Week at a Glance
Marian Central Catholic High School Faculty Newsletter
January 13, 2018
A Glimpse of this Past Week...
We made it through our first week back from break, first week of the second semester, and already we have a three day weekend! Hopefully the students were more positively charged for the new semester after a restful, stress-free Christmas break!
We do have still have several students that need to make up exams. We appreciate the staff's diligence in guiding those students to completing the exams and setting their sights towards a successful second semester! Please remember... if you find you need to make any type of grade change, you MUST submit a grade change form, found on the last page of the Exam Procedures packet, to Ms. Novy, as you will not be able to get into the Semester 1 grade portal any more.
This week's Late Start provided departments with critical data from both the Pre-ACT (9th & 10th grade) and the PSAT (11th) grade. To assist you in interpreting the data there are three booklets...
The Early Intervention Roster shows:
- students' post HS plans
- Individual students' expressed need for help in specific subjects (very useful!)
The Educator Report shows:
- Frequency of score cross referenced with the ACT Readiness Benchmark
- Scores by ethnicity/gender
- Scores cross referenced with classes taken
-Scores & coursework plan vs the students' educational plan, need for help, or career interest
The Item Response Summary Report shows:
- The % of students who selected each response choice per question, broken down by content and subgroup (very helpful since you already have a copy of the test questions)
Please use these links to access the particular class' reports. 2020 2021
Mr. Baldwin and Ms. Novy attended the Principal/Superintendent Meeting at the Diocese on Wednesday. Some topics of interest for our staff include...
- A reminder of the Family and Medical Leave Guidelines
- A review of the Illinois Tax Scholarship Program (available to qualifying families of current or incoming students)
- NCEA 2019 will be in Chicago! Finding ways to allow as many Diocesan Staff Members to attend!
- Shared pluses and deltas on our October High School all Diocese Inservice
Our All school mass on Friday was just what our souls needed by the end of the week! Father Seigl from Ss. Peter and Paul in Cary delivered an engaging homily as our students were listening intently!
Proverbs 16:20: He who gives heed to the word will prosper, and happy is he who trusts in the LORD.
The day ended with our Campus Ministry Kick-Off Day. Youth Ministers from St. Mary's, Jason & Maggie led our students in adoration and a Festival of Praise in the Chapel and then met later in rm 231 for some pizza and fellowship! Please encourage your students to check it out! They are planning to meet weekly!
Friday evening saw a great turnout for the Girls Basketball service project as they collected money for ALS research. There was a huge bake sale, a silent auction for beautiful baskets, and packed house! Our Lady Canes varsity won over Crystal Lake South too, which was an added bonus! A great time was had by all, and for a great cause! See the picture below as the basketball players showed off their shirts... and unity! Way to go girls!
Saturday was our High School Placement Test for incoming freshman for the Class of 2022! We had 127 students show up to take the test, which is promising! With several more students planning to come take our test (but couldn't come Saturday) we are very hopeful that we can at least maintain our numbers. If you know of anyone still thinking about Marian, please encourage them to give Mike Maloney a call and arrange a Shadow Visit... or the placement test! It takes a village!
Looking ahead...
Department Course Recommendations for 2018-19
The Guidance Department will be sending each department head the Google Sheets that Julie will be setting up for their department's course recommendations for the students for next year (like last year) on Wednesday, 1/17. Guidance will need them completed and returned to Julie Diamond by no later than Friday, 1/26, in order to give Julie sufficient time to process the information onto the Course Registration sheets for the students in preparation for course selection meetings.
Mrs. Loy and Ms. Novy are back in the swing of evaluations, hoping to get one formal and one informal on each faculty member prior to Spring Break. Thank you ahead of time for your cooperation and openness to our coming into your classrooms! We love to see what you are engaging the students in!
Teachers, please continue to be visible in the hallways during all passing periods, as well as helping to enforce Marian's simple expectations on dress code and food/beverages in the classrooms. We have seen quite a few students either unshaven, wearing clogs or slippers, and not tucking in the shirt below their sweaters. It only takes a simple glance when students are entering your rooms and/or during attendance... especially during first hour. If a student is not in compliance and cannot take care of the issue immediately, please notify the office for assistance. Consistency is key! We need to remember that appearances of both students and staff reflect directly on the attitudes and culture of the school. Thanks for your continued assistance.
Our English classrooms will be housing boxes for the Writing Lab's Book Drive. Please encourage your students to drop off some of their new or gently used children's books to help support the Ronald McDonald's House. Even you might have a few books that your own children have outgrown! Bring them in and help the cause!
I hope this newsletter finds you snuggled up with a good book, escaping the cold, and resting up as you enjoy your long weekend!
Girls Basketball Shooting for a Cure for ALS!
Engineering Students Visit St. Margaret Mary!
Enjoy your Monday off!
Reminder about GCN Training!
Back in August, you should have received an email from support@gcntraining.com titled GCN Mandated Trainings 2017-18. In that email you will find a note describing the way to log in to the GCN online training website. Once in, you will notice that you have a personalized list of trainings that are to be completed by April 2, 2018. These are videos that are required either yearly or periodically (please reference Appendix B in your Faculty Handbook) by staff based on your position here at Marian. This is part of your professional responsibility and important for you to be knowledgeable about, so if you have yet to attend to this, please make this a priority. Suggested times to complete would be during plan periods, over a weekend, in the evenings, or over school breaks. You can do them one at a time... you do not have to take all at once. If you experience trouble logging in, please contact the GCN Tech Team (listed on email) or Ms. Novy.
Once you have completed all of your trainings, please print out your certificate (tab found on your GCN Dashboard), and give Ms. Novy a copy.
Professional Development Opportunities
If you are interested in attending one of these PD opportunities, please contact Ms. Novy. For more information, please click on the links provided.
Designing Assessments for Higher-Order Thinking Online PD
Formative Assessment: Deepening Understanding Online PD
Formative Assessment: The Basics Online PD
Grading Smarter, Not Harder Online PD
Questioning for Classroom Discussion: Grades 6-12 Online PD
STEM for All Online PD
TECHNOLOGY CORNER
If you are wondering how to integrate technology into your specific subject area, check out the BestPrep - Technology Integration" Resource Library. Click on your subject area and find a multitude of ideas on how to bring your content to life with technology. The lessons are also already in UBD format!
If you are interested in one of these, or other technology conferences or workshops, contact Ms. Novy!
Upcoming events:
ILfabCon (Illinois Flipped and Blended Learning Conference June 21 & 22, 2018 at Huntley High School If interested, please contact Ms. Novy by Feb. 9
ISTE Conference June 24-27, 2018 in Chicago If interested, please contact Ms. Novy by Feb. 15
Technology in Schools: A Balanced Perspective, 2nd Edition Online PD
This Week's Schedule
As you work through your plans this week, please note these events. For a more detailed list, check out our school calendar, 8to18 Athletics Calendar or Clubs/Organizations Page
Monday, January 15, 2018
No School; MLK Birthday
9:00 am - Musical Practice, Auditorium
Tuesday, January 16, 2018
Writing Lab Book Drive, All English Classes
7:00 am - Mustard Seed Committee
9:10 am Rosary, Chapel
Lunch ~ Eucharistic Adoration
2:30 pm ~ Ping Pong, Auditorium Commons
2:30 pm ~ Business Club, rm 219
2:40 pm ~ Mass, Chapel
2:40 pm ~ Gavel, rm 218
2:40 pm ~ Chess Club, rm 129
2:40 pm ~ Scholastic Bowl, rm 219
2:45 pm ~ Smart-Fit Club, rm 147
2:45 pm - Musical Act I & II, Auditorium
2:50 pm - SIP Team, Annex
3:00 pm - Ski Club
Wednesday, January 17, 2018
Writing Lab Book Drive, All English Classes
7:15 am - Campus Ministry, Cafeteria
7:30 am ~ Student Council, rm 127
Lunch ~ Eucharistic Adoration
2:30 pm - Key Club, Cafeteria
2:30 pm - Practice ACT, Library
2:40 pm ~ Mass, Chapel
2:40 pm ~ Art Club, rm 110
2:40 pm - Key Club, cafeteria
2:45 pm - Musical Act I & II, Auditorium
Boys Basketball Military Appreciation Night
Thursday, January 18, 2018
Writing Lab Book Drive, All English Classes
Lunch ~ Eucharistic Adoration
2:30 pm ~ Writer's Society, rm 130
2:35 pm ~ Journalism Club, rm 128
2:40 pm ~ Mass, Chapel
2:40 pm ~ FOR Club, rm 134
2:40 pm ~ Scholastic Bowl, rm 219
2:40 pm ~ MUN, rm 219
2:45 pm - Musical Act II & III, Auditorium
2:50 pm - Club Moderator Meeting, Annex
Friday, January 19, 2018
Spirit Dress Down Day
Writing Lab Book Drive, All English Classes
7:30 am ~ NHS Meeting, Auditorium
7:30 am ~ All Council Student Council Meeting
Lunch ~ Confessions, Chapel
2:30 pm ~ Ping Pong, Auditorium Commons
2:35 pm ~ Journalism Club, rm 128
2:40 pm ~ Mass, Chapel
2:45 pm - Campus Ministry Kick-Off, Sacred Heart's Chapel
2:45 pm - Musical-Dancing, Auditorium
Boys Basketball - Senior Night
Saturday, January 20, 2018
8:00 am - Fencing Tournament
9:00 am - Musical Sets/Costume Building & Dance, Auditorium