Enter to Learn. Go Forth to Serve.
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Dear O'Hara families,
As many of you have already seen, on Tuesday, the CDC released updated considerations for schools as we begin to anticipate and plan for the 2020-21 school year.
You can read their considerations here
. Please make sure that you are accessing information from official websites; unfortunately there is a lot of misinformation circulating on social media.
I want to assure our community that we are paying very close attention to information from the CDC, and additional government and health organizations, as it becomes available, and will continue to do so. As evidenced by the last 2 months, information, restrictions, suggestions, and mandates continue to be very fluid, and geographic in nature. We anticipate that this fluidity will continue, and as such, the modifications, restrictions and accommodations that we will implement next school year will be based on the most current information and guidelines available when school begins. There is nothing more important than the health and safety of our students and our community, and I do not hesitate to tell you that next year, whatever it may look like, will reflect that value.
Although at this time there is no way to be certain, it appears that the most likely scenario for a return to school will be some variation of a hybrid model. Details for this model are uncertain as there are numerous factors that will affect these situations. As any plans are formulated, we will share them with our community. Accommodations will be made for families who are not comfortable, for any reason, sending their student(s) into the building.
With this hybird scenario comes a number of additional things to consider, including items on the list released by the CDC, concerns from the Archdiocese and additional concerns specific to Lane County and our O’Hara community. To address considerations and begin formulating a plan, I have created an in-house task force, made up of staff, SAC members and medical professionals, who are in the beginning stages of working through scenarios, concerns and logistics of a return, of any duration, to our school building. If you have specific logistical concerns that are not addressed in the most current guidance from the CDC or OHA,
please submit your comments here
.
Our ultimate goal is to return to the school building in full capacity. I speak for our entire staff when I say,
we want nothing more than to have our students back in the hallways and in our classrooms
. However, we are at the mercy of an unprecedented and unpredictable community health situation, and government officials making decisions. I promise that we will do our very best by all of our students and families, regardless of what the fall may look like.
Below, I want to share with you a letter released from our Superintendent, Jeannie Ray-Timoney. Please note, as mentioned in the bulletin a few weeks ago, I am a sitting member on the task force she mentions in the letter.
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Letter from our Superintendent...
It is increasingly clear that many people are concerned about what fall will look like for schools. The Department of Catholic Schools has put together a task force that has been working the past couple of weeks to formulate a plan to address just this concern.
We are formulating a framework that will address health and safety, academic excellence in both content and delivery, and faith in community. The framework will include what the structure of school will look like in the fall, taking into consideration the governor's mandates given whether we are in phase I, II, or III in our state and/or respective counties. Please be patient as we work through the logistics of what each phase could possibly entail.
Our overall intent is to formulate a plan where we can come together as a Faith-filled community, in a safe and socially distant manner, adhering to the advice of the CDC and the OHA.
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Please know that as we have updates or concrete information to share, we will do so. No matter what September brings, we are here to love, support and educate your students, in faith, and in academics. As all of you have proven to me many times over, we are a resilient community, bound by faith, and we are better together
.
Most Sincerely,
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NEW UPDATES & INFORMATION FOR OUR FAMILIES
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SOMEWHERE OVER THE RAINBOW
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OPEN JOB POSTING: BUSINESS MANAGER
As we included in the bulletin last week, Mrs. Plant will not be returning to O’Hara in the fall as she pursues her Master’s in Counseling. The Business Manager position has now been posted, see the link below. Please share the posting with anyone who may be interested. We are hoping to begin interviews the week of June 15 and hire the position by July 1.
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WEDNESDAY WORKLOAD
While Wednesday is typically a "catch up" day, in some grades there may be some new work assigned on Wednesday, May 27 due to the long weekend.
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PLEASE PRAY FOR OUR 8TH GRADERS
Our 8th graders are participating in their very special 8th grade retreat this week, Wednesday - Friday. Please pray for them and this special occasion. We are saddened that their experience will not be a traditional retreat, but we are so grateful to an amazing Retreat Team who has been working tirelessly to put this virtual event together for them.
Note: Mrs. Jones will not be hosting any zoom meetings/classes or events this week as she will be coordinating the retreat.
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END OF SCHOOL YEAR - DATES & ITEM RETURN
Monday, May 25 is Memorial Day -
No school
Tuesday, May 26 is a teacher work day -
No school for students
The last day of school is Thursday, June 11
On June 12 & 13, we will be asking families to use the “drop off” model to return school texts, books, computers and other borrowed items. We will send out a schedule and further details to our families as they are finalized.
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2020-21 SCHOOL CALENDAR
As we work on our calendar for next year, we have these dates to share with our families. Please note, this is a draft, and dates are subject to change, especially in light of the uncertainty created by Covid-19.
Tuesday, September 8
- Passport Day
Wednesday, September 9
- First day of classes
Friday, October 9
- No school for students, teacher in-service day
Wednesday, October 21
- 1/2 day of school, teacher in-service in the afternoon
Wednesday, October 28
- 1/2 day of school
Thursday, October 29
- No school for students. Parent/Teacher conferences
Friday, October 30
- No school for students. Parent/Teacher conferences
Thursday & Friday, November 26 & 27
- No school - Thanksgiving break
December 21 - January 1
- No school - Christmas break
Monday, January 18
- No school - MLK, Jr. Day
Friday, January 22
- 1/2 day of school, teacher in-service in the afternoon
Friday, February 5
- No school for students - Archdiocesan in-service day
Monday, February 15
- No school - President's Day
Tuesday, February 16
- No school for students, curriculum in-service day
Saturday, February 20
- O'Hara's Annual Auction
Wednesday, February 24
- 1/2 day of school, teacher in-service in the afternoon
March 22 -26
- No school- Spring Break
Monday, April 5
- No school - Easter Monday
Wednesday, April 14
- 1/2 day of school, teacher in-service in the afternoon
Friday, April 16
- 1/2 day of school, Parent/Teacher conferences in the afternoon
Monday, May 31
- No school - Memorial Day
Friday, June 18
- Last Day of School
Please note: the Wednesday half-days designated for in-service are mandated to O'Hara by the Archdiocese.
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SUMMER TUTORING & ENRICHMENT
Additionally, as we begin to develop a better understanding of what government and Archdiocesan restrictions on our school will look like over the summer, we are bearing in mind that a number of families have expressed interest in summer school instruction and/or enrichment. At this time, we are unable to make any commitments but want our families to know that we are aware and working on possible options.
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CATHOLIC COMMUNITY SERVICES SPRING FORWARD CAMPAIGN
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CHANGE TO DAILY EMAILS
Per requests from some of our parents and staff, beginning on Monday, May 18, the daily emails sent by Mrs. Conway now include students in grades 4-8, in addition to parents.
Please note, due to restrictions in our system, we don’t have the capability to send to 3rd grade & down.
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MAY DIGITAL LEARNING SURVEY - RESULTS
Thank you for helping us by participating in our survey. We are grateful for the feedback that we received. Our administrative team has read each response and we are working on adjustments and refinements based on your input. To read more about specific changes made in response to the survey,
please click here
.
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STUDENT COUNCIL ELECTIONS
Traditionally, O’Hara holds Student Council Elections in the beginning of June. In light of our current circumstances, we are going to postpone the elections to a date next school year that is to be determined.
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2020-21 GOSPEL T-SHIRT DESIGN CONTEST
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FAIR PARKING UPDATE
As you may have heard, the 2020 Lane County Fair has been canceled. This means not only have we lost one of our key fundraisers, but we have also lost a major volunteer opportunity for our families as well. Fair Parking is our 3rd largest fundraiser of the year; our Development staff is working on plans to replace the fundraiser.
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MAGNIFICENT MAY MATH CHALLENGE from MRS. CHURCH
We use math every day in every way! Now is the time for you to be creative--how do you, your family, and God in nature use math?
Here are some ideas to get you thinking, but use your imagination and show us your mathematical style!
- Count trees in your yard or light switches in your house. How many are there?
- What patterns can you find in your home or in nature?
- Bake cookies! What whole numbers and fractions did you use?
- Show your multiplication and division skills by making arrays with Matchbox cars or sharing grapes equally with your brothers.
- Measure the length of your sister’s shadow with a yardstick or the circumference of your dog’s tummy with a sewing tape measure!
- What is the perimeter of your room?
- How much do you weigh on the scale?
- Look at the clock: how many hours and minutes until you go to bed?
- How much money is in your piggy bank?
Send us a picture (
pictures@oharaschool.org
) or tag us in your post and use #magnificentmaymathchallenge to show us your every day math! Happy mathematizing!
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ART CLASS PROJECTS COMING UP
Mrs. Fulton and Mrs. Scott are planning some fun, optional art activities that will require supplies that you may not have on hand. They’ve put together some information and supply lists for parents who would like to start planning/gathering/ordering supplies if their student(s) would like to participate.
May 25-29:
Self Portraits for Preschool - 5th grade*
Each year, students draw a self portrait in art and we save them throughout their years at O’Hara. All that is needed is a pencil and paper (white copy paper). Mrs. Fulton and Mrs. Scott would really love to have
EVERYONE
participate in Self Portrait Week.
Please save your child’s finished self portrait to give back to the art teachers when school starts again! We will be sending out more reminders as this special week gets closer.
*6th - 8th graders have already completed this project this year.
June 1-5:
Painting Rocks
-Small smooth river rocks
-Acrylic paints in a few fun colors
Amazon Links are below
for some of the less common supplies if you would like to order. (purchase is optional - all projects can be done with things you have at home as well)
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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
.
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AMAZON SMILE
Are you doing lots of Amazon shopping these days? Next time, go to
smile.amazon.com
and choose
Open Door Foundation
as your beneficiary before you shop. O'Hara receives 0.5% of your purchase price as a donation. What an easy way to support our school!
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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:
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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
.
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COMMUNITY & RESOURCES
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
.
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"As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."
- Joshua 24:15
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O'Hara Catholic School
715 West 18th Avenue
Eugene, Oregon 97402
541.485.5291
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