Dear Parents and Guardians,
Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day! I hope you all had a great weekend with your families. We are in the midst of the January surge, and as we return to school tomorrow, 1/18, we have Pacific Toxicology back on campus for testing at 7:30am. If unvaccinated, you should have turned in your negative results to your child’s teachers to be on campus and stay tomorrow. If vaccinated and asymptomatic, you may come to school to test tomorrow and stay at school. All staff and students are still required to test weekly, regardless of vaccination status in the month of January. Due to the January surge, we will have a Virtual Open House, and limit in-person activities after school, including sports, Folkorico, piano, choir, theater, and any prospective family school tours. All on campus during the month of January should show a negative test result at least once a week to be on campus. This goes for parent volunteers too. Daycare services are suspended till Feb. When we return in February, we will limit the amount of kids who can be in daycare when we reopen. We will give priority to those who have no alternative daycare options. Mrs. Pattie Padilla will reach out first to those families who are “regulars” in after school care, needing 4-5 days a week of care. Likely, we will limit daycare to 12 children per adult, and we will try our best to keep families and grade levels together to avoid commingling.
Catholic Schools’ Week is coming up and our Family Mass is at 11am in the Church on Sunday, January 30. Our Annual Open House will be virtual this year, but we still appreciate you referring your friends and family to our school! Teachers will be making short video tours of their classrooms. I will be conducting private tours and can schedule Zoom meetings with prospective families. If someone you know would like to schedule a tour on campus or have an informational Zoom session with me, please contact me at agrey@stanthonygardena.org.
Just a reminder that Pacific Toxicology will be back on campus this Friday, 1/21, to test those who want to be cleared to come to school on Monday, 1/24. You must sign up on the Sign up Genius by tomorrow 1/18 for testing at 12:30pm on campus Friday, 1/21. Please be sure to sign up via Sign Up Genius by this Thursday, 1/20 for next week’s testing on Monday, 1/24. Our 2nd STAR testing window will be extended through 2/8. We will have one more STAR testing window at the end of the year to measure student progress. Progress reports go home this Friday, 1/21.
I am pleased to announce that we got a grant from C3 Ignite for about 25 new school-owned iPads! All families who borrowed a school iPad are asked to return them next week. For every one we return, C3 Ignite will give us a new Generation 9 iPad and case. These new iPads will stay on campus. Students are welcome to use them only while on campus. As part of our supply list, parents have been asked to have an iPad for every child in grades K-8. If you need to have your child borrow an iPad while on campus, please let your teacher know, and you will have to sign some forms (AUP and liability forms) to have your child use the devices on campus. You will also need to have a device for your child to use while at home. A laptop or phone should suffice for most school activities, as everything requires a browser except for the Raz-Kids app (grades 1 and 2 only).
Finally, please pray for the repose of the soul of Madonna Castro, our beloved Director of Religious Education, who passed into eternal life on 12/31/21. Her viewing is this Thursday 1/20 from 10-6pm, then services are on Saturday 1/22 with 11am Mass at the church, burial at Roosevelt Cemetery, and reception in the Parish Hall. The Our Lady of Fatima statue will be with us on Thursday, 1/20. We will be having Mass at 8am, followed by the Rosary at 9am. The junior high will also have their Culture Project talk on that day.
Mrs. Grey, Principal
SCHOOL CALENDAR 2021-2022
(Be sure to always check www.stanthonygardena.org and your child’s teacher’s blog, along with our SAP School app for the most current information.)
- January 17 – February 8: STAR Window 2
- January 18 and 20, 2022: Sign up for Pacific Toxicology Testing for 1/21 and 1/24 on Sign up Genius link https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0D4FA4AE22A5F5CE9-covid19
- January 11: Culture Project Human Dignity Talk for Junior High (Virtual) 10am
- January 12: Yearbook Pre-Sale Begins and ends Feb 25
- January 17: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Holiday: NO SCHOOL!
- January 20: Culture Project Sexual Integrity Talk – 7th and 8th graders only (Virtual) 10am
- January 18-21: Students in 5th and 8th grade finish ACRE Testing by 1/21
- January 21: Progress Reports go out for 2nd trimester (halfway point), One Life LA Vigil and Holy Hour in the church tonight! (to be livestreamed)
- January 24: Culture Project The Social Media Talk for Junior High (Virtual) 10am
- Sunday, January 30: Catholic Schools’ Week begins Family Mass at 11am, Open House (virtual)
- First week of February (dates TBD): Musical Auditions for Frozen, Jr. 3:15-5pm (students will likely have to wear face shields/masks and follow all social distancing protocols)
- February 12: Kindergarten Round-Up (8-4pm Interviews and ESGI testing with Ms. Strohm and Mrs. Grey)
- February 12: 2nd Grade retreat rescheduled in the Hall
- February 15: Teaching Touching Safety (TTS) lessons completed
IMPORTANT EARLY KINDERGARTEN REGISTRATION!
If you have a child that will be entering Kindergarten next year and is NOT at St. Anthony’s Day Nursery – please contact me right away to let me know so I can include him/her on the early registration list. If your child is already at the Nursery School, you have already received info and should have turned in all applications by now. First come first serve.
SCHOOL DONATIONS AND SERVICE HOURS
For families looking to pay off their service hour commitment, our school gives the option to buy Scrip/gift cards and donate them to SAP. We buy a lot of materials and supplies from Office Depot, Walmart/Sam’s Club, and Target for much needed supplies, so if you buy Scrip valued at $10/hour and donate it to the school to offset costs, we will credit your service hour account. (Next year our service hours will be worth $15/hr. to keep up with the minimum wage.) Parents who volunteer on Saturdays (every 2-3 weeks) can earn service hours cleaning our school with the Interior Maintenance PLC. Please join the group! Thanks in advance!
TEACHING TOUCHING SAFETY (TTS) FORMS DUE ASAP
We are very happy each year to conduct the “Teaching Touching Safety” Classes to our students. This is a course that we teach by mid-February each year, and it covers an age-appropriate curriculum to bring awareness to students regarding issues of sexual abuse and dangers. It teaches them the lines of “appropriateness” within particular contexts and how to avoid and respond to possible situations that could endanger them. *PERMISSIONS SLIPS WERE SENT HOME BEFORE THE BREAK AND MUST BE RETURNED ASAP so lessons can start this week. Thanks in advance!
IMMUNIZATION REPORTS AND VACCINATIONS
Routine vaccination is an essential preventive care service for children, adolescents, and adults that should not be delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. 7th graders should have their more recent TDAP shots. Parents, if you haven’t already, please submit these forms to the office along with your child’s most recent vaccination record. You can email them to Mrs. Sarah Ray and me at sray1@stanthonygardena.org and agrey@stanthonygardena.org. If your child has the COVID vaccine, please submit proof to the school. Weekly testing is required for all individuals till further notice. Those vaccinated do not need to quarantine unless they have symptoms or were a direct contact to a positive case. Guidelines may change.
EFG FUNDRAISER
Our school has raised $35,000 toward our goal.This is INCREDIBLE! Thank you so much for your participation. This fundraiser was a phenomenal success because of YOU!
St. Anthony of Padua – Pray for us
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