From the Desk of Mrs. Tiezzi
Dear St. Rita Parents/Guardians,
Please be advised that today we had our first case of a student testing positive for COVID-19. This child was last in Mrs. McGrath’s class on Monday, October 11. The parents of this class were immediately notified and the students were sent home to begin their period of quarantine. Students in this class will begin remote learning later this week for the duration of their quarantine. Being in quarantine means that students are not allowed to attend school, sports practices/games, dance classes, social activities, play dates or events with others from outside their immediate household.
We are also beginning to see more students being placed on quarantine due to a COVID exposure happening outside of school. Please notify Mrs. Palma, our nurse, if your child has direct contact with someone who tests positive for COVID. If your child has been fully vaccinated be sure to send Mrs. Palma a copy of your child’s vaccination card. Should a child not be fully vaccinated he/she will need to quarantine if exposed to someone who tests positive for COVID whether in school or outside of school. I highly recommend that any student eligible for the vaccine receive it. Remote learning will be provided to those students who are out of school due to COVID or COVID-related quarantine. Teachers will be in contact with the parents of those students on quarantine to make arrangements for remote learning. Thank you for all that you are doing to help keep our community safe.
Technology usage outside of school continues to be of concern to me. During school hours we are strategically utilizing technology and monitoring student usage on school devices. However, that may not be the case at home and we are noticing that inappropriate language and content used on student home devices spills over into their interactions with their peers in school. Students do not understand that some of the many “friends” they have on-line may actually be adults preying on innocent children. Students are staying up until all hours of the night texting classmates or friends. The recent Tik-Tok challenges involving destroying school property and slapping a friend have been topics of discussion among our students. Of concern is that most of our student population is well below the acceptable age requirement to have the Tik-Tok app but many of our students have and use the app. Please be sure you are monitoring your child’s on-line activities on their cell phone, on their gaming devices, on I-Pad’s, tablets, or laptops/desktop computers.
Today our fifth grade classes had a wonderful retreat experience with the assistance of the Peer Ministry Team at Sacred Heart Academy. Mrs. Kathleen Welch and Sr. Allison Masserano spent the morning with our students sharing Pope Francis’s “Laudato Si encyclical” on the care of our common home. We are grateful for our partnership with Sacred Heart and look forward to having the team return for additional retreat experiences for our younger students.
Just a reminder that this Thursday and Friday are early dismissal days for parent-teacher conferences. If you haven’t yet signed up for a conference, please contact your child’s teacher directly. Aftercare will only be open until 3:00 P.M on both days. Tomorrow is also a dress-down day to support Paint Hamden Pink. For a donation of $2.00 or more your child can dress in pink or their tie dye shirt. On Friday at 11:00 A.M. the entire student body will participate in the Enthronement of the Sacred Heart prayer service. Two 8th grade boys, Jackson Saracco and Stephen Smith will have the honor of Crowning Jesus as we entrust and dedicate ourselves to Him. Please join us in front of the Jesus statue this Friday at 11:00 A.M.
Thank you for entrusting your children to our care. Sacred Heart of Jesus, we place our trust in you. Sacred Heart of Jesus, we believe in your love for us. Have a peace-filled week.
God Bless,
Mrs. Tiezzi
Principal
