Charger Check-In
October 17, 2020
A Note from Ms. Owens
This week Covid-19 has kept us very busy at St. Catherine. I'm sure the notifications about positive cases make many of us nervous, uneasy or even scared. Please know that we are monitoring these cases closely, and, as of right now, we do not see evidence of person-to-person spread inside the school. We continue to maintain a robust schedule for disinfecting common areas as well as classrooms. Students, faculty and staff continue to practice good hand-hygiene, clear physical distancing and proper mask-wearing.
In addition to the next paragraph that has appeared in every Charger Check-In this school year, I urge you to monitor closely the health of all members of your household. Symptoms of COVID-19 include fever (temperature greater than 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit), chills, cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, muscle/body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion, nausea or vomiting, and diarrhea.
- If a member of your household has even one Covid-like symptom, your child(ren) should not come to school that first day of a household member having symptoms.
- Mrs. Malone or Mrs. Omiecinski will walk you through the proper protocols to follow regarding when your child(ren) can safely return to school.
- Do not send your child(ren) to school medicated to camouflage symptoms.
- If your child(ren) has been identified as a close contact to a confirmed or presumed positive case and develops symptoms, contact your medical advisor to discuss evaluation and testing.
- If your child(ren) has been identified as a close contact to a confirmed or presumed positive case and does not develop symptoms, it is recommended to be tested 5 to 9 days after your child’s exposure to the positive case.
I ask that you continue to partner with us in a shared effort to maintain a safe environment for our school community. We have gone through extensive measures to put protocols and procedures in place for our collective health and safety. Maintaining cohorts is at the heart of that plan. We ask for your cooperation in maintaining this model whenever feasible so that our staff and students are able to experience a safe and sustained return to school.
A Bit More News
- Beginning this Monday, October 19, students will return to regular school uniforms on days they do not have gym.
- As is true for most all schools who have returned to in-person learning, we are eager to increase the number of qualified individuals in our pool of substitute teachers. If you are interested in working at St. Catherine as a substitute teacher, please reach out to Mrs. Kehoe. A Bachelor's degree is required.
- Consider participating in this weekend's Park & Praise Mass on Sunday, October 18 at 5PM. You must register at the parish website or by calling the rectory at 708-425-2850.
- On Friday, October 30, we will have a 1PM dismissal for students. This is a change to the published calendar.
- If you know of an SCA family who owns a small business that we can publicize here to help support them, please reach out to me via email. Scroll down to see local businesses we can support.
Please pray for our nation, for our communities, for our brothers and sisters who are tired and broken, for our brothers and sisters working to keep us safe, and for own sorrows. We are all - each and every one of us - beloved children of God.
Peace,
Kristine Owens
Updated Travel Quarantine List
The list now includes 25 states and Puerto Rico. This week, Indiana was added to this list and the quarantine directive went into effect Friday, October 16. Iowa, Wisconsin, Indiana, Missouri, and Kentucky remain on the list. This means every state with which Illinois shares a border is on travel quarantine list.
Please note that individuals who travel to Wisconsin or Indiana, even if for less than 24 hours, still need to quarantine upon returning unless deemed an essential worker or are a student who commutes for school.
For our Archdiocesan schools, any travel outside of the United States will also require a 14-day quarantine for students and employees upon their return.
A Bit More Focus on Our Quarantine and Sick Policies
Please be aware of these situations in which a student/faculty/staff/volunteer will need to remain home.
- Any student/faculty/staff/volunteer who has close contact to a person who is symptomatic, awaiting test results or diagnosed with COVID-19 will need to stay home.
- Anyone with close contact with a confirmed case must quarantine for 14 days from date of last contact with confirmed case.
Close contact is defined as "anyone (with or without a face covering) who was within 6 feet of a confirmed case of COVID-19 (with or without a face covering) for at least 15 minutes. The period of close contact begins two calendar days before the onset of symptoms (for a symptomatic person) or two calendar days before the positive sample was obtained (for as asymptomatic person).
Any student/faculty/staff/volunteer who presents with any of the following symptoms - fever (100.4 or higher), headache, shortness of breath, cough, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, congestion, new loss of taste/smell, nausea, fatigue or muscle/body ache will need to stay home or will be sent home if they are at school. All members of that person's household will also be sent home.
Heroes Work Here
We love our St. Catherine staff and faculty. Our teachers and staff have worked tirelessly over the summer and this school year to bring quality in-person learning to families during this unprecedented time.
To recognize the fantastic work Catholic schools are doing, the Office of Catholic Schools (OCS) is excited to announce the #SchoolHero program that will highlight the educators and staff who have gone above to ensure a safe and productive learning environment.
To complete this nomination form, you will need your nominee’s name, name of the school, professional title (if a teacher, the grade they teach) and why you’re nominating them for the #SchoolHero program.
OCS is seeking nominations from within our Catholic school communities - families, students, parishioners, alumni and school staff.
Halloween at SCA in 2020
- We will have our Halloween festivities on Friday, October 30. Our PK classes may celebrate on an earlier day. Our PK team will share that information with their families.
- Students will be dismissed at 1PM. This is an addition to the published calendar.
- Students will be treated to a hot dog lunch. We will share more details as the date gets closer.
- As always, costumes should be school-appropriate. This year, we will all need to wear our "regular" face masks. In order to keep masks clean, please refrain from using face paint.
- We will have classroom celebrations; however, we cannot involve parent volunteers and we cannot allow food or gifts from students' households to be distributed in the class. This includes store-bought items even if they are individually wrapped.
- While we will not be able to have our traditional costume parade, we are looking at ways to do this virtually.
Looking for a Way to Help Support St. Catherine?
If you are interested in learning more about this position, please reach out to Fr. Dennis or Aimee Nowak.
TRIP Cash & Carry Reopening
Remember that all SCA school families with children in Grades K-8 are required to pay a $75 fundraising fee. TRIP earnings can be used to pay this mandatory fee.
- Additional earnings above the $75.00 mandatory fundraising fee will be used for tuition credit in May or July.
- Families electing not to participate in the T.R.I.P. program or that do not earn $75.00 in T.R.I.P. credit will be billed $75 or the remaining balance of the mandatory fundraising fee on their May Smart Tuition bill.
- Families also have the option to pay the $75 mandatory fundraising fee at any time prior to being billed in May.
Baby Bottles for The Women's Centers of Greater Chicagoland
This is a simple, but crucial, fundraising effort for The Women's Centers and the families they support. This non-profit organization directly assists mothers and families experiencing crisis pregnancies by offering emotional, financial, material and spiritual support through counseling, clothing, financial assistance, and prayer.
Reusable Water Bottles and Re-Filling Stations
- We strongly encourage students to bring a reusable water bottle to school with them.
- Ideally, water bottles should be transparent and have flip-tops for ease of use.
We will continue to provide bottled water for students who forget their water bottles at home; however, this is not meant to be an option that students should use regularly. This is meant for those infrequent occasions when a student forgets to bring their water bottle to school.
Religious Education Catechists and Aides Needed
Our Religious Education Program is looking for a catechist for our 5th grade class. Our 5th grade students are great. They need someone who is willing to share their faith with them. They’re eager to learn. We will provide training and lesson plans.
We also need substitute catechists and teacher aides. A great way for high school students to get service hours is to be a teacher’s aide or a Sunday morning office worker. If you enjoy children and want to help them grow in faith, this is the perfect place.
Contact Mary Ellen Lynch to volunteer or ask questions about our program.
Our Church is Open!
- Saturdays - Mass at 4PM
- Sundays - Mass at 9:30AM and 11:30AM
In order to attend, parishioners must sign up online. The sign up is available below. Be sure to read the protocols that must be followed by those attending Mass in-person.
Ways to Support Our Local Small Businesses
If you know of an SCA family who owns a small business that we can publicize here to help support them, please reach out to me via email.
Queen of Hearts Raffle
Congratulations to our winner! Check out the SCA Queen of Hearts Facebook page for more information.
So Many On-going Ways to Support St. Catherine!
Upcoming Events
Sunday, October 18
Park & Praise Mass at 5PM
Monday, October 19
- Regular school uniforms resume
Tuesday, October 20
- Tuition Exclusion Day
Thursday, October 22
- TRIP Cash & Carry in church vestibule from 6:30-8PM
Friday, October 23
- All-School Liturgy (streamed)
Monday, October 26
- Return baby bottles to school
Friday, October 30
- Early Dismissal at 1PM (an addition to published calendar)
About us
Website: www.scaoaklawn.org
Location: 10621 South Kedvale Avenue, Oak Lawn, IL, USA
Phone: 708-425-5547
Facebook: facebook.com/scaoaklawn/