A Message from Our President

Dear IMS Families, Staff, Teachers & Friends,  As the 2019/2020 school year comes to a close, I think we can all agree that the words "unprecedented", "uncertain" and "challenging" will forever take on a whole new meaning for us all! Yes, the COVID-19 pandemic was unprecedented and the move from the physical classroom to the virtual distance learning classroom was uncertain and challenging, but it was also remarkable in the way the entire IMS community joined together to provide an extraordinary level of support for our students - of which I am in awe. I have never been more proud to lead our network and, in a world of uncertainty, I am certain of this: we are stronger now than ever before.

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Jack Donnelly: Leaving a Legacy of Love We share the sadness of so many in the passing of Jack Donnelly, a founding Board Member of Independence Mission Schools. Jack’s leadership was a labor of love that began over 20 years ago with Saint Martin de Porres Catholic School. While Jack's accomplishments are many, one of his greatest labors of love was developing Independence Mission Schools. Jack worked hard to ensure the success of our students, committing generous gifts of time, talent and treasure, and encouraged others to do the same. With Jack’s help, we have been able to provide a quality education for thousands of young scholars. Read More Celebrating the Impact of Our Teachers Every year, IMS recognizes the amazing people who make our work possible. These awards are the highest forms of recognition within our organization and awardees are recognized by both their school communities and the greater IMS community. Selecting our Teacher Impact awardees was very challenging because, over the course of the past year, we have seen so many teachers work diligently to apply professional learning in their classrooms and to lead change among their peers. The winners were chosen after carefully considering their contributions to their school communities and their impact on students. IMS Award Winners

FEATURED STORY: COVID-19 Emergency Fund Brings Relief to Families .

Thank you to all who contributed to our COVID-19 Emergency Fund ! Because of you, we were able to provide tuition relief assistance to 608 families! This has given hope to IMS parents like Jacqueline Moore, who didn’t know how she would be able to afford to continue to send her child to Holy Cross.

“I knew that if I was blessed with this assistance it would take some of the nervousness out of my everyday. My life is led by ensuring that I give my children every opportunity that I didn't have and on the day I received that email I screamed and then called other families in my same situation to let them know my children’s school supports their families.” -Jacqueline Moore Read her full story here. Please know we will continue to help families for the upcoming school year through the relief fund.

Meet Our New Director of Literacy - Dan Tahaney Dan Tahaney joined the IMS network last month as part of the IMS Academic team. He will be leading our literacy initiative which features the implementation of a new English, Language & Arts (ELA) curriculum across the entire IMS network. Not only will standardizing all schools on the Expeditionary Learning (EL) curriculum provide a high-level, common core standards-aligned ELA program to our students (which will ensure they are well prepared for success in the very best high schools), it will also help our schools to be more productive and efficient in working together as a network. Meet Dan ATTN Families: Plans for Re-Opening This Fall We are looking forward to welcoming back our existing and new families this Fall! In the next few weeks we will be communicating our plans for re-opening with all of our families. Please be on the lookout for this important communication. We have assembled a taskforce to ensure that our school re-opening effort puts the safety of our students and staff first. This taskforce will work to support each school with specific and practical procedures to start school in a safe manner and under the guidance from the State of PA, the CDC and other schools that have successfully re-opened.

We Are Still Enrolling for the 2020/21 School Year!  All 15 IMS schools are still actively enrolling for the 2020/21 school year ! If you know of any families that are looking for a Pre-K - 8th school for their child - let them know about our network of 15 Catholic schools located right here in Philadelphia! Did you know that you can earn a referral reward when you refer a new family through our Family Referral Program? Please see your school's website under "For Parents" for details and to submit your referral online. Family Referral Program Flyer Help a Child Continue their IMS Education with Tuition Support If you are an IMS supporter, you should have received a letter or email about our annual year-end giving campaign. If you've already given, thank you! If you haven't yet, you can view our email here . This year, our focus is on ensuring that a quality Catholic education is affordable and accessible to more families, especially during these difficult times. Your gift will go directly to helping an IMS student continue their education at one of our schools. Provide Tuition Support

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