FAMILY CONNECTION | May 7, 2020
Our faculty and staff welcomed the Class of 2020 back to campus for a drive-by parade. We also welcome the Class of 2024 beginning with this issue of Family Connection. #WelcomeToTheFamily
Final Exams
Congratulations to our Seniors and Juniors who have concluded their final exams. Sophomores and Freshmen should visit Blackbaud's Bulletin Boards for information on their finals.
Study Tips
Learning Consultant Tammy Ring shares important tips to prepare for final exams.
Extended Time
Students eligible for extended time on assessments should continue to register using our online testing form to ensure you receive the necessary accommodations.  
AP Final Exams
Students enrolled in an AP course are required to take the AP exam online. Each exam is 45 minutes, plus an additional five minutes for uploading. Students will need access to the online testing system 30 minutes prior to the exam time for set up.

  • Tuesday, May 12: Calculus AB at 1 pm

  • Monday, May 18: Biology at 1 pm | Environmental Science at 3 pm

  • Tuesday, May 19: Psychology at 1 pm

  • Thursday, May 21: World History at 1 pm | Macroeconomics at 3 pm

  • Friday, May 22: Statistics at 1 pm

Please contact your AP teacher directly if you have any questions.   

A+ Program Deadline
To be eligible for the A+ Scholarship, Seniors must report their tutoring and mentoring hours to Dennis Matreci at dmatreci@vianney.com by noon tomorrow, May 8. For this year only, Missouri is accepting 25 or more hours for eligibility instead of 50 hours.

NCAA Eligibility
Seniors planning to play a Division I or II NCAA sport in college must register with the NCAA Eligibility Center. Once registered, please contact Adam Erickson at  aerickson@vianney.com  to have your transcript sent to the NCAA.
College Financial Aid
If a Senior's financial situation has changed since receiving a college financial aid package, visit Swift Student for free to write a financial aid appeal letter.
Senior Graduation
Our virtual ceremony will premiere Saturday, May 16, at 7 pm on Facebook and YouTube.
Empty Your Lockers
If students still have items left in their lockers, they may be picked up tomorrow, May 8, or Monday, May 11, between 10 am and noon. Please wear a mask and adhere to all social distancing guidelines when on campus. If you have any questions, contact Scott Brown at sbrown@vianney.com .
Illness
If a student is too ill to complete his work online, please email Jen Kraus at jkraus@vianney.com and Scott Brown at sbrown@vianney.com as well as individual teachers.
Service Hours
Freshmen and Sophomores have until December 31, 2020 to complete their service hour requirements for the 2019-2020 school year. In addition, Class of 2024 and Class of 2023 can begin their service hour requirements now for the 2020-2021 school year. All completed service hours must be submitted for verification through Helper Helper . Please contact Kevin Becvar at kbecvar@vianney.com if you have any questions.
ACT Course  
If you would like to prepare for the June 13 ACT, Sarah Kheriaty is hosting a course via Zoom May 26-28 and June 1-4 from 5-9 pm. It is $350 per student with a $50 discount if a sibling previously took her course. If ACT cancels its June 13 test, the course will be postponed until the next testing date. Register online now with payment due by May 19.
Please contact Sarah Kheriaty at skheriaty@gmail.com if you have any questions.
Virtual College Fair
Juniors are invited to register for a virtual college fair to explore 450 colleges in 47 states and 13 countries. The fair is available online through tomorrow, May 8, at not cost.
Sell Your Textbooks
MBS Direct will buyback textbooks you purchased through the company or elsewhere. Select Sell Your Textbooks under the Menu tab and follow the prompts. MBS will provide a quote for any books it wants to purchase.
Hall of Fame Nominations
Nominations are now being accepted for the 2020 Vianney Hall of Fame class. Please review the guidelines for nominees before downloading and mailing us your nomination or submitting your nomination online. The deadline is June 30, 2020.
WEEK IN SPORTS
Cross Country
Students interested in Cross Country, should contact John Mohr at  jmohr@vianney.com to learn about summer training. " There's no bench, no sideline; everyone participates and competes in Cross Country," explains Coach Mohr. "Even in this difficult situation, personal fitness is encouraged for everyone."
DID YOU KNOW?
Some of our Spanish I students have participated in virtual language exchanges with students attending a language institute in Colombia. As our students learn to communicate in Spanish, the students in Colombia learn to communicate in English. 

Spanish Faculty Steven Skawski is leading the Zoom Rooms, which allow students to simultaneously engage in 1-on-1 conversations. He said, "It has been a joy to witness students begin to utilize the language skills we've been honing this semester. Many students were able to connect with their Colombian counterparts via shared interests in sports, video games, music, and food. To stay in touch and continue the conversation, some partners even exchanged social media accounts."
MARIANIST MOMENT
by Br. David Betz, SM
Over the last month, I have been reflecting on the Paschal Mystery and what it means in my life as we continue to experience the COVID-19 pandemic. It seems that the seasons of Lent and Easter are times when we are called to look at the Paschal Mystery as it refers to the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus. This threefold experience of Jesus is the primary reason why we Christians exist. It is the first event that the Apostles preached about when they were emboldened to share the Good News after Pentecost. It became the foundational message that men and women of the early Christian community heard and inspired them to be baptized in the Spirit. Even Paul, in his letters to the different Christian communities, stressed that one’s belief in and participation in the Paschal Mystery lead to one’s salvation and new life in God. (see Romans 6: 1-4, 1 Cor. 15: 1-34, Phil. 2: 1-8, for example)

I get a sense that we are being asked to do the same thing. We need to recognize that there are times in our lives where we also may experience some type of Paschal Mystery, and then look to Jesus as a model to learn how to persevere as we live through the experience. This present pandemic has its sufferings with men and women contracting the disease and trying to cope with its effects. People are dying to old ways of being and trying to figure out how to adapt. And, with the courageous effort of our first responders and second responders, one can hope that there is a movement toward a newness of life.

I invite you to read the words of Blessed Chaminade who stresses the need to look to Jesus when we are being called to have faith in moments of suffering, dying, and rising. They are from a letter written to a Bro. Perrodin at the end of 1842 relating to mental prayer (from the “Writings on Mental Prayer,” 1979, MRC, Dayton OH, page 447).

“In all the mysteries of Jesus, beginning with that of the Incarnation, see only the Son of God operating in the most holy Humanity, acting and speaking, suffering and dying, rising from the dead, etc. It is always the Son of God who is operating in his holy Humanity. It is he who suffers, who dies, who rises from the dead, who ascends into heaven, in a word, since the Incarnation inclusively, Jesus Christ is always and will always be the Man-God or the God-Man. Faith always makes us see in Jesus Christ the Son of God who operates for us, suffers and dies for us, who rises from the dead for us, who speaks for us, who teaches us. All his words are divine words addressed to us. What immense treasures we have in Jesus Christ!”