From the Desk of Mrs. Debra Novy Cunico
As we complete our third week of the second semester, there seems to be quite a buzz going around. Our students are seeing the proverbial “light at the end of the tunnel”. Knowing that they are on the down-swing of the school year, our seniors are becoming very aware of their grades, discipline, and attendance as they anticipate trying to earn final exam exemptions. Our 9th – 11th AP students are also working hard to ensure that they set themselves up to be exempt from their AP finals, and all of our 9th – 11th graders are thinking about what courses they might want to take next school year.
While these things all sound wonderful and exciting, it comes with a little complacency. The third quarter of school is notorious for bringing on the doldrums of winter and the attitude of just getting by. We want to make sure our students don’t just “get by". Rather, we want them to thrive! Some seniors have already gotten accepted into one or more colleges or universities, and they think that they can just slide through now, until May and graduation. We, at Marian, care too much about our students to let them do that, though. We will be meeting with every grade level in the next couple of weeks to talk to them about where they are, where they want to go, and how they’re going to get themselves there. Our pep talk is not a magic potion though, so as a team, let’s work together to continue supporting our students to be the best they can be all the way through to the end.
Exciting things are happening with regards to next year’s curriculum. Our 2023-2024 Curriculum Guide is now available … just in time for our returning students’ online course selection. This online course selection process will be open from Feb. 6 through Feb. 24. Our Student Mentors will be stepping into our freshmen (2026) homerooms next week to teach them how to navigate the process and understand how to choose courses that best fit their goals. At the same time, Mr. Kruse and Mrs. Hilton will be training the current sophomores (2025) and juniors (2024) to navigate the online selection process, so they are ready to begin choosing their classes.
Focusing on Curriculum, we are excited to announce that there are several new course offerings, including bringing back computer courses, new social science courses and business semester-long offerings. We will also expand our partnership with McHenry County College, now offering Automotive and Culinary classes. Finally, we will be offering the State of Illinois Seal of Biliteracy for all of our students, currently focusing on four different languages, but possibly expanding to more in the future! Click here for more information.
As you can see, there are many growth opportunities at Marian so that students have a variety of paths (regular, honors, AP, Dual-Credit, and PCCS) with which to choose from in order to make their four-year experience at Marian a successful one. As Administration finalizes next year’s calendar and bell schedules to adjust to some of these offerings, please know that we will be communicating these out to you as soon as possible. Thank you for continuing to support all that we do here at Marian, and for supporting and encouraging your students to challenge themselves daily to be the best they can be!
Mrs. Debra Novy Cunico
