We welcome everyone back to a new beginning in 2016, and we hope that everyone enjoyed the holidays.  We celebrated Founders Day on our first day back as it was the Feast of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton.  May we always pray for the light to know and the grace to do as she did!

Celebrating the Year of Mercy
On Tuesday, December 8th, the Church opened the Year of Mercy in response to the wishes and reflections of Pope Francis.  We invite all of you to become familiar with the Year of Mercy by watching this short Youtube reflection.
Please click here for video.

"The watchword for this week is 'belonging.' There's something in our picture of the feast that really brings home the idea of including everybody. We see the three wise men, coming to Bethlehem, and to us, as wayfarers from outside the Jewish people. With Christ's birth, everybody is invited to come in. In church this Sunday, think about all the people all over the world who are in church with you. They may be in the Philippines, or in Kenya, or in Mexico, but really we are all sharing in the same meal. They're here with us, even if we can't see them."

This scene of Epiphany, with the Holy Family, shepherds, and wise men all gathered around the manger, reminds us that we all belong to Christ, and because of that we all belong to each other. How does this belonging to one another in Christ affect your understanding of mercy? How does this belonging shape how you receive and share mercy with each brother and sister of our human family? For we are indeed all one family in the eyes of God, no matter whether we look or act differently, speak different languages, live far apart, or even practice different faiths. We all belong to each other. Reflect in these first few days of the New Year on how you can live with this sense of belonging in the year ahead.
See Archdiocese of Washington website for more information http://mercy.adw.org/r0102/

This year we can continue our year of gratitude by taking time to thank Mrs. Leeanna Burke for her steadfast, selfless, supportive service to Elizabeth Seton High School.  Mrs. Burke has made the decision to retire at the end of this year.  We all have been touched by the dedication and devotion that exemplifies her more than 30 years at Seton. She has done just about every job at Seton, whether in her job description or not, because she wants Seton to be a home to everyone who comes here and a place of joy and happiness.  There are no words to describe what she has done, but I am sure that she will be happy just to receive back the smile that she always gives to everyone else.
As we move into this year, Seton will be conducting a search for a Dean of Academics.  Applicants can be directed to About Us-Employment on our website.

Please keep the following staff in your prayers for the loss of their parents:
Jimmy Brown - the loss of his mother
Phyllis Stehle - the loss of her father
Leeanna Burke - the loss her mother

For the first time, a combo ACT/SAT practice test will be offered at Seton on Saturday, January 16th from 9am-12:30pm.  If your daughter is a sophomore or junior and is interested in taking the practice test, please have her bring the attached form and the $10 registration fee to Mrs. Wilson in Guidance by January 13th. Participants will receive math extra credit. If you have any questions, please email Amanda Lawhorne at alawhorne@setonhs.org.

Please click here to download form.

Elizabeth Seton High School congratulates JoEllen Gray for winning the NCEA LEAD, LEARN, AND PROCLAIM AWARD.  Ms. Gray was one of 32 national recipients of this excellence in education award because of her outstanding teaching and leadership in the LEAD program.

Historic Prince George's County Rotary Club Foundation
2016 Post-Secondary Scholarships
SCHOLARSHIP TO BE AWARDED: One (1) Post-Secondary Scholarship of $2,500 to a high school senior.
Eligible applicants must reside within Prince George's County, be a graduating high school senior, and be enrolling in an accredited US college, university or technical school for 2016-2017. The HPGC Rotary Club Foundation Scholarship Committee will review all applications for qualified applicants. The front-runners will be interviewed by the Scholarship Committee prior to the final selection.
Scholarship funds will be sent to the academic institution of the winning scholar to cover tuition, room, board and books.
Please click here for full details and application form.
Please note the closing date for applications is January 20.

The Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians (LAOH) invites students to participate in our annual Irish History Essay Contest.  The LOAH is a group of Roman Catholic women  dedicated to fostering Irish heritage and traditions as well as "making a difference" in the world through Catholic Action projects and charitable donations.  This essay contest provides students nationwide with an opportunity to polish their competitive essay-writing skills. Five national awards will be announced on March 31st 2016 and winning essay writers will receive cash prizes ranging from $100 to $1000.

The 2015 - 2016 topic is "The Involvement of Women in the 1916 Easter Rising."  The contest rules include:

Essays must be from high-school students
Essays should be between 750 and 1,500 words
Essays must be received by February 8, 2016
Detailed rules, writing guidelines, style requirements, submission instructions, and judging criteria are explained in the attached documents. I will forward all submissions to our National Historian for consideration on February 15, 2016.  
Please click here for Information and please click here for rules and instructions.

For more information, visit our website at http://www.ladiesaoh.com/.  If you have any questions or need further information, please contact Dorothy Reed at dreed@prattlibrary.org or 410-925-1800.

In keeping with our objective of empowering our girls, Seton Diamonds Club has secured Annapolis Defense and Security to conduct "Fight Like A Girl", a 2-part self defense workshop focused on teaching women and girls what they should pay attention to in their surroundings and relationships, as well as things they can do to protect themselves. In addition to the lecture, they will do a 2-hour demonstration class where instructors will teach maneuvers that can be used in the event of danger. We will break these sessions up into 2 separate days. The breakdown of the program is as follows:

Classroom Portion (Friday, January 29, 2016, 3-5pm):
(Approximately 2 hours)
Roommates & new friends
Dorm Life
Parking areas & common spaces
Social Settings
Red flags in unhealthy relationships
Date rape
Trusting your senses
Discussion of strikes, elbows, kicks and how to use your voice as a tool
 
Hands on Portion (Friday, February 5, 2016, 3-5pm):
(Approximately 2 hours)
Basic strikes
Basic knees
Basic elbows
Heel palm strikes
Reverse elbow strike
Weak & strong spots
Striking do's and don'ts
Car drills - trunk release, how to disable a light/signal when in a trunk, how to stop an abduction when you are in your car.
 
Here is a link to a news story done on the program:

http://annapolisdefense.com/women-only-fight-like-a-girl/

The cost per student is $55 (normally $125). Because we have a very large group this year and there is a limited student to instructor ratio, we will need to do this on a first come/first serve basis. Once slots are filled, the workshops will close. If you are interested in having your daughter participate, please print, sign and return the attached waiver and consent form along with payment (checks made out to ESHS; Diamonds Self-Defense in memo) no later than Friday, January 15. We must have both forms AND payment in order to secure your daughter's spot.

Thanks for all of your support,
Jodie Johnson, Club Moderator

Forms:
Seton Diamonds Self Defense Permission Form
Self Defense Waiver

Please click here to view cafeteria menu.

The Senior Class is need of chaperone assistance for their  #SnoCo2k16 Semi-Formal Dance is on Friday, January 15th from. Help is needed from 7:30 pm to 11:15 pm.  Specifically, we need parents who are willing to be outside monitoring the parking lots, and parents who are willing to be inside where the music can be heard (working the check-in table, food and drink tables, and monitoring halls and doors). If you are available and willing, please email Mr. Jonathan Flores jflores@setonhs.org with your name, and your daughter's name and SID number by Tuesday, January 12th. Please specify if you are willing to be outside. Thank you!
 

The Seton Theatre Company is in need of parent volunteers to help build and paint sets/props for our upcoming January production. We will be working on the projects over the holiday break. If you are handy with tools or a paint brush and would like to support our theater club, please email Jodie Johnson, the club moderator, at jjohnson@setonhs.org for more details. Any time you donate will count toward your volunteer hours. Thank you!
 

Please contact the ESHS PCO at pco.setonhs.org or visit the Parent Organization page located at www.setonhs.org > About Us for more PCO information or please click here.
 

The Athletic Department is looking for a few volunteers to serve on the Athletic Booster Club. If interested and would like more details, please e-mail Candy Cage, the Director of Athletics at: ccage@setonhs.org

Delegate Tarlau's Scholarship
Applications are available in the guidance office for students who live in Delegate Tarlau's District, 47A,

The  Seton Crew Team is campaigning on the "RallyMe" site for a much needed new/gently used boat. Please see below details of the site and how to donate.

The Seton Crew RallyMe fund raising site can be accessed at the link below:

https://www.rallyme.com/rallies/2307/roadrunners

For this type of fundraiser to be successful, everyone involved, both rowers and parents need to get the word out in every way possible.  There are several options for sharing the Rally via email and Social Media.  This should be shared early and often.  Don't limit yourself to who and how you share, friends, family, acquaintance's, co-workers  (if that's an option) complete strangers and even businesses.

Once on the site the Rally can be shared easily to several Social Media sites and email by simply using the "Share This Rally" buttons shown here in the red box.  Click the button logon and share away.

If you wish to receive text alerts from Seton then please text SETONHS to 84576. You will receive a confirmation text, please complete the requested details.

If you wish to refer to past issues of Parent and Student Announce please click here.