Dear Students, Parents/Guardians,
Welcome to the 2024-2025 School Year! I hope you had a wonderful and restful summer. Our campus has been very busy the past few weeks. Our teachers are preparing their classrooms and have been welcoming families on campus to drop off school supplies. Please check your teachers’ emails and reach out to your child’s homeroom teachers if you have any questions specific to your child’s grade level. Over the summer, we had our Gently Used Uniform Sale and our Vicki Marsha Uniform sale in the Hall. We also had our Safety training so parents could be Virtus-trained and ADLA fingerprinted. I look forward to seeing many more family members volunteer on campus and on field trips this year! I know that, along with me, many of the students, teachers and parents are feeling extremely enthusiastic about what promises to be another memorable school year. A very warm welcome especially to all our new school families!
Last Friday we had our Kindergarten Meet and Greet on campus, and our 6th graders also had a chance to come to their class and meet their new teacher last Friday. The Student Government had a retreat last Friday as well and they are raring to lead our student body this year!
We have some exciting news! We will be installing a new Media lab into Rm 16 to be used by our Student Government and Yearbook committees this year. We were blessed to have been given a federal grant for this media lab.
Over the summer you may have heard that our school won the Best Private School in the South Bay and the Favorite Catholic School award by the readers of the Daily Breeze! I am so thrilled for these honors. Congratulations to our school community and thank you for voting!
Please note the first week of school dress code expectations below. Also keep in mind that the school office will be back to regular school hours (7:30-4) starting today, August 19.
Tomorrow, August 20, is our first day of school. We will have a Welcome Back Meet and Greet Coffee and Donuts in the carline and at the brown benches from 7:30-7:50 am for our parents, and our first weekly school morning assembly outside by the St. Jude statue. The Tardy Bell rings promptly at 7:50 am so students must already be in line when the bell rings, and not in the car. Please be on time. Your child may come to school all week in appropriate free dress attire from 8/20-8/23, if they do not already have their uniform. Uniforms are always acceptable to wear on free dress days. Please check the handbook for Free Dress guidelines. Summer packets will be turned in for the child’s first grade in Gradelink this first week of school. We also have some important forms to be signed, so please return them in by this Friday 8/23 for a grade for your child, and they can earn a FREE dress pass from their teacher!
Our first Student Body Mass will be this Friday, 8/23 at 8am in the church. All are welcome! Grades 2-5 will also attend weekly Mass on Tuesdays. Grades 6-8 will attend morning Mass on Thursdays. Formal Mass uniform must be worn on Fridays or all-school Mass days. We will plan to meet at least once a week (usually on Wednesdays) as a whole school outside in the gathering space by the St. Jude statue for morning assembly. Tomorrow (8/20) and Wed (8/20) we will have an outdoor assembly to kick off the school year. Every other day of the week we will do announcements promptly at 7:50am over the PA system from the office, led by our Student Government. Our youngest SAP students in Grades K and 1 will join us later in the next few weeks, after they have practiced walking to church and following the Mass protocols.
The first week of school is a 12 Noon Dismissal for all students. ONLY Kindergarten will have 12 NOON dismissal during the SECOND week of school as well, so they can acclimate to their new schedule. Your teachers will give you more specific instructions via email. Daycare is offered from 12-6pm the first 2 weeks of school with Ms. Pattie Padilla and our daycare staff. We also welcome our instructional aide Ms. Madeline Rodriguez. Please welcome all our new faculty and staff members onto our campus. Mr. Brandon Cook joins our substitute teaching list this year. Morning care starts daily at 7:30am, when a staff member is supervising students seated on the benches. The bell rings at 7:50am and those not present will be marked tardy. Attendance will affect a child’s Work Habits grade and Citizenship at the trimester awards ceremony. Please be aware of all school policies and read the Parent Student Handbook online thoroughly. The version online will be the most recent one.
Wednesday, 9/4, is BACK TO SCHOOL NIGHT at 6:30pm in the Hall for all parents/guardians. Mark your calendars! CHILDCARE IS NOT BE AVAILABLE during the meeting, so please plan to keep your children at home or they must stay with you at all times. Vicki Marsha Uniform will be on campus again on 9/4, and you can pick up your chocolates on 9/3 and on 9/4 in the Hall for the Fall chocolate fundraiser. We will have two sessions of information in the classrooms on 9/4 to accommodate those with multiple children: 7pm–7:25pm and 7:30pm-7:55pm. Junior high will be meeting twice as a collective unit in the hall. 6th-8th grade parents may visit classrooms in junior high, but they will not do individual presentations in their class. Please be sure to not conference with the teachers too much afterwards so they can go home and get rest for the next day of teaching. The school will close at 8pm sharp. Parents with multiple children, please coordinate with your teachers to get packets.
This time of year, though hectic, is really a favorite time for educators and me, as we receive our new students and have another opportunity to do what we love–teach and lead future saints to Heaven…We pray that the excitement that we all feel the first week of school remains with us throughout the year, knowing full well that God is with us through every moment, especially the difficult ones. Please keep all families who are bearing extremely heavy crosses at this time in your prayers. God bless you all.
God bless,
Angela Grey, Principal
SCHOOL CALENDAR 2024-2025
(Be sure to always check www.stanthonygardena.org , your child’s teacher’s blog, and the Parish website at www.saintanthonygardena.org/parish-bulletin/ for the most current information.)
- August 5-September 17: STAR Window 1 Please be sure your child gets a good night’s sleep and eats a healthy breakfast each day.
- August 23 – All parent forms needed by today
- August 26 – Alvarado Lunch begins, PE and Music start next week, all students in Full Uniform moving forward. Noon Dismissal for the first 2 weeks for Kinder only.
- August 20 –August 30 – Kindergarten has noon dismissal all week – vehicles only enter & exit at Berendo gate for Kinder Dismissal, pedestrians enter only at front gate by school office! DO NOT HOLD DOOR OPEN FOR OTHERS OR LEAVE IT OPEN FOR ANY REASON. SAFETY FIRST
- August 26– Fall Fundraiser Kick Off (more info to come from Gabriel Vasquez)
- Sept 2 – Labor Day Holiday, NO SCHOOL!
- Sept 4 – Back to School Night, K-8, 6:30 pm-8pm in the Hall. Come early to sign in for credit and pick up your chocolates in Hall. This is the first of three mandatory parent meetings throughout the year. Non-participation will result in a $50 fine every time, per the tuition contract you each signed.
- Sept 15 – Catechetical Sunday, all families welcome! 11am Mass, First Mandatory Bake Sale
- Sept 19 – FALL School Picture Day 8:30-10:30! ☺ (Wear your Formal Mass Uniforms)
ALVARADO CATERING ($8.00 per lunch)
Alvarado Catering will continue to be our food vendor on campus. Procedures remain the same. Before each month, all forms must be turned in completed with student’s name, grade, and # of lunch choice circled on the top and bottom by the due date. Make checks payable to Alvarado Catering. You can also pay through Zelle App (Elizabeth Alvarado, 323-477-9562). Price per meal is $8.00. Each meal is served with a drink, fruit, fresh vegetables, and salad. Any questions: call Elizabeth or email her at elizabethalvarado660@gmail.com.
ALLERGIES/EMERGENCY CARDS/COURT ORDERS
If your child has any allergies or serious medical concerns, please be sure to notify our office as well as your child’s classroom teacher as soon as possible. Emergency cards and contact info must be current and updated in the office as needed. IF THERE ARE ANY CHANGES, WE NEED THE EMERGENCY CARDS UPDATED IN THE OFFICE…This is extremely important in order to make sure we have accurate and updated records for your child. If your child has a medical condition or has allergies, we need to know this up front and have an action plan, in case of an emergency. Any medication must be self-administered by the child or by you, and permission for us to administer medicine must be in writing. Any new or updated court orders or custody papers must be given to the office and updated as things change.
HANDBOOK/PAPERS SENT HOME, DUE THIS FRIDAY 8/23
Parents, please read the latest Parent Student Handbook online at our website to be up to date on our policies. Some rules and procedures have slightly changed, so please pay special attention to those changes. The handbook online is binding and supersedes any previous versions. Please read and fill out any paperwork sent home on the first day of school on 8/20. Teachers will go over the Parent Student Pledge, Christian Code of Conduct, Family Income Survey, and CPLA Consent forms with students. These forms must be signed and returned by 8/23, Friday to the classroom teacher.
FORMAL FRIDAYS/SACRAMENTS
As a reminder – each Friday (unless otherwise noted) we have a Student Body Mass where the students dress in FORMAL MASS UNIFORM attire. Some students will be attending daily Mass but the formal Mass uniform is only required on Fridays. Students may wear their regular or PE uniforms to Mass on days that they are in Mass and don’t have their regular uniform on. All those who are not baptized and wish to receive the sacraments this year, please notify your child’s teacher by 9/30. Thank you!
PLC SERVICE HOURS (30 hours per family/year: 10 per trimester)
As a reminder, every family is asked to sign up for up to 4 Parent Leadership Committees so you have multiple chances to fulfill your 30 family service hours, valued at $17/hour or you will be charged. If you have questions, please email the office.
STUDENT SERVICE FEES! ($350 per child)
Parents, it’s very important that we receive your student service fees of $350 per child by the end of this week 8/23. This fee covers the cost of classroom supplies, books, Wi-Fi access school-wide, and Student Accident and Liability insurance. Students’ books will be released after payment is made or a payment plan is set up in FACTS.
VOLUNTEERS
All visitors on campus must check in and out of the office at all times and wear a VISITOR badge. All Volunteers must be Fingerprinted through the ADLA and cleared, and have a current Virtus Training Certificate. AM and PM carline and lunch yard duty volunteers (from 12-1 daily) are needed. Please email me at agrey@stanthonygardena.org if you are interested. For safety reasons, please call before you come to the office and buzz yourself in. Do not prop the door open for anyone, especially strangers. All parents are welcome to join the SAFETY PLC to increase security on our campus.
St. Anthony – Pray for us
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