Dear St. Monica Academy Families,
I hope this message finds you all well.
On Sunday, we observed the 5th Sunday of Lent. We continue to journey closer to Easter, and continue to contemplate the themes of repentance, forgiveness, and renewal. It is often around this time that we see, hear, and/or read the metaphor of a grain of wheat in the Gospel of John. I think that is one of those verses that demonstrates to us in simple terms Jesus’ purpose and the new covenant promised. A grain of wheat that dies produces the harvest or life. It points to the central theme of Lent to Easter Sunday, that Jesus’ death and resurrection is the path to new life for all of us as believers.
On Tuesday, March 19th, we celebrated The Feast of St. Joseph as an entire school at Mass. One of the best descriptions of St. Joseph I have ever read was that he was a quite hero and the protector of the Holy Family. He was the man trusted by God to be Mary’s husband and to watch over Jesus. He was a man who showed deep faith during Mary’s pregnancy and great courage in leading his family to Egypt. St. Joseph as a quiet hero and protector are the ways I choose to remember him and encourage others to do so in a similar way.
March Madness is upon us! When one hears this term, they immediately think of the brackets associated with NCAA men’s and women’s basketball that starts with a field of 64 and eventually leads to one overall champion. There are many of us that are obviously interested in that, but this year we are also doing a Catholic Identity March Madness. We will be using various brackets and a series of voting to break down a large field of entrants to one winner. Let me explain a bit further. In the early childhood grades, the brackets will consist of significant animals and/or animal symbols/references in Scripture, and our students in Pre-K through 2nd grade will vote to determine which of these animals will be the ultimate winner for St. Monica Academy this year. Our teachers will share an appropriate verse in which the animal appears. In the intermediate grades (3rd through 5th), they too will be utilizing brackets, but they will be voting to determine which event in Jesus’ life is most significant to them. For example, students may have vote to determine which is more impactful and meaningful to them: Jesus sharing the parable of the Good Samaritan (found in Luke 10: 25-37) or Jesus Calming the Storm (found in Mark 4: 35-41). Many of these instances and events of Jesus’ life will become one after several voting sessions. Again, these verses will be shared with your students. Finally, in the Middle School, the teachers will select some key verses from both Old and New Testament that are often identifiable as important, impactful, and meaningful by students in middle and high school. Our students will vote, using the bracket, to determine which of these verses is the most crucial to them for the 2023-2024 school year. One will be able to find the brackets in the main foyer at St. Monica Academy.
As a last reminder, the 5Essentials Survey closes on March 22nd. I have been writing about this quite a bit. Quite frankly, we have done incredibly well, though there is still time to participate. As a parent, if you have not completed this yet, you have access to the survey through this link. All surveys completed by parents, students, and faculty and staff are completely anonymous. I look forward to this data.
Boosterthon is coming and registration is here! You can now register for our St. Monica Academy Fun Run! Our goal is to raise $20,000 for general operations, with a significant portion going toward replacing another set of doors and our STEM curriculum. Registering is easy and free. Registration will not officially open until 5:00 p.m.
Be sure to check the easy sharing functions on MYBOOSTER.COM to let others know how they can help support our school. Thank you for working with us to make our school stronger. We are grateful for your support!
Some other pieces of school business I would like to direct your attention to:
I am very pleased to share the 2024 Illinois Junior Academy of Science Region 2 Science Fair Results with you. Our students had quite an incredible showing and I’d like to thank Mrs. Ronchi for all her work with these students.
Region 2 Paper Sessions, Saturday, March 9, 2024, at Horizon Science Academy---Belmont High School
Julia and Sophia have qualified for the State Paper Session at Milliken University, in Decatur, Illinois, on Friday, May 3, 2024.
Region 2 Poster Session, Saturday, March 16, 2024, at Northeastern Illinois University
Hazel, Isabella, and Julia have qualified for the State Poster Session at Millikin University, in Decatur, Illinois, on Saturday, May 4, 2024.
Congratulations to our young scientists and best wishes to them in their future competitions and scientific endeavors!
As always, visit the St. Monica Academy website to sign up for volunteer opportunities and to read about the importance of our fundraising efforts.
Go Mustangs!
St. Monica, Pray for Us!
In His Name,
Wayne Wenzel, Jr.
Principal
Calling All Doughnut Lovers Mother-Son Dance, Saturday, April 27 Candlelight Bowl, Saturday, April 20 Mother and Daughter Spa Day, Saturday, May 18 Last Lenten Friday Fish Fry The Online SMA Spirit Wear Store is Open! |