The Hornet's Buzz

August 16, 2024

Dear Holy Cross Community,

Happy Friday! It was lovely seeing many of our families on Wednesday evening. We could not be more excited about welcoming our students back on Monday. Our amazing faculty and staff have been engaged in multiple professional development sessions to prepare for a fantastic school year in order to fulfill our mission and live our pillars of faith, academic excellence, and diversity. A few highlights below.

I strongly believe in team synergy for school and student success. As such, our team engaged in professional development sessions to explore our leadership journey from Me to We to Synergy to Be Holy Cross and understand how we need each other's perspectives to do our best work and that the effect of our combined efforts is always greater than the sum of our individual contributions.

Security and safety is a top priority, so our team also engaged in CPR, blood borne pathogens, and EpiPen trainings. Likewise, we also had a session on Centegix, our safety response platform, that allows us to respond quickly to emergencies--from the every day to the extreme. These are all parts of our School Safety Plan which is reviewed annually.

Thanks to the incredible generosity and vision of The Brown Family Foundation, five of our teachers had the opportunity to attend a two-day professional development session on Building Thinking Classrooms, together with 60 educators from 21 schools in the Kansas City metro area. They learned optimal practices for thinking that create an ideal setting for deep mathematics learning to occur that can be also applied in all discipline areas. They are eager to share what they have learned with all of our faculty.

I am so impressed and inspired by the unwavering hard work and care of our teachers as they get ready for your students. Our school and students are blessed to have such a talented team of educators who are fully committed to providing the best possible Catholic 21st-Century education to them.

As we begin a brand new school year, we have some updates for our school. Please see below information regarding pick up and drop off and information regarding our new school-wide allergy conscious policy in the new "Nurses' Nook".

On behalf of the entire Holy Cross faculty and staff we wish you and your students a blessed, fruitful, and enriching school year. By working together, we will make sure our Hornets soar and fly high.

In partnership,

Paola V. Clark, Ed.D.

As we anticipate having our students back on campus on Monday, I also wanted to send a reminder about our drop off and pick up procedures. In order to ensure the safety of our students and staff, please follow these procedures. (A note that parents are welcome to walk in their children on the first day of school. If doing so, please park first in the Tree lot parking spaces.)

A reminder of our arrival and dismissal procedures. School begins promptly at 8:00 am every day and it is very important that students arrive on time. Arriving on time ensures that students do not miss important learning experiences such as morning meetings and announcements which provide the foundation for a successful and structured day at school. It also exemplifies a commitment to their education and signal to their peers and teachers that they value the classroom experience. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

• If your student has a sibling in preschool/PK, they should be dropped off and picked up at the preschool/PK location.
  
• If your student has an older sibling, they should be dropped off with them at their pick up and drop off location.

• If your student has a sibling in preschool/PK, they should be dropped off and picked up at the preschool/PK location.
  
• If your student has an older sibling, they should be dropped off with them at their pick up and drop off location.

A friendly reminder that Monday, August 19 and Tuesday, August 20 will be half days and students will be dismissed at noon. Our first full day of classes will be Wednesday, August 21.

Welcome back Holy Cross families! The nurses will be starting a "nurse nook" that will be in every newsletter moving forward. The Nurses' Nook will contain any pertinent health updates and information in the section of the newsletter labeled "Nurses' Nook". Feel free to contact Polly Mandl, or me Nina Haverkamp. with any questions or concerns (contact information below)

New SCHOOL-WIDE policy

Important Food Allergy

-Our school is moving forward to be a food "allergy-conscious" campus.

-No homebaked treats for classroom/school-wide consumption.

-No donut shop or bakery items.

-We will require any food, snacks, treats, birthday treats, candy, etc that will be consumed as a class or school to be tree nut and peanut-free.

-When purchasing any treats for the class or school, purchase prepackaged items.

Look at the ingredient label for:

Tree nuts, or peanuts

Manufactured or processed in a facility with tree nuts or peanuts

May contain trace amounts of tree nuts or peanut

(this policy excludes food consumed for snacks and lunches by your child themselves)

PLEASE BE AWARE that some classes contain food allergies other than tree nuts and peanuts.

BEFORE purchasing any snacks, candy, or birthday/holiday party treats, please contact the classroom teachers, or nurses about classroom food allergies.

A friendly reminder that if your child will not be in school for any reason i.e. appointment, illness, or is out of town please email nurses.

Wishing all our families a happy and healthy school year!

Warm wishes,

Polly and Nina

Beginning Monday, August 16, we will go back to our regular office hours as follows:

Monday - Friday: 7:30 am - 4:00 pm

Noon dismissal: 7:30 am - 12:00 pm

The best point of contact for any student matters, is your student's classroom teachers. Our team will do their best to get back to you as soon as possible. Please note that this may take up to 2 business days to respond as our faculty and staff are tending to students and duties throughout the day. We appreciate your patience and understanding.

In case of an emergency, please call or email the Front Office at gradeschool@holycrosscatholicschool.com and we will provide assistance.

Middle School Parents,

Holy Cross Catholic School middle school students are required to provide their own Chromebook device for use at school and at home for homework. This is part of their school supply list. It will be something they use multiple times a day, every day.

Below is a list of devices that would work for our system and what they will be doing in class. These are just a few options. You are welcome to choose whatever device you see fit for your child as long as it is a Chromebook. If you find another device and want to double check it will work please email me at lloeffert@holycrosscatholicschool.com.

Chromebook device options for Holy Cross Students:

Acer Chomebook Spin 513 Convertible Laptop

Acer Spin Chromebook

Dell Chromebook

HP Chromebook

HP 360 Chromebook

I would also recommend a carrying case for the chromebook. I have seen many chromebooks fall on the floor, get jostled around, and not cared for as well as we would hope. Having a case to place the Chromebook in while switching classes could increase the longevity of the device.

Students are required to have this device on the first day of school and it will be connected to the system for the duration of their time at Holy Cross.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me.

Laura Loeffert

Technology Coordinator

Hornet spiritwear with this year's theme is now available and on sale for purchase at 1st Place Spiritwear. Explore all available options and share your Hornet pride with the community as we celebrate our amazing students and school. This is also a great opportunity to support Holy Cross as we receive 10% back on all purchases.

This week, I would like to share Coping Skills for Kids by Janine Halloran, a licensed mental health counselor. The site that offers free resources to help children handle big feelings in practical ways, including coping skills in school.