This Week at St Joes - March 8, 2021

St Joseph High School - A Catholic College Preparatory Community

Dear Friends,

Good day, St. Joes. I hope that all is well with your family.

We began the month of March with a weeklong celebration of SJHS community cultures, ethnicities, and heritages. Throughout our Multicultural Week (March 1-5), students and faculty led daily prayer in different languages, performed musical pieces, prepared and sampled culinary delights, highlighted unique academic accomplishments of world leaders, shared personal family traditions, and extended community outreach and love through the creation of bilingual cards for the homebound. Some of the many vibrant activities were captured on our website.

As our March 17 full return to in-person learning approaches, the Campus enthusiasm and excitement among SJHS adults and students is palpable. Your participation in our brief survey, thoughtful questions and concerns, and continued engagement in this process is invaluable to our planning and successful forward progress. Though we are counting down the days to full return, we will not let our jubilation result in complacency or a careless lessening of our mindful commitment to safety and mitigation strategies.

Last week, we continued to earnestly prepare for our March 17 transition with the reconfiguration/redesign of classrooms and common spaces (media center and dining areas) to ensure 4-6 feet of social distancing across the Campus, with a minimum of 6 feet in all dining areas for students and adults. Students and faculty will actively practice any modifications to hallway and stairwell traffic flow and new classroom seating charts are being developed. We are also evaluating and recalibrating our daily cleaning protocols and sanitization schedules.

I wish your family a fulfilling and happy week ahead. We are blessed to have you as partners in this important work, and we appreciate you more than mere words can properly convey. Thank you!

In Faith and Fellowship,

David J. Klein

President

Sophomore Family Mass: March 14 - RSVPs Required

All members of the Sophomore class are welcome to join us for the Sophomore Family Mass on Sunday, March 14 at 9:30am in the gym. This Mass is for the intentions of the Class of 2023 and their families.

Due to capacity limitations, we ask that students bring only one parent/guardian as their guest. At this time, we are unable to welcome siblings. For planning purposes, please RSVP via the button below.

RSVP for the Sophomore Family Mass

Sophomore Retreat: March 22

Photo: Pre-Covid-19

On Monday, March 22, Campus Ministry will host a

Sophomore Retreat during the last two periods of the school day. All students who are still fully virtual will be able to view the recorded presentation later that week.

Peer Ministers, in conjunction with Deacon Arthur Miller, will facilitate our retreat. We will be blessed to learn from Deacon Art as we step aside for a moment to assess and understand the genuine Catholic response to the issues we face each and every day as young men and women in a complex and ever-changing world.

Ms Alexa Oberle - New Registar

The Admissions Team is excited to announce that Ms Oberle has accepted a new role as SJ's school Registrar! We are grateful for her enthusiasm in assisting students with their high school search, application, and onboarding. We know she will continue her commitment to student success in her new role.

Ms Margo Sheehan has accepted a position at Fairfield University. We are thrilled that she's been given this wonderful opportunity, wish her all the best, and thank her for her dedication to St Joes.

Upcoming Dress Down Days!

Cadets! Student Council wants you to know about a number of upcoming dress down days:

Monday, March 15 & Tuesday, March 16

Cost: $5 (to be collected during HR or 1st Period)
All proceeds benefit Haiti180 - an organization dedicated to impacting the Haiti community with the joy of Christ by providing homes, education, and healthcare. Visit their website here!

Wednesday, March 17

Cost: Free
In honor or St Patrick's Day, students may replace their uniform top with an appropriate green article of clothing. Uniform bottoms/shoes required.

Cadets Participate in Model Congress Conference

We are so proud of Cadet political leaders who took part in the Harvard Model Congress Conference!

From Feb 19-21, our students worked with hundreds of delegates from all over the world to pass legislation and put forth their ideas for the future of our society. With topics ranging from natural disasters to homeland security to 5G technology, students debated their on many of the major issues and current events being discussed in Congress today.

Congrats also goes out to Joseph Harrington '21 for winning Best Delegate on his committee!

If any students are interested in joining Model Congress, contact presidents Eleanor Higgens or Josh Gottschalk or Mr. Schmidlin for more information.

A Successful Multicultural Week!

Multicultural Week at St Joes is a tradition recently started just a few years ago that continues to grow into a week-long celebration of the different cultures, ethnicities, and heritages in our school.

From the St Michael Prayer being spoken in different languages each morning to different cultural cuisine in the cafeteria to posters around the school, it was a wonderful week!

View a Few Highlights, Including Video Recipes from Our Students!

Updates from Student Council!

Multicultural Week was a success! Thank you to all students who shared stories about their cultural heritage, led prayer in different languages, and contributed their own traditional family recipes!
Reminder that on March 11, there will be a virtual escape room for all freshmen and sophomores!
Between March 15-18, all students will be able to to participate in a school-wide scavenger hunt!
Looking Ahead: There will be an SJ Spirit Week from May 17 - May 21! We encourage all students to use this Google Form Link to make suggestions for spirit day themes!
Be sure to follow the Student Council Instagram (@councilsjstudent) for announcements!

Pizza & Prayer: March 10

All students are invited to join Campus Ministry for the next Pizza & Prayer this Wednesday, March 10th from 5:30pm-7:00pm at St Pius X Church in Fairfeld. This week's speaker will be Michael DeCesare '21.

Pizza & Prayer offers a chance for students to pray together, learn from each other, and hear from our Peer Ministers. All students receive service hours for attending.