Enter to Learn. Go Forth to Serve.
Saturday, April 18, 2020
NEW UPDATES & INFORMATION FOR OUR FAMILIES

TUESDAY: Please watch your email for progress reports and teacher conference scheduling.

On Tuesday, April 21, O’Hara parents should watch for multiple emails regarding Progress Reports and Parent Teacher Conference scheduling. 

Progress Reports: In the morning, by 10 am, progress reports for each O’Hara student will be emailed to parents. There will be separate emails for each student. (So, for example, if you have 3 kids, you will receive 3 separate progress report emails.) 

Parent/Teacher Conference Scheduling: In the afternoon, conferencing option emails will be sent to parents. Again, there will be separate emails for each student. We are asking parents to please read progress reports before selecting a conference option as we have limited capacity to reschedule or accommodate a change in your selection.

Conferences will take place on Thursday & Friday, April 23 & 24. Parents will have the option, for each student, to choose from these 3 conference choices:

  • I do not need a conference at this time.
  • I would like the teacher to reach out to me via email.
  • I would like a phone call conference.

*For grades 5 & up, this will look slightly different since students have multiple teachers.

Note: There will not be specialist conferences, but they are available via email for questions.
A SPECIAL NOTE ABOUT CONFERENCE DAYS

On Thursday & Friday, April 23 & 24, due to parent/teacher conferences, the workload for our students will shift from core class-based to specialist-based. There will be light work posted from homeroom teachers, but we would like students to focus their time on Thursday and Friday on all the opportunities our specialists have provided.
VIEW MISSING WORK, GRADES & MORE - Parent Access to Alma

Need to check missing work or grades? Use your parent login to view everything in Alma . The default username is formatted like this: firstname.lastname (all lowercase). If you’ve forgotten your password, use the forgot passwor d link to reset it. 

O’Hara utilizes Alma, a student information system, for attendance, grades and more. O’Hara parents have access to view their student(s) accounts & information. 
20-21 TUITION PAYMENT OPTIONS - Please make changes by Monday, April 27.

If you are a returning family , your account information and tuition payment plans have been rolled over to your FACTS 2020/2021 account. If you need to add a student, update any contact or student enrollment information, or wish to change your payment plan or account information, please log into your account (instructions below) and do so. 

The deadline for all returning families to complete this process is Monday, April 27.

If you have any questions about payment processing or need assistance completing this setup process, please contact  Mrs. Plant , our business manager. You may also contact a FACTS representative at (866) 441-4637 with any questions. For more information, view the  FAQ's  or the  how to  flyers provided by FACTS.

Login Instructions:
Step 1:  Click  THIS LINK  to be directed to the FACTS website. 

Step 2:  Login or create an account for your family
-If you've used FACTS in the past to apply for tuition assistance, you will use that same account information to login.

-If you do not have an account, please create one to use going forward. 

Step 3:  Choose the green button that says "Set up a payment plan" and then select "begin."

Step 4:  Complete all 7 steps, following the timeline prompts across the top of the screen. 

-Make sure to add ALL students who are enrolled for the 20/21 school year. Please enter student grade levels for next year, not the current year. 

-There is a $10 processing fee for the 2-payment plan, and a $45 processing fee for the 10-month or 12-month plans. There is no fee for a 1 time payment plan. There is a 2.85% fee charged for using a credit card. These fees are assessed by FACTS.

-If there are multiple parties who will be making payments on your account, you will have the option to designate an additional party in the final step.

Step 5:  Upon completing all steps, click the green "Done" button to complete your setup process. 

Once your setup process is completed, O'Hara will then finalize the balance due for your account. A confirmation, including the amount owed and payment schedule, will be emailed to you for your review and confirmation. If you applied for scholarship/tuition assistance, we will notify you in the next two weeks how this will affect your payments.
FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR OUR FAMILIES

Each and every O’Hara family is an important part of our community. If this extended closure is bringing financial difficulty to your family, and you need assistance, please reach out. We want to work with families to provide tuition assistance as much as we are able. If your family needs additional support at this time, please reach out to Mrs. Plant , our business manager. 
OPEN DOOR FOUNDATION SPRING EVENT UPDATE

Traditionally we have held the Open Door Foundation's Spring Fundraiser each year in May. Due to the Governor’s restrictions on in-person gatherings, we have decided to postpone our event until the restrictions are lifted and we feel it is once again safe to gather. We are confident we will have a Foundation event this year; we also know it will look different than it has in the past. 

The mission of the Open Door Foundation is to provide tuition assistance to families at O’Hara Catholic School and we recognize this is more crucial today than ever before. We will proceed with the Foundation’s Annual Appeal in early June.
FACEBOOK GROUP UPDATE: O'HARA CATHOLIC ENCOURAGEMENT

The O’Hara Lent 2020 Facebook Group is now O’Hara Catholic Encouragement 2020 . The group focuses on enriching our faith lives and community through encouraging and relatable posts; it is hosted by Kim Van Den Wymelenberg, O’Hara’s SAC Faith & Community Chair. All adults in our O’Hara community are invited to join.
THANKFUL THURSDAY

In recognition of Earth Day this week, and with gratitude for the beauty and miracle of God’s creation, we’ll have themed coloring sheets and writing prompts for our students on Thankful Thursday. Look for the links on social media and in parent emails later this week.

REMINDERS FROM LAST WEEK

SCHOOL CLOSURE EXTENSION LOGISTICS

With the extension of the building closure through the end of the school year, our Leadership Team is working on a plan to get additional necessary resources to students and provide a time for students to collect remaining items from their desks, classrooms and lockers. We will finalize our plan and will share that plan with our families very soon.
CLUBS

O’Hara will offer 2 online clubs this Spring. O’Hara parents Jun and Xiaodi Li will be hosting the Computer Club and the Chinese Club via Zoom meetings. Spots are limited to 10 students per club. There is no fee for digital clubs. Students who were already signed up prior to digital learning days will be included in the clubs and will have any fees paid reimbursed.

Computer Club 
The O’Hara Computer Club is entering its third year! Students can sign up to learn about computers in a fun way. This year will focus more on web design.   

Dates: April 24, May 1, May 8 
When: Fridays at 2pm
Where: Zoom meetings (link will be sent to participants)
Grades: 4-8
To sign up, use this link .


Chinese Club 
Chinese is the most widely-spoken language in the world. Join Chinese Club and learn Chinese! Students can learn basic Chinese characters, pronunciation (Ping Ying), and some useful daily dialogues.  

Dates: May 15, May 22, May 29, June 5, June 12
When: Fridays at 2pm
Where: Zoom meetings (link will be sent to participants)
Grades: 1-8
To sign up, use this link .

Please contact Mr. Milliron for more information
ENROLLMENT OPENINGS NEXT YEAR

O’Hara currently has a handful of spots available in the following grades for next year: Preschool, PreK, 1st grade & 3rd grade. If you have a friend or neighbor that is interested in O’Hara for next year, please have them email us at admissions@oharaschool.org .
20-21 CALENDAR DATES

Work on the 2020-21 school calendar is underway. Right now, we have the following dates to share with our families:
 
Start Date
Tuesday, September 8 (Passport Day) 
 
Christmas Break
December 21 - January 1 (first day back is Monday January 4)
 
Spring Break
March 22-26
 
Last Day of School
June 18
PLEDGE & PRAYER VIDEOS WANTED

Each school-day morning, Mrs. Conway’s parent email includes a link to the Pledge of Allegiance by O’Hara students. And each evening, we are posting a bedtime prayer by O’Hara students on our social media.

We would love to feature your student; please submit videos as follows:
BUDDY FAMILIES NEEDED FOR 20-21

We are already looking for Buddy Families for the 2020-21 school year. The job of an O'Hara Buddy Family is to welcome incoming families and answer any questions that they might have. If you are interested in signing up to be a Buddy Family for next school year, please complete this survey . We are hoping to start pairing up new families by mid-May.  
STUDENT VOLUNTEERS WANTED

Attention O’Hara 5th - 8th graders: Can you help us? We’d like to create a video library for our younger students of our older students reading stories out loud. If you’d like to participate, please send a video of yourself reading a short story to Mrs. Ferrari . Thanks to Dawson Relling, James Guerrero & EJ Roedl for sending in videos!
NEW ADDITIONS TO DIGITAL LEARNING: LIBRARY & STEM

Mr. Larson has added weekly STEM activities to a new page in our Digital Learning Directory.  Mrs. Booth & Mrs. Gori will feature an author of the week on their new page that includes suggestions for books to read. Both of these pages are optional resources for our families who wish to participate. 
FIP HOURS

Our FIP hours requirement for families has been waived for this year. To those families who have already completed their hours for the year: thank you so very much.
PARENT NEWSLETTER FROM NCEA  

The April edition of the NCEA (National Catholic Educational Association) newsletter included a parent memo with strategies & suggestions for our new digital learning environment. Click here to read the newsletter .
HOT LUNCH ACCOUNTS

Mrs. Whalen is working to reconcile lunch accounts for the balance of the 19-20 school year.

Families who purchased annual lunch plans for 19-20 can expect to receive an email from Mrs. Whalen with information and options for a credit or refund.

Families who pre-purchased lunches in March will receive a credit in their account.

If you would like further information or need clarification, please reach out to Mrs. Whalen .
PLEASE KEEP SENDING IN YOUR PICTURES!

We are still collecting pictures for our 19-20 yearbook. Please continue to send us pics of your students ( pictures@oharaschool.org ) or upload them to Vidigami . If you need help accessing your Vidigami account, please email Mrs. Ferrari .
COMMUNITY & RESOURCES

Let's stay connected while we're #alonetogether!

Follow us on Social Media!
Please follow our Instagram and Facebook page for prayers, live feeds, and activities your students can participate in!

Send us pictures or tag us on social media!
We want our students to remember they are an important part of our O’Hara community and we want to see their pictures! We encourage you to tag us in your posts, or send us pictures to share via email: pictures@oharaschool.org . 

Resources
Check out our Resource page at the top of the Digital Learning Directory that includes links for families. We recognize that the sheer number of emails sent and links being posted can be overwhelming, so this document is just meant to capture and catalog these as we share them out on social media or via email. This document is just for reference and no action is required on your part.

"As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."

- Joshua 24:15
O'Hara Catholic School
715 West 18th Avenue
Eugene, Oregon 97402
541.485.5291