Though the students have left campus for the summer, St. Andrew's is still bustling with activities as we prepare for the 2015-16 school year. Here's a glimpse at what the Crusader community has been up to.
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Q: Where can I find all the forms, lists, and other info I need before the school year starts?
A: The "Resources" tab at the top of your screen when you login to mySAS.
Q: I haven't logged in to mySAS, how do I do that?
A: Follow the steps below!
1. Go to the St. Andrew's webpage (
www.sasaustin.org
) and click the "Login" button at the upper-right hand corner.
2. Click the link below the login that says "Forgot login or First time logging in?"
3. On the next screen enter your email address (use the email address you're using to read this email), and check the Username and Password boxes. Click "Send."
4. You'll receive two emails - one with your username (which will typically take the "firstnamelastname" format), and another email with a link to reset your password. Follow the instructions to reset your password.
Once you've logged into mySAS, be sure to:
5.
Update your personal information on your Profile Page. You should be prompted to do so when you login, or you can click your name in the upper right corner and select "Profile."
6. Update your child's/children's information on their "Contact Card." You can access their contact card from your Profile page. Be sure to update emergency contact information for each child as well.
7. Submit your child's/children's medical information in Magnus Health. Click the "Magnus Health" icon on the "Resources" page and follow the steps to submit information and medical forms.
After you've completed these steps, feel free to explore the site! It will be continuously updated over the summer in preparation for the first day of school.
Questions? Email [email protected].
Need help with Magnus Health? Email [email protected] or call 919-800-0356.
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Kama Bruce, Head of Lower School
The Lower School has been a bustle of activity this summer. Roberta, Geoff and I have taken our tremendous energy and enthusiasm from last year and steered it into planning and scheduling for next year. We've been sending teachers to in-services far and near and focusing on our growth. We've also had many teachers working on curriculum grants to keep improving on an already robust and rich offering. I also focused in my professional growth, with a phenomenal ISAS Division Heads' Conference in Sante Fe, New Mexico, where we were afforded enriching opportunities to think about school leadership in the 21st century. Our summer has been filled with exciting and meaningful research driven by continual curiosity and creating a deeper educational experience for every child. We're also focusing on developing our experiential STEAM curriculum, and designing our maker labs. We're so excited about all of the rich learning that your children will be doing in the next academic year. I've also been happily plugging away at the planning process of the kindergarten project. Aimee Zivin was tremendously busy with a wealth of summer programming that made our hallways sing with wonderment and learning for three weeks in June.
Now, in the midst of July, we take a bit of break to focus on friends, fun and family. I'll be spending some time with my two little ones and my wife. We plan on doing some fun day trips in the area, with some much needed time outdoors with hiking, swimming, creating and camping. I'm also looking forward to reading and relaxing a bit. We will begin our academic year in earnest the first week of August when we come together to begin our faculty development anew. We will continue our dedication to faculty growth and development in the coming year and we already have a packed schedule for learning, discussion and reflection. We'll be focusing on technology integration, social emotional learning, reading and writing and differentiation. Keep your kids reading, learning, asking questions and smiling; summer is such a special time in childhood.
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Alice Nezzer, Head of Middle School
Life has been busy in the Middle School this summer. The students from Breakthrough Austin arrived on Monday, June 22, so our halls were once again bustling with seventh and eighth grade students. Their teachers spent two weeks preparing the classrooms and working on lesson plans for the six week-long program. Paula, Tim, Carrie, and I do our best to stay out of their way as we prepare for the 2015-16 school year. Earlier in June, I traveled to Santa Fe with Kama Bruce to attend the ISAS division heads bi-annual conference. We heard some great speakers such as Alan November and Tina Payne Bryson discuss adolescent development, diversity, communication, and best teaching practices with other division heads. I spent several hours in a room filled with other middle school heads, people who truly understand the work I do because they are doing many of the same things. It's like "support group" for principals.
At the end of June, I drove to Tennessee to work at my summer camp, teaching swimming and some archery. Although I do have to "work" while at camp, living simply in a cabin near a mountain lake is a rejuvenating and refreshing way to spend two weeks. I also enjoy being able to spy on my daughters as they enjoy camp life. While in Tennessee, Mike and I will also take the girls to Sewanee so they can see my beautiful alma mater. I will end my summer with a quick trip to Catalina Island to visit the Guided Discovery facility, the new home of our seventh grade marine biology field trip. The summer holds a nice balance of work, rest, and play.
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Todd Stephenson, Head of Upper School
Things are quietly and steadily moving forward at the Upper School this summer. The resurfacing of the track is nearly completed as is the remodel of the Dell Academic Center. SAGE is working away on the dining room and kitchen. We are just beginning construction of the new spirit shop and the transformation of the old location into an exciting new innovation center. I can't wait for you to see what we have been up to!
I just came back from ten days in Italy and France where I joined my wife, Joyce, who was working in Milan. We spent time in the Barolo wine region and took several great hikes in the Italian and French Alps before meeting up with two of our kids in Paris. Soon I head to Denver for a week of ISM training sessions for division heads. Much of the rest of my time this summer will be spent with teachers and administrators discussing, scheming, and dreaming about the opportunities that lie ahead in the 2015-16 year.
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 This fall we are excited to debut new school meal options through SAGE Dining Services!
Menus created by SAGE dieticians will ensure our students get delicious and nutritious meals every day, and our re-organized dining facilities will make lunch lines run smoother than ever.
As an added bonus, the new SAGE staff is researching a variety of local food vendors to procure the highest quality, sustainable food for students.
Menus will be available to view via the St. Andrew's website this fall. Bon appetit!
Our SAGE Team
Timothy Thurn joins St. Andrew's Episcopal School as SAGE Dining's Food Service Director. He brings more than 25 years of culinary experience to the plate. Before joining SAGE, Thurn was Executive Chef and Food Service Director for a large contract food service company in Austin. He worked in their corporate dining and healthcare division for more than a decade. Prior to that, Chef Timothy owned and operated a restaurant in Dallas. He has multiple degrees from the Culinary Institute of America. He focused on cakes, pastries, advanced sauces and techniques at the St. Helena, CA campus and in Kitchen Management, Food Cost Control, Art of Catering and Flavors while attending the Hyde Park, NY campus. He is excited to bring his wealth of knowledge to St. Andrew's.
SAGE Executive Chef Peter Duran brings more than two decades of culinary experience to St. Andrew's Episcopal School. Peter spent the majority of his career serving as the Sous Chef and Kitchen Manager for a large contract food service company. He was recognized for his work, receiving the Hero Award for providing great service and producing great results. He is well versed in a broad range of cuisines and specializes in ethnic and home-style foods. Peter attended culinary school in Austin and has had extensive training as a butcher. He is excited to be a part of the St. Andrew's community and can't wait to share his creations with you.
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Welcome New Faculty/Staff!
This fall we will welcome new faculty to the St. Andrew's community, and celebrate some current faculty who have transitioned to new roles for the 2015-16 school year. Among these new faculty/staff are a Director of Social Emotional Learning, a Curriculum & Technology Innovator, a Kindergarten lead teacher, and two alumnae math teachers. Read all the new faculty/staff bios here.
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Journey Through the World of Art with Marsha Russell-SIGN UP TODAY!
Art History teacher Marsha Russell's summer travels to Southeast Asia will make her art history lecture/dinner this fall a true feast for the senses!
On September 13, Marsha will provide her guests a sneak-peek of her new AP Art History curriculum over a fabulous catered dinner. Don't miss this once-in-a-lifetime journey with one of St. Andrew's most beloved teachers. Even better: all proceeds from this event go towards St. Andrew's Financial Aid program.
Sign up today!
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The Junior Experience trip (taken the summer before junior or senior year) requires students to experience a setting dramatically different than their own. In the years since its inception, the Junior Experience program has grown to include trips all over the United States and in many countries abroad. Upper School teachers and students have much to talk about from the summer of 2015; St. Andrew's faculty members led students towards eye-opening adventures and the experiences of a lifetime all over the world. Below are some highlights from a few of those trips.
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Argentina
Seventeen students embarked for Buenos Aires, Argentina this summer, with faculty chaperones Courtney Itson (US History) and Malia LeMond (US Spanish) as their leaders. The students spent their mornings in language and culture classes at the Academia Buenos Aires, and then lunched together before heading out for cultural excursions in the afternoon, which included biking through the city, learning the tango, making empanadas, and visiting different neighborhoods. Courtney says, "The students enjoyed the experiential learning. For example, they'd spend the morning in class learning about the cultural significance of the tango, then they'd take tango lessons in the afternoon."
Though this was not a service trip, community service activities...Click here to read the full article and see more photos.
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Italy
by Jennie Luongo
On June 1, 19 St. Andrew's Latin students left for Italy with faculty chaperones Lauren Dill, Jennie Luongo and Danny Schmidt. While there the students studied the ways that ancient Roman and modern Italian culture intersect. The group started the trip by exploring the Bay of Naples area where Mount Vesuvius erupted in A.D. 79, preserving several ancient towns that they visited. They even hiked up Vesuvius while in Southern Italy. Then, they moved on to Rome, and slowly explored the city neighborhood by neighborhood. While there, they had the opportunity to visit a refugee center at the Episcopal Church of St. Paul's Within the Walls. The group learned of the incredible crisis facing Italy...Click here to read the full article and view more photos.
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New Orleans
by Laura Milton
Coordinator for Junior Experience and Community Service Laura Milton and Assistant Dean of Students and band director David Guidi drove 12 students to New Orleans, Louisiana for a 10-day service trip. Students engaged in some sort of community service each day of the trip and had the opportunity to interact with people of all ages and backgrounds. The group played games and chatted with residents at St. Margaret's nursing home, prepared and served a meal to the homeless at the New Orleans Mission, passed out food and restocked items at the Love in Action food pantry, worked with children at the Fischer Projects' Kids Club, helped the Apex Youth center prepare for their summer camp and even travelled out to Barataria Preserve to help park rangers tag non-indigenous trees and learn about the unique environment in the area. One student, discussing the group's work at the food pantry remarked...Click here to read the full article and view more photos.
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"Explorations in Science" Camp Leads to Discovery, Water Park
Students in grades 1-6 flexed their analytical and creative minds in the "Explorations in Science and Technology" summer camp. Students learned about physics principles through fun, hands-on activities. They explored acceleration with race car ramps, inertia with bowling balls, hover pucks, and air gliders, and motion-by-force with boats and balloon rockets. The camp culminated with a study in energy transfers: first, students presented their hand-crafted Rube-Goldberg machines they created in teams, then they headed to a water park to enjoy the energy transfers in roller coasters! Camp leader and US Physics teacher Dan Latreille kept a blog discussing his methodologies and student discoveries.
Check out some of Dan's video snippets from summer camp below:
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"Godspell" Produced in 1 Week for Musical Theatre Camp
Austin-area youth in grades 6-12 joined forces to produce "Godspell" in merely five days as a part of St. Andrew's Musical Theatre summer camp. The talented group of performers learned all their songs, dialogue, blocking, and dancing over the course of the one-week camp, culminating in the full production on June 12 at the Dell Fine Arts Center.
The Musical Theatre camp is just one of many camps open to students this summer who want to take advantage of St. Andrew's beautiful campus facilities and dedicated faculty. As a part of Musical Theatre camp, students honed their skills with Jason Kruger, the Middle School Theatre Director who co-produced this year's "Peter Pan," as well as Michael Rosensteel, the Upper School Choir Director who co-produced the award-winning fall production of "Sweeney Todd." Recent graduate and 2015 Drama Award-winner Ellie McDaniel ('15) was on hand to assist students with choreography as well. Now in its fifth year, Choir Director Michael Rosensteel remarks, "This camp is a wonderful way for students to continue to learn and grow as performers."
See the stunning photos from the show here!
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St. Andrew's faculty/staff were awarded
140 grants for professional development this year,
 providing them opportunities for continued growth in their various fields of study. Twenty-eight of those grants were for summer conferences, and now some of our faculty are sharing their lessons learned with us.
Dina Tucker and Dorothy de la Garza drew inspiration from the expertise and insights of prominent speakers at their respective conferences, and are returning with many fresh ideas to apply to their classrooms. At their conferences, Elizabeth Martens and Kendall Evans found a healthy balance of qualitative and quantitative analysis to help them accurately assess the strength of their curriculum moving forward....Click here to read the full article.
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Thanks to you and our awesome St. Andrew's Fund leadership, we exceeded our goal for the 2014-15 school year! More than $865,000 was raised to support security at St. Andrew's, professional development grants for faculty members, securing a new school bus, and new AC units to keep the US cool. The family participation rate hit 81%, which is outstanding! You make a positive difference at St. Andrew's and our students and faculty greatly appreciate your generosity.
Thanks to our OUTSTANDING leaders for the 2014-15 St. Andrew's Fund Campaign!
| Lower & Middle School Chairs |
Laurie Ratliff & David Swanson |
| Upper School Chairs |
Jill Carey & William Gurasich |
| New Family Ambassadors |
Anna & Jason Near |
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Anna & Matthew Lee |
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Linda & Al Lanctot |
| 1st grade Ambassadors |
Martha & Greg Clay |
| 2nd grade Ambassadors |
Yvette & Jason Wesbecher |
| 3rd grade Ambassadors |
Edward Bradfield |
| 4th grade Ambassadors |
Erin & Richard Donoghue |
| 5th grade Ambassadors |
Teresa & Paul Bessette and Andrea & Walter Kalmans |
| 6th grade Ambassadors |
Jess Chapin & Laurie Eiserloh |
| 7th grade Ambassadors |
Kimber White Erlinger & Tate Erlinger |
| 8th grade Ambassadors |
Kaye Knox & Michelle King |
| 9th grade Ambassadors |
Jennifer & Kirk Schell |
| 10th grade Ambassadors |
Natalie & Steve Brown |
| 11th grade Ambassadors |
Melissa & Scott Greenwell |
| 12th grade Ambassadors |
Aileen & Mike Aviles |
| Matching Gift Ambassadors |
Julie & Garrett Hall |
| Grandparent Club Chairs |
Kathy & David Hughes |
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J
ohn Bennett ('02) with classmate Patricia Reyes at the February Austin-Area Alumni Gathering
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St. Andrew's Alumni Association has a President! We are pleased to announce that
John Bennett, Class of 2002, will lead the charge for this newly formed Alumni Association, whose mission is to maintain and promote the connection of alumni to St. Andrew's and to strengthen the mission of the School and its community through alumni involvement.
Stay tuned for more information in the fall; we need Class Agents for each class year, volunteers to help with reunion planning, and more! Stay in touch at
www.sasaustin.org/alumni
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Congratulations to Brianna on a stellar first year on the Rhodes track team! She writes, "I was awarded Athlete of the Month (for March), Outstanding Athlete of the Year (basically MVP) at Rhodes, and SAA Conference Newcomer of the Year. I broke the school record in the 100 and long jump, and 4x100 with my relay teammates. I qualified for the NCAA National Championships in those events as well, and became an All-American, placing 6th in the 4x100. The picture is from the long jump at San Francisco State University. With this jump I broke the school record (which was 18'1") with a jump of 18'5". I broke my own record again a few weeks later at our Conference Championships!" Read more about Brianna's track success on the Rhodes website here.
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Congratulations to Annika, who
has been awarded First Team All-American 2015 for US Lacrosse's Central Texas Chapter, and also US Lacrosse's Jackie Pitts Award! According to US Lacrosse, "This award recognizes a graduating senior in each chapter who truly honors the game of lacrosse, is invested in the development of the game in her community, is an exceptional player who continually strives to improve her game, and is an exemplary member of her team. She exemplifies the spirit of the game, on and off the field. Academically, she is an outstanding student and a valued role model in her school."
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For seven months Allie Novess collaborated with a professional artist to produce original works of art as a part of the Contemporary Austin museum's "Teen Artists + Mentors" program. Her work, along with other teen participants, was recently featured in a July Austin American-Statesman article.
Click here to read the full story on our Alumni News page
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Sign-up to Lead This Year's Activities!
The Parent Association is busy planning for this year, and we would love your help.
We need volunteers to participate in many different committees for the 2015-16 school year. No matter your interests, available time or skills, there is an opportunity for you to support St. Andrew's!
Volunteering is a fun way to meet new people, interact with your children and the faculty, and support the community, so come join us!
To learn more and sign up:
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Visit our Volunteer web page here and click on any volunteer opportunity to read more details
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Click the yellow "Sign Up" button to open the Volunteer Form
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Complete the form and click the blue "Submit" button at the bottom
Don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.
Thank you for volunteering!
Lydia Soldano (LS), Mari Josey (MS), Tami Scott (US)
2015-16 Parent Association Co-Presidents
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Free Heart Screenings This Summer
Championship Hearts will conduct FREE Young Athlete Heart Screenings in several Central Texas communities this summer. Check their website often for schedule updates.
Dell Children's Medical Center, Austin, Texas - July 25
Del Valle High School, Del Valle, Texas - August 1
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When You Shop Online, Shop Amazon Smile!
If you're looking for a really easy way to support St. Andrew's, consider making purchases via Amazon's Smile site. It's designed to donate 0.5% of your purchase price to a non-profit organization of your choice! Go to
http://smile.amazon.com/ch/74-6003626 and designate "St. Andrew's Episcopal School Inc" as your non-profit. You'll support St. Andrew's every time you shop on Amazon!
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Want to keep up with all the fun moments on campus?
Then be sure to "Like" us on Facebook!
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