“St. Joseph’s Catholic School educates students through faith formation, academic excellence, and the development of virtue to be disciples of Christ.” Thank you for supporting mission of our school!
Today, we celebrate the completion of a successful year at St. Joseph’s School. As I reflect upon this school year, I realize what an awesome school we have! I have witnessed our school community; faculty and staff, parents, clergy, parishioners, and community members working together to provide positive learning experiences for our students. Our students’ accomplishments are a result of the interest, concern, prayers, and hard work of everyone.
At St. Joseph’s School, we are blessed to learn more than our ABCs and 123s. We are able to learn more about our Catholic faith and the importance of loving and serving others. I commend and thank everyone for doing their best at school. With the guidance and support of their parents, our teachers and each other, our students continue to develop the gifts and talents that God has given to them.
Parents, I realize that you have a choice when deciding where your child or children will be educated for their preschool, elementary, and middle school years. Thank you for choosing to have your child / children attend St. Joseph’s School. Thank you for supporting your child and our staff as we learn together each school year. Thank you for sharing your time and talents with us and for being an important part of our St. Joseph’s School community.
As the Principal at St. Joe’s, it is a privilege to work and pray with so many wonderful children, families, educators, and parishioners.
Over the summer months, please continue to watch for email blasts, check our school website, Facebook, Twitter, and the Church of St. Joseph parish bulletin to receive any school announcements and keep updated on all the exciting happenings at St. Joseph’s School. School office hours will vary during the summer months with the construction happening within the school and parish. Please call / email the school office (651-457-8550) with any needs you may have during this time. Please leave a message if no one is immediately available to assist you and someone will get back to you as soon as possible.
In conclusion, on behalf of the St. Joseph’s School faculty, I would like to extend to you our wishes for a very safe summer. Enjoy the summer months with your family and friends. I look forward to seeing you during the summer and in early September for the start of another exciting school year.
May the peace of Christ be with you always. St. Joseph, pray for us! Go Jaguars!
Thank you, thank you! The St. Joseph’s School community would like to thank Carolyn Pilney, Preschool Director, Kathy Harrington, preschool staff, and Emily Gainor, preschool staff for their service to our preschool and school. Carolyn, Kathy, and Emily will not be returning to the preschool for next year. We wish them well and will miss them working with our preschool children.
Congratulations to our St. Joseph’s School Class of 2018! On Tuesday night, we had the honor of recognizing our amazing 8
th grade students as they graduated from our school. This bright and talented group of thirty-nine young individuals, having built a strong foundation of academics and faith at St. Joseph’s School, will begin their new journey into high school.
There are a couple special facts about the families of this year’s graduating class. First, for twenty-one of our families, this is their only or their last child that will be attending our school. Some of our families have been here for up to twenty years. We thank these families for their involvement and support of our school. Your commitment to our school over the years has been outstanding! Also, for several of our students and their families, they began at St. Joseph’s School in our preschool program ten years ago as members of the first four-year-old preschool class. Congratulations Class of 2018! Be Awesome!
We are proud of each one of our eighth grade graduates. We would like to congratulate Hannah Allen & Becca Tuvey for receiving the St. Joseph’s School Outstanding Student Award. The middle school faculty and staff nominate students who stand out for their faith life and qualities of leadership, character, and service. Consideration is also given to academic effort, involvement, sportsmanship, and cooperation. This year’s awardees will be added to the plaque located in the school office where the names of other outstanding St. Joseph’s students are prominently displayed.
We also express our thanks to the school staff / specialists and all parents who helped with the many graduation activities.
Report Cards Third trimester report cards will be mailed out to families the week of June 11. Upon receipt of your child’s (children’s) report card(s), please call the school office if you have any questions or need assistance.
MNSAA Accreditation This week, our school received a letter and accreditation information from Sarah W. Mueller, Executive Director of the Minnesota Nonpublic School Accrediting Association. Her letter included the information below.
"Congratulations! On Monday, May 21, 2018, the MNSAA Board of Directors renewed the seven-year accreditation eligibility status for the K-8 academic program of St. Joseph Catholic School of West St. Paul. Accreditation eligibility will be extended through June 30, 2025. The Board wishes to recognize your school community for the fine efforts in completing the renewal process. We especially want to acknowledge the way your dedicated school team keeps the Catholic Identity mission alive in learners every day."
Sincerely,
Sarah W. Mueller
Executive Director
We want to thank everyone for their participation in the school’s accreditation process. The journey now continues as we strive for excellence in all aspects of our school and programs. Congratulations!
Fitness Fun Day! Another St. Joseph’s School tradition continued on June 7 – Fitness Fun Day. We express a big thank you to Jackie VanDiver, Physical Education teacher, and to Angie Flynn and Bri Brekke, parent volunteers, for all their work on preparing for Fitness Fun Day. The weather was perfect! Students in grades K-5 enjoyed games and relays at Charles Matson Field and the 6
th and 7
th graders went bowling in the afternoon. We appreciate all the parents who helped out at the field and helped with the picnic lunch sponsored by the Home and School Association. We also thank ISD 197 for allowing us to use Matson Field for this event. It was a great way to bring an end to the school year!
Tuition Agreements and Financial Assistance Awards As our school year is winding down, we are also preparing for the 2018-2019 school year. Tuition agreements are being sent to school families via email from TADS. Families that have applied for Financial Assistance should review their Tuition Agreement carefully. Your Financial Assistance Award will be built into your tuition agreement. If you did not qualify for assistance, you should have received an email with an explanation of the reason you did not qualify. It is important for families to complete your agreements by the provided deadline with the agreement. If you have any questions, please contact our school office (651-457-8550).
2018-2019 Enrollment Our school administration and faculty continue to prepare for another exciting school year. Please continue to assist our school in increasing our student enrollment at all levels by encouraging any families you know to “come and see” our school. We ask that you invite them to call and visit to learn more about our school. Let’s work together to increase our enrollment for 2018-2019 school year.
We would like to remind you that there is a $500 Referral Credit available to our current school families for referring new families that register to attend St. Joseph’s School. Families may contact Christy Frost, our Enrollment Coordinator (651-457-8550) to learn more about our programs and schedule a tour of the school.
Parish and School Building Capital Improvements – Construction Zone Beginning next week, a number of capital improvement projects will begin at the parish and the school. The funding for these projects is coming from the parish’s 2016 Generations of Faith Capital Campaign. The projects include school restroom renovation, school hallway door replacement, work on underground cistern, east parking lot (playground) resurfacing, main church roof/skylights repairs, other church roof/narthex skylight repairs, and painting with in the school building. We thank the parish’s Building and Grounds Committee for coordinating these projects with parish and school administration. Please pray for the safety of all workers involved in the projects occurring over the summer months.
Fall Sport’s Registration The registration form for fall sports (soccer, volleyball and football) for incoming 5-8
th graders will be mailed out with report cards the week of June 11
th. Sport’s registration may be mailed in or dropped off at the office at any time before August 1st. August 1
st will be the deadline for all fall sport’s registration. Sport’s forms may be found on the school’s website under Athletics. Please contact the school office if you have any questions.
Spiritwear Update Hello St. Joe’s Parents,
I am in search of a spirit wear apprentice! My trusty partner, Lisa Knoll, has retired from the spirit wear team. I am thankful for her dedication to our school and her partnership in managing the business side of things. She has been extremely insightful and has provided input that has enabled us to create a spirit wear line that has rallied the passion of the inner Jaguar in our students.
For the last seven years, I have enjoyed the design aspect of creating spirit wear for our school. As I enter my last two years as a parent of a Jaguar, I will be in need of one to two partners that is/are willing to learn the ropes of creating the STJ spirit wear line. This is a volunteer position and, if you are able to bring a bit of creativity to it, that would be ideal! The commitment level is manageable and the schedule is fairly flexible, with the bulk of the work taking place during the summer and fall (getting the spirit wear designs ready for the back-to-school sale beginning with open house). If you are interested in learning more, or if you’re ready to sign up right now, please contact me at
jane@janenicolo.com or 651.983.2229.
Thanks and GO JAGUARS!
Jane Nicolo
School-Age Care Program District 197 and Tri-District Community Education will be providing before and after care as well as non-school days care for St. Joseph’s School students. The SAC (School-Aged Children) program offers safe, fun-enriching activities. There is time for homework, arts and crafts, gym time, and science opportunities. Breakfast and an afternoon snack are provided. For more information, please contact Jen Matz, Registration and Billing Secretary, 651-403-8054 or
jmatz@tridistrictce.org
District 197 Transportation Registration – Now Open All eligible students entering grades K-12 who are planning to ride a bus during the 2018-19 school year
must register for transportation. If you have not already done so, please click on the link below to fill out a registration form.
Bus transportation is available to:
Elementary school students (grades K-4) who live more than 0.75 mile from school
Middle school students (grades 5-8) who live more than 1 mile from school
Click below to Complete a Bus Registration Form:
Resident Student Registration Form Completed registration forms are due on or before August 1. Forms received after August 1 will be put on hold. Students may not have bus service for the first two weeks of school or may be transported home by van (elementary) or asked to use the Academic/Activity Bus (middle and high school) until they are assigned to a route. Transportation requests received after the first two weeks of school will be processed within 2-3 business days.
Please only register for service when you are sure your child will be riding a bus. Complete one form per child. By registering your student for transportation services you are agreeing to comply with our transportation policies and procedures. The transportation policies can be found on the District 197 website (policies 707, 708, 709).
If you have questions about registration, please call Transportation at 651-403-8320.
AmazonSmile A reminder that you can help support St. Joe’s by shopping online using AmazonSmile. Amazon donates 0.5% of the price of your eligible
AmazonSmile purchases to the charitable organization of your choice. To shop, go to
smile.amazon.com and select St. Joseph's School West St. Paul, MN as your charity.
Lost and Found Students and families are highly encouraged to check the school’s “Lost and Found” for any items that may be missing from home. Unclaimed items will be donated to a clothing shelf after June 15.
St. Joseph’s Church Bulletin Please
Click here to link to the weekly St. Joseph’s Church Bulletin
.