OUR MISSION:
St. Rita School inspires students in Pre-Kindergarten through grade eight to achieve academic excellence in a safe, nurturing and faith-filled Catholic environment.
We prepare students to be morally responsible, innovative thinkers who, in today’s technology-guided global community, live and share the Love of Christ.
FROM THE DESK OF MRS. TIEZZI
Dear SRS Parents,

It was great to see so many of you last week at our Back to School Nights. We encourage you to take an active role in the education of your child. As partners in the educational process at St. Rita School the success and responsibility of educating your child requires the sharing or ideas from both home and school. We look forward to partnering with you on this journey. Please refer to this link to view my Back to School Night and State of the School Presentation.

I’d like to welcome Joanne Bruno as our new Advancement Director. Her job will be to coordinate and oversee the planning and implementation of a comprehensive fund development program. Joanne is a familiar face here at St. Rita (mother of Christian-SRS ’18 and Nicholas-SRS ’19) in addition to having served in various volunteer capacities during her time at St. Rita. We look forward to working with Joanne in her new role. 

The annual HOPES (Help Our Parish Elementary Schools) dinner will be held next week and two of our faithful volunteers will be recognized as St. John Neumann Volunteers of the Year at this dinner.  Congratulations to Andrea Affinito and Grace Roldan. Andrea has been tutoring students for many years both at St. Stephen and now at St. Rita. She currently works with students in kindergarten through grade 5 in the area of math. Grace Roldan served as our H.S.A. president for two years and previously served as chair of various HSA committees and on the Executive Board. We are grateful to both of these talented ladies for helping to further the mission of our school.

Tomorrow a reporter and videographer from WTNH will be here to film St. Rita School for the program “What’s  Right with Our Schools”. We will showcase our science and technology programs. Some our teachers and students will be interviewed. Once we know when the program will air we will notify all our families.  Just a reminder to all that parents must indicate to the school office and your child’s teacher if you do not want your child photographed. A separate permission form granting permission for your child to be photographed is being sent home by Mrs. Civitello. Please return it in a timely manner.

Thank you for entrusting your child/ren to our care. Enjoy the final days of summer-Happy Fall!!

God Bless
Mrs. Tiezzi
Principal

School News 
Help our school earn cash by clipping Box Tops from products and sending them to school! Each one is worth 10¢ and our school can use the cash for whatever it needs.
See a list of products at BTFE.com/products.
Do you love AMAZON?
We do!
Shop at smile.amazon.com and support our school!

Support St. Rita School by Grocery Shopping!
Register your BIG Y card through this link!
Help Support SRS while you shop!
Register your ShopRite card at
Reminder: You must re-enroll your card each year
School code:
50073
September 27 - An Astronomical Celebration of the Season of Creation
Our Divine Mercy parish community is invited to a special presentation "Journeying the Universe as Pilgrims of Faith", given by a parishioner, Graziella Zinn, who is a professional astronomer, St. Rita Donnelly Parish Center - 7 PM. She will lead us in an imaginary journey through the universe by viewing and understanding a series of spectacular images provided by the Hubble Space Telescope. Recent developments of modern astronomy will give us insights for looking at questions like: What is the meaning of this immense and evolving universe? Did it begin out of nothing? How does it relate to human existence? Is there any other intelligent life? The inspiring guide for our journey will be our Catholic Faith and Tradition.

Photo Release Form
Students will be bringing home a separate photo release form- please fill out the form
(1 per child) and return to school as soon as possible. Thank you




VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
We are looking for student and family volunteers that are parishioners at Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Hamden to help with marketing efforts during select weekend Masses.
If your family is interested please contact



UPCOMING VIRTUS TRAINING DATES:

Sunday, Sept 23. 1:00pm
St. Thomas More Chapel, New Haven

Wednesday, Sept. 26 6:00pm
Assumption Church, Ansonia

Wednesday, Sept. 26 6:00pm
St. Mary Church, Branford

Saturday, Sept. 29 9:00am
Mount Carmel Church, Meriden

Those who have recently completed a class, please send Sister Anne a copy of your certificate.
Thank you

A Few Reminders:
  • Please be patient during pick up- especially to those who have little ones with little feet!
  • DO NOT drop off your child until you arrive in the parking lot of SRS during morning drop off.
Do not drop your child off on the street in the drop off line.
  • Please DO NOT have lunch delivered to school for your child


PAINT HAMDEN PINK NEWS!
Join us for our
2018 High School Night Showcase!
Wednesday
October 3, 2018
Open to students in Grades 6-8
Non- St. Rita School students welcome!
Interested in joining the Coding Club?
Coding is the new literacy. Currently there are a low percentage of students graduating with Computer Science degrees and there is a demand for these skills in the workplace. Studies are telling us that introducing coding at an early age can facilitate early interest. In addition, it can exercise multiple areas of the brain related to language processing, working memory, and attention. Students are enabled to develop a sense of creativity, self expression, and critical thinking skills.
Boscov's Gala Preview for A Great Cause

Be the first to see the new Boscov's at Connecticut Post Mall, and help St. Rita School at the same time!
Purchase a $5 ticket from the main Office at St. Rita School or by contacting  trisha.kozloski@yahoo.com , then attend the event on Thursday,
October 4, 2018 10am-9pm. 
Each ticket holder receives a free gift, and there are refreshment and entertainment.
Your ENTIRE $5 donation benefits St. Rita School. 
Home and School Association
Home and School Association
Parent Volunteer Opportunities

St. Rita Annual Walk-A-Thon

  It's just 2 weeks to go before our annual Walk-a-Thon. Please continue sending in your donations so we can meet our $30,000 fundraising goal for this year. For the past years we have been meeting our goals through the effort of all students and parents. Let's do it again this year and continue our winning streak. 

By Friday this week (09/21)  - The student who brings in the most donations will win a Personal Dress Down Day. 

By Friday next week (09/28)  - We will have winners for both Individual Students and Classes who bring in the most donations. 

  • Individual Pre-K to Grade 2: Amazon Echo Dot Kids Edition, a smart speaker with Alexa for kids
  • Individual Grades 3 - 5: Beats Headphones by Dre, a premium brand headphones
  • Individual Grades 6 - 8: GoPro Camera, an action video camera to capture every moment in HD
  • Class Prizes: Pizza Party, Ice Cream Party, STEM Activity 

Go ahead and ask family members, relatives and friends for support. This is the most relied-upon fundraiser of the year to fund our planned activities and projects for the school year. 

If you know of any businesses who may want to sponsor, this is a great advertising opportunity for them. Donations are tax-deductible. For questions about sponsorship, please reach out to Riel Cruz at  rielcruz@gmail.com  or Danielle Daley at  daleyfamily820@gmail.com . Thank you!
Clothing Drive at the 2018 Walk-A-Thon

We will hold our 5th annual clothing drive sponsored by Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwestern Connecticut Foundation during the Walk-A-Thon this year. Please help us help others and raise money for our school at the same time! Please click on the link below for more information and start filling bags to donate while you are cleaning out closets getting ready for the new school year! Thank you!

Athlete's Corner
Fall Soccer Information
SOCCER REMINDERS:
 
Practice: Tuesday, Sept 18 th  at 3:30
Games: Wednesday, Sept 19 th  at 3:45 @ Moretti
Friday, Sept 21 st  at 3:45 @ Moretti
The full schedule is listed on the
St Rita’s Athletics Page under “Schedules”
 
St. Rita Soccer Challenge
sponsored by the Knights of Columbus
Saturday, Sept 22 nd   starting at
9:00–11:00am at Moretti Field
 
Open to all St. Rita's
students ages 9 -14. 
Winners in each age group will move on
to compete in the District
Championship in October
Regional and State Championship.
 
REGISTER THE DAY OF THE EVENT
Proof of age must accompany all entry forms.
 
Volunteers for the event are also
needed. If interested in helping out or
questions about the event, please contact Wayne Bruno

Check back here for all Athletic News
PICTURES WANTED! If you love taking pictures at our SRS sporting events, please share them with us! Please send to ccivitello.stritaschool@gmail.com
Student Spotlight
Did you child/ren do something amazing? Share with us!
Please send submissions to
Please be patient as we receive many wonderful stories of our SRS students and Alumni!
Prayer Corner
Please keep the following SRS community
members in your thoughts and prayers



Stepfather of Mrs. Betsy Bathrick


If you have a special intention that you would like to share in our prayer corner, please email Carissa Civitello
Safety & Security Campaign
St. Rita School is committed to providing the safest environment for our students. Our goals are simple: kids, safety, and security. We make a commitment to our students and families that our school is an environment which focuses on educational, spiritual, and personal growth. Safety and security are non-negotiable elements. They are part of the growth that needs to happen, and with your support that growth can and will take place. Your support will help us supply protective window film, security cameras, and surveillance monitors. We can't secure the future without you. Please consider a gift today!

Caritas Christi Center
Check back for upcoming events
UPCOMING DATES - 
September 30- Annual SRS Walk-a Thon
October 2- No School - Staff Professional Development
October 3- High School Night (Grades 6-8)
October 5- 1st Friday Mass 8:45am & 12:15 Dismissal
October 8- No School
October 9- 12:15 Dismissal Conference Day
October 14-17 NEASC Accreditation
October 22- Lifetouch Individual Pictures
October 23- Lifetouch Group Pictures
October 26- Trunk or Treat Event , Middle School Halloween Dance

St. Rita School
1601 Whitney Avenue
Hamden, CT 06517
Phone: (203) 248.3114
Fax: (203) 248.1016