Welcome!

A large paper banner hung inside the new 7^th grade classroom with the words painted in turquoise poster paint, "Welcome, Mr. McPherson!" A similar paper banner in beautiful script hung at a welcome luncheon with the words, "Welcome Ms. Webb!" A very colorful poster hangs on the door of a classroom that states, "Welcome, Redeemed Children of God!"

How are you welcoming new teachers to your school? How are you welcoming new students to your classroom? Are you welcoming them as Jesus welcomed children...and the crippled...and the outcasts of society? Are you welcoming your students this year as precious children of God, whether they are 3 or 13; 7 or 17? And each day, do you begin by welcoming the Lord into your midst in your classroom or office?

Jesus said, "Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me."   Matthew 18:4-5

We are pleased to be working with Hope and Care Outreach for our 2022-23 school year Hearts for Jesus unified mission project! All contributions from PSD schools during this school year will go to offset tuition fees for students to attend Lutheran schools in Liberia, West Africa. This will make Lutheran education accessible to the indigent children in Liberia, and our schools will become partners in education with the Lutheran schools throughout Liberia! Tuition for one student for one year is $95. We have set a lofty goal of $38,000 this year to help with tuition for 400 students. If each of our 141 schools contributes $337, we will make this goal happen! Please take some time to look through the Hearts for Jesus page on our School Ministries website and begin to prayerfully prepare how your school will participate in Hearts for Jesus this year. More information will be mailed out later this month, and we will continue to share information with you in Connections! 

Thank you so much to those who submitted synopses on leadership, educational, innovative, and devotional books they read this summer. Click here to read a compilation of the book synopses. The winner of the drawing for a $50 gift card is Sarah Harper from Faith Lutheran Middle School in Las Vegas, NV. Congratulations, Sarah!

Click here to view the most up-to-date 2022-2023 PSD School Ministries calendar. We will continue to update the calendar as the year goes on.

Make plans now for your staff to attend LEC 2022! This year LEC will be held November 20-22 at the Hilton Bayfront in the Gaslamp Quarter of San Diego, CA. Our theme this year is Salt & Light based on Matthew 5:13-16. Registration will be $170 per person and the hotel rooms will be $112+ per night. Your LEC Committee continues to work on your behalf to craft an exceptional conference filled with Spiritual Nurture, Professional Learning, and Homecoming! We are pleased to announce that Matt Miller, author of Ditch That Textbook; Donalyn Miller, the Book Whisperer (ECE focus); national author Matt de la Pena; and Dr. Becky Peters, Emeritus educator and CUI professor, will be our Keynote speakers! We are also working on a series of breakout sessions as well as Ed Camps for more informal discussions. We will continue to share more information with you as details continue to be finalized. Registration will open in early September! 

Are you looking for some new suggestions on where to direct your school’s chapel offering donations? We have a new link on our School Ministries website with information to answer that question! Please go to www.psd-schools.org and toward the bottom of the homepage under Popular Links you will see a NEW button that will direct you to a page with six different organizations for you to consider as recipients of your chapel offering!

Administrators, you should have received an email from Rosters and Statistics in St. Louis last week (if not, it will be on the way soon). This is requesting you to complete your annual school profile and staff lists. It is important to complete this request by the August 31 deadline, especially if you have had changes with rostered workers on your staff. You will use your school’s LISN site to complete this request. Your LISN site is the same site you have used the past few years to complete your school statistic submission. (Rosters and Statistics will send you information on School Statistics next month.) If you are a new administrator, please contact [email protected] or the LCMS Church Information Center at

1-888-843-5267 to request assistance to log into the LISN site for your school. Please include your school name and address when leaving a message or sending an email to assist them in providing the appropriate login information to you within two business days. Please note – the LISN site is now open for statistical information, so please feel free to start entering that data now to stay ahead of the September/October request!

The PSD is pleased to share with you a life-changing discipleship resource called Rooted-Lutheran Edition! Rooted isn’t simply a Bible study or a book. Through Rooted, people will learn to practice seven rhythms essential to a healthy relationship with Jesus. Individuals will establish firm roots in the truth of God’s Word through personal study and then come together to discuss and practice what they’re learning in a space where they are safe and known. Rachel and President Gibson shared details of this resource at the recent Administrators Leadership Conference. For more information, please use this link to be directed to the Rooted page on the PSD website. If you are interested in ordering Rooted materials and are in the Southern California/Orange County area, please contact Jon Niederbrach for delivery or pick up information. 

Attention: Administrators

The website, username, and password have changed for downloading a new Commissioned Call Document. Please contact [email protected] or [email protected] for the new information. If your church or school already has version 4.9.3 downloaded, you may continue to use that version at this time. This update is not changing the version which is still 4.9.3, but only the access to the website and sign-in information. Please share with anyone who prepares Commissioned Call Documents at your church or school. Thank you!

Thank you to those who have already nominated outstanding educators!

Each year, we wish to honor exemplary educators in the Pacific Southwest District who exhibit exceptional leadership, teaching skills, and total commitment to Christ and the ministry of our Lutheran schools. We are asking for your help in identifying those who represent this spirit of dedication, commitment, and excellence. The 2022 Educators of the Year will be recognized at the Lutheran Educators Conference (LEC) in San Diego, CA, in November.

Below are the links to the nomination forms for the 2022 PSD Educators of the Year. This is an open nomination system. You may nominate in any or all of these four categories. The deadline for submitting nominations is August 31, 2022. 

Process:

May- August 31: Nomination period

September: Educator of the Year committees meet to determine finalists in each of the four categories

September/October: Evaluations/interviews completed regarding the finalists

Late October/Early November: Committees select winners

Monday, November 21: Honorees are recognized at LEC

Nomination Forms:

Administrator

ECE Educator/Director

Elementary (K-8) Educator

Jr/Sr High School Educator      

Thank you for your participation in honoring our outstanding educators in the PSD!

• We pray for all of our schools as you begin a new school year. We pray for a great year for all of our educators, students, and families!
• We pray for the family of Rev. Dr. Jacob (Jack) A.O. Preus III. Jack went to sleep in the Lord on Thursday, August 4. Jack served in Lutheran ministry his entire career. He served in the PSD as a parish pastor at Mt. Olive Lutheran Church in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, and later as President at Concordia University Irvine. Jack's memorial service will be held at Christ Greenfield Lutheran Church in Gilbert, AZ, on Saturday, August 27, at 11:00 a.m. We pray for peace and comfort for Jack's wife, Sherry, and the entire Preus family during this difficult time.
• We pray for Robert Rogalski, who has been diagnosed with liver disease, and Hank Rausch, who has kidney failure and is on dialysis. Both Robert and Hank are retired Lutheran educators who served in the Phoenix area. We pray for complete healing for both men.

Schools we are praying for the week of August 14:

Christ Greenfield Lutheran School and Preschool, Gilbert, AZ

Christ Lutheran School and Preschool, Phoenix, AZ

Each week, prayers of thanksgiving and prayers for teachers, administrators, support staff, pastors, students, and families of the Lutheran schools, early childhood centers, and churches of the Pacific Southwest District are listed. To include names on the list, please send information to [email protected] by noon on Tuesdays.