St. Anthony School Families, As you know, COVID continues to adversely impact Clark County, Indiana and our surrounding counties. The county transmission rate has been steadily increasing for weeks and this trend shows no signs of reversing. As a school, we have done an amazing job this year. We have worked very hard to follow the protocols and guidelines put into place, and we have all worked together as a school community to keep our school safe and healthy. Your dedication and support has kept the in-person learning option viable thus far into the school year. Unfortunately, we are still concerned with the community spread of COVID, the rising positivity rate, and the uptick in quarantines and close contacts within our school. After meeting with the Clark County Health Department, the determination has been made that St. Anthony School will move to virtual learning on November 30, 2020 and continue with virtual learning until January 4, 2021. Teachers will be working with students this week to go over virtual learning expectations. Teachers will share the passwords needed for students and families to access resources from home. All textbooks and materials will be sent home on Tuesday, November 24. It is very important that students have access to a device during virtual learning. Students should use a Chromebook, IPAD, or desktop computer; a phone is not a device that should be used. We understand that with multiple children in the family, you may not have a device for each child. Please contact Mrs. Tucker if your household does not have access to a device or if additional devices are needed. I appreciate all of the hard work and dedication of students and parents so far this year. Working together, I believe that we can make our virtual learning time a successful one. Let’s remember to be patient with each other and give thanks for the blessings we do have during this Holiday season. May God bless you and keep you and your family safe and healthy. Love and Prayers, Mrs. Stephany Tucker

We want to give a big shout out to the cast and crew of Christmas Shorts. The show was fantastic, everyone did a great job. It was a great way for the students to share their talents. We can’t thank Patrick Holifield enough for his dedication to our theater program. Patrick put together a wonderful show during a difficult time. Also a big thanks to Jacque Singleton and Katherine Alberts for their help with the show. Thanks to Kelly Duggins for her painting the backdrop. Thank you to the Vic and Carmela Reyes for handling the sound. Thanks to Phoenix Lighting for donating lights used during the play. Thanks to Tessa Holifield and Providence Singers for helping with lighting and backstage. Thanks to Garry Nokes for taping the show. Thanks to Jennifer Vizhnay and parents for helping with the cast party. It is great to see our St. Anthony School community come together to share their talents and put on a terrific show.

This year, we had a contest where students in grades K-8 could submit a cover for this year’s yearbook. The theme for this school year is “One Team.” Students needed to incorporate that somehow into their cover. We had quite a few entries submitted, and all of them were very creative. After a school wide vote, the winner of the 2020-2021 yearbook cover is – Annabelle Harrington. Congratulations Annabelle! All yearbook entries will be displayed in the yearbook to showcase our student’s time, effort, and talent. Thank you to all who participated.

Don’t forget to screen your child(ren) every morning before coming to school. Please keep your child home if your child is not feeling well, has a fever, and/or shows any signs of illness. You can use the guidance provided by the Indiana State Health Department to help with the daily screening. Let’s continue to work together in keeping our school community healthy and safe.

Don’t forget to screen your child(ren) every morning before coming to school. Please keep your child home if your child is not feeling well, has a fever, and/or shows any signs of illness. You can use the guidance provided by the Indiana State Health Department to help with the daily screening. Let’s continue to work together in keeping our school community healthy and safe.

As we continue to navigate through this unprecedented year, I want to reassure everyone that the health and safety of our school community is our top priority. Our school families have done a terrific job following the reentry plan that was put into place at the beginning of the year. Here at school, we follow the guidance of the local and state health department and the Archdiocese of Indianapolis to create a safe and healthy learning environment. We receive updates on a regular basis from the local health department and the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. We continue to promote proper mask wearing, hand washing, and social distancing within the school building. St. Anthony School families we need you to continue to do your part. As the virus becomes more widespread it is important to follow all guidelines. Try to keep your social bubbles contained and refrain from attending large gatherings. Continue to stress to children the importance of wearing a mask, washing hands, and social distancing. If your child is sick, please keep them at home. If anyone in your household is being tested for COVID, please keep all household members at home. If children are considered close contacts, then a 14 day quarantine must take place. We have done a terrific job so far this year. It is so important that we all remain strong and cautious moving forward. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call school. If we do not have an answer, we will do our best to find the answer for you. Thanks for doing your part in keeping our community safe. Mrs. Tucker

This year we are excited to announce our school play is “Christmas Shorts.” The play will be held on November 13 and 14 at 7:00 pm in the school gym. Due to COVID, seating will be limited and we will have social distancing guidelines in place. Tickets for the play will only be sold in advance, we will not be able to sell tickets at the door. An order form is included in the Bear Facts. Ticket Orders must be received by Thursday, November 12. Depending on further restrictions from the health department, please know ticket availability is subject to change.

It is important for us to do our part in working together to change the trend within our community. The health department is seeing much more of a community spread of COVID. Please keep your social bubbles small and limit your attendance at social gatherings. Wear a mask, social distance, wash hands often, and stay home when sick, or if you have been identified as a close contact. Let’s do our part in keeping everyone safe and healthy.

As of last week, Clark County was identified as being in the orange status on the county metric map. Due to the change in status, the health department believes that an intervention is necessary to protect the public health and wellbeing of all who live and work in Clark County. The health department is implementing attendance restrictions on K-12 extracurricular activities and sporting events. This recommendation is in place for 2 weeks and will be re-evaluated on November 11.

After much discussion, we have decided to stop our temperature checks during morning drop off. Friday, November 6 will be the last day of temperature checks. We do not feel like we are getting accurate readings due to colder weather and heated vehicles. It is essential for every parent to health check students before coming to school. Please keep them home if they have a temperature, are not feeling well, or show any signs of illness. Again, families have done a great job with this so far and we commend you for all your help. Please understand we continue to adhere to our protocols, but want them to be accurate and effective. All students will have temperatures checked as they come to lunch each day. This is a good midday check and will be much more accurate and effective. Included in the Bear Facts is a COVID screening document from the State Health Department, use this to health check your child(ren) each morning.

I know that anti-bacterial wipes are a hot commodity right now. We have been using a great deal of wipes, as we continue to consistently sanitize throughout the building. If you have any extra wipes or see some at the store, please consider donating to the school. We greatly appreciate your help in this matter.

I wanted to provide some information regarding our morning temperature screenings. This process has gone very well so far this year. This was not a requirement for schools, but we made this decision to help mitigate the spread of COVID. We have noticed that as the weather has turned cooler our readings may not be as accurate. Our thermometers are out in the colder temps and we have students exiting heated vehicles; both of these factors may cause inaccurate readings. As an added precaution, most days students will have their temperature checked as they enter the cafeteria. We are currently evaluating this process to determine next steps as we enter the winter months.

Winter months are quickly approaching and this brings the possibility of inclement weather. Inclement weather could cause a delayed opening or cancellation of school. Please review the information below regarding inclement weather procedures. ● Delay or cancellation of school will be posted or broadcast in the following ways: WDRB TV, St. Anthony School Facebook Page and Website, and a message from Jupiter. ● A delayed schedule (2 hour delay) will result in the building opening at 8:00 and school beginning at 9:50 This year, we would like to have virtual learning days if we must cancel school for any reason.This would mean that students in grades Kindergarten through 8th grade will be required to access Google Classroom during the day. Assignments will be posted by the teacher. We will be sending home more details regarding virtual learning. We will not have any more than three consecutive Virtual Learning Days. If we have more than 3 days of Virtual Learning, then January 18th, February 15th and April 30 are set aside as make up days.

According to the CDC, getting a flu vaccine is more important than ever during 2020-2021 to protect yourself, your family and your community from flu. A flu vaccine this season can also help reduce the burden on our healthcare systems responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and save medical resources for care of COVID-19 patients. September and October are good times to get a flu vaccine.​

This year, we are having a Yearbook Cover Contest. SAS students who are interested will get a chance to show off their artistic side by creating the cover of our 2020-2021 yearbook! They will need to incorporate in some way the theme, "One Team" along with our school name and the school year (St. Anthony School - 2020-2021). They may use any medium they wish (crayon, colored pencil, paint, digital, etc.) The turn in date is NO LATER than Friday, October 30th. If your child is interested, please see Mrs. Harrington if they need paper or have any questions. Mrs. Duggins is available if they have any art questions or need to use supplies.