Breastplate of Saint Patrick Prayer

Feast Day: March 17

Christ with me,

Christ before me,

Christ behind me,

Christ in me,

Christ beneath me,

Christ above me,

Christ on my right,

Christ on my left,

Christ when I lie down,

Christ when I sit down,

Christ when I arise,

Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,

Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,

Christ in every eye that sees me,

Christ in every ear that hears me.

Lenten Resources

Next editions of the Office of Catholic Schools Newsletter:

Wednesday, April 5

Friday, April 21

Thank you, Todd!

Dear Presidents and Principals,

As you know, Todd Blahnik has resigned after six years of service to the Diocese of Green Bay as Superintendent of Catholic Schools. We are grateful for his work in implementing the Meitler Study findings and overseeing the Office as our Catholic Schools experienced an increase in enrollment. Please keep Todd in your prayers as he moves on to serve the Lord in a new role.

I am happy to be serving you as the interim director for the Catholic Schools while the search for a new Superintendent of Catholic Schools is underway. We hope to have a new Superintendent in short order. Please keep this search in your prayers. In the meantime, you can reach out to me at (920) 272-8178 or [email protected]. As always you can also reach out to the Catholic Schools team:

Jamie Hahn (Associate Superintendent of Mission Effectiveness and Leadership Formation) at (920) 272-8280 or [email protected]

Jamie is happy to assist with questions or issues such as School Choice, WRISA / Accreditation, New Administrators, Governance Policies, Grants, etc.

Liz Goldman (Associate Superintendent of Instruction and Academic Accountability) at (920) 272-8163 or [email protected]

               Liz is happy to assist with questions or issues such as Curriculum, Assessment, New Teacher Training, Mentor Training, WCRIS, etc.

Debbie Linnane (Office Manager and Administrative Assistant for Catholic Schools) at (920) 272-8303 or [email protected]

               Debbie is happy to assist you in your needs and connect you to the right resources or people.

Thank you in advance for your prayers for our next Superintendent of Catholic Schools. Please know of my and the Catholic School team’s prayers for each one of you and the parents, children and people you serve through our Catholic Schools.

In Christ, Peter

Dr. Peter Murphy, D.Min.

Associate Director of the Curia

Diocese of Green Bay

[email protected]

(920) 272-8178

Prayer Request

We ask for your prayers for the Divine Savior School Community. Last year, a school mother died from COVID. Her children were in 1st and 4th grade. Several weeks ago, their father died in a snowmobile accident. This young couple valued Catholic education, so the family and community are working to keep the students in their Catholic school "home." Please pray for these young children, their family, and the Divine Savior School community as they deal with these tragic losses.

Just a few notes...

Do you have a teacher who would be a great mentor to new teachers?

• Mentor Training Sign up here.

Are you or any of your school teachers attending the National Catholic Education Conference in Texas this April? We would love to connect with our Diocese of Green Bay participants.

• NCEA Conference Attendees click here. (please share with attendees

SAVE THE DATES 

• Sophia Institute
• August 1: Faith & Science
• August 2: Eucharist
• Jason Evert
• August 23: Green Bay (TBD)
• August 24: SMC HS
• Pastor Principal Summit: August 16, 2023

Message from the Office of Safe Environment

We need to make sure we are getting this information out to our parents, teachers and administrators. This was launched this in 2020 so its not new but just a reminder. Please be sure this information is available to your community.

NWEA MAP Update

The spring MAP testing window will be open from Monday, April 3 through Friday, April 28. CRF files are due to Becky Krahn by Friday, March 17. For this year only, we are making the spring window optional.

Register for

Traumatic Event Crisis Intervention Plan (TECIP)

Training Today

Tragic events within the school or parish community, such as an unexpected death, or a catastrophic disaster, have significant potential to inflict pain, turmoil, confusion, and heartache on both students and staff. With this recognition, the primary purpose of this two-day course is to introduce a flexible proactive Traumatic Event Crisis Intervention Plan (TECIP)® that can be readily implemented following exposure, either directly or indirectly, to a traumatic event.

This course will provide participants with knowledge, protocols and materials designed to facilitate (1) competent, thorough, and proactive pre-incident (traumatic event) preparation, (2) subsequent day (after students and staff have returned) deployment of crisis response team members and management of the building response, and (3) familiarity with a variety of intervention strategies and documents specifically designed to strengthen building response following a traumatic event.

There will be a training at the Diocese of Green Bay on April 24 and April 25 from 8-4. Please plan on being in attendance both days. Lunch and training materials will be provided. There is no charge for the training thanks to a grant from the Catholic Foundation. Advance registration is required. To register please go to https://connect.gbdioc.org/s3/TECIP-Training-Registration. For questions, please contact Lori Paul at [email protected] or 920-272-8318.

Diplomas for the Class of 2023

If you need diplomas for your 8th grade students, you will need to order them from the Digicopy Portal. To access the portal and to order. go to https://gbdioc.dcopy.net/login 

Enter your username and password - your username is your email and, if you have never used the Digicopy Portal, your password is 1234 and you will be prompted to change it. If you have difficulty logging in, please contact Jeremy Vaughn at [email protected] to have your password reset. 

Click on the Blue Square labeled DIPLOMAS. Follow the directions while choosing the options you want.

If you chose the option to have the student name pre-printed on the diploma, you will be required to download and complete the diploma spreadsheet template.  

When you check out you will be required to pay. If you do not have a school credit card, please contact DigiCopy to make payment arrangements.  

Instructions are also included on the web page and all customer support information for DigiCopy is also included at the bottom of the web page.

If you have any questions or need assistance with ordering, please contact Jeremy Vaughn at DigiCopy: [email protected] or 920-857-2208. 

"Sophia Institute for teachers was founded in 2013 to renew and rebuild Catholic culture through serve to Catholic education." Sophia Institute for Teachers

Each summer, the Diocese of Green Bay hosts a 2-day event for Catholic school teachers and parish catechists to attend. This is FREE to all who particpate. We are excited for the line up planned for this year.

• The Catholic Faith and Science
• Tuesday, August 1
• Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help
• Source and Summit: The Most Holy Eucharist
• Wednesday, August 2
• Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help

Seating is limited, so Sign Up NOW!

School Choice Information

NEW TO THE CHOICE PROGRAM(S) WORKING GROUP

We at School Choice Wisconsin understand that being new to the choice program or a new choice administrator can be confusing and daunting at times. To help alleviate some of those issues, we are creating a working group that will be meeting on the third Wednesday of each month via Zoom, March thru July, and will be held from 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM on those dates. (These sessions will supplement, but do not take the place of the DPI trainings.)

General format of the sessions:

•  Important upcoming dates and what is expected of the school
•  General updates about what is going on with the choice programs
• Tips and Tricks from experts
•  Informal Q&A time

Why you should register for the working group:

•  Your school is new to the program
• You are a new choice administrator
• Succession planning (Never a bad idea for more people to understand duties and requirements)
• Networking with other choice schools and administrators
• Access to advice/guidance from experts about the program(s)

If you or someone at your school would be interested in this opportunity, click on the dates below to register for the Zoom session.

• To register for Wednesday, April 19, 2023, 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM click here
• To register for Wednesday, May 17, 2023, 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM click here
• To register for Wednesday, June 21, 2023, 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM click here
• To register for Wednesday, July 19, 2023, 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM click here

Dates to Remember:

March7-April 20, 2023

• Choice schools administer the ACT with writing for grade 11:
• Paper and pencil format: March 7, March 21, and April 11.
• Online format: March 7 - April 20. 

March 20-April 28, 2023

FORWARD Exam Window: Choice schools are required to administer the following standardized tests:

• Wisconsin Forward Exam for English Language Arts and Mathematics for grades 3-8
•  Wisconsin Forward Exam for Science for grades 4 and 8.
• Wisconsin Forward Exam for Social Studies for grades 4, 8, and 10.

PreACT Secure: Choice schools are required to administer the PreACT Secure for grades 9 and 10. 

School Choice Training

The Choice Team will again be offering virtual training sessions geared towards new schools to the Choice Program for the 2022-23 school year. As we did last year, we would like to extend this opportunity to existing schools in the Choice Program who are interested in a refresher related to program requirements (see topics below). New Choice Administrators and Designees may find these training sessions particularly helpful. The dates and topics covered can be found below. The trainings will be offered via Microsoft Teams; the link to each training can be found below as well. Please note these trainings are not mandatory but encouraged.  

All times are 3:30 - 4:30 on the dates listed below:

• April 12: Summer School, Application Verifications, Choice Administrator Changes, School Information Update Forms, Designee/Admin Trainings - Click here to join the meeting

PSCP Reminder

If a school would like to end the 2022-23 school year earlier than the last day reported in the September Count Report in OAS, the school must complete the School Information Update form on the School Submitted Reports and Forms webpage notifying DPI of the request. The school must then receive prior approval from the DPI to end the last day of school earlier than what was reported on the September Count Report. Prior approval is not required if the school ends the school year on a later date than the last day identified in the September Count Report or if the school changes instructional hours on previously scheduled school days.  However, schools should ensure that they still meet the hours of instruction requirements after any schedule changes are incorporated.

At any time during the school year, schools may make revisions or changes to their hours of instructions and schedule that do not impact their ability to meet program requirements and/or does not change the last day of school. These types of changes do not need to be reported to the DPI. 

NCEA Newsletter Link

Click on icon below to read the latest issue of Catholic School Matters Newsletter from NCEA and Dr. Tim Uhl. (updated link)

Office of Catholic Schools

Questions? Contact us at [email protected] or (920) 272-8273.

www.gbdioc.org/catholicschools