Charger Check-In
November 18, 2021
A Note from Ms. Owens
With Thanksgiving break approaching, the busy-ness of the holiday season looms ahead of us. We have important events happening at school before we begin our break.
- If you haven't signed up for Parent-Teacher Conferences, please do so before midnight on Sunday as the sign up will close. Our conferences begin on Tuesday at noon.
- Beginning Friday night, we have the FSA Vendor Fair, the Annual Fall Grounds Clean-Up on Saturday, and the Men's Club Food Drive on Saturday and Sunday.
- On Tuesday, our students will participate in a Thanksgiving Prayer Service created and led by our Student Council.
If you're family will be traveling out-of-state, please be sure to check the Chicago Department of Public Health's travel advisory webpage. All unvaccinated individuals traveling to an orange state need a negative Covid test (antigen tests are acceptable) in order to return to school following the travel. More details are below as is a link to the CDPH's travel advisory page. The page is updated every Tuesday and the new "list" goes into effect that Friday.
I'm sorry to share that we won't be able to have a Christmas Concert for our K-4th graders this year. Our music position is a position shared between three schools. Mrs. Kehoe and I continue to partner with the other principals in hiring a music teacher for our students; however, the process is a slow one. We were fairly confident the hiring process would be complete in time for a Christmas production, but we are still the midst of that process. While we are grateful for Ms. Allpow's ongoing work with our students during their music period, producing a music concert would not be a just expectation. We remain hopeful that our students will be able to perform in a springtime concert.
Both Mrs. Kehoe and I are delighted to share the happy, happy news that Mrs. Carolyn Anderson will be returning to St. Catherine as our English teacher for 7th and 8th grade. She will also teach 8th grade religion and serve as the homeroom teacher for Room 208. Mrs. Anderson will begin her new position following Christmas break. She will be the teacher of record for these classes and she will teach Mondays through Thursdays. Mrs. Chris McElroy will be in the classroom on Fridays, but Mrs. Anderson will have crafted the lesson plans and will be responsible for the grading.
We know these two experienced teachers will form a solid partnership for your children. And, of course, we are continually grateful for Mrs. Harris’ willingness to remain in Room 208 so very far past her original agreed-to end date in order to support our 7th and 8th grade students. All three of these educators are prime examples of why our St. Catherine community continues to thrive.
Today, all 6th, 7th and 8th grade classes were visited regarding the upcoming NJHS application process. All students in 6th-8th grade who are interested and eligible are welcome to apply by Friday, December 3. Applications will be available via Google Classroom.
A Bit More News
- Beginning with this Check-In, there will be a link to Compliance Information and Forms for school volunteers. Thank you to the SCA family who suggested this idea!
- Remember when you come to Mass this weekend, bring donations of non-perishable food, paper products or monetary gifts to the Men's Club Food Drive. All donations will go to support the food pantry at Our Lady of Guadalupe, our sharing parish.
- First trimester report cards were sent home today - Thursday, November 18. We are eager to discuss your student's progress at Parent-Teacher Conferences on Tuesday, November 23.
- The sign up for Parent-Teacher Conferences will close at midnight on Sunday, November 21.
- We have an Eat & Earn at Culver's on Tuesday, November 23 (same day as PTC) from 10AM to 10PM in Evergreen Park.
- FSA's Annual Vendor Fair is back!! Pre-sale order forms for next Friday's event (Friday, November 19) went home in last week's White Envelopes. An electronic copy is available below.
- The Annual Christmas Wreath Sale sponsored by FSA is up and running. Scroll down for a link to order.
- Both our Athletic Association and our FSA have Pop Up Apparel Shops open online. Scroll down for pictures and links.
- 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 continue to pray for our medical professionals, our first responders and our essential front line workers as they work to ensure the health and safety of our larger community.
Peace,
Kristine Owens
CDPH Travel Advisory/Quarantine States - as of 11/16
- All unvaccinated individuals who travel to an orange state must provide proof of a negative Covid test in order to return to school.
- The test must be administered no more than 72-hours prior to return to Illinois.
- The test can also be administered once you have returned to Illinios.
- Home administered tests are not accepted.
Notes from Fr. Dennis
Our St. Vincent de Paul has received a donation of gift cards for Fair Play Supermarket from the Oak Lawn Raiders Social Athletic Club. If you or a family that you know can use a little extra help with groceries for Thanksgiving, please contact St. Vincent De Paul at 630-750-2348.
Our annual Fall Clean-Up of our church grounds is this Saturday, November 20, beginning at 9:15AM. This is a great service project for Confirmation and NJHS. It also is a great family project. Bring your leaf blowers, rakes, and brooms - and dress for the weather. Meet in the vestibule of church.
Our Thanksgiving Day Morning Mass will be at 9AM instead of the usual 8:30AM. Consider beginning your Thanksgiving Day by joining us to give thanks to God for all his blessings.
Chromebooks and Gumdrops!
Part of that long-term plan of going 1:1 in our 3rd through 8th grade classrooms included students taking their Chromebooks home with them at the end of the school day. Thanks to a great deal of work on the part of Miss Soch, our computer teacher extraordinaire, we are ready to move forward with that process.
The Chromebooks will be outfitted with Gumdrop cases to provide extra protection. We know this is already a needed piece as our older students are now moving between classrooms during the day. The Gumdrop casese will also provide more protections as Chromebooks are transported between school and home.
I'm sure some families have additional questions about charging Chromebooks, addressing damaged devices, forgotten devices, etc. Much of that will be addressed in the Responsible Use Policy which your child will bring home as the date for bringing the device home nears.
Our process will be an intentional and staggered roll out beginning with our students in 6th through 8th grade.
- Our 6th through 8th graders will bring a Responsible Use Policy home with them tomorrow (Friday).
- On Tuesday, November 23, our 7th and 8th graders will be bringing their Chromebooks and chagers home so they can come to school fully-charged when we return from Thanksgiving Break.
- Our 7th and 8th graders are getting new Chromebooks as theirs are currently the oldest in the building and are past their "life" date.
- Other grades will continue to use their current Chromebooks, but we will do a brief swap-out so the current Chromebooks can get Gumdrop cases put on them.
- We will share additional details of the timeline as we move through this process.
Parent-Teacher Conferences
- Conferences will be in-person; however, we will offer the option of a virtual conference for those families who prefer it. Families will indicate their preference in the sign up and teachers will share out a Zoom link.
- The sign up will close at midnight on Sunday, November 21.
- All conferences - whether virtual or in-person - will take place on Tuesday, November 23. The hours for conferences are noon-3:30PM and then 4:30-7:30PM.
- For in-person conferences, attendees over the age of 2 must wear facemasks over both their nose and mouth.
- Families with students in 4th-8th grade should conference with their child's homeroom teacher.
- Families in Room 208 - Mrs. Harris will contact you regarding dates/times for meeting with her.
- Students who receive resource support are encouraged to conference with the appropriate resource teacher in addition to the homeroom teacher. Links to resource teacher times are posted.
- Our specials teachers - Spanish, Art, Computers, PE, Music and Library - will be available for conferences upon request. If you would like a meeting with one of these teachers, please reach out to them directly.
Decorating the Church for Christmas
We are looking for people to help with our Christmas Church Decorating. All ages are welcome! This is a great service hour opportunity for our 7th and 8th grade students. Any child participating must be accompanied by a parent the entire time the child is present. Masks must be worn at all times.
The dates are as follows:
- Saturday, December 4 from 9AM-2PM
- Sunday, December 5 from 2:30PM-5:30PM
- Sunday, December 12 from 1PM-5PM
If you have questions, please contact Ms. Ward.
Fire Safety & Public Safety Coloring Contest
- The OLFD is sponsoring two coloring contests - one for each area of safety.
- The winning drawing for each contest will be used as the cover of the Fire Safety Book and the Public Safety Book, respectively.
- The deadline is Friday, December 3.
- More details are available at the link below.
Covid Vaccination Information
If you or someone you know wants to get a vaccine, you will find a button below with easy-to-navigate information for Chicago, Cook County and surrounding counties.
The Sunday Collection
Visit the link below to set up your recurring contribution. Donors can change the amount of the contribution or pause it at any time.
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.
So Many On-going Ways to Support St. Catherine!
Upcoming Events
Friday, November 19
- All-School Liturgy at 8:30AM (K-4th)
- Vendor Fair from 6-10PM
Saturday, November 20
- Annual Fall Grounds Clean-Up at 9:15AM - meet in church vestibule
- Men's Club Food Drive at Mass
Sunday, November 21
- Men's Club Food Drive at all Masses
Tuesday, November 23
- Early Dismissal at 11AM (no lunch and no after care)
- Eat & Earn at Culvers from 10AM-10PM in Evergreen Park
Wednesday, November 24
- No School - Thanksgiving Break
Thursday, November 25
- No School - Thanksgiving Break
Friday, November 26
- No School - Thanksgiving Break
Tuesday, November 30
- First Reconciliation for Room 111 at 6PM
About us
Website: www.scaoaklawn.org
Location: 10621 South Kedvale Avenue, Oak Lawn, IL, USA
Phone: 708-425-5547
Facebook: facebook.com/scaoaklawn/