Dear St. Rose School Families:
Kindness is in the air as we focus our hearts and minds on preparing for Jesus' birth. What a blessing it is to enter our school every day greeted by the beautiful "Be Kind" mural created and gifted to us by the Class of 2018. It sets the tone for peaceful days focused on what really matters -- helping others and working hard to become the people God wants us to be. My heart is happy as I observe countless acts of kindness by our students whose hearts and good deeds are so genuine.
This morning we had a very special celebration after mass. Second grader Kaela Zemo received her Baptism. Monsignor invited her classmates to stand around the Baptismal font and extend their hands in blessing over Kaela. We welcome Kaela into the Catholic church and pray for God's continued blessings upon her and the Zemo family.
While we continue working diligently in the classrooms, at this time of year we also take time to make special things happen. Our Fourth graders visited the Knights of Columbus Museum in New Haven to enjoy a beautiful exhibit of creches from around the world followed by an exciting time to decorate a "St Rose School" Christmas tree with all of the ornaments they made at school including a tree topper and tree skirt. They joined students from other Connecticut schools to create a virtual forest of sparkling, homemade trees and represented us well.
December 6th marked the Feast of St. Nicholas, who is the patron saint of children. Our Student Ambassadors delivered candy canes and St. Nicholas prayers to every classroom where they were given to students as a reminder of this loving and protective Saint. What a gift it is to be able to speak of our faith openly each day at school; it adds such an important dimension to our children's learning journey.
Our November 15th Parent Survey has officially closed. Based on the 131 responses (representing 2/3's of our families) we received, the results are overwhelmingly positive:
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98.44 percent of respondents rate the St. Rose School community as positive
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92.37 percent of respondents are satisfied with the academic program for their child(ren).
These
results are in line with the rate of growth we have witnessed in the Star testing showing a 23.95
percent growth in Language Arts skills and a 13.2 percent growth in Math skills from May to
October 2018.
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95.35 percent of respondents rate their child's overall daily experience as positive
Thank you for sharing your valuable insights, which enable us to strengthen St. Rose School and provide your children with an exceptional educational experience.
In other good news, as I shared with you in an earlier email this week, we are thrilled that the Diocese has given the green light to our infrastructure upgrade project! Work is expected to begin the week of December 17th and will not disrupt the school days. We are the only school in the Diocese to implement all five upgrades at one time. These advances will put us on the cutting edge of technology and ensure a highly secure school environment.
Please click here for specifics about the project.
We are joyfully anticipating our Preschool Christmas concert on Thursday December 13th at 10:00 a.m. in the Gathering Hall. Parents, grandparents and friends are invited to attend. If you have older siblings in the school they may be excused for the concert but please send Mrs. Wong a note ahead of time.
On December 18th we will gather in the church for our K-8th grade Christmas concert which promises to be an uplifting evening.
Please keep the 8th grade class, teachers and chaperones in your prayers as we make our traditional trip to New York City on December 12th. We are grateful to Monsignor Bob for arranging this special day every year. It is a memorable experience for our 8th graders and one for our younger students to anticipate as they travel through their years at St. Rose School.
Next Friday, December 14th, there will be a prayer service with Monsignor for Grades 6-8 in the Gathering Hall instead of a school wide mass. We realize that this is a difficult day for our community so it is important that we honor the day reverently and appropriately for each age level, as well as ensure the safety of our students. May God's peace and comfort be with us all.
I wish you a relaxing weekend filled with family, friends and festivities of the Christmas season.
God Bless.
Mr. Bardhyl Gjoka
Principal
