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FROM THE PRINCIPAL
As the challenges of the last few weeks highlighted opportunities for growth at St. Teresa's Academy, new initiatives and events have been developed that will help strengthen our community as we move forward.
Please click here to take a look at the plan as it continues to take shape.
This has been a time of deep, thoughtful reflection with the sage advice and guidance of our insightful Board of Directors, Sisters of St. Joseph, and professional consultants. We are grateful for all of your support and prayers.
More than two million US high school graduates from the Class of 2017 took the ACT test. Among 2017 national graduates, 39% met the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks in at least three of the four core subject areas tested (English, math, reading, and science). For the Class of 2017 St. Teresa's Academy Stars, 84% met these benchmarks. Below shows a comparison between STA, Missouri, Kansas, and the Nation. STA data reflects the highest score if ACT was taken more than once.
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Group
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Percent Testing
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Average Composite
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STA
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98%
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26.0
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Missouri
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100%
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20.4
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Kansas
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73%
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21.7
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Nation
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60%
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21.0
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Benchmark scores: English = 18, Reading = 22, Math = 22, Science = 23
St. Teresa's Academy believes in offering an academic program of strong core disciplines, exemplary electives, and extracurricular opportunities to support the whole student. As an institute, we are committed to continuing our growth with the following school improvement goals.
Goal One:
Students will become strong readers of nonfiction by identifying key details to create an analysis of the author's arguments, then synthesize the text with previous information to create a comprehensive interpretation of the material.
Goal Two:
Students will utilize critical thinking skills to process, identify, analyze, and evaluate specific and relevant information in order to produce original coherent arguments.
Parent/Teacher Conferences:
And finally, don't forget to mark your calendar for Parent/Teacher conferences on October 12 from 1:30-4:30 p.m. and 5:30-7:00 p.m. Students are welcome to attend conferences if they choose. Conferences are set up on a first-come, first-serve basis and are designed to briefly introduce you to your daughter's teachers and the courses they offer. If you feel you need more than a few minutes to discuss any topic, please contact the teacher directly to set up an alternate day and time.
Barbara J. McCormick
Principal of Academic Affairs
Dates to Remember:
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Oct. 4
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Senior Class Mass
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| Oct. 11 |
Testing & Service Day (no classes for seniors) |
| Oct. 12 |
No Classes
Parent/Teacher/Student Conferences 1:30-4:30 & 5:30- 7 p.m.
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Oct. 13
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No School
End of 1st Quarter
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| Oct. 16 |
St. Teresa's Prayer Service |
Oct. 18
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Autumn Concert @ Visitation Church 7 p.m. |
| Oct. 19 |
Parent / Daughter Liturgy 7:10 a.m. |
Oct. 27
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Testing (no classes for seniors) |
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UPCOMING EVENTS
Stand Together KC
Sunday, October 1, 7:00 p.m.
Resurrection Leawood (Sanctuary)
13720 Roe Ave., Leawood, KS
Please join members of the STA faculty, staff, and student body in attending this important conversation held by leaders of faith in the Kansas City community. Rev. Adam Hamilton, Rabbi Arthur Nemitoff, and Rev. Emmanuel Cleaver III will share the message that the Kansas City community is standing together against racism, religious persecution, hate, and violence. T
o learn more and register,
click here
.
Fall Mum Sale
Locally grown mums from Pumpkins Etc. are gorgeous, over-sized plants in fall colors. $10.00 each
Mums will be available for pick up:
- Wednesday, October 18, from 5-6:30 p.m. in M&A (drop by before the Autumn Choral Concert held at Visitation Church)
- Thursday, October 19, from 8-10:00 a.m. or 2-4:00 p.m.
Order your mum(s)
here.
Order deadline is
noon,
Wednesday October 11, 2017.
Autumn Choral Concert and Reception
Join us on
Wednesday, October 18, at Visitation Church (5141 Main St.) for the STA Choirs' Fall Music Festival. Doors open at 7:00 p.m. for the 7:30 p.m. performance. Please stay for the reception following the performance. Admission is free.
Vineyard Vines Shopping Event
Mark your calendars for
Monday, October 23, from 5-8:00 p.m. to shop at Vineyard Vines, receive a 10% discount, and give 10% of your purchase back to STA.
Vineyard Vines
4700 Broadway St. on the Country Club Plaza
Open House
All Future Stars and their parents are welcome!
Sunday, October 29, 2017
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10:00 a.m.
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Mass (optional)
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11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m.
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Campus Tours |
Parent Book Club
All STA parents are invited to join the newly formed Parent Book Club. The first selected book is titled,
Some of My Best Friends are Black
by Tanner Colby. The Club will meet in early November (date and location to be announced) for a discussion of the book moderated by Michelle Wimes, STA Board President and Director of Professional Development and Inclusion at a Kansas City law firm.
9 to 5 The Musical
November 8th - 11th, 7:30 p.m.
STA Theatre and Music Departments proudly present 9 to 5 The Musical
, with music and lyrics by Dolly Parton based on the book by Patricia Resnick, and
the seminal 1980 hit movie!
Pushed to the boiling point, three female coworkers concoct a plan to get even with the sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot they call their boss. In a hilarious turn of events, Violet, Judy and Doralee live out their wildest fantasy - giving their boss the boot! While Hart remains "otherwise engaged," the women give their workplace a dream makeover, taking control of the company that had always kept them down. Hey, a girl can scheme, can't she?
General admission tickets are $5 for students, $10 for adults. To purchase your reserved tickets for $20 through FAB, please click here.
| November 8 & 10 Cast |
November 9 & 11 Cast |
| Courtney Talken |
Elise Malone |
| Margaret Jordahl |
Lauren Daugherty |
| Bella Pichardo |
Jane Stevenson |
| Kate Willnauer |
Mary Grace Greene |
| Joe Hutchison |
Cole Prentiss |
| Nick Hodes |
Gabriel Vianello |
Light Their Way Auction
Saturday, November 18, 2017
Goppert Center Gymnasium
Join us for this very special event to help light the way to STA students' bright futures. As STA's largest fundraiser, the money raised through the Auction remains essential in providing our students with the most advanced educational curriculum, technology, and facilities, as well as the most talented and dedicated teaching staff available.
For Sponsorship and Underwriting opportunities, please
click here.
To purchase tickets to the Light Their Way Auction, please
click here.
Donate an Auction Item.
Gift donations from parents are an important component of the Auction. All gifts (minimum of $50 value) are acknowledged in the online catalog, which is shared with the entire STA community. If you know an individual or business that may be willing to donate, please contact Sarah Ralph in the Development Office at sralph@stteresasacademy.org. To donate an Auction item, please click here.
Tuition at STA for one year or
$10,000 in cash
The STA student raffle will kick off on October 5. Students are the best sales people! There are great incentives for selling, too. Students who sell 10 tickets will receive a pair of STA logo pants. These pants, instead of the uniform skirt, may be worn to school through Christmas break. The drawing for one-year tuition at STA or $10,000 in cash will be held at the Light Their Way Auction on Saturday, November 18. Purchase tickets online here.
Mark your calendar for
Tuesday, December 12,
and shop for a cause at two retailers on the Country Club Plaza
.
On December 12, Kendra Scott and Vineyard Vines will give 20% of their proceeds back to St. Teresa's Academy. Details are as follows:
Kendra Scott: 5-7:00 p.m.
412 Nichols Rd.
Vineyard Vines: 5-8:00 p.m.
4700 Broadway St.
La Belle France: June 2018
French teacher Alice Amick is planning a 9-day trip (to depart June 4, 2018) with Passports Educational Travel. The trip is open to French students and their family members. Paris will be the home base with excursions to the historic towns of St. Malo and Tours. Highlights include Notre-Dame, the Louvre Museum, the Eiffel Tower, a boat tour of Paris and many heritage sites, such as Versailles, Chartres Cathedral, the Abbey of St. Michel, the Bayeux Tapestry, the American Cemetery and the châteaux of Chambord and Chenonceau in the beautiful Loire Valley. This flexible program provides a supportive framework (flights, transportation, centrally-located accommodations, all breakfasts and dinners, a tour assistant, etc.). Please contact Ms. Amick at aamick@stteresasacademy.org for further information and stay tuned for informational meetings! Merci!
Sites of Central Europe Trip: June 2018
Explore the history of Central Europe with teachers Alicia Stewart, Anne Papineau, Casey O'Flaherty, and Kelly Scott. A
ll ages of students at St. Teresa's Academy are welcome. Students will t
ravel the streets of Prague, Budapest, Vienna, Munich, and Berlin taking in the history and culture. Amazing sites will be visited, including the Hungarian Parliament, Schonbrunn Palace, the Vienna Opera House, Prague Castle, the Olympic Site of 1972, Brandenburg Gate, and so much more. This trip will take travelers back in history to the founding of the German States, through the Holy Roman Empire, to WWI, WWII, through the Cold War, the fall of the Soviet Union, and to their modern global societies. Through art and architecture students will explore the classical periods, Baroque period, Renaissance, and movements into modern art. Traversing the historical sites, arts, and culture it will be the trip of a lifetime!
Prices increase after September 30, so act now! Click
here to sign up and learn more.
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WELLNESS TIPS FOR TEENS
Watch this column for helpful tips and information on challenging topics facing teenagers and their parents.
Click here for this month's topic: Coping with Stress.
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BUSINESS OFFICE
Fall sports fees were included in September 20th billing through Smart Tuition.
This includes sports incidental fees (such as travel costs and uniforms kept by students, etc.). Additional fees may be included with the October 20th billing.
It is important to keep your account current to avoid a hold on your daughter's academic records and PowerSchool access. A $25 late fee is applied to each delinquent payment. Please contact the Business Office with any questions.
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ACADEMICS
HSPT Prep Course for 8th Graders
STA will again offer a high school placement test review on our campus. This six session, $140 course will take place from 4:00 - 5:30 p.m. in the Windmoor Center: November 7, 9, 14, 16, 28, and 30. For more information or to register your daughter, please visit our
website.
StarWrite Center
The StarWrite Center is located in MA211 and since it officially opened, over 200 students have come in, seeking both tutoring help and looking for a quiet place to work on writing assignments. The Center, which is open all periods Monday through Friday, is staffed by one adult and a roster of trained peer tutors, who are ready and willing to help! If your daughter needs assistance getting started with an assignment or would like some feedback throughout any part of the writing process, please encourage her to stop by the StarWrite Center!
National Honor Society
NHS will continue to recycle small ink cartridges. Please place ink cartridges in a plastic bag and forward to Mrs. Major's mail box in M&A.
NHS applications will be available online
November 1. The application deadline is
November 15. Criteria: junior or senior, 93.0 or higher cumulative GPA as of June, 2017 (and prior to induction in February, 2018), a minimum of 15 hours of service to STA, a minimum of 15 hours of community service to a non-profit organization, leadership, and character. Service hours must be from March 15, 2017, through the application deadline.
STEAM
For the second year, Kansas City Area Life Science Institutes has opened its doors to STA. Our STARS attended two events this fall including a One Health Professional Conference on the merging fields of human medical science, veterinary science, and environmental science, as well as Frontiers in Tissue Design. In this special event, Dr. Nina Tandon shared her research in growing living human bones for skeletal reconstruction. Thank you KCALSI! In the month of October, we look forward to our first Linda Hall Library event where students will meet Sam Cossman and learn how his innovative technology allows scientists to explore live volcanoes.
Environmentalist Bill McKibben to speak at UMKC
Friday, October 6, 6:00 p.m. reception; 6:30 p.m. lecture
Pierson Auditorium
5000 Holmes St., Kansas City, MO
Meet the environmentalist and author Bill McKibben and hear his insight on
The Hottest Fight in the Hottest Decade: Climate Change on the Edge of Hope & Despair. In 2014, McKibben was awarded the Right Livelihood Prize, sometimes called the "alternative Nobel." The event is free and open to the public. To register (required), please
click here.
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COLLEGE COUNSELING
Thank you to all the families who attended the Junior College Info Night and the College Fair last month. Both events had record attendance. During the month of October, STA will host over 40 colleges and universities on campus. The visit schedule is updated weekly and is on Naviance. Juniors and seniors receive a "visit reminder email" each Wednesday with details for the following week.
Parents of the Class of 2019, be on the lookout for your fall College Planning News. It will be sent via email in early October. It will include details on the search process, standardized testing, visiting college campuses, and much more.
Parents of the Class of 2018, join us on Thursday, October 12, from 4:30-5:30 p.m. (in between parent/teacher conference time) in the M&A auditorium for our college financial aid workshop. The FAFSA will open this year in October! Go to www.fafsa.ed.gov.
TESTING
PSAT (Sophomores and Juniors) - All sophomores and juniors will be testing on Wednesday, October 11. Students should arrive on campus NO later than
7:45 a.m. as testing check-in will begin promptly at
7:50 a.m. Late arrivals will NOT be allowed to test. Dismissal will be from
11:15-11:30 a.m. This is a national test date and there is no alternate test date for juniors. PSAT information booklets were distributed through English classes at the end of September. Students must bring two no. 2 pencils, a calculator, and may dress out of uniform. Room assignments will be emailed by class and posted on the front doors of all buildings the week of the test.
Practice ACT (Sophomores & Juniors), & PreACT (Freshmen) - All sophomores and juniors will test on
Friday, October 27. Students should arrive on campus NO later than
7:45 a.m. as testing check-in will begin promptly at
7:50 a.m. Late arrivals will NOT be allowed to test. Dismissal for freshmen will be at
10:30 am. Dismissal for sophomores will be approximately
11:30 am. Dismissal for juniors will be approximately
noon (juniors will be taking the Practice ACT with writing). Students must bring two no. 2 pencils, a calculator, and may dress out of uniform.
Room assignments will be emailed by class and posted on the front doors of all buildings the week of the test.
For more information, go to
www.actstudent.org
.
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SCHOOL COUNSELING
Attention Sophomore Parents!!!
Would your daughter be interested in attending the HOBY Leadership Seminar?
What is HOBY?
- Founded in 1958, HOBY's mission is to inspire and develop our global community of youth and volunteers to a life dedicated to leadership, service and innovation. HOBY programs are conducted annually throughout the United States, serving local and international high school students. HOBY programs provide sophomores selected by their schools the opportunity to participate in unique leadership training, service-learning and motivation-building experiences. HOBY also provides adults with opportunities to make a significant impact on the lives of youth by volunteering.
How do I register my daughter?
- There is a cost for the HOBY Leadership Seminar, which will take place June 15-17, 2018. This will be a three-day seminar held at Southeast Missouri State University, Cape Girardeau. To be selected as a HOBY Ambassador, your daughter will need to complete an essay of 100 words or less and submit it to Mrs. Johnson Whitcomb. The theme of the essay will be: "Describe the most rewarding and challenging aspects of being a leader in your school and community." This essay will need to be completed by NOVEMBER 21, 2017. Registration is due by December 8, 2017 (including payment).
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STAR PARENTS ASSOCIATION
Star Shop - Daily after school (Monday - Thursday) and special events
Alumnae Reunion Celebration - Saturday, October 7. Drivers with sedans are needed to transport some alumnae from the STA parking lot or M&A to the Goppert Center Gymnasium.
Open House - Sunday, October 29. Parents are needed to check in potential students and help with the reception.
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Fall has arrived! The Star Shop has fleece jackets, scarves, hats, sweatshirts, long-sleeved uniform shirts, and t-shirts to keep you warm.
Save the Date for the CHRISTMAS SALE on Saturday, December 2. The Star Shop is now ONLINE for shopping and ordering. Choose to pick up your merchandise at the Star Shop or have your items shipped to you. Hours for the Star Shop during regular schedule school days are Monday-Thursday from 2:45-3:30 p.m.
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ATHLETICS
The end of September marks the finish of regular season play for STA athletics teams. Golf, softball and tennis will begin postseason play within the week, while cross country and volleyball still have a few weeks before their seasons wind down.
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THANK YOU FOR YOUR GENEROUS SUPPORT OF FAB!
Nearly 50 FAB Members and Friends provided financial support, and countless volunteers provided hours of assistance to the mission of FAB: to provide support to our Fine Arts faculty and students to enrich the fine arts programs at STA!
Let's keep the ball rolling into 2017-2018!
Please click here to join or renew your membership for 2017-2018.
FAB needs parent involvement to fill leadership positions for 2017-2018. There are several ways that you can help. Parents, please get involved now so that FAB will continue to have a positive impact on the Fine Arts programs at STA for years to come.
Specifically, please consider being a FAB Class Parent Representative. We need to fill two positions for each grade year. All parents contribute by volunteering to help out with the Fall Mums Sale, donating cookies and treats for concessions and receptions, running concessions during shows, helping organize receptions after concerts, and in countless other ways. All of these tasks are very manageable since we have such great parent volunteers, so please consider sharing your leadership skills.
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