|
From the Desk of Mrs. Tiezzi
Dear St. Rita Parents/Guardians,
I would like to thank you all for the generosity you showed during the holiday season. Your contributions to the Advent Giving Tree, baked goods, food, and individual teacher and staff gifts were overwhelming and greatly appreciated. The St. Rita School community is very special and very generous. Thank you.
Now that we are in the winter season this is a gentle reminder that St. Rita School follows the decision of the Hamden Public Schools regarding delayed openings, early closings, or closure due to inclement weather. Once we are notified of the HPS decision we will notify you via email AND phone AND text messages. Please listen to or view these messages. We will also notify local news stations regarding our status. You are able to receive notification from the local stations on your phone by signing up for text alerts on the TV station’s website.
School will be dismissed early on Friday, January 12 for teacher professional development and will be closed Monday, January 15 for the Dr. Martin Luther King Holiday. Aftercare will be available on Friday for a cost of $40 for kindergarten-grade 8 students and $45 for PreK students. If you are planning to have your child attend aftercare, please be sure they are properly registered and paid.
Next Friday, January 19, marks the midpoint of the second trimester. Midterm progress reports will be sent home via the USPS to parents of students in grades 4-8 who have grades less than 70% in any major subject. Parents of students in grades 4-8 are able to view student grades via our EduConnect portal at anytime and may request bi-weekly progress reports by checking the appropriate box on the parent page of the portal.
Please join us for our annual celebration of National Catholic Schools Week, beginning on Sunday, January 28. We will be kicking off Catholic Schools Week (January 28-February 3) with student led Masses at all three churches. We are currently looking for students and their families willing to serve as lectors, gift bearers and altar servers for the 8:00 A.M. Mass at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, 10:00 A.M. Mass at Blessed Sacrament and 11:30 A.M. Mass at St. Rita. Please contact me directly if your child would like to be a lector or your family would like to be gift bearers. Students are asked to wear their school uniforms at Mass to show their school pride and receive a free dress down day coupon from Fr. Tiano. Please see Mrs. Tiezzi, Sr. Anne, or Mrs. Robinson at one of the Masses to receive your coupon.
This year’s CSW theme - “Catholic Schools: United in Faith and Community” - highlights our focus on academic excellence, faith development, dedication to community service, and future success. We’ve planned a variety of events to show how we are doing as a community at St. Rita School. A more detailed listing of the CSW activities will be sent home in next week’s newsletter.
Now, most especially let us take some time over the holiday to honor the legacy of Dr. King by talking with your children and sharing ways to live out Dr. King’s legacy - nonviolent protest. In 1959 during his visit to India, Dr. King stated, ”Today we no longer have a choice between violence and nonviolence: it is either nonviolence or nonexistence.” His legacy goes hand in hand with our Catholic social teachings - a rich treasure of wisdom about building a just society and living lives of holiness amidst the challenges of modern society.
St. Teresa of Calcutta once stated “the world is changed by your example, not your opinion”. Spend the next week honoring the legacy of both Dr. King and St. Teresa by “doing small things in a great way”. Thank you for entrusting your child/children to our care. Be safe and stay well.
God Bless,
Mrs. Tiezzi
Principal
| 
