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The biggest challenge we experience in our collective task of raising our children is that we are ALL swimming against a cultural current which is exerting increasing pressure on us to do the opposite of what we know to be healthy and wholesome for them.

Now that we are at the midpoint of our first quarter, let us remind ourselves of the following:

1. Resist the temptation to allow the child to succumb to comparisons.  Until a healthy ego is developed, human nature is such that we tend to compare ourselves with others. If your child is struggling in a particular subject or trying to figure out where he or she fits in socially, it is easy for him or her to divert to “So-and-so got an A,” “So-and-so has more friends,” or “So-and-so doesn’t like me.” Remember, the goal is not the ‘A.’ The goal is not being ‘popular.’ And, most certainly, the goal is not to be ‘the best in comparison with others.’ The goal, rather, is to be one’s personal best: academically, socially and spiritually. The goal is to learn, to grow, to be respectful, to speak one’s truth and to be in right relationship with others. ANY conversation that compares one child with another is unproductive and unhelpful.

2.  Listen intently and honor feelings while providing a reframing of their narrow way of interpreting what happens around them.  Children NEED to come home and ‘bounce’ their day off someone. They want to debrief their experiences and ‘talk through’ their perspectives and feelings. (For many children, this might not happen until they are feeling secure – as at bedtime, while being tucked in. For others it happens the whole way home in the car.) In a desire to be empathetic, our temptation is to be angry if the child is angry or to be very sad if our child is sad or to be anxious if our child is anxious. To respond in more helpful ways, we can try to understand our child’s feelings, while, with well-placed questions, helping them to reframe their struggle. The reframing process provides our children with the practice of (and eventual habit of) thinking about the broader perspective. Knowing that thoughts affect feelings, if we can help our children develop healthy thought patterns, we will help them build a healthy emotional life. Here, the goal is NOT to remove any struggle but to help children figure out how to handle the struggle.

We will continue to diligently educate the children’s hearts and minds on our end, and we thank you profusely for your support as you continue to do so on your end!

In deep union with you in this sacred task,

Maureen Glavin, rscj

We are very much looking forward to this evening’s Back to School Parent Meeting for parents of Middle School students.

The program begins at 7 p.m. in the gym followed by grade level faculty team presentations in the locations designated below.

Opening Prayer
Sister Glavin

Highlights of the New Parent Portal Space
Mr. Will Yates

Safety and Security Update
Sister Glavin

Middle School: The Journey of Growth Continues
and
Introduction of the Middle School Faculty
Dr. Roger Stock

Fifth Class Parents Proceed to the White Center Dining Area
Sixth Class Parents Proceed to the Playroom
Seventh Class Parents Remain in Rauch Memorial Gym
Eighth Class Parents Proceed to Cribbin Hall Library

THANK YOU for taking the time to join us.

With JOY and UNION in God’s Great Love for all of us, as we continue to tap into that Love and live out of that Love!

Maureen Glavin, rscj

This evening is a key parental moment in the creation of our year-long collaboration and partnership:

THE LOWER SCHOOL PARENT MEETING

You will meet the creators of our new Parent Portal, you will have an opportunity to hear from Mrs. Renken, the Lower School Principal, and, perhaps most importantly, you will hear from your child’s teacher about all of the wonderful plans, hopes, dreams and learning aspirations for the year. Equally as essential, you will hear some of the steps the teachers will be taking to support their students in achieving these learning goals. We share both the goals and our methodology with the secure knowledge that the more we communicate with each other, the more we can work together to support our children in their growth, development and maturation on every level.

The evening’s presentation will begin at 7 p.m. in the Rauch Memorial Gym and conclude in your child’s classroom.

Opening Prayer
Sister Glavin

Highlights of the New Parent Portal Space
Mr. Will Yates

Safety and Security Update
Sister Glavin

Lower School Life, Loves and Light
and
Introduction of the Lower School Faculty
Mrs. Marcia Renken

Proceed to the Classrooms
All Lower School Teachers and Parents

Those of you who have Middle School students, we will see you NEXT Thursday!

Also, please feel free to join us tomorrow in spirit and in The Spirit as we launch our year in a formal way with our traditional Mass of the Holy Spirit. We will be inviting God’s Spirit to fill us, to enliven us, to inspire us and to transform us as we ALL continue to grow into God’s Heart and Hands in our classrooms, homes, offices, communities and in our world!

United in God’s Great Love,

Maureen Glavin, rscj

Walking through our hallways and classrooms during this past week, I have seen and experienced an environment suffused with joy! It certainly appears to me that we have begun well on this year’s journey of awakening minds and nurturing hearts!

As we journey together, we do so most effectively when we have good lines of information sharing. The key to our partnership is communication! In that spirit, I want to say a word about some upgrades to two of our regular communication vehicles.

THURSDAY MAIL:  Thursday Mail is an ‘all school’ weekly publication created by Joan Runge, our Director of Communication and a member of the Advancement Office. In it you will find news about upcoming school events, important dates, and information essential for parents. Today you are experiencing Thursday Mail in its newest form. It has a clean look and can be read more easily from all web browsers and most mobile devices.

PARENT PORTAL:  Our parent portal is a private web space which provides parents with a myriad of information, from static content to ongoing classroom updates. Our new portal frees parents from the issue of multiple log-in verification requests. It too will be easier to use on mobile devices. Most importantly, our new Parent Portal will allow you to access curricular information, which had been in class newsletters, in a more timely manner, while allowing simpler access to handbooks, lunch information, health forms, athletic news and school forms. Each parent will have his/her own username and password to access the site. Parents can change their usernames and passwords to one that is more easily remembered. And, if anyone forgets their login, there will be a quick ‘forgot your password’ link with immediate e-mail feedback, thus allowing instant password reset.

An e-mail with YOUR initial password to the Parent Portal will be sent to you Friday morning.

A demonstration of the Parent Portal will occur at both the Lower School and Middle School parent meetings (Sept. 5 and 12 at 7 p.m.).

The Academy strives to be diligent with parent communication while, simultaneously, hoping not to overwhelm you with too much information. (Too much can be as unhelpful as not enough!) Your feedback regarding your experience of how we manage that delicate balance is always helpful.

I look forward to seeing you at our upcoming September parent meetings!

Maureen Glavin, rscj