From the Desk of Mrs. Tiezzi

Dear St. Rita Parents and Guardians,

It was so great to see you all last week and this week at our Back to School Nights. The teachers and students have all settled in to the routine. Yesterday we began the NWEA MAP growth assessments and we will continue to assess on Friday (grades 3-8 ELA) and next Tuesday (Reading). The results of the MAP growth assessments will be used by the teachers to plan their instruction to best meet the needs of all their students. The result of the growth assessment will be shared with you at our upcoming parent-teacher conferences scheduled for October 10 and 11.

This weekend all Catholic parishes throughout the Archdiocese of Hartford will undertake the H.O.P.E.S. (Help Our Parish Elementary Schools) collection. The monies received from this collection will go specifically to our Catholic schools to help fund some important initiatives. Your generosity is greatly appreciated. Next Monday, September 23, two members of our St. Rita School community will be recognized at the H.O.P.E.S. (Help Our Parish Elementary Schools) dinner for their volunteer efforts on behalf of Catholic education. Mrs. Meghan Burns and Mrs. Kelly Mulhern have been named the 2024 St. John Neumann award winners. We are grateful that they have shared and continue to share their time, talent, and treasure with our students and school community.

This Monday, September 23, marks the 35th anniversary of the ordination of our Pastor, Fr. Christopher Tiano. Fr. Tiano was ordained by the late Archbishop John F. Whealon at the Cathedral of St. Joseph in September, 1989. Fr. Tiano’s previous assignments included serving as the editor of the Archdiocesan newspaper “The Catholic Transcript”, Director of the Office of Religious Education and Evangelization, as well as serving as pastor in various churches throughout the Archdiocese. We thank Fr. Tiano for his many years of generous service to the people of God, and ask God to bless us with many more years with him. Our school Mass this Friday is being offered in thanksgiving for Fr. Tiano’s many years of service to the Church. Please join us if you can.

This year St. Rita School and all other Catholic schools in the area will partner with the ”Play Like a Champion Today” Educational Series. Play Like a Champion Today is a national coach and parent education program designed specifically to elevate the culture of Catholic school-sponsored sports. Crafted by leaders in the fields of sport psychology, coaching education, Catholic theology, and moral development, Play Like a Champion works in partnership with our schools to enable the athletic experience to be a missionary tool to develop our youth physically, socially, morally, and spiritually. All St. Rita coaches and parents who have a child playing on a St. Rita sports team will be required to attend the education program before the basketball season begins. A separate invitation to the program will be forthcoming. Mr. Ferrara, Mr. Tehan, Mrs. Hugey, and I recently participated in this very valuable training and look forward to sharing it with our coaches, parents, and student athletes. Please see the latest Play Like A Champion parent newsletter at the end of our newsletter.

On Tuesday, October 1 we will switch over to the winter uniform. Parents are asked to please review the dress code with their child/ren as shorts and sneakers are no longer allowed with the winter uniform. Teachers will be sending home dress code violation forms to those students who continually are not in compliance. We ask parents to please check the uniform swap located on the stage in the gym for additional uniform pieces. If on occasion your child is not in proper uniform, please send a note to the teacher informing her/him of the reason. Should the weather during the first part of October continue to be warm, the students may continue to wear the gym shorts on gym days only.

Thank you for entrusting your child/ren to our care. Be sure to get outside and enjoy the beautiful fall-like weather. 

God Bless,

Mrs. Tiezzi

After Care Workers Needed

The ideal candidate must enjoy working with school-aged children, must be 18 or older, must complete a background check, fingerprinting, and Virtus training. Hours are 2:45 to 5:30 Tuesday - Friday when school is in session. $20 per hour.

Please contact Ms. McKay at lmckay.stritaschool@gmail.com or at 203-248-3114.

Dear 6th-8th Grade Parents

This year, we are offering an after school session called Workshop Wednesdays. This workshop is designed for students in grades 6-8, to work on current projects, complete past projects, or complete special projects.

The workshop is held every Wednesday from 3 to 4 p.m. in the Art Room with Ms. Keyes. Parents must complete this REGISTRATION FORM one time. Each week that your student wants to attend Workshop Wednesday, they must sign up HERE by Wednesdays at 7:30 a.m.

 Parents must pick up students at the front entrance by 4 p.m.

Girl Scout Troop 67216 - Seeking 6th - 8th Graders!

Enroll your daughter in Girl Scout Troop 67216. Our girls have lots of fun, grow into thoughtful leaders, are resourceful, build lifelong friendships and develop goals along the way. Watch your daughter flourish!

Reserve your spot today.

Girl Scout Troop 67216 is open to girls in grades 6-8. Every girl scout has her own curiosity, dreams and talents and there are hundreds of Girl Scout activities and service projects to try. Whether helping an animal shelter, camping and s'mores, hosting an activity, ziplining, being a cookie entrepreneur, or making a movie, Girl Scouts learn to team up with others to have fun and do good. See how you can apply your monthly community service hours here.

Troop 67216 meets 2 Sundays a month from 2-4PM at Our Lady of the Assumption Church in Woodbridge. The cost is $45/girl/year with a multi family discount available The Girl Scout sash or vest and patches is approximately $45.00 and is good for 2-3 years. For more information and to learn about our adventures, please contact Nina Ruckes at nruckes@optimum.net or 203 804 0746. We can't wait to see you! 

We have 5 openings left. If you are interested, contact Nina as soon as possible.

HSA

(Home-School Association)

The first class with 100% participation in the fun

run will receive Tie-Dye T-Shirts!

Nurse's Corner

COVID and respiratory virus policy change:

In conjunction with the health department, Hamden Public Schools and Saint Rita School will be adopting the new COVID policy.

If your child tests positive for COVID, they should stay home for 24 hours.

If they do not present with a fever , they can return to school after 24 hours. Wearing a mask for 5 days is advised as there is still a high transmission rate. 

If they develop a fever, they should stay home until they are fever free for 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medicine. They can then return to school and it is advised that they wear a mask for 5 days. 



If during the 5 day mask period they develop a fever, the clock resets. They should remain home until they are fever free for 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medicine. Returning to school with a mask for 5 days is advised. 

Medication in school:

If your child requires medication in school, the medication must be brought in by a parent along with a Medication Administration in School   

completed by the pediatrician. 

Cough drops brought into school must stay in the nurse's office. 

Any OTC medication should not be sent into school with your child (Advil, Tylenol, midol, allergy medicine, etc...) If your child requires any OTC medicine while at school they can go to the nurses office and a parent will be called to bring the medicine into school and administer it to their child. 

PreSchool Flu Shots:

All Pre school students are required to get a flu vaccine before we leave for Christmas break. Please send in a note from the doctor after your child receives their flu shot.

7th Grade Physicals:

All students entering 7th grade must have a physical dated after May 31st of the 5th grade year. They are also required to have a tetanus booster and meningitis vaccine. If your child is in the 6th grade now, physicals for 7th grade can be sent into the health office at any time during this school year. Any physical dated after May 31, 2024 will be accepted.  

Nut allergies in the classroom:

If your child is in a classroom with a student with a severe nut allergy, your child's teacher will have informed you that any foods containing nuts should only be eaten in the cafeteria. Please do not send in a snack with nut ingredients. Thank you for helping us to keep all of our students safe.

Please reach out to me at any time during the school year with any health questions or concerns.

Xavier Open House 2024 

Sunday, October 20, from 1 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. Register here.

Mercy Open House 2024 

Sunday, October 27, from 1 p.m. - 3 p.m. Register here.

Please pray for all the deceased members of our

St. Rita Community.