Principals' Peek at the Week

Saints Joseph and John School - January 30, 2025

Dear Saints Joseph and John School Families,

What an incredible week we've had! Catholic Schools Week 2025 has been a success so far, filled with joy, faith, and community spirit. From the vibrant classroom activities to the uplifting Mass and Open House, each day was a reminder of the strong values and rich traditions that make our SJJ school community truly special.

Throughout the week, we celebrated everything that makes Catholic education unique: academic excellence and the opportunity to grow in faith. Students, teachers, staff, and families came together to make this week memorable, showcasing the power of faith, service, and community in action.

Be sure to check out the highlights in pictures below!

More events take place tomorrow, as we dress up in our Sunday Best for "Formal Friday" to attend Mass, and we recognize our students in grades 4-8 for their outstanding achievements. It's also National Hot Chocolate Day (donations to benefit Berea Animal Rescue), and students will make cards for local nursing home residents.

This year's Penny Wars was an absolute resounding success! Because the competition was so fierce and the final totals so close, our staff is taking a little more time to carefully tally all the results and determine the winner. We appreciate your patience and will announce the winning team soon! Stay tuned for the exciting conclusion!

Catholic Schools Week is always a time to celebrate our mission and look ahead to the bright future of our students. We are grateful for your continued support, and we look forward to the many blessings to come as we grow together in faith.

Thank you to everyone who made this week such a success!

In Christ,

Mrs. Schenek and Mrs. Francis

CATHOLIC SCHOOLS WEEK 2025

Our Catholic Schools Week celebration kicked off on Thursday, January 23 with the State of the Schools address. New projects, tuition and scholarship information, as well as our growth as a school was discussed. On Sunday, January 26, we had Mass at St. Joseph church followed by an SJJ Open House. We had a lot of current families and new families who came!

Monday through Friday was packed with a ton of fun events and a festive dress code. This week's events included a prayer walk, St. Ed's Trash Talkers and Jazz Band performances, the Scholastic book fair, Spelling Bee, pep rally, Penny Wars, and hot chocolate being sold to benefit the Berea ARF. The money raised from the Penny Wars will be donated to the Red Cross for the California Wildfires. The pictures below show just how fun and faith filled the week has been!

FIELD DAY 2025: PARENT VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

Mrs. Medvetz, our awesome gym teacher, is looking for parent volunteers to help plan and organize Field Day 2025—one of the most exciting events of the year!

If you're interested in lending a hand to make this day extra special for our students, we'd love to have your help.

Whether you have experience in event planning, want to assist with games and activities, or just want to get involved, there’s a spot for you!

For more information or to volunteer, please email Mrs. Medvetz at lmedvetz@sjjschool.org.

THIS PAST WEEK AT SJJ

Mrs. Tinnirello's first grade class had a Prayer Walk in celebration of Catholic Schools Week.

Mrs. Ketterick's second grade class created their own props and put on a play from their Superkids Reader.

The third graders were treated to a lesson in weather! WKYC's morning meteorologist, Matt Wintz, spoke to both third grade class about weather.

Fifth grade was engaged in a Measuring and Observation Lab using graduated cylinders in the Science Lab. They learned how important it is for scientists to take careful measurements when doing experiments and making observations. In Math class, they were rolling dice to find equivalent fraction pairs.

In social studies class, the seventh-graders researched the history of several important buildings in Ancient Rome. Next, they planned out a scale model according to the map of the real locations of the structures. Each group then constructed a replica of one of the buildings. Using a plethora of craft materials, the students tapped into their imaginations and worked diligently to create unique models. We hope you enjoy checking out our interpretation of this fascinating city!

While reading The Diary of Anne Frank, Mrs. Miller's 8th grade classes took an online virtual tour of The Secret Annex to better understand the living conditions that the families had to endure during that time period.

LITTLE VIKINGS PRESCHOOL UPDATE

Our Little Vikings celebrated Catholic Schools Week with fun, prayer, service, and PAJAMAS! We started the week with an in-house field trip with the Gym Skills Movile Gym. Our P4/Pre-K classes discussed service as we prayed for the families in California and assembled toiletry bags for the West Side Catholic Center. All classes are ending their week with PJs, popcorn, pretzels, and punch!

FROM THE SJJ PTU

THANK YOU to everyone who volunteered and supported the Scholastic Book Fair this past week - it was a huge success! Also, a big shout out to Jill Kauffman for her organization and management of this event! We sold a record high $9,000 in product over the week!

February 10 - our virtual PTU Committee & Parent Meeting is from 6:30-7:30 PM - learn about upcoming PTU events, how the PTU board can support event chairs and how you can get more involved! Video Call link: https://meet.google.com/yry-uvze-dqt

February 26 - Save the Date for Culver’s Restaurant Night - see the flyer below. Links to volunteer to earn service hours!

Adult volunteers sign up:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040844A4A92CA4F85-54522400-sjjptu

Student volunteers sign up:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/9040844A4A92CA4F85-54522861-sjjptu

February 28 - Save the Date for our Mother/Daughter event from 6:30-9:30PM in McGraw Hall. Tickets will be on sale shortly.

KIDS HEART CHALLENGE IS BACK AT SJJ

Student Council is excited to announce that our Kids Heart Challenge (KHC) will be taking place from February 7th to February 28th, and we need your help to make it a successful event for our students.

Students can earn various incentives throughout the event, including wristbands, Finn's special cape (for completing Finn's Mission), and other prizes based on their fundraising levels:

$5: Pepper
$10: Wynn
$25: Dakota
$40: Rain
$100: Ace
$200: Riley

More information will be sent home with students next week. Thank you so much for your support in helping us teach heart health and raise funds for the American Heart Association!

ANGEL FUND- NOT A DONATION~A DOLLAR-FOR-DOLLAR TAX CREDIT

We have received many inquiries about the Angel Fund. This is a direct, dollar for dollar tax credit against your state tax liability.

For individual returns, your maximum credit is $750 and for couples filing jointly, your maximum credit is $1,500.

Simply put, if you are going to owe the state taxes, please contribute to the Angel Fund. You have until April 15th, 2025 to contribute to the Angel Fund in order to receive the credit against your 2024 tax return.

Would you rather your tax money go to the state or to our school?

It’s that simple. Below are the steps:

Click here: Donate to Angel Scholarship Fund | Catholic Community Foundation | Cleveland, OH
Fill in the following (if your Parish is St. Joseph, select: St. Joseph – Strongsville - #289
Fill out payment information and submit.
Print/Save your receipt.

KEEPING SJJ HEALTHY: A FRIENDLY WELLNESS REMINDER

We have recently noticed an uptick in illnesses among our students, including cases of Influenza. The school has been working closely with the Cuyahoga County Board of Health this past week to help ensure the health and well-being of our entire school community,

We ask that you review the resources the Department has provided to families, found below.

We would also like to take this opportunity to remind families of an important protocol:

Please keep your child at home if they are not feeling well, and ensure they stay home until they have been fever-free for at least 24 hours without the use of medication.

Your partnership in adhering to this policy makes a significant difference in preventing the spread of illness and supporting the health of all students and staff.

We know that it can be challenging to balance school attendance and illness, but by staying vigilant and keeping students home when necessary, we can all contribute to a healthier, safer learning environment.

SCHOOL POLICY FOR ILLNESS (p. 27 of the Saints Joseph and John School Handbook)

Please keep your student home if there is evidence of sore throat, fever, nausea, rash, swollen glands, eye infections, etc.

School guidelines for when to return to school after an illness are:

Conjunctivitis: 24 hrs after treatment is started.

Cough: Cough no longer persistent especially with thick/constant nasal drainage.

Diarrhea: 24 hrs after last episode without use of medicine.

Fever: 24 hrs after fever-free.

Head Lice: Hair is treated and nit-free.

Impetigo: 24 hrs after treatment start; sores should be covered.

Ringworm: 24 hrs after treatment starts; area should be covered.

Strep Throat : 24 hrs after treatment starts and fever free.

Vomiting: 24 hrs after last episode without use of medicine.

VIKING CAFE UPDATES

SJJ'S OFFICIAL COLORS, LOGOS and FONTS

SAVE THE DATE

2024-2025 DAILY SCHEDULE

PLEASE NOTE THE SCHOOL SCHEDULE FOR THE NEW SCHOOL YEAR:

MORNING

6:30 am- Mornings at Cove opens (pre-registration is required, fee involved)

7:15 am- Building opens and students may enter the building to report directly to McGraw Hall.

Car drop-offs may not occur prior to 7:15am unless students are being dropped off at Viking Cove

7:30am- Teachers pick up students from McGraw Hall and escort students to homeroom. Students arriving after 7:30am report directly to their classrooms.

7:45 am- Tardy Bell Rings.
Students not in their seats and ready to learn at 7:45 am will be marked tardy.

AFTERNOON

2:00pm- End of day bell, dismissal after closing prayers.

Saints Joseph and John School offers a safe, teacher-operated before- and after-school care program for K-8 students enrolled in our school: Viking Cove and Mornings at Cove.

Viking Cove is our after-school care program in our Viking Visionary Center. Available for students in grades K-8, Viking Cove operates from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm. During their time in Viking Cove, students will have access to supervised homework time, after-school snacks, outdoor activities, open gym time, and the resources of our Viking Visionary Center.

Please note that Viking Cove is offered every day that school is in session, except for scheduled early release days and the last day of school. The fee for Viking Cove is $5 per hour per student, with charges billed in 60-minute increments.

In addition to Viking Cove, we offer our Mornings at the Cove, our new before-school care program. Open to students in grades K-8, Mornings at the Cove takes place between 6:30 AM and 7:15 AM. Students will receive a light breakfast and be taken to McGraw Hall at 7:15 AM. There is a flat rate Mornings at the Cove of $10 per student for this program.

Please click here if you would like more information.

We believe Viking Cove and Mornings at the Cove provide valuable support and care for our students and their families. If you have any questions or need further information about these programs, please do not hesitate to reach out to Mrs. Rosanne Puliafico at rpuliafico@sjjschool.org.

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If your child is attending Viking Cove or Mornings at Cove be sure to sign up for our REMIND messaging. On your iPhone or Android phone, open your web browser and go to the following link: rmd.at/vikingcove. Follow the instructions to sign up for Remind. You’ll be prompted to download the mobile app.

For pick up send a REMIND 10 minutes before arriving. A teacher will have your child ready at Door E and bring them out to the car. Please pull into the parking lots outside Door E.

If you need your child to attend MORNINGS AT COVE send a REMIND to notify staff you will be dropping off in the morning. Mornings at Cove drop-off begins at 6:30 A.M.

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Viking Cove is always looking for new or slightly used games, toys, flashcards, and puzzles. Send any donations to the Viking Visionary Center. We thank you for your consideration in advance.

DRESS CODE REMINDERS

Please follow the guidelines as stated in the SJJ Student Handbook:

Field Trips: Traditional School Uniform or Gym Uniform (based on the nature of the trip and determined by administration).

Spirit Wear Days: On designated days, students may wear school-approved spirit wear (sold by the SJJ PTU or purchased through CYO only) with uniform bottoms and school shoes. If this day falls on a gym day for some students, the student may wear gym uniform bottoms and tennis shoes with their spirit wear top.

Our students have been doing a great job adhering to the dress code so far this year. To keep this year running smoothly we ask that parents and students familiarize themselves with the Dress Up Day policy.

When students are permitted to be out of uniform, they will dress up. Days include but may not be limited to:

Picture Day: Dress Up Only
Birthday: Dress Up Only
Dress Up Day defined:

Girls may wear dresses, skirts, blouses, sweaters, dress shoes, dress slacks. Make-up and

jewelry guidelines apply.

**Note: Leggings or tights are permitted only with uniform length skirts or dresses.

Boys may wear slacks, dress shorts (during warm weather uniform months), collared shirts, dress shirts, ties, sweaters, dress shoes, socks appropriate for school.

Jewelry guidelines apply.

The following items are not permitted to be worn on a Dress Up/Out of Uniform Day:

Tanks, sleeveless, or narrow strap tops; Top that are revealing low-cut necklines, or expose bare midriffs when sitting, stretching, stooping, etc.; Athletic shorts or jeans; Pajama pants;

Low or sagging pants or shorts; Skirts or dresses shorter than the top of the knee; If dresses or skirts are shorter than the top of the knee, they must be paired with tights or leggings;

Leggings or other tight fitting pants, unless paired with uniform length skirts or dresses;

Ripped or torn clothing; Hoodies

Administration reserves the right to deem what is appropriate. Students not adhering to rules on

Dress Up/Out of Uniform days will call home for either a change of clothes or their school uniform. If a school uniform or change of clothing is not brought to school by 8:30am, a uniform violation will be issued to the student.

Students are always welcome to wear their traditional school uniform instead of dressing up.

Please see below regarding the proper names, colors, font, and logos for Saints Joseph and John School. If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Cimino at vcimino@sjjschool.org.