Dear Delone Catholic Families,

I hope that this message finds you well and doing the best that you can to cope with our current crisis. In dealing with it, we are building community, collective efficacy, and learning to broadening our range of instructional delivery.   We are growing in flexibility so we can toggle back and forth between online and in person teaching and learning. We are also doing our best to make sure that our students are as ready as possible for the next school year.

I have been in communication with my counterparts in other diocesan high schools and we are
endeavoring to maintain similar and consistent practices throughout our high schools. Today marks the end of the third quarter, according to our academic calendar. The deadline for all assignments and/or assessments, however, marked as missing as of March 16 and/or assigned after March 16, is extended until noon on April 8, 2020, meaning that all students have until that date to submit the corresponding assignments and/or assessments. Maximum flexibility on this issue is being maintained to allow for the disparities found throughout the home learning environments.
We recognize that even families with superb internet access and the latest technology are encountering issues: family members competing for resources with multiple children, both parents working from home, situations complicated by medical needs, care for elderly family members, childcare, etc. Anything assigned beginning March 30 will count towards the 4th quarter. Obviously, by extension, report card distribution will be delayed as well and most likely be sent electronically.  I hope to have more to share with you regarding the 4 th quarter sometime next week.

Monday, March 30, will be a teacher in-service day followed by four days of instruction. Department chairs are meeting weekly with me on Friday afternoons to debrief the prior week of instruction and we are meeting as an entire faculty each Monday morning to implement any changes. Shortly, we will be sending out a Family Survey that will help us gauge better where everyone stands in this process and to improve delivery of instruction. Many concerns raised by families and teachers need to be discussed on various levels before decisions can be rendered, but I assure you that I will communicate with you promptly once they have been determined. As of today, the earliest that I anticipate our students returning to the building is April 14 but that is subject to change based on directives stemming from the Governor's office.

Please note that, given the Diocesan directive that no one may work in the building, the best venue to reach out to any staff member is via email, and we encourage you to continue communicating with us as needed. If you are having difficulty reaching out to or receiving a response from any staff member, please contact me directly.  

As your principal, I must share a great Squire "Shout Out" with everyone regarding the levels of
understanding and cooperation being demonstrated within our community. I am so proud, not only of our students and staff, but of parents and extended families and friends, of how everyone is pulling together to continue our mission and keep the learning going.

Once again, thank you for your continued patience, understanding and prayers.

Sincerely,

Richard La Rocca
Principal

Attention teachers, administrators, students and families: Let's all show some Squire pride on Friday, March 27 with an online Black & Gold Spirit Day. Grab your favorite Delone Catholic Spirit wear and jot down a message (encouraging, humorous, favorite quote, etc.). Take a pic holding your special message, wearing your spirit wear and send it to Mrs. Hart at jhart@delonecatholic.org. Note: these photos may be used in social media posts and in the school yearbook.

Looking for some fresh, at-home family entertainment? 

Ready for a little virtual competition?

This Sunday night at 7 p.m. Delone Catholic will host an online team trivia competition for the first 100 families to sign-in at www.crowd.live/YFAC3. 

How does it work?

*Each household is a team and signs in with a fun, school-appropriate team name. 

*When the game starts, you have 45 seconds to answer - but get your correct answers in fast. The faster you answer, the more points you earn!

*We'll ask 30 questions in categories that include movies, music, sports, celebrities, food, animals, kids, science, USA and the world.

*The team with the most points at the end earns bragging rights.

Thank you for those who were able to tune in to watch How to Get Organized for Home Learning Success. Our apologies for those who may have experienced some technical difficulties. This, and other school videos, are available on our YouTube channel.

How to Get Organized for Home Learning Success! as Live Streamed on March 23, 2020 at 7 p.m.

Mrs. Melissa Braden, Art Teacher, is the instructor of our Publications class, whose primary purpose is to create the school yearbook. This is an intensive, year-long effort to represent the school and the students for the 2019-20 school year. In light of the current circumstances, many of the remaining sections and pages of the yearbook will not be available to be published. But not to worry! Mrs. Braden has an idea of ways to fill up those pages!

"I want to show the myriad of ways our Delone Catholic families are coping and staying positive through this weird time of sacrifice and adjustment. I am asking parents to send photos and short descriptions of the funny, creative and selfless things that they as families are doing to pass time, stay active and help others." 

Mrs. Braden is working on this project in conjunction with Mrs. Jennifer Hart, so please submit your photos, stories and/or videos to her at jhart@delonecatholic.org. Mrs. Hart may want to post some of these on Social Media, so please be aware of this when you submit your photos/videos.

Here's a small sampling of what some of our teachers are doing as we navigate the waters of remote learning:

Delone Catholic music students from grades 4-12 are using the Soundtrap digital audio workstation to submit assignments while the schools are closed. The Delone Flute Choir has taken it a step further, using Soundtrap and video editing software to create an online collaborative cover of The Beatles' (I Get By) "With a Little Help From My Friends" - a very appropriate song for these challenging times. This arrangement for flute trio and guitar was written by David Warin Solomons.

Friends 1

Students who are interested in taking Biology II, Chemistry II, Physics II, Anatomy and Physiology, (all levels) or Physics I Honors, please sign up for the class or classes  you  want according to the prerequisites as listed in the 2020-21 Course Catalog. The science department will then review the list and make any adjustments that may be necessary.  If we change what you have registered for we will notify you and if need be set up a time to discuss it.  Thank you for your help.

Stay healthy and hope to see you all soon.  

Miss Pinkos and the Science Department

Delone Catholic High School is excited to provide innovative opportunities to engage our students in the context of real-life learning through academic internships. Through this program, students in their senior year would have the ability to work in a professional setting for one to two hours daily. Placement would be based on a student's career interests and pursued under the supervision of our internship coordinator in conjunction with an on-site mentor. In addition to exploring experiences on the job site, students will participate in monthly in-school seminars exploring career and workplace issues. All positions will be on an unpaid basis.

We are currently seeking businesses/companies that would have an interest working with our students in this program. Our plan is to begin this program the fall of 2020. If your business/company has an interest in working with us on this new adventure or if you have any questions about our program, please complete this REQUEST FORM and send it to Lori Heberling at Delone Catholic High School either via fax at 717-637-0442 or contact Mrs. Heberling via email at lheberling@delonecatholic.org .

Thank you for your consideration and interest in our internship program.

Sincerely,

Richard La Rocca

Principal