As an update to the email that was sent last week regarding our continued use of masks for all community members on campus, this week we received a letter from Daniel Cardinal DiNardo sent to all of the parishes in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston that included the following for schools:

Additionally, as we discussed on the community update Zoom on February 25th, we will not be doing the planned week of Remote Learning the week of March 22nd - March 26th. The purpose of that planned week was to limit as much as possible the issue we had upon our return from Christmas break, with multiple confirmed COVID cases which caused the ripple effect of having over 10 teachers and 100 students out on quarantine for a good portion of January.

We are asking our community to be careful over Spring Break - please continue to wear masks and practice social distancing. If you are gathering in large groups or traveling anywhere over the break where you may be in large groups - such as airports and on planes - we ask that you self quarantine the week of March 22nd - 26th and take part in remote learning for your child(ren) that week. For more on the CDC's guidance on domestic and international travel, click here. We ask that families continue to report any positive cases or close contact incidents, especially over the holiday. Please let your child(ren)’s teacher and our School Nurse Meredith Coursey know of your plans if you are going to self-quarantine the week of March 22nd - 26th.

For PK3 - 3rd Grade: Please help your child pack up and return their iPad or Chromebook to school on Monday, March 22nd.

For 4th - 8th Grade: Please help your child remember to charge their Chromebook the night before returning to school on Monday, March 22nd.

The vendors working on the repair updates to our HVAC system have made a lot of progress this week and will continue their work bringing the system back online. All students having class in other spaces – PK3P, 4th, 5th, & 7th grades – will be able to return to their normal classrooms upon our return from Spring Break on Monday, March 22nd. We are grateful for the work of the teachers in those grades in helping the students adapt to new spaces and routines this week and thankful to the students as well for their continued resilience during this very challenging year.

How to Shop: On March 22nd the link to our Book Fair will be active and open for parents, students, and teachers to browse and shop. Students can build their wish lists and save them. Parents can then edit those wish lists, making deletions and additions, before checking out. Orders will be shipped directly to your home. Free shipping for orders of books over $25. For more information on how to shop the book fair, here’s a short video.

Teacher Wish Lists: Several teachers have set up eWallet accounts. We invite you to contribute to their eWallets so that the teachers may purchase books for their classrooms. Here is a link to the teachers’ eWallets.

We are excited to announce our second annual Read-A-Thon being held in conjunction with the school’s Annual Book Fair from Monday, March 22nd - Friday, March 26th. The purpose of both the Book Fair and Read-A-Thon is to promote literacy and also to support the school and HSA. Proceeds go straight to support educational programs like STREAM and Student Enrichment days, such as Astronomy Night, Cultural day, and the recent visit of the Houston Grand Opera. Click here for more Read-A-Thon Information & Resources.

Please join school Principal Jeff Matthews for the Quarterly “Java With Jeff” on Wednesday, March 24th at 11:30AM on Zoom. All parents are invited to attend, and the meeting will also be recorded and shared in the Insider later that week.

The March School Board Meeting will take place at 6:30PM on Thursday, March 25th. Board meetings are open to parents to attend and are currently being held on Zoom. If you are interested in attending a meeting, please contact our School Board President Nadine Balombin.

Our Celebration of Learning parent-teacher conferences will be held on Friday, March 26th (there is no school on this conference day). As we did last semester, all of the conferences will take place virtually, and parents will be given the opportunity to sign up for a specific 10-15 minute time slot. All parents are expected to have a Celebration of Learning Conference with their child present along with the homeroom teacher. Homeroom teachers will be reaching out to families to schedule the virtual Celebration of Learning Conferences. Families in 3rd-8th grades, you may sign up for a conference with other teachers once all families in that homeroom have signed up for their slot. We will let you know once that is available for scheduling.

If you plan on requesting Financial Assistance for the 2021-2022 school year, the application process is currently open. All Financial Aid applications are due no later than April 15, 2021.

March 25

7:00pm

Please join us for a Zoom discussion on how we as Catholics can respond to racism by reflecting on issues of social justice. Larry Payne has 48 years of experience in public service, education, not-for-profit, and religious leadership. He has hosted "Dialogue Houston" for 27 years and is currently the Director of Strategic Partnerships, Civic Engagement, and Critical Conversations for the Houston Public Library. Click HERE to register to receive the Zoom link.

March 26th

5:30pm - 8:00pm

Join us for a Lenten tradition at St. Cecilia, our annual Friday Night Fish Fry. We start serving at 5:30p.m. and conclude at 8:00p.m.

Plates are:

$10.00 for Adults

$8.00 for Seniors

$6.00 for Kids (under 10)

$2.00 extra for Shrimp

This year will be Drive-Thru only! Enter the church parking lot from Denise and look for a Knight to guide you through. In addition to being able to pay onsite, you will also be able to utilize contactless ordering and payment.

Meal includes Fried Catfish or Baked Tilapia, (Shrimp for +$2.00), Tater-Tots, Hushpuppies, Coleslaw & Dessert.

Sponsored by: Knights of Columbus Council 13357

March 26th

6:00pm (English) | 7:00pm (Español)

The Stations of the Cross began as the practice of pious pilgrims to Jerusalem who would retrace the final journey of Jesus Christ to Calvary. Later, for the many who wanted to pass along the same route, but could not make the trip to Jerusalem, a practice developed that eventually took the form of the fourteen stations currently found in almost every church.

*We will not have the 5:00pm Stations for children this year.

If you are experiencing a hardship of any kind please contact the HSA Caring Committee for support or prayer requests. They are here to help!

The HSA Caring Committee is a volunteer group that supports St. Cecilia Catholic School families who are dealing with illness, death, or crisis.

Prayers for Healing: