Dear Parents,
I just wanted to follow up with you regarding our new initiative of conducting one-hour delays on Wednesday mornings throughout the school year. Although the move to this new format was shared in a spring Parent Newsletter, the July mailing caught some by surprise. You would have appreciated a more prominently featured communication earlier in the summer by which to better plan. The last thing I want is to have parents anxious or frustrated about the transportation and/or cost of caring for their children. So to this end, I want to provide a little further sharing about the decision and some solutions to ease parents’ worries.
First, the purpose of the one-hour delayed start time is to allow Teachers time for consistent professional development and collaboration. Most schools have been carrying out weekly professional development time through early dismissals or delayed starts. With this reserved time, Teachers are better able to build a professional community, strengthen instruction, and ultimately promote student success. On one-hour delay days, faculty will work from 7:15 a.m. - 8:15 a.m. Over the course of the year, this will allow for 32 hours of Teacher professional development and collaboration time, in addition to balancing other family and school obligations.
Secondly, the topic of creating teacher collaboration time was discussed the past school year at our spring School Board meetings. Board members weighed early dismissals vs. one-hour delays. Both options ran into similar challenges, but as Bishop Dwenger already conducts Wednesday, one-hour delays, it was decided that aligning with Bishop Dwenger would make the most sense as many of our families have students in the high school and this would allow families to be on similar delay schedules. It was also decided to delay most every Wednesday (vs. every other) to allow enough time to collaborate and to keep the schedule consistent for families - so one-hour delays every Wednesday (except 6 LOL).
After listening to concerns and thinking over the matter, we identified three main challenges and worked on their solutions. The challenges and solutions to those challenges are below.
1. Challenge: The delay causes transportation obstacles for some families (aligning with parent work hours, finding a carpool, etc.).
Solution: Our Before School Care is open from 6:30 a.m. - 8:30 a.m. on one-hour delay days if needed. Stay on your work schedule and utilize this service for your children. If you haven’t already registered to use the program, you can complete the following form, drop off Ricky-Bobby, and be to work on time. Before and After Care Registration
2. Challenge: The cost for Before School Care on Wednesdays - especially for multi-children families.
Solution: On Wednesday mornings for the entire year, we will have a reduced rate of $5 per family. One child = $5 total. Two children = $5 total. And so on. If you need more assistance on Wednesday mornings, just have a private conversation with Mr. Sordelet or Sr. Genevieve and they will work with you on an 'as needed basis'.
3. Challenge: Our PreK AM students will miss an hour of an already short AM time every Wednesday, so will dismissal time of PreK AM only students change?
Solution: PreK AM students will dismiss at the normal time every Wednesday. However, to make up for the shortage of time on Wednesdays over the course of the year, we will credit the accounts of PreK AM students $120. Remember, Before School Care is open to PreK AM students also.
Again, with changes come some challenges, and of course we always want to be considerate of our families, faculty, and staff when we make changes. So keep the communication flowing and continue to work with us when challenges arise. You will find a schedule of Wednesday one-hour delay days on the back of this letter. There are six highlighted Wednesdays when we will not delay. Thank you.
Sincerely - Rob Sordelet, Principal
2023-2024 FACULTY MEETINGS & PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT CALENDAR
August | Day | Time | Subject |
9 | Wed | No Delay-1st Day of School | |
16 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Data Analysis - BTS Prep |
23 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Friendzy Planning/PlanBook.com Time |
30 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Curriculum Work Time |
September | |||
6 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Curriculum Work Time |
7 | Thurs | No School | Catholic School Mission Day at BD All Day |
8 | Fri | No School | Curriculum Day at TBD Cohort School |
13 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | ILearn Test Security Training |
20 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Faculty Collaboration/PD |
27 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Catholic Identity Formation |
October | |||
4 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay All-School Mass at 12:30pm Feast of St. Francis of Assisi | Safety - Reunification Plan Practice |
11 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Curriculum Work Time |
18 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Data Analysis & Student Report Prep |
25 | Wed | No Delay - Early Dismissal 1:00. Parent-Teacher Conferences 2:00-7:00 p.m. | |
26 | Thurs | Parent-Teacher Conferences 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. | |
November | |||
1 | Wed | No Delay - All Saints Day 8:15 All-School Mass & Confirmation 7:00pm in CH | |
8 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Friendzy Planning/PlanBook.com Time |
15 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Catholic Identity Formation |
29 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Curriculum Work Time |
December | |||
6 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Safety Workshop |
13 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Curriculum Work Time |
20 | Wed | No Delay -Last Day before Christmas Break | |
January | |||
10 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Friendzy Planning/PlanBook.com Time |
17 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Grade Level Meetings |
24 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Curriculum Work Time |
31 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Faculty Collaboration/PD |
February | |||
7 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Friendzy Planning/PlanBook.com Time |
14 | Wed | No Delay -Ash Wednesday | |
21 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Curriculum Work Time |
28 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Catholic Identity Formation |
March | |||
6 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Faculty Collaboration/PD |
13 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Faculty Collaboration/PD |
20 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Curriculum Work Time |
27 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | ILearn Test Security Refresher |
April | |||
10 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Safety Workshop |
17 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Catholic identity Formation |
24 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Curriculum Work Time |
May | |||
1 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Faculty Collaboration/PD |
8 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | Curriculum Work Time |
15 | Wed | 1 Hour Delay | ILearn Data Analysis |
22 | Wed | No Delay - Last Days of School |
