Dear Academy Families,

Many of our 8th graders from St. Francis de Sales Parish were blessed with the Gifts of the Holy Spirit during their Confirmation today. Both ceremonies were beautiful and we are so proud of all of our 8th graders during this very special time in their lives. We look forward to seeing our students from Blessed Trinity Parish become Confirmed in the Spirit later this school year as well. A special thank you to Mrs. Hayes, Mrs.McMahon, Mrs. Foti, Mrs. Gigliello, Mrs. Attanasio,  and Mr. Diffendale who have prepared the confirmandi from our academy over the past 14 months. Thank you to our Parish Religious Education Director, Mrs. AnneMarie Greene, for organizing the ceremonies as well. 

Please see below some reminders of the upcoming weeks ahead at St. Francis de Sales Catholic Academy

Franny Fun Run: We ask you to join us in supporting our 3rd Annual Franny Fun Run/Walk Fundraiser to help us achieve our goal of school-wide air conditioning (We are now more than ½ way there!) We hope you can help, volunteer, and enjoy this wonderful school event!  Our challenge of $60,000 in donations is attainable if everyone can do their part. All students who meet their $60 goal by Thursday 10/27 will be able to participate and receive a T-Shirt to wear during the Run/Walk on 10/29 and will receive a Dress Down ticket to be used during the months of November or December.

Any family that has a donation of at least $50 by next Tuesday at 10:00 AM gets entered into a drawing for a $100 Regal Gift Card. The winner will be drawn on Tuesday afternoon and announced before dismissal.

• Step 1 - on Monday October 3rd our families received an email providing a link to your family’s web-based donation page. This year we will be doing family based pages which is a change to the past when we did individual student pages. This will hopefully make it easier for families to share their pages on social media.  

• Step 2 - Share your donation page via Facebook, Twitter, and Social Media. Also, use the email and text link on the invite and reach out to as many family and St. Francis De Sales Catholic Academy friends requesting their support.   Donations are made via a secure credit card site. We will continue to accept cash or checks, send them to school in an envelope, Attn: Franny Fun Run.  Please include the family's name along with the donor’s name and if available email.

• Step 3 - check-in often and follow SFDS and your child’s progress as we strive to reach and surpass our goal of $60,000!

• Reach out again as a reminder to family and friends

AFA Meeting: The Academy Family Association Executive Board is having its first general meeting on Tuesday 11/8 at 7pm in the gym. The executive board will be having a brief general meeting, followed by a presentation on Navigating Life in the Digital Age by Ben Tracy. Mr. Tracy will be speaking to our 6th-8th grade students earlier that day.   

Ben Tracy is a leading keynote speaker on digital citizenship, online safety, and responsible social media use. The presentations are rooted in the experience of someone who learned the hard way how comments made online – even as a teen – can alter your life forever. Social media posts not only caused Ben to be fired from a high-profile government job, but landed his face on the cover of one of America’s largest newspapers. Needless to say, Mr. Tracy learned firsthand how important your online reputation is in the digital age. Since then, Ben has made it his mission to make sure young adults don’t repeat his mistakes by taking his message to high schools and colleges across the country. Ben has shared his story with more than 250,000 students, parents, and educators. In addition to his personal story, Mr. Tracy discusses cyberbullying, inappropriate photos, identifying and reporting online predators, and how social media impacts mental health. He challenges students to build a school culture that is respectful, kind, and inclusive for all students.

We really hope that each family has one representative join us on the 8th. 

Chicken Finger Day: A reminder to all those families that have ordered Chicken Fingers for their child for lunch that the first round of Chicken Finger Days are next week. Students in Grades 1-4 who ordered chicken fingers will receive them on Tuesday 10/25. Students in Grades 5-8 who ordered chicken fingers will receive them on Wednesday 10/26.

Fire Safety: Many of our Early Childhood classes have been spending time the past few weeks reviewing simple fire safety procedures. October is the perfect time to educate and talk with your whole family about fire safety: including testing alarms, changing the batteries or upgrading to 10- year sealed battery alarms, knowing how to use a fire extinguisher, and escape route planning. Please take some time this weekend to review some simple fire safety tips with your family. A short conversation this weekend can be a life-saving one. 

Trunk or Treat: The Academy Family Association will be spearheading a “Trunk-or-Treat” event, scheduled for Sunday, October 30th from 4:00 – 6:00 PM in the SFDS schoolyard.  The event will be geared towards Academy students in nursery through fifth Grade, with volunteer opportunities for the sixth through eighth Grade Students.  All children attending will be required to attend with a parent/guardian. The cost for a family to participate in Trunk or Treat is $20.  This fee will include a pumpkin for each registered child, crafts, and activities, as well as trunk-or-treating. We will have a Halloween Costume Parade for all participants.  There will also be pizza and drinks available for a nominal fee. Registration forms can be found by clicking here. 

Fall Book Fair: Did you know? Reading just 20 minutes a day exposes your child to about 1.8 million words per year. Reading helps students develop a stronger vocabulary, and in addition, students who read for pleasure average higher grades in English, mathematics, science, and history! Encourage your child to read books for fun by attending our upcoming Scholastic Book Fair and allow them to choose the books they want to read! It’s a wonderful selection of engaging and affordable books for every reading level. Mark your calendar! Please see below the schedule of when classes will be shopping on 10/26 and 10/27. 

Yearbook Order Form: If you would like to order a school yearbook, (delivery in June) please fill out the following form. After you submit your order you will be charged on your FACTS account during the month of November. 

Payment is expected within 20 days of posting.

The completed form(s) is due by Tuesday, November 1st. We have to send in our yearly order soon so there will be no orders accepted after this date.

The yearbook is a nice way to remember the school year since each class has an individual page.

Picture Day: Individual picture day will take place, on Tuesday 11/1 for Nursery-Kindergarten and on Thursday 11/3 for our 1st through 7th graders. All those students who are getting pictures may remain in their school uniform or dress up for their pictures. Please remind your child that dressing up for pictures is very different than dressing down. 

All those students who are getting pictures may remain in their school uniform or dress up for their pictures. Please remind your child that dressing up for pictures is very different than dressing down. All those students who are not getting pictures taken are to be in their full school uniform. Just a reminder that class photos for all students will take place on Wednesday, November 9th. 

Families with students in Grades N-7 please use the following order form to purchase photos: https://fs24.formsite.com/orderforms/gkpmrp8gkz/index.html

Please note that individual photos for the 8th grade will take place after Thanksgiving on November 29th. A separate order form will be sent home for those grade levels closer to their picture day. 

After-School Program on Halloween: Just a reminder that on Monday 10/31 (Halloween) there is no after-school service or enrichment activity. Have fun trick or treating. 

Final Reminders in regard to Birthdays: There are a variety of ways in which we celebrate birthdays at St. Francis de Sales Catholic Academy. Celebrations are at the discretion of the teacher but may include handmade cards, storytelling, the sharing of a book, etc. Please communicate with the homeroom teacher beforehand. Families/guardians may drop off party goods (cookies, cupcakes, small plates, napkins, etc.) with Security at the beginning of the school day. Diocesan policy is that all food items shared be store-bought. The reason for this rule is strictly to serve as a safety precaution, allowing the school to know the ingredients of any item. We ask that no toys, lollipops, goody bags, frozen treats, or drinks be brought into school. To be fair to all of our students these guidelines have to be followed and any toys or goody bags will not be given out and can be picked up from the main office if sent in.  

SFDS Mobile App: As you know we have recently updated our school website. Due to the website being updated our Mobile App has also been updated as well. If you have already downloaded our school App to your phone you may need to update that app the next time you use the app. For those members of our community that have yet to add the App to their mobile devices please search for ST. FRANCIS DE SALES ACADEMY in the App Store or Google Play. This is a great way to stay current with school events, your child’s HW, tuition account, and child’s grades. 

Fundraising Corner

Football Frenzy: Football Frenzy is a fundraiser sponsored by St. Francis de Sales Catholic Academy. All proceeds directly support the activities of St. Francis de Sales Catholic Academy. The fundraiser is based on the 2022-2023 NFL football season with a donation of $20 per ticket. Each ticket includes a different set of three NFL teams each week of the regular season, with a chance of winning cash prizes each week. 

To order tickets for this raffle please click below

https://www.footballsweeps.com/purchase/checkout/org/StFranci_6_2022?fbclid=IwAR3h7Cb8i4IbP86h0Hyr3otZrAC5ri6Ybxp1Ph6fHg-54gK_cxRuu_L9oW4

SAVE THE DATE

Orange and Black Dress Down Day: On Monday 10/31 all students will be able to dress down in Orange and Black or their favorite Halloween shirt. Just a reminder that students cannot wear costumes. 

All Saints Day: All Saints Day is on Tuesday, November 1st. Our 2nd Grade Saints will be leading us in our All Saints Day mass on Tuesday 11/1 at 10 am. 

Kindergarten and Grade 1 Family Mass: St. Francis de Sales Parish would like to welcome EVERYONE to their first monthly Family Mass of the  2022/2023 Academic Year at 10:00 AM on Sunday, November 6th.  Each month they will have specific grades participate in the liturgy. For November, we extend an extra warm welcome to the children of the parish in Kindergarten and First Grade. 

School Closed for Professional Development on November 10th:  Just a reminder that Thursday, November 10th is a scheduled day off for students. This is then followed by the school being closed on Friday, November 11th for Veterans Day. Enjoy the 4-day Fall weekend! 

Have a great weekend.