Congratulations to our YC Christmas Cash winners this week:

December 8 – $100 – Joshua Springer #01375

December 9 – $50 – Lisa Bradley #00117

December 10 – $50 – Joseph Heerschap #00936

December 11 – $25 – Raymond Dobe #00324

December 12 – $100 – Shannon Strawbridge #00279

December 13 – $25 – Mary Vieten #01544

December 14 – $25 – Becky & Steve Schneider #01259

Winners are posted daily on the YC website at www.yorkcatholic.org. Prizes are mailed to the winners weekly.

The Virtue=Strength program is devoted to virtue formation through school, athletics, parish, and/or the community. It is designed to be used by teachers and staff across the entire student body. Each week a different virtue is highlighted to share with our students. Click below for the Virtue=Strength Virtue of the Week that helps parents reinforce virtue formation at home.

York Catholic Middle & High School has the following employment opportunities available:  

• Instructional Support Teacher
• English Teacher
• Substitute Teachers
• Cafeteria Aide
• Cafeteria Volunteers
• High School Boys Lacrosse Head Coach
• High School Boys Lacrosse Assistant/JV Coach
• Middle School Girls Volleyball Head Coach
• Middle School Girls Volleyball Assistant Coach
• Middle School Girls Soccer Head Coach

Interested candidates can find details and application links at https://yorkcatholic.org/about/employment-opportunities/

Many York Catholic students will move their classroom to Washington DC on Tuesday, December 19. The Holocaust Studies class will be touring the Holocaust Memorial Museum while the AP US History class tours the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Our two groups will then walk together to the WWII Memorial, Washington Monument, and Lincoln Memorial. The Art IV & V students will visit the National Gallery of Art.

Recent York Catholic graduates will be returning to campus to answer our current students’ questions about life after YC Wednesday, December 20, from 9-11 AM. 

The alumni will talk about their transition to college, career choices, work life, and other new ventures they have taken on since graduation. Current junior and senior students wishing to sign-up to hear the panel should register in their Guidance Google Classroom.

The Knights of Columbus Educational Foundation is offering scholarship opportunities to any student whose father is a member in good standing with a Pennsylvania Knights of Columbus Council or who is a child of a deceased Knight of Columbus and was a member in good standing at the time of death. More than fifty $1000 grants will be distributed throughout Pennsylvania to students in grades 1‐12 for the 2024-25 school year.  The application deadline is January 31, 2024.

York Catholic is offering an SAT Math Prep course for juniors interested in getting extra practice before taking the actual exam. The course will run four Saturday mornings from 9-11:15 AM in York Catholic classrooms, and will be team-taught by members of the Math Department. Class dates are as follows: January 20, 27, February 3, 10. If snow causes cancellation of any of the classes, the make-up date is February 17. Cost is $200 per student and includes the cost of the Kaplan book. Registration forms and a check made to York Catholic should be turned into Mrs. Hand in the main office by Friday, January 12.  

Students will be dismissed at 11:30 AM on Friday, December 22, to begin Christmas break. Classes will resume Wednesday, January 3.

York Catholic students are collecting NEW hats, scarves, and mittens for the Catholic Harvest Food Pantry, and unwrapped toys for Toys for Tots. Items can be dropped off December 1-15 to YC.

Students are invited to deck out their uniforms in Christmas attire next week, December 18-22. Christmas hats, sweaters, shirts, scarves, ties, and socks are encouraged to be worn. Correct uniform bottoms are required.

Calculators

Middle School students need to bring a calculator to school for their math classes. We don’t have enough for everyone to borrow during class. A calculator would be a great Christmas gift!

Yearbooks

Even though the 2024 color yearbooks are not distributed until May, NOW is the time to place your order for a book. Extra yearbooks are not available in May. Only what is ordered is delivered to YC for distribution. All orders are taken by phone by calling the Balfour ordering line at 1-800-944-5930 or by visiting https://www.balfour.com/pennsylvania/york/york-catholic-high-school

All Year Sports Pass

Great Christmas gift! Don’t miss a minute of YC sports with an All-Year Sports Pass. Click the button below for the form. Go IRISH!  https://yorkcatholic.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/all-year-sports-pass-2023-24.pdf

Junior Class Rings

It is time for the class 2025 to consider the purchase of a York Catholic keepsake, a class ring! Visit https://www.balfour.com/pennsylvania/york/york-catholic-high-school to make your selection. Any junior needing help with sizing should stop by Mrs. Kemp’s desk in the main office. Order now and receive your ring in four to six weeks. Questions can be directed to Kathy Hand at khand@yorkcatholic.org.

Sports & Events Photos

Three photography companies provide photo services to York Catholic. Lifetouch Photography takes student portraits each year for yearbook and personal use, Inky’s Sports Shots takes pictures of our athletic teams and games, and Mike Inkrote Photography takes pictures of our extracurricular activities and events. In addition to individual photos and memory mates, Inky and Mike both offer photos, magnets, buttons, and more capturing that memorable moment. Click below to enter the photo galleries and make your purchases:

• York Catholic Athletics – Inky’s Sport Shots YC Gallery
• York Catholic Events & Extra-curriculars – Mike Inkrote Photography

Instruments and voices come together at York Catholic’s Christmas Concerts! 

The high school concert is Sunday, December 17, at 2 PM and features the Concert Choir, Concert Band, Jazz Bands, and Brass Choir. 

The middle school concert is Monday, December 18, at 7 PM and features the Chorus and Band.  

Celebrate the season and enjoy the sounds of holiday spirit!  Admission is free.

Dress Rehearsal will be held Thursday, December 14, from 3:15-5:30 PM.

Students in grades K-3 who pre-registered will be enjoying Futures Elf Night on Friday, December 15, from 6-9 PM at York Catholic. 

Crafts, games, and a snack will be offered by the YC Student Ambassadors.

Registration for this event is now closed.

Our winter sports season is underway! Please read the following important information regarding some expectations for each sporting event.

• Schedules: https://arbiterlive.com/Teams?entityId=26390
• Athletics Ticket Prices
• Senior High Events
• Adults (64 and under) $5.00
• Senior Citizens (65+) $4.00
• Non-YC Students and Partner Students $3.00
• YC Students FREE with student ID
• Middles School Events
• Adults (10 and older) $2.00
• Non-YC Students and Partner Students $1.00
• YC Students FREE with student ID
• No backpacks are allowed in the gymnasium for students grades K-12.
• No signs, banners, noisemakers are permitted.
• All YAIAA and PIAA Sportsmanship rules and regulations apply for athletes and spectators at each contest.

Sportsmanship is probably the clearest and most popular expression of morals. Sportsmanship is a thing of the spirit. It is timeless and endless, and we should strive to make it universal to all races, creeds, and walks of life.

~The Discovery of Morals

• Livestream for basketball games can be found at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYv-h3EFOOCwCJWfOSwWAyQ

The YAIAA is hosting a Winter Mental Health Symposium for student-athletes on Sunday, January 7, at Susquehannock High School. The event will feature a wellness fair from 2-4 PM and a presentation and question and answer session from 3-4 PM with a student panel discussing the stressors student-athletes face and how parents can assist their children to mitigate those stressors and/or how to seek assistance for their child. Registration is not required.

Students in grades K-6 are invited to Futures Night at the York Catholic basketball games!

Future girls’ basketball players are invited Friday, January 5, when the YC girls’ team takes on Biglerville.

Future boys’ basketball players and cheerleaders are invited Friday, January 12, when the YC boys’ team takes on York Tech.

The JV games start at 6 PM followed by the Varsity games. Futures will participate in the pre-game prayer and huddle, and become part of the welcome tunnel. Students should wear their uniform shirt for free admittance and must be accompanied by an adult. Come out and cheer your future school onto victory! 

York Catholic Middle & High School is blessed with generous alumni, parents, and community friends like yourselves who have continued to support our school for nearly a century.  We hope to continue to make a Catholic education possible for anyone who seeks it. 

As December 31st approaches, many of you are looking at your charitable giving in terms of tax benefits. We ask you to prayerfully consider YC as a charity of choice for your year-end gifts to our annual York Catholic Fund.

Our York Catholic fund supports every student by enriching extra-curricular programs, music and the arts, professional development for teachers, academic program support, athletic programs, technology, special projects, and operating expenditures. This year, we have a fundraising goal of $300,000 for the York Catholic Fund by June 30, 2024. 

Every gift, whatever the amount, counts and is truly valued. Please click the button below to use our secure online donation page.

Given the current economic conditions, if it’s possible, we humbly ask that you consider increasing your gift from last year by 10%.

Thank you for caring and giving!

Parents, would you like to save on your State Income Tax return? Additionally, what if I told you those savings can have a direct impact on York Catholic students? Sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it? If you file for, and are accepted, as a Special Purpose Entity (SPE), it’s a dollar-for-dollar reduction in the tax liability on your personal tax return. Please continue reading for additional information.

Pennsylvania now allows individuals to take advantage of EITC Tax Credits (just as businesses can) whereby you have the opportunity to re-direct 90% of your personal state income taxes to York Catholic Middle & High School. 

The Special Purpose Entity (SPE) is based on tax liability, not income, therefore each taxpayer’s situation will differ. Participants must be PA residents where at least one spouse is employed or has an ownership interest in a PA for-profit business. An individual or couple filing jointly must have a state tax liability of $3,500 or more to participate. To see if you qualify for 2024, you can find your PA tax liability on Form PA-40 Line 12 of your 2023 tax return. 100% of participant contributions are distributed to the school. You have to pay these taxes regardless, so why not have a say in how your taxes are allocated? Additionally, you will receive at least a 10% personal deduction on your federal taxes. The money you re-direct to York Catholic is for educational purposes, specifically tuition assistance.

If you would like to take advantage of this opportunity to reduce your tax liability AND provide much needed assistance to York Catholic students, please follow these steps:

• Review information on the SPE program to determine if you qualify at https://www.pennsylvaniaeitc.org/frequently-asked-questions.html
• Confirm your personal state income tax liability with your accountant.
• Complete and submit the Joinder Agreement at https://yorkcatholic.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/spe-joinder-agreement.pdf

For more information about this easy tax donation, please contact Dave Salter, York Catholic Director of Development, at dsalter@yorkcatholic.org or 717-846-8871 x1325.

During inclement weather that would cause a school closing or delay of schedule, York Catholic will call/text/email you through our One Call Now Emergency Notification system.  Other modes of notification include WGAL TV-8, Fox43, and the YC website.  Students from individual school districts are automatically excused if their district closes and does not provide transportation to YC.  The exceptions to this are Southern and Southeastern.  These students follow York Catholic’s delay and closing schedule.

St. Joseph Teaching Position

St. Joseph School in York is looking for a long-term substitute teacher, with the possibility of permanent full-time, for third grade beginning immediately. Requirements include development and implementation of appropriate programming in alignment with the Diocese of Harrisburg curriculum, supervision of children, communication with parents, and performance of other related duties as needed. Individuals interested can apply at https://bit.ly/493ZbOq and should reach out to Principal Mrs. Corrinne Eck at Eck@sjy.org or 717-755-1797.