February 18, 2015

Dear Parents,

I have a rather strange goal during Lent. I want to be extremely "contagious."  No, I do not mean that "contagious."  Contagious in this sense is to do something during Lent that I can spread to others. This could be a Random Act of Kindness, not eating a snack at night, or giving more church dues. Maybe I can affect someone else to do the same thing.  Let us all work together to be religiously contagious during Lent.

I wish to thank you for your quick response enrolling your child(ren) for the 2015-2016 school year.  We currently have 315 enrolled for next year.  At the same time it is crucial that you enroll your child for next year.  The Administrative Team of GRACE is already processing the numbers of teachers needed for next year. When personnel is determined, hard data is required in order to make such decisions. Determining the numbers of teachers cannot be done with projected numbers. Your promptness in enrolling your child for school next year will insure the appropriate number of teachers as well as needed resources for next year.

If you have not done so, please check your child's grades on Power School.  Last trimester a number of parents called me as to how their child(ren) was doing grade wise.  The trimester ends in early March, so if you have not checked Power School, please do so.  

Students will participate in Stations of the Cross during Lent.  The dates for Stations will be February 20 and 27.  You may want to ask your child what day he/she will attend Stations.  

 The annual magazine sale will have its kickoff tomorrow.  Although many view magazines online, there are old school people like me who still appreciate a hard copy of a magazine.  If you would like to purchase a magazine for the school library, contact Mrs. Meverden to see what magazines would be appropriate.  Mr. Milligan from the magazine company and I have attempted to provide prizes that are a little more "practical" that students will enjoy working harder for.  In my last school that had 180 students, we raised $20,000 in magazine sales. I don't expect that much from ours, but the magazines along with the sale of the cookie dough should be a great way to build not only for Third Source Funding but also a great way to build school spirit and community.  I challenge the middle school students to do their best.

 If you have taken any pictures of school activities and would like to forward them for the school yearbook, please send them to Mrs. Pagel. She has done a great deal of work already and if we can get more pictures to her the yearbook will be even better than last year.  One of the first things I was able to see when I came to De Pere was the school yearbook.  I was most impressed and the pictures in it were "priceless."

 Our first celebration of International Day will be Thursday, February 26.  The elementary students will attend the initial day at the middle school.  The middle school students will go to the elementary school on March 13. I know the students and teachers have worked very hard with their activities, projects and other items to "show off" their country of study.  Since February is African American History Month, International Day is a great way to reinforce the idea that diversity allows us to appreciate and value the traditions of all races and cultures.

 Notre Dame School has had a number of successes in Forensics and Robotics. The Forensics team took first place at a recent Forensics Competition at West De Pere Middle School. The Robotics Team received an award for their first place in the state in their competition.  There is a great deal of time and commitment in making these opportunities so educationally fulfilling.  Thank you to Ms. Weiss and Mrs. Laehn for moderating the students in these activities.

Six fifth grade boys earned their Arrow of Light Award this past weekend. This is the highest honor they can earn as a Cub Scout.  Three of them crossed over to Boy Scout.  

Students who received the Arrow of Light and/or crossed over to Boy Scouts include Camden Nordeen, Joey Polasky, Max Rader, Sam Smet, Caden Capomacchio, and Will Dwyer.  Notre Dame has many students who participate in scouts.  Both Boy and Girl Scout organizations do a great deal of education in forming a child as they grow up during the ages of elementary and middle school.

The GRACE Chess Team held its home meet this past Saturday. The Junior Varsity Team finished in third place and the Varsity went undefeated for the day and is fighting for second place against Waupaca HIgh School.  Students from Notre Dame who were successful in the tournament were David Gelhar, Sean Giganti, and Alex Broullire.  A special thank you goes to Mr. Paul Lubinski for moderating the Chess Club this year.

Please keep Miss Freeman and her family in your prayers.  The funeral Mass for Miss Freeman's mother will be January 26 at Stella Maris Church in Fish Creek.

Have a great rest of the week. Make sure your children are dressed appropriately and keep your gas tank full.

 God Bless,

James A.( Jim) Clark, Principal

"May all of us pray the Gospel, and if necessary, use words."

Magazine/Cookie Dough Sale -Starts Today

February 19th - March 9th are the days of the sale. Turn in Days are Friday February 27th and the final is Monday March 9th. This is a great profit for our school.  If you are looking to renew your magazines please look here.  There will be prizes given to teachers and students.  You can enjoy the consistency of your existing magazines or it could be a great opportunity for new magazines. For more information please click here

Life's A Beach!!

FUN!  AWESOME BAND PLAYING LIVE MUSIC!  DANCING!  DRINKS/FOOD! SUPPORTING OUR SCHOOL!

Please see the attached flyer for details - click here

To sign up for this event click here

Enrollment

Here are the  instructions for families wanting to deduct their tuition off their taxes for 2014.  The instructions are self explanatory and very easy.

Notre Dame of De Pere Facebook

Yes its true!!  Check us out and like us on Facebook.  It is new but keep in touch with us in the future through Facebook and keep up with what is going on. Check us out here https://www.facebook.com/notredameofdepere 

Free Tennis Lessons - Ages 10 and Under

February 22nd - March 19th.  To read the Green Bay Press Gazette article and view the registration form click here

Middle School Tennis - Rally Day

The BCTA invites you to Rally Dy, An event to Kick-off the 2015 Green Bay middle school tennis league. Sunday, March 8.  Click here for more information and to register.

 Project Play 60 

The event takes place on Saturday March 7th from 10:00 am-4:00 pm at Lambeau Field Atrium and Legends Club on the 4th Floor. This event is free to all.  Click here for more details.

Camp Tekakwitha - Summer Registration

Time to register for summer camp.  Click here for more information

Parent Education

Mr. Clark has set up a Education Post at the top of our webpage. This week he added the topic of  15 Strategies For a Better and Holier Lent - Part 1 Almsgiving. This site is updated constantly. There are many valuable tools in which parents can educate themselves in different aspects of their children's education. Very helpful information. Check it out here.

VIRTUS Training/Background Checks

All volunteers MUST have VIRTUS training and a background check. For more information click here 

Check out what is happening at Notre Dame

There is always a lot going on at Notre Dame of De Pere.  You can stay in the know by checking out our website. We update our website front page with fun, useful and interesting informational posts on a regular basis.  Don't be the only one that doesn't know what is going on.  Check the website as often as you check your email (maybe more). For a quick link to our website calendar click here