The Messenger

September 11, 2015
Vol. III, No.3

St. Michael's Academy

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St. Michael's Academy

Even though this week was a short one due to the Labor Day holiday, it didn't seem like it at St. Michael's Academy. I think the intense heat made it a tough week for everybody. I want to commend our teachers for being strong role models for our students while teaching in extremely hot classrooms and our students for keeping it all together in those very same rooms. Well done!

This past Wednesday evening we presented our "Back To School" night and I thank all the parents and grandparents who, despite the oppressive heat, joined us. We started the evening by introducing our new school theme for the 2015-16 year, "It Starts Here." During the course of the evening, our leadership team discussed the many possible meanings of the word "it" ranging from academics, to family involvement, to admissions, to finances, to advancement. I am pleased to announce that Grade 4C, Miss Wuller had the highest parent/grandparent representation and will be rewarded with a dress down day on Monday. Congratulations!

As we begin gearing up for this year's Walk-a-thon, I hope you will support your child in obtaining donations and pledges. This is one of only two major fundraisers that we do at St. Michael's Academy and the proceeds from this event go a long way in helping our school. We hope you will join us for a full-filled day!

Have a wonderful weekend.

Peace,

Ms. Ann Dougal

Important Dates To Remember!
Please make note of these important upcoming dates: Tuesday, September 22, 2015 The Holy Father Pope Francis arrives in the United States * See flyer farther down in this newsletter Friday, September 25, 2015 at 9 a.m. SMA Walk-a-thon !

News from the Admissions and

Advancement Departments

Admissions

Invest in a child's education AND their FUTURE!

We had a great "Back To School" night this week. From an Admissions standpoint, we discussed the importance of raising awareness of our school and building our "brand" throughout the community. This will be one of our major goals this year. As a parent, you can help by displaying the St. Michael's logo on your vehicle and talking to your friends, neighbors, relatives and co-workers about what a great experience your child is having here at St. Michael's! Please let us know if you need a car sticker for your vehicle.

We are also looking into expanding some of our after-school activities. If you have a talent/skill that you could volunteer to share with our students in the form of an after-school program, please contact the Admissions office. Things under consideration include a chess club, book club, drama club, yoga, etc. We do have some space restrictions and cannot guarantee every suggestion will be implemented but we will entertain any thoughts you may have!

Advancement

Thank You!

We would like to acknowledge the amazing grant support we have received this past year from 4 dedicated financial institutions. The following banks have partnered with us in support of our mission:

Berkshire Bank Foundation
Chicopee Savings Bank Charitable Foundation
TD Charitable Foundation
Westfield Bank Future Fund

Berkshire Bank Foundation and Chicopee Savings Bank Charitable Foundation both provided funding to help purchase thirty laptop computers for our 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students. TD Charitable Foundation provided funding to help support our 2nd Grade Violin Program, which is made possible through a partnership with the Community Music School of Springfield. Westfield Bank Future Fund contributed funds to purchase the math review program Math's Mate. This is the second year in a row, Westfield Bank Future Fund has supported one of the programs at St. Michael's Academy.

We are deeply grateful for their generosity and their local community support. If you happen to bank at one of these four financial institutions, please share our thanks for their support the next time you visit.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Phyllis Lund, Director of Advancement, at 413-782-5246 ext. 1202. With your help, I look forward to an exciting and productive year!

The Fund for St. Michael's Academy

News from Miss Collins - Grade 1

Miss. Collins' first graders are off to a great start this year! They are working hard learning the rules of the school as well as the classroom. The first two weeks of school have been a review of the skills that they learned in kindergarten. Now on to new and challenging material. The looks of excitement and curiosity on the 22 little faces make me know that they are ready for the new material that is about to be presented to them.

Over the next couple of weeks the class will be starting a unit in science teaching them to make healthy choices when eating, learning many new sight and high frequency words, experiencing first grade math for the first time, learning the morals and values presented in first grade religion, as well as bonding as a group to help learning be a positive experience in room 115.

The wonderment and excitement of learning is in the air in room 115!

Classroom Happenings

Grade 8 News

Ms. Kaimi's 8th grade students have been using some new technology in the classroom!

"Plickers" is a powerfully simple tool that lets teachers collect real-time formative assessment data without the need for student devices. Students are assigned a card with an image unique to them. They can then answer questions by holding the card in a certain direction.

Students have also been

utilizing the Math Mate program.

Buddies

Our 8th graders "buddied-up" with our Kindergarteners this week and were very creative!

Perfect Attendance!
Beginning this week, we will be drawing three perfect attendance dress-down winners per week! In order to quality for the drawing, a student must have no absences, tardiness or early dismissals. We will select one from PreK - 2nd grade, 3rd - 5th grade and 6th - 8th grade. Congrats to this week's winners! L to R: Haley Hoang (6A), Matthew Feeley (4A) and Bella Brault (2A)

Holyoke Catholic Presents "Guys and Dolls"
Holyoke Catholic Performing Arts presents the musical "Guys and Dolls" which opens this evening, September 11th at Elms College in the Veritas Auditorium. Tickets are available at the door or by contacting Amanda at 413-777-4701 or by email, amanda.malouin@gmail.com. Adult tickets are $14.00, Seniors & Students $12.00. Performances will be held on 9/11, 9/12, 9/18 and 9/19 at 7:30 p.m..

Nurse's Corner
Welcome back to school! With the fall season upon us, so is the season for cold and flu. This is a good time to remind your child how to practice healthy habits in order to avoid the spread of germs, We also want to remind parents that children should be fever free for 24 hours without fever reducing medications before they return to school. Thank you! Carol Catellier School Nurse

Family Emergency Forms
This is just a reminder that the Family Emergency and Illness Information form is due back at school. We still have approximately 60 forms that we have not returned. If you have misplaced your form, please click here to download another copy. Thank you!

Catholicity
Don't miss this opportunity to watch Pope Francis address the Joint Meeting of Congress in TWO different locations!

News From The Diocese

Pope Francis in his encyclical The Joy of the Gospel continually raises the need for the Church to reach out to people-- in a spirit of welcome, understanding and mercy.

The Diocese of Springfield under the leadership of Bishop Rozanski, has begun planning for an evangelization process designed to reach out to those who may be disenfranchised in some way, inviting them to Rediscover their Spiritual Roots. It is our hope that this process will encourage people to take a fresh look at our church and faith tradition.

In order for us to plan an effective program we need to hear from you about your experiences with the church, the strengths you perceive and the areas which cause you difficulty or may need more attention.

Please consider participating in and sharing with local family and friends an on-line survey now available which will help us understand these issues. It is open through October 5 to all active and inactive Catholics, as well as non-Catholics who work and collaborate with our faith community. The survey can be accessed through both diospringfield.org and iobserve.org. Thank you in advance for sharing your thoughts with us!

Stop and Shop Education Rewards!

Stop and Shop will continue its A+ school rewards program. St. Michael's will earn A+ School Rewards points every time you shop.

Sign-up begins on September 14th - It's simple and easy - just click here and register your card. St. Michael's school ID is 06566. Previously registered cards will automatically be renewed. Now every time you shop, you will be earning reward dollars for our school!

Parish News
Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish, 123 William Street in Springfield, invites you to a "Taste of Italy" on Saturday, October 3rd at 4:30 p.m. in the auditorium at 56 Margaret Street. Come and sample 40 Italian dishes along with amazing desserts, wine and beverages!

Prayer Corner

St. Michael the Archangel, pray for us!

We pray for all St. Michael's Academy students, families, faculty, and staff, and their special intentions.

This week we pray in a special way for:

Mr. Peter Radouskas

Mr. and Mrs. Raymond Terfera

Miss Kristine Jackson

Ms. Mary Cullinan

Mr. and Mrs. Francis Canning

And we pray for all of our dearly departed.

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

Our prayers continue to be with Mr. Rancitelli, who is undergoing treatment for a cancer recurrence. Each week, a different homeroom sends him cards. If your family would like to send a card, please send it to school with your child, clearly marked for Mr. Rancitelli. His family has set up a blog to write about this experience.Click here to read the blog.


Thank you for your interest in St. Michael's Academy. To ensure receipt, please add smanews@smaspringfield.org to your address book. You may unsubscribe if you no longer wish to receive our emails St. Michael's Academy 153 Eddywood Street - Springfield, MA 01118 www.smaspringfield.org 413.782.5246 office 413.782.8137 fax