230 South Law Street Aberdeen, Maryland,

21001

Phone (410)272-1387 Fax (410)272-1959

school@stjoanarc.org November 6, 2019

Dear Parents, What an exciting week at St. Joan of Arc School! Students in 2nd grade taught us about the saints at the All Saints Day Mass on Friday, November 1st.

Race for Education took place on Monday, November 4th. Thank you sincerely for your support for this event. The students had a wonderful time and we have almost reached our goal. Our Development events such as this help to reduce your costs!

Tonight is STEM Night at SJA from 4-6PM! An event registered with Maryland STEM Festival, students have been working on projects to present. There will be STEM activities for students. The Empanadas food truck will be here if you need a snack! Please come and bring others. A dress down pass will be given to SJA students who participate. The theme this year is Space & Flight in honor of the 50th

anniversary of the moon landing. Students have focused on this theme in STEM activities even training like an astronaut in PE class.

On November 1st, FACTS Grant & Aid applications opened. In order to qualify for ALL financial assistance next school year, you must apply through FACTS prior to February 28, 2020.

St. Joan of Arc School

Grounded in Faith, Focused on the Future

A Reduced re-registration fee ($100) is offered beginning November 1st and ending on January 15th. Re-register for next year early in order to take advantage of this discount. You will re-register through your School Admin account. I would like to invite parents to a Principal’s Coffee on Wednesday, November 13th from 8-9AM. Please come to share a light breakfast and to speak with me and Elisa Maid in person. Remember, if you have a comment or concern, I would invite you to email, call, or make an appointment to speak with me directly at any time. The Archdiocese of Baltimore, Division of Catholic Schools is beginning the strategic planning process. This process prepares our schools to plan for continued service to and provide an excellent education for our students. As part of this process, each school has been asked to participate in a confidential survey to assess the overall culture of the school. This 15 minute voluntary survey is distributed and collated by the Johns Hopkins Institute of Education Policy and will be given to staff, parents, and students. Attached is a letter from JHU, which gives more information and the opportunity to opt out for your child. Please read carefully. Some items of note:

Nov. 6th—Maryland STEM Festival event at SJA 4-6PM

Nov. 8th—Music Man at John Carroll—Grades 3-5

Nov. 11th—Veterans’ Day liturgy for parish at 8:30AM

Nov. 12th—Grades K, 1, 3 to Aviation Museum

Nov. 13th—8-9AM Principal’s Coffee (Church Hall)

Nov. 16th—5PM Family Mass, Dinner, Game Night

Nov. 18th-22nd—Book Fair

Nov. 18th—Middle School Retreat to Emmitsburg

Nov. 22nd—Grandparents’/Special Friends’ Day (begin with liturgy at 8:30AM)

Nov. 22nd—Trimester I ends

Nov. 22nd—Mom’s Holiday Shopping Extravaganza 6-10PM in Church Hall

Nov. 23rd—Robotics League Workshop and Scrimmage

Nov. 25th—Dress down pass day

Nov. 26th—Early dismissal for students

Nov. 26th—Parent Conferences (1-7PM)

Nov. 27th—Parent Conferences (9AM-12PM)

Nov. 27th-Dec. 1st—Thanksgiving holiday break

Dec. 1st—First Sunday in Advent; Advent breakfast after 8:30AM Mass

Dec. 3rd—Environmental Club begins (flyer attached) Peace and all good, Mrs. Bahr

230 South Law Street Aberdeen, Maryland, 21001

Phone (410)272-1387

Fax (410)272-1959 school@stjoanarc.org

Dear Parent/Guardian: Next week, your child has the opportunity to participate in a pilot survey to assess the overall school culture at his/her school. In order to gain a full understanding of school culture, we are asking all students at the school to complete a 15-minute survey that will help us identify the following areas of school culture: Academic Emphasis and Excellence; Communality; Holistic Development; Administration and Governance; and Organizational Identity. Students will be asked to complete a number of items that help us to understand each of these categories, including an optional question about their religious affiliation. Surveys will be completed online and during school time and there is no cost associated with participation. There is no direct benefit to your child for allowing their data to be used in this study, but results from this study may provide valuable information to the school about the current state of the school culture and what areas may be highlighted for improvement. This study is being conducted by educational researchers at the Johns Hopkins University Institute for Education Policy. The surveys will be administered by teachers and analyzed by the Institute for Education Policy at no cost to the participating schools. The Institute for Education Policy will use the results to improve upon their surveys. There are no foreseeable risks to your child for including their survey responses in our study. All responses are strictly confidential and will only be analyzed by researchers at JHU. School and district personnel will not have access to individual survey responses. Your child may refuse to participate and still receive any benefits as if he/she were still in the study. You may change your mind about participating in the survey at any point prior to the survey being administered. Once the survey has been administered, it will not be possible to identify any individual respondent. Absolute anonymity cannot be guaranteed in the case of small schools where only a handful of students fit into identified subgroups. However, no names, birthdates, or addresses will be attached to any responses. In addition to asking students about their opinions and experiences, the research team will also provide surveys for teachers, administrators, and parents to complete. Next week, the school will be sending you a voluntary survey requesting your valued opinions about school culture. You will receive additional details about that survey when you receive it from us via email next week. For additional information about this survey, please contact Dr. Ashley Berner at Ashley.berner@jhu.edu, Dr. Ian Kingsbury at ikingsb2@jhu.edu, or Ashley Grant at Ashley.a.grant@jhu.edu. If you would like to receive a copy of the student survey, please respond to this letter accordingly. If you have any questions regarding the rights of research participants, please contact the Homewood Institutional Review Board at Johns Hopkins University at (410) 516-6580. You have the right to inspect the survey before it is administered. If you DO NOT want your student to participate in this research study, please complete the section below and return it to your student’s school. If you agree to have your child participate, no further action on your part is needed. PARTICIPATION IS VOLUNTARY. Name of your student _________________________________________________ Signature of Parent or Legal Representative ________________________________ Date ___________ I DO NOT want my student to participate

Peace and all good, Mrs. Bahr

St. Joan of Arc School

Grounded in Faith, Focused on the Future

Saturday, November 16, 2019 following 5:00PM Family Mass

Join us in the Church Hall and bring your favorite family game to share and have a

fun dinner with friends. Contact Nate at nmcvey@stjoanarc.org

with any questions. This is an SJA School & Parish Event!!

FAMILY

Environmental Club Fall 2019

Come Join the Environmental Club!

FALL/WINTER SESSION: Tuesdays: December 3rd - January 21st

No meeting on December 24th or December 31st

Time: 3:15 -4:15

Where: St. Joan of Arc

Who: Students in Grades 1-8 (maximum 18 students)

Club members will develop projects that make our school and our world a healthier,

“greener” environment. This session’s projects will revolve around continuing our recycling

programs and preparing the native plant garden and bluebird boxes for spring. We will conduct

research and lead school initiatives. This club will be hands- on and a lot of fun!

Please fill out 1 permission slip for each child in your family.

Return slips no later than Tuesday November 26th to Mrs. Simmons or Mrs. Smith

My child__________________________________Gr. _______has my permission to participate in

SJA Environmental Club.

Carpooling (your child may only go with people from this list):

(List people, other than yourself, that may be picking up your child from the club)

__________________________________

__________________________________

__________________________________

__________________________________

___________ (check is applicable) My child goes to aftercare.

Parent signature_________________________________________ Date ________________