Security Update - Uniformed Officers on Campus 

As you may have heard from your students, or have seen if you’ve been on campus or at carpool this week, our new uniformed Houston Police Department and Texas State Trooper officers began on Monday, May 1st providing our campus with daily security. The officers got familiar with our campus, students, faculty & staff this week, and immediately began their specific roles and responsibilities while on campus, including but not limited to:

• Actively walking/monitoring the inside and outside of the entire school campus.
• Examining doors and gates to ensure security throughout the school day.
• Monitoring the school buildings for unauthorized persons and/or suspicious activity of any kind.
• Assisting with carpool congestion when scheduling allows.

As announced during the Paddles Up portion of our Auction last Saturday evening, this is a high five-figure commitment for the school moving forward. While this important security enhancement will be budgeted into the school operating expenses each year moving forward, your generous contributions to our Auction’s Paddles Up initiative have and will continue to assist in offsetting the cost of an on-campus officer for the remainder of this school year and for the entirety of the 2023-2024 school year. Please click here if you would like to join in supporting this important security enhancement.

We are thrilled to welcome these officers to our campus and look forward to working with them to create an even safer environment for all members of our school community.

Family Learning

Learning Commons Literacy Corner

Please click here for our weekly Learning Commons Literacy Corner updates including the quote of the week, vocabulary word of the week, and the high frequency words of the week.

PSIA State Meet Results

We are so proud of our PSIA State Meet contestants this year! We sent 21 excited, talented students to TCU on Saturday, and many placed in their respective categories! Many thanks to the coaches who prepared them and all the students and their parents who have supported our Academic Club Program this year. Here are the results:

• Creative Writing (2nd grade) – Samuel K. 3rd place
• Information Skills (5th/6th grade) – Jerry K. 5th place (3-way tie)
• Maps, Graphs, Charts (5th grade) – Parker S. 8th place (2-way tie)
• Mathematics (4th grade) – Joaquin F. 8th place
• Mathematics (5th grade) – Parker S. 3rd place
• Music Memory (3rd/4th grade) – Tristan B. 7th place
• Music Memory (7th/8th grade) – Sophia R. 3rd place
• Number Sense (2nd grade) – Samuel K. 5th place
• Number Sense (4th grade) – Joaquin F. 7th place
• Number Sense (5th grade) – Parker S. 5th place
• Number Sense (6th grade) – Lucia G. 10th place
• Ready Writing (5th grade) – Emma C. 5th place
• Ready Writing (7th grade) – Amber P. 3rd place
• Spelling (6th grade) – Lucia G. 7th place
• Spelling (7th/8th grade) – Valentina G. 1st place (2-way tie)
• Vocabulary (7th/8th grade) – Valentina G. 4th place (2-way tie)
• Vocabulary (7th/8th grade) – Tiffany D. 7th place

Click here to view all the students who participated in the State Meet.

HSA End of Year Luncheon – May 10th 

Please join us Wednesday, May 10th for a special luncheon at Carrabba's to celebrate our Home and School Association. We would like to show appreciation for all parents and their volunteer service to the HSA during the school year. Additionally, we will be saying farewell to our 8th-grade parents. Please register to attend no later than Friday, May 5th.

Wednesday, May 10th at 11:00 AM

Meeting followed by lunch

Carrabba's Italian Grill

11339 Katy Fwy

Houston, Tx 77079

$35 per person (includes lunch, gratuity, and non-alcoholic beverages). Any other beverages ordered must be paid by each individual attendee.

4th Quarter Java With Jeff – Thursday, May 11th

The fourth quarter Java With Jeff will take place on Thursday, May 11th at 11:30AM. It will be a lunch and learn session in the Learning Commons at school. The topic will be an update on our MAP testing. The meeting will be recorded and posted at the end of next week. If you would like to attend please RSVP here.

Dad’s Softball Tournament – Saturday, May 13th 

Monday, May 8th is the registration deadline for the 13th Annual Dad’s Softball Tournament on Saturday, May 13th. This fun, family event helps to support the Financial Aid program at St. Cecilia Catholic School. The games are played at Baseball USA starting at 8AM, with an after party at Karbach Brewing at the conclusion of the tournament. 

• Tournament Registration 
• Tournament Schedule

Field Day 2023

Volunteer Opportunities

The Sign Up Genius for a variety of Field Day volunteer opportunities is now open and ready for sign ups. Volunteer sign ups include:

• Pre-Field Day T-Shirt / Ticket Distribution / Prize Room Setup – May 11th & 12th
• Prize Room Volunteers – May 12th, May 15th, & May 16th
• Field Day Volunteers – Morning Games, Lunch Distribution, & Afternoon Games – May 17th

There is one sign up genius that encompasses all of the various dates – please make sure and view the tabs across the top of the page to view all the various opportunities.

We are Hiring for the 2023 – 2024 School Year

We currently have several open positions to fill including:

• Early Childhood Teacher
• Kindergarten Teacher
• Elementary Teacher
• 6th/7th Grade Social Studies Teacher
• 6th/7th Grade Science Teacher
• Counselor
• Cheer Coach

If you are interested in working alongside our amazing teachers and staff, check out the open positions currently available and apply today!

School Supplies for 2023 – 2024 School Year

We are excited to partner again with First Day School Supplies for the 2023-2024 school year in order to offer grade-level supplies packs to our families. Last year, over 85% of school families purchased supply packs through this vendor, and we were very happy with the quality and name-brand items that they offered at reasonable prices. 

In order to support our new Skilled Student Initiative, we have made some important updates to our school supplies lists. As you know, the focus of this new initiative is to help our students continue to improve their executive function skills, and in order to do this effectively, there are specific supplies that are necessary for all students to have. The teachers and administration have been collaborating to refine the school supply list at each grade level so that it supports this initiative and have been working very closely with First Day School Supplies to source the necessary supplies.

Please see this letter and the links below for more details on how our school supplies will align with our new Skilled Student initiative

Important Links

• School Supplies Letter
• The Skilled Student Flipbook 
• The Skilled Student February 28th Parent Presentation Slide Show
• The Skilled Student February 28th Parent Presentation Video
• Order First Day School Supplies 
• Additional Required Supplies for 2023 – 2024 School Year

PE Uniforms - 5th - 8th Grade

For students in 5th - 8th Grade next school year - you will need to make sure your 5th - 8th Grader has the new St. Cecilia Catholic School PE Uniforms that we began using this school year. The uniforms will be purchased only through BSN Sports. The PE Uniform store is open starting today, and will be open through June 1, 2023. This is the only approved PE Uniform, and the shirts and shorts need to be purchased through BSN PE Uniform Store. Mills will no longer be our PE Uniform vendor.

Required items:

• BSN Sports short sleeve PE t-shirt in grey (for both boys and girls)
• Nike Shorts in Navy - 4 styles to choose from (2 for girls, 2 for boys)

2022-2023 Yearbook Pictures Needed/ Order Your Yearbook Today!

It’s time to purchase your 2022-2023 yearbook. Click here to reserve your copy today. Books will be delivered in August. If you are unsure if you ordered a yearbook, please check this list for sales as of 04/09/23.

Additionally, please help capture all the memories of the year by sharing any pictures you have taken. Below are some of the main events that are needed. If you aren’t sure, please upload to the grade level folder.  

Grade Level Folders

Into the Woods

Homecoming

Grandparents Day

GO Projects

First Day of School

Christmas/Thanksgiving

Athletics (Middle School)

Academics (PSIA, St. Pius, Spelling Bee, Science Fair, etc)

Houston World Series of Dog Show Art Contest

We will be participating in the 2023 Dr. Mari Jon Filla Student Art Exhibit & Contest. This year’s art exhibit is scheduled for July 19-23 (Wednesday- Sunday). It will be held at the NRG Center in conjunction with the Houston World Series of Dog Shows. The art will be on display in Hall C of NRG Center throughout the entire five days of the HWSDS event. The winning art students will receive passes to one day of the dog shows. If you are interested in participating, please view the rule and regulations carefully. All art is due to Mrs. Poche by Wednesday, May 10th. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Entries

1. A student may submit one entry.
2. Only one student may work on any one project.

Display and Size Requirements

1. Artworks must be matted or mounted on white or black poster board or mat board.
2. Minimum 8x10, Maximum 14x20
3. The mat may not be wider than 3”. (Mrs. Poche will matt winning entries)

Media

1. All work must be flat (2-dimensional).
2. Please NO stretched canvas
3. Acceptable media include: pencil, construction paper, ink, cloth, oil, tempera, acrylic, pastels, crayon, and watercolor.
4. NOT acceptable: glass, mosaic, commercial objects, sand, glitter, dried peas, corn, digital art, etc.

GEM's End of the Year Pool Party - Saturday, May 20th

Please join Gracefully Embracing Motherhood (GEMs) at the Quillian Center for a pool party to end the year, Saturday, May 20th from 4:15-6:15 p.m. Moon Rooster will be there for food purchase. Both the Big Pool and Noah’s Ark Pool will be open. All ages are welcome with parental supervision.

St. Cecilia Cub Scout Rib Sale

St. Cecilia Cub Scout Pack 673 is selling pork ribs to raise funds to support our program! Our annual rib cook is a time-honored tradition at St. Cecilia. Please consider purchasing our delicious pork ribs for yourself or to share with your family and friends. If you would prefer, you may also purchase ribs for donation to a charity, or make a monetary donation to support our Pack. Please click here for more information and to order online. 

Host For International Students at St. John XXIII College Preparatory Wanted

Are you interested in becoming a host family for an International Student at St. John XXIII College Preparatory? Are you interested in introducing your family to the global community outside of the enclave of Katy, Texas, U.S.A.? We are looking for families to host students from all over the world for our International Program for the 2023-2024 school year. The host families will provide room, board, and transportation to and from school and school activities. There will be a monthly stipend for 10 months a year, paid by the students’ parents. If you are interested in participating, please contact Ms. Susie Kramer, Director of the International Student Program for more information.

Summer Basketball 2023 Camp and Game Time

Join us in the “cool” Gym for three weeks in June for great basketball fun. Open to currently enrolled boy and girl students from Kindergarten through 8th Grade.

Camp Details:

The basketballers will work on ballhandling, passing and shooting via drills and competitions.

• Skills, drills, competition and lots of fun
• Ballhandling, shooting, passing, defense, court awareness
• Daily devotion (a few minutes each day for reflective thoughts and a prayer)

Game Time Details:

Game Time is for middle school players who just want to play basketball games.

More information on dates and online registration can be found here. 

Strake Jesuit Spring Concert

The Strake Jesuit/St. Agnes Orchestra and Band Programs cordially invite you to our Spring Concert on Saturday April 29, 2023 at 3:00 PM. The concert will be held in the Parsley Center on Strake Jesuit’s campus.

The program will feature performances by our Chamber & Symphony Orchestras, Concert Bands, and Jazz Ensembles. Please don't miss the opportunity to listen to our students at their finest! Attendance is free and open to the public!

St. Thomas Camps

3rd-8th Grade Summer Programs 

St. Thomas High School is excited to share that we are expanding our Summer@STH program! We have a fun summer planned with enrichment and athletic camps for boys and girls in 3rd-8th grades. Click here for more information and to register today.  

Spring Wrestling Class

St. Thomas is offering middle school wrestling from March through May on Mondays and Wednesdays from 6:00 - 7:30PM. Kids will learn both Freestyle and Greco styles of wrestling. Please contact Michael Leholm at (734)883-5632 for questions or to register.  

Step Up Study Skills 

St. Thomas is offering Step Up Study Skills this summer to prepare students for the rigors of high school and beyond. The classes are coed and open to all rising ninth grade students. The cost for each session is $399, which includes class notes as well as access to online courses for effective follow-up and reinforcement throughout the school year. For questions, please contact Rod Takacs.

Discover IWA

'Discover IWA' is an opportunity for interested families and young ladies to visit Incarnate Word Academy and discover what programs we offer that make us unique. You will be able to visit with Academic staff, faculty, current parents, and students to see if IWA might be a perfect fit for you! Information session and rooftop reception on April 26th from 6-8:00PM. Click here to register to attend.

IWA Summer Camp

Join us this summer to experience a host of engaging activities! We offer summer camps for middle school students and current and incoming IWA students that elevate leadership skills, practice athletic fundamentals and connect young women from around the city. From Podcast Storytelling to Spanish Culture, STEM Adventures, and Discover Downtown, we've got your summer covered! Click here for more information.

Fearless Catholic Writers Camp – June 12th – 16th

The Camp is one-week, June 12-16, 2023, at the University of St. Thomas, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. All of the faculty are professional educators, Virtus or Safe-Haven certified, and writers themselves. Daily Mass is available.  We accept grades 3-8, with supportive instruction and a thoroughly Catholic vision in accordance with the Magisterium. There are many more details on their website or please see this flyer.

Dance Club

Parents of Current 6th Graders: 

6th graders are invited to register for Dance Club on Tuesday, May 9th at 9:00AM. Dance Club was founded to help boys and girls become better acquainted with one another while developing social skills and promoting personal growth, confidence, and character. Please note only a limited number of spots are offered to currently enrolled 6th grade students from seven schools —Duchesne, Memorial Middle, Regis, Spring Branch Middle, St. Cecilia, St. Francis, and St. Michael. 

Participants will receive five dance lessons, a dining etiquette lesson, and a party during 7th grade. All lessons are held at Junior League of Houston, 1811 Briar Oaks Lane.

Spots will fill quickly. Create an account now to save time during registration.

Click Here to Create a Dance Club Account & Register

JDW Cotillion → Register Now → Create Account 

Please contact Carol Mandola or Jenny Palermo for questions.