of course, was oblivious to it. Long ago I chose to look at life in a positive manner. I try to always say hello to people and walk around with a smile on my face. As a result, I wasn’t aware that some of our parents weren’t doing the same. We always seem to be in a rush and have many things weighing on our minds that we sometimes miss the obvious. I hope we realize that as parents, we have the greatest impact on our children. They learn from us, not only from what we tell them, but from our actions as well. Is there any better way to teach common courtesy than by our own actions? Let them see us saying hello and good morning (or afternoon) to people we see when we enter HFS. Putting a smile on our face can also make a world of difference. Yes, we all have personal issues that we face every day, but walking around with a smile helps us to put those issues aside, at least for the time being. I would hope that one of the reasons we send our children to HFS is because of the friendly, welcoming environment. Let’s be great role models for all our children and show them by example how we should treat each other. Perhaps we can borrow from the phrase “This is a smoke-free campus” and make our motto, “This is a friendly campus, saying hello and smiling are required.”

Yesterday I mailed out information concerning the intranasal spray for H1N1. We were originally informed that this was the only vaccine available at this time. Last night I received a phone call from Public Health with exciting news. They will be receiving a shipment of both the intranasal as well as the shot administered vaccine. Parents who choose to have their children receive the vaccine will be able to choose which vaccine they want their children to receive. I’m hoping the clinic will be set up in the near future for our students. I will continue to keep you updated as more information becomes available. Please continue to read the articles we are posting on Edline. I have also decided to take several precautions at our First Friday masses with the flu season upon us. We will not hold hands while we recite the Our Father and we will verbally wish each other “peace” rather than shaking hands.

Due to the change in weather and the flu season upon us, I have decided not to wait until November 1st to allow girls in grades K – 4 to wear navy blue slacks (no cargo slacks), except on Mass days. Girls in grades 5-8 may still wear either khaki or navy blue slacks or skirts (no cargo slacks), except on Mass days.

On Monday, we will be mailing home the reading assessment results for our children. These will be discussed in further detail during parent conferences in November.

Our Harvest Dinner at St. Bart’s Parish Center is Friday, October 23rd from 5-7pm. We need volunteers to help out with this fundraising event. Please consider helping out if you can. Contact Melissa Tworkowsky via email (miggy@roadrunner.com) if you can assist us.

The final request concerns stuffed animals. Valley View Nursing Home residents play bingo each week and the residents love winning gently used stuffed animals. If you have any that need a new home, please have your child bring them to Mrs. Hose. We will make sure the nursing home receives them. On this note of giving, our students will be performing two community service projects for the Thanksgiving Season. We will be conducting a canned food drive and a gently used clothing drive for the Domestic Abuse Center. We will be looking for women’s coats, slacks, blouses and children’s coats, boots, gloves, scarves, jeans and shirts. If you have time this weekend, please begin to collect any items you wish to donate.

My last word of advice is to get the snow tires ready! It’s inevitable!

God Bless,

Gene

October 9, 2009

2009-10-07T08:51:00.001-07:00

October 9, 2009
Dear Parents,

I hope everyone is enjoying the fall weather and landscape. This week I will be listing some of the exciting upcoming events at Holy Family School. Please call or stop in if you have any questions.

· Mon, Oct. 12th No School – Columbus Day Kids’ Zone & EC Closed
· Wed, Oct. 14th 6pm Commission Meeting
· Wed, Oct. 14th 7pm PTO Meeting
· Fri, Oct. 16th Howe Caverns Field Trip Grades 2,4,5,6, and 7
· Friday, Oct. 23rd Critz Farm Field Trip Grades K, 1, 2 and 3
· Friday Oct. 23 5-7pm Harvest Dinner St. Bart’s Parish Ctr. PTO Fundraiser
· Friday, Oct. 30th Afternoon Classroom Halloween Parties
· Sun, Nov. 1st 2am Daylight Savings Time
· Mon, Nov. 2nd Individual/Class Portraits
· Fri, Nov. 6th 9am Children’s Mass: 3rd Grade
· Fri, Nov. 6th-19th Scholastic Book Fair: Library
· Tues, Nov. 10th 7pm PTO Meeting
· Wed, Nov. 11th No School – Veterans’ Day Kids’ Zone & EC Closed
· Th & F, Nov. 12 & 13 Early Dismissal 11am. Kids’ Zone & EC open all day
· Th & F, Nov. 12 & 13 Parent Conferences
· Thurs, Nov. 19th 10am Thanksgiving Children’s Mass
· Thurs, Nov. 19th Family Thanksgiving Dinner
Grades EC – 1 11am – Noon
Grades 2 – 7 12:15pm – 1:15pm
· Fri, Nov. 20th Non-Uniform Day
· Nov. 25-29 No School: Thanksgiving Vacation
· Wed, Nov. 25th Kids’ Zone & EC open all day
· Th & F, Nov. 26 & 27 Kids’ Zone & EC closed

Now that school is open, I’d like to remind parents about parking lot safety. Our rule is that when dropping off or picking up your children, please walk them to the door and pick them up at the door. I know this may not be convenient in cold weather, but the safety of our children is our first priority. Also, please shut off your car for safety purposes when leaving it. Thank you in advance for adhering to these safety precautions.

We have been working with Public Health concerning the H1N1 virus. When the vaccine becomes available, we will be conducting a clinic at school for our children. I will let you know as soon as this information is available.

Although it is only the first week of October, we are already planning for our Family Thanksgiving Dinner. Students buying lunch will be charged the normal amount. We are required to do this to meet State and Federal guidelines. A free-will offering will be taken for adult lunches. We are in need of some adult assistance in preparing and serving the food. If you can help out, we would greatly appreciate it. Please let me know if you are able to volunteer.

Please make note: There have been a couple of changes in the October lunch menu. October 14th will be pancakes, scrambled eggs, applesauce, o.j. and milk (instead of french toast).
October 20th will be turkey casserole instead of chicken casserole.

Have a great weekend!

God Bless,

Gene

2009-10-02T14:26:00.000-07:00

October 2, 2009
Dear Parents,

I hope everyone had a great week. Things are running smoothly at HFS. We had a great turnout for our Open House this week. 89% of our children’s parents attended. The parents were able to view the great work their children have been doing in school. The rooms came alive with student work. The hallways were also filled with student work, not only from their classroom, but also from their art and Spanish classes. Congratulations go to our great staff for working on their rooms over the summer. The compliments I heard from the parents and grandparents were well worth the time and effort the staff devoted to preparing their rooms for our students.

Last week I focused on the academic changes that were instituted for this school year. This week I’d like to focus on the physical changes that occurred over the summer months at HFS.

· Cleaning of Rooms: Pete Asma has done a wonderful job of thoroughly cleaning all of our classrooms. From cleaning the heaters, the blinds and windows, the walls, washing and waxing the floors, Pete has made the rooms look like new. Many thanks go to Pete for his hard work and dedication to HFS.
· New Classroom Tables: Several of the classrooms have new round and kidney shaped tables to facilitate instruction with their learning centers. The bright colors also lend themselves to a great atmosphere in the classroom
· Several Rooms Painted: Speaking of bright colors, several teachers painted their own classrooms this summer. The classroom landscape now includes multi-colored polka dots, clouds and the primary colors.
· Several Closets Renovated: The kindergarten and 1st grade classroom closets have been totally renovated to provide more storage space, mailboxes or cubbies for the students and bookcases. It gives the rooms a completely new look.
· Gym/Auditorium Entrance: The walls in the entrance hallway have been painted, a new drop ceiling installed and new fluorescent lighting installed. New drop ceilings in the boys’ and girls’ restrooms have also been installed.
· Energy Audit: An energy audit was conducted in June of 2008. We received the report this past May. Pete and myself reviewed the report and developed a plan to institute many of the recommendations in the report. The recommendations in the report that we took included:
- installing eight new fluorescent lighting fixtures to replace less energy efficient lighting
- shutting off and draining an old hot water heater that we weren’t using, but were heating the water in it. It was a remnant from when the locker rooms and showers were in existence at St. Paul’s.
- replacing the stairwell security lights with more efficient lighting
- removing 30 % of the fluorescent light fixtures in the cafeteria
- installing sensors in several areas of the school to shut off lights when the areas are not in use

Annual Asbestos Inspection: was conducted over the summer. Two minor suggestions, not involving asbestos, were made involving insulation that needed to be replaced on pipes in storage areas. This issue was addressed in August. No other issues or concerns were cited in the report.

Please remember the Christmas Concert is on Wednesday, December 16th at 6pm. Enjoy the beautiful fall colors!

God Bless,

Gene

2009-09-25T11:20:00.001-07:00

September 25, 2009
Dear Parents,

School is in full swing now! It’s great to see all our children again. I can’t believe how much they grew, both physically and in terms of maturity, over the summer. Like our students, Holy Family School has also undergone many changes over the summer, both academically and physically.

This week I’d like to focus on the academic changes we have incorporated for this school year. In next week’s letter, I will discuss the physical changes.

Before I begin my list, I’d like to explain and reassure everyone that I believe these changes were necessary. In fact, I believe if we hadn’t begun this process last year, enrollment in Holy Family School would be extremely low. For years, the staff was told no to any requests. It’s still difficult to sometimes convince them that we must make these changes to improve the academic program at our school. Much of the credit for these changes needs to go to our dedicated staff. Listed below are these changes, in no particular order. If you have any questions or comments, please don’t hesitate to contact me either in person, email (gchilion@syrdiocese.org) or phone 337-2207 (school) or 965-8930 (home).

· Three new staff members: Suzanne Scafidi, Lisa Halsteter and Sarah Mahan.
Suzanne Scafidi is a former graduate of Holy Family School residing in Norwich. Suzanne will be teaching our Early Childhood Program. Suzanne is a NYS certified teacher for Early Childhood Education with a BA in Childhood Education and an MS in Education – Literacy Specialist from the State University College at Potsdam.
Lisa Halsteter will be our new 1st grade instructor. Lisa spent the past two years teaching 3rd grade at Oxford Central School. Lisa holds a NYS certificate in Childhood Education with a BA and MS in Education, Learning and Technology. She resides in Oxford with her husband and five children.
Sarah Mahan has been hired as our new art teacher for grades Early Childhood through 8th grade. Sarah has a BS in zoology, a BA in Studio Art and an MFA in Illustration. Besides working at HFS, Sarah stays busy by working at The Place in Norwich as the Teen Advantage After School Program Leader. Sarah also works at Laurens Central School as a NY Gear Up Tutor and teaches adult and continuing educations Fine Arts classes at the DCMO BOCES in Norwich. Sarah lives with her husband in Mt. Upton.

· ELA Initiative: I appointed Leslie Linfante ELA Coordinator last spring. Leslie met with the teachers throughout the spring to investigate and choose a comprehensive ELA Program for HFS. They chose the Fountas and Pinnell reading assessment program and the Pearson ELA series. We have already purchased and received the reading assessment program and have ordered the ELA series. The staff dedicated a lot of their time and effort into choosing this program and I am confident it will only enhance our already strong ELA program.
· Student Computer Centers: We have purchased sixteen (16) new computers with 19 inch monitors for student use in the classrooms. Many of the elementary teachers have created computer centers in their classrooms, as well as other learning centers. One main advantage of learning centers is that it enables teachers to easily differentiate instruction for the different learning styles and abilities of their students within the classroom.
· Reading Corners (Lofts): Several classrooms will have new reading lofts in them, while several other staff members have expressed an interest in creating one in their classrooms in the future. The purpose of the reading loft is to create an atmosphere and environment whereby students will want to go and read in a relaxed place. Hopefully this will help to instill a love of reading for our students.
· Early Childhood Program: Beginning this September, we instituted a year-round Early Childhood Program for 3-year olds with options for half-day or full day enrollment. The program is open on all weekdays, except holidays. My hope is that this program will grow and once parents see what we have to offer, they will want their children to remain at HFS. We currently have 11 students attending this program.

Our staff has worked hard to prepare their curriculum for this year. I encourage you to talk with your child’s teacher to see how you can compliment the program we have at HFS and assist your child in having a successful academic year. Our Open House will be on Tuesday, September 29th at 6pm. We will once again be sponsoring OM Teams for students in grades 4-7. At 5:45pm on September 29th, just prior to the Open House, there will be a required meeting for all parents and students who want to join the OM Team in Kate Conron’s room.

Before I close, I’d like to thank several people and organizations for their support of Holy Family during the 2008-09 school year. This list is in no particular order or importance and I apologize now if I inadvertently leave any name(s) off the list. The most important person, God, knows who you are and I’m certain your reward with Him will be great.

· The two anonymous supporters for donating the flooring for our main hallways and classrooms
· Camp Pharsalia inmates for installing the new flooring and painting the gym/auditorium
· Today, Tomorrow and Always donations from countless supporters for underwriting our new Science Initiative, purchasing the paint for the gym/auditorium, purchasing laptops for all our staff and several other projects
· Smith Foundation for underwriting our Tuition Assistance Program, purchasing our new Saxon math and religion books, and several Smartboards
· Dowdall Foundation for purchasing library books, classroom computers, and several Smartboards
· PTO for supporting many initiatives such as assisting in purchasing teacher supplies for the classrooms, student programs and assemblies, the annual Lenten Fish Fries, social events and fundraisers to support our school
· The Knights of Columbus for assisting several families with Tuition Assistance
· All the parents/grandparents who donate classroom items throughout the school year
· To the anonymous donor who paid for the computers in our computer lab
· George Carnrike for donating his services by installing the new elevator

Thank you to all of the above and many others that I haven’t mentioned here. May God bless you!

God Bless,

Gene

Weekly Letter

2009-09-17T10:09:00.000-07:00

September 18, 2009
Dear Parents,

We’re off and running after completing our first full week of school. We have finished practicing our eight mandatory fire drills. I would encourage all families to practice these at home, teaching your young children the different escape routes. As they say, it never hurts to be on the safe side.

This past summer we began two initiatives. I’d like to thank Eric Diefenbacher for all the time and effort he devoted to choosing, planning and making the arrangements for our four family science trips this past July. We visited the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse, The Museum of the Earth in Ithaca, Rogers Conservation Center in Sherburne and Wolf Mountain in Smyrna. The trips were not only educational, but they provided families an opportunity to spend quality time with their children.

The MARS Program, Math and Reading Superstars, involved all students receiving a cloth MARS bag filled with a book, school pencil and age appropriate math problems. Students were challenged to read consistently over the summer. Those students that met this challenge were promised a surprise when they returned to school in September. On Friday, October 9th, all students that completed the challenge will receive a certificate and celebrate their accomplishment with an ice cream sundae and movie in the afternoon. Please return your reading validation sheet and completed math worksheets to your classroom teacher or Nikki Strano. Thanks go to Nikki for all her work on this project. Congratulations to all our students for participating in this worthwhile venture. Thanks go to all our staff for assisting in preparing the MARS bags and for all our parents for encouraging their children to read over the summer.

I’d like to remind parents to check our website for the updated dress code. I have tried to consolidate the code and make it more user-friendly. Students may wear uniform shorts until November 1st. Beginning November 1st, girls in grades K-6 may wear navy blue uniform slacks. A belt is recommended if the slacks have loops for a belt. Our next Mass is on Friday, October 2nd at 9am. Please review the dress code for Masses.

As you know, at the end of the last school year central New York had numerous cases of H1N1. While it is difficult to predict what will happen this school year, we need to be prepared to deal with the H1N1 and seasonal flu virus. Holy Family School has taken the following initial steps to reduce the risk:
· We encourage all students to bring their own water bottle to school each day.
· Cup dispensers have been ordered and once received, will be installed next to all water fountains.
· Desks, chairs, light switches, keyboards, mice and headphones are sanitized daily.
· All staff has been provided with Purell Sanitizing Hand Cleanser for student use when soap and water are unavailable.
· All staff were provided an opportunity to attend an immunization clinic for the seasonal flu.

I will continue to provide updated information regarding H1N1 and the seasonal flu as it becomes available.

As always, please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns.

God Bless,

Gene

Welcome Back!!

2009-09-11T16:35:00.000-07:00

September 11, 2009
Dear Parents,

It was great to see all the children once again! So many of them have grown over the summer. Now it’s our job to help them grow both academically and spiritually during the coming school year. To accomplish this, it must be a team effort involving our staff, the children and yes, their parents. If any of these team members falter, our children will suffer the consequences. As always, communication is a key to achieving the success we desire. On this note, if you try to access our Chalksite, you will notice that it no longer exists. Because of the many issues we and many of the other Diocesan schools encountered with this program last year, the Diocese has decided to stop supporting this program. We only received this news at the end of August. As a result, we are changing to Edline and GradeQuick to communicate with our parents. It will take a month to train our staff and allow them time to prepare their webpages and gradebooks. All parents will receive a brief overview of the new program at our Open House on Tuesday, September 29th, along with their passwords to access their children’s grades and the homework calendar. I apologize for the delay, but I believe it is important to provide our staff with some time to become familiar with this program before allowing parents access to it.

Holy Family School is trying to be proactive with the upcoming flu season and the possible outbreak of the H1N1 virus. I have encouraged all our staff to receive the regular flu vaccine at a staff only clinic we have set up at Holy Family School next week. In addition, a Commission member and I will be attending a conference on the H1N1 virus soon. After this conference, we will be taking steps to prepare ourselves for the upcoming flu season. I will be sharing some of these steps with you next week and in weeks to come. At this point, we will be instituting the following precautions:

· All students may bring their own water bottle to school. Please continuously remind your child not to share their water bottles with other students.
· We will be installing paper cup dispensers at our two water fountains for students to use. Too many germs are spread at water fountains by students putting their mouths on the water spouts.
· We will continue to encourage the use of the water dispenser in the cafeteria.
· Your child’s teachers will regularly review with their classes the proper techniques for washing hands and other healthy habits.
· At least once a week Dianne Fiorina, our PE instructor, will spend a few minutes in PE class reviewing healthy habits and techniques with all our students.

I would encourage parents to look at the following websites for further information:
www.flu.gov

www.ascd.org/research_a_topic/h1n1response.aspx

The playground for our young students is completed. The children love it! Stop by and look at it when you get an opportunity. Please remember the PTO Family Picnic scheduled for Friday, September 18th beginning at 5:30pm. All our families are invited to this fun event. A big thanks goes out to the PTO for the Yahoo and Boo Hoo breakfasts for our students on their first day of school. Enjoy Colorscape and the beginning of the beautiful fall foliage.

Back to School

2009-08-28T06:00:00.000-07:00

August 27, 2009
Dear Parents,

Well, I hope you have finished your back-to-school shopping with your children. It’s no different here at Holy Family School. Mr. Asma and the teachers are finishing getting the building and classrooms ready for the start of another exciting year at Holy Family School. I believe you will be pleasantly surprised with the physical changes you will see upon entering the classrooms. More importantly, I believe your children will benefit from the academic changes we have instituted, including our new ELA program.

I would like to make you aware of several important dates. We will have an open house for the parents of our Early Childhood, Pre-K and Kindergarten students on Thursday, September 3 at 6:00pm. The first day of school for students in grades K – 7 will be Wednesday, September 9th. For students in our Pre-K and Early Childhood classes, the first day of classes will be on Thursday, September 10th. Our first Friday Mass will be held on Friday, September 11th at 9:00am at St. Paul’s Church.

I would encourage all parents to visit our website (www.hfsnorwich.com) for information about our school, including the yearly and monthly events calendar, cafeteria menu and parent/student handbook. The cafeteria prices this year will remain the same as last year. Hot lunches will cost $2.00, milk $.40 and ice cream $.75. I would also encourage all parents to visit the teachers’ webpages for important information about their child(ren)’s classes.

If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact your child’s teacher or me. I can be reached at 337-2207 (school) or 965-8930 (home). You can also email the staff or me. Our email addresses are the first letter of our first name followed by our last name @syrdiocese.org. For example, my email address is gchilion@syrdiocese.org.

Lastly, I’d like to thank all our parents for having the confidence and faith in Holy Family School. By enrolling your child at our school, you have allowed us to share your most precious gift, your child. Thank you for trusting us to provide your child with a sound academic education in a safe Catholic environment at the Chenango County Catholic School.

Gene

End of School Year Blog

2009-06-29T05:15:00.000-07:00

June 25, 2009
Dear Parents,

Well, here goes!! It’s been a whirlwind year, full of changes and pleasant surprises. Unlike David Letterman, my list is not in priority order. I believe it is important to reflect on what has occurred this year at HFS and then begin planning for next year. Again, I want to thank everyone for being so supportive and understanding this year. I am eagerly looking forward to next year already. Please remember the Science Field Trips during July and the MARS challenge program. Have a healthy, safe and family-oriented vacation.

God Bless,

Gene

FACILITY UPGRADES

· Elevator lift installed
· Linoleum flooring and baseboard molding for 1st floor classrooms
· Safety lighting installed in computer room
· Rewired fire alarm system on entire bottom floor of school
· Installed new fire alarm between K and Pre-K rooms
· Removed rust and repainted overhang by gym entrance
· Installed rubberized roof on overhang by gym entrance
· Addressed all Code Enforcement issues from 2007 inspection, including new galvanized piping in art room, new toilets, sinks and faucets in both restrooms by gym entrance, and four new emergency lights
· New drop ceiling by gym entrance and restrooms (to be completed by the end of June)
· Gym and stage walls painted
· New playground for our young students (ground was broken this week)

ACADEMIC UPGRADES

· Extended 5th and 6th grade day by 30 minutes in the morning
· Added Exploratory Spanish in grades K-4 one class a week
· Increased Spanish in grades 5 and 6 from twice a week to three times
· New Science Initiative (2/2/09) - Eric Diefenbacher team teaching science classes in grades K-4, including field trips.
· $13,000 worth of new science equipment, lab tables, and storage unit (Today, Tomorrow, and Always Fund)
· New Saxon math textbooks for grades K-6
· Saxon Smartboard lessons on CD for grades 3-6
· Saxon textbook on CD for student use at home for grades 4-6
· New Amsco Integrated Algebra textbooks for grades 7-8
· New Religion workbooks for grades K-8
· New Glencoe Health textbooks and activity books for grades 5-8
· New teacher resource textbooks for our computer program for grades K-8
· Fourteen new laptops for teachers to use for attendance, grading and
communicating with students/parents
· New PDS system for taking and tracking attendance, grading and preparing reports, and new computerized report cards
· New web-pages for each of our staff members to communicate with their students and parents
· New firewall for our internet system
· Wireless internet
· Smartboards in all our classrooms from K-8 grades
· Six more new Dell computers for our lab (Dowdall Fund & private donation)
· Three new classroom computers (Dowdall Fund)
· Have new Spanish teacher also teach music
· Library upgrade – furniture rearranged, two new computer stations added, reading nook for young readers
· Instituted a new Early Childhood program that will be year-round beginning in September, 2009. Purchased new learning materials and hired a former graduate of HFS for the Early Childhood program
· New ELA program for elementary grades, including new reading, writing and assessment programs to begin September, 2009
· A server was donated to our school. It will be installed this summer
· Extending length of day for all students for the 2009/10 school year:
Elementary: 8:05 am – 2:25 pm
Grades 5-7: 8:00 am – 3:00 pm
· New summer science family field trips planned for four Friday’s in July
· Summer MARS Program to encourage all our students to read and do math over the summer

EXPLORING

· Curtains for the auditorium/gym
· Purchasing more classroom computers for student use
· Upgrading student restrooms on the main floor
· Installing new drop ceiling in the main entrance way
· Instituting energy saving projects this summer, including light sensors in certain areas of the building, upgrade hot water heater system to a more energy efficient system and installing more fluorescent lighting

Weekly Letter June 12, 2009

2009-06-12T11:15:00.000-07:00

June 12, 2009
Dear Parents,

Well, testing season is almost over. 8th graders have the Living Environment, Integrated Algebra, and Spanish Proficiency Regents Exams remaining. The results from the State Assessment exams are impressive.
The State’s goal is for all students in the State to receive a score of 3 (Meeting State Standards) or 4 (Meeting State Standards with Distinction). Congratulations to our students and staff for a job well done!

SUBJECT GRADE % ACHIEVING
LEVEL 3 OR 4

ELA Grades 3 – 8 91 %

Math Grades 3 – 8 98 %

Science Grades 4 & 8 100 %

Social Studies Grades 5 & 8 100 %

I have been working on next year’s student class schedule. For the elementary grades, we will continue to offer the Science Initiative and Spanish. The school day for elementary students will start at 8:05 am and end at 2:25 pm. Although this may seem like a trivial change, it enables us to make our special classes 40 minutes instead of 38 minutes, thus adding 6 additional hours of instruction in each class for the year.

In middle school, all 5 -7 students will attend school from 8:05 am until 3:00 pm. Similar to the elementary grades, classes will be 40 minutes in length. The major change is our ability to offer four elective classes to our students during the school day. All 5-7 students will have the opportunity to enroll in Chorus, Newspaper, Yearbook or the Science Club. These classes will meet once a week, with the Science Club and Newspaper meeting once every other week. All 5th, 6th and 7th graders will also be taking a research and data base class once a week.

I will not be writing a weekly letter next week. Instead, I will be working on writing a letter for the week of June 22nd that will focus on the changes/ accomplishments as well as the unresolved issues that we faced this year.

Congratulations to our Nursery, PreK and Kindergarten students on a very successful year. The PreK/Kindergarten Celebration was beautiful. Thanks to Nancy Ritzell, Kelly Law, Mary Hannan, Maureen Wahlberg and Meena Conant for organizing and preparing our students for this event.

2009-06-05T10:25:00.000-07:00

June 5, 2009
Dear Parents,

I hope you had an opportunity to attend our first annual Dessert Theatre this past Wednesday. The performances were outstanding. I’m still amazed at how composed our young students are when performing/speaking in front of large audiences. Congratulations go out to Cassie Buckley, Ann French, Kate Conron, and Melissa Lawrence for doing all the planning and preparation for this event, as well as all our young performers! Plans are already underway for a bigger and better show next year!

Congratulations go out to Sarah Mahan, our new art teacher for the 2009-10 school year and Eric Diefenbacher for receiving a Chenango County Council of the Arts Grant for a project entitled “Science, Arts, and Digital Age Collide in Wildlife Photography.” This will be an interdisciplinary project involving digital photography, computers, music, and science. Great things continue to evolve at Holy Family School!

Summer vacation is just around the corner and you’ll probably be hearing “I’m bored” from your children. Well, at Holy Family School we have an alternative to relieve the boredom and provide family entertainment.
As part of our Science Initiative, we will be organizing several family science outings this summer. All students attending our Kids Zone will be attending these field trips, as well as any other students and parents who want to join in the fun and excitement these trips will offer. If your child does not attend Kids Zone, we are requesting parent chaperones for their children. Realizing parent work schedules are complicated, we are allowing one parent to be responsible for two families. You will provide your own transportation. We will leave together from school for each trip. More specific information will be forthcoming concerning these trips. At present, we are trying to schedule trips to Wolf Mountain for our 3-8 graders, Rogers Environmental Center for our PreK – 4th graders, as well as the zoo in Syracuse and the Museum of Earth in Ithaca for all grade levels. Please note that this list is only tentative at this time. We will pay for all student admissions to these field trips. Adults will be responsible for their own admission. I hope many parents will take this opportunity to spend a day with their children in the outdoors, learning about our environment. Tentatively, the trips are planned for each Friday in July, starting with July 10th.

God Bless,

Gene

2009-05-30T16:25:00.000-07:00

May 29, 2009
Dear Parents,

I’d like to share an event that just occurred at Holy Family School. It involved Mrs. Law’s kindergarten class. The students gave me a jar full of change that totaled $92.11, which they wanted to donate to Africare. They earned this money by doing extra chores at home during Lent. Africare is an organization that works to improve life for Africans facing numerous obstacles. They teach African farmers about irrigation and farming techniques that will improve their crops. Africare also opens medical clinics, providing Africans with information, counseling, and child health care for malaria, AIDS, TB, and many other diseases. Another initiative of Africare is to provide clean water for Africans by drilling new wells in remote villages. The money our students donated will provide some African children with basic life necessities and perhaps even save a life. What a great lesson for our young students to learn! Congratulations kindergarteners!

The second event I’d like to share with you involves a visit I made approximately one week ago as I visited my grandson in a local public school. It happened to be the day residents were voting on school budgets. I arrived at lunch time for the high school students. I couldn’t believe what I saw! This school has an open lunch policy, meaning students don’t have to be in the cafeteria to eat. They may be in the gym or the hallways of the first floor. Walking into the gym I saw approximately 150 students with one supervisor. As I walked into the hallway, I witnessed students sitting on the hallway floors kissing, and using inappropriate language. I also saw approximately 30 students listening to ipods, even though this school prohibits them in their handbook. An apple had apparently been thrown down the hallway, as there were pieces of it throughout the hallway. Again, I only saw one supervisor for all the hallways. No administrators were anywhere in sight.

You may be wondering why I shared these two events. The reason I bring them up is to remind our parents that one of the reasons they bring their children to Holy Family School is because of the expectations regarding behavior, caring and respect. What our kindergarteners did for Africare is what we want from all our children. What a great example they have set for all of us.

Please don’t miss the Dessert Theatre on Wednesday, June 3rd beginning at 6:30 pm in the gym/auditorium. A free will offering will be taken to provide funds to purchase materials/supplies for our music program. Please come and bring a friend to support our students. Hope to see you there!

Congratulations to Sarah Mahan, our new art teacher and Eric Diefenbacher, our science teacher for being awarded a Chenango County Council of the Arts Grant for the 2009/10 school year. Their grant is entitled “Science, Art and the Digital Age.” It should be an exciting interdisciplinary project that will capture the imagination of our students.

We still have openings in our Early Childhood class (3 year olds) for September. Please spread the good word about Holy Family School.

Gene

Weekly Newsletter May 22

2009-05-22T12:32:00.000-07:00

May 22, 2009
Dear Parents,

Although, as I have stated on several other occasions, I am not a proponent of the State Testing Program, it is one of the measures all schools in NYS are held accountable to. Scores may vary from year to year, especially when there is a small student population, so it is important to examine the data over a period of years. Since Holy Family School only began administering the exams last year, we have very little data to review. With that being said, the results for this year are excellent. Student results are grouped into four levels ( 1-4 ). The State’s goal is to have all students achieve levels 3 or 4. The criteria for each level is:

Level 1: Not Meeting Learning Standards
Level 2: Partially Meeting Learning Standards
Level 3: Meeting Learning Standards
Level 4: Meeting Learning Standards with Distinction

Students have taken exams in ELA, Math, Science and Social Studies. Some of the results are official, while others are pending but probably accurate. The results are:

ELA Grades 3 – 8 91 % achieved Level 3 or 4 Official

Math Grades 3 – 8 98 % achieved Level 3 or 4 Unofficial

Science Grades 4 and 8 100 % achieved Level 3 or 4 Official

SS Grade 5 100 % achieved Level 3 or 4 Official

8th Graders will be taking the Social Studies exam on June 2nd and 3rd
Congratulations to all our students and staff on a job well done!!!

Please mark Tuesday, June 16th on your calendars. Students in grades 1-8 will be participating in Olympic Day at the high school. We need volunteers. If you can help out, please contact Dianne Fiorina. The awards ceremony for Olympic Day will be held on Wednesday, June 17th at 8:30 am in our gym. Students will receive ribbons for their efforts. We encourage all parents/grandparents and friends to attend both of these events.

Since Memorial Day is this coming Monday, I thought I’d share a little history about the day. I guess once an educator, always an educator! Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day (I actually remember this) because it was a time set aside to honor the nation’s Civil War dead by decorating their graves. It was first widely observed on May 30, 1868 by proclamation of General John A. Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of former sailors and soldiers. During this first official celebration, General James Garfield made a speech at Arlington National Cemetery, after which 5,000 participants helped to decorate the graves of the more than 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers buried in the cemetery.

In 1966, the federal government, under the direction of President Lyndon Johnson, declared Waterloo, NY the official birthplace of Memorial Day. By the late 1800’s, man communities across the country had begun to celebrate Memorial Day and, after World War I, observances also began to honor those who had died in all of America’s wars. In 1971, Congress declared Memorial Day a national holiday to be celebrated the last Monday in May. Several Southern states continue to set aside a special day for honoring the Confederate dead, which is usually called Confederate Memorial Day.

Here in rural upstate New York, we’re fortunate to have small, hometown parades and speeches, usually organized by our local American Legion Organizations to celebrate Memorial Day. I encourage everyone to attend these local events and share with your children the history behind them. As they say, freedom isn’t free!

God Bless

Gene

Mr. Chilions Weekly Blog 5/15/2009

2009-05-15T08:15:00.001-07:00

May 15, 2009
Dear Parents,

Hopefully we’ve encountered our last frost in Upstate New York and we can plant our vegetable and flower gardens. Spring always seems to be the busiest time of year. There’s Little League, softball, AAU basketball, spring soccer, dance recitals, musical concerts, children receiving First Communion and Confirmation, and of course the yard work that must be done this time of year. It seems like we’re always running from one event to the next, trying to squeeze in all these events. But on the other hand, life would be boring without these activities. I believe that if we reflect back on when we were young, these activities were important to us and if we were fortunate, our parents were there with us. Don’t miss the opportunity to be with and support your children as they move to adolescence and adulthood. After all, if we want them to be good parents to our grandchildren, we must be positive role models for them now. So let the grass grow tall and the weeds survive a bit longer. Go to that game or concert or recital with your children and cherish the memories that will live not only a lifetime, but many lifetimes with your children and grandchildren!

Last week our 4th and 8th graders took the State Science Assessment Exam. It consists of two parts; a Performance or laboratory section and a Written portion. I’m pleased to announce that 100 % of our students met or exceeded the State Standards by receiving a 3 or 4 on the exam. Congratulations to all our students and staff for this accomplishment.

I hope you were able to attend and enjoy our Spring Concert last night. Thanks to Cassie Buckley and Ann French for all the planning, time, effort, and practice they devoted to this concert. And, of course, thanks go to all our students who gave 100 % to make this concert special. It was great to see all their smiling faces and hear their beautiful voices! I’m extremely proud of the growth our music program has achieved this year and eagerly look forward to the future. On that note, please remember to mark Wednesday, June 3rd at 6:30 pm on your calendars. Our first Dessert Theatre performance will occur that evening. The gym/auditorium will be set up like a small café with desserts, tea, coffee, and juice served at intermission. Don’t miss this inaugural event. There will be a “free will offering” to assist us in meeting the needs of our music program. Any money donated will be spent on purchasing risers for the concerts, curtains for the gym/auditorium, and music for next year’s concerts. Thank you in advance for your support of our students at Holy Family School.

Our 7th and 8th graders will be working on an interdisciplinary unit on the culture of the 1960’s in their Art, Social Studies and Language Arts classes. Students will be creating posters, interviewing friends and family who experienced the 60’s, and studying the protest songs of this decade. This is part of the “Picturing America” grant that Val Dragoon obtained for our school. The culminating activity for this unit will be a lecture from a visiting college professor on “So You Think You Want a Revolution” on May 28th.

Please note that some of our area public schools will be closed on Friday, May 22nd. Otselic Valley and Unadilla Valley are definitely closed, while Oxford will be open. As a result, any students that normally ride a bus to school will have to provide their own transportation on this day if their local school is closed. Please check with your local school to see if they are open. Please remember to pay any outstanding balances on your children’s cafeteria accounts. Our “lost and found” area is becoming unmanageable. Please check this area to see if any of the items belong to your child. On Friday, May 22nd, we will take all unclaimed items to the Salvation Army. Enjoy the warm weather and the weekend with your family!

God Bless,

Gene

2009-05-08T05:14:00.000-07:00

May 8, 2009
Dear Parents,

I can’t thank our parents and students for all the support they are providing our school through the Box Top competitions. The final competition ended last Friday, with the Staff team finishing in first place. The second place team was the 4th grade. Finishing a close third was the 3rd grade class. All three of these teams can now choose a Non-Uniform Day during the month of May. I would to thank everyone for participating this year. We have raised $996.90 for student field trips. We will still accept any Box Tops throughout the remainder of the school year. Please turn them in to Mrs. Hose in the main office.

We just received a thank you letter from Ms. Cindy Falise, Director of Catholic Relief Services for our donation of $159.19 during the Lenten Rice Bowl program. While I’m on the theme of thank you’s, I’d like to thank all our students and staff for preparing for the May Crowning/Living Rosary. Gratitude also goes out to Paula Trevisani and Ellie Olsen of the Catholic Identity Committee for their help in planning this fantastic activity. Lastly, I’d like to thank Chris Henschel for making and donating a Living Rosary to our school for the May Crowning and similar events in the future.

Our elementary staff continues to meet weekly to examine samples of reading and writing programs for next year. Our three-year old Early Childhood Program will be in full swing in September. It will be a year-round program that will be open every day, except holidays and several other days. If you have a young child or know other families that may, I encourage you to stop in and take a look at the program. Our rates are competitive and best yet, our program will foster academic and social growth in a nurturing Christian environment. Please also encourage any families who may be looking at an alternative to public education to contact me for a tour of our facility and a description of our program. Word of mouth is often the best type of advertisement!

Please mark Thursday, May 14th on your calendars. At 6:00 pm Ms. Cassie Buckley will present our Spring Musical Concert. I have been fortunate to listen to some of the rehearsals and I am impressed. The students are working extremely hard with Ms. Buckley for the concert. I’m sure you’ll love the concert. All students from Nursery – 8th grade will participate in the concert. When attending the concert, please enter through the back gym doors.

On May 15th, award-winning local author/illustrator Suzanne Bloom will be giving presentations to the students to celebrate National Children’s Book Week. Ms. Bloom will be signing and selling her award winning picture books at the end of the day. If you are interested in learning more about Suzanne and her books, please visit her website at www.suzannebloom.com. We’d love to have you attend the presentations/book signing:

12:15-1 pm grades 4-8
1:15-1:25 pm grades Pre-K and K
1:15-1:45 pm grades 1-3
2:00-2:30 pm Book Signing

We are requesting your assistance in helping us pay our bills in a timely fashion. We have a number of students who have substantial cafeteria bills and/or have bills for Kids Zone. We are requesting that you please pay these bills at your earliest convenience.

MR. ASMA NEEDS YOUR HELP! The Lost and Found is growing. Please take a moment to view the items to determine if any belong to your family. The Lost and Found is located at the end of the hall near the Nursery room. Any items left at the end of the school year will be donated to Catholic Charities.

Please continue to check the Calendar of events. There are many events during these last two months of the school year and we wouldn’t want you to miss any.

God Bless,
Gene

Holy Family School Weekly Newsletter 5/1/09

2009-05-01T11:37:00.000-07:00

Dear Parents,

Our May Crowning of Mary was a wonderful event today. Having the students actively involved made the event more personal to our students. While we’re on the topic of upcoming events, my oldest grand-daughter will be receiving her First Communion this weekend, so my weekly letter will be short due to the fact that my wife and daughter have asked me to complete some projects at home prior to this event.

Please continue to refer to the “Upcoming Events” list in last week’s letter.

Next week, our 4th and 8th graders will be taking the written portion of the State Science Assessment Exam on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively.

Our monthly Mass will be Thursday, May 7th at 9 am in church, followed by our National Day of Prayer activities.

Soon you will receive information about the student dress code for the annual Spring Concert held on Thursday, May 14th.

Father Joe O’Connor of the Syracuse Diocese will be speaking with all our students on the morning of Monday, May 4th. Please feel free to come in and meet Father O’Connor and welcome him to Holy Family School.

All students and parents should have received the 30 week report card. We encourage all parents to take a few minutes and look over their child’s report card. If you think an error has occurred or need any clarification, please do not hesitate to contact me or Ann French. Our students once again performed admirably. In grades 5-8, 46 % of our students achieved High Honor status (overall average 95 % or higher) and 38 % achieved Honor status (overall average of 89 % to 94.99 %). This represents 83 % of our middle school population. Congratulations!

Finally, I encourage everyone to take time with your families to enjoy the beautiful upstate scenery and weather!

Holy Family School Weekly Letter April 24th, 2009

2009-04-23T15:42:00.000-07:00

April 24, 2009
Dear Parents,

For the past 14 years, Father Cunningham has not only been the spiritual leader at Holy Family School, but he has been the driving force behind keeping our doors open and providing many parents with the opportunity of sending their children to a Catholic school in Chenango County. Although I was only able to work ten months with Father, he taught me an important lesson that I will never forget; to always look at the positive in everything. So, in following his advice, I can gladly state that I have been fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with Father for the past 10 months.

I don’t need to restate the many issues that were present back on July 1st. Through all of the issues, Father Cunningham was always positive about everything. Over the summer enrollment dropped drastically, parental confidence in our academic program plummeted, and financial issues were ever-present. It was at this point Father Cunningham became my mentor and confidant. He always supported my decisions and always said that God would provide me with the answers. When my mother passed away, it was Father who consoled me with tears in my eyes.

Now life presents us with what appears to be another obstacle or setback. But that’s not how Father would view this. He would smile and say that God will provide us with the answers. If we have learned anything from Father, it is we need to view it in this vein. Perhaps Father’s work at Holy Family is complete and it’s time for him to help another community. Now it’s time to turn to prayer for Father’s health and his successful transition to another community with his boys. God will provide him with the answers.

----------------------------------------------

· Box Tops: We just received another check in the amount of $290.55 for our Box Tops. The final competition ends on May 1st. The staff is still in the lead, but I have a feeling that several classes are “holding back” until the last day. Time will tell!
· Open House: Thanks to Mrs. Law and her kindergarteners for the lovely opening prayer and song and the PTO for the refreshments. It was a great evening, providing parents with an opportunity to meet their child’s teacher for next year, as well as view samples of their child’s work from this spring.
· New Staff: The following teachers have been hired for the 2009/10 school year:
Sarah Mahan Art
Suzanne Scafidi Early Childhood
Lisa Halsteter 1st Grade
· Playground: We’re almost ready to begin the ground-breaking for the new playground/picnic area for our 3-6 year old students.
· Smartboards: Within the next few weeks, we will be installing new Smartboards in our kindergarten and 2nd grade rooms. A Smartboard in the 1st grade classroom will be installed at the end of the school year. All staff will begin receiving training in the use of Smartboards at the end of June. We will finish this training the first week of September.
· Gym Painting: Thanks to the Camp Pharsalia work crew, our gym and stage have now received a fresh coat of paint. None of this would have been possible without all the planning, time, and organization that Pete Asma put into this project.
· Early Childhood Program: Word of mouth is usually the best type of advertisement. Beginning in September, we will have a year round Early Childhood Program for 3 year old children who are potty trained. Our certified teacher, Suzanne Scafidi, is a graduate of Holy Family School. There will be a Sunrise and Sunset component to this program, staffed by Suzanne and Cassie Buckley. If you or any of your friends are looking for a safe, affordable, educational program for 3 year olds, please stop by and get the information.
· Vocations: Father Joe O’Connor will be speaking to all our students on religious vocations on Monday, May 4th beginning at 8:30 and ending shortly after 11:00am.

April 8 Holy Family School Weekly Letter

2009-04-08T12:10:00.001-07:00

April 8, 2009
Dear Parents,

I hope everyone has a relaxing vacation and is able to spend some quality time with their families. Just a few reminders prior to our Easter Vacation:

· Kids Zone will be open this Thursday and every day after Easter. It will be held in St. Paul’s basement.
· The Camp Pharsalia work crew will be painting the gym and stage area over the break.
· The local Knight’s of Columbus #211 organization has generously donated money to Holy Family School for scholarships. If you are a member of the Knights of Columbus, please pick up an application in the main office of the school. Members’ children attending our school will receive a scholarship in the amount of 10 % off their current tuition bill.
· Open House will be held on Thursday, April 23rd from 6-7 pm.
· The school sweatshirts are in. Your children should be bringing them home today.

April 3 Weekly Letter

2009-04-05T12:09:00.000-07:00

April 3, 2009
Dear Parents,

It’s been exciting to watch our middle school students in grades 5-8 dissecting worms, locusts, lampreys, frogs, and rats as part of the upgraded science curriculum at Holy Family School. They’ve done a phenomenal job! I would encourage everyone to attend the assembly on Wednesday, April 8th – “Talons, Birds of Prey!” Times for the shows were sent home with your child today. Come and join us. Please remember that Wednesday is also a “non-uniform” dress day. Also, please mark on your calendars Thursday, April 23rd from 6pm till 7pm. This is the date and time for our spring Open House at Holy Family School. Your child will be bringing home more information explaining in detail the exciting events planned for this evening.

I hope everyone has a great Easter Vacation. The Kids Zone will be open on the following days:

Thursday, April 9
Monday, April 13 through Friday, April 17

The gym will be painted over the break, so Kids Zone will be held at St. Paul's in the church basement.

Congratulations to our March raffle basket winner, Herman Von Hassel! All proceeds from these raffles go to support our student field trips.

Well, it’s been exactly six months (October 3rd) since I wrote about “Why Holy Family?” in my weekly parent letter. With enrollment for next year under way, I believe it’s an appropriate time to reflect back on the contents of that letter. As a parent, I know you want what’s best for your children. The elementary and middle school years for children are critical! These are the years when children develop the values that will shape them for the rest of their lives.

WHY HOLY FAMILY REVISITED

1. Respect: If parents were asked for the number one quality they would like to see their children exhibit, I believe the large majority would choose respect. I can remember my parents always talking to me about respect. At Holy Family, I’ve seen respect come to the forefront. Sure, we all take a step backwards at times, but when that has happened, heartfelt apologies soon followed. So if respect is important for your family, please ask yourselves where this quality is most evident

2. Discipline: I believe this goes hand-in-hand with respect. Here’s a great example that occurred recently. A class behaved disrespectfully to a substitute teacher approximately one week ago. The substitute told the teacher who immediately addressed the issue by telling the class that they would all have lunch detention the next day with her. At the end of the day, the teacher discussed the issue with me. The following morning I spoke with the entire class, expressing my disappointment with their behavior and explaining to them that if the substitute were their mother, they would have been very upset with their classmates. I was trying to explain that even if you do not take part in the misbehavior, you have a responsibility to try to stop it. I told the class that I wanted them to write apologies to the substitute during their lunch detention and then hand deliver them and verbally apologize to the substitute. I should have known, but they told me they already wrote the apologies and apologized to the substitute! There was nothing else for me to say except thanks and to continue reinforcing that this is the type of behavior we expect from them.

3. Parental Support: This is the key to success for our children. Without it, the odds are slim that a child can be successful. Parental support means more than making sure your child gets to school on time and completes his/her homework. It means taking an active role in his/her education and school activities. At each of the parent meetings I’ve had, I always give the parents a job to do at home with their children. One parent is working on “Hooked on Phonics”; others read each night with their children, while others practice the spelling words with their children. Volunteering in the classrooms, working at the fish fries, going on field trips, attending assemblies, and bringing in snacks for your child’s class reinforce to your children that you do care and are part of the school community, just like he/she is.

4. Neighborhood School/Safe & Nurturing Environment: As parents, we all want to protect our children and make sure they are safe. What better place than Holy Family! Just the fact that parents/grandparents bring their children to school and are here to greet them at the end of the day makes Holy Family safer. As for nurturing, one only has to look at all the hugs in the hallways. No matter what time of day, one can see parents hugging teachers (great role modeling), parents hugging their children, teachers hugging children, and yes, the principal hugging everyone in sight. While we may not give much thought to this because it’s commonplace at Holy Family, would you see this elsewhere? The great part is that the hugs are genuine and it’s not just at the elementary level. Yes, it’s true we, as parents, can’t protect our children forever, but what’s wrong with trying to protect them for as long as we can, which includes the difficult middle school years?

5. Uniforms/Dress Code: Call me “old-fashioned”, but as I stated back in October, I never realized the difference uniforms and a dress code make in the atmosphere of a school building. At Holy Family School, class time is dedicated to academic pursuits, not dealing with the numerous discipline issues that too often occur in public schools.

6. Prayers and the Pledge: Again I’ll state that starting and ending the day with a prayer, as well as before lunch, is powerful. Likewise, call me old-fashioned once again, but it bothers me when I see people leave their hats on at sporting events when the National Anthem is sung or the Pledge is recited. Likewise, it bothers me when students refuse to stand for the Pledge in classrooms when our tax money is paying for their education. To me, this is a sign of disrespect.

7. The Value of Your Child: So, why Holy Family? I believe parents need to ask themselves, “What is the most important thing in my life?” I certainly hope every parent would, without hesitation, say their family or their children. All parents have the responsibility to make decisions concerning what is best for their children. I would never question their right to do this. I would only ask that when it comes to their children’s education, they look at what Holy Family has to offer and see that it provides the safe, nurturing, and academic environment every parent wants for their children.
God Bless

Gene

March 27 Holy Family School Weekly Letter

2009-03-27T08:26:00.000-07:00

March 27, 2009
Dear Parents,

We’re closing in on the end of another marking period. The 30 week marking period ends on April 8th. Report cards will be sent home on the Friday we return to school after our Easter Vacation.

Please remember that if your child is requesting bus transportation to HFS next year, the request to your home district must be submitted by April 1st. Please contact me if you have any questions.

I dislike harping on one topic, but we still need enrollment forms from some families. If you are not planning on attending HFS next year, please let me know via a phone call or a note. The reason this is such an important issue is that student population dictates staffing needs. If you have any questions concerning enrollment, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

The Friday Lenten PTO Fish Fries will continue for a few more weeks. Stop by and eat a great dinner in our cafeteria or call 337-2208 to order take-out dinners from 5pm till 7pm.

Please remember to send in your BoxTops. The Staff is still ahead in our latest competition. The contest ends on May 1st.

The new Science Initiative is going well. The 5th and 6th graders will be observing Mr. Diefenbacher as he dissects different animals: a fish, rat, frog, salamander, bird, lamprey and a shark. The 7th and 8th graders will each dissect a worm, locust (grasshopper), frog, lizard, and a rat.

At this juncture, I need to study the remaining issues that were brought up at the Parent/Teacher/Commission Elementary meeting at the end of January. At this time, I do not know if changes will be made in these areas. I will, as always, keep you informed as time goes by.

· Work on the appearance of the classrooms.
This is an area that I believe class parents can help us.
· Need to conduct exit interviews for families and staff that leave HFS.
· Community service projects for students to give them a sense of social responsibility.
· Look at upgrading Kids Zone.
· Adding a second parent/teacher conference for additional input for parents.
· Providing kindergarten parents with a report card for the first marking period.
· Social issues associated with smaller class sizes

God Bless,

Gene

March 19 Holy Family School Weekly Letter

2009-03-19T07:56:00.000-07:00

March 20, 2009
Dear Parents,

Well, we made it! Spring has officially arrived in upstate New York. It’s great to see and hear the children playing outside at recess time. I’ll begin with this week’s announcements.

· Tools for Schools: Congratulations to all our families! Holy Family School finished as one of the top 100 schools in the Northeastern section of our country (CT, MA, NY, VT, PA). The contest ran for 5 months, October through February. Our total balance for the 5 months was 41,984.66, basically meaning we spent about $40,000 at Price Chopper over this period. As a result, our staff is able to purchase items from an educational catalog to support our program at HFS. In addition, as a result of finishing in the top 100, we receive a Califone Wireless Presentation Pro PA System for our school. Thanks go to Stephanie Coggins, our school coordinator and to all the families who participated in this program.

· Barring another snow day, Easter Vacation will begin on Thursday, April 9th. Our last day of school will be Wednesday, April 8th. Since we’ll be on vacation, we will not celebrate a Friday Mass in April. Each grade will be (or has been) praying the Stations of the Cross for Lent.
· Friday, March 27th is the last Friday of the month. It will be a “non-uniform” day.
· Beginning Wednesday, April 1st, students may wear school shorts to school.
· Fish Fry – Friday, March 27th: 5pm-7pm
· Enrollment forms for 2009-10 school year should be returned by March 31st. We will be offering an Early Childhood Program for 3 year olds beginning in September. Please spread the word. Our goal is to have between 12-14 children in this program.

· A wish list of supplies needed for painting the gym will be sent home soon with your children and posted on the website. Any assistance you can provide will be greatly appreciated. The gym will be painted by the Camp Pharsalia workers over the Easter Vacation.

This week I will discuss the suggestions/recommendations that were offered at the Parent/Teacher/Commission meeting concerning our elementary school program.

· Ensure that our curriculum is at least equal, if not superior to the public school curriculum. To this end, we have already added Spanish and additional Science instruction in our elementary grades. As I have promised, we have just begun the process of upgrading our ELA program, which will include assessments for students in grades K-2 at the minimum. We will be exploring the possibility of extending this through 4th grade. At present, the state administers exams beginning in grade 3.
· We need to challenge all our students using differentiated instruction techniques. Two additional staff members just returned from a conference on this topic. They were excited and have already begun using some of the techniques in their classes. I have asked them to share their new knowledge with our entire staff at a future staff meeting. We will continue to strengthen this area and explore additional ways to address this concern.
· There were some concerns relating to the staff turnover rate. This past year we hired four new staff members. For the 2009-10 school year we will be hiring a new 1st grade teacher, an art teacher, and a new staff member for our restructured Early Childhood Program. At this time, these are the only changes in staffing for next year. While I agree consistently high turnover rates can adversely affect the educational program, I believe the new staff hired for this year have improved our educational program. We have received a large number of applications for our openings for next year and will be conducting interviews prior to our Easter Vacation. I am very impressed with the quality and number of applicants we have for these positions. I will certainly keep everyone informed when a final decision is made.
· A suggestion was made that parents in each class should receive a class roster containing student names, parent names, address, phone numbers, and email address. This will be in place for September, pending individual parent approval.
· Another suggestion was to have more involvement by parents, especially parents of young children. I agree that this is one benefit of attending HFS. Parental involvement is greater than in most public schools and is certainly welcomed by our school. However, we can always improve in this area. I will ask the PTO for their assistance in this area.
· School Handbook: Whether we have Diocesan approval or not, we will have the School Handbook on our website for the 2009-10 school year. Putting it on the website will save money and trees. We will provide hard copies for those parents without internet access.

There were several other suggestions made that I will address next week. Enjoy the lovely upstate spring weather with your family.

God Bless,

Gene

March 12 Holy Family School Weeky Letter

2009-03-12T06:27:00.000-07:00

March 12, 2009
Dear Parents,

Last Friday my wife, Patti, and I worked our first PTO Fish Fry. What an experience! While on the surface it appears that the main purpose of this yearly event is to raise money for our school, it quickly became evident that there is possibly a more important purpose – bringing our school community together.

In today’s world we all live hectic lives where there never seems to be enough time, especially when it comes to spend time with our neighbors. As soon as I began working at the Fish Fry, I realized there was much more to this event. It was unbelievable to see so many people working at the Fish Fry. The work force included children as young as kindergarteners to senior citizens (OK, just in case your mind is racing, I certainly don’t include Patti and myself in this group), students who have recently graduated from HFS and many parents of present students at HFS. The atmosphere in the kitchen and cafeteria was lively, to say the least. Laughter, not fish, seemed to be the main course. Laughter, smiles, friendly banter and teasing were dished out all evening and when the last dinner was served, we sat at tables and continued getting to know each other better. Although Patti and I were tired at the end of the evening, it was a satisfying type of feeling. We’re already looking forward to working again in two weeks so that we can get to know more about our friends at Holy Family School!

The past two weeks, I have shared the information we gathered at the Parent/Teacher/Commission meetings. As promised, I will begin addressing many, if not all the questions raised at these meeting. I will begin in reverse order, starting with the Grade 4-7 meeting.

It was suggested that we differentiate instruction so that all our students’ needs are met and each student is challenged. By the end of April, six of our staff members will have attended workshops on differentiated instruction. These staff members will then be asked to share the techniques and materials they received with their colleagues.

The question “When is it appropriate to transfer their children to public school?” was asked. This is a question that must be answered by each individual parent. However, it has my observation that the students that completed 8th grade at HFS have adjusted extremely well in the public school system. They have been frequently placed in the accelerated classes and have consistently been on the Honor Roll. I believe parents need to address the issue of why they send their children to school – is it for academics or socialization? While both can be addressed, which is more important?

What will happen if there are only 2 or 3 students in a grade? Will that grade be eliminated or will I combine grade levels? I can assure all parents that even if there is only one student in a grade level, we will accept that student. We will not combine several grade levels for the core subjects (Math, Science, SS, and LA). We will continue to combine classes for PE, Music, Health, and Computer, as well as possibly for Spanish and Art.

There was a concern expressed about the small class sizes in middle school at Holy Family. As a parent, I would instead be concerned with the possibility of large class sizes at public schools due to staff reductions caused by the Governor’s proposed educational budget cuts. Smaller class sizes mean more individual attention for each student, which again refers to the question of why we send our children to school – for academics or socialization. An added benefit of small class sizes is that our students have many public speaking opportunities, both in the classroom and at our HFS Masses.

Our students need more extracurricular activities (other than sports which they can receive through their local communities) to enhance their educational experience. Our 7th/8th grade Odyssey of the Mind Team just competed at Oneonta State a few weeks ago. We are already planning to add an elementary team for next year. Our 4th-8th grade chorus was recently organized and will be practicing and preparing for our Spring Concert. I’d also like to look into an after-school Art Club for next year. I’m certainly open to other suggestions from teachers and parents for additional extracurricular activities we can offer our students.

The final suggestion was to improve the research skills of our students using databases. Ann French is in the process of obtaining information about databases that are free to schools. She plans to address this issue in her computer classes next year.

There are several changes that I am considering to implement next year for our students in grades 5-8. This year I began the school day earlier for our 5th & 6th graders. Next year, I plan to extend their day until 3 pm. This would give us more flexibility in scheduling, as well as provide students with more academic time in classes. This would mean that all our students in grades 5-8 would attend school from 8 am until 3 pm. I am also seriously considering a block schedule for middle school students for next year. This would mean that core subjects would be scheduled every other day for a double period. While this seems insignificant, it means less movement for the students, a longer period enabling students to complete labs, discussions and projects in class, and provides students with 7 ½ additional hours of instruction in each core class (5 minutes passing time between classes for 90 instructional days equals 450 minutes or 7 ½ hours).

Next week I’ll address the concerns raised at the elementary parent meetings.

God Bless,

Gene

UPCOMING EVENTS

Tuesday, March 17th St. Patrick’s Day – Students requested to dress in green
Sons of Ireland Band – 10 am Gym
Lecture: Strong Celtic Women – 1 pm Church

Thursday, March 19th St. Joseph’s Day – Students requested to dress in red

Friday, March 20th PTO Fish Fry: 5 – 7 pm Cafeteria

March 6 Holy Family School Weekly Letter

2009-03-04T16:02:00.000-08:00

Friday, March 6
Dear Parents,

Well, only 14 more days till Spring! I can’t wait for Spring to formally begin. This week I will share the comments/suggestions that parents of our current 4th – 8th grade students shared at the Parent/Teacher/Commission Meeting.

Things they like and want to keep:

· New Science and Spanish initiatives, along with advances in technology, as well as the safe and nurturing environment are making HFS superior to the public school alternative
· Glad to see the new playground initiative – the number one issue for parents last year was that the playground was not age appropriate
· Receiving more feedback from teachers/principal this year
· Very pleased with the new staff members this year
· There is a new, positive atmosphere throughout the school this year
· It’s nice to hear that public school teachers always say that they can tell which of their students attended HFS due to their academic preparedness and respectful attitude
· Our students are better abstract thinkers, possibly due to their religious background as well as due to the small class size, if a child has an opinion, the teacher can pull that thought out of them and help them to develop it further
· Loves that the parents at HFS school are interested in their child’s education and that an informal parent network seems to exist
· Believes that the homework policy in place is wonderful and if there is a problem, parents are contacted so that all of us can work on the issue
· The HFS students are individuals, they’re confident, unbiased, and not as influenced by peer pressure HFS students can stand on their own academically and socially
· It’s good to see things organized and early enrollment is a sign that there is organization in place and we’re planning for the future

Areas of Concern/Suggestions:

· Could make the 8th grade curriculum more challenging. We need to differentiate instruction so that all students are challenged
· Parents of students in grades 4-8 are trying to make the decision as to when it’s appropriate to transfer their children to the public school. What do we have and what can we add that will help parents keep their children at HFS through 8th grade
· Small class size – sometimes students need to be motivated by their peers. Less students could mean less competition
· We need to get more feedback from families that have left or graduated from HFS
· What happens if there are only 2 or 3 students in a grade? Will that grade be combined or eliminated?
· Public School Concern: Governor’s budget cuts may mean larger class sizes in public schools. In Norwich there are 32 students in an advanced math class. In a science class, there were two sections but that has been reduced to one section due to the large number of students dropping the class during the school year
· Concerned that there’s a lot of negativity from the past in the community concerning HFS. Loves the new atmosphere and hopes it’s not too late to get the word out to the community that positive change is occurring at HFS. Word of mouth is the best advertising and if we, as parents, are happy we need to spread the word.
· Explore extracurricular activities for students. Not just sports, but science explorers club, theater, arts club, etc.
· We need to get information and enrollment forms to all businesses where new employees may be coming in
· Improve research skills using databases

God Bless,

Gene

REMINDERS

· Hooded HFS zippered sweatshirt order forms must be returned by Friday, March 13th with a check
· Tuesday, March 17th is St. Patrick’s Day. Students are asked to dress in “Green” attire. There will be two events held that day. Guests are invited to attend.
- Sons of Ireland Band 10 am Gym
- Celtic Women Lecture 1 pm Church

· Thursday, March 19th is St. Joseph’s Day. All students are asked to dress in “Red” attire.

UPCOMING ACTIVITIES

State Math Exams – Grades 6 – 8 March 9 – 13
6th Grade Monday & Wednesday
7th Grade Monday & Wednesday
8th Grade Tuesday & Thursday
PTO Meeting – 7pm Wednesday, March 11
Friday Mass – Gr. 4: 9am Friday, March 13
PTO Lenten Fish Fry 5pm-7pm Friday, March 13
Sons of Ireland Band 10am Tuesday, March 17
Celtic Women Lecture in Church-1pm Tuesday, March 17
Discovering America Grant – Val Dragoon
Val was awarded this prestigious grant which provides many benefits
for our students, including providing us with guest lecturers.

February 27 Holy Family School Weekly Letter

2009-03-03T18:04:00.000-08:00

February 27, 2009

Dear Parents,
I hope everyone had a great week off. I think we all needed the R&R. As I promised, I’d like to devote the next few weekly letters sharing the comments we gathered at the Parent/Teacher/Commission meetings held on January 27th and February 2nd. Although attendance at the meetings was low, the tenor of the meetings was extremely positive, professional, and upbeat. I can look at the low attendance from three different points of view. The pessimist would view it as a no-vote of confidence, the optimist would look at it as a vote of confidence with minimal issues, and the realist would view it as life is so complicated and busy, parents can’t find the time to attend a meeting at night. Time will tell which is the case! Please remember that our Enrollment Process has begun. We are asking that parents return the forms by March 31st. If you are applying for Diocesan Tuition Assistance through FACTS, you need to fill out the form and mail it in yourselves. If you are also applying for local assistance, please check the appropriate box on the back of the Enrollment Form and return the form to school. You may also call or stop in to discuss your assistance needs.
Feedback from parents is useful only if it is evaluated to see if it fits the vision of the school. Below is a summary of comments from the parents of our Nursery through 3rd grade.

Things they like and want to keep:
• Want school to stay open
• Like that new programs and ideas are being tried
• Like that issues are addressed when they arise
• Like the fact that the students are taught respect, religious morals and values, in addition to academics
• Like the fact that the staff members know all the students’ names
• Like small class size
• Students are really inspired and interested in specials this year – a 180 degree turn around from last year
• Love the school atmosphere and environment – very positive and caring
• Love that Spanish is being offered to all our elementary students

Areas of Concern/Suggestions:
• We need to ensure that our curriculum is at least equal, if not superior to the public school curriculum
• We need to challenge all our students (Differentiated Instruction)
• Work on appearance of classrooms – cutting clutter and making them more professional looking
• Need to conduct exit interviews for families and staff that leave Holy Family School
• Social issues associated with smaller class size
• Community service projects for students to give them a sense of social responsibility
• Improve Kids Zone
• Concerns with staff turnover – will there be much turnover after this school year
• Kindergarteners receive their first report card at the beginning of February. This is very late. Is there a possibility of revamping this and adding more report card marking periods for kindergarteners.
• Adding a second parent/teacher conference for additional input
• What is the status of the school handbook
• A little concerned with the aggressiveness of a few students in our early elementary grades
• We need more involvement of parents, especially parents of young children, in our school through PTO involvement, and serving as class parents. We may want to consider having current parents "adopt" parents of new students to make the transition to HFS smoother
• Parents in each grade should receive a class roster containing student names/parents’ names/address/phone number/email address
• Increase communication with parents of children, especially in the early childhood education program

Next week I will list the comments/suggestions from the grades 4-7 meeting on February 2nd. In the coming weeks I will begin addressing some of these suggestions as we prepare for next year. I cannot promise I will address all of them, but I will try to comment and make changes on those suggestions I believe will enhance our program at Holy Family School. If you were unable to attend the meetings and have some suggestions, please contact me via email or phone to share them with me.

Congratulations go out to our Odyssey of the Mind Team! The team had a strong showing, finishing in third place in the Shock Wave category.

Finally, the Box Top competition has begun. At this point, the faculty team is in the lead. Please send in your Box Tops to support our student field trips.

God Bless,
Gene

UPCOMING ACTIVITIES
State Math Exams
Grade – 3 March 2 and 4
Grade – 4 March 2, 3, and 5
Grade – 5 March 3 and 4
HFS Commission Meeting – 6pm Tuesday, March 3
PTO Lenten Fish Fry – 5pm-7pm Friday, March 6
State Math Exams – Grades 6 – 8 March 9 - 13
PTO Meeting – 7pm Wednesday, March 11