Eagle's Edge
St. Therese Family Newsletter - January 20, 2021
So much information!
I know you are all probably on information overload! We are working hard at St. Therese to prepare the building for the return of our students to in-person learning where they belong, and there is so much we have to share with you.
Please look for an email from me on Thursday evening following our final informational session from 6-7 p.m. In that email, you will find the powerpoint presentation I've shared at each meeting, additional information I may have gathered between now and then, and a link to a survey.
The school is moving from Comprehensive Distance Learning to a Hybrid Learning model as a whole. The survey that will be shared on Thursday evening is your opportunity to let us know if you need other arrangements, or plan to continue with distance learning.
Our commitment to you is to support you in any way that we can through this transition. If you have questions, please call the office - we are happy to further explain our plans, or listen to your concerns. Please reach out to me if there is anything I haven't considered, or if there is a modification that your family needs. I can't guarantee that we will be able to do it all, but I can promise to do all I can.
Please continue to hold our community in prayer as we navigate this transition.
Warmly,
Rosemarie El Youssef
Principal, St. Therese School
What we know as we plan our return to in-person learning...
There are many things we are still working on, but here is what we know for sure at this time:
- In-person learning will occur Monday through Thursday from 8:20 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
- Fridays will be a virtual learning day for all students with noon dismissal.
- Kindergarten, 1st grade, 3rd grade, 5th grade, and 8th grade return on February 1st.
- 2nd grade, 4th grade, 6th grade, and 7th grade will join them on February 8th.
- Students will be required to attend in uniform, both in person and virtually for consistency.
- Students will be required to bring a sack lunch from home – we will not have hot lunch service for the remainder of the school year.
- Health checks will continue in the morning at drop-off as they did during Limited In-Person (LIP) Learning, with some improvements.
- Each student will have 35 square feet of space in the classroom.
- Face masks are required.
Below you will find a copy of the email I sent to families on Monday, January 11th.
Updated Metrics 1/19/21
We will watch the data and keep you informed as things change.
Return to In-Person Learning/Hybrid Learning - Info Sessions
Session times are:
Tuesday, January 19th 5 p.m. – 6 p.m.
Thursday, January 21st 6 p.m. – 7 p.m.
There will not be an informational session on Wednesday, January 20th because we have a Parent Club meeting that evening, but Mrs. El Youssef will stay after that meeting to answer questions.
Re-enrollment/Registration Portal OPEN
The earlier you enroll, the better prepared we are to discuss next year's budget and make plans for school staffing. You can pay your $200 registration fee now, or just wait and pay before May 1, 2021.
Please give us a call if we can help you in any way!
FACTS Financial Aid - APPLY NOW!
https://online.factsmgt.com/SignIn.aspx
Our school may be eligible for additional financial aid from outside grants, but only based on the applications submitted by Monday, February 1st. PLEASE complete your application prior to that date.
The deadline for completing financial aid applications is March 1, 2021 in order to be considered for financial aid.
Virtual Open House, Jan. 31st from 1-3 p.m.
The Virtual Open House is a way for families to get a glimpse at what we have to offer and ask questions about our school. We will schedule in-person tours ANYTIME!
Photo Release Authorization - REMINDER
Thank you to all who have filled out this form so far!
We would love to include photos of our students on our website, newsletter, and on social media. Please complete the photo release letting us know if this is OK or NOT OK. We will keep these permissions on file for the rest of the school year and renew each fall. Please know that this also includes the YEARBOOK - we need your permission for students to be pictured there as well.
Look for our school in the Catholic Schools edition of the Sentinel - we are so proud of our community!
Click here to complete the Photo Release Authorization Form for 2020-2021 school year.
Catholic Schools Week, January 31st - February 6th
If you would like to attend mass, please call the parish office at 503-256-5850 or email info@stthereseor.org to sign up. Parish office hours are Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. and if you call outside of business hours, Colleen, our lovely receptionist, will call you back to confirm your sign-up. There is only one mass on Sundays, so spaces fill up quickly!
Mrs. El Youssef will have a special treat for those students who attend! Stay tuned for more information about virtual open house and other activities we are planning for that week.
St. Vincent de Paul
Volunteer opportunity: St Vincent de Paul is in need of delivery drivers. We need substitute drivers for Tuesday and Thursday mornings. Drivers on a rotating basis are needed for Saturday morning. Usual start time is around 9 am and shifts are 1 1//2 to 2 hours. Training provided. Must be able to carry 25 pound boxes up stairs. Please call Shasta Hatter at 503-253-7566 for more information or to volunteer.
If you or someone you know is in need of assistance, please contact Shasta Hatter at the SVdP office 503-253-7566.
Catholic High Schools - Recommendations and Records
Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns.
Drive-thru Friday, January 22nd, 2-4:30
Friday, January 29th - Asynchronous Learning Day
Teachers will prepare work for your students to do independently that day. We realize that there are several "no school" days in February, so we wouldn't be taking this time if we didn't need it! We want to be sure that everything is ready for our Eagles when they arrive Feb. 1st and Feb. 8th.
Special Drive-thru to practice drop-off and pick-up, January 29th from 2-6 p.m.
Even if your student doesn't start in-person learning on February 1st, it's really important to swing in - it's the last drive-thru event we will be hosting!
If you can't make it during that time, please let us know and we can schedule a time to walk you through the process to be sure you understand how it's going to work.
Catholic Schools Week
Sunday 1/31: Celebrating Your Parish
* Come join us at mass!
Monday 2/1: Celebrating Your Community
* Wear your Distance Learning shirt to school
* Food collection for St. Vincent de Paul
Tuesday 2/2: Celebrating Your Students
* Surprise fun activity!
Wednesday 2/3: Celebrating the Nation
* Show and tell - share photos of your family in different parts of the city, state, country
Thursday 2/4: Celebrating Vocations
* Make special cards to send to our parish priests!
Friday 2/5: Celebrating Faculty, Staff, and Volunteers
* Special treats for our staff to enjoy during our Faith Formation Day (no school)
* Please consider making a card to thank a St. Therese staff member!
Saturday 2/6: Celebrating Families
* Do something special as a family - enjoy a family tradition, or have a family game night
BottleDrop Thursdays
We are so grateful for your generosity! With your donations we purchased a Distance Learning T-shirt for each student and staff member to wear on Fridays, prizes for spirit week, and the pumpkins for our St. Therese Pumpkin Patch. We recently purchased an eagle mascot costume and our new mascot will soon be visiting classrooms to learn what it means to be a St. Therese Eagle!
The school budget is tight this year, but there are some things that we believe students shouldn't go without - your can and bottle donations make this happen!
Parents' Club Corner
Here is the Parents' Club schedule of meetings for the rest of the school year. We will meet on the 3rd Wednesday of the month from 6-7pm via Zoom. Our next meeting will be on Wednesday, January 20, and we will be discussing future fundraisers. The zoom link for that meeting will be sent to you via email on Monday, January 18th.
January 20th Agenda:
Fundraising opportunities brainstorming session to meet the commitment to the school.
Some suggestions from prior meetings:
- Plant sale
- Read-a-thon, jump-a-thon, dance-a-thon
- Art walk (art sale)
2/10 - this date changed because 2/17 is Ash Wednesday
3/17
4/21
5/19
Please contact Melanie Reyna at 503-467-1805 or via email at melanie.reyna@usbank.com with any questions.
Please see the attachment below for the meeting minutes from 11/18.
Parent Obligations for the Year - Fair Share and Fundraising
If we all work together, we can make this happen!
Rather than having MANY events with specific obligations, we have one financial obligation for each family.
Dual-parent household - $500 (fundraised or donated)
Single-parent household - $300 (fundraised or donated)
This replaces the auction basket obligation, auction project obligation, jog-a-thon, and raffle.
If we make our goal of $36,000 and everyone pitches in, there is no reason to bill people for what they aren't able to fundraise.
Our goal is to have one BIG fundraiser in the spring - if we can generate enough money to fulfill our obligation to the school our tuition won't go up. Jog-a-thon seems doable with the changing of the metrics and there are MANY ways we can get creative to make it happen.
The key to making this happen is ALL of us working together!
You are not expected to figure out how to fundraise on your own - but come to Parents' Club meetings and share your ideas. We are always better together! Our next PC meeting on January 20th will be focused on brainstorming ideas for fundraisers.
School Office Hours 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
St. Therese Catholic School
Email: elyoussefr@stthereseschool.org
Website: stthereseschool.org
Location: 1260 Northeast 132nd Avenue, Portland, OR, USA
Phone: (503) 253-9400
Facebook: Facebook.com/StThereseSchoolPortlandOrFamilyPage
Twitter: @sttherese_pdx