From the Associate Principal

Dear St. Francis Families,

The school year has started with a sprint!  And while many feel as if the school year just began, the end of the quarter is only 20 school days away.  This is the time that classes settle into the crucial content and skill building that is necessary for the remainder of the year.  If your daughter/son has not yet told you about essays, projects, or upcoming tests, please ask!  They cannot be terribly far off and planning ahead to manage the time necessary for success is important.

Common at every high school, the dense curricular time of the fall tends to overlap with the fun fall events.  Making sure students get enough sleep and have enough to eat is very important and helping them balance the workload of their courses, social commitments, and co/extra-curricular events like Triduum and Homecoming.

Topics included in the is section are:

  1. College Information Meeting
  2. College Application Workshop
  3. Senior Parent Announcement
  4. Online Courses
  5. Tutorial
  6. Peer Tutors
  7. Math Help
  8. RenWeb

1) College Information Meeting (In the past known as the Senior Parent Meeting)

Thursday, September 28 is your first opportunity of the year to get direct information regarding the college application process.  Though all senior parents are expected to attend, parents of any grade level are encouraged to learn early on the steps necessary to plan for college. The evening includes:

2) College Application Workshop (for Seniors - parents may accompany the students as well)

On Saturday, September 30th from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm  in Room H32, Mrs. Gutierrez will be hosting a College Application Workshop.  The workshop is intended to directly assist students, so parents are welcome to attend to support their daughter/son.

Students should initiate the application process prior to arriving on Saturday.

(Don’t forget to save your username and password!  Hint…. put it in your phone!)

Saturday Workshop Schedule

Ms. Gutierrez will also be providing students and parents with dedicated time on:

  • Wednesday, October 18 - College Application Assistance (during Tutorial)
  • Monday, October 23 - College Application Assistance (during Tutorial)
  • Wednesday, November 8 - Financial Aid Information Night (evening event)
  • Tuesday, February 6 - Beginning the College Process Meeting (In the past known as the Junior Parent Meeting - an evening event)

3) Parents of Seniors, if your son or daughter has not yet started to complete their profile/resume, they should start quickly!  That is the document they will hand to their teachers as they ask teachers and school employees to write their letters of recommendations.  The letters are quite time consuming to write so the more information the student provides, the easier it is for the person to write a strong letter.  Remind them to include the locations and events they work for or with as part of the St. Francis Christian Service Program!  Seniors who have taken an online class in the past, please see the note below.

4) Online Classes

Students registered for online classes should all be interacting with their teachers and familiar with the login process and assignments.  Seniors who have taken or are taking an online class, must be sure to include the class AND the institution’s name needs to be listed on your college applications.  Ms. Gutierrez will include this topic during her workshops.

5) Tutorial

Each day after school, students have the opportunity to get additional help from their teachers.  And, students should be taking advantage of it.  Please encourage your student (s) to not just attend Tutorial, but to wisely plan which subject’s Tutorial they attend each day.  On school days with three classes, the Tutorial is from 2:10-3:00pm.  That amount of time is ideal for students to make up quizzes or tests and get a solid amount of time relearning a topic or improving their skills.  Please also remind your daughter/son that walking into the room is a start, but they must also explain to the teacher and/or peer tutor where they need help.

6) Peer Tutors

Thanks to Mrs. Colosi, St. Francis is launching a peer tutoring program.  Just this week, the tutors went through a preliminary training session aimed at helping them learn the best practices for helping other students.  Thank you to all of the students who have volunteered to be tutors!

7) Math Help

Algebra 1 students have the unique opportunity to get extra help from an experienced math teacher who has offered to meet with students on Saturdays and during Tutorial.  Stay tuned for more information, but tentative dates are:  Wednesday, September 27, Saturday, September 30 before the freshman VITA event, Saturday, October 21, and Wednesdays November 8 and December 6.  What an amazing benefit for our Freshman students!

8) RenWeb

RenWeb can provide students and parents with up to the minute information regarding attendance and grades.  Please do not rely on RenWeb to replace direct conversations between student and teacher or student and parent.  When conversations between teacher and parent happen before students speak with teacher and/or parent, the student may not be learning the valuable lessons of having hard conversations and being held accountable.  

Finally, the value of sleep and good nutrition cannot be underestimated.  Students often tell me that they do not eat from sun up until they get home after school.  At a former school, I worked with a student who saved his lunch money to purchase much more entertaining items … video games, music, clothes.  Other students tell me that chips and a soda are what they regularly eat for lunch.  Please have a conversation with your student regarding your expectations for their day to day sleep and eating habits.  

 

Sincerely,

Ms. Colleen Eagleson
[email protected]

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