Weekly Newsletter 10-14-24

Weekly Newsletter: 10/14/2024

No Lower School 10/16

There is no school for PreK – 6^th grade on Wednesday, October 16. Our lower school faculty will be attending the CSCOE conference. Grades 7^th – 12^th will have a regular school day.

No School MEA Break & Main Office Closed 10/17 & 10/18

There is no school for MEA Break this Thursday, October 17 & Friday, October 18. The Main Office will be closed both days.

Fall Conferences and No School – Friday, October 25^th

Mark your calendars for Parent/Teacher Conferences on Thursday, October 24th and Friday, October 25th. Sign up links below. The schedule is as follows:

October 24th:

· K-12 School Day 7:55AM-2:45PM

· No CASA/After School Care

Lower School Conferences

3:30-7:30PM: In-Person or Phone (sign up required)

Upper School Conferences

3:30-7:30PM: In-Person (Walk-in only)

October 25th

· No School

Upper and Lower School Conferences

9:00AM-2:30PM: In-Person or Phone (sign up required)

Lower School Sign Ups: www.signupgenius.com/tabs/63272D602A6C2EEC17-lowerfall1

Upper School Sign Ups: www.signupgenius.com/tabs/63272D602A6C2EEC17-upperfall1

Conference Meals for Teachers

It’s that time of year again! The Teacher Appreciation Committee is hosting a dinner and light breakfast for our teachers during conferences on October 24-25. Consider donating food or your time to help us provide these wonderful meals to our fantastic teachers. Check out this Sign Up Genius to learn how you can help. Thank you!

Spirit Wear for Sale at Conferences

Our Spirit Store is restocked with everything you'll need to show off your Aggie spirit and stay warm this winter. Beanies, sweatshirts, socks, pennants, keychains, and more or now in stock! We'll also have older items available at significantly discounted prices!

We'll have our full inventory of Aggie swag available at Fall Conferences on both Thursday 10/24 and Friday 10/25 in the Ubel Activity Center Commons. Stop by and take a look!

Uniform Sweatshirts

Need a uniform sweatshirt for your student(s)? We will have them available for purchase during conferences on October 24-25. If you would like to pick one up sooner, please email Mr. Neal Abbott. Each sweatshirt is $20.

5 Seniors Honored by National Merit Scholars Program

We are elated to announce that five seniors have been honored by the National Merit Scholarship Program for their exemplary performance on last year’s PSAT exam. This first group scored among the top 34,000 students in the nation:

Margaret D. – Commended Scholar
James G. – Commended Scholar
Nathaniel Y. – Commended Scholar

The following students performed among the top 16,000 students in the country and are now applying to be National Merit Scholars:

Jack S. – National Merit Finalist
Henry P. – National Merit Finalist

Congratulations to all five of these seniors for earning this great honor – it’s always great to get at least one student on this list but a huge credit to our senior class for earning FIVE spots!

Cognia Accreditation Honors Saint Agnes School

Cognia, our accreditation service provider, recently honored Saint Agnes School for its tenure with Cognia and recognized us for being a school of excellence. Melissa Kaczmarek, Director of Cognia’s Midwest Region, came by the school to present administrators with this plaque honoring our work in the last two decades.

Amazon Prime Big Deal Days Oct 8-9

Amazon Prime days are excellent opportunities to score great deals on items that could be used in the Red & White Benefit auction, and they can be shipped right to our door! We have compiled a wish list from which to shop, but any items that you feel would be popular are most welcome. Please include a gift receipt with your name so we can properly thank you as the donor. Consider supporting the Red & White Benefit and the scholarship money it raises for our students.

Red & White Committee Chairs Needed

We are in need of volunteers to help with planning and executing the Red & White Benefit in the coming months. Silent Auction, Live Auction, Database Management, Sponsors, Advertisers, Programming, Invitations, Bar, Volunteers, are all areas where we could use a leader so as to divide and concur the beast that is the Red & White! To step up or to find out more, please contact Mrs. Sara Bruggemann or Mrs. Mary Appel.

Volunteer for a Shift & Earn $100 for Our School!

The Center for Catholic School Excellence (CSCOE) is looking for help with a generous reward for our school! The CSCOE Summit of Excellence (a professional development day for our PreK-6 teachers) is coming soon on October 16 and CSCOE needs your help managing logistical aspects of this event. Over 2000 Catholic school teachers, staff, and leadership will gather on October 16, 2024 for an inspiring day of dynamic speakers, collaborative workshops and networking opportunities with fellow educators. The Summit of Excellence is held at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

Parents, grandparents and other community members can sign up individually (no need to find a large group in order to volunteer!) for a 4-hour shift (morning or afternoon) on the 16th or a 4-hour shift (midday) on the 15th.

Volunteer perks include:

Free parking
A famous pot-pie lunch
$100 grant to your school per volunteer
An opportunity to see your Catholic school teachers grow in their faith and profession

Please click this link to volunteer for a shift and earn Saint Agnes $100!

Thank you in advance!

Note: Wed., October 16 is a day off for Aggie PreK-6 students; 7-12 classes are in session.

Parish Fall Festival Donations and Cherry Tree & Children’s Game Helpers Needed

(E3 required if working with youth). Location: School Gym

Assist with supervising youth volunteers during Sunday Fall Festival shifts. Help with Set-Up on Saturday.
Date/Times:
Saturday, October 19th: (Set Up) 9:00 a.m. - Noon
Sunday, October 20th: (Two shifts) 10:00 a.m. - Noon/Noon - 2:00 p.m.
Sunday, October 20th: (Clean Up) 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Sign-Up Genius Link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E0D4AA4AC23A2FE3-51001158-fallfestival2024

*6^th grade and older students can help with games, cherry tree, and basket booth runners. Please see Youth Volunteer shifts.

We also need NEW prizes ranging from $4-$6 for the Cherry Tree. Please drop off in the school office by Oct. 15^th.

Please also consider donating NEW prizes for the Children’s Games. See link for ideas and either drop them off or have them shipped to the school office by Oct. 15^th. Amazon Wish List

Hot Lunch Volunteers Needed

If you have a few hours in the middle of the day and would like to volunteer, we are looking for people daily to help our awesome kitchen crew with Hot Lunch (10:30 AM – 1:30 PM). This is a great way to help and connect with our students. Sign up for once a week, once a month or whatever works with your schedule. You will need be current with E3/VIRTUS requirements. Please contact HR Coordinator Mrs. Becca DeMarais at 651-925-8759 if interested.

Reminder: Tomorrow is Lower School Grandparents Day!

Our K-6 Grandparents and Senior Friends Day is TOMORROW! This is a special event where students get to share our school with their grandparents and senior friends. Please consider volunteering your time tomorrow. We are still in need of a few more people to assist in getting students to the church and with set up.

Schedule of the day and RSVP can be found on our website through the link below.

INFO & RSVP FOR LOWER SCHOOL GRANDPARENTS DAY

7^th – 12^th Grade Girls Basketball Open Gym

10/12, 10/26, 11/2, 11/9 from 9-11am in Gruden Gym. Contact Coach Boyd (tboyd@saintagnesschool.org) with any questions.

Online Athletic Tickets

Saint Agnes as well as many of our opponents use GoFan as our online ticket Box Office. While Saint Agnes continues to provide both cash and online payment options, many other schools do not. Online Ticket Link: https://gofan.co/app/school/MN9808

See the Saint Agnes athletic calendar for all times, locations, and livestreams for this week's games.

Please contact Athletic Director Mr. Streitz with any questions.

Helpful Election Year Documents

The Catholic Bishops of Minnesota have released some helpful guidance on the 2024 election that I’d like to share with you. The first is a letter from the bishops regarding what ought to be considered when voting on November 5^th. That document is available at the following url: https://www.archspm.org/catholic-bishops-2024-election/.

The second document comes from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and is entitled “The Role of the Church in American Political Life,” available at the following url: https://www.usccb.org/resources/Role-of-Church-In-American-Political-Life.pdf.

Finally, the Minnesota Catholic Conference has offered us a very good resource on their Election Resources page that expresses the priority of human dignity and voting with a Catholic conscience. Feel free to take a look at the following url: https://www.mncatholic.org/election2024.

With respect to our own approach to political speech at Saint Agnes School, feel free to take a look at our Student/Parent Handbook Policy on “Political, Anti-Catholic, and Divisive Endorsement and Symbols Policy.”

Volunteer at Saint Agnes School: Share Your Time and Talents

Explore the list of opportunities below and sign up for what fits your schedule: https://forms.office.com/r/GGDTNi5Gex

Volunteer Requirements

To ensure a safe and secure environment for our students, all volunteers who interact with youth are required to complete the Essential 3 (E3) requirements.

Questions? Contact HR Coordinator Mrs. Becca DeMarais.

Homecoming Dance Photo Link

https://spaces.hightail.com/space/jB5meNAvUQ

October Important Dates

10/15 – Lower School Grandparents Day

10/16 – No School for grades PreK – 6^th

12th Grade Standardized Testing (CLT)

10/17-10/18 – MEA Break-No School PreK-12^th

10/20 – Saint Agnes Parish Festival

10/21 – PreK Field Trip

10/22 – 10^th Grade Field Trip

10/23 – 3^rd Grade Field Trip