14 May Letter from Mr. Kelly

May 14, 2021

Feast of Saint Matthias, Apostle

Dear St. James/Seton Catholic School Community,

Congratulations to our SJS class of 2021 who will be graduating tomorrow morning.  This is an exceptional group of young people who I’m sure will make us proud.  We all look forward to seeing what these students will become in the future.  Thanks also to all their parents for the years of continued support.  Your support and sacrifice is indeed noticed and appreciated.  God Bless the SJS class of 2021.

Each year we are asked by the Rotary Club of Omaha to select students to be inducted into the Rotary Honor Roll.  The students have to illustrate leadership, character, scholarship, and presence.  They must be respectful, willing to help others, and take their studies seriously.  They have to be committed to the Rotary slogan of, “service before self.”  Our Rotary Honor Roll students for 2020-2021 are Conner Thomassen and Carly Simon.  These students not only met all the criteria, but are great representatives of our school and Catholic faith.  Congratulations to Conner, Carly, and their parents.

We also have an expectation that the addition and subtraction facts will be mastered by the end of 2nd grade, and multiplication and division mastered by the end of 4th grade.  Mastery means the ability to recall the answer very quickly.  If your student does not reach that expectation yet, please make this a summer goal and priority.

Monday is an optional out of uniform day.  Your fee will donation will go towards our upcoming Joy of Giving event (see below).  Tuesday is the last day of school with a regular dismissal time.  Tuesday will be a regular uniform day.  This year the last day is a full school day, with much cleaning, organizing, and playing.  It can be a challenge to clean and play in dress up clothes, which is why it is a regular uniform day.  If you are looking for an opportunity to dress up, I might suggest Mass as regular attendance begins again at the end of the month.

Joy of Giving is a 24-hour period of giving to benefit the schools, parishes, ministries and organizations of the Archdiocese of Omaha.  Your generous support of St. James/Seton Catholic School during this new event can make a meaningful difference on our students and staff.  Your gift during this event will help us to raise funds for tuition assistance, new textbooks, math manipulatives, leveled library additions, art supplies, and items for our STEM program.  Check out this link- https://omaha.igivecatholictogether.org/organizations/st-james-seton-catholic-school

Please consider joining in our efforts to make this a fantastic day of Catholic giving in our community.

As we end the final full week this year, I look back with great pride at what we have accomplished in this very strange year.  Total number of days closed this school year due to COVID—zero.  Total number of positive cases spread at school—zero.  Total number of days spent in remote learning—zero.  Total number of times the calendar was altered due to COVID—zero.  So we have been able to make great progress with our students because of the hard work of our students, teachers, and the support of our parents.  SJS is a special place.  I look forward to getting back to a more normal school year next year, and the great things we are sure to accomplish.

Peace,

William Kelly

Principal