St. Louis Catholic School Newsletter
May 24, 2019
A Message from the Principal...
Dear St. Louis Families,

Our students were sharing their talents in a special way throughout the week! Monday night brought us the gift of music, as our chorus and band students sang and played beautifully. On Thursday, our Student Council officers and representatives collaborated and presented a fantastic World Cultures Day for all students, as classes went to McClunn Hall for peer-directed centers on countries and cultures from around the world. It was impressive to see our student leaders in action! Today, we pray for all of our band students who are spending Friday in Hershey, Pennsylvania, representing St. Louis School in competition, and then heading off for a little fun in the park!

This coming week will be a fun one with field days for everyone. I am so grateful to all the volunteers who will be giving their time to our students and to Mrs. Blaha! This coming week is also the last one for our preschoolers. It is amazing the growth we see in our youngest ones over the course of a school year - - and we look forward to seeing them in the Fall. I am also excited to share that Mrs. Dare Hurley will be our new Preschool Director next year! Mrs. Hurley is an inaugural member of our preschool staff, and she been an amazing gift to our program as both teacher and registrar. As a leader, she will truly be a gift to our preschool families!

Thanks to so many of you who have sent messages of congratulations to me following the announcement of my new position as Head of School at Bishop Ireton. I am savoring all of these “lasts” as we come to the end of the school year. I wish all of you a very peaceful holiday weekend!

Blessings,

Kathleen McNutt
Principal  
School Announcements
Weekly Prayer Intentions
Each day our school community prays for the intentions of our families. This week the following families were included in our prayers: Fisher, Fortier, Fr. Bryan, Fr. Dort, Fr. Dudzinski, Fr. O'Hare, Gerke, Goebel, Granados and Hahler.
St. Louis School Principal Search Committee Survey
With the impending departure of Mrs. McNutt at the end of the 2018-19 school year, we have begun the search process for our next principal. We invite the school community to take a few minutes to provide your input regarding the considerations you would like us to take into account during the selection process. Your responses are anonymous. 

 
We are working diligently on a tight timeline so your quick response is greatly appreciated.  Please respond no later than Friday, May 31, 2019.   
PLEASE READ - June Lunch Order Refunds
A number of refunds have been issued for June lunch orders:
  • The 2nd grade class picnic is on Tuesday, June 4th. If you ordered lunch for your 2nd grader, you have been refunded.
  • The 3rd grade class picnic is on Wednesday, June 5th. If you ordered lunch for your 3rd grader, you have been refunded.
  • Wednesday, June 5th is the last day of school for 8th Grade. Graduation ceremonies will take place the evening of June 6th. If you ordered lunch for your 8th grader for June 6th or 7th, you have been refunded.
  • The last day of school for Kindergarten is Thursday, June 6th following the morning graduation ceremony. If you ordered lunch for your Kindergartener for June 6th or 7th, you have been refunded.
  • The 1st grade class picnic is on Friday, June 7th. If you ordered lunch for your 1st grader, you have been refunded.
Medication Pick-up
Medications in the Nurse's Clinic must be picked up by a parent/guardian no later than dismissal on the last day of school. In accordance with school and diocesan policy, medications cannot be stored in the clinic and will be destroyed if not picked up by a parent.
If you are not planning on picking up your medication and wish the nurse to dispose of it, please send an email to nurse@stlouisschool.org .
Google Accounts of Students Not Returning 2019-20
As your student leaves St. Louis Catholic School, we wish them the best and won’t ever forget them. We will however, be forgetting their Google accounts! All students who are moving/graduating/leaving the school will have their St. Louis School Google account, and all its data, deleted on July 19, 2019. If your student has any documents, photos, data, etc. saved to their Google account (@stlouisschool.org) they must save it to a personal account, flashdrive, computer, or some alternative storage format. Anything that is not backed up elsewhere will be lost. Have a wonderful summer!
5th Grade Step Up Night - May 28th
The move up to middle school is an exciting one, and we want to help make the transition as smooth as possible for students and parents! Rising 6th graders, new middle school students and their parents are invited to the Middle School Step Up Night on Tuesday, May 28th. Please join us for an opening session by Mrs. McNutt, Mrs. Cucinotta, Mrs. Crooker and Mrs. Orr in the school cafeteria at 6:00pm. The 6th grade teachers will then take the students over for Q&A in the JPII building while the parents have additional info from the nurse and Mrs. McNutt. The night will end with time in the classrooms and hallway of the middle school.
Social Media/Technology and Our Children
With summer quickly approaching, you may be asking yourself how you’re going to reign your children in with their “devices”. Included here is a link to a website with LOTS of helpful videos and information for parents. I highly recommend you watch the one related to the negative effects of social media and technology. Also, make sure you scroll down as there is a free online class designed to help parents put some controls into place, but you need to sign up ahead of time. Here’s the link. As always if you have any questions or concerns about your children, please feel free to get in touch. You can reach me at jcotnoir@stlouisschool.org . Have a wonderful summer!!!
PTO
Final Spirit Dinner - Yogurt City, June 6-7
One more Spirit event for this school year. Come join your friends at Yogurt City Thursday, June 6 and Friday June 7. It is all day for those not working or who have a flexible schedule. The days are getting warm already. Come have some cool refreshing yogurt or maybe some Bubble Tea. See you there!

See the flyer for more information.
Guardian Angel Program
The St. Louis School guardian angel program needs volunteers especially for incoming Kindergarten families! The guardian angel program pairs new, incoming families with existing families in the St. Louis community. It is intended to help welcome new families and make their transition to a new school easier and more comfortable. If you are interested in helping welcome new families to our school, please see the attached flyer for more information or click here to sign up.
The PTO Needs You!
Do you have the desire to get more involved with the St. Louis PTO? Now is your opportunity! The PTO is looking for volunteers to take on responsibilities for the following positions:
  • Hawks Day 5k Race Committee Members (October 19, 2019)
  • Hawks Day Celebration Committee Members (October 19, 2019)
  • Silent Auction Committee Members
If you are interested in a more active role with the PTO, or would like more information on any of these positions, please email Sharon Moss at srjones@hotmail.com .
Volunteer Opportunities
Completed PTO Volunteer Hours as of May 21st
Attached is the  updated list  of completed PTO volunteer hours as of May 21, 2019. If your name is on the list, that means your family has met the complete requirement of 18 hours for a two-parent family or 9 hours for a single parent family. If your name does not appear on the list, and you have met the requirement, please email the volunteer coordinators so that we can make sure we have your hours recorded.

Thank you for your time and dedication to our school. Your involvement and help are what make St. Louis School a wonderful community.

Vanessa Milewski ( vanessamilewski@yahoo.com ) and Elizabeth Moncher ( efdmoncher@gmail.com )
Don't forget!
 Individual families are required to track their volunteer hours throughout the school year and to submit them to the PTO Volunteer Coordinators for credit.

VIRTUS REQUIRED
Volunteers must have completed the VIRTUS training seminar AND have a background check clearance to participate in these volunteer opportunities.

Field Day - 5th-8th Grade
May 29, 2019, 8-11am
Contact Mrs. Blaha, lblaha@stlouisschool.org

Field Day - 1st-4th Grade
May 30, 2019, 8-11am
Contact Mrs. Blaha, lblaha@stlouisschool.org

Girls on the Run, Heart & Sole Coaches
Fall 2019 Season
Contact Mrs. Cotnoir jcotnoir@stlouisschool.org
NON-VIRTUS

Guardian Angels
Sign Up Genius here
Questions regarding volunteering? Contact Vanessa Milewski ( vanessamilewski@yahoo.com ) and Elizabeth Moncher ( efdmoncher@gmail.com )
Extracurricular Activities & CYO
CYO Thanks and Congratulations
Thank you to everyone who attended the end-of-the year CYO Mass and Celebration on Sunday. It was a wonderful morning where we got to celebrate our athletes, parents and coaches! A special thanks to  Marcy Grzadzinski, Kieran Mitchell, Tiffany Brown, Katherine Wood-Morris, Laura Burdick, and Billy Mitchell  who put the whole event together, and to all who helped clean up the gym during and after the event. We send our heartfelt thanks to our “retiring” coaches,  Martha O’Connor, David Martinez, Adam Berman, and Ray Villareal . All have given so much of their time and talent to our students over the years, and we know their players will never forget the lessons they learned from these great coaches. Finally, the CYO handed out the inaugural Coach of the Year award.  As you know, St. Louis is blessed with MANY exceptional coaches, and parents nominated eleven coaches for the award : Bill Buffaloe, Judy Conti, Michael Day, Luis James, Ted Koch, Tom McGuire, John Miller, Brian Nienaber, Chris Richey, Ernie Robinson, and Ray Villareal , all of whom are such a credit to the CYO and all of whom fully deserve our thanks and recognition. The selection committee chose Judy Conti , our cheerleading coach, as this year’s recipient. Judy has done a tremendous job building our cheer program and advancing the skill and competition of cheerleading in a positive, faith filled environment. St. Louis is blessed by all of our amazing coaches and volunteers, and we thank everyone for their efforts throughout each sport season!
Girls on the Run and Heart & Sole Coaches Needed
Girls on the Run and Heart and Sole are coming back to St. Louis in the fall…..and we need coaches!! Girls on the Run is for girls in 4th and 5th grades while Heart and Sole is for 6th-8th grade girls. The program is twice a week for ten weeks culminating in a 5K run November 23rd. We are looking for one or two coaches for each team. You would only be committing yourself for one afternoon a week with the season beginning the week of September 23rd. Training is provided. You don’t need to be a runner to be a coach. VIRTUS compliance is required. If you have any interest in coaching in the fall, please contact Mrs. Jennifer Cotnoir at jcotnoir@stlouisschool.org .  
Parish & Community
Good Shepherd's Boy Scouts of America Venture Crew
Attention 8th Graders - Stay Connected!
Join Good Shepherd’s Boy Scouts of America Venture Crew
Scouting for Boys and Girls 14+ or 8th Grade Graduates
CAMPING – ROCK CLIMBING – OUTDOORS-CANOEING – BIKING – HIKING – SKIING RAFTING – SERVICE – BILLIARDS
Come learn more at our upcoming Open House on May 30th at 8:00 pm at Good Shepherd Catholic Church, 8710 Mount Vernon Hwy, Alexandria, VA 22309.
Contact Lucy Florenzo at lmflo3@icloud.com or Miguel de Angel at m.deangel@gs-cc.org
Summer Tutoring
Our Title 1 teacher, Mrs. Kathy Shuey, is offering tutoring for a fee during the summer weeks. She has been STL's Title I Reading and Math teacher for grades K-5 for the past 5 years. Summer is the time for all students to keep progressing & get extra support, so that they will be ready to go in the fall. Mrs. Shuey will offer sessions that include hands-on activities, games, and computer review for each of the sessions in math, reading, writing, spelling, comprehension, and letter formation for the youngest. She is available to come to your home or go to a central meeting point (library). Sessions are currently available on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, or Thursdays for 45 minutes to an hour (depending on the age of the child).
These are the available weeks:  
  • June 25, 26, 27
  • July 9, 10, 11
  • July 16, 17, 18
  • July 23, 24, 25
  • July 30, 31, Aug 1
  • Some select times on Aug 13, 14, 15
  • Some select times on Aug 20, 21, 22
Call for more information at 703-581-5551 or email kathyshuey@gmail.com
Family Movie Night to Benefit Work Camp
Join St. Louis Youth Ministry for their last fundraiser before WorkCamp--a family move night! Come to McClunn Hall on Friday, May 24th to watch Meet the Robinsons (Disney, G-Rated, 1hr 35min) and enjoy some light refreshments and baked goods. Doors open at 6:30pm and the film will be begin at 7pm. We encourage you to bring blankets and pillows to sit on. It will be a suggested donation of $5/per person to see the movie! Please bring additional cash if you would like to purchase any of our refreshments or baked goods. 
Bishop Ireton STEM Day for 5th-7th Graders
Bishop Ireton High School has an awesome STEM Day planned for current 5th - 7th grade students on Saturday, June 1 from 9-12pm on the high school campus. The event is free to the student s and will be run by the computer and engineering teachers with assistance from s taff . Please click here  for more information. Space is limited to 40 students and the deadline to register is May 24. 
Baroody Summer Camp
St. Louis Parish is offering a Baroody Camps, Inc. Summer Camp Program for Young Christian Athletes! 
  • Dates and Times: Monday through Friday, 8:30am-3:00pm (with before and after care options starting at 8am and ending at 5pm) July 8-12 and July 15-19
  • Location: McClunn Hall
  • Ages: children ages 6-12
  • Price: $250 per student/week
See the flyer for more details! 
Summer Camps at Bishop O'Connell
Summer Camps - We are now accepting registrations for our sports camps. We will have multiple camps throughout the summer.  Click here for more information about our various summer camps.
Summer Camps at St. John Paul the Great
Saint John Paul the Great Catholic High School is excited to announce their 2019 SUMMER CAMPS! Whether you’re looking for an enrichment and leadership experience or a sports program for your child, the John Paul Summer Programs are full of opportunities for children in grades 2 through 12. 
Have questions? Contact  camps@jpthegreat.org  or 703-445-0300. 
Camp descriptions and registration information here:  www.jpthegreat.org/apps/pages/summeractivities
Upcoming Calendar Events
May 2019
Monday, May 27 - No School; Memorial Day
Tuesday, May 28 - Middle School Step-up Night, 6pm
Tuesday, May 28 - "Getting Ready for High School" for 7th Grade Parents, 7pm
June 2019
Wednesday, June 5 - 8th Grade Last Day of School
Thursday, June 6 - Kindergarten Graduation & K Last Day, 9am
Thursday, June 6 - 8th Grade Graduation, 7pm
Wednesday, June 12 - 1st-7th Grade Last Day of School