With COVID-19 continuing to spread and on the rise in our city, state and around the country, we must strongly reiterate the importance of following the protocols and procedures we have outlined in our Returning to School Plan. Specifically, the importance of monitoring your child’s health and symptoms and adhering to our expectations for returning to school and communicating with school personnel. 

Specifically, while we are aware of the new changes to the CDC Guidelines on quarantining, in consultation with our Health & Safety Committee, for the safety of our community, we will continue to require a 14-day quarantine for any student who has come into close contact with a lab-confirmed COVID-19 individual. It is imperative that our families take this responsibility seriously and immediately communicate any possible close contact with our school nurse.

If anyone in your family tests positive for COVID-19 or has a close contact exposure at any time over the next two weeks you must communicate that via email to our school nurse.

As we enter into this Christmas break we ask you to keep in mind your commitment to our community and the critical role we each play in this fight against COVID-19. If you will be attending holiday gatherings or traveling over the break, please consider these points of action:

It is with a sense of deep gratitude that we thank Cindy Duca and best wishes as she has announced her retirement at the end of this calendar year (this month). After twenty-four years of dedicated service to our school Cindy has determined it is time for her to take care of her family as she has taken such good care of St. Cecilia over the years. Cindy will soon be heading to Dallas on a weekly basis to take over as the primary care provider for her mother. 

In January of 2020, Cindy was awarded the 2019-2020 Honorary Outstanding Graduate during our Catholic Schools Week Mass. The following was said at the time of that award and still holds true today: “Being named an “Honorary Outstanding Graduate” represents a special distinction that sets this individual apart from others. Her dedication to St. Cecilia Catholic School and students throughout the years exemplifies the qualities of a committed supporter of Catholic education, and specifically of our school. Cindy joined the staff of St. Cecilia Catholic School in 1997. Before she began working here, she volunteered in many capacities for our school community through HSA as all her children - Andrew, David, Laura and Becky - attended St. Cecilia. Cindy has worked tirelessly behind the scenes to make sure all reports are accurate, completed and turned in on time. Among her other important duties, she also orders all the textbooks, workbooks, paper and supplies that we all use every day. She also ensures that there is a substitute teacher in each classroom whenever a teacher is absent. In 23 years, Cindy has performed numerous duties including (but not limited to) having called to service close to 10,000 subs (although some days it probably feels like it has been so many more). She has also scheduled more than 5,000 parent/teacher conferences and invited more than 5,000 students to the Principal’s Honor Roll Ice Cream party each quarter throughout her years here. She has ordered almost 1,000,000 workbooks, and counted and checked in about 50,000 textbooks; we can’t even begin to count all supplies and other materials she has brought to our school. St. Cecilia Catholic School has been extremely blessed to have this person as a part of our team.

Congratulations to 3rd Grade student Grace Lyons for her design winning the annual Christmas Card design contest! The annual St. Cecilia Christmas Card & Ornament will be delivered to the oldest & only child’s homeroom today. If you do not receive the card and ornament today, please check with the homeroom teacher by tomorrow.

Traditionally, 8th graders have hosted a Christmas cookie decorating party with Kindergarten students from Resurrection and Our Lady of Guadalupe. Since they were unable to host the event due to COVID, they created handmade cards and a video message to spread some holiday cheer. Additionally, the students in 8th Grade Robotics elective wrapped gifts for each student with a personal note designed by their fellow classmates.

Thank you to everyone who has contributed to the Annual Fund so far! We are very grateful for all of the generosity, and we've reached over 60% participation from school families. That is a great start and will go a long way toward helping St. Cecilia Catholic School in continuously advancing and enhancing the student experience for all. During this season of giving, we realize there are many asks from many fundraising organizations. If you have not yet had a chance to make your Annual Fund gift, please prayerfully consider a generous contribution to our school and the opportunities afforded to your children.

Please note: there will not be a Lost and Found pickup date this semester. Please advise your children to look for any lost items by this Friday. Parents will be able to go through Lost and Found at the Used Uniform Sale on January 12th.

Please make sure you keep your school-issued Chromebook in a safe and secure location over the holidays. Please refrain from taking your Chromebook on any travels. Please help your child remember to charge their Chromebook the night before returning to school on Tuesday, January 5, 2021. Thank you!

If you are experiencing a hardship of any kind please contact the HSA Caring Committee for support or prayer requests. They are here to help!

The HSA Caring Committee is a volunteer group that supports St. Cecilia Catholic School families who are dealing with illness, death, or crisis.