Halloween and All Saints and miscellaneous

Students are allowed to wear appropriate Halloween costumes tomorrow.  On Wednesday we will celebrate the feast of All Saints with mass at 8:30 a.m. in the main chapel.  Parents are welcome to join us. 

Seventh grade students will be receiving an independent reading project from me on Wednesday.  They may choose a book from our extensive collection in the Academy and they will have a little over two weeks to complete the assignment.  I suggest they use their free days this week-remember, no school on Thursday and Friday-to spend some time reading their book.

More students participated in service work today at the Northwest Ohio Food Bank and the Helping Hands Soup Kitchen.  Additional service opportunities are coming up in the next few weeks.

Basketball teams will begin practicing next week-the gyms are closed from Thursday through Sunday so the floors can be refinished.

Important schedule notes

A few important notes-

1. Tomorrow is “Blue and Gold Day” as we end Spirit Week with an afternoon pep rally. A reminder- there is no school on Friday.

2. Please join us for an eighth grade parent information night for the Washington, D.C. trip fundraiser. It will be on Wednesday, November 1 at 7:00 p.m. in the big Academy classroom. Come and sample gourmet foods from Tastefully Simple and learn how you can earn money to help cover the cost of your student’s trip.

3. Report cards will be mailed home on Friday. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact individual teachers directly.

4. Conferences will be held in earloy January as we are implementing a new type of conference this year-student lead conferences. We will be working with the students training them to lead a conference with you which we think will be more meaningful and helpful as your son moves forward in his school career. In the meantime, if you would like a “traditional” style conference with a teacher please contact the teacher directly.

5. Tuesday, October 31 is Halloween and students are allowed wear a costume (appropriate, of course) to school that day.

6. Wednesday, November 1 is All Saints Day and we will attend mass in the school chapel at 8:30 a.m. All are welcome to attend.

7. There is no school for Academy students on Thursday, November 2 and Friday, November 3. Mr. Carroll, Mr. Nichols, Mr. Szynkowski, and I will be attending the National Middle School Association Conference in Nashville on those days.

8. All students are invited to play basketball on an Academy team this year. Interested students should report to the main gym at 3:30 p.m. tomorrow and they will be placed on a team-no one is cut and everyone plays, even if they never played before.

Weekedn review and the week ahead

We enjoyed Friday with the NET team.  Ask your son about the day-he probably won’t say too much, so try some questions like, “Did you play any fun games?” or “Were there some good speakers?” or “Tell me about your group leader.”  We felt it was a great experience for the guys and the NET team was very complimentary.

Saturday we hosted over 340 8th graders at the dance.  With a climbing wall outside, and sumo wrestling and “racing” toilets-ask your son about them-inside along with ping pong and board games there was alot for the  kids to do.

Thanks to all the parents who helped with the NET retreat and hosted team members in their home and those who chaperoned the dance.

This week is “Spirit Week” throughout the school.  Dress down themes are:  Tuesday-pajama day; Wednesday-college jersey day; Thursday-blue and gold day.  As an alternative students can wear a SJJ t-shirt any day along with jeans.  A reminder-trhere is no school Friday.

We resumed service work today as 10 students accompanied Mr. Brennan and me to the Northwestern Ohio Food Bank.  More students will go next Monday and others will go to the Helping Hands Soup Kitchen. 

 Finally, report cards wil be mailed home on FRiday.  The second quarter officially started today. 

NET retreat

On Friday we will travel just a little down the road to the Andersons’ Activities Center for an all day retreat with the NET team.  The retreat program at St. John’s Jesuit is one of the school’s strong points and we are proud to carry on that tradition in the Academy by offering the NET retreat in the fall and separate grade level retreats in the spring.  On Friday the students are allowed to dress in comfortable clothing and lunch and snacks are provided for them.

We hope they have an enjoyable, uplifting day that brings them closer to God and strengthens their relationship with them.

Basketball

Next Thursday Academy students who are interested in playing basketball this school year are invited to the first “practice” of the year from 3:30-5:30 p.m. in the main gym.  Each grade will have two teams and by the end of the practice players will be placed on one of the two teams-all players are on a team-no one is “cut.”  One team is for players who are more skilled and are ready for a high level of competition and the other team is for those who do not have extensive experience or may not be as advanced from a skills perspective, but enjoy playing.   8th grade coaches are Rich Craig, Brian Craig, and Nick Butler.  7th grade coaches are Mike Perriat, Jeff Fretti, Lionel Armstead, and Sean Savage.  If you have any questions please contact Mr. John Brennan, Academy Athletic Director, at extension 34o.

A reminder that our mission collection ends this Friday-we are collecting soap, shampoo, toilet paper, toothpaste, toothbrushes, and deodorant.

   

The week ahead

This Wednesday the cafeteria will be closed for lunch so we will provide a pizza and pop lunch for any student who brings in $5.00. If students don’t want pizza they are welcome to pack their lunch that day. Wednesday is also a “Jeans Day” for any student who successfully completes a follow-up study guide about the movie, “Facing the Giants,” that we all saw last Thursday.

We are still in need of two more families to host NET team members in their home Thursday evening. This entails picking them up here at school @ 7:00 p.m. and taking them to your home for the evening. The next day, Friday, you can drop them off at school @ 8:00 a.m. It’s very little work and I guarantee you will enjoy having them in your home. Please consider it!

This is the last week of the first quarter. Many of the high school classes administer quarter exams, but in the Academy we do not. The students may, however, have some tests this week, but they are not exams. We do give comprehensive exams at the end of the semester, which is the end of the second quarter.

Enjoy the weekend

It was a hectic week at school and I know we will all enjoy the weekend.  A reminder, we are still looking for 2-3 families willing to host NET members on Thursday evening prior to our all-day Friday retreat.

Don’t forget to send in items for our mission collection-we’ll collect them all next week.

The first quarter ends next week-remind your son to finish strong and to give their best in everything they do-another message reinforced in yesterday’s movie.

Project reminder and “Facing the Giants”

Important reminder–7th grade students have Math and Social Studies  projects due tomorrow and all students have to turn in a Science Fair project topic tomorrow. 

We all had a great time this afternoon watching “Facing the Giants” at the theater.  Be sure to ask your son how he enjoyed the movie and have him give you a short recap of the film.  It is a strong faith based film about a football team, their coach, his wife, and what can happen when we face our “giant fears” and turn our life over to God.  We received two nice compliments about the students from theater patrons who were impressed with how well they handled themselves-a compliment to them and you!

One final note:  thanks to all the parents and students who worked at the concession last Saturday at the football game.  We don’t have the final figures on how much profit we made yet, but it was a fun, if tiring, event.  Special thanks to Karen Parsell and Joy Studer for heading up this effort.

Mission Collection

This week and next we are collecting items for those in the greater Toledo area who struggle with poverty.  The high school Social Justice Alliance has designated this “Poverty Awareness Week” and presentations and information about the struggle of poverty are ongoing throughout the school.  The Academy is collecting toothpaste, soap, shampoo, toilet paper, tooth brushes, and deodorant this week and next.  The homeroom that collects the most items wins a “Jeans Day.”  Students have volunteered to be “Mission reps” in each homeroom and they are in charge of the collection.  Your support is greatly appreciated!

At the bake sale last week $290.15 was raised for the Washington Trip Fund.  By popular demand of the students, a “Puppy Chow Day” is being planned for October 26.  This is by far the most popular snack requested by the students so we’ll have a chance to really do well.

A reminder that teachers are available for extra help during the week.  Mr. Carroll stays after on Wednesdays, Mr. Nichols stays after on Thursdays, and Mr. Szynkowski is available during lunch-today no came for Math help.

We’re looking forward to the movie tomorrow afternoon.  If you are picking up your son at the theater remind him to bring his bookbag with him to the theater.  Any students not picked up at the theater will be brought back to school @ 3:30 p.m.

Thanks 

  

NET retreat

Next Friday, Ocotber 20,  we end the first quarter with an all day retreat down the orad at the Andersons’ Activities Center.  The National Evangelization Team (NET) will present an inspiring, entertaining program that I know all the students will benefit from.  The members of  NET range in age from 18-28 and come from as far away as California, Maine, Colorado, Texas, Wisconsin, Minnesota as well as Michigan and devote a year of their life to retreat ministry.  As part of our responsibility as the host of the retreat we have to house the team for one night.  Last year some families provided housinbg for 2-3 team members and really enjoyed the experience.  My family has hosted NET members on five separate ocassions and my sons, wife and I have enjoyed every visit.  Now we need 2-3 families to help out this year.  We need to provide homes for seven girls and five guys on Thursday, October 19.  You will also need to transport them to SJJ the next morning so they can prepare for the retreat.  So far, we have two families who have offered to provide housing, and I’ll be happy to do so again if necessary.  I really encourage you, thought, to consider hosting 2-3 members of the team.  They are outstanding young people and you will enjoy their company.  If you are interested or have any questions about this please ocntact me as soon as possible.   Thanks!