Saints Weekly

August 22, 2018

Dear St. John Paul II Community,

What an awesome beginning to the school year! I’m so thrilled to report that our teachers and students are full of enthusiasm as I walk around the campus. Everyone has embraced this year’s theme, “Be not afraid…to love, learn, and lead” and the energy on campus is contagious! It’s so refreshing to have everyone back on campus…from the hopeful voices I hear in the hallways to the joyous shouts on the new Gaga Ball pit make me so very thankful for our StJPII community.

I am also happy to share that we will be launching a new Student Information System as part of our Strategic Plan. The transition to the new system started last January, and the good news is that our parents will be able to access it very soon! May you please be patient with us during our implementation. We will share instructions for how to log on and see your child’s grades in the new system after September 4. In the meantime, I look forward to what the Lord has in store for our StJPII Saints in 2018-2019!

In Him we trust,

Principal

P.S. I invite you to join me in praying our daily school prayer, “O my God, relying on your infinite goodness and promises, I hope to obtain pardon of my sins, the help of your grace, and life everlasting, through the merits of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Redeemer. Amen.”

School Business

Early Dismissal

Our first early dismissal day is tomorrow, Wednesday, August 22. Pre-K and Kindergarten students are dismissed at 1:45 p.m., 1st - 5th graders are dismissed at 2:00, and Middle School is dismissed at 2:15. We have early dismissal once a month, typically on the last Wednesday of the month, to allow time for monthly faculty meetings. Typically on these days, students may wear school appropriate blue jeans and a StJPII spirit t-shirt or school sponsored t-shirt. Please refer to the Parent/Student Handbook for more guidelines. All early dismissal dates are posted on the school online calendar .

Documents Needed

The following forms must be turned in by tomorrow : Emergency Information Form, Acceptable Use Policy for Technology, Handbook Acknowledgement Form, BASP Form and Honor Code Form. If you haven't already done so, please turn them in to the school office.

Optional Casual Uniform Orders

StJPII offers Optional Uniform pieces for students to wear any day of the week that is not designated as “Full Dress”.

All prices include state sales tax. Orders will only be accepted online through the Acceptiva link on our school website
Orders are due Tuesday, September 4, 2018.
Please retain a copy of your order and receipt.
Items ordered will be sent home with the students in early October.
The next ordering time is in November for delivery in early February.

Picture Day is Coming

Thursday, August 30 will be Individual Picture Day. Students will take individual pictures for the yearbook so they should plan on wearing their full dress uniforms. Be on the lookout for the order forms in your Tuesday Folders.

Carpoool: Worth Repeating

Carpool Procedures

You may read our Parent Student Handbook for a complete overview of carpool line procedures, including rainy-day carpool. Here are a few reminders about our process:

· Parents are not allowed to walk their students into school. You must use the carpool line or walkers.

Reserved Carpool Line Positions

Each year, the first car in afternoon carpool (spot number 1) is sold in our Auction. Please allow carpool number 1 to be at the front of the lines. The families with these carpool numbers are allowed to enter the driveway OR go to the front of the carpool lines to have their children loaded first.

* The PK/Kinder (white tags) afternoon line starts at the school driveway

* The Elementary (green tags) afternoon line on Parkway Plaza Drive starts at Sandfield

* The Middle School (orange tags) afternoon line starts at Tapper Hill by St. Basil's Greek Orthodox Church.

Congratulations Mrs. Donna Denton

Mrs. Donna Denton was honored with the Sally Landrum Excellence in Teaching award by the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston (AGH) on Friday, August 10. This award is given to a worthy employee in the Catholic School System annually. This award is named for former AGH Superintendent and a staunch supporter of Catholic education, Sally Landrum. In celebration of her life and work, the award is presented to a teacher who exemplifies strong Catholic faith, community spirit, and provides rigorous academic instruction. Additionally, a $1,500 monetary award is given to the teacher for his/her designation.

Mrs. Denton was also honored for serving 30 years as a Catholic educator who started her career as a kindergarten teacher but has spent the majority of her 27 years as a 3rd grade teacher at StJPII.

Mrs. Denton has graciously donated her AGH award equally to three other Catholic schools in honor of individuals she believes share her love of Catholic Education: St. Thomas More Parish School, in honor of her former Assistant Principal Kristen Thome and Fr. Hai Dang whom her class befriended during a trip to St. Mary’s Seminary; St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic School, in honor of StJPII’s Class of 2018 seminarian Fr. Preston Quintela; and Queen of Peace Catholic School, where current StJPII Principal Rebecca Bogard began her administrative career.

The entire StJPII community is very pleased to honor and congratulate Mrs. Denton!

Upcoming Events

All-School Mass this Friday

Thank you to everyone who joined us for Mass the first day of school! We will have our second All-School Mass of the school year this Friday, August 24 at 8:30 a.m. in the Gutierrez Student Center (GSC). As a school community, we typically celebrate Mass on Fridays and on Holy Days. Here are just a few reminders about Mass days:

Please remember that students are required to wear their full dress uniforms for Mass and sit with their class. Please refer to the Parent/Student Handbook to ensure your child is in compliance with the proper full dress code.
On Mass days, our gym (BAC) and student center (GSC) become our church. Please enter reverently, refrain from bringing in drinks, and turn off your cell phones so that everyone may fully enjoy the gifts of this sacrament.

Parent Nights

August 29 - PreK, Kindergarten, Middle School Parents

August 30 - 1st-5th Grade Parents

Parents are invited to attend and learn more about StJPII. You will have the opportunity to hear about your child(ren)'s academic year with their teachers in the classrooms. This event begins at 6:00 p.m., and is for parents only, so please make plans for your children to stay at home.

Volunteer Approval Process

In order to volunteer, you must attend Virtus training and submit paperwork to the school office. As a courtesy for our parents, StJPII will offer a "Protecting God's Children" class on campus on September 20, in the morning. This class is also open to the Archdiocese. We are letting our parents know about the class now so you can mark your calendars. You must sign up through the VIRTUS website to attend. Spots will fill up quickly, and once the class is full we cannot add any more spaces. Please click here for information on our website for the StJPII Volunteer checklist and how to become volunteer-approved.

Dads Basketball

StJPII dads play men's basketball on Wednesday Nights in the gym at 7:00 p.m. Please contact Mark Gugliotti to be added to the distribution list and for more information: markgoogs@att.net or 832-301-1681. Everyone is welcome. It's a fun way to meet other dads and get some great exercise!

RWTS- Sign up today for Registration/Shirts or to Volunteer

StJPII's annual 5K, which benefits children's cancer in memory of StJPII student Lauren Lockard, is scheduled for Saturday, October 27 . If you are a runner, would like to sign your child up for the Kids K, or want to buy a shirt visit the button below. We also need volunteers to plan and make this the best race yet! Running experience is a bonus, but not required. Please contact RWTS Volunteer Recruitment Coordinator Annette Colgan for more information on Volunteering. If you have questions regarding the Run with the Saints event, please contact our Events Officer Kaela Lewis for more information.

Athletics

Elementary School

Soccer season is off and running!! We have close to 225 kids already registered for WHCSA Soccer! Please remember registration closes tomorrow, August 22 , and there is no physical needed. Simply go the the Athletic tab on the website and proceed to Elementary Soccer - all the information is on the page.

Middle School

We are off and running with athletics this week! Volleyball teams were chosen, Soccer is in the midst of tryouts, Cross country starts today, and Football kicks off Fall sports with their HOME game right here at StJPII on Wednesday, August 22 at 5:30 p.m. vs SVDP with our Cheer Team coming out to support our SAINTS opening game! The weather looks like it will be nice! Come out to see our boys play!

GO SAINTS!

PTO Corner

Join the PTO!

StJPII is blessed by wonderful volunteers who share their time and talents with our community through a variety of committees. While many of their efforts focus on fundraising, the PTO also provides fellowship opportunities and ways to get involved in the classroom. As a parent, you are automatically a member of our PTO. To learn more about the PTO, please read the attached volunteer opportunities flyer .

Thank you

Ice Cream, You Scream, We All Scream for Ice Cream! Thank you to all the wonderful volunteers that helped make our Ice Cream Social and Meet and Greet a success.

Welcome to another great school year!

If you plan to volunteer at StJPII during the Fall 2018 semester, you MUST register so your volunteer status can be verified. Please click on the VIRTUS link and fill out the form to view your status. The deadline to submit your name is Friday, September 5. Thank you and please email Room roomparentcoordinators@jp2.org if you have any questions.

Box Tops

There is a great opportunity to help our school win 1,000,000 Box tops ($100,000.00) and we need your help to make this happen!

This is the best time to get started as we are starting to stock up on school supplies and all. It only takes a couple of minutes to sign up.

Please got to the Box Tops for Education website and “Sign up” for it. Once you are a member:

Look for the promotion that reads “Your School could Win 1,000,000 Box Tops” and click on “Learn More”
Enter your information (User Name and Passcode)
Follow the instructions to upload a picture of your shopping receipt, showing at least 5 participating items.

Please see the participating items list attached here .

This ends September 30 so PLEASE do not delay getting started!

Please keep your receipts and send them to the classroom with other clip box tops for the fall and spring contests anyway (the winning classrooms get a pizza party). A million Thanks! in advance for helping our school win this 1,000,000 box tops promotion and the money prize it represents.

Community News & Events

St. Monica's Society at St. John Vianney

All are welcome! C ome join us at our first St. Monica's Society meeting of the year on August 29 at 11:30 a.m. Click here for information on this club for mothers of school age children (elementary through college) that shares fellowship and hosts fun events through St. John Vianney parish. Bring a friend! Don't forget to RSVP. Please email SMS.Childcare@gmail.com by tomorrow, Wednesday, August 22 for babysitting.

The St. Thomas High School Eagles will be hosting Strake Jesuit at NRG Stadium for the annual rival football game

St. Thomas High School would like to invite StJPII's middle school boys and their families to join us at our kick-off Admissions event on Friday, August 31, 2018 at 6 p.m . St. Thomas High School has been given 100 tickets to give out for free to middle school boys so please click on the flyer for ticket information.

The St. Thomas High School Eagles will be hosting The Kinkaid School

St. Thomas High School would like to invite your middle school boys and their families to join us for the End Zone Rally on Friday, September 14, 2018 at 6 p.m . Attendees will have an opportunity to meet our administrators, faculty, and coaches while watching the St. Thomas football team taken on The Kinkaid School. Please see the attached flyer for more details. RSVP to the End Zone Rally at event.sths.org .

StJPII...Did you know?

Did you know StJPII now has a Gaga Ball pit?

StJPII installed our new Gaga Ball pit this summer, thanks to PTO Wish List funds! Gaga is a fast paced, easy, high energy sport played in an octagonal pit. Dubbed a kinder gentler version of dodgeball, players need to keep moving to avoid getting hit by a soft foam ball. Check out StJPII's new Gaga Ball pit near the pavilion and a few pictures of our middle schoolers in action below!