Dear Parents,

            Congratulations to the first grade class!  Last Thursday, our first grade students led and participated in their first all school Mass.  Individual students performed the readings, presented the gifts, and led the prayers of intentions. I want to thank all of the parents who helped the children prepare for this event, and I want to commend the children for doing a wonderful job!  The mass was inspirational and fun.  It takes courage to stand in front of an audience, especially when they are markedly older than you, and the first grade students showed much bravery. 
We are continuing to celebrate the accomplishments of our eighth grade students.  As of last Friday, we have calculated that our eighth grade class of eighteen students has been offered more than $100,000.00 in scholarships to attend area Catholic high schools.  One-third of the students applied to and were accepted at St. Xavier High School.  Not all will enroll at St. Xavier because they have received generous scholarships to other schools.  Brody Wilson was named as a LaSalle Scholar, one of only twenty students to merit this distinction in LaSalle’s freshmen class.  We are very proud of all of our eighth grade students.

            Friday, January 20, will be the final class day of the 2nd grading period and the end of the first semester.  It is hard to believe, but this means that we are at the halfway point of the school year.  The second quarter report cards will be sent home on Monday, January 30. 

            This is the time of the year when the number of absences rises because of colds, flu, and other seasonal ailments.  This is a natural occurrence.  I am concerned, though, about the number of tardy students that we are seeing each day. When a child is tardy to school, it starts the student off on the wrong foot and is often disruptive to the entire class.  Please have your child at school on time each day. 

            Finally, please remember to encourage people to attend our Open House on Sunday, January 29, from noon until 2:00 p.m.  As parents, you are, of course, also welcome to attend, but if you know of anyone who might be considering a different school situation or who has a future kindergarten student, please invite them.  If they are unable to attend, please invite them to call me, and I will be happy to give them a private tour of our school.  While we are on the topic of Catholic Schools Week, we are enclosing in the packet today a list of activities that will take place during this week.  We will need parent volunteers for some of these activities.  On Tuesday, when we have the pizza lunch for the students, we will need parents to help make ice cream sundaes for the students.  Friday will be Teacher Appreciation Day, and parent volunteers are needed to monitor recess with the children between 11:30 a.m. and approximately 12:30 p.m.  Given the time of year, the recess monitoring may take place outdoors or indoors.  If you would like to help out with this, please contact Lana Havens, Mrs. Hungler, or myself to volunteer.  Catholic Schools’ Week is special in part because of the relationship between our families and our school.  Your help will be greatly appreciated. 

Sincerely,

J. Haag

Dear Parents,

I hope that all of your families had a wonderful Christmas, and I want to take this opportunity to wish you a very happy new year!  It is amazing to think that we have moved into a new calendar year, and I hope that this will be a wonderful year for you and your children.  I am so honored to be associated with St. James of the Valley School, our parish, and with your children and your families.

As we move into 2012, parents in grades one through eight should have received or will soon receive information from your child’s teacher about Home Connect.  This is a computer program associated with Accelerated Reading and Accelerated Math that will allow you to check your child’s progress in these programs, and also give your child access to work at home. The letters will contain a user name and password for you to gain access to Home Connect.  The letters are computer generated by the Renaissance Learning Company, which owns the Accelerated Reader and Accelerated Math programs.  It may seem confusing, but the letters will say “Renaissance Learning” and not Accelerated Reader or Accelerated Math.  These programs are not the heart of our language arts and math programs, but they are important supplements to each of their disciplines and will help your children with basic skill building in reading and math.  This is a new program for all of us, so if you did not receive this information, please let me know so that I can send it to you.

We will have our annual spelling bee for the 2011-2012 school year on Wednesday, January 18, at 1:15 p.m.  The spelling bee will be held in St. Charles’ Hall, and parents and families are welcome to attend.  Mrs. Heidel sponsors the spelling bee for us, and will hold several more practices before the school spelling bee is held.  Last year Claire Erny, who is now in 7th grade, was our champion and represented our school in the annual Post and Times-Star Spelling Bee that is held at the Museum Center. Claire was an excellent representative for our school.  We are looking forward to seeing who will represent our school this year.

While I am acquainted with all of our children and I know a lot about our families, I do not know everything about each of the families who send children to our school.  I say this to preface information about a new scholarship that the state of Ohio is offering for the 2012-2013 school year.  During this school year, the state is offering the Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarship to families of children with special needs whom the family might want to send to a private school.  While our school is not able at this time to accommodate children who have some types of disabilities, there are Catholic schools that can offer these services.  My experience in public schools taught me that public schools by law must provide services for children of all disabilities  Some public schools were better at providing these services than others.  We now have some of the larger Catholic elementary schools that also provide special education services.  If you have a child who may need to receive special services and you would be interested in this information, please contact me.  I am sending home in the packet a sheet that will give you some basic information about this scholarship.  If you would like to know more, please contact me and I will do my best to help you find the information you need.

I am grateful for the Christmas gifts that were bestowed upon me before the Christmas break.  I sent thank you notes to the children and families who sent these gifts.  If for some reason you did not receive a note from me, please accept my apology.  The last days before Christmas were busy and confusing.  My favorite gift is being able to work with each of your children every day.  I am excited about 2012!

Catholic Schools Week begins on the final Sunday of the month of January.  If you have any suggestions to help market the school, please contact me.  My background is education and not marketing.  I am open to any suggestions.

May you have a happy and blessed 2012!

Sincerely,

J. Haag

Dear Parents,

Last evening’s music program was a huge success.  In my previous position in a public school, our music teacher was in our school on a full time basis.  While we had more classes in the school, preparation for Christmas was a lot easier in that practice could take place every day.  Mrs. Morgan and each of the classroom teachers need to be recognized for their annual commitment to our Christmas program.  The children did a wonderful job of performing, and I hope that all of our parents enjoyed the program as much as I did.  The voices of the children were angelic and all of the children from Kindergarten through 8th grade were wonderful.

With the Christmas program concluded, we will still be in session until Tuesday, December 20.  Please remember that we are still collecting jelly and boxes of mashed potatoes for the Valley Interfaith food drive.  Our nation’s economy has struggled in the past few years, but we still need to remember to share with those who have less.  Please give to this drive if you can.  Thank you to our 8th grade students and their Kindergarten buddies for sponsoring this project.

I have had some complaints about the fact that we are billing parents for After School Care, lunches, and tuition, and our parish office is putting pressure on parents to meet these financial obligations.  Please remember that while we are a Catholic church, we are also a business.  Schools and parishes have closed because of poor business practices.  We are working to be a vibrant school and an essential part of our parish, rather than a cross to bear.  Our parish finance committee calculates the cost to educate each of your children to be approximately $5,200.00.  If you pay in parish tuition, you are paying $3050.00 per child, and if you have an EdChoice scholarship, the school is receiving $4250.00 per child.  In each case, there is an imbalance of the cost for your child that the parish assumes.  Please understand these figures when you receive billing for our services.  This is a wonderful school and we love our children, but as we strive to be an even better educational opportunity for your children, at the bottom line, we are still a business. Please help us to be a successful business.

One of the most successful programs implemented in the past two years involves our relationship with Roger Bacon High School.  For the past two years,   Roger Bacon has provided an opportunity for our 8th grade students to participate in an Algebra I class.  To date, we have had seven students take advantage of this offer and graduate from our school with a high school credit in Algebra I.  Next year, Roger Bacon is not only offering Algebra I, but it will also offer French I to our students.  Like this year, both of the classes will be offered before our normal school day begins, but the Roger Bacon teachers may come to our building on one day each week.  This is a great opportunity for our current 7th grade students to leave this school with a high school credit in Algebra I or French I.  The cost of the class will be approximately $400.00.  Upon graduation from St. James, if you choose to attend Roger Bacon, the cost of the class will be deducted from your first year’s tuition.  When I receive more information from Roger Bacon, I will share it with our 7th grade students. 

For our 8th grade students, this is the final week for applying to the Catholic high schools.  If you have not yet filed your paperwork for any of the Catholic high schools, you have only until Friday, December 9, to do so.  Mrs. Hungler has diligently checked, recorded, and sent all of the applications that we have received to date. 

I have mentioned in my previous letters the new bulletin boards that have been installed around the school.  In the 4th and 5th grade hallway that leads to the gym, one of the bulletin boards contains information about PTA that is there for the parents to see.  Another bulletin board has been set aside for the athletic association and contains information about the boys’ basketball teams.  There are schedules, photos, and game results.  If the girls’ volleyball teams would like to do a similar bulletin board, we can make one available in the same hallway.  Please understand that these bulletin boards are not being maintained by school personnel, but by volunteers from the PTA. 

I hope that all of you are enjoying a happy Advent season!

Sincerely,

J. Haag

Dear Parents,

            I hope that each of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and that you were able to enjoy the time with your children.  It is hard to believe that we are already into our Advent season with the new changes in the Roman Missal and moving towards Christmas.  Our annual Christmas program will be held next Tuesday, December 6, at 7:00 p.m.  It may seem early, but the two important factors in choosing the date for the Christmas program are the availability of the Church sanctuary and Mrs. Morgan’s daily schedule.  Of course, the sanctuary is used heavily in December, and Mrs. Morgan only works in our school on Tuesdays and Fridays. 

            I also need to thank two groups of people.  The first group is the group of parents who have worked so hard to install and replace bulletin boards within the school on Friday nights during November.  They have invested a lot of time and effort into this project, and I hope that you understand how much your work is appreciated.  The second group to thank is composed of Lisa McDonald, Kelly Goeppinger, and Deanna Erny.  This group laminated the cards that contain the changes of the new Roman Missal which were used in mass last weekend and will continue to be used as we learn the changes.  This was a project that the school took on and this group completed. 

            The 8th grade deadline for high school applications is rapidly approaching.  The deadline for McAuley High School was today, and the deadline for application to Moeller High School is Friday, December 2.  Friday, December 9, is the deadline for all of the other Catholic high schools.  Mrs. Hungler has processed the applications that we have received, and she is looking forward to completing your applications as soon as you get them to her.  We are grateful for your assistance in making this as easy as possible.  This is one of the most important responsibilities that our school offers our 8th grade students, and Mrs. Hungler is committed to making sure that we do it correctly.

            During the Advent season, one school focus is the concept of giving.  To reinforce this, our Kindergarten students and their 8th grade buddies are sponsoring a food drive for Valley Interfaith.  Like any food drive, we will accept any donations that are given, but the directors of Valley Interfaith have instructed us that there is a real need for jelly and packaged mashed potatoes.  We have already collected over 60 boxes of mashed potatoes and 60 jars of jelly, but our goal is to try to provide Valley Interfaith with at least 200 of each.  We would appreciate your help and support in meeting this goal by December 9. 

            On Monday, November 28, three of our teachers received training on a computer program called Accelerated Math.  This is a companion program to the Accelerated Reader program that we have been using in our school for at least ten years.  Like the Accelerated Reader program, the Accelerated Math program is designed to allow students to progress at their own ability level.  Like AR, Accelerated Math is based on the idea that the more you practice math, the better you will become at math.  The training had to take place during our school day so we brought in substitute teachers to free up several teachers.  These teachers will then help train our remaining staff members in the use of the program.  We will be launching this program in the next several weeks, but since it is new to us, we will be implementing it slowly and implementation will happen differently at each grade level.  Our goal is to improve the ability of each of our students in math and to improve math instruction throughout the school. 

            One component that will be part of Accelerated Math and added to Accelerated Reader is a “Home Connection” component.  In next week’s Wednesday Packet, you will receive a letter about Accelerated Math.  This letter will contain instructions on how you can gain access to view progress of your child in both Accelerated Reader and Accelerated Math.  The letter will include the web address for Home Connection, a user ID, and a log-in password.  Logging onto this site will allow you to view the math and reading progress of your child within these programs. 

            I ask that you please be patient with us as we launch the Accelerated Math program and the Home Connection website.  Like your children, we are individuals and we will have varying degrees of knowledge and competencies in using this program for instruction. We will be taking baby steps as we initiate the new program, but we will work together as a staff to improve our own instructional skills and to help your children become more knowledgeable and successful in math. 

            If you have any questions or concerns about the Accelerated Math program or the school, please contact me.

Sincerely,

J. Haag

P.S.  The parish has purchased nice cards on heavy stock paper with the changes in the Roman Missal.  The plan will be to have these in the pews in the church.  They will keep longer if they are laminated.  I had a volunteer to do this work who can no longer do it.  I am looking for volunteers to laminate 500 of these cards.  If you are available to do, please contact me at 821-9054.  Thank you.

Dear Parents,

            Thanks to all of the parents who took the time to attend a conference or to conduct a phone conference with the teacher(s) of your child or children.  Parent / Teacher conferences are important to guarantee that home and school are on the same page in regards to the education of our children.  If you were unable to do so, please call and schedule a meeting or phone conference with your child’s teacher.  The face to face conference is preferable in that it is more personable than the phone call. 

            We have received the results from our Iowa tests and if you have a child in grades 2, 4, 6, or 8, you should have received a parent form that explains your child‘s test score.  If you do not understand these scores, please call me and schedule a time to meet with me.  I will be happy to try to help you understand and interpret these scores. 

            Our Science Olympiad program is picking up recruits and the students involved seem to really enjoy the science challenges in the program.  This week at the Wednesday meeting, the students are scheduled to launch the rockets that they have made.  From visiting the afterschool session last week when gusty winds prohibited a launch, the rockets appear to be well made of common materials and unusually large.   The propellant for the actual launch will be compressed air.  We are counting down to this afternoon when we are hoping for good weather and launch conditions.  I have to admit that I may be just as excited as the Science Olympiad students for the launch. 

            Our school mass last week was held on the day before Veterans’ Day, and we invited veterans to attend.  We began the mass by singing “America the Beautiful”, and in his homily, Father Jack drew comparisons to Jesus and the service that he performed to that of the service performed by our veterans.  At the end of the mass, the veterans were asked to stand to be recognized by our applause.  It was inspirational on many levels.  Tomorrow, our mass will be led by the fifth grade and we will again sing the litany of the saints.  Our special guest will be Tim McManus, who is the husband of Mrs. McManus and a liturgist at St. Bart’s.  Please try to attend if you can.  We will also have a special Mass next Tuesday at 8:00 a.m.  The purpose of this mass is to prepare the students for the language of the new Roman Missal which goes into effect the first Sunday of Advent.  Please join us for this real mass which will serve as a practice.  We will have “cheat sheets” available for all to help you in the new format.

            I need to remind our 8th grade parents that the application deadline for Catholic high schools is on Friday, December 2 (Moeller HS), and on Friday, December 9 (all others).  This means that the applications need to be sent from our office by these dates.  Mrs. Hungler invests a lot of time, energy, and pride in processing and checking the applications and recommendations.  Please help her out by filing your applications with our office as early as possible.  If we have a lot of applications turned in late, the chances for error become greater.  We want to give our 8th graders the best chance of gaining admission to the school that they want to attend.   I want to thank those parents who have already turned in their paper work for processing.

            Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays because it is a truly family oriented holiday, and the ideas behind Thanksgiving are pure and spiritual.  One of the blessings which has been bestowed upon me is to be the principal of St. James of the Valley School.  I want to thank all of you who contributed to the school with your time, energy, and financial support, and I hope that each of you has a wonderful Thanksgiving day and break with your family.  Please remember that school will be in session only on Monday and Tuesday of next week.

Sincerely,

J. Haag

P.S.  The parish has purchased nice cards on heavy stock paper with the changes in the Roman Missal.  The plan will be to have these in the pews in the church.  They will keep longer if they are laminated.  I had a volunteer to do this work who can no longer do it.  I am looking for volunteers to laminate 500 of these cards.  If you are available to do, please contact me at 821-9054.  Thank you.

Dear Parents,

          In the last weekly letter, I noted the efforts of three of our 7th and 8th grade students who participate on an undefeated SabreCats football team. I need to apologize to Zach Jones, one of our 7th grade students, for failing to mention his participation on this team. We are proud of these young men, and they won last Saturday and will play for the city title this weekend.  The game will be at 3:05 p.m. at Roger Bacon Stadium.  We wish good luck to Brody, Liam, Sam, and Zach. 

          Report cards will be sent home on Monday, November 7.  This year to accelerate communication between parents and teachers, we have scheduled conferences for Tuesday, November 8, and Wednesday, November 9.  While we have already scheduled many conferences, most teachers still have slots available if you have not yet scheduled a conference time.  Please remember the conferences are important for effective communication to aid your child’s progress through our school. Book Fair will also begin next Monday and run throughout the week.  Look for information about Book Fair in this packet.

          Our school mass was held this week on Tuesday, November 1, which was All Saints Day.  We will revert back to our Thursday mass schedule next week.  Also, for your scheduling purposes, Father Jack has requested that we add an additional school mass to our calendar.  This mass will be held on Tuesday, November 22, at 8:00 a.m.  The purpose of this mass will be to practice the changes in the Roman Missal that will go into effect during Advent.  It also makes sense that we have a mass scheduled during Thanksgiving week.  As always, parents are invited to attend this mass to experience the changes first hand.

          Thanks to Bob and Angie Strunc for chairing our Walkathon again this year.  As of today, we have raised over $13,300.00 for the PTA.  66% of our families participated in collecting money.  If you would like to participate, we are still accepting donations.  The Walkathon was fun, especially the 8th grade “flash mob” dance which was performed at numerous locations on the walking course.  Thanks to all of the parents who helped with the Walkathon and with the October party.  The children had a wonderful time at both of these important events.

          I also want to mention a new program that we are starting in our school that began last Wednesday, October 26.  This is the Science Olympiad.  Science Olympiad is a competition in which our school will compete with other middle schools across the area and state.  At the October 26 practice, we had only two students attend and one was the child of the sponsor.  Science Olympiad will be held every Wednesday to practice for the competitions.  Don’t let the word “practice” put you off, because during these practices, the children participate in fun, hands-on, science activities that are instructional and enjoyable.  Any student in grades 5-8 who have an interest in science are welcome to attend. Practices are held in our science lab immediately after school and end at 4:00 p.m.  If your child would like to participate in Science Olympiad, please send us a note or call our school office at 821-9054.  This program will be good for your child and good for our school. The program sponsor is Joann Felczan, who has two children in our school, and who also runs the same program for Wyoming Middle School.

          Finally, please remember that the time changes this weekend and set your clocks accordingly in your home.  This is the one that I like because it includes an extra hour of sleep as we “fall back” an hour. 

Sincerely,

J. Haag

Dear Parents,

Happy Columbus Day!  Since Christopher Columbus was an Italian from Genoa and sailed for King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain, I am fairly certain that the Catholic church was intricately involved with his voyages of exploration and with his discovery of a “new world.”  While we do not take the day off in our Catholic school to recognize the accomplishments of Christopher Columbus, the connection between the courage and determination of Columbus and the spread of our religion should be remembered.  His achievements should also be discussed in our classrooms and in our homes.  Catholics should be proud of their religion, but even more importantly of the history of their religion.  We hear history in the readings and in the gospel in mass, and we know that the Catholic religion has had a huge impact on the history of our nation and of our civilization. 
In honor of Fire Safety Week, we had a visit today from the Wyoming Fire Department.  The first part of the visit included a timed unannounced fire drill.  I am pleased to inform you that the students evacuated the building in fifty seconds, and we were lined up on the back of the playground with all classes reporting to Mrs. Hungler within one minute and fifty-eight seconds.  The intitial evacuation time is the fastest that we have recorded.  After the fire drill, the firemen talked to the children in kindergarten through grades three about fire safety at home.  If you have not created a fire drill plan at home, please do so.  Include in this plan escape routes from your home and decide upon an assembly point to gather outside of your home.  This will allow you to count heads and let the fire department know the status of your family members.  Also, stress to your children the importance of crawling to safety in a smoke filled environment, and teach them to stop, drop, and roll.  These are basic ideas, but when the firemen picked a student to demonstrate the stop, drop, and roll technique, the child did a somersault.  I pray that you have never have a fire in your home, but make sure that your children are prepared with a plan.  If you need help with this, the city of Cincinnati is having a Firehouse Day on Saturday, October 15.  All 26 fire stations of the Cincinnati Fire Department will conduct an open house on this day from 1:00 p.m. until 5:00 p.m.  The public is invited to attend any of these fire stations to view the fire equipment or to talk to the fire fighters about fire safety. 
As we move deeper into October, it is imperative that we become more aggressive with our Walkathon campaign.  On the school side, we have substantially increased the number of letters that we send out to businesses and we are sending a letter to every member of the parish. But the real campaign must be waged by the children and our families.  Please contact family members and neighbors to seek donations.  We need your support to reach our goal of $20,000.00. 
Mrs. Perkins has asked that we solicit the following items from parents for several future art projects.  If you can save either of these items and send them to school with your child, we will be very grateful.  We need wide mouth yogurt cups and 12 oz. coffee cans with plastic lids.  I am sure they will be put to good use.
Please pray for our school and our students every day.  We need you. 

Sincerely,

J. Haag

Dear Parents,

On Thursday of last week, I was able to give a tour to the parent of a prospective kindergarten student for next year.  This mother had no previous experience or history with St. James of the Valley School.  While it is early to plan for next year, this mother had already looked at four or five other private schools.  She was given the standard tour, and as we moved around the school, I introduced her to children we met in the halls and we went into most of the classrooms.  In the primary classes, each of the teachers stopped, introduced themselves, and welcomed her to our school.  In the primary hall, we met Danny from first grade and Patrick from third grade, and each of them said hello to her.  In the 4th and 5th grade hall, she was able to meet each teacher as they changed classes.   On the middle school floor, we ran into two seventh grade students, Ben and Johnny, who were changing books at their cubbies and who both greeted her congenially and with eye contact. 
            When the tour was finished, we went back to the office to give her an enrollment packet.  I asked her if she had any questions, and I apologized for not talking about our test scores and our history of success in the placement of students in the Catholic high schools.  Again, I asked if she needed to know information about this.  Surprisingly, she became choked up emotionally.  She explained that in the other schools she had toured, she had not been in a school where she had experienced the spiritual and emotional warmth she had felt in our school.  She cited the eye contact of the seventh grade boys, the teachers, the openness of the children and teachers in the primary wing, and the spiritual feel of the building.  It was the same feeling that the superintendent of the archdiocese described two weeks ago.  It is also the same feeling that I have felt since my daughter began here in kindergarten.  St. James of the Valley is special.  
            As we move into October, I need to inform parents that we have started a recess/ study hall period for our students in grades 4 through 8.  I am the monitor of this study hall, and we are starting the study hall with a Monday-Wednesday-Friday schedule.  The study hall will be available to students who want to stay on academic focus, and also to those students who might be assigned to study hall to make up missing homework or assignments.  The students who are assigned to the study hall will miss recess, while students who choose to stay in may go out when they complete their work.   Our goal is academic success.
            As we move into October, we have started our Iowa testing in grades 2, 4, 6, and 8.  If your children are in one of these grades, please make sure that they receiving plenty of rest and good healthy food, especially breakfast.  Children perform better when they are well rested and properly nourished.  If you visit our school during the day for the next few weeks, please be aware of the testing signs that will be posted when a classroom is in the midst of a test. 
            I had the opportunity to visit the 5th grade students at Camp Kern on Monday evening, and they were having a wonderful time.  I was able to watch our children conquer the massive climbing wall at Camp Kern and play some of the counselor’s creative games with them.  I want to thank the parents who volunteered to serve as chaperones and Mrs. Heidel for making this opportunity available to our students. 
 I also want to thank Mr. and Mrs. Strunc for chairing our Walkathon campaign again this year.  Please take time to help us raise money for our PTA.  Your participation is critical to make it a success.
            Finally, I want to remind you that this Friday, October 7, is the Feast Day of Our Lady of the Rosary.  In our school, this is important because so many of our students attend mass at Our Lady of the Rosary.  I wish you a wonderful and blessed Friday.

Sincerely,

J. Haag

Dear Parents,

On Tuesday morning, I was able to witness the impact and importance of one of our  school programs, the Kindergarten / 8th grade buddy program.  A kindergarten girl was arriving at school with her parents.  I have seen this little girl many times in the halls and the kindergarten classroom, and she has always seemed shy and reserved.  Yesterday, as she was being walked across the playground, her 8th grade buddy was being dropped off at the same time.  The kindergartner became very animated and excited to see her “buddy” and in that brief time, I saw the excitement and importance of this program.   I have mentioned several times last year that grade levels do not seem to matter in social relationships in this school, and I think the kindergarten / 8th grade buddy program is one of the reasons that grade levels are not barriers here.  At our Monday morning prayer, Ms. Menne talked to the children about light as a symbol of our religion.  It is amazing to see how both the 8th grade students and the kindergarten students light up when they see each other in school outside of the buddy program time.  Mrs. Lucas and Mrs. Lange have both reported seeing this light in the faces of their students when their corresponding buddy appears.  Perhaps it is a light from a higher source.

Last night, we had our first PTA meeting of the year.  The meeting was an all school meeting which means that all parents were invited to attend.  The turn-out was good, but not great.  Referencing last spring’s parent surveys, you have placed your child in this school for the family atmosphere and quality of education.  The entire process is more effective when you are directly involved in your child’s school and that includes PTA.  You need to support PTA by your presence at meetings and by your participation in PTA events and fundraisers.  Being a parent in a private school requires more than tuition payments.  In this economy where both parents are required to work to support the family, daily involvement in school is difficult. Your child’s education is worth a monthly evening appearance at a PTA meeting or your support of PTA events and fundraisers.   Many of us do not like fundraisers, but the PTA support for our school is critical, and it is equally important that our parents support PTA, PTA events, and PTA fundraisers.

In the future, please note that this letter will be sent home in a two sided format rather than two separate pages at the suggestion of one of our parents, Mrs. Alberto.  Since this will save over 100 pages per week, this will equal about a ream of paper per month and a

box of paper per year.  This was a suggestion that made sense on several levels.  Since paper costs about $29.50 per box, this represents a financial savings and, of course, it makes sense for the environment.  If you have any other suggestions that make financial and environmental sense, please let us know.  I can’t promise to implement every suggestion, but this one was painless and easy to do.

Finally, a reminder that interim reports will be coming home next week on Wednesday, September 28.   I hope you have a great week.

Sincerely,

J. Haag

Dear Parents,

            Now that we have moved into mid-September, there are several concerns which I need to share with you.  Both of these concerns are focused on the safety of your children. The first concern involves the return of all of the forms that we sent home on the first day of school, including the form that you sign that states that you have read the handbook and talked about it with your children.  Each of these forms is important to our school office; if they were not, they would not be sent home.  There are also forms required by the Archdiocese and by state law.  This is especially true of forms involving the administration of medication at school and the forms that involve emergency contact information.  The purpose of many of the forms is to guarantee the safety of your children by allowing us to contact you or a named person in case of an emergency with your child.  This week, we are sending these forms home to families who have not returned them.  We ask that you please return them as soon as possible.  The safety purpose of these forms is so important, state law gives me the authority to exclude your children from school until these forms are returned.  I do not want to do this, but I will if it becomes necessary soon. 

            My other major concern involves morning arrival and afternoon dismissal.  The Parent / Student Handbook explains our expectations for these procedures, but I need to emphasize them again.  Last week, a kindergarten child and her parents came very close to being struck by a careless driver.  Each morning a drop-off lane is set up for you to use.  Parents who are dropping off their children should drive into the drop-off lane; stop; drop off their children; and then drive on to the Linden Drive exit.  They should not turn around to the entrance on West Hill Lane. The speed limit on the school will be posted at 5 miles per hour.  This is not an unreasonable speed limit with children present.  Any driver within the drop-off lane should be aware of pedestrian traffic as many parents prefer to park and walk their children through the drop-off lane.  With children involved, pedestrians have the right of way at all times in the drop off lane and on the school property. 

            All traffic on the lot at both arrival and dismissal should be from south to north.  Parents should enter the lot from the West Hill Lane entrance and exit to Linden Drive.  Parents should not turn around and exit at West Hill Lane.  Parents are always welcome in our school.  If you want to escort your children in each day, you are welcome to do so.  If you plan to drop off your child and move on, use the drop off lane.  Please do not drive into the parking area, drop off your children and drive away without watching them navigate the drop off lane alone. 

            At dismissal, I have insisted that the children stay inside the cones until the parents arrive to pick them up.  This is also a safety issue.  It is a little more difficult with the older students who were allowed to go to the play area in the past, and I have been trying to reinforce this since last year.  My responsibility for your child ends when you pick them up, not when you want them to wait at the library or on the playground.   If your child is to be picked up, I expect them to be inside the cones at dismissal waiting for you or your designee to pick them up.  This is for their protection.  I do not want junior high age children outside of my supervision.  I want your children supervised and safe at all times.  In legalese, the state of Ohio uses the phrase “in loco parentis” to describe the laws and court decisions that allow schools to have jurisdiction and control over children during the school day.  This phrase means “in place of their parents.”  While this may be a legal concept, I think of your children as our children when they are with us. 

           Please read the handbook and follow our arrival and dismissal procedures.  We want all of our children to be safe.  I have addressed my concerns with Scott Dover and Father Jack, and we are in the process of purchasing signage to enforce these policies.  I have seen a number of parents drop off and turn around to leave by the West Hill exit at busy times.  If it becomes necessary, I will ask the Wyoming Police Department for help in enforcing these policies.  While their jurisdiction is not linked to the archdiocese, my experience with law enforcement agencies is that they always act in the best interests of safety – especially when the safety of children is involved.

            An informational item to pass on this week is to inform you that school picture day is now scheduled for Friday, September 30.  This is different from the September calendar that we sent home.  We will remind you of this again next week.

            Finally, this week, in honor of the tenth anniversary of the terrorist attacks on 9/11/2001, our students were able to view a piece of history.  The Wyoming Fire Department was presented a twisted and rusted piece of steel from the World Trade Center Towers, and they allowed us to have it for a day to show our students.  It is believed to be a window frame from one of the two towers, and the frame also includes fabric from draperies of an office in one of the towers.  The steel was mounted on a wooden platform with a plaque reminding us “Never Forget.”  I explained to the students that the twisted steel and fabric weren’t important in themselves, but the significance of them was the tragedy, sacrifice, and courage that this represented. The teachers also reiterated this with their classes.   I want to thank Chief Rielage and the Wyoming Fire Department for sharing this piece of history with our school.  We are so fortunate to live in the United States of America in 2011.  May God continue to bless us.

Sincerely,

J. Haag

Dear Parents,

Kudos to the students and staff of our school for enduring the two hottest days of a very hot summer in a building with thick stone walls!  The students and staff did a great job in spite of the heat and humidity.  I would also like to extend a special thank you to Father Jack and our business manager, Scott Dover, for providing popsicles for all of the students on Friday afternoon as an attempt to beat the heat.  Yesterday’s weather was a welcome relief from the hot summer and for those of who love autumn, a taste of fall that we hope arrives soon.

I need to remind all of the St. James of the Valley families that Wednesday, September 7, will be the first St. James of the Valley night at Buffalo Wings & Rings on Winton Road in Brentwood.  This means that between 5:00 – 8:00 p.m. tonight, the St. James of the Valley PTA will receive 10% of all sales during this time period.  I encourage all of our families to patronize the restaurant during this time and at other times in appreciation of the restaurants generosity. 

On Friday, September 9, our school will have a special visitor.  The Superintendent of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati will be visiting our school for the first time.  His name is Dr. Jim Rigg, and he was hired last year by the archbishop.  Since assuming the position last summer, one of his goals has been to visit every school within the archdiocese.  I am thinking that he is saving the best for last.  Dr. Rigg plans to arrive at approximately 10:30 a.m., and to visit for 60-90 minutes.  I know that I could plan a royal reception, but my preference is for him to experience the school that I love as it is.  We will tour the building and go into each of the classrooms.  I have invited him to have lunch with us to experience the ambiance of our cafeteria with Mrs. Petrey, but he was unsure that his schedule would allow him to stay.  One of the things of which Father Jack and I are very proud is that our school is surviving without a huge influx of voucher children.  If you read the Cincinnati Enquirer last Sunday, some schools are surviving because of vouchers.  We are vibrant because we have voucher children.  We screen the children who apply to our school, and we bring in children who add to our school’s culture.  This is important to Father and to the parish.

Our yearbooks from 2010-2011 arrived this week, and we have sent home the yearbooks with student who pre-ordered them.  Once again, I want to thank Ms. Nancy McGowan for all of her work in making each of the yearbooks so memorable. We do have additional yearbooks for sale in the office for $15.00, and they will be sold on a first come basis.  The yearbook is very well done and a nice keepsake for our families.

I also need to remind parents that all of the important paper work that was sent home on the first day of school needs to be returned to the office by Friday, September 9.  We will send additional reminders home next week, but parents need to understand, that legally, we can exclude children from our school until this paperwork is provided.  Some of this paperwork includes emergency notification information and is important to guarantee the safety of your children.  I would prefer to not take the drastic step of exclusion.  Please make sure that all of the important forms have been returned

Another reminder is that School Picture Day will be on Thursday, September 22.  If you are like me, you might wish that school pictures had never been created.  However, as parents, we always feel different.  We will send home flyers soon for you to sign up for school pictures.

As parents, you also need to be reminded that if you plan to volunteer in our school or chaperone field trips that the rulings of the Archdiocese come into play.  If you would like to chaperone or volunteer at any of your child’s field trips or events, you need to be fingerprinted, undergo a background check, and view the Child Protection Video of the archdiocese.  The parish will pay will pay for the fingerprinting and background check.  Please contact Scott Dover at the parish office or the school office for this information.  The Child Protection Video will be shown by Ms. Menne on the following dates and times in her classroom:  Wednesday, September 7 @ 7:30 p.m.;  Saturday September 10, @ 9:30 p.m.; and 3:15 p.m., Tuesday, September 13.  If there are extenuating circumstances for you, please contact me or Sharon Russo.  Once again, if you plan to attend or chaperone a field trip, you must take these steps.  This is an archdiocese ruling.

Now, that Labor Day is behind us, we should settle into the routine of the school year.  Our PTA will meet on Tuesday, September 20, at 7:00 p.m. in our cafeteria.  I encourage all of you to attend.  Our PTA supports a number of important events within our school. Your child’s education is the greatest gift that you will them.  You involvement in PTA and that education will only enhance that gift.

Sincerely,

J. Haag

Dear Parents,

I hope that the beginning of the school year was as smooth for you and your child as it seemed for the school staff.  Other than a few transportation problems, we felt the year started with only a few glitches. We had our year’s first fire drill on Friday, and we will continue to emphasize the importance of school safety drills throughout the year.  On Friday, we also had our first school mass.  The mass was led by Father Jack, whose homily focused on the importance of working hard and of working together.  This week, our school mass will return to Thursday and, of course, parents are always invited to attend our weekly school mass.  The masses begin at 8:00 a.m. and usually last approximately 30 minutes.  They are an inspirational part of each week and our parents who can attend always seem to enjoy the spirituality in our school environment.

I need to encourage all of our parents to become familiar with our student handbook and to remind everyone to return all of the forms that we sent home at the beginning of the school year.  These forms are essential for the effective functioning of the daily activities for our school and many of them are for the safety of your children, especially the forms that give us the emergency contact numbers in case we need to reach you.  One of the areas in our school which is off to a great start is our food service led by Mrs. Petrey with the assistance of Mrs. McDonald and Mrs. Erny.  The students are enjoying the new menus and the new atmosphere within the cafeteria.  I want to thank the parents who have volunteered in our cafeteria this year; their help has been invaluable.   I invite and encourage other parents to contact Mrs. Petrey and to volunteer in the cafeteria.  It is approximately a two hour time commitment which involves serving the meals, cleaning tables, and doing dish washing.  The children enjoy seeing the parents, and volunteering adds to the family atmosphere of the school.

We also have another bit of business that carries over from our last year.  Near the end of last year, our PTA invested in 100 boxes of candy bars.  Each box contained fifty candy bars.  The first fifty boxes were sold in several weeks and this covered the cost of the candy order.  At this time, we still have twenty-five boxes of candy to sell.  The candy was stored over the summer in our computer lab (which still smells wonderful), but now we need to sell these boxes to reap the profit.  If you are willing to help us with this candy sale, your contribution will be greatly appreciated.  The PTA is crucial to our school and provides many important services.  Please help our PTA turn these candy bars into profit.

As part of this concept of profit, please remember that our school is a business.  We certainly are not a “business for profit,” but we rely on your regular payment of tuition.  We are also a Catholic organization which has compassion for our families and our community.  If you are having trouble meeting your financial commitment, we ask only that you communicate with Scott Dover, our business manager.  Please be honest and candid in your communication.  St. James of the Valley parish pays a portion of the cost of the education of every child who attends our school as a parishioner, and the amount of this contribution is significant.  

One of my goals as the principal is to market the school and to increase our tuition by five students in each year for the next four years.  The most effective marketing is having our parents’ satisfaction with our school, its goals, and its direction, and to be willing to spread the news about our school.   Last spring, I sent home a marketing survey which was returned by about one fifth of our families.  I have read the results and will share the results with our teachers and our Education Commission as the starting point for our future.

I believe that we are off to a great start and I continue to believe that our school is very special in many ways.  Your child (children) and you are part of the reason that the school is special, and I believe that our school staff is special.  If you have any problems or concerns, I encourage you to contact me at 821-9054, or come in to see me.   Your child’s education is one of the greatest gifts that you give them.  I want it to be a very special gift.

Sincerely,

J. Haag

P.S.   On the night of the Ice Cream Social / Open House, we had a pair of prescription glasses left behind in a classroom on the second floor of the school.  They may be women’s sun- glasses, but that is sometimes difficult to call.  If you are missing your glasses, please contact our school office

Dear Parents,

Welcome back to St. James of the Valley School!  We are excited to have your children and you return to our school and our parish family.  I was happy to see many of you at our Ice Cream Social and Open House last Sunday, and I want to thank our PTA for sponsoring this event. In spite of the threat of rain, we had a large crowd in attendance, and I hope that you were able to be here.  If you were not able to attend the event on Sunday, I hope that you will contact us at school (821-9054) if you have any questions and always, if you have any concerns about your child. I hope that your child’s first day at school was a good day.

In the packet that you receive today will be a copy of the 2011-2012 Parent Student Handbook.  Included with the handbook is a form that asks you to read the handbook, discuss it with your child, sign the form, and return it to school.  We are asking you to do this so that both you and your child are aware of our school rules and policies.  One of our areas of focus this year will be the dress code.  Please emphasize that area of the policy with your children.

One of the important pieces of communication that we need at school is information on any medical changes that your child may have experienced over the summer and any physical limitations of which we should be aware.  We also need to remind you that if your child needs medication during the school day, there is a form that must be completed by you and your doctor at the beginning of every school year.  If you need this form, please contact us as soon as possible.  We cannot legally dispense any medication until this form is returned to us.  If your child takes multiple medications, then a form must be on file for every medication.  I also need to remind the parents of 7th grade students that their child must have the Tdap vaccination by Tuesday, September 13.  If we do not have proof of the vaccination in our office by the 13th, we are required to exclude your child from school until the vaccination is given and confirmed.

If you plan to volunteer within the school during the school year, then you must view the Archdiocese’s Child Protection Video and undergo a background check and fingerprinting.  This includes parents who plan to chaperone on field trips, the Walkathon, the October Party, or any other in school or parish events.  Ms. Menne will show the video on three different occasions before mid-September and we will notify you of these showings.  The parish will pay for the background check and fingerprinting, and this must be done at sites sanctioned by the Archdiocese of Cincinnati.  If you need to do this, please contact our school or parish office.

One of our fears last year was that the loss of busing in mid-year to our students who live within the boundaries of the Cincinnati Public School District would become permanent.  It has.  If your family needs assistance with transportation to and from school, please let our office know.  I cannot guarantee you help, but I will make an effort to help arrange transportation for you.  Also, if you live in the city and would be willing to help assist another family, please let our office know that, too.  I am aware already of one student whose family may be unable to bring their children to our school.

Finally, good communication between your family, the school, and the parish is essential to provide your child with a quality educational experience.  I hope that you feel comfortable to contact us if there is a problem.  I am looking forward to working with you.

Sincerely,

J. Haag