May 17, 2020 * Comet Newsletter
From Our Principal
It's Parent Appreciation Week!!
In recognition of the added time and support our parents have been asked to provide during this unique pandemic response, our school would like to honor you with a Parent Appreciation Week , this week, May 18-22! We wish we could throw you a party to show you our gratitude in person, but unfortunately that's not possible. So instead, to let you know how much we appreciate YOU, we've put together a little video ( above); we will be remembering your intentions in a special Rosary, and; you will be the benefactor of this week's service project for our students! Our school was only able to transition practically overnight to distance learning and still provide our students with a quality education for the fourth quarter because of the support of our parents and for this we say THANK YOU!!!

Attention Students! Service Project for the Week!!
In honor of Parent's Week, we are asking our students to think of a way (or better yet, more than one!) that you can serve your parents at home. Show your parents how much you love them and appreciate their sacrifices by finding ways to make their lives a little easier this week. Clean up after dinner, help with laundry, make your bed, clean your room...do the things your parents typically ask you to do but take the initiative to do them without being asked ..and then make a card or write a note to tell your parents how much you love them! Finally, take a picture with your parents and send it to Mrs. Ridgely at admissions@saintbenedictschool.org so we can do a big "Our COMET FAMILY" post on social media at the end of this week!

End of the School Year
The end of the school year is coming up quickly, and there are a lot of announcements to make:
  • The final day to turn in assignments will be Friday, May 29. Understanding that some added flexibility is needed during these circumstances, we have set aside May 27-May 29 as days for students to complete any outstanding assignments. No new work will be assigned on those days. 
  • On June 1, we will have a Virtual Middle School Orientation for new middle school applicants and all rising 6th grade students. More details will be sent directly to those families. 
  • June 2 is Field Day, and we will be offering a number of virtual community-building games and activities throughout the day. This will be the last chance to earn House points. 
  • June 3 is our last day school. We are in the process of finalizing a plan for the drop off/pick up of books and supplies following current social distancing directives. Please plan to drive to school on that day at your designated time. More details will be coming soon.
Stay Connected! Zoom with Us This Week!
Rosary for the Intentions of our Parents
Father John David will be leading our Comet Family this Friday at 3pm in a Rosary for the needs and intentions of our parents. We hope you can join us and share your intentions with us, so we can entrust them to the most powerful intercession of Our Lady.
Meeting ID: 782 5026 4306
Password: 8ibt7q

Attention 6th & 7th Grade Parents! Coffee With Mr. Cruess is this Wednesday!
Thank you to all of the parents who have joined us for our virtual Coffee's with Mr. Cruess! It has been a great opportunity for us to connect with our parents and talk about the end of this school year and our planning efforts for the fall. A zoom link will be emailed to families in the grades listed below the day before their zoom call. Another way we are making sure that our Comet community stays connected!
Here's the upcoming schedule:

May 20 6th & 7th Grades 9am -9:30am
May 27 8th Grade 9am -9:30am

End of Day Announcements & Prayer with Mr. Cruess!
We invite all of our students, parents and faculty to join us M-Th at 3pm on Zoom for some brief afternoon announcements, a little fun, and a chance to close our school day in prayer... just as we always did when we were together at school!
Here's the link:
Meeting ID: 764 0487 6165
Password: 6kiLPe
Important News from the Diocese
Office of Catholic Schools Shares Important Updates on School Prep for THIS FALL!
Please see the document from our Superintendent, Kelly Lazzara, here !

Virginia Catholic Conference Needs Your Help Now!
Let your voice be heard alongside the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) on behalf of Catholic school communities, which urgently need help in this time of uncertainty. Take action now  on a USCCB alert to urge Congress to provide emergency aid to Catholic schools and their families in the next Covid-19 legislation package .
Comet Classwork for Week 9
Just click on your child's grade below to get your teacher's lesson plan for the week. All referenced attachments/worksheets will still be found in Parent's Web and/or Google Classroom (if the teacher is using Google Classroom) . We also have this posted on our website . Parents - please reach out to your teachers for support. They are here for YOU!






Marylou Carter ( mcarter@saintbenedictschool.org )


Barbara Young ( byoung@saintbenedictschool.org )








MIDDLE SCHOOL:



Michelle Cisik ( mcisik@saintbenedictschool.org ) - English
Michele Barlow ( mbarlow@saintbenedictschool.org ) - Math
Rick Clary ( rclary@saintbenedictschool.org ) - Science
Teresa Lehmann ( tlehmann@saintbenedictschool.org ) - History
Jeff Cronheim ( jcronheim@saintbenedictschool.org ) - Latin/Religion

Specials :
Lauren Bykowski ( lbykowski@saintbenedictschool.org ) - Art
Liz Williams ( lwilliams@saintbenedictschool.org ) - Music
Kristen Treadwell ( ktreadwell@saintbenedictschool.org ) - P.E.
Michelle Clark ( mclark@saintbenedictschool.org ) - Library

GENERAL ASSISTANCE

Principal - Sean Cruess (scruess@saintbenedictschool.org)
Administrative - Pam Autry (pautry@saintbenedictschool.org)
Financial/Technical - Elizabeth Hanson (ehanson@saintbenedictschool.org)
Technical Support - Ash Tabrizi (atabrizi@saintbenedictschool.org)
Communications & Social Media/Admissions/Development - Gretchen Ridgely (gridgely@saintbenedictschool.org)
Share Your Support and Earn 1 PTO Hour for Next Year!
Your school needs parent testimonials and recommendations that we can post on our website and our social media about St. Benedict. With school being closed, we can no longer give tours or host Open Houses, which means we have to take our admissions online. Your recommendations for our school means so much! So, if you send a short video (1 minute or less) or write down what you value about our school or why your family attends St. Benedict School, and email it to admissions@saintbenedictschool.org by JUNE 3RD, we will gladly thank you for your help with 1 PTO Volunteer Hour for the 20-21 school year! That's an easy hour and does SO MUCH GOOD for your school in this time! THANK YOU!! P.S. Check out our new school "Virtual Tour" video below!
Lunchtime on Zoom at The Comet Cafe!
The following will be the Zoom schedule for the month of May (with the exception of Memorial Day) ! We will not have The Comet Cafe open on Fridays to reserve that day for your family. So grab a sandwich and your device and connect with your classmates for a 30 minute virtual lunchroom on Zoom! We'll have special guests, play games and catch up! Encourage your child to participate in their upcoming lunchroom below!



MIDDLE SCHOOL (and Rising Middle) (Grades 5-6-7-8) - MONDAY at 12pm
It's a VIRTUAL SCAVENGER HUNT....boys vs girls!
We name an item that might be in your house and the first to find it, wins the point!

3rd - 4th - TUESDAY at 12pm
Lego Creation Show and Tell Time!
Start building now so you can show us your amazing creativity with Lego's!

1st & 2nd - WEDNESDAY at 12pm
It's Show and Tell Explorer Time!
Let's go online with our parents and find a place we'd like to visit...
Is it Mars? An African safari? The Great Coral Reef?
Wherever it is, be ready to share a picture of that place and why you want to go!!

JK & K - THURSDAY at 12pm
Playdough creation time with Ms. Bykowski!!
Just have some playdough or make your own salt dough and you'll be ready to go!


CLICK HERE to access your grade's Comet Cafe:

Meeting ID: 768 9094 4960
Password: 8tytJH

Virtus Training Has Gone Online!
This is a great opportunity!
While not required, we encourage parents, who regularly and routinely join virtual meet ups with their children, to take the one hour online training. Please email  virtus@richmonddiocese.org  to be given access to the training.

Take VIRTUS online NOW and get family service hour credit for next school year. All volunteers who work with or around children MUST have a current background check and completed VIRTUS training.

In order to keep your status active with VIRTUS you should read your monthly email bulletins and answer the 1 multiple choice question until you get it right.

Thank you for all you do and for helping keep our children safe.
From Our Finance Office
FACTS Payments: Please be advised that FACTS is experiencing a heavier than normal call volume. If you need to adjust a payment date you have the following options:
1. Log into FACTS and
-- for payments on the tuition plan, move the payment up to 10 days yourself
-- for payments on the incidental plan, you can turn off automatic payments
2. Email  ehanson@saintbenedictschool.org . You will normally get a response within 3 hours, but you should allow 24 hours. Be as specific as you can with your request.
(Please be advised, that if you call FACTS, the first thing they will ask is if you have reached out to the school.)

Service Hours Waived - Spring PTO Service Hours requirement has been waived. Thank you to all of our wonderful volunteers!!

Enrollment Update: Given the uncertainty that everyone is experiencing we are extending the contract cancellation deadline for 2020-21 from April 20, 2020 to June 3, 2020.
As a reminder, tuition assistance offers are made based on the retrospective financial information provided in FACTS.  Families with a recent change in circumstances can work with Elizabeth Hanson at ehanson@saintbenedictschool.org for temporary assistance, which will be reviewed quarterly. We love our Comet Family and are here for you!