NID School Newsletter

Filled with living hope in Christ,

Confessing, Praising, and

Advancing His Kingdom.

School Newsletter: October 22, 2020

Live a Life of Love

‘Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us.’

Ephesians 5:1-2

Many of us grew up singing this song:

‘Jesus loves the little children

All the children of the world

Red, brown, yellow

Black and white

They are precious in His sight

Jesus loves the little children

Of the world.’ - George Frederick Root

What a wonderful reminder that, no matter who we are or where we are, Jesus loves us. We are each created as a special package of gifts, talents, interests, and needs. We fall short of our potential because of sin, yet, Jesus loves us. What better reassurance could we have? The shortcomings that we have, don’t make us less desirable to God. He holds on to us tighter and guides us on our walk. That is something we can celebrate each and every day.

Knowing that we are forgiven, gives us encouragement and the strength to share our love for Jesus with others. Whether we are in a classroom teaching, serving in another capacity, retired and volunteering, etc… we are all loved by God and precious to Him.

Be uplifted and reminded that you are His precious child. Doubts? See and hear what Christ crucified and risen has to say to you, “Peace be with you.”

As we place our faith and trust in God (no matter the stresses we face), we can all be thankful that God holds us in the palm of His hand and gives us what He knows is best for us. So, when trials come (including the stresses of COVID19 and keeping your school safe), step back and know God’s plan is perfect. Stay in the Word. Take care of yourself to be Well. Use your words and life as a Witness.

Remember each day – Christ loves you and holds you close.

Serving the Master Teacher,

Lois Stewart

LCMS National Office of Education

The National Office of Education in St. Louis works tirelessly to support all of the LCMS schools and offer support, programs, and resources to assist in the success and ministry of our schools. Here are a few things for you to be aware of:

1. The information for administrators (Early Childhood Directors, Elementary Principals, and High School Principals) to submit their annual statistical report will be sent out in the very near future. PLEASE watch for this to arrive. When you get that information, be encouraged to complete it and submit it in a timely manner. Last year we were VERY CLOSE to 100% completion. Let’s get 100% this year! Please note that my office does not have access to your login items. Make sure you keep that handy.

2. There will be a COVID19 survey also sent to schools from the National Office for you to complete with feedback.

3. The annual school fees were once again paid by the NID for you and your school. This fee allows schools access to:

a. Luthed.org site

b. better technology access to LCMS items

c. continued development of resources and mailings

If you have not received your email, please make sure that the email you are using is the one that is on file in LISN.

PLEASE NOTE:

1. All enrollment numbers should include all students currently enrolled, regardless if they are in-person or online.

2. “Total School Enrollment and Capacity” should be completed as if there were NO current COVID restrictions.

3. “Number of Children who applied but could not be admitted this fall due to space limitations” should be completed taking into account the COVID restrictions as affected students are not enrolled due to the COVID restrictions.

NID Website Updates

Please continue to be encouraged to visit www.nidlcms.org website for updates in the Coronavirus block.

Accreditation Updates

Please stay tuned for updates as they are available regarding NLSA visits and deadlines.

NLSA Accreditation News

Illinois Coalition for Nonpublic Schools

The ICNS works very hard so that nonpublic schools in Illinois receive valuable and timely information from the state. ICNS has two lobbyists in Springfield that regularly communicate back to us. In the past, each school joined on their own. They have changed that. Rather than each school paying $125.00 for a yearly membership, the NID (along with all other nonpublic districts) is invoiced for $1,000.00. They invoice according to the number of schools the district has. So that all of our elementary and high schools receive this information, the NID will assess each school $25.00 per year. That is quite a savings. Please see the attached invoice. You are being asked to print the invoice and send a copy of that to Lois Stewart’s attention at the NID office with a contribution of $25.00. Thank you so much (in advance) for continuing to support the work of your Education Office.

ICNS Invoice

Professional Development Credits

As the school year begins, please know, once again, that professional development credit is available through Concordia University Chicago. Administrators are asked to contact Catherine Nessling at Catherine.Nessling@cuchicago.edu. She is the person that will process the request. All professional development sessions that are directed to student growth, curriculum development, etc. related to state standards may count.

2020-2021 Hearts for Jesus

The ‘Hearts for Jesus’ mission project this school year will be the new NID Belize Mission Project. Please plan to share the attached video with your students and plan to support this mission. Watch for other resources to follow. See the attachment of the mission project information.

Hearts for Jesus - Belize Mission Information

LCEF Education Webinar Recordings

Brent Dieckhoff

Connecting with the TEC 21 ministry for such a time as this

View webinar here

In the presentation, Laurie mentioned that she created a screencast for you as a "Take Away Gift for You!" It's a screencast on using Pear Deck where you can insert interactive slides into your Google Slides presentations to engage learners! Here's the link to Laurie's screencast: A Screencast Using Pear Deck. We challenge you to use it next week!

Megan Miessler

You Need Oxygen First: Teaching Educators to Care for Self