|
February 21, 2012
Enrollment is heading your way
Enrollment forms are being sent home with your children this week. Miss McGinnis is going over the forms with your child. Please review them, sign and return to Miss McGinnis by the end of next week.
January 11, 2012
With God on Your Side
What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? ROMANS 8:31-32
God is constantly trying to plant new seeds in your heart. He’s trying to fill you with so much hope and expectancy that the seed will grow and bring forth a tremendous harvest.
Never allow negative thinking to keep you from God’s best. If you will get in agreement with God, this can be the greatest time of your life. With God on your side, you cannot possibly lose. He can make a way when it looks as though there is none. He can open doors that no one can shut. He can cause you to be at the right place, at the right time. He can supernaturally turn your dreams into reality. Taken from Your Best Life Begins Each Morning, by Joel Osteen, January 2
One of my favorites things about our school is the chapel located in the center of our school. This is just where God should be, in the center of our lives. I love taking time out of my day to spend a few minutes in the chapel to pray, reflect, think, or just be. I love having the ability to attend Mass on a daily basis.
I missed the chapel while on break. Life was busy with the family. I still took time to do my reflections, but it wasn’t the same. I came across the above reflection on Romans 8:31-32 on January 2. As I was thinking ahead to school beginning with teachers two days later, I had to share it with them. It fits what we are working towards at Maur Hill - Mount Academy.
Live the Faith, Strive for Excellence, and Pursue the Truth – If God is for us, who can be against? To paraphrase the reflection, “If God is on our side, we cannot possibly lose. He can make a way when it looks as though there is none. He can open doors that no one can shut. He can cause us to be at the right place, at the right time. He can supernaturally turn our dreams into reality.”
Life has been good to us this past year. Phil has been connecting and reconnecting with many alums, faith is alive on campus and teachers are working together to help each other grow as we strive to become the best college prep international boarding school in the nation. What’s missing? You. We would love to see you more on campus, attending Mass with us, spending time with us during first Friday adorations, attending athletic or academic activities, sharing your expertise in whatever you have to offer, eating lunch with us, or just hanging with us for a few minutes. We love company. Would you come visit?
“God is constantly trying to plant new seeds in your heart. He’s trying to fill you with so much hope and expectancy that the seed will grow and bring forth a tremendous harvest.”
Side Note: If you would like to attend daily Mass with us look for the schedule 1 day’s on the school calendar. This Mass begins around 11:39 and lasts about 20 minutes. Our All School Mass (schedule 4 on the school calendar) begins at 11:07 and last about 50 minutes. We also offer a Mass on Sunday at 5:00 during the school year. There are some exceptions to this time, such as Parents’ Weekend. Our website has these time changes. There is also a link under Parent's Corner on our website for the Mass times. First Friday Adorations are on the first Fridays of the month and begin at 7:50 and end at 3:10.
December 16, 2011
Season’s Greetings
We are there, celebrating the birth of Christ in one week! As the Advent season comes to an end and the Christmas season begins, so does the end of first semester and the beginning of second semester.
Finals will be Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday next week (Dec 19-21). Below you will find the schedule for those three days. It is important that you are aware of the beginning and ending times since they are different than the routine days of this past semester.
FINALS
Day 1:
First Bell 8:45
1st Period final 8:50 – 10:23
2nd Period final 10:33 – 12:04
All School Lunch 12:09 – 12:39
3rd Period final 12:44 – 2:15
Day 2:
First Bell 8:45
4th Period final 8:50 – 10:23
5th Period final 10:33 – 12:04
Christmas Banquet and Awards 12:09 – 1:30
Day 3:
First Bell 8:45
6th Period final 8:50 – 10:23
7th Period final 10:33 – 12:04
The Christmas holiday break will begin after finals are completed on December 21 and students return on January 9, 2012. During this break, please review the dress code found in our handbook on our website. As our young ladies grow, the skirts are getting shorter. Please check these lengths prior to them returning on January 9.
We at Maur Hill - Mount Academy hope you have a safe holiday break and wish you glad tidings during Christmas and a blessed New Year.
November 29, 2011
The Final Stretch for First Semester
As we head into the stretch that ends first semester, please be aware of the following:
- Your student’s service hour forms and reflections are due by December 7, 2011 to their religion teacher. At least ten (10) of the twenty (20) required service hours needs to be completed by this date. There is no penalty for having all twenty completed this semester.
- The Maurite Senior Salutes payment and order forms are due by December 10th. Make checks out to “The Maurite” and bring to the front office or pay online (scroll down and click on donate) with the description written as “The Maurite”.
- Lunch balances, Tuition balances, and any other balances need to be paid in full by December 16th. Students having a negative balance will not be able to take finals until the balance is zero or a positive. Please contact Debbie in the business office at (913) 367-5482 or pay online (scroll down and click on donate).
Come support our girls’ and boys’ basketball teams beginning this Friday, December 2, 2011 with our first home game. Games begin at 4:30.
The Lights of Love celebration takes place on Sunday, December 4, 2011 at 5:00 in the Chapel. The annual Lights of Love celebration, started by our Benedictine sisters at Mount St. Scholastica Academy years ago, honors loved ones. Come and join us for this special night by celebrating Mass, music lead by musician Tom Jacobs '72, and enjoying friendship, refreshments and the beautiful tree decorations in the hallway.
November 15, 2011
Are you ready for the holidays?
Next week is Thanksgiving. This is so difficult for me to imagine and I am always amazed at how fast the year moves and how each year moves faster than the last. With the holiday season beginning next Thursday, the next four weeks will be a busy time of the year as we begin winter sports, celebrate our Thanksgiving Mass, then Thanksgiving, Advent, Lights of Love, finals, Christmas break, and then return to school for second semester.
With this hectic, even tiring time, it will be important to continue the diligence of having your students attend school and keeping them healthy.
Please follow the guidelines established by the Kansas Health Department and make sure your student stays home until they are fever free (without medication), and no vomiting or diarrhea, for 24 hours. If your student comes down with strep throat or some other contagious illness, please do not send them to school until they have been on antibiotics for 24 hours. Call the school and we will let teachers know so we can get some, if not all, their homework for you to pick up.
The importance of checking the website announcements and school calendar cannot be stressed enough!
The staff at Maur Hill - Mount Academy wish you a blessed Thanksgiving and a Christ-filled Advent.
October 17, 2011
Did You Know?
If you are like me, I like the convenience of paying my bills online, on my own time. Did you know we offer the ability to pay for lunch or tuition for your student online? There are two ways to get there beginning with the front page of our website.
1) Scroll down and click on the 'Give Now' button. Scroll down and click on donate. In the box, put in the amount you are paying. Click Continue. Type in the description box what it is for and the name of your student. Fill in the other boxes and click Submit. Done.
2) Click on the Giving tab at the top. Then click on Ways to Give. Scroll down and click on donate. In the box, put in the amount you are paying. Click Continue. Type in the description box what it is for and the name of your student. Fill in the other boxes and click Submit. Done.
In these busy times, the ability to pay online comes in quite handy.
October 11, 2011
PowerSchool - One Way to Communicate
It’s that time of year, midway through the semester. Have you checked your PowerSchool lately? If you are having problems with PowerSchool, let us know, we would be glad to help.
In this world of technology, communication should be easier with cell phones, email, text messaging, Twitter, Facebook, websites and more. A teacher friend of mine once said, “Communication is the curriculum.” He is right. The more ways we can communicate, the better we can begin to understand each other and work together for the success of our students. I encourage our teachers to contact you and I encourage you to contact our teachers.
PowerSchool is one of the ways we can communicate. What can you find there?
a) Grades. Not just the current grade in the class (we have one long semester grading period), but grades on each and every assignment.b) Grades sent to Inbox. Sign up to have each class send weekly grades to your Inbox. This will save you from remembering to go to PowerSchool. c) Assignments. Some teachers will post their actual assignment here, including the handout or worksheet so it can be printed at your home in case it got left at school. d) Comments. Teachers are encouraged to make comments on homework assignments your child has turned in to them. e) Contacting teachers. Click on the teacher’s name to open your email account to contact the teacher. You can also find their phone number if that is your preference. f) Descriptions of Assignments. Teachers can add a description of what the assignment is about and any expectations.g) Checking on Lunch Balance. This is something I highly recommend as we currently have a few parents who are behind in lunch payments. h) Lunch balance reminder. Set up to have an email sent to you when your lunch balance falls below a certain amount.
i) Demographic information. Please make sure the demographic and contact information for you is correct. This is what we use to get in touch with you.
As you can see, there are many items PowerSchool can provide so you know what is happening in classrooms. When all of us use it consistently, great support can be provided to all our students.
September 16, 2011
Parents’ Club – Support Among Us
The first Parent Club meeting of the year drew quite a few parents to Jerry’s Again. It was exciting to see so many parents be active members of this organization! If you don’t know much about the Parent Club, here is some information.
The Parents’ Club organization was started as a way to get parents involved with the school. This has not changed. Parents of current students at Maur Hill - Mount Academy are already members of the Parents’ Club. This organization is organized and presided over by parents. Meetings are held on the second Wednesday of the month at 7:00 p.m. at Jerry’s Again. It has been around for many years and is a wonderful support for our school helping students and teachers. Being an active member of this organization is a great way to get to know the other parents and provide service to our school.
A few items from Parents’ Club…
- Pizza Days will increase to $5 beginning wtih September 20. The option to pay in advance is now available! If you are interested in this option, send $70 or a check made out of MH-MA After Prom with your child on Tuesday, September 20, to pay for the rest of the school year.
- Raven Gatherings! After home football games, head to Jerry's Again for some socialization. While there enjoy snacks provided by the Parents' Club or individual members of the Parents' Club and drinks from the cash bar. This is always a good time! Thank you, Liz, for providing a space for this to happen.
- Trash Bag sales continue through September 30. Sale, sale, sale! Turn your money into the school front office.
September 8, 2011
Does time fly!
The weeks are moving fast here at MH-MA. It’s hard to believe that we are in the second week of September!
A few items to note:
1) Lockers: Please help us encourage your student to lock their lockers at school. We also encourage them to not share their locker combination and to not write it down in a conspicuous place.
2) Identification cards: Pictures and ID’s went home on Tuesday, September 6. A ‘Top Ten’ list of why students need to carry their ID’s was read over the announcements. Please encourage them to continually carry their ID’s for several reasons:
It is a skill needed for survival in college since many (if not most) use them for ATM’s on campus, library checkout, printing/copying material, lunch account, and more.
It gets them discounts in a variety of places, such as 25% at Dairy Queen, $1 off tickets to away DVL ballgames, and $6 off home game tickets to BC ballgames.
It gets them in free to MH-MA home games. Without ID it’s $4!
An easy way to get some House points when a teacher asks to see their ID.
Proof of identification at ACT and SAT testing sites.
3) PowerSchool: If your student is a returning student your PowerSchool information has not changed. If your student is a new student, your login information will be mailed on Thursday, September 8.
4) Progress Reports: These will not be mailed, please check PowerSchool. The progress report date is September 16.
August 22, 2011
Great Start to the New School Year!
I am very excited about the school year. The teachers had students busy this week as they were being introduced to their classes. It was so fun to hear the chatter in the hallway as the students were talking about what was happening in the classrooms.
This week we will have our All School Retreat on Thursday and Friday. Thursday the students will come to school at the normal time and the day will end after Mass, which begins at 8:00 p.m. On Friday, students will arrive one hour later (first bell rings at 8:45 a.m.) and the day will end after Mass, which begins at 4:00 p.m.
A reminder for those parents of athletes - Mandatory meeting on Wednesday, August 24, 2011. This meeting will take place in the Study Hall room beginning at 7:00 p.m. Prior to this meeting there will be individual sports meetings beginning at 6:15. At this time, Football will meet in the Roost, Volleyball in the gym, and Soccer in Room 2.
If you have done service hours and need to report them, scroll down to the link below and fill out the form! This is for parents only, not the students.
Thank you for all you do to support our school!!!
August 15, 2011
Pursue the Truth, Strive for Excellence, and Live the Faith!
With all the different ways to communicate, I am hoping this will be the most successful way. I found last year that even if you were in my 'sent email' you may not have actually received my emails and I know some do not sign up for textcaster due to the additional costs of text messages. Therefore when we switched over to our new website host, I asked if I could just have a page. This year, it will be a 'work in progress' as I find how the website works, what you would like to see on it, and the best way to share information with you when using it. I hope you find it to be useful and welcome suggestions.
We are kicking-off our mantra this year, Pursue the Truth, Strive for Excellence, and Live the Faith. The administration has mentioned it several times to the faculty and staff. We will be mentioning it to the students. You will be hearing it quite a bit around campus. As the year progresses, all of us need to continually ask ourselves are we Pursuing the Truth, Striving for Excellence and Living the Faith? If not, what changes can be made so we are?
I must say, it was great seeing so many helpers at the Campus Clean-Up on August 6th! Our campus sure looked sharp after four hours of work. Don't worry if you weren't able to help, more opportunities will be occurring!
It was also wonderful to see everyone at registration! I can't wait for school to begin on Tuesday! I have missed all the students and the activities they bring with them to campus. Remember, on Tuesday, new students will go all day long (7:45 - 3:00) and returning students will get to sleep in, joining us for lunch at 11:30, then spending the afternoon.
A couple of gentle reminders...please make note of the Attendance and Tardy Policies and Dress Code in the handbook. These are important for you and us as we teach students 'real-world' basics such as being at work every day, getting there on time, and contributing to a professional environment, beginning wtih the clothes you wear.
Thank you for sending your student to Maur Hill - Mount Academy! We are so glad they are here and look forward to a fantastic school year!
|
