April 2010 News:

From the principal’s desk…

On behalf of the pastor, faculty, and staff, I wish you all a very blessed and happy Easter! I believe we have had a very productive Lent with service projects, daily reflections on the Stations of the Cross, and our prayer services as part of the Parish Mission.

Mrs. Loughery and the 7th grade have just completed their service project collecting items for our servicemen and women overseas. They shipped 38 boxes of supplies and student-made cards. One of the most touching moments of this project was when the younger students partnered with the older ones to make the cards. It was Catholic school community at its best! Special thanks to Max Ward, Sabrina Sabio, and Lynn Heed who helped pack the boxes. Many of our 7th and 8th graders helped collect supplies, move boxes, and adhere labels. We are grateful to the parents for their donations and to Mrs. Brazier, Mrs. Cutter, Mrs. O’Neil, Mrs. Elliott, Mrs. Cucuzza, Mr. Capozi, and Mrs. Power for their help.

Thank you to the parents who so generously donated plastic eggs and candy. Although the weather didn’t cooperate, the children were able to “find” eggs in the gym. I think they had a little bit of Easter fun anyway! Special thanks to Mrs. McNamara, Mr. Lucas, Mrs. Schutte, and Mrs. Barry for their help in organizing the event and filling the eggs. We are also grateful to Mrs. McCrory and Mrs. Petit for helping and photographing the children as they gathered their eggs.

When we return from Easter break, we will have spring pictures on Tuesday, April 13th. The students may dress up or wear their uniform for the pictures. Only students with their payment envelope will be photographed. These are lovely pictures with a beach scene as the background. They make great Mother’s and Father’s Day gifts. We will also send out the letter for tickets for the two performances of the drama club’s Beauty and the Beast.

As we did for the first quarter, parents are required to come in to pick up the report cards between 5:30 and 8:00pm on Thursday, April 15th. This gives you a chance to touch base with the teachers and ensures that this very important third quarter report card goes directly into your hands. To allow for the teachers to remain late on Thursday, we have our 12:00 dismissal on Friday, April 16th. The 8th grade bake sale will be held that morning (the 16th).

I hope to see many of our school families at the Parish Dinner Dance on April 17th. Mrs. Evelyn Cosgrove, our school nurse, will be honored as one of Annunciation’s “treasures.”

I remind you that when you drop off your children in the morning, especially on rainy days, do not park in front of the school and walk your child to the door. The goal is to keep traffic flowing smoothly and to allow students access to the concrete section, so they don’t have to walk in the grass/mud. Your cooperation will make for a much smoother morning drop-off.

There have been two disturbing trends at school in the last few months. The first is a rash of cheating on tests. I just want you to know that our policy is that a child who cheats on a test will receive a grade of zero on that exam. The second is that the children have been “pantsing” each other, which means they attempt (and unfortunately sometimes succeed) to pull down the gym pants or shorts of another student. The response is that they are just “playing around.” This behavior is completely inappropriate and unacceptable and will result in suspension. Please speak to your children about both of these behaviors.

Grades 4, 6, and 8 will take their ELA exams at the end of April. The teachers will continue to work with them to ensure that they are well prepared.

Thank you for your continued support!

Warm Regards,

Mrs. Kavanagh