November is already upon us! This is the month to be thankful for the many blessings we enjoy every day!! We also remember The Church Triumphant and The Church Suffering. We ask for the saints in Heaven to pray for us, The Church Militant, as we pray with great hope for the poor souls in Purgatory. In addition, we await the end of our Liturgical Year to begin the Advent season. October was filled with great events like the HSA Fall on the Farm, the SGA dance, and of course, Halloween! So much learning is happening at St. Mary Catholic School! Students are increasing their reading, writing and math skills. Critical thinking is required in our middle school to solve higher level math problems, determine the cause and effect of historic events, apply science concepts and analyze literature. Our younger students continue to build understanding of concepts that empower higher order thinking skills. And our specials classes allow the unique talent of our learners to shine! As I observe instruction; speak to students and teachers; and touch base with parents, I am realizing that this is an amazing community!

Below are the results of our parent voice survey asking the question: Why do you send your child to SMCS? I will be sharing with teachers and the school board, these results along with the written portion answering the questions: What are we doing well? How can we improve?

The discussions of these results will drive our next steps as a school. Thank you for your insights and feedback.

Forty-four parents completed the survey.

Another shout out for our very own Maryland State Senator Paul Corderman and his team of lobbyist working with CSX to clear the trees next to our parking lot!

There will be a crew cleaning the area next week. The next step should be to clear the trees to increase visibility and safety for our school!

• We are a learning school where mistakes are met with compassion and followed by reflection, correction, and grace.
• We seek The Truth of our world and our Catholic faith with humility, fidelity and fortitude.
• We are a community that helps each other to become the best versions of ourselves for we are ALL "fearfully and wonderfully made in the image of our Creator."

Email: msmetanick@stmarycatholicschool.org
Website: https://stmarycatholicschool.org/
Location: 218 West Washington Street, Hagerstown, MD, USA
Phone: 3017331184
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/stmarycatholicschoolhagerstown