Dear Parents,

Excitement is building with our new gym nearing completion within weeks. Please watch next week’s newsletter for news on our upcoming ribbon cutting ceremony. Additionally, our wrought iron gates are in the process of being replaced and the extension of the junior yard walls should be complete within a couple of weeks. Great things are happening at SMA!

Beginning with today’s newsletter, I will be sharing articles with parents addressing topics of interest. If you have any topics that you would like to see highlighted, please feel free to reach out to me. This week’s article is on “Parents as Primary Educators”. We often reiterate this phrase, but seldom follow-up with an explanation. The most important point is to “be involved” in every aspect of your child’s academic, social and faith life. 

Stay Strong Parents…Stay Strong Stella!

Blessings,

Francie Moss

Dear Parents,

I hope you all had a restful Easter break.  Our return marks the beginning of the “home stretch” toward the end of this momentous school year.  I know I am repeating myself, but I am so proud of this SMA community for our strength, courage and cooperative spirit throughout the past several months. 

With the success of the county’s vaccination program for educators and the progress our county has made in the battle against the spread of  Covid-19, we are thankfully beginning to see some of our “normality” returning.  We will begin to gradually and conservatively transition away from the plexiglass partitions on our student desks.  We have accomplished this with our middle school classes.  Additionally, we have placed individual student desks in our ELA, 6^th, and 7^th homerooms.  These desks will allow for continued social distancing within the classrooms.  We will continue to mandate temperature checks, hand sanitizing,  facial coverings and social distancing for all students through the end of this school year.  I will watch all public health requirements throughout the summer for mandates in the fall.  Please rest assured that we remain vigilant in our safety protocols for our students and teachers.  I am confident that we will finish this school year positive and strong because, with God…anything is possible.

Many thanks for your continued patience and support!  Stay Strong Stella…we are almost there!

Blessings,

Francie Moss

Dear Parents,

Well, we made it to yet another milestone…Easter break is upon us and “Thanks be to God” we are all still healthy and enjoying in-person learning!  May we all enjoy some, much deserved, time off.  Upon our return to school we will be in the home stretch.  We are anxiously looking forward to May Crowning, First Eucharist and of course 8^th grade Graduation.  We have so much to celebrate and to be thankful for.  Therefore, let us begin the celebration this Easter Sunday as we give thanks and praise to the risen Lord!  I look forward to welcoming you back on April 12.  Please notify the office if you will be traveling out-of-state and will need to quarantine before returning to school. 

Easter Blessings from our SMA faculty and staff to all of your families!

Francie Moss

Dear Parents,

As we prepare to enter into Holy Week and continue on to the celebration of Easter, we have some special opportunities planned for your children to reflect on the suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus. On Wednesday, the 8th graders will re-enact the Stations of the Cross for our students. The students will be divided into two separate groups to allow for appropriate social distancing. On Holy Thursday (April 1) the same two groups will participate in a prayer service to reflect on the Last Supper of our Lord. I encourage you to have your children experience the beautiful Mass of the Lord’s Last Supper on Thursday evening.

As our Easter break quickly approaches, I would like to remind you that if you are traveling out-of-state there is still a requirement of a 7 -day quarantine upon your return. Please contact the office if you plan on traveling so that we may advise you on a return to school date. This guidance comes from the public health department. Therefore, we must continue to abide by it until further notice. Please note that a negative COVID test result will not eliminate the need for the 7-day quarantine. Many thanks for your patience and understanding. We must remain vigilant…we see the light at the end of the tunnel!

Blessings,

Francie Moss

Dear Parents,

What a wonderful week, celebrating two very special saints…St. Patrick (today) and St. Joseph (Friday).  The students enjoyed learning about the story of St. Patrick and of course the “wearing of the green” is always popular. We have set up a traditional St. Joseph’s table in the front office.  I have invited teachers to bring their classes over so I can share the symbolism of the objects placed on the table.  This is a special way to celebrate the Year of St. Joseph. 

As we continue to work with, very fluid, class rosters for the upcoming school year, I would like to thank all of our current parents for your prompt response to our registration request this year.  You have made the time-consuming enrollment and budget preparation process much easier for us by your cooperation and support.  Yes….I’ll say it again…We are so blessed to be part to this amazing SMA family!

Many Blessings,

Francie Moss

Dear Parents,

Many of our prospective student assessments have been completed. Now for the difficult and time-consuming process of examining all of the data and creating class rosters for the upcoming school year. Many thanks to the teachers for the time they’ve put into administering the assessments as well as grading and making recommendations. Please keep us all in your prayers as we try to best serve the many parents that are trying to secure a place in our wonderful school for their children. I truly wish we could take them all, but space is limited. I pray for the best for those students we cannot accommodate. It just reminds me of how blessed we are to be part of this SMA family.

Blessings,

Francie Moss

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Dear Parents,

I hope you all had a restful few days. We are ready to get back to our routines and begin the contemplative season of Lent.  Many thanks to our pastor, Fr. Pat for welcoming all of our students to the beautiful patio outside of the parish offices for ashes and some inspirational words to help us begin this 40 day Lenten journey.

Please watch your email for your tuition agreement for the 2021-2022 school year.  Our goal is to register all returning students by the end of February.  Please do not hesitate to contact myself or Mrs. Hollis with any questions or concerns.  We remain dedicated to helping our families during these unprecedented times.

Blessings,

Francie Moss

Dear Parents,

It is that time of the year again when we look towards the upcoming new school year. We will be emailing you important information regarding tuition rates and registration for the 2021-2022 school year at approximately 6:15 this evening. Please watch carefully for it. We are asking that our current families respond with their commitment no later than Friday, February 26. We will begin contacting prospective families during the first week of March and scheduling students for prospective student assessments.

With the recent enrollment interest in our school, we have, understandably, had some questions regarding the impact on our class sizes for the next school year. We have made the decision to keep our numbers at a modest 20-25 students per class. This has traditionally been regarded as a preferred number for a healthy classroom environment. As always, I thank you for your support, understanding and cooperation as we maneuver through these new, uncharted waters. Should you have any questions or concerns, please know that my door is always open.

Blessings,

Francie Moss

Dear Parents,

Happy Catholic Schools Week one and all! We have celebrated, and will continue to celebrate, for the remainder of the week. Many thanks to those of you who have been so very gracious with your expressions of gratitude to all of us. We are definitely being spoiled this week. Please check our website and Facebook page for some snapshots of each day’s celebrations. The students are definitely looking forward to bringing a special “gift” home to appreciate you tomorrow and for Grandparents on Friday. Have I told you lately how blessed we are to be part of this SMA family?

Please watch your emails and listen for a phone call from me this Friday with some exciting news on a school lunch program that we will begin starting on February 17. Finally, some relief from packing those daily lunches!!!!

We look forward to a great rest of the week!

Blessings,

Francie Moss

Do you want to share your love with your student? We would LOVE to add your love lines to the yearbook. Love lines are due Friday, February 19th. CLICK HERE and submit your love line!