Attention middle school students: Make sure to check out the Catalyst Catholic website for youth events that are taking place. The website is https://catalystcatholic.org/middle-school.

We want to share the great things happening at SAS. We will be using social media to showcase events that are taking place during the school day. We need your help in sharing great things that are happening in our school community when students are not at school. If you are at an athletic event, parish event, or any event where our students are doing great things, then post on the Facebook St. Anthony Business Page as well as the St. Anthony Parent Page.

Again this year, our school is partnering with SchoolStore to raise funds to help purchase essential tools needed in our school and classrooms. SchoolStore’s program is 100% online so there is no selling or handling of money or products. Your participation is easy and there is a nice prize program. Here are three ways your family, friends, and co-workers can help our school. Purchase a CaringForClassroom.org gift card for your child’s teacher to use for classroom supplies and equipment. Renew or purchase magazine subscriptions, DVD’s, Cookbooks and more. Shop online with over 400 major merchants like Walmart, Kohl’s, Best Buy, Disney, and more. Details about the program are coming home today with students

Did you receive a test message through our Jupiter system? It was sent last Friday. It should have come to the email you have on file with the school. Please remember you may need to go into your settings and check that you want to receive messages. Today, I am also sending a test message that should come as a text message as well as to your email. I will be using Jupiter to send out important information or alerts. Please notify the office if you are not receiving the messages.

Every 3 years we submit our School Improvement Plan to the Archdiocese and to the State of Indiana. We use the National Standards and Benchmarks for Effective Catholic Elementary and Secondary Schools (NSBECS). We use the standards and benchmarks to serve as a guide and assessment tool to show our school’s effectiveness and sustainability. We would like your input regarding our school’s general adherence to the Standards and Benchmarks. Please complete the following survey by Friday, September 18. Thank you for taking the time to complete this survey. Link: https://forms.gle/YcpRcwcQqyk3U4gWA

Research shows that students do better in school when parents/guardians are involved. Parent teacher conferences is one way to be involved and to help your child succeed. We always like to have our parent teacher conferences at the end of the 1st quarter to share the progress of students, show strengths and needs of students and have that open communication with your child’s teacher to help them succeed. Due to safety and health concerns, our parent teacher conferences will look different this year. There will be three different options for the conferences. The conferences could be held by virtual meeting, phone call or email. Your child’s teacher will be reaching out to you to let establish the type of conference and the date/time. Conferences will be held on October 20, 21 and 22.

I am excited to say that students will still be participating in Stewardship Friday this year. A huge shout out to Jim Kenney and Jamie and Ally Huber for making this happen. Also a big thanks to all the volunteers who will be helping with Stewardship Friday. Stewardship Friday will look a little different; classes will participate via Google Meets. I know that it will still be a great experience for the kids, and I am glad they can still take part in such a wonderful program.

We have been very fortunate to receive extra funding to help us with technology upgrades. We received funding through the CARES Act and also the GEER Grant to purchase 120 Chromebooks for the school. This will provide us the capability to have many grade levels working 1 to 1 with technology devices. At this time, we are finalizing the funding and ordering of the Chromebooks.

Our Jupiter system has the capability to send out information via email and text messages. This would be a great way for me to send important information and announcements to school families only. It is very important that all families know how to access their Jupiter accounts. It is also important to check the settings in your Jupiter account. You will need to make sure that the notifications are checked for email and text messaging. I will send a TEST message on Friday to make sure families receive the information.

The state and local health departments have suggested that current data leads them to believe that school-age COVID spread is not happening in school buildings, but rather after school at extracurriculars or in social settings. Dr. Box, Indiana State Health Department Commissioner, has encouraged parents on a number of occasions to limit their children’s “social bubble” while encouraging social distancing and masks after school, as well. Attached you will find information regarding social bubbles.

The Indiana State Health Department recently updated information regarding when individuals can return to school if they are sick. Attached you will find the updated health protocol. We will also update this information in our Re-Entry Plan. I know this information can be very confusing and overwhelming. I also know we are all taking every precaution necessary to keep our school community safe. If you have any questions regarding when to keep your child home, please don’t hesitate to ask. It is very important that we continue to follow the protocols put into place to keep our school community healthy and safe.

When dropping of students in the morning it is very important to follow procedures. You can drop off on either side of the annex; it does not matter the grade level of your child. If you drop off on the playground side of the annex, you will exit via the front of the building. If you drop off on the Church side of the building, then you will exit via the back of the parking lot.

Wellness Policy Federal law now requires all schools to have a Wellness Plan in place to meet federal requirements. Therefore, St. Anthony School has adopted a Wellness Policy to provide nutritious food, snacks, and beverages to the students and to provide opportunities for physical activity. Students are allowed to bring a healthy snack to school. Please see the school handbook for a list of healthy snacks. We will celebrate all students’ birthdays. There will be three dates on the school calendar scheduled for birthday celebrations. We will celebrate June, July, August, and September birthdays first; October, November, December, and January second; and February, March, April, and May last. Students will also celebrate Halloween, Christmas, and Valentine’s Day with a treat. Due to COVID, celebrations may look a little different. We will work with room parents to discuss details of the celebrations.

Socks must be visible above the shoe and must be solid white, black or navy Twill pants or shorts - no skinny pants, leggings or jeggings

There will be no School Mass on Thursday, September 10.

It is hard to believe that we are already midway through the 1st Quarter. Families can access Jupiter to review your child’s progress. Please talk to your child about their strengths and challenges and how they can continue to improve throughout the year. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact your child’s teacher. If you are not able to access Jupiter, please let the office know and we will get you instructions on how to access your child’s information.

If your child will out for any reason, please call the office and let them know.

We are beginning to get back into the routine of school. Again I can’t say enough how happy I am with how things are going. Families, students, faculty, and staff have done an excellent job in staying healthy and following the protocols that have been put into place. It is important that we work hard to mitigate the spread of germs. We continue to stress healthy habits at school by properly washing hands, properly wearing mask, and social distancing. Please remind children at home these essential healthy habits. Here are a few tips from the health department as we continue to work together to keep the school safe and healthy: If a student is tested for COVID-19, please quarantine until results are received. It is also highly recommended and would be optimal for family members to quarantine as well. Please notify school as soon as positive test results are received on a student. If a person has been considered a close contact, then they must quarantine for a 14-day period since the date of last exposure.

I would like to congratulate our 3rd graders who were finally able to make their 1st Communion this past Sunday. God’s blessing, love and grace was showered upon each of them on this very special day. A big thank you to everyone who helped in making this day special for our 1st communicants.