From the Desk of Mrs. Tiezzi

Dear St. Rita Parents/Guardians,

We have been in school approximately six weeks and it appears that our arrival and dismissal procedures are working well. However, I’d like to remind you of a few important points:

• The school doors open at 8:00 A.M., the first bell rings at 8:15 A.M. Students arriving after morning announcements start (approximately 8:18 A.M.) are marked tardy.
• Please do not stop in the marked crosswalk to drop your child off. The 2 spaces in front of the crosswalk and the 2 spaces behind the crosswalk are considered safe drop-off zones.
• Our two traffic monitors, Mr. Steve and Mr. Ray, work very hard to keep the traffic moving. Please follow their directives.
• If you are in the left-hand drop-off lane please do not drop your child off unless you are stopped in the safe zone. A child walking between cars is creating a dangerous situation for everyone.
• If your child needs assistance exiting the car, please park in a designated spot and escort them to the front door. Do not stop in the car line to unbuckle them from their car seat, put on their backpack, and give those extra hugs and kisses, as you are holding up the traffic flow in the driveway, on Gillies Road and on Whitney Avenue.
• Dismissal begins promptly at 2:40 for our kindergarten students. For the remainder of the school we are able to accomplish dismissal in about 10 minutes. Parents/Grandparents should be at school by 2:50 to pick-up their student.
• Students in grades 1-5 dismiss through the main entrance and a parent/grandparent/caregiver needs to be in the parking lot to meet the student(s). Students in grades 6-8 are escorted by their teacher through the parking lot to meet their ride.
• Students and parents are reminded to use the designated crosswalks staffed by a crossing guard when crossing Gillies Road and Whitney Avenue.
• Car drivers are asked to obey the safety rules, follow the designated no parking zones and follow the directives of the crossing guard and traffic monitors to help keep all our students safe.



Tomorrow and Friday are early dismissal days for Parent-Teacher Conferences. Dismissal is at 12:00(Noon). Aftercare will be open on both days. Parents must register and pay for their child to attend aftercare.

Our new school counselor, Mr. Peter Tehan, will begin next week. He will be at St. Rita on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, from 8:00-3:00. Throughout his career Peter has served as a teacher, counselor and coach. Peter’s services are provided to us by Catapult Learning and are being funded through a grant we received. Peter will be working with students at all grade levels in the area of social-emotional learning. He will be introducing the 2^nd Step Program to our elementary students and will be available for individual and group counseling for any student needing support.

Next Wednesday, October 18, the Home-School Association will host an open parent meeting beginning at 6:00 P.M. in the gym. All school parents are members of the HSA and are welcome to attend and share your ideas for future school activities and events. Refreshments will be served.

Thank you for entrusting your child/ren to our care. Enjoy this beautiful and dry Fall weather. 

God Bless,

Mrs. Tiezzi

Principal

Parents - Please Note:

Class pictures will NOT be taken this Friday, October 13 as previously scheduled.

Class picture day has been rescheduled to

Friday, January 10, 2024.

Please support SRS 8th grade student, Addy Davis' service project as she competes in the Miss Connecticut Volunteer pageant.

Time for a FUN-Raiser!

SRS Trunk or Treat is a fun event in which our children get to dress up and go "trunk to trunk" at SRS family cars in the school parking lot. They collect Halloween goodies and have an evening of fun together with treats and music. It is a "rain or shine" event just as Halloween is.

This event is open to all St. Rita School families. 

All ages are welcome and all must be accompanied by an adult. Feel free to also dress up! Please no overtly political or intensely horror-themed choices. 

HOW IT WORKS: cars with goodies start to line up at 5:00pm in a circle with all the trunks pointed outward. Decorated trunks are a plus: the more fun, the better! Check out Pinterest for ideas!

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27th

Arrival time for cars: 5 pm

 Start time for trunk o' treating: 6:00- 6:45 pm

Parents: please sign up to either sponsor a car or to attend with your children. If you're not sponsoring a car, please send in two bags of store-bought treats. If you can help with parking or first aid, please indicate that.

Any questions?Email me at maryleedelaney@gmail.com

Lost & Found

Our Lost & Found is growing! Please check with your child to see if they are missing clothing, a belt, a lunch box or a water bottle.

HSA

Home/School Association

JOIN US AT

ST. RITA SCHOOL FOR

SHRED DAY

NOVEMBER 4, 2023

FROM 9 – 12

ST. RITA SCHOOL PARKING LOT

1601 WHITNEY AVE. HAMDEN

COST: $10 PER BOX OR BAG

Nurse's Corner

Welcome Back to School! I hope everyone had a healthy and relaxing summer. Just a few reminders from the health office as we begin a new year.

COVID: We have seen a few cases of COVID in our school. If your child has a case of COVID in their classroom you will receive a notice. We ask that you then monitor your child for symptoms for 5 days. Please notify the school if your child develops COVID. The CDC guidelines have not changed. If you develop a case of COVID you must quarantine for 5 days, the first onset of symptoms is day 0. Your child can return to school on day 6 with a mask until day 10. Any questions please call the nurse.

Grade 6 physicals: All students in Grade 6 are required by the state to have a physical in order to enter Grade 7. This physical needs to be dated after May 30, 2023. Please send in a copy of your child's physical and immunization record once they have had their physical. 

Illness and protocol: If your child is sick with a fever and or vomiting they should stay home until symptoms have resolved for 24 hours. If your child has excessive coughing and or runny nose please keep them home. This will help keep everyone around them safe. If your child does not look "right" to you , follow your intuition and keep them home. Sometimes they just need a day of rest to prevent an illness from spreading. 

Prek students and The Flu shot: All students in PreK 3 and 4 are required by the state to have a flu shot before Jan 1, 2024. Please send in documentation once your child has gotten their shot. Students who have not received a flu shot by Jan 1 will not be allowed to return to school until this is completed. 

If you have any questions or concerns throughout the school year please do not hesitate to call me. I can be reached in the health office M-F from 8:00am -3:00pm

Open House

Sunday Oct. 22, 1:00 to 3:30pm

Let’s rock!

Sacred Heart Academy is proud to present “Rock of Ages: Teen Edition” on October 20-21 at the Shubert Theatre.

This production features many SRS alum including Cooper Leng, Devon Burns, Leila Melendez, Maria Testa and in leading roles, Jaime Lamb and Colin Lamboley! Director ML Delaney is also our SRS theatre director, and would love to see you and your families in the lobby.