Dear SJRCS Families,
“Let us remember the past with gratitude, live the present with enthusiasm, and look forward to the future with confidence.” Pope John Paul II
We hope you’re making wonderful family memories during our summer break. We look forward to sharing your experiences when we return later next month.
Each year brings a new AOB theme, and this year our focus will be to “Give Thanks With A Grateful Heart” (1 Thessalonians 5:18). This verse reminds us to maintain an attitude of gratitude regardless of our situation and recognize and appreciate God’s blessings in every aspect of life.
While enjoying some "downtime" from the usual school year routine, our administrative staff is working to ensure students receive a grateful welcome on August 26th. Mr. Burrier, Mr. Leslie, Mr. Fairley, Mrs. Price, Mrs. Kiley, and Mrs. Lyles are enthusiastically preparing our school for the students’ return, and their dedication and hard work painting, cleaning, organizing, and prepping new resources demonstrate their continued commitment to a welcoming and comfortable environment.
The Home School Association (H.S.A.) has been busy planning some really fun activities; please take a moment to review all the flyers in our summer packet for more details (many of which need to be completed and returned to school).
For those new to SJRCS, this summer packet includes lots of important information, including the school calendar and special events listings; we look forward to maximum participation! Regarding the school calendar, please note the following updates: we have introduced monthly student spirit wear days and the winter uniform period starts on November 1st and ends on March 31st, extending the summer uniform period within the school year.
After two years of dedicated fundraising, we are thrilled to announce that our new playground is almost here! We extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone for your unwavering support and efforts in making this dream a reality. The demolition and removal of the current playground structure are scheduled to begin at the start of August. The installation of the new playground, along with a Gaga Ball pit, is set for August 16th. We are excited to share that we anticipate the students will be able to enjoy their new playground at the start of the 24/25 school year! Thank you for all of your efforts and support!
To enhance the dining experience for our students, SJRCS has partnered with All About Lunch Catering Services, which serves multiple schools in the Archdiocese of Baltimore and other small private schools. The new menu will feature two hot and two cold entrée choices and à la carte options in various portion sizes: PK, small, entrée, and large. Please note that due to Frederick County licensing requirements, PreK students will continue to pack their own lunches; the PK size is just a quantity option. To accommodate nut-free schools, the company does not use peanut oil in cooking or serve products containing nuts.
Menus will be posted on the 20th of each month for the following month’s options on their website and in our newsletter. Orders can be placed in advance monthly, weekly, daily, or until midnight the night before. Please note that the menu closes at midnight for the following day and orders can be cancelled by midnight the night before. The staff begins prepping and preparing lunches early each morning to ensure timely delivery. In the event of a weather-related two-hour delay followed by closure, no credits will be issued and all prepared meals will be delivered to local police and fire stations or other local charities. If schools cancel the night before, All About Lunch can adjust and all meals will be credited back to your account.
Meals will be delivered to the school at 10:30 AM, with the first lunch serving starting at 10:50 AM and ending at 12:45 PM, ensuring meals are served as hot as possible. Each meal will be individually labeled with all order items listed to facilitate easy distribution and delivery, and will be stored in our warmers or refrigerator. For questions about creating an account, please email lunchbox@allaboutlunchdeli.com. Here is the August menu and September menu and sample pricing. Starting in September, any remaining funds in MySchoolBucks lunch accounts will be reimbursed as we transition to All About Lunch Catering Services.
Middle School class schedules will be restructured to provide a consistent math instructional period. We are moving away from the previous 45/15 minute split approach for math to an equitable distribution of 70 minutes each for Math and Language Arts.
Additionally, we will be offering two math courses for 7th graders this year - “Math 7” and “Math 7 Accelerated.” This will lead to a change in 8th grade courses starting in the 25/26 school year. Those students who take “Math 7” will move into the course “Introduction to Algebra and Geometry” which will cover the prerequisite skills needed to be prepared for high school math courses in the future, while students who take “Math 7 Accelerated” will take high-school level “Algebra 1” in the 8th grade. To support these new offerings, we will also be welcoming an additional math teacher to the middle school team.
With the increase in mathematics and language arts instructional time, each class period will now be 46 minutes long. The school day start time will change to 7:55 AM drop-off, with the late bell ringing at 8:20 AM. Announcements will begin at 8:22 AM, and the first period will start at 8:25 AM. Each class will be 46 minutes, with the final bell ringing at 2:47 PM. Afternoon announcements will begin at 2:56 PM, followed by dismissal at 3:00 PM. This increase in instructional minutes aims to provide a more challenging and enriching educational experience for our students.
Our SJRCS admin team worked collaboratively to update the Parent Family Handbook. Please take a few minutes to read the parent handbook noting the various updates such as uniforms, late pick up fee, academic integrity acknowledgment, clear water bottles, aftercare billing, written/signed handbook acknowledgment, and dismissal walker requirements. A printed copy has been sent to the printer and will be available shortly.
Of note - Friday, August 23rd will be our annual Meet the Teacher Day for Grades K-8. Students and parents are invited to meet their teachers, and students are out of uniform. Meet the Teacher Day is the perfect day to bring your supplies, and the school nurse, Mrs. Froude, will be here to accept student medications. New upper-grade students can practice opening their lockers!
As we plan for Meet the Teacher Day, please adhere to the following schedule to avoid everyone arriving simultaneously:
Last names beginning with A-H - 8:30-9:15 AM
Last names beginning with I-P - 9:30-10:15 AM
Last names beginning with Q-Z - 10:30-11:15 AM
Accurate contact information is crucial for effective communication; in the year ahead, we will continue sending parents notices via the email alert system BrightArrow. Please ensure your contact details are up-to-date in our School Admin program by August 12th.
We understand our students are eager to learn their homeroom assignments. A great deal of time, effort, and thought goes into the student placement process as we work to balance social dynamics and equitable class sizes, and foster inclusive and supportive learning environments. We also want homeroom environments to be positive for all students, especially those new to our community looking to make friends. Homeroom assignments will be emailed on August 21st.
We look forward to meeting our school community members throughout the year and encouraging our families to get to know each other and build new friendships. Please check the calendar and join us at various welcoming events, such as our Back to School Baseball Game on August 10th at Nymeo Field at Harry Grove Stadium and the Fun in the Field event on the SJRCS field on August 15th.
We are truly blessed with outstanding faculty and staff, supportive parents, and excited children. We look forward to greeting everyone on Meet the Teacher Day and again on the first day of school on August 26th.
We believe with God's grace and blessings, this will be a truly wonderful year!
With grateful hearts,
Mrs. Kim Hanner, Principal
Mrs. Christine Bruce, Assistant Principal
Mrs. Ann Coughlin, Assistant Principal
Mrs. Noemi Soto, Dean of Students
You may click on the picture to open calendar view
August:
23 (Fri) Meet the Teacher Event - PK thru 8th
- Last name starts with A-H 8:30AM - 9:15AM
- Last name starts with I-P 9:30AM - 10:15AM
- Last name starts with Q-Z 10:30AM-11:15AM
26 (Mon) Noon Dismissal - First Day of School - Kindergarten thru 8th Grade Only
26 (Mon) PreK Orientation (8:30AM-9:30AM)
27 (Tues) First Day of School; PK3 & PK4
27 (Tues) Full Day of School - Kindergarten thru 8th Grade
27 (Tues) Back to School Night Grades K, 1, 2, 3, & 4 (6 PM)
28 (Wed) First day of School for PK3 who attend M, W, F
28 (Wed) Back to School Night Grades 5, 6, 7, & 8
30 (Fri) H.S.A. Blessings in the Backpack.
September:
2 (Mon) No School - Labor Day
3 (Tues) First Day of Wildcat Care (Aftercare Program)
6 (Fri) Mass (10:00 AM)
6 (Fri) H.S.A. Movie Night
9 (Mon) Story Time Tots (8:30 AM)
13 (Fri) Spirit Wear Day
- Students may wear (approved) SJRCS Spirit Wear with gym or uniform pants
16 (Mon) MapGrowth Testing Begins
- Students in Grades 2-8 may wear their gym uniform
19 (Thur) Mass (10:00 AM)
20 (Fri) Noon Dismissal; No Wildcat Care; Grandparents' & Special Guests' Day
To enhance the dining experience for our students, SJRCS has partnered with All About Lunch Catering Services, which serves multiple schools in the Archdiocese of Baltimore along with other local small private schools. The new menu will feature two hot and two cold entrée choices along with à la carte options in various portion sizes: PK, small, entrée, and large. Please note that due to Frederick County Licensing requirements, PreK students will continue to pack their own lunches; the PK size is just a quantity option available to Kindergarten only. To accommodate nut-free schools, the company does not use peanut oil in cooking, nor do they serve products containing nuts.
Menus will be posted on the 20th of each month for the following month's options on the company's website, on the school website, and in the weekly school newsletter. Orders can be placed in advance monthly, weekly, daily, or until midnight the night before. Please note that the menu closes at midnight for the following day and orders can be cancelled by midnight the night before. The staff begins prepping and preparing lunches early each morning to ensure timely delivery. In the event of a weather-related two-hour delay followed by a closure, no credits will be issued and all prepared meals will be delivered to local police and fire stations, or local charities. If schools cancel the night before, All About Lunch will be able to provide a refund for the lunch order.
Meals will be delivered to the school at 10:30 AM, with the first lunch serving starting at 10:50 AM and the last at 12:45 PM, ensuring meals are served as hot as possible. Each meal will be individually labeled with all order items listed to facilitate easy distribution and delivery, and will be stored in our warmers or refrigerator until served. For questions about creating an account, please email lunchbox@allaboutlunchdeli.com. Below, please find August and September's menus along with sample pricing. Starting in September, any remaining funds in students' MySchoolBucks lunch accounts will be reimbursed as we transition to All About Lunch Catering Services.
Saint John Regional Catholic School
8414 Opposumtown Pike
Frederick, MD 21702
301-662-6722
