Dear Academy Community, 

As we approach Holy Week, a time of profound significance in our faith, I am filled with both humility and gratitude for the journey we are undertaking together as a school community. This sacred time offers us a chance to reflect, to renew our spirits, and to deepen our connection with God and one another.

During this week, we are called to walk alongside Jesus as he makes his way to Jerusalem, to witness his love, sacrifice, and ultimate triumph over death. It is a time of both sorrow and joy, as we accompany our Lord through his Passion, Death, and Resurrection.

As families deeply rooted in the Catholic tradition, Holy Week presents us with a unique opportunity to engage in meaningful practices that strengthen our faith and enrich our lives. Here are a few reflections to guide us through this sacred time:

• Prayer: Let us carve out moments for prayer amidst the busyness of our lives, seeking solace and guidance in God's presence. Let us pray for the grace to embrace the challenges and blessings of each day with faith and courage.
• Reflection: Take time to reflect on the events of Holy Week, imagining ourselves among the crowds waving palms, at the Last Supper with Jesus and his disciples, standing at the foot of the cross, and rejoicing at the empty tomb. Through reflection, we can deepen our understanding of Christ's love for us and its significance in our lives.
• Service: Holy Week calls us to follow Jesus' example of selfless love and service to others. Let us seek opportunities to serve our families, our communities, and those in need, embodying the spirit of compassion and generosity that Jesus taught us.
• Reconciliation: The Sacrament of Reconciliation offers us the chance to experience God's mercy and forgiveness in a profound way. As we prepare to celebrate Easter, let us examine our hearts, seek reconciliation with God and one another, and embrace the freedom that comes from forgiveness.
• Celebration: Finally, let us approach Easter Sunday with hearts full of joy and gratitude, celebrating the triumph of life over death and the promise of redemption that Jesus' resurrection brings. Let us gather as families to rejoice in the hope and renewal that Easter offers us.

As we journey through Holy Week together, may we open our hearts to God's grace, allowing it to transform us and deepen our faith. May we draw strength from our shared commitment to living out the values of our Catholic faith, and may the light of Christ guide us through the darkness, leading us to the joy of Easter morning.

Wishing you and your families a blessed Holy Week and a joyous Easter!

Please see below the Holy Week Services dates and times at Blessed Trinity and St. Francis de Sales Parishes. 

Over the past weeks many classes began preparing for the closing of Lent and the celebration of Christ’s resurrection through special prayer services, praying the Stations of the Cross and lessons getting them ready for Holy Week. 

Let’s hope the frigid temperatures are gone for good as we move into the last week in March. I know we are all ready for sun-shining days! We had another successful Parent Teacher Conference Day/Night this week. Thanks to all families for coming in to discuss your children’s great successes thus far.

We look forward to a wonderful third trimester as we begin to wind down the 2023-2024 school year. Hope to see many of you at Mass this weekend and at St. Francis de Sales Parish Easter Egg Hunt. 

Onto some updates for the days ahead….

Passion Play: We are looking forward to our Passion Play on Tuesday, March 26th at 1:30pm where many of our 7th grade students reenact the solemn events that occurred through Jesus’s journey towards death and resurrection. All parents of the 7th graders who are in this year’s Passion Play are invited to join us and watch their child’s performance.   

Easter Recess: This year St. Francis de Sales Catholic Academy breaks for Easter Recess starting on Wednesday, March 27th and returns from break on Monday, April 8th. Have a great time with family and friends. 

Babysitting Night: The Graduating Class of 2024 will be organizing a fun night for our Kindergarten through 3rd-grade students. This SFDSCA 8th Grade Babysitting Night allows you to enjoy two and a half hours kid-free on Friday, April 12th 2024, from  6 pm-8:30 pm. Open to our students Kindergarten- 3rd grade. This opportunity is open to SFDSCA families ONLY.

Your children will be supervised by school staff,  8th-grade students, and 8th-grade parent volunteers (VIRTUS trained). Children will be treated to a movie, games, crafts, and organized sports and activities. We will provide the children with a snack (drinks and chips, etc.). Please be sure your child has dinner prior to coming.

The fee is $20 for the first child and for each additional child is $5. Please submit the form below and send in payment separately to the main office. in an envelope marked “8th Grade Babysitting Night”.

Babysitting Night Registration Form

Please RSVP BY April 8th. We cannot accept registration after the 8th for planning reasons. You will NOT be able to register the night of the event.

Chess Nuts: Parents of our Chess Nuts students are invited to join us this Monday 3/25 at 3:15 pm in the Gym for the Chess Awards of our Winter Session. 

Absence Notes: As we continue into the third trimester, please ensure that you send your child(ren) in with a written absence note/doctor’s note when they return to school after being out sick. If your child is on a Buddy Day, documentation from the school visited is required. Calling the main office to let us know is great, but a paper trail of sorts is also required by law. 

2024 St. Jude Math-A-Thon: 

The St. Jude Math-A-Thon is a school-based fundraiser that benefits St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.  St. Jude treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases.  Parents of these children cannot afford to pay for treatments. With the donations raised from St. Jude Math-A-Thon, families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing, or food.

St. Francis de Sales raises thousands of dollars each year to help the children of St. Jude. The official last day of the fundraiser will be Friday, April 12th 2024.

Students and parents may utilize the following link on their social media sites (e.g., Instagram, Facebook), to help fundraise online.  Online donations can be made and linked directly to St. Francis de Sales Catholic Academy using the link below:

https://fundraising.stjude.org/site/TR/Math/Math?pg=entry&fr_id=145897&copy_link_share

Please print out a copy of your team page after a donation is made and send it in to your child’s homeroom teacher in Grades N-4, Mrs. Fountaine (Grades 5-6) , and Mrs. Foti (Grades 7-8). All students who participate in the Math-a-thon will receive a dress down ticket to be used in the months of May/June. 

If you have any questions about the St. Jude’s Math-A-Thon, feel free to email Mrs. Foti at [email protected].  With the support of our students and school community we are hopeful that this will be a successful event.  We hope that we can count on you! Thank you.

ELA Science, and Math State Exams: When we return from Easter Recess, the New York State English Language Arts (ELA) (Grades 4,6, and 7) Science (Grades 5 and 8) and Mathematics (Grades 4,6, and 7) Tests will be administered to students .The computer-based test will have the same questions as the paper version but students will take the test on their Chromebooks. Below you will find a summary of the changes that were made to the English Language Arts and Mathematics Tests over the past few years.

• Fewer testing sessions. Four years ago, the ELA and Math Tests were reduced from three test sessions per subject to only two sessions per subject, meaning each subject will have two days of testing instead of three. With fewer test sessions, each test will have fewer questions than in past years, lessening test fatigue for students and better enabling them to demonstrate what they know and are able to do.

• The tests continue to be untimed so students who are still working on their exams will be allowed to continue to work, within the confines of the regular school day. 

• Test questions reviewed and written by New York State Teachers. Hundreds of New York State educators were involved in creating and reviewing questions for the 2024 ELA and Math Tests and selecting the questions for the test forms.

Family Survey: In an effort to improve system practices, Saint Francis de Sales Catholic Academy will be conducting a few surveys over the next 7-9 weeks.  We value your opinion and ask that you take the time to complete these surveys. 

The first survey we are opening up is the Catholic Identity Defining Characteristics Parent and Community Survey. This survey measures Catholic school effectiveness in relation to the (nine) Defining Characteristics of Effective Catholic Schools that define the Catholic character schools. We appreciate your time and your responses. Please note that the responses from these surveys are helpful for the academy to make decisions for the future. Thanks again.

In order to complete the survey, please click below:

Catholic Identity Survey

This survey will be open for three weeks until April 5th. Please be assured that your responses to this survey will be anonymous.  Your honest opinion is appreciated. Thank you for your time and attention to this matter.

Financial Aid for the 2024-2025 School Year: Futures in Education is proud to provide partial tuition assistance for families demonstrating financial need, and who meet eligibility requirements, to attend a Catholic Academy or school in Brooklyn or Queens.  We are also a proud partner with the Children's Scholarship Fund, which administers the Teddy J. Forstmann and Bishop’s Scholarship programs.

Families requesting tuition assistance must complete a financial aid application with Futures in Education through our third-party vendor, FACTS AND submit supporting documentation, which will be used to verify all application responses.

When is the deadline?

March 31, 2024 – Returning Families who received an award in the previous academic year.

April 30, 2024 – New families (students who did not receive an award in the previous academic year).

https://futuresineducation.org/scholarships/?fbclid=IwAR2bz53-G4BmJirWc_yJW-pGEjPdwYX8QpfuptWgjAkQCLDezGEsOERK8_E

Calling All Alumni: As valued members of our school community, we want to keep our alumni updated on the amazing work being accomplished by students, staff, and alumni like you. If you graduated from St. Francis de Sales please complete the form below so we can keep in touch!

https://stfrancisacademybh.org/alumni/

Please share this on your own pages to help spread the word.

SAVE THE DATES

Class of 2025 High School Process Meeting: We  would like to invite all Grade 7 parents to a short yet we feel important meeting about the high school process for next Fall. We have learned many different aspects of the ever-changing process these past few months and we think it is important for all parents to hear before the spring when families begin to finalize their three choices. This meeting will take place on Monday, April 8th at 7 pm via Zoom (See invite below). We hope you can make it. 

Saint Francis de Sales is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Grade 7 Parent Meeting (High School Process)

Time: Apr 8, 2024 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81854824531?pwd=UXpqaWZMYzZLREJVRCt0eW5PTTFLZz09

Meeting ID: 818 5482 4531

Passcode: A2y31E

Blessed Trinity Confirmation: Congratulations and God Bless! On Wednesday April 10th many members of St. Francis de Sales Grade 8 will be blessed by the Holy Spirit at Blessed Trinity Parish. May the gifts of the Holy Spirit be with our 8th grade and lead them to be the future leaders of the church.Congratulations and God Bless! 

Dress Down 4/12: Friday 4/12 is a $1 dress down day. Students are asked to wear Blue shirts for Autism Awareness Month. All proceeds will be donated to the Brooklyn Autism Center. BAC is non-profit organization that has been providing high-quality education to individuals with autism since 2007. The Brooklyn Autism Center runs a full day, twelve-month program for children 5-21 years of age utilizing evidence based practices. The school creates a community that embraces the unique abilities of each student and provides solutions and support giving them the opportunity to learn, contribute and live life to their full potential.

Sweetheart Dance: Please save the date for Friday, April 26th (6:30pm-8pm) for this year’s Sweetheart Dance. This will be an opportunity for the girls of our school to have their Sweetheart (Dad, Uncle, Grandfather, etc) join them for a special night out. 

Summer Uniform:  Starting on Monday, May 6th, students can begin to wear their summer uniforms. This is just a reminder if anyone needs to purchase summer uniforms you should think of ordering them soon. 

Golf and Tennis Outing: Please save the date of Friday, May 31st for our annual Msgr. Geraghty golf and tennis outing.  This is a great day to get out on the course and courts to support our great Academy.  Additional details are forthcoming after Easter. 

Have a great weekend and a Blessed Easter. Our next update will be on Thursday 4/4/24.