The Metropolitan Museum will be visited by the AP English, AP Spanish, CSP, and Studio Art students on Friday, March 8.  Please note that signed permission slips are needed in order to participate.

Model UN will compete in the annual Model UN competition held at St. Peter's University on March 12 and 13.  Mr. Murphy has been working hard to prepare them for this competition all year.  Good luck to all participants!

New England Prep is our SAT preparation program that Marist started using last year. All freshmen, sophomores, and juniors are enrolled in the program.  The Juniors are encouraged to test the benefits of the program when they take the SAT on March 9 and again on June 1. 

Parent/Teacher Conferences:  Upon completion of the third quarter, report cards can be picked up at parent/teacher conferences, taking place on March 21 from 5:00-8:00.  Please plan on attending to confer with your son/daughter's teachers.  This is the last scheduled conference of the school year.  There will be a 1:40 dismissal on Friday, March 22.

National Honor Society Candidates:  During the month of March, Ms. Heymer and Ms. Sorbara, the NHS moderators will be notifying Juniors and Sophomores of their eligibility to apply to the National Honor Society based on their current GPA.  The application process is rigorous and requires each student to substantiate service, leadership, and character in addition to a stellar GPA.  We wish all the candidates the best!

KISSES!  Lent is full of kisses here! We had "Kisses for Ryan" wherein the kids sold candy kisses and raised well over $200.00 for Mr. Hansen's little boy, who is recovering from a brain aneurism.  Now we are having "Kiss Malaria Goodbye."  Kids can throw spare change into a mosquito net in the cafeteria and for every $6.00 we raise we can buy 3 mosquito nets for children in places where malaria is a killer....so any spare change or penny jars would be gratefully accepted. We know we are always asking our kids to contribute to something but we want them to live in an atmosphere of giving...so that they are always aware of the Gospel's call to care for others.

Lenten Challenge: Students usually come to the Campus Ministry Office for treats. During Lent the treats will be pretzels, harkening back to the original meaning of pretzels, given to children during Lent as their shape resembled praying arms. In order to get a pretzel, students pick a daily Lenten resolution such as "Be nice to your mother." or "Stay off Facebook for 24 hours!"  Oh the groans that emit from Campus Ministry!... but many students will take the "Lenten Challenge."

Junior Leadership Ceremony is scheduled for Thursday, March 14th, beginning at 6:30 PM in our gym. While this ceremony used to be known as the "Ring Ceremony," we have reconceived it as a ceremony to mark students moving into the leading role in our school.  As seniors they will be taking on much responsibility for the younger students. Here at Marist we do not haze. Our Seniors are taught to guide and assist the younger students, a responsibility that they take seriously. To this end then, every Junior will receive a pin marking this new role. A parent or special person in the Junior's life presents the pin, and any other memento, family gift or school ring if they choose, joining school and family in commemorating this special time in their lives. Your invitation has been given to your Junior. Family and friends are welcome. A reception follows.  Kids should RSVP by March 11th at Campus Ministry.

Retreat:  Juniors will also have the opportunity to attend a Leadership Retreat at the Marist Brothers Retreat House in Esopus, NY, immediately following the Ceremony. They are in the process of voting if they want an overnight or day retreat.  Permission slips are available at Campus Ministry and will indicate the length of stay. Voting is over March11!  Students will reflect and pray and discuss the direction of their lives, their new leadership roles and their relationship with God in the beautiful setting of Esopus. Pictures of Esopus are available on our website as is further information about retreat policies. If overnight we leave after the Leadership Ceremony. If day, we leave March 15 at 9 AM.

Community Service: March 27th,   the day before our Easter recess, is our school-wide Service day. Students will receive permission slips in Homeroom. Freshmen will visit the Community Food Bank in Hillside, Sophomores will stay in school and work on painting and other needed repairs.  Juniors will participate in a Bayonne Park beach clean-up.  Juniors need to wear protective gear:  plastic bags over shoes and rubber gloves will do. They should not wear good clothes. The agency provides cotton gloves and we will give out latex gloves, but rubber gloves are better. To encourage initiative, Seniors are expected to sign up with various teachers who have planned service activities. They will meet their teacher at the agency.

March SAT:  March 9th is the date for this month's SAT's.  Many students will be taking them here at Marist.  Parents, please make sure that your student brings his/her admission ticket and school ID.  Doors open at 7:30am.  Also make sure your student has had a good night's sleep and has water and a healthy snack for breaks.  Those students who are NOT taking the March SAT's should see their counselor about signing up for either the May or June sitting.  The best way to prepare is to practice, practice, practice.  Use the free resources at www.collegeboard.org  or see Guidance for other tools.

Junior College Fair:  On Tuesday, March 19, all Juniors will be attending a college fair at Bergen Community College. Buses will be provided free of charge. This is a great opportunity for Juniors to begin researching college opportunities, meeting college representatives and looking at all available majors. The Guidance Counselors will be going with the Junior class to assist them in this new experience.

College Visits:  Junior Parents!!!!  On Monday, March 4th, your students will be receiving a list of local colleges who will be hosting their Spring Open Houses in the coming months.  Please consider taking advantage of these events to get your students acquainted with the schools they're interested in, and making their interest known.  Face-to-face connections with schools can make a BIG difference in getting into the school of your choice.  Also, consider taking advantage of upcoming days off to set up an individual visit or being a student-for-a-day at college.  Contact your student's counselor for more details. 

Summer Programs:  Now is the time to investigate summer opportunities and have your son/daughter enroll.  All counselors are working with students to apply to programs.  Some are competitive; some have costs attached.  Get started looking for a meaningful way for your son/daughter to spend their summer vacation.

College Acceptance Statistics:

• Total Number of Seniors: 85
• Number of students who have applied to one or more colleges/universities to date: 80
• Number of students who have been accepted by one or more colleges/universities to date: 45
• Number of colleges from which acceptances have been received: 50
• Total amount of scholarship/awards, grants, financial aid offered so far: $1,388,800

Voicemail and Email Blasts:  Lately, we've made an effort to send voicemail blasts on a regular, weekly basis, usually on a Monday night at 7:00.   So far, feedback has been positive.  E-mail blasts are more occasional and are needed when there is an attachment or form to download. Please, let us know if it gets to be too much! 

Strategic Planning Retreat: This past weekend 24 members of the Marist community, Brothers, teachers, Directory members, parents, alumni and students, worked with Catholic Schools Management, a consulting company, to design a strategic plan for the future.  This is an important step in the life of any school.  Goals were formulated for the next five years.  The next step will be writing the objectives that will help us meet those goals.  Stay tuned for other news that will follow.

Class Trips Continue:  the Sophomore trip to Philadelphia never materialized.  We're not sure why students didn't sign up.  Next stop, Boston for the Juniors, April 27!  Encourage your son/daughter to take advantage of these opportunities.

Fashion/Talent Show:  The Student Council is sponsoring its annual Fashion/Talent Show on Friday night, March 22, 2013 from 7:00 - 9:30.  We are grateful to alum Sellman Walker who helps us organize the Fashion part of the evening.  In addition, our newly formed Dance Class will be performing under the choreography and instruction of Mr. Adesina Sampson, an Alvin Ailey professional.  Be there!  Refreshments will be available for purchase.

Faculty Meeting will be held from 7:45-9:00 AM on Wednesday, March 13. School begins at 9:00 AM for students. Buses will pick students up ½ hour later than usual. Mark your calendars.

Dress Down is scheduled for Wednesday, March 20. Each dressed down student will contribute $1.00. Proceeds will help defray the cost of our Percussion Discussion group.

Activity Period takes place this month, on Wednesday, March 6. Ask your son/daughter what he/she did during Activity Period.

Re-registration for the next academic year began on February 4. Re-registration papers were sent home via mail. Please make every effort to re-register your son/daughter for next year as soon as possible. This is important for two (2) reasons: (1) It reserves your son's/daughter's place for next year and (2) It enables us to plan better for next year.  Also, all families must complete the accompanying SMART Tuition form and return it by March 31.

Student Raffle: As you know, there are two (2) mandatory fundraisers each year for students. Monies earned from these fundraisers help us close the gap between tuition and the actual cost per student, so it's extremely important that all students participate. You received Raffle Books in the mail. Please help raise money for Marist by selling as many books as possible at work, church or in the neighborhood. We count on your support. Please return your money and ticket stubs by Monday, March 25th.The drawing for the Raffle takes place on Wednesday, March 27. Need more information or more raffle books? Contact Ms. Abreu at 201- 437-4545 Ext. 215 or nabreu@marist.org. Good Luck!

Marist Parents' Association Fundraising Update: We are moving closer and closer toward our goal of purchasing room darkening shades for the gym.  This has largely been through the efforts of several parents who worked the concession stands at all basketball home games and the committee of parents who are organizing the Vendor Bazaar.  Interested in helping out and haven't been contacted?  E-mail Mark Lenzo at mlenzo@marist.org.

The Vendor Bazaar has quickly morphed into a huge success at the hands of chairpersons, Mr. and Mrs. Marshall, and their committee.  We will have over 70 vendors on March 9!  Please tell your neighbors and friends!  Come join us either as a volunteer or as a shopper, or both!  Who can resist? Click here to download the flyer and help spread the word.

A Ribbon Cutting Ceremony to bless and dedicate the new sign out front will be held at the close of the March 9 Vendor Bazaar.  Join us for some camaraderie and some pizza at 3:30 on Saturday, March 9.  You might want to check out the Vendor Bazaar that day as well!  We need customers!  Tell your neighbors! 

Sports Calendar:  Refer to the homepage of our website for the upcoming games calendar!  Hope to see you there!

Congratulations to the Boys' Varsity Basketball team on making the state playoffs after going 20-4 this season.

Girls' Basketball went 11-14 this season but lost to Ranney High School in the first round of the playoffs.

Go Marist Knights!!