As our school year draws to a close, we are filled with gratitude to our school families and staff. We want to express our heartfelt thanks to each and every one of you. Our school is a second home, and we feel blessed by the strong community we rely on and build upon each day. 

Each year, we choose to focus on a specific root belief as we plan our goals and aspirations for the year ahead. This year, we leaned into “We are a community of unique learners, always growing and learning” – and grow and learn, we certainly did.

Academics - Each student had their own unique growth milestones and achievements, from reading or writing their first sentence to mastering multiplication or discovering their new favorite novel. We are incredibly proud of our students’ achievements on the i-Ready Diagnostic, which again showed growth this year. For the fourth consecutive year, St. Barnabas students increased or maintained growth in reading and math. Our students consistently outperform the state of Illinois and CPS proficiency levels by a wide margin and also outperform the Archdiocese of Chicago i-Ready averages. Learn more about this year’s i-Ready results.

Faith & Service - A milestone year for our faith as we celebrated 100 years as a religious community. We had a record number of 8th-grade students join our school choir and serve as Eucharistic ministers, setting a beautiful example for our younger students to aspire to. We also had a record year for charity, raising almost $50,000 at Pat Mac Day and returning to our pre-COVID fundraising numbers. We helped 16 different organizations at our annual Service Day and raised over $12,500 for seven organizations through our Charity Dress Downs. In an example of Buckeyes continuing to serve others, we recently had 14 members of the Class of 2021 return to school to serve as retreat leaders for our 8th-grade retreat. Our impact on others is strong, and this remarkable achievement is a testament to the generosity and Catholic values that define our school.

Athletics - a Gold Ball Championship for our Boys Volleyball, the highest honor in the Southside Catholic Conference, and our inaugural season of Girls Flag Football, along with numerous tournament and playoff trophies across all sports and ages. Our Buckeyes made us proud!

Clubs & Activities - The Rock of Ages musical showcased the exceptional talent and creativity our students possess, and the introduction of the 4th and 5th grade Hercules musical showcase offered a fun taste for the younger grades. The new afterschool club, Run Like a Cheetah, brought waves of energetic young Buckeyes, and our Student Council and Culture Club leaders poured their all into our student events and activities.

The Graduates - Last week, we said goodbye to our 8th-grade students. This courageous and powerful group of 58 students will spread their wings at 10 unique high schools across the city. Among this group, numerous students tested in the top 95% nationally on their HSPT entrance exams and were awarded with recognition and merit-based scholarships. Please join us in wishing our Class of 2025 a fond farewell.

As we look ahead to our next school year, we are filled with excitement and anticipation. Our enrollment numbers for 2025-2026 are higher than they have been in four years. A particularly important note is our strong enrollment numbers for our incoming Preschool and Kindergarten students. Our Preschool enrollment is up over 20% from previous years, and we are opening a third Kindergarten homeroom to accommodate the large group of students. Strong enrollment in the younger grades is a catalyst for continued strength in our community.

Thank you for your continued support of St. Barnabas School - “We belong to each other.”

Memorable Images

For those on social media, we hope you have enjoyed the many pictures we post throughout the year.

We are also lucky to have school parent Meghan Jones sharing her time and professional expertise with us at a number of memorable events including: 8th Grade Graduation and Awards, Spirit Day, Christmas Pageant, Service Day, and Preschool May Crowning and Christmas Pageant. To view, download (or purchase) Meghan's images, visit Wojie Photography and use password: Buckeyes25

Athletic News

FALL SPORTS REGISTRATION - Registration for BC Knights Football, BC Knights Cheer, and Girls Basketball has been extended until end of day today! Please do not miss this important deadline. Register here.

Registration for Fall Soccer will be open throughout much of the summer. Learn more and register!

ATHLETIC BOARD - There are a number of open positions on the Athletic Board for the upcoming school year. Learn more and submit an application.

Yearbooks

SHARE YOUR PHOTOS - If you have 2024-2025 school year photos you would like to share with the yearbook committee, please submit them to sbyearbook@stbarnabasparish.org. Photos for yearbook submission should be groups of three or more people and should clearly show individual faces. Sports-related events, field trips, school activities, classroom holiday events, and more. Please include the event name in the subject line.

ORDER YOUR YEARBOOK - Order your 2024-2025 Yearbook by July 17! You have the option to create two customized pages. Visit www.treering.com/validate and enter school passcode: 101702307413393 to place your order. Learn more.

Summer Online Safety

Earlier this week, Greg Richmond, Superintendent of Catholic Schools, emailed all parents/guardians tips for creating a safe and positive online environment for children at home. We have the information linked here as well. Resources for summer online safety.

Summer Office Hours

Our Administration team is in the school building throughout the summer. If you need to stop by to drop off documents, items, etc., our doors are open Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 9am to 12pm.

New Hires

We are thrilled to announce that we have already hired six new staff members to join our team. They each radiate positivity, intelligence, and enthusiasm, and we can't wait for you to meet them this August. We are still searching for the ideal candidate for Junior High ELA, Intermediate Grade Homeroom (3rd - 5th), and Early Childhood Aides. Should you, or anyone you know, be interested in exploring a role, please submit a resume online.

Welcome New Board Members

We welcome four new members to our School Advisory Board, each of whom will serve a three-year term. Please welcome Amber Newsom, Nick O'Connor, CJ Shappard, and Pat Wirtz. We extend our gratitude to our outgoing members, Theresa Hemmer, Greg Liss, Kathleen McShane, and Brian Pearson.

Next year, Nora Gill will serve as Board Chair, Mark Piper as Vice Chair, Pat Wirtz as Secretary, and CJ Shappard as Treasurer.

Uniform Exchange

Please consider donating your clean, gently used uniform items if they no longer fit your household. Jumpers, skirts, pants, polos, gym uniforms, and spirit wear are all welcome! Items may be dropped off at the School’s Main Entrance Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, 9am - 12pm, during the month of June. In July (and August), we will host a free "shopping" event for families. Learn more.

Summer To Do

We continue to strive to support our parents and guardians with strong communication that we hope makes managing the school logistics a little easier. Summer is a time to take a break from the daily tasks of school, but there are a number of action items that need to be completed by our families before our August return.

On our website under the Family Resources tab, you'll find a Preparing for 2025-2026 page. This is an excellent page to bookmark! Here you'll find:

• 2025-2026 Calendar - including all days off and early dismissals
• School Supply Lists - order by June 22 if ordering online
• Medical Forms - due August 17: sports physicals for all and extra forms required for PK, K, 2nd and 6th grades
• School Uniform Details - no policy changes from this year
• Tuition Rates - first payment is due in July

We hope the students use June to decompress. Please keep an eye out for an email in early July with some Summer Enrichment suggestions to keep our students engaged and to prevent the "summer slide" that can come from extended academic breaks.

Buckeyes, we're signing off for summer - much love to all of you!