PSD School Ministries
Connections
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“He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and love to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.” 1 Peter 2:24
After the darkness of Good Friday, Jesus rose to life that is full of light and life and hope! The tomb was defeated. New life reigned. That new life is also ours! Yet, in spite of the Easter good news, we learn that life continues to be filled with tombs, with endings and darkness and covering stones. Of course, we are Easter people. But we do not deny the reality of the tombs or the reality of the tears or pain.
Listen with the ears of faith. Do you hear it? Surely the sound is there, as surely as the resurrection message itself. The stone is still rolling. Hear it? We believe that every ending is a new beginning, every tomb is subject to being ripped open, every human dilemma, every ending created by human sin or frailty or human foolishness can be torn open to the light and become the very place of a new beginning, a new life. That’s the life of resurrection bought for us by Jesus Christ. Death and Satan can no longer hold us. We are free to shout the good news from the rooftops. Christ is risen indeed!
Lord of life, fill us with resurrection joy so that we might glow with that joy and invite all others still in tombs to receive the promise of life forever. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
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Please join us in praying and thanking God for the following schools this week:
Prince of Peace Lutheran School and Preschool, Anaheim, CA
Redeemer by the Sea Lutheran Preschool and Kindergarten, Carlsbad, CA
St. John’s Lutheran School and Early Childhood Center, Hemet, CA
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Below are photos from Prince of Peace Lutheran School and Preschool, Anaheim, CA: |
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Below are photos from Redeemer by the Sea Lutheran Preschool and Kindergarten, Carlsbad, CA:
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Redeemer by the Sea's lovely teachers in their Ugly Christmas Sweaters. |
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One of Redeemer by the Sea's thirteen classes after jogging in their 6th Annual Jog-A-Thon Fundraiser – with “Pastor America”!
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A martial arts instructor came to show one of the Kindergarten classes how to be in control. |
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Below are photos from St. John’s Lutheran School and Early Childhood Center, Hemet, CA: |
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EC Equipping Conference - Register by Tomorrow! |
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Our annual PSD Early Childhood Equipping Conference will be held THIS Saturday, April 17. Jennie Williamson of Arison Records will be our featured presenter. The conference will be live at Salem, Orange, CA, and live-streamed to Christ Greenfield in Arizona and Mountain View in Nevada.
A note to the CA attendees:
After the conference is concluded, we suggest you go out to lunch and relax or do a little shopping in the area, then return at 4 pm for Jennie Williamson's outdoor worship concert! Here is a promo video of Jennie in concert. Don't forget to publicize the concert with your students and families! The concert is free to attend! Click here for the concert flyer. Please register your attendance at the free concert here.
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Jennie Williamson in the PSD |
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PSD schools! We have a special opportunity for you to host Jennie Williamson at your school for a concert with your students! Jennie will be in the PSD April 19-23 and would love to come and share Jesus through music at your schools - even middle school and high school! Jennie is offering several concert options as well as a special discounted rate! Click here for more details!
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Annual Accreditation Reports Due Tomorrow! |
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This is the final week to submit your annual reports for accreditation. All reports are due to be uploaded into your school’s shared folder, and your annual fee should be postmarked by end of day tomorrow, April 15, to avoid late penalty fees. If you are having any difficulty with uploading your report, please contact [email protected] or 949-854-3232 ext. 226 ASAP. Thank you so much!
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Free Legal Workshop Opportunity |
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On Friday, April 23, 2021, from 9:00 – 10:30 am, Ron Van Blarcom will be sharing a Zoom workshop for pastors and administrators titled “The Equality Act and the Expansion of Sexual Orientation / Gender Identity (SOGI) Laws”. Ron Van Blarcom has been a practicing California lawyer for over 30 years and, since 2009, he has served as in-house General Counsel to Concordia University, Irvine, CA. In service to Concordia, he has been directly involved in Title IX, discrimination and religious freedom issues. There is no charge to attend this workshop; however, we do need you to register to attend so the Zoom link can be sent to you. Please register your attendance using this form.
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2021-2022 LCMS School Ministry Theme |
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The LCMS School Ministry Office is excited to announce that the 2021-2022 Yearly Theme will be “In All Things” from Colossians 1:15-20 ESV. This is the same theme as the 2022 LCMS Youth Gathering, and will allow Lutheran schools around the country to utilize the same theme in the year leading up to the Gathering. At this point, the Chapel Talks and National Lutheran Schools Week resources that are focused on this theme are scheduled to release in early May.
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CA Professional Development Opportunity |
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Click here to view more information on the following California Professional Development opportunity: Colleague Coaching and Mentoring Workshop for Private School PK-12 Educators. The May session is full but there is a July session. Good news - there is no cost! |
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It isn’t too late to participate in this year’s PSD Hearts for Jesus unified mission project, LeadaChild! We give thanks for the schools who have already contributed. $6,433.10 has been designated for student scholarships and $595.00 for teacher training scholarships, for a total of $7,028.10 thus far. Thank you! Our district goal is $35,000, so please consider supporting this worthy cause!
If you want to participate but no longer have the packet that was sent to schools at the beginning of the school year, you can read more about this year’s campaign in Rachel’s letter and in a letter from Lisa Hellyer, LeadaChild’s Director of Engagement & Outreach.
We also want to remind you of the Teachers Helping Teachers part of this year’s project. You can read more about that here. And, as always, you can find more information on the School Ministries website. Please prayerfully consider how your school can be a part of this wonderful opportunity to share the joy of a Christian education with children across the globe!
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We (School Ministries) want to make sure we have your most recent contact information and want to assist in keeping your roster record updated. Please let us know if you are making a change in where you are serving, have a new address, or are planning to retire. Contact Ellen Pratt at [email protected] with any changes. Be sure to also make those changes to your CMIF form so it is always updated as well. You can update your CMIF on the Church Worker Update website – cwu.lcms.org. Questions on your CMIF can be directed to Kim Violette at [email protected].
Administrators, it is also important that you let our office know of all the changes being made on your staff, especially as it relates to Commissioned Ministers. You can share that information with Rachel, Ellen, or Kim. Thank you so much for your assistance with this important matter!
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Making Jesus Real - A Course for Lutheran Early Childhood Educators |
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The PSD Early Childhood Cabinet is excited to share Making Jesus Real with you. This course is a modified version of the Early Childhood Curriculum for Lutheran teachers, which grew out of needs expressed by congregations of the Pacific Southwest District to inform and acculturate early childhood teachers with answers to the following questions: What is a Lutheran school, specifically, early childhood center? How are Lutheran schools unique? What do Lutherans believe? What is the heritage of the Lutheran schools? What are the characteristics of the Lutheran teacher?
With the goal of training and equipping early childhood educators for careers in Lutheran early childhood centers, this course focuses on the following critical areas:
1) Lutheran thought and teaching (theology)
2) Nurturing the faith (faith development)
3) A distinctively Lutheran education (history of Lutheran education)
4) Methods and materials for teaching the faith to the young child
You will find FREE access to this course on our School Ministries website. Currently, Sessions 1 – 3 are available, and we are excited to share that Session 4 should be uploaded to the website in early June. We pray that this new version will be beneficial in a way that is accessible, attractive, affordable, applicable, and authentic.
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TEC21 Scholarship Deadline Extended! |
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**We have extended the deadline to request up to a $500 scholarship to offset the cost of the TEC21 workshop until TOMORROW, April 15! Click here to complete the scholarship request form. Administrators will be notified later this spring of the awarded amounts. All scholarships are paid directly to TEC21 on your behalf.**
Don’t miss the opportunity to help your teachers become competent for a new educational playing field and equipped to be resources and coaches for their peers. The TEC21 professional development program is one of the most challenging, exciting and masterful ways to ensure Lutheran school teachers, parents and students thrive in the midst of change.
Registration for this TEC21 2021/2022 cohort already closed, but TEC21 will continue to accept reservations until centers are full. Workshop date conflicts for those registering late will be addressed and adjusted, if appropriate, by facilitators at the first workshop in September.
If you’re interested in joining, please check availability now by clicking here. If you don’t yet know which teacher(s) you’d like to send to represent your school, simply register with your (principal) name while you determine your funding solution.
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- Join us in praying for the family of Jane Boye. Jane, the wife of Rev. Gary Boye, was Called to Glory on Maundy Thursday, April 1. During her career as a commissioned Lutheran teacher, Jane served at Christ the Redeemer, Phoenix, AZ; Valley Lutheran High School, Phoenix, AZ; Beautiful Savior Lutheran Preschool, Tempe, AZ, as Director; and Director of the International Friendship House at ASU. A memorial service was held Friday, April 9, at Christ Church Lutheran, Phoenix, AZ. Please keep the Boye family in prayer as they celebrate Jane being called home to Jesus after battling cancer.
- Join us in praying for congregations, high schools, elementary schools, and early childhood centers searching for administrators, directors, teachers, and staff for the 2021-22 school year.
Schools we are praying for the week of April 18:
Emmaus Lutheran School and Preschool, Alhambra, CA
Hephatha Lutheran School and Preschool, Anaheim, CA
Good Shepherd Lutheran School & Trinity Lutheran Preschool, Simi Valley, CA
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 Tuesday of each week.
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School Ministries, Pacific Southwest District-LCMS
1540 Concordia Drive East, Irvine, CA 92612
Phone 949-854-3232 | Fax 949-854-8140
Rachel Klitzing, Executive Director of School Ministries
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