It is so great to be back at school! The first two weeks have gone smoothly, and I can see that all of St. Joseph's RCS students are excited to be back. I would like to thank everyone for all they have done to help make sure these first two weeks have gone well.

Please be aware that we will begin taking our baseline Scantron tests this week, for grades 1-8. Throughout the year students in 1st-8th Grade will take a fall (baseline), winter (mid-year), and spring (end-of-year). These tests are an excellent tool for our teachers in determining what areas are strengths and what areas need improvement, in addition to their regular observations in class. Our teachers can then differentiate instruction to make sure our instruction is truly student centered. Please help us in expressing the importance of this test to your child, and make sure they get a good night's sleep and healthy breakfast before school.

St. Joseph's RCS is starting to get noticed around town, we set up a booth at this year's Greenbelt Labor Day Festival, and we won 2nd place out of all the information booths there! You can check out our pictures on facebook and twitter.

We love to have our parents and family members visit and help out around the school. Have you done taken the Child Protection class yet (Virtus)? If not please go to www.virtus.org and sign up for the class here at St. Joseph's RCS on September 28th, 7:00PM.

This summer St. Joseph's RCS also launched our new website www.stjosrcs.org You can still access this the same way through the churches website, or you can type in the website address to your web browser. The 2015-16 School Calendar and School Handbook is posted here. If you're looking for us on social media you can access our Facebook page and twitter handle, @StJosephsRCS on the new school website. If you haven't done so yet, please like us on Facebook and follow us on twitter!

On a final note, St. Joseph's RCS is GROWING! We have 190 students enrolled for this year, that is over 10% growth from the start of last year! Way to go St. Joseph! Way to go Teachers! Way to go families!

"Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you encounter various trials, for you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. And let perseverance be perfect, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." James 1:2-4

Zach Hooker, Principal

From the Home and School Association

HSA Dates of Note

11th Annual Crab Feast - Saturday, September 26, 2015 - DOUBLE HOURS WILL BE EARNED for volunteering at the Crab Feast
1st Annual Golf Tournament - Cross Creek Golf Club in Beltsville - Monday, October 5, 2015

We are looking for a Chair for our upcoming Donuts with Dad which will be held on Wednesday, October 14, 2015, from 7:30-8:00 am. Ten volunteer service hours will be given for chairing this event.

The HSA Board is still looking for a co-volunteer coordinator, and a Kellogg's Family Rewards coordinator. Please contact Marianne Schwenz for more information at schwenzm@comcast.net.

Please visit the HSA's Google Site for answers to any questions you may have and to log your volunteer hours. You can also call any of our board members at any time.

Home & School Website:

https://sites.google.com/site/stjosephregionalhsa/

If you have any questions or need more information about any of our fundraisers or volunteer service hours, please contact Marianne Schwenz at schwenzm@comcast.net

Marianne Schwenz

President, Home and School Association

St. Joseph's Regional Catholic School
schwenzm@comcast.net

home 301.572.2229

cell 240.508.9957

fax 301.572.0073

SJRCS Inaugural Golf Tournament

St. Joseph's Regional Catholic School

Inaugural Golf Tournament

St. Joseph's RCS will be celebrating our Inaugural Golf Tournament this fall! We are excited about the opportunity to spend a day out on the course with family and friends, to celebrate all the great accomplishments and improvements St. Joseph's RCS has taken on in recent years, and those to follow. Please join us early this fall! Follow the link below for more information, registration, and sponsorship opportunities.

Flyer and Registration

Sponsorship Flyer

Sponsorship Registration Form

(Click here)

Alumni Section!

There is a Facebook Page especially for the Alumni! Please look under "St. Joseph's Beltsville Catholic School Alumni" Click here to go see!

Child Protection Electronic Background Screening

Child Protection Electronic Background screening will now be available for St. Joseph's Parish & St. Joseph's Regional Catholic School in the school office from 8:30 am - 10:00am Wednesdays & Thursdays. Please contact Mrs. Stock in the school office at 301-937-7154 or by e-mail at schooloffice@stjos.org to schedule an appointment. You will need to bring your volunteer application, 2 forms of ID and payment of $13.50, checks made out to St. Joseph's or cash.

School Facebook Page

If you haven't already "liked" us on Facebook, please take a moment to click this link and "like" our new Saint Joseph's Regional Catholic School Page.

https://www.facebook.com/stjosephbeltsville

or find us by typing SAINT Joseph's Regional Catholic School.
Thank you!

Volunteer Opportunities

Monday morning envelope stuffers
Parents to help on picture day, September 15

Both require ADW Child Protection Program completion.

Room Parents 2015-2016

A "Call for Room Parents" can be found in your family's clear communication envelope today! If you are interested in being room parent for your child's class, please call the school office (301-937-7154) and leave your name, email address and which grade you are interested in helping with.

You will be contacted by the Room Parent Coordinator, Marianne Schwenz, once all classrooms have at least one volunteer. There will be a room parent meeting at the end of September, date TBA.

Time to Raise Funds W/O Fundraising!

St Joseph's Regional Catholic School, Beltsville

Invites you to Join:

It's Time to Raise Funds Without Fundraising!

With the Benefit mobile app you buy and redeem retailer gift cards instantly. Every purchase results in a percentage of the transaction going to support St. Joseph's Regional Catholic School, Beltsville. Track all of your balances, and see your contributions at the tap of a finger. Not a dime is asked beyond your typical shopping spend, and it's as easy as paying with a credit card. It's totally frictionless fundraising/See it in action!

How to participate:

Download the Benefit app for iPhone or Android
Sign up and follow the prompts
Find St. Joseph's Regional Catholic School, Beltsville by typing in St. Joseph's Regional Catholic School, Beltsville into the search field.

For more information, please see https://www.benefit-mobile.com/

St. Joseph's RCS Walk With Francis

St. Joseph's Regional Catholic School has pledged to pray, serve, and act in preparation for Pope Francis's visit. Yesterday's second reading, James 2:14-18, states, "What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister has nothing to wear and has no food for the day, and one of you says to them, 'Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well,' but you do not give them the necessities of the body, what good is it? So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead. Indeed someone might say, 'You have faith and I have works.' Demonstrate your faith to me without works, and I will demonstrate my faith to you from my works."

In this spirit, we are launching a

Canned Food Drive

September 14-18!

Both St. Joseph's and St. Hugh's Churches house food pantries to serve the community in need. We are hoping to restock their shelves. Please send canned food, especially pasta and sauces, as well as cleaning supplies. The class with the most donations (percentage to number of students), by Friday, September 18, 2015. will get their picture taken with our Pope cut-out and their picture will be our Facebook background. Please visit our facebook page.

How are you walking with Francis?

Pray- SJRCS, Mr. DiGiovanni, Mrs. Miller, 6th Grade, 7th Grade, 8th Grade, Pre-K

Serve- SJRCS, Mr. Hooker, Mrs. Montoya, 6th Grade, 7th Grade, 8th Grade,

Act- SJRCS, Mrs. Rella, Mr. House, 6th Grade, 7th Grade, 8th Grade,

Look for more next week!

Calendar Events

Sept 14 Exaltation of the Holy Cross

Good Counsel HS Visits

Sept 15 School Advisory Board

School Pictures--Uniforms

Pallotti HS Visits

Sept 16 Grade Level Team Meeting

Sept 18 Student Council Elections

Sept 21 Feast of Saint Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist

Holy Child HS Visits

Sept 23 Home & School Hot Lunch Begins-- 3 Bros Pizza

Sept 24 Box Top Tag Day

Sept 25 Noon Dismissal

Teacher Inservice

Sept 26 HSA/CYO Crab Feast

Sept 28 Virtus Training 7 PM

Sept 29 Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, Archangels

Sept 30 Faculty Meeting

Hot Lunch--Chick-Fil-A

_____________________________________________________________

Oct 1 Band Begins

Oct 5 Holy Cross/Gonzaga, Archbishop Carroll HSs Visit

Oct 6 DeMatha/Elizabeth Seton HSs Visit

Oct 7 McNamara, St. John's HSs Visit
Hot Lunch--Papa John's Pizza
Oct 14 Hot Lunch--3 Bros. Subs

Donuts with Dad
Oct 21 Hot Lunch--Hot Dogs

Oct 28 Hot Lunch--3 Bros Ravioli

Phone: 301-937-7154

Fax: 301-937-1467

Email: schooloffice@stjosrcs.org

Email: principal@stjosrcs.org

Website: http://www.stjosrcs.org

Archdiocese Band Website:

ADWBAND.com

Sincerely,

St. Joseph's Regional Catholic School

11011 Montgomery Road

Beltsville, MD 20705