Bernie's Bark
1.22.2019
Dear Parents-
 
Thank you to all who were able to join us at the PTO meeting last Wednesday. We had a great night and came away inspired by our speakers, Jannet and Ray Clark. Their message was one of joy, and their witness for Christ was compelling, and humbling! I came away energized, as did others I spoke with. We should take the message with us into the second half of the school year, focusing on our own personal life in Christ, and helping our children find their life in Christ. As parents and teachers we need to remind our children that God created each of them with a unique purpose to fulfill. Discerning that purpose will take years, but helping your child develop a life in Christ will make the discernment a little easier!
 
Friday marks the half-way point in the school year, and interim for the second trimester. Please log on to PowerSchool and check your child’s progress. If you have any concerns, please contact your child’s teacher as soon as possible.
 
The Home Language survey was sent to all families, and is due back to the school office by the end of the month. Please take a moment to complete this important survey. Students who answer yes to at least one of the three questions asked are entitled to additional learning support. Parents should not hesitate to take advantage of this entitlement.
 
Registration for the 2019-2020 school year is underway. Registration forms were mailed home earlier this month. Secure your spot for next school year by returning the form and fee no later than February 15th. Access a registration form here if needed.
 
Next week we will celebrate Catholic Schools Week. During this week, students reflect on themes that celebrate the Catholic School experience, such as our community, our students, our nation, our vocations, our faculty, staff and volunteers. Many exciting activities have been planned by our CSW committee. Click here for our daily activities, and plan on joining us for Mass on Thursday and the Talent Show on Friday! I want to thank our 8th graders, Genna, Emily, Jack, Jerry, Keegan, Erik, Paulette, and Brigid, for volunteering to speak at Masses on Sunday to open the celebrations.
 
Don’t forget to mark your calendars for the Spring Fling, Gala and Auction, on April 6th. Proceeds from this fabulous event will support upgrades to the lighting in the classrooms and halls, especially in the older part of the school building. Research has shown that lighting has a significant impact on the classroom experience for both students and teachers. Lighting affects mood, headaches, confidence, anxiety levels, and performance. Please consider how you can help us reach our goals!
 
During the unpredictable winter weather season, we rely on SchoolMessenger and Remind to communicate changes in the school schedule. To date, everything has worked reasonably well. Unfortunately, Remind has alerted us to some changes in their ability to provide free service to our families with Verizon Wireless cell service. Please see information below that details what Verizon customers will need to do to keep receiving text messages. This applies only to our Verizon customers.
 
Please let me know if you have any questions.
 
Rejoice and Be Glad!
 
Denise Rutledge
Principal
REMIND School Alerts
Recently, we learned that Verizon will be charging Remind a new fee that makes it impossible for us to continue supporting free text messaging for anyone who has Verizon Wireless as their phone carrier.

How will this affect you?
Beginning January 28, 2019, the people who normally get Remind messages as texts will no longer receive these messages if they have Verizon Wireless as their phone carrier.

What can you do?
To make sure you continue receiving your messages,   download the mobile app  or  enable email notifications —both of which are free of charge.
Catholic Schools Week
January 27 - February 2
Day of Giving - SAVE THE DATE!

Catholic school education is the best investment you can make for your child. Why not make a gift towards the impact Catholic education has had on you or your child?
What is the Day of Giving?

24 Hours of Giving!
Tuesday, January 29, 2019 12 PM EST – Wednesday, January 30, 2019 12 PM EST Many Gifts, One Nation is a national campaign focused on giving back to Catholic education. Your gift will directly benefit St. Joseph Catholic School during
the 24 hour time period.
Your donation will help leverage our school offerings, financial assistance, tuition sustainability, and other operating costs that help us improve our school.
We appreciate your support!
Visit the Day of Giving site
The campaign goes live on January 29 at 12:00pm EST! Share the link with your friends, family, and anyone else that supports Catholic education!
Chipotle Night
January 29th from 4:00-8:00pm!
Chipotle has partnered with St. Joseph School during Catholic Schools Week!

Did someone say Chipotle? Bring the family to the Chipotle at 1144 Elden Street in Herndon for dinner! Show the below flyer to the cashier when you pay and St. Joseph School gets credit! Forgot your phone? No problem! Just mention that you are supporting St. Joseph School!

Support our local community business as they support us!
Food Donations for LINK
The St. Joseph School Community will be collecting food for LINK during Catholic Schools Week. Information will be sent home with your child this week .

Each class has been assigned a food item(s). The LINK pantry is in need of:
Kindergarten –  Spaghetti and other pastas          
First Grade –      Cereal and Oatmeal
Second Grade – Peanut Butter and Jelly
Third Grade –    Hearty Soups (canned)
Fourth Grade –  Spaghetti Sauce
Fifth Grade –     Dried Beans
Sixth Grade –     Canned Fruit
Seventh Grade – Bags of Rice
Eighth Grade –   Canned carrots, peas and corn

Donations will be gratefully accepted all week long!
Thank you for your generous support!
Podcast featuring Mrs. Rutledge

Please visit the St. Joseph Catholic School website for a podcast featuring Mrs. Rutledge's update on the school's strategic initiative presented at
last week's PTO meeting!
Thank you for attending the PTO meeting last week with motivational speakers
Jannet and Ray Clark! Parents enjoyed them so much that we had an overwhelming request for Jannet and Ray to return and
speak with our students! Stay tuned for a date in the near future!
Library News
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Find out what's happening in the SJS library! What day does your child visit the library? What happens if they
misplace a library book?
Get Fast Facts and Tips by clicking on the link below!

Geography Bee
Thank you to all the outstanding students that participated in the Geography Bee!
The winner was: Georgia H.! Georgia will take a state qualifying test!
Runner up was Rogelio S. Congratulations!!
Coffee with the Principal and School Counselor
Please join us on Friday, February 1st at 8:30am for coffee with the principal! Mrs. Farrell, our school counselor, will be joining us! Our goal is to have productive sharing sessions that address some of the concerns that affect school climate.

Mrs. Farrell will facilitate conversations that focus on such topics as bullying, conflict, girl drama, stress and anxiety, among others. Topic includes Bullying and Conflict---What’s the Difference? Sharing session will take place in the upstairs meeting rooms above the front office.
Science Fair - Judges Needed
Volunteers are needed to judge the Science Fair! No experience needed!

February 21, 2019, 6-8pm

Please click on the following link to sign up on our 
Science Fair Judges Registration page. 

Father-Daughter Dance

The Knights of Columbus Council is hosting its annual Father-Daughter Dance at St. Joseph parish hall on Saturday, February 16th from 7:00-9:30 pm.
Detailed information to follow.
Volunteer Opportunities
Please consider giving the gift of your time to help out in the library! See SignUp Genius link below for more information! Sign up times and dates will be sent out monthly starting in January.
Thank you for your support!



Want to volunteer? Help make lunch and recess fun and safe for our children. Click the link below to learn more and sign up.


Youth Ministry
Morning Prayers
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Each week the SJS News crew have helpers lead the school in morning prayers. Parents are welcome to watch the morning news show after carpool on days that their child is our prayerful leader. Siblings say prayers together on their designated day. The following are students for the upcoming weeks:

January 21: NO SCHOOL
January 22: Bailey, A and T
January 23: Bare, C
January 24: Barrie, C
January 25: Barron, A

January 28: Barros, V and A
January 29: Basye, P and P
January 30: Batallas, E
January 31: Beard, R
February 1: Bebeau, J
Stay Connected - Twitter and Facebook
Don't forget to follow SJS
on Twitter and Facebook!
A lot is happening at SJS and you don't want to miss out!

Twitter: @sjschoolva
Facebook: sjschoolva
Upcoming Events
January
January 23 - Morning Rehearsal for Advanced Band
January 23 - Band Practice - Beginner and Advanced
January 25 - Interim Grades
January 25 - 5th grade STREAM lab
January 25 - Mass
January 27 - Beginning of Catholic Schools Week
January 28 - Talent Show rehearsals
January 29 - Open House
January 30 - Morning Rehearsal for Advanced Band
January 30 - Band Practice - Beginner and Advanced
January 30 - 8th grade Confirmation Retreat

February
February 1 - Talent Show
February 1 - Coffee with the Principal
February 8 - Mass
February 10 - Donut Sunday hosted by Knights of Columbus
February 12 - 7th Grade field trip
February 13 - Morning Rehearsal for Advanced Band
February 13 - Band Practice - Beginner and Advanced
February 15 - Mass
February 16 - Father/Daughter Dance sponsored by the Knights of Columbus
February 18 - No School (President's Day)
February 20 - SJS Club Pictures
February 20 - Morning Rehearsal for Advanced Band
February 20 - Band Practice - Beginner and Advanced
February 21 - Science Fair
February 22 - Mass
February 22 - Science Fair
February 22 - 5th grade STREAM Lab
Weekly Saints Quote
750 Peachtree Street, Herndon, VA 20170
Tel: 703-880-4350 Fax: 703-880-4320