Bishop Grimes March 2015 Newsletter
Transcription
Bishop Grimes March 2015 Newsletter
March, 2015 BISHOP GRIMES JR./SR. HIGH SCHOOL FAITH • ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE • SERVICE A Message from Principal Wheeler As we proceed through this season of Lent, permit me to offer a few reflections about prayer, fasting, and alms-giving; the three cornerstones of this holy season that take us from Ash Wednesday through Holy Week, Christ’s Passion, Death, and His Resurrection that we will celebrate on Easter. First, Prayer: All we need to do is turn our minds toward the Lord and tell him of our concerns, our hopes, our worries, or our needs. In the morning, we can offer to God all that we will do during the course of our day in the hope that it will bring Him honor and glory. We can pray wherever we are—waiting for the bus, warming up the car, sitting in the dentist’s waiting room. Prayer unites us to the Lord. Fasting: Today our church asks us to fast only on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday but how wonderful if we can offer up something we really love to God for the suffering He endured for us? How about time with video games? Or phone time or even a television program? Alms-giving: This old fashioned term for “concerning” ourselves for the poor is important all year, but in Lent we focus not only on giving money to those in need, but also on doing kind things for elderly family members, neighbors, forgotten classmates, or people we know who could use a kind word, a visit, a sidewalk shoveled, or an errand to run. Imagine the Bishop Grimes Community this Lent, prayerful throughout the day, quietly sacrificing those snacks and big lunches, and doing kindnesses for one another without recognition. Easter Sunday, here we come! BG to Host Academic Games On April 25th, Bishop Grimes will host the annual Academic Games throughout the morning and early afternoon. This academic competition provides Catholic grade school students the opportunity to showcase their knowledge and abilities in a wide range of subjects including: Math, Science, Oratory, Drawing/Painting, Spelling, Vocal, Essay, Religion and Lego BISHOP GRIMES HAS A NEW WEBSITE (wwwbishopgrimes.org) Bishop Grimes will be launching its new website in March. The website is being designed to increase overall awareness of Bishop Grimes as well as ease of use, which we hope will provide a positive user experience for all. The administration and staff spent many hours trying to capture the essence of what our audiences wanted. Special thanks to the Syracuse Diocese for producing the campus video tour, found on the Home Page. Your feedback is important, and we look Bishop forward to your comments and Grimes Jr./Sr. High School suggestions on Road, the new 6653 Kirkville East site. Syracuse, NY 13057 Robotics. Students compete on an individual basis. Bishop Grimes is looking for parent and faculty volunteers. If you are interested in helping out with the Games, either serving as a judge, being a host/ hostess at a welcome table, etc., please contact the Mission Advancement Office by emailing [email protected]. Many hands are needed for the success of the Academic Games. BISHOP GRIMES WILL SOON HAVE A NEW LOOK With unseasonable temperatures and heavy snowfall this winter, the installation of our new front sign has been delayed but the sign should be installed early spring. Below is a rendering of what the sign will look like. Bishop Grimes would like to thank all those involved with the acquisition and installation of the sign. The sign will be a great addition to our campus. (315) 437-0356 www.bishopgrimes.org Thank you... BG Community for the tremendous support you showed on the day of the dress down day in remembrance of Sister James Therese Downey, OSF. With your help, the BG Community raised almost $1,400 to put towards the purchase of a special stainedglass window in memory of Sister J.T. MISSION STATEMENT Bishop Grimes shares in the evangelizing mission of the Roman Catholic Church, a mission that has been handed on by Christ and his apostles and received by generations of believers. Therefore, we seek to help students take part, with the current generation of believers, in receiving and handing on their Catholic faith by coming to know it, live it, and share it. We accomplish this mission by providing a high quality and rigorous Catholic education that prepares students in mind, body, and spirit to encounter Christ, live their faith in the context of His Church, and serve others in His name, particularly the poor and those who are in need. March, 2015 BISHOP GRIMES JR./SR. HIGH SCHOOL FAITH • ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE • SERVICE Parent/Teacher Conferences Parent/teacher conferences have been scheduled for Wednesday, March 4th from 4:00 p.m.—6:00 p.m. Teachers will be available to speak with you about your student’s first semester as well as how your child is currently doing in class. We look forward to seeing you. No School… Reminders from Mr. Kinne for students on Friday, March 20 as the Bishop Grimes faculty will be attending an in-service conference focused on the topics on various forms of bullying. This in-service has two parts. One is sponsored by the school’s chapter of No Place for Hate and will be led by professionals from the AntiDefamation League. The second part of the in-service will be sponsored by our very own Bishop Grimes Student Peer Leaders who will walk the faculty through some awareness activities that they learned during their training this past fall. Students who drive to school are not to park in the first three rows (handicap parking and the following two rows) of the parking lot behind the school. These first rows are for faculty and staff members only. Failure to abide by this rule may result in the forfeiture of your driving privileges. Even on cold days, the Bishop Grimes Dress Code is still in effect! Students are expected to be in Dress Code at all times. Students are not to wear hoodies or jackets during the school day. There are BG sweaters and long sleeve shirts available to purchase through Lands’ End or Flynn and O’Hara. Students may also purchase a BG quarter-zip from the School Store. In addition, please remind your daughter(s) that Ugg boots and their look-alikes are not part of the Dress Code. Please refer to the Student Handbook, pages 3233 for a description of permissible footwear. Communications… School Physicals If your child is in need of a school physical, please contact the school nurse to sign up your son/daughter for a free school physical. The physicals will be given at the beginning of the month, so please do not delay in reserving his/her spot. The school nurse, Mrs. Goode, can be reached at 463.8917 or at: [email protected]. Calendar Changes Please note! There have been a few significant changes to the end-ofthe-year calendar. Please mark your calendars accordingly: June 11: School Final Exams June 11: Baccalaureate Mass at Blessed Sacrament Church, Eastwood at 6:30 p.m. June 12: Grimes Day (11:15 a.m. dismissal) June 13: BG Commencement Ceremony at Bishop Grimes, 10:00 a.m. June 16-24: School Finals and Regents Exams Bi sh op If you are not receiving email reminders and notices from the school, and/or your son’s/daughter’s teachers, please contact the Guidance Office at 314.7214. Please be sure to check out Bishop Grimes Facebook page for up to date school information. Has your child won an award or competition? Has he/she participated in a special project or done something notable in the community? We are eager to learn about our students accomplishments—even those not related to Bishop Grimes. Please let us know about their accomplishments by contacting the Main Office at 437.0356, or sending a note to Mr. Kinne’s attention at: [email protected]. iPad Update iPads for the 7th and 8th graders have been reconfigured. The Administration heard the concerns and wishes of many parents and teachers and worked with our Diocesan IT staff to create a more educational-friendly user profile. Students have access to a number of educational apps and resources with this profile in addition to more restrictions regarding downloading games and apps. Please help us by reminding your child that the iPads are intended to be used as a learning tool rather than a toy. Thank you. March, 2015 BISHOP GRIMES JR./SR. HIGH SCHOOL FAITH • ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE • SERVICE Congratulations! Congratulations to the following students who were honored at Bishop Grimes’ Annual Honors Breakfast on February 27th. All students in attendance were on First Honor Roll for both the first and second marking periods. 7th Grade Lenora Cedrone Colby Evans Makenna Gadway Rachel Mantz Nicolas Perez Matthew Tarby 8th Grade Abigail Fletcher Ethan Fritz Kathleen Mathewson Raquel McDonald Emily Patrick Jessilyn Perry Rebecca Vinciquerra 9th Grade Emily Cone Aiden Keenan Joseph Knapp Kendall Mancuso Sarah Mantz Brennan McConnell Maria Naylor Tran Nguyen Alexa Shahine Brianna Squier Azariah Wade 10th Grade Lucas Burnette Mary Castricone Sara Hopkins 11th Grade Emily Blasland Anna Cummings Elizabeth Kozlowski Christopher Mancuso Isabella Naylor Phuong Nguyen Sarah Schultz Jordan Sloan Alivia Spaulding Kennedy Yearby Danielle Yerdon 12th Grade Emily Collins Julia Freeman Olivia Geruso Maria Gronau Kyler Johnson Graceann LaBeff Toni Laneve Juliana Martin Matthew Miller Harrison Pelletier James Perra Jack Rotondo Shannon Roy Teresa Shattuck Rebecca Wolken St. Patrick’s Day Parade This and That… Please join the BG Community by cheering on the school at the Syracuse St. Patrick’s Day Parade on Saturday, Jr./Sr. The High School MarchBishop 14thGrimes at noon. Road, East Syracuse, NY 13057 school6653 willKirkville be entering a float designed and constructed by the Art Department and the Pep Band will be performing throughout the procession. The Student Council is looking for some helpers to participate in the parade. For almost ten years, Bishop Grimes’ families have been the official banner carriers for the St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Students and/or families wishing to walk the parade route, please contact the Mission Advancement Office and those wishing to be a banner carrier, please contact Mrs. Kinne. Congratulations to our BG Blood Drive Donors. On February 12th, over 20 students helped to save the lives of over 60 people by participating in this year’s annual Blood Drive sponsored by the (315) 437-0356 Student Council. www.bishopgrimes.org Join us in welcoming Mr. Lenish to the Bishop Grimes faculty. Mr. Lenish will be teaching a number of our Physical Education classes due to the resignation of Mr. Weinheimer. We wish Mr. Weinheimer all the best while extending a warm welcome to Mr. Lenish. Progress Reports for the first half of the third marking period will be posted electronically to My Student’s Progress on Friday, March 6th. Please mark your calendars as a few dress down days have been added to the schedule: February 27, March 13, March 27 March, 2015 BISHOP GRIMES JR./SR. HIGH SCHOOL FAITH • ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE • SERVICE Middle States Accreditation Process Throughout the past three years, Bishop Grimes has been undergoing a review in order to seek re-accreditation from the Middle States Association. This process has been thorough and has been in conjunction with the other Catholic schools within the Diocese of Syracuse. Reports include a profile of students and their abilities upon graduating from the Diocese and how our own BG students have performed on various assessments. Sub-committees of teachers, parents, Board members, and administrators reviewed how Bishop Grimes is performing with regards to twelve standards that are required by Middle States. These standards include: Philosophy and Mission, Governance and Leadership, School Improvement Planning, Finances, Facilities, School Climate and Organization, Health and Safety, Educational Program, Assessment and Evidence of Student Learning, Student Services, Student Life and Activities, and Information Resource and Technology. Thank you to the many hours that our faculty members, parents, and Board members have put into working through this process. During the process, the system of diocesan schools consistently noted two areas of concern in Math and English Language Arts that developed into system-wide goals for student performance/achievement that all of the diocesan schools will be working to achieve throughout the next seven years. Our goals for Bishop Grimes, as well as all of the other schools in the Diocese of Syracuse, are as follows: Objective #1 By the school year 2021/2022, students in the Catholic Schools in the Diocese of Syracuse will demonstrate improved performance in ELA skills as measured by the following assessments. 85% of students in PK-2 will achieve mastery level scores on component school selected internal assessments of ELA skills. An annual 2 percentage point increase in the percentage of students achieving scores of 3 and 4 on the NYS Common Core ELA assessments in grades 3-8. 85% of students in Grades 3-8 will achieve scores that reflect mastery levels on internal school assessments of benchmarks. 100% of students will score 65% or above on NYS Regents exams in Comprehensive English. 85% of students in Grades 9-12 will achieve scores that reflect mastery levels on internal school assessments of benchmarks. Objective #2 By the school year 2021/2022, students in the Catholic Schools in the Diocese of Syracuse will demonstrate improved performance in Math skills as measured by the following assessments. 80% of students in PK-2 will achieve scores that reflect mastery levels on component school selected internal assessments of benchmarks. An annual 2 percentage point increase in the percentage of students Bishop Grimes Jr./Sr. High School (315) 437-0356 achieving ofSyracuse, 3 and 4NY on13057 the NYS Common Core Math assessments 6653 Kirkville scores Road, East www.bishopgrimes.org in grades 3-8. 80% of students in Grades 3-8 will achieve scores that reflect mastery levels on internal school assessments of benchmarks. An annual 2 percentage point increase in the percentage of students scoring 65% or above on NYS Regents exams in Algebra, Geometry, and Trigonometry. 80% of students in Grades 9-12 will achieve scores that reflect mastery levels on internal school assessments of benchmarks. Each month you will be provided with information in the newsletter regarding the Middle States process as we await the visit of the Middle States team in May. If you have further questions or would like to get involved with our own internal Middle States team, do not hesitate to contact Mr. Kinne who is the coordinator for Bishop Grimes on the Diocesan-wide system team as well as the local Bishop Grimes internal planning team. March, 2015 BISHOP GRIMES JR./SR. HIGH SCHOOL FAITH • ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE • SERVICE From the desk of Mr. Kinne In his devotional guide, “Let’s Talk about Bullying” (2014) Dr. Pat Fosarelli asks the question, “As disciples of Christ, what are strategies to prevent bullying?” Among his responses are the following ideas that parents can do to help prevent bullying in the lives of their children and teens: 1) Keep the lines of communication open with your children. Many times, older children and teens think that their parents are just being nosy about their activities and friends, but this impression is less likely if good communication has existed throughout their lives. Let your child or teen know the reason that you ask questions is because of love and care, not nosiness. Encourage him to tell you whenever something happens in his life that makes him feel uncomfortable, scared, or “weird”. 2) Know her friends (and their families). 3) Know how much time he spends online and what he is doing while connected. 4) Encourage her to have trusted adults at school, sports practices, church, or social activities in whom she can safely confide about bullying. 5) Help children and teens to understand what bullying is and why some kids bully. Always be clear that bullying is never acceptable. 6) Model respectful behavior yourself- to your children/teens and their friends as well as others. When you see someone bullied in real life or even in a movie or on a TV program, discuss with your child or teen why that behavior is morally wrong. 7) Encourage your child or teen to pray for peace – not just in the world at large but in their own world. 8) Make it clear that you expect your child or teen to take action if he is bullied or if she sees someone else being bullied; role-play various scenarios until you are satisfied with the responses. Don’t role-play only once but do so over time. 9) Remember Luke’s Gospel message – “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. Do to others as you would have them do to you” (Luke 6:27-28, 31). Dr. Fosarelli also suggests that parents can provide children and teens with these preventive strategies when they see bullying or are bullied: 1) Be assertive (e.g., saying “Stop” or walking away with confidence). 2) Walk away without giving the bully an audience. 3) Stay near adults or other groups of young people who do not bully and do not condone it. 4) Know which adult to turn to in case bullying escalates or preventive measures fail to work. 5) Be a good example of how to treat others with respect and compassion. 6) Be friends with a variety of young people. 7) Be a person of prayer for their friends, their families, the bullied and their families, and bullies and their families. Applications for Re-admission Please contact Joanna Salisbury at 437.0356 (110) if you have not received your child’s readmission packet for admission. Packets were mailed out on February 13th. Please forward any admission questions to Sue Collins, Director of Admissions 314.7157 (143). Introducing… Coby the Cobra! He’s the newest member of the BG Community. Coby was able to attend our most recent Open House as well as making an appearance at a number of home basketball games. This spring, Coby will be out and about at Bishop Grimes and attending community events. Many thanks to the Student Council, Booster Club, and BG families who made the purchase of Coby possible. March, 2015 BISHOP GRIMES JR./SR. HIGH SCHOOL FAITH • ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE • SERVICE Music & Arts Showcase On March 27th, the BG Fan Club will be sponsoring its annual Music & Arts Showcase. There will be dinner, live entertainment from our own BG students as well as a number of Catholic grade schools, art displays, and raffles. If you would like to volunteer, please email the officers at [email protected]. If you are unable to assist, please consider attending this wonderful event. Open House Fundraising Activities: Do you know of a family that is interested in sending their child to Bishop Grimes? If so, please let them know that our next Open House is scheduled for Thursday, May 28th from 3:30—5:30 p.m. BG Fashion Show (proceeds benefiting the prom) is scheduled for Saturday, March 22nd at 2:00 p.m. Cost of tickets: $10. Please contact Mrs. Bearer for tickets. Take Me Out To The Ballgame! The Bishop Grimes Community is invited to attend a Syracuse Chiefs game at the NBT Stadium. Former alum Jason Smorel has set a special evening up just for Bishop Grimes. More information to follow. Save the date for the Cobra Golf Classic scheduled for Saturday, July 25th at Rogues Roost. Mark your calendars for Bishop Grimes Dinner Auction. Next year’s event will be held on Saturday, October 24th. Also, the Director of Admissions is available to schedule school tours. To schedule an appointment, or for more information, please contact Mrs. Collins at 314.7157 (143) or email Mrs. Collins at: [email protected]. BG Alumni News… The Alumni Committee, BG Booster Club and the Office of Mission Advancement recently partnered by hosting an Alumni Basketball Reunion Weekend. More than 45 alums were registered to attend and participate at the event. Players were treated to a private reception, a private school tour, and complimentary tickets to the basketball game on Friday, January 30th. On Saturday, January 31st, players took to the court followed by a complimentary dinner. Lots of enthusiasm and Cobra spirit were prevalent throughout the weekend. Bishop Grimes looks forward to next year’s reunion. SPRING MUSICAL “BG Takes Broadway” is our spring musical this year. Mrs. Williams and Mr. Kammerer are writing and co-directing this production which is sure to please all audiences. The show will feature songs from various Broadway musicals that are woven together to tell a story. The show will be performed on May 1st and 2nd. All BG students are encouraged to get involved with our musical and this exciting opportunity. Thank you BG Community Special thanks to: Renee Baker Chuck Barry Peter Capponi John Cifionelli Sue Collins Jim Firenze Joe Insel Pat Shandorf Mark Shattuck Teresa Shattuck Holly Wait BG Families BG Spectators Maintenance Staff Board of Trustees Fr. Chris Ballard Dan Cummings Mary Ann Donnelly Henry Fust Richard Kane Joseph Mancuso John Martin James O’Shea Joan Roueche Brian Schultz Fr. Christopher Seibt Patrick Shandorf Mark Shattuck Robert Will David Wheeler Randy Wolken March, 2015 BISHOP GRIMES JR./SR. HIGH SCHOOL FAITH • ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE • SERVICE Our Students Give Back in a BIG Way Cobra Coaches: February’s Open House Pep Band at the Silver Knights Event BG Buddy Bags for the Homeless Cleaning at Most Holy Rosary School Donated to the Francis House ALS Food Bank of CNY Francis House MDA Lady of Lourdes St. Jude’s Christmas Bureau Oxford Inn Assumption Church Most Holy Rosary Blessed Sacrament Interreligious Food Consortium St. Baldrick’s Foundation Bowling Team: Assumption Church’s Soup Kitchen Athletics: Upstate—More Than a Game Foundation Athletics: Basketball Clinics Ccheerleaders: MDA
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