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

Back to School News
August 2019
 
Dear St. Rita Parents,

We had a fairly busy and productive summer here at St. Rita School. We are finishing up a few projects to enhance our facility and will allow us to grow our programs. Our Outdoor Classroom space is almost complete thanks to a strong team lead by Eagle Scout candidate, Allan Kripps. Special thanks to a number of our NJHS members and Mr. Banas for providing Allan with manual labor throughout this project.  Our MakerSpace will be located in the lower level of the school and should be ready in time for the beginning of the school year. Thank you to everyone who has donated recycleable materials to our MakerSpace.

I am excited to share with you some news about our school staffing and programs.

We welcome Mrs. Denise Gertz as our new 2 nd grade teacher replacing Kathy Halloran who has retired. We also welcome Mrs. Tina Corraro as the new Spanish teacher for students in grades PreK-4 through grade 5 and Ms. Polina Mann as our new Music teacher for all grade levels. 

We are currently interviewing for a 4 th grade teacher to replace Melissa Jones who has accepted a position in the public schools. 

·        Curriculum updates and enhancements for the upcoming year include:
  •   Continue the SuperKids reading program for students in Grade 1.
  •  Implement a new science program in grades 3-5 with an on-line component
  •  Introduce the 1-1 Chromebook to students in grade 3 (in-school use only).
  • The MakerSpace and Outdoor Classroom initiatives.

Reminders:
  Monday, August 26 is the soft opening day of school for students in grades
PreK-8. The school building will be open from 8:00-12:30 for you and your child to stop by for a brief visit.

School starting time is at 8:15 A.M. for students in grades K-8 and 8:30 for PreK students. Please have your child to school on time and report directly to their classroom. Every Monday grades K-8 students and teachers will gather in the gym as a school community for Morning Prayer and Opening. On all other days the students will report directly to their classrooms for morning prayer and announcements.

  Bus Routes will be posted on St. Rita School website (www.stritaschool.org) under the Parent Information tab. Bus routes should be posted by Friday, August 23. You may contact the school office if you have any questions about the bus schedule.

   Please check your Educonnect parent portal to find your child’s class assignment which will be posted on Sunday, August 25. Returning families may edit and update emergency contact information and new families must enter the contact information using the portal. Your Educonnect ID and password will be emailed to you on Friday, August 23.

   Back to School Parent Night is scheduled for Tuesday, September 10 beginning at 6:30 for parents of students in grades K-5 and Thursday, September 12 for parents of students in grades 6-8. More information will be forthcoming in the next Constant Contact.

The faculty, staff and I look forward to partnering with you to further our mission promoting academic excellence and spiritual development in the context of the teachings of the Catholic Church. Together let us pray that God, who has begun the good work in us, may carry it through to completion. Thank you for allowing us to educate your children. I am looking forward to seeing all of you on Monday, August 26.
 
God Bless,

Mrs. Tiezzi
Patricia O’Neil Tiezzi



School News 
Please remember to visit our website for the 2019-2020 School Supply List and Summer Work Packets. All summer work packets are due the first day of school.

August 26, 2019
Soft Opening
 8:00am-12:30pm
Drop in, meet your teachers, meet new friends, bring your supplies! 

August 27, 2019
First Day of School (Full Day)
New communication at St. Rita School.
This year we will be sending out TWO weekly newsletters to keep all families up to date on all of the exciting happenings at St. Rita School.
We will continue with our weekly Tuesday Newsletter. We will be adding a "Week at a Glance" email that will focus on just the week ahead. This will be sent out on Sunday evenings. Please be sure to READ both newsletters each week.
Our New Outdoor Classroom
Have you been following the progress of our NEW outdoor classroom?
The Scouts from Troop 604 along with other volunteers from the Scouts and our National Junior Honor Society students lead this project for St. Rita School. We are truly grateful for their time, hard work and dedication! And of course...thank you to Big Y World Class Market for believing in our vision and idea for this project, and for their help with the funding! Stay tuned for more.....!
Virtus Training Information
At St. Rita School there are endless opportunities to get involved as a parent/grandparent. We welcome your ideas, insight and knowledge to help strengthen our SRS community. 
All volunteers must become certified in the Virtus Training and 
complete a background check. 
Please visit the Virtus Training website for upcoming training dates, locations and registration. 

Upcoming Dates:
Monday Sept. 16th Mount Carmel Church 6pm
Monday Sept. 30th St. Rita Church 6pm
Home and School Association
Hello from the HSA!

We hope you’re as excited as we are for the start of the school year! We have a great year of events and activities ahead, and we wanted to share a few details about how you can learn more and/or get involved:

This year, we will be sending out details about events in two emails: we'll have our relevant dates for the upcoming week in the  Sunday Week-At-A-Glance , and we will provide more information and announcements in the weekly  Tuesday Constant Contact  newsletter .   Please be sure to take a look each week so you don’t miss anything exciting!

Our events will also be on the school calendar as well as updated with details on the HSA section of the St. Rita School website.

We are always looking for help, so please let us know if you are interested in chairing or assisting with an event this year!

We will have sign up sheets and more information at Back to School night, and you can always email us with questions or to volunteer in the meantime: hsasrs.stritaschool@gmail.com .

We're looking forward to seeing you all soon!

The HSA Executive Board

Crusaders Corner Store
Crusaders Corner will be open every Thursday during all lunch periods. Please send your child with cash or check to purchase items!

Athlete's Corner
Check back here for all Athletic News
Fall Soccer Information
 
If your child is entering 7 th  or 8 th  Grade and would like to join the soccer team, please fill out the attached “Soccer Information Form” and return it the first week of school or email to  athletics.stritaschool@gmail.com   
 
Forms are due back  NO LATER  than  Friday, August 30 th .   
 
Practice will start the beginning of September.  Games will start the middle of September and go through the beginning of November.   
 
Any questions regarding our soccer program email Mike and Trisha D’Errico at  athletics.stritaschool@gmail.com
 
PICTURES WANTED! If you love taking pictures at our SRS sporting events, please share them with us! Please send to ccivitello.stritaschool@gmail.com
Divine Mercy Parish News

Student Spotlight
Did your 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


Bridget Miriam Lillis
If you have a special intention that you would like to share in our prayer corner, please email Carissa Civitello
Support SRS
Rewards Program

Click HERE for a flyer with all of our rewards programs.

Does Your Company Offer Volunteer Grants? 
Volunteer grant programs, also known as “Dollars for Doers” programs, are corporate giving programs created to encourage volunteerism in communities where employees live and work.
Through these programs, companies provide monetary grants to organizations where employees volunteer regularly. 

Please take a moment and ask if your employer participates in a Volunteer Grants Program. Your time and talent at St. Rita School could turn into dollars for our school! Questions? Feel free to contact Joanne Bruno at  jbruno.stritaschool@gmail.com .
Caritas Christi Center
UPCOMING DATES - 
August 26- Soft Opening
August 27- First full day of school
August 30- 12:15 Dismissal
September 2- No School
October 2- No School
October 3- High School Night

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