Our Lady of Charity Weekly Newsletter

February 3, 2023

Dear Parents, OLC’s new team mascot (for 2023-2024) is the Panthers! Thank you to all the students in grades 1 - 8 who voted. A special thank you goes to the 8th grader who designed the mascot: Ms. Marissa Aguilar! We will be fully adopting the Panthers team name and mascot in the new school year in August.

We have a new iPad and Chromebook device management system called Securly. This program helps teachers engage every student and lead class with confidence. With Securly, teachers can view student screens so they know that students are engaged in classwork. Securly allows us to be better able to block sites, push URLs to student devices, freeze screens, and more. These additional security features are a welcome addition to our 1:1 student device program.

Volleyball: OLC is looking into the possibility of having a volleyball team. If you know a coach, email me soon: fzarate@olc-school.org

OLC School is hosting a Pop-Up shop Arts & Crafts Fair at the St. Mary of Czestochowa Social Center on March 4 and 5. If you have a small business and would like to reserve a space, contact our school marketer, Yashica Zuniga, at yzuniga@olc-school.org. We will be renting out 25 spaces that are about 8ft x 8ft. It is $30 for one day and $50 for both days.

Snow, hiking, or cowboy boots are not permitted in class. If it becomes necessary to wear any of this footwear because of the snow, it must be exchanged for school shoes in the classroom. Cowboy boots may be worn in class on February 6, however (see below). Congratulations to our Knights of Columbus Spelling Bee winner, 5th grader Anabel Rodriguez! Our second place winner is 8th grader Dean Cundari. I still remember the word I missed in my own 5th grade spelling bee: “bouquet”! Thank you to all of you who were able to assist us with our Catholic Schools Week activities, including speaking at Masses, the hot chocolate, and the treats for teachers today. We appreciate it!

School Mass schedule (parents welcome to join us): Feb 3 (today): 1:00 Spanish Feb 10: 9:00 English Feb 17: no school (see below) Feb 22: Ash Wednesday, 12:00 English Feb 24: 9:00, Stations of the Cross

2023-2024 Tuition Rates 1 student: $6,254 2 students: $9,663 3 students: $12,699 4 students: $14,926 Early registration begins on April 3, 2023

Important dates:

Monday, February 6: Western wear day. Students in all grades may come to school dressed in their favorite cowboy/cowgirl/western attire.

Thursday, February 9: Parent-teacher conferences (by parent or teacher request only); students will be dismissed at 11:30. A link to sign up for a conference time was sent to you earlier this week.

Friday, February 10: Valentine’s Day dance in Halpin Hall, grades 5 - 8, 6:30 - 9:00; OLC students only

Friday, February 17: no school; staff development day

Monday, February 20: no school; Presidents’ Day

Saturday, April 29: 1st holy Communion at 1:00

Yours in Christ, Frank S. Zarate, Jr., Ed.D.

Principal (708) 652-0262

fzarate@olc-school.org

Our Lady of Charity Weekly Newsletter

January 26, 2023

Dear Parents, Volleyball: If we can find coaches, OLC is looking into the possibility of having a volleyball team, one for girls and one for boys. If you or someone you know can coach, please email me soon: fzarate@olc-school.org OLC School is hosting a Pop-Up shop Arts & Crafts Fair at the St. Mary of Czestochowa Social Center on March 4th and 5th. If you have a small business and would like to reserve a space, contact our school marketer, Yashica Zuniga at yzuniga@olc-school.org. We will be renting out 25 spaces that are about 8ft x 8ft. It is $30 for one day and $50 for both days.

Snow, hiking, or cowboy boots are not permitted in class. If it becomes necessary to wear any of this footwear because of the snow, it must be exchanged for school shoes in the classroom.

Students are outdoors for recess and before school unless the temperature is 20 degrees or below. All students should come to school in full winter gear: coat, gloves, scarf, hat, and boots. Many of the older students do not like to wear all that, as you know.

Catholic Schools Week 2023:

Sunday, January 29: Celebrating your parish

• 5th graders will host the noon Mass at OLC

• Parent speakers at OLC and St. Mary of Czestochowa; announce tomorrow’s open house

Monday, January 30: Celebrating your community

• Open house 8:00 - 11:00 Tuesday, January 31: Celebrating your students

• Hot chocolate and pan dulce with your faith buddy*

Wednesday, February 1: Celebrating the nation

• Spelling bee with Knights of Columbus

• Red, white, and blue spirit day for students

• American history Kahoot game (4th - 8th grade)

Thursday, February 2: Celebrating vocations

• Sr. Margaret to speak to 8th grade students

Friday, February 3: Celebrating faculty and staff

• Coffee cart and doughnuts for staff**

• Academic Bowl: Students will complete in teams to answer grade appropriate academic questions. Saturday, February 4: Celebrating families

• Family Tree bulletin board celebrating all the families in the school
  

* Email your child’s teacher if you can provide hot chocolate or pan dulce for your child’s class ** Email me if you can bring a box of coffee or a dozen donuts

School Mass schedule (parents welcome to join us): Jan 27: 9:00 English Feb 3: 1:00 Spanish Feb 10: 9:00 English Feb 17: no school (see below) Feb 22: Ash Wednesday, 12:00 English Feb 24: 9:00, Stations of the Cross

2023-2024 Tuition Rates 1 student $6,254 2 students $9,663 3 students $12,699 $14,926 4 students $14,926 Early registration begins on April 3, 2023

Important dates:

Sunday, January 29: New date for the 5th grade class Mass at noon. All families are invited. Donuts, pan dulce, and beverages after Mass.

Wednesday, February 1: Early release day; 30 minutes before the regular time. Red, white, and blue dress down day for students

Thursday, February 9: Parent-teacher conferences (by parent or teacher request only); students will be dismissed at 11:30. A link to sign up for a conference time will be sent to you next week. Conferences are in- person unless parents email the teacher and request remote.

Friday, February 17: no school; staff development day

Monday, February 20: no school; Presidents’ Day

Saturday, April 29: 1st holy Communion at 1:00 Yours in Christ,

Frank S. Zarate, Jr., Ed.D.

Principal

(708) 652-0262 fzarate@olc-school.org

Our Lady of Charity Newsletter

January 13, 2023

Dear Parents, Next week we have no school on Monday in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Dr. King was first and foremost a minister, and at the foundation of his work was Christ’s message to “love one another.” In our work at OLC, we strive to help children learn Dr. King’s message to be fair with each other, and to live as “disciples of Christ and leaders in the community.”

According to the Parent and Student Handbook: Each student athlete (this includes each cheerleader) is expected to maintain a minimum grade of C in all classes. Failure to fulfill [this] expectation may result in suspension from the athletic program [until the grade is raised].

Please call us when your child is absent. Call no later than 9:00: 708-652-0262 ext. 201. Leave a message if no one picks up the phone. We need to know where the children are during the school day.

We had an art exhibit on Tuesday of the pieces created by students in their work with the teaching artists we had from the National Museum of Mexican Art. See the photo below for a few sample projects.

Important dates:

Monday, January 16: Martin Luther King Jr. Day, no school

Wednesday, January 18: Empower Illinois Tax Credit Scholarship Reservation Night! Form opens at 6:30 pm; submission begins at 7 pm. This important step secures the family's time stamp and their position in first come, first served order.

Wednesday, January 25: Early release day; 30 minutes before the regular time

Sunday, January 29: New date for the 5th grade class Mass at noon. All families are invited. Donuts, pan dulce, and beverages after Mass.

Yours in Christ,

Frank S. Zarate, Jr., Ed.D.

Principal (708) 652-0262 fzarate@olc-school.org