Catholic School Matters
October 25, 2022
We are entering the home stretch of preparations for the November 10th Diocesan Education Summit. We're expecting 200 people and haven't hit that level of RSVPs yet. Please take a minute to RSVP and encourage other stakeholders to do so, too. This is a remarkable opportunity to gather and collaborate on shaping the future of Catholic education here in Western New York.
November also marks the third month of our 175th Anniversary celebration of the founding of the Diocese of Buffalo. We have compiled a remarkable set of resources at this site. In November we celebrate Fr. Baker, the OLV Basilica, and the "Church For All." There are great resources, lesson plans, and a template for a "Flat Timon" for pictures.
It's also the third month of our Character Virtue program and we celebrate service. Look for more information below in Kari's blog. It might be time to look at your service programs and how you are reaching out to serve your community.
We'll be discussing safe environment issues this Thursday at the principal meeting. Make sure to keep your eye on the November 1st deadline to enter your student training. We'll also be following up on discrepancies on your Safe Environment reports.
On the horizon is the Bowling championships this Saturday and the Math competition (or the "maths" competition as Siobhan calls it) on November 14th. These will factor into the Superintendent's Cup competition which is based on:
- 25 points for fielding a team in any group sport
- 25 points for participating in a Diocesan event for group activity (e.g. 8th grade Mass, kickball, math league)
- 10 points for turning in your monthly character nominee
- 5 points per student for individual sports/activities
- Additional points are earned for 1st places (10 points), 2nd place (7 points), and 3rd place (5 points)
Previous blogs can be found here. Want to keep up with the conversations surrounding Catholic education? Set up your own Google Alert, subscribe to this newsletter by clicking "follow," subscribe to the Catholic Schools Daily, or subscribe to the Catholic School Matters podcast.
Dr. Tim Uhl
Starting Line
The Girls Champion
All-Catholic runners
Kari Buchinger on Academics
Character Awards
As we prepare for the month of November to arrive it is time to celebrate our sportsmanship character award winners. We invite each school to nominate one student that best exemplified sportsmanship during the month of October using this form. Members of our team will be reaching out in the coming weeks to find a time to visit your school and present an award to your fall winners.
Service
During the month of November principals, teachers, and students are encouraged to live out the value of service. In November we often take time to reflect on things in our life that we are thankful for. This time of year also calls us to question how we can use the gifts God has given us to serve others. What can you do within your own community, school, or home to lend a hand to someone else?
Book Recommendations:
Ordinary Mary’s Extraordinary Deed by Emily Pearson
The Mitten Tree by Candace Christiansen
My Friend is Sad by Mo Willems
The Lion and the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney
A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Philip C. Stead
Boxes for Katje by Candace Fleming
Service Project Resources:
A Look Ahead
December- Appreciation
January- Determination
February- Inclusion
March- Problem Solving
April- Sacrifice
May- Optimism
June- Joy
Spelling Questions
Last week's article led to some great questions from our teachers and principals. What do we do about spelling in the middle grades? Most of our 4th and 5th graders are beyond basic phonics. How can we make spelling tests more challenging and impactful for this age group?
First, let's draw ourselves back to the grade level standards. What are our 4th and 5th graders being asked to master?
4L4b: Use common, grade-appropriate Greek and Latin affixes and roots as clues to the meaning of a word (e.g., telegraph, photograph, autograph).
5L4b: Use common, grade-appropriate Greek and Latin affixes and roots as clues to the meaning of a word (e.g., photograph, photosynthesis).
This is a great place to start!
Our 4th and 5th graders may not focus on digraphs, but instead affixes, roots, prefixes, and suffixes. Explore roots like rupt, fract, mot. What words can students build from these roots? The rigor of an exercise such as this will be determined by the rigor of the words teachers present. Keep in mind, the challenge presented last week asked teachers to move away from memorization and assess students on the ability to build new words they may not have seen before that are connected to the skill being taught. The same thing rings true for our older students. If you choose to teach the rupt root, your “spelling test” at the end of the week should challenge students to build new words that have that root. Not words they spent the week memorizing.
Math Competition!
Our first diocesan math competition will be held on November 18th! Click the link below for more information and to sign up your school’s team(s). Be sure to click the more information tab. Sign Up Here! The last day to register is November 1st!
Previous "Academic Corner" posts from Kari
Office Updates
Principals are asked to fill out this year's Health Card survey. Here is the link.
Register for the BPO concert here.
Reminder that the November 1st deadline for the required Safe Environment Training for youth in school is right around the corner.
Here is the link for the Office Blog with the latest forms and information. This can be found on the website under "Blogs.
Chris Riso on Government Services
- ASAP NCEA Updates/Corrections Due to our Office via Google Sheets
- 10/31/22 Deadline to Register for Albany RISE Conference to get Free Hotel Room
- 11/1/22 Title I Letters Sent to Each Public School District w/Poverty Students
- 11/8/22 VOTE! Also encourage all staff and parents to vote, as well
- 11/18/22 BEDS Report Due to NYSED via Business Portal IRS-Data Exchange
- 12/1/22 Fire Safety Inspection Must be Completed; Report Due 12/16/2022
NYS Health Care Worker Bonus (HWB) Program (copy of 10/20/22 Email): Many of you have been working on applications for the Health Care Worker Bonus Program for your qualified staff. Unfortunately, my previous guidance that Custodial, Maintenance, and Housekeeping staff should qualify for this program seems to have been incorrect. Please see the updated FAQ section of their website found here. Here is the Q and A from the website related to this school worker eligibility issue:
Q. Are employees in educational settings that serve in roles that align with titles under “All Other Health Care Support Workers" (like a front office building attendant or custodian) eligible?
A. No. Such workers must support patient-facing care provided within a patient care unit of a hospital or nursing home in support of treating and caring for patients.
Based on this new information, I do not think our Custodial, Maintenance, and Housekeeping staff qualify for this Bonus Program. I apologize for my previous advice and hope it will not cause too many issues on your end. I do still think that any mental health or medical professionals hired by your school will qualify for this bonus program: Social Workers, Counselors, Psychologists, Therapists (Mental Health or Physical/Occupational/Speech), and Nurses.
Security Awareness Training by the Diocese of Buffalo (R. Suchan email 10/19/22): “Given the unfortunate reality and frequency of crime and violence that prevails in our world today, in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, we are facilitating Safety & Security Preparedness training to help our parishes, schools and ministries develop sound security protocols to better protect our faith community. These sessions will address site assessment and aid in the development of a site specific security plan, establishing a collaborative relationship with local law enforcement agencies, active shooter and hostage situations, bomb threats and other security concerns.
Please seriously consider this opportunity and if you have not already done so, appoint an individual or two from your parish, school or ministry as a designated security delegate(s) and have them attend one of the three initial training sessions outlined below.
Wednesday 11/16: 11 – 2 (lunch included) at Immaculate Conception (4671 Townline Rd. (Rt. 429) Ransomville, NY 14131)
Thursday 11/17: 12:30 – 3:30 at Our Lady of Peace (275 Broad Street, Salamanca, NY 14779)
Saturday 11/19: 9 – Noon at Our Lady of Victory Conference Center (780 Ridge Rd., Lackawanna, NY 14218).
RSVP to Mary Jablonski (mjablonski@buffalodiocese.org or 716-847-5559) with the name(s) of attendees and session location by Friday November 11, 2022.”
Athletics Info
With basketball seasons right around the corner, reminder to all coaches that one change to the Athletics Handbook is the requirement that every player gets to play every game. We also hope that if there are cuts, they are based on lack of commitment or effort, not on talent.
First Aid & CPR Registration – Winter Sports , Oct 26th, 6-9 pm. Reminder that all coaches are encouraged to keep current their First Aid & CPR.
Please see the athletics/activities blog for the most up to date information.
Save the Date!
- Weekly principal Zooms at 9:00 am on Wednesdays
- Principal Meeting, Oct 27th, St. Andrew's. Here is the agenda.
- Diocesan Education Summit, November 10th. This is for principals, pastors/canonical administrators, board chairs, and one other stakeholder (4 from each school). Click here to RSVP.
Resources
- Devotional Calendar 2022-23.
- October's Sportsmanship Videos
- The Diocesan Health Scorecard.
- School Pastor's Administrative Guide
- "Principal Task List." This is organized as a living Google Doc by month.
- New Policy Manual for all Catholic schools in the Diocese of Buffalo.
- New Operations Manual for Diocesan Catholic schools.
- Administrator Goal Sheet and the new Administrator evaluation form
Catholic School Matters Podcast
With so many events planned in October & November, the podcast is going on a little hiatus. This season's Catholic School Matters podcast episodes:
- Dr. Kevin Baxter, the co-editor of Conscience & Catholic Education and the keynote for thisf all's Diocesan Education Summit. We discuss the book and how it pertains to current issues in Catholic education. Here is the direct link to the podcast episode.
- I spoke to Shaka Rawls, the principal of Leo Catholic HS on Chicago's Southside. He is a dynamic leader of this predominantly African-American Catholic high school who describes the mission of the school as one which serves the community. Here is a direct link to the podcast.
- I talk with Greg Richmond, the Superintendent of the Archdiocese of Chicago. In his second year, Greg comes from the charter world and shares his unique perspective on this new position which he loves.
- This week's podcast gives us a chance to hear the perspective of a person fired from her position at a Catholic high school due to same-sex marriage.
- Season 7 kicked off with a great conversation with Rich Clark of Cleveland. He helped found a Cristo Rey High School and played a pivotal role in Partnership School's Expansion to Cleveland. Our interview was recorded on September 2nd and Rich passed away on September 20th.
Here is a link to the podcast on Apple Podcasts.
Articles for Your Reflection
Catholic School Matters
Email: catholicschoolmatters@gmail.com
Website: www.wnycatholic.org
Location: Buffalo, NY, USA
Phone: 716-847-5520
Twitter: @drtimuhl
My Last 5 Books
- The Comfort Crisis: Embrace Discomfort to Reclaim your Wild, Happy, Healthy Self (2021) by Michael Easter
The Art of Happiness (2022) by His Holiness the Dalai Lama
Everything Belongs (2003) by Richard Rohr
Leading Change (1996 ) by John P. Kotter
The White Noise of Survivorship (2022) by Tara Rolle
Click this link for a full list of my professional reading
Past Issues of Catholic School Matters
Oct 18 2022 "Health Scorecards"
Oct 11, 2022 "Devotion & Sportsmanship"
Oct 4, 2022 "Strategic Updates"
Sep 27, 2022 "Cloud of Witnesses"
Sep 20, 2022 "The Learning Platform"
Sep 13, 2022 "Diocesan Education Summit"
For previous newsletters, click this link
A couple of years ago I set out to write a book which would explore the challenges of Catholic school leadership. My premise that there are no easy answers and that we have to learn from our (and other's) mistakes in order to form a mindset appropriate for orchestrating conflict proved prescient as we all faced completely new and unexpected challenges in 2020. The book,Orchestrating Conflict: Case Studies in Catholic Leadership is now available on Amazon or on the Barnes & Noble site in print or e-book formats. The book explores issues in Catholic school leadership and the tensions between building community and following Church policies and introduces deliberate practice as a method for leadership formation.