A note from Mrs. Gunderson...
Dear Families,
Next year St. Stephen’s is up for reaccreditation through MNSAA, (Minnesota Nonpublic School Accrediting Association). This year is our study year and our staff will be working diligently on analyzing the following areas of our school in preparation for next year when we will go through accreditation:
- Mission and Philosophy
- Teaching & Learning
- Climate for Learning
- Communications & Relations
- Personnel
- Leadership and Governance
- School Strategic Plan
Next Tuesday, November 8, (election/voting day) students do not have school but our staff will begin work on the above areas. Our goal is to ensure that St. Stephen’s maintains a high standard of quality and excellence and that we are authentically living out our mission.
Parents, as stakeholders of St. Stephens, I will be asking for you to participate in a survey about St. Stephen’s. We will use the feedback from the survey to help guide us while we are working on our Strategic Plan for the future. Look for the survey to come home via email before Thanksgiving.
Chef Faith Strikes Again! Do you recall that our Food Service Director, Chef Faith, and student Averie T., made the front page of the Catholic Spirit the first month of school? Well, on Tuesday of this week Chef Faith invited the winners of the recipe contest to come to our school kitchen after school and she coached them on how to prepare their meals for a larger number of people. Faith also invited the families to come in and dine together in our school cafeteria. They enjoyed the delicious food that their very own children prepared for them!
Our Middle School classrooms have new desks and chairs thanks to the 2021-2022 Mardi Gras! New Middle School furniture was a need item and are we every grateful. Our classrooms have a much more contemporary look and feel. Students are enjoying the chairs that rock too!
Have a wonderful rest of the week and weekend.
Blessings to you all! Yours in Christ,
Mrs. Gunderson, Principal
Eucharistic MIRACLES of the World
Traveling exhibit of Eucharistic miracles bolsters faith in Real Presence
St. Stephen's is excited to announce the International Eucharistic Miracles exhibit will be in our Faith Community Center from Saturday, November 5 until Tuesday, November 8. Each and every community member is highly encouraged to view the exhibit and learn about the vast number of documented Eucharistic miracles!
The exhibit was inspired by Blessed Carlo Acutis’ website detailing Eucharistic miracles from around the world. A Patron of the National Eucharistic Revival, Blessed Carlo was an Italian teenager who died at the age of 15 from leukemia in 2006 but not before spending considerable time documenting Eucharistic miracles. In 2007, generous donations from the Diocese of Springfield, Illinois paid to have a traveling exhibit created from Blessed Carlo’s Eucharistic miracles website. Approved by the Vatican, the extensive collection of 170 panels features historical documents and photos of 140 different Eucharistic miracles from all over the world.
Don't miss this incredible opportunity to learn about the miracles in which the literal presence of Jesus' body and blood appeared in the Eucharist.
UNIFORM STORE IS OPEN!
The St. Stephen's School online uniform-only store is open again! Now is your chance to order more uniforms for your ever-growing child(ren)! The Holiday Spirit wear store will open in the next week or so, we are busy preparing new exciting items for Christmas! Please spread the word! Just click on the link below to get started:
ORDER UNIFORMS HERE
If you have a couple (1-2) items that your child has NOT worn, and you would like to see if we can exchange your item in our small, limited NEW supply at school, you are welcome to come in Friday, November 4, after parent drop off at 7:30 AM, and meet with Sandy Lang to exchange your uniform piece for a BLUE SHORT SLEEVE uniform crewneck t-shirt. Right now, that is all we have for exchanges in the school inventory. Please contact Sandy if you would like to visit the school uniform store at bradandsandy@icloud.com.
B.A.S.E. UPDATES
There will be no FULL DAY B.A.S.E. on Tuesday, November 8, due to lack of enrollment. Please contact Mary Schaeppi directly at: mschaeppi@ststephenchurch.org if you have any questions. Thank you.
Winter Sports Sign Up
Above is a wrestling link for a google form so we can get all contacts in one spot.
Basketball practice for all 3 teams (B, JV,Varsity) will all host their first practice jointly this upcoming Monday 11/7 at 6:30pm-8:00pm. This will serve as a “tryout” of some shape so coaches can properly plaace students where they belong for the season. We still have Varsity VB practicing the week of 11/7 so at this first practice is where more information on practice time for specific teams will come. Games will begin mid-November. If students are not signed up, they are still strongly encouraged to sign show up day 1 and if they like than we can get them registered then!
Warm regards,
Mr. Taylor
Physical Education (K-8) & Athletic Director
St. Stephen’s School, (763)-742-3960, ttaylor@ststephenchurch.org
Technology Fees Applied to TADS
The $150 per student Technology Fee has been added to each TADS account for the 2022-23 school year. If you would like to pay be check or cash, just send it into the school office at your soonest convenience. Thank you! Payments will be due October 25.
Angel Award Winners
Congratulations to this week's Angel Award Winners! Thank you Kaitlyn, Gage and Aubrey for making our school a better place to be and showing respect to fellow students and adults. We appreciate you and are so proud of you!
A Bottle Pull at the Craft Fair? WINE NOT?
We need your help! Can you donate a bottle… or two…or three…for the Bottle Pull at the craft fair on Saturday, November 19th?
We ask that bottles be valued $12 and up.
Donations will be accepted the week of November 14th.
Thank you for your support!
Volunteer at St. Stephen's School
A great testimonial from a lunchroom volunteer…..
“I really think people are missing out – it’s just so much fun!" -Anonymous
Every day we are looking for volunteers to help our with our students and staff! An hour or two a week, or more! You can make a difference!! Do you have a family member, friend or neighbor that would like to give some time tour school? We would LOVE to have them. Just need to have their Virtus training completed!
Thanks so much!
Lunchroom: Help out during lunch times with student needs i.e. open milk cartons, assist with silverware, etc. The lunchroom is in need of 3 volunteers EACH DAY. The link below gets you a 2 hour spot (10:30 - 12:30) on any day or days that work for you. You do not need to sign up for consecutive days or weeks.
Virtual Academy Support: Assist small groups of students with signing into computers, passwords, etc. Once students are logged in and tutoring, you may work on your laptop, read, knit, etc. There are several time slots available throughout the day.
*** NEW Recess/Playground Supervision: We have a GREAT new volunteer spot we would LOVE to fill each day! Hello! Do you love fresh air? A nice brisk hour outside a day or two a week? We have a spot for YOU! We would love to give our teachers a bit of extra time each day! 2 shifts each day! We hope you will prayerfully consider!
31st Annual St. Stephen's Craft Fair: There are many volunteer opportunities at this big fundraising event for both adults and middle school students for their service hours. There are also spots available for Bake sale and Bottle pull donation items on this sign up.
Still don’t have your Virtus completed? Click below to cross that off your list!
We SO appreciate each of you!
ART ADVENTURE OPPORTUNITIES!
We are looking for interested Picture People for the Art Adventure Program through Minnesota Institute of Arts (Grades K-4, 1 volunteer for each teacher). This awesome program begins in December (approx. 5 hours TOTAL), which includes training and in-person/virtual classroom discussion with students. Connecting with teachers on what best suits their class needs. Each volunteer would receive a booklet of the art pieces and run with it however it would be appropriate for that age group. Please reach out to our Art Adventure Coordinator, Jackie Mjolhus, jtoulouse@hotmail.com Please reach out to me if you have any questions!
Raise Money for more Playground Equipment
with BoxTops for Education
You can help us raise money for new playground equipment by simply downloading the BoxTops App, buying products that have the BoxTop brand logo, and scanning your receipt! Just follow the easy directions indicated on the flyer below. Since the beginning of the year, we have already raised $53.00! Thank you families!
St. Stephen's Lunch Program
The lunch program is doing FABULOUS! Thank you, parents, for being aware of how much money is in your child's lunch account, and adding money when needed.
St. Stephen's Craft Fair BAKE SALE
Craft Fair Bake Sale Donations Needed!
Mark your calendars! Our Annual Bake Sale will be held Saturday, November 19th in conjunction with the Craft Fair. We need lots of baked goods to make this a successful event!
Please label your items and have them packaged to sell. We will price items at school. Package in zip-loc bags, sturdy paper plates inside a freezer bag, or place in disposable clear containers. Packages of 6-12 are recommended.
Please drop off your items in the school entryway on Friday, November 18 before 5 PM or drop them off the day of the bake sale from 8-10 AM.
What is coming up...
November:
8 - NO SCHOOL, Staff Development Day
22 - Annual Food Brigade for Christmas Baskets
23-25 - No School, Happy Thanksgiving!
COVID and St. Stephen's School
As the school year is just beginning, we want to be transparent about our expectations of COVID and our students. If your child tests positive for COVID, we will continue to stick with the policy that your child will stay home for 5 days from the symptom start date. After 5 days, if the child is symptom-free and off all medicines, he/she may return to school full-time with a mask (recommended, not required). If you have any questions regarding COVID and your child, please do not hesitate to call Heidi in the school office at 763-421-3236.