PRINCIPAL'S POST
February 21, 2020
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
REPORT CARDS - These went home with every student by Friday. Please be on the lookout for a signup from your child's teacher for a Parent/Teacher conference. We kindly request that you sign up for a time to discuss your child's progress.


REGISTRATION FOR 2020-2021 - REMINDER - Your child came home with a registration packet in their blue folder at the end of January. Please fill out the appropriate form before this Friday, February 28, whether or not your child will be returning to St. Mark for the 2020-2021 school year. Your prompt attention to this is appreciated.


MARDI GRAS - Traditionally, Catholics celebrate on the last day before Lent begins. Called Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, this day happens on the Tuesday immediately before Ash Wednesday. It is the end of the "carnival" season which began on Epiphany. "Carnival" actually means "farewell to meat" and refers to the Lenten season when Catholics observe days of fasting and abstinence from meat. We will join in the celebration by allowing our students a dress down day. Students are encouraged to wear purple, green, and gold which were the colors chosen by the first King (Rex) of Carnival in 1872.


ASH WEDNESDAY MASS - This Wednesday, Mass will be held at Noon. We will serve lunch at 11:00. Any student that normally gets picked up at 11:30 is welcome to eat lunch with us that day and get picked up at their normal time. If you would rather pick up your child at 11:00, before lunch begins, this is perfectly acceptable. Please let your child's teacher know your preferred pick up time.


FISH FRY - We are about to embark on our second fundraiser for the school year (we only do 2 - one in the fall and one in the spring). We need all hands on deck in order to have a successful event. There are 7 nights of our Fish Fry and we kindly ask that each family sign up for 2 slots. There are daytime and nighttime slots available. Thank you for all that you do to help us keep our tuition as low as possible. In the last 8 years, we have not raised tuition - only reduced it. This is due to the hard work and effort that you have put into our fundraisers. You may fill out the paper copy that was sent home OR click on the following link to find a place that you can help: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B084BAAA92AA02-fish1


RUNNING CLUB - We have a parent, a teacher, and a lot of students who would like to get ready for the Ellis 5K in April. Do you think you could help? Helping would consist of being present once a week during March and April for an hour and managing a small group of students. All students will stretch and warm up together in the gym and then we will break into age appropriate groups to run various routes in and around the school. Please call the office, talk to Mrs. Lisa Couch, or to Mrs. Lindsey Perkins if you are interested.


WATER SERVICE PROJECT - During the month of March, we will be joining with the Catholic Charities Office in Lexington to collect water for Martin Co., KY. The infrastructure for clean water within the county has deteriorated to crisis level. They do not have clean water to cook with, bathe in, or to drink. This is not a 3rd world country, but is happening in our own backyard. We are being challenged to donate one case of water per student enrolled at our school by March 27th. Gallons of water may also be donated. We will collect the water in our gym and a semi-truck will come to pick it up. Do not worry about the plastic waste that will result from so much water being trucked in. College groups from around the state will be going in each week to help with recycling. If you would like to see more about the issue in Martin Co., you may view the video that I am including below. It is actually from 2 years ago and the issue has only gotten worse! These people are suffering! Please be warned, there is some strong language at the beginning of the video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnx5i6AeMr8


SCHOOL COUNCIL - We are now accepting nominations for positions on our School Council for 2020-2021. If you are interested in serving on the council, please come to our meeting on March 3 at 6:30pm in the school library. You will be able to see a meeting in action, and have any questions answered, before filling a position. This is a great way to stay informed of everything going on within our wonderful school.


12 GRAND EVENT MEETING - Our first official meeting for our 12 Grand Event 2020 will take place on Friday, March 13, at 6:00pm. We decided to hold it during the Fish Fry so that more families could attend. Please come and bring all of your ideas. We will choose our theme for this year's event and solidify the date at this meeting. ALL are welcome to attend!


PTO MEETING - Our next PTO meeting will be Thursday, March 19 at 6:30pm. If you are interested in serving as a PTO officer, please come to this meeting. In addition to officers, we will be discussing Teacher Appreciation, End of Year celebrations, and updates about next year's 12 Grand event.


REGISTRATION FOR 2020-2021 - Your child came home with a registration packet in their blue folder. Please fill out the information by next Friday, February 28, whether or not your child will be returning to St. Mark for the 2020-2021 school year. Your prompt attention to this is appreciated.
Blessed the man who greatly delights in the Lord's commands.
Psalms 112
Get your pictures in the yearbook! The Yearbook Staff invites students and parents to submit photos for the yearbook. If you've got great photos of school and community events or you and your friends just having fun, we'd like to see them. Our photographers can't be everywhere. Help us get as many photos as possible to create a terrific book everyone will want to have.

Here is how you can submit photos online:
   • If it does not automatically log you into the site, enter username: 414893678
   • Browse to select the photo(s) you wish to upload.
   • Enter information about the photo and provide contact information in case the staff needs additional information.
   • Click "Save Details".

It's that easy! Submit your photos today! The last day to submit photos is 05/15/2020.

Thank you, and enjoy the rest of the school year!

Sincerely,
Yearbook Adviser and the 2020 Yearbook Staff.

The Yearbook Staff will review all photos and determine final yearbook content. We cannot guarantee that all submissions can be used in the book.  
COUCH'S WORLD CHANGERS
Can you outrun a dinosaur? A few of our friends came close in this fun science experiment! We also read and wrote about Benjamin Franklin and his contributions this week.
JENNINGS' JELLYBEANS
Who says learning can't be fun? This week we tested our math skills by playing new games. We also spent time researching our nation's presidents in honor of President's Day.
GANNON'S GARDEN
Learning about science at the Lexington Explorium.
PEARCE'S PUDDLEJUMPERS
So proud of the constant hard work from everyone. We are mastering sight words!
NEEDHAM'S NUGGETS
Pp is for pizza, penguins and play!
ADAMS' PRE-K PALS
Letter R week was all about robots, pet rocks, rainbows and really rad roomies!
WAYS TO HELP OUR SCHOOL THAT DON'T COST ANY $$
Prayer - Please remember our school in prayer as you bring your daily prayers to mind. When you pray, our students benefit.


Kroger Community Rewards - You can enroll your Kroger Plus Card online at our secure website, www.krogercommunityrewards.com and choose “Enroll”. Within 7-10 days of enrolling, every time you shop at Kroger using your Kroger Plus Card, St. Mark Catholic School will earn $$. It takes less than 2 minutes to enroll your card!


Car Magnets - We have St. Mark Catholic School car magnets available in the school office for FREE. This is an easy way to market for our school, it doesn't take any effort, and it will help you become a better driver ;)


FaceBook - Share posts from our page (StMarkSchool). Invite your friends to like our page. Take a few minutes and give us a rating. For small businesses such as ours, it is essential to have a social media presence. This is completely free advertising for us.
Click on the link below and enter our
school code STMA13 to order school uniforms.

KY ALL STARS RATING
Our Pre-K and Aftercare programs have a 4 STAR rating!

Kentucky All STARS is Kentucky’s quality rating and improvement system serving all early care and education programs – including childcare centers, Head Start and preschool. The unified system is based on Kentucky’s Early Childhood Standards and research-based indicators of quality. Kentucky All STARS recognizes programs that have made a commitment to continuous quality improvement and provides programs with additional support including training, technical assistance and coaching.  

Every day in a child’s life makes a difference, so choose child care carefully. Look for the STARS.

529 PLAN
Named after section 529 of the tax code, the 529 plan is a tax-advantaged plan operated by a state or an education institution designed to encourage saving for college. The federal tax advantage is that earnings on funds contributed to 529 accounts are not federally taxed when withdrawals are used for educational purposes. As of January 1, 2018, 529 plans may be used for K-12 education tuition.

We are using a revolutionary program to accelerate your child’s potential for academic, athletic, and social success. This research-validated program is designed to stimulate your child’s  VISUAL processing,  AUDITORY  
processing, as well as their  MOTOR  skills. The outcome is a better integrated and balanced child who will perform better in school and at home.

DeWitt Endeavors

This business is owned by Jeremy & Stephanie DeWitt. Their son is in 1st grade.


Foundation Hand & Physical Therapy

This business is owned by Brad & Tonya Cummings. Their daughter is in 2nd grade.

M ad Mushroom

This business is owned by Kinsey & Alicia Henderson. Their son is in 1st grade.


Matrix Athletics

This business is owned by Dan Quick. His son is in Pre-K.

Edge Body Boot Camp
This business is owned by our Physical Education teacher, Mrs. Laura Lucas.

Instagram: @ebbcrichmond
Business Owners - If you have a student enrolled at St. Mark Catholic School for the 2019-2020 school year, we would like to show our support by placing an ad for your business in our Principal's Post. There is no cost to you, but we will need a copy of your logo and your website address so that we can link your business to our page. If you have any questions, please contact the school office.
Communication
School office phone –  859-623-2989 opt.4
Prinicpal's cell phone –  859-200-9123
Fr. Tom at the church office –  859-623-2989 x2002
Fr. Tom’s email –  tomfnewman@aol.com
Mr. Tom Brown - Superintendent - tbrown@cdlex.org


Remind 101  – Register for this if you wish to receive text reminders and updates. (1) On your phone, go to your text messaging. (2) Where you would usually enter a phone number, type in  81010.  (3) Where you would usually type a message, put in  @stmarkca.  4) Wait 1-2 minutes and you will receive a text that lets you know that you have been registered.
"Let the children come to me; do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these."       Mark 10:14
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