There are some changes this year to the school uniform policy, including uniforms for our kindergartners. Please take a moment to review the new uniform policy to be sure you are purchasing the correct uniform for your child.

Flynn O’Hara is the official uniform provider for St. Andrew School. You can access our “school store” on their website to purchase approved uniform items at www.flynnohara.com.

The new line-up is ready to roll!  The new HSO officers have been elected and the classroom representatives chosen.  Please welcome and support the ladies who are stepping in to lead us to victory throughout the 2010-2011 school year!

The new HSO President is Maria Bakner.  Maria is not new to the HSO team and has been a huge assest in previous years as a co-treasurer and one of our top donation solicitors.

The new Co-Vice President is Kathy Bourdeau.  Kathy will be teaming up with Colleen Bratcher in this position.  Kathy has also been a large previous contributor to the HSO by holding a classroom representative for many years.  Outside of the HSO, she is the St. Andrew Parish Music Director and has substituted for the school music teacher, Mrs. Smedley, when needed.

Maureen Bowman will step into the Co-Treasurer roll alongside of Missy Bonner.  Like the first two ladies, Maureen has been a strong supporter of the HSO team and has held classroom representative positions in previous years.

The Home School Organization (HSO) is the equivalent of the PTA in public schools. The officers are elected and serve a two year term. The classroom representatives are volunteers who are appointed and change annually. The HSO plays an important roll by working to plan and execute fundraisers which provide so many extras for the children and the school. Our fundraisers also help to keep the student tuition from rising which is something that we can all appreciate!  Special events such as holiday parties are also fun HSO meetings are held monthly.  Our board members and class reps are asked to attend each meeting.  All parents and guardians are welcome and encouraged to attend.

To date, the Race has brought in $15,145!

God provided a beautiful sunny yet breezy day for the big event. The students did a fantastic job running and supporting each other throughout the race. The Knights of Columbus provided perfectly cooked hotdogs and HSO supplied cheese, fruit and veggie trays for lunch. Volunteers lined up to supply the kids with drinks and to punch their lap tickets as they ran by.

It was a exciting day of teamwork and determination.

Congratulations to all!

Special thanks to our race committee for helping to make it all happen!

Congrats to our prize winners:

Grand Prize Drawing ($50 Scrip Card)
G2: Ethan Lowman
G4: Alex Diaz

Pizza w/the Principal (Most names)
K: Noah Collier
G1: Grace Swofford
G2: Brady Bakner
G3: Audrey Foreman
G4: Elizabeth Stansfield
G5: Trey Foreman
G6: Sydney Maurer

Ribbon/Dress Down Pass (Most Laps)
K: (Tie) Ella Garling, Hannah Gearhart, Mackenzie Oberholzer, Heather Sanbower and Noah Collier
G1: Caroline Crutchfield and Luke Manning
G2: Madison Matta and (tie) Brady Bakner and Ethan Lowen
G3: Audrey Foreman and (tie) Spencer Kurtyka and Riley Jackson
G4: Hanna Manning and (tie) Aaron Tylicki and Cal Davis
G5: Jaden Barling and Tim Correll
G6: (tie) Juanita Fisak, Theresa Hartung and Will Manning

GREAT JOB KIDS!!!

St. Andrews leaps into the 21^st century! Thanks to a $1.7 million grant, the Harrisburg Diocese is the first Catholic diocese in PA to establish a diocesan Wide Area Network (WAN) to connect 33 of our Catholic schools, including St. Andrew School, to a safe and private network. As a school, we opted for the fiber optic package which will offer our teachers and students a wealth of educational opportunities.

Valuable Resources

Internet2 is a state-of-the-art networking consortium attached to higher education facilities which allows for innovative approaches to education, such as international classroom collaboration. Applications within Internet2, for example, could allow for a school in China to contact St. Andrews! On a smaller scale, PAIUnet enables educators and students throughout the state of PA to create, collaborate, and communicate to enhance student learning. Students and teachers will be able to communicate with other schools using web-conferencing, video-conferencing, and blogs.

Learning Tools/Educational Support

Our students will now have access to programs such as Study Island, a web-based drill and reinforcement program geared to each grade level according to state standards. Study Island tracks student skill level and ability and students will have the opportunity to access it from home. Another valuable educational resource, Discovery Education, is a database with over 40,000 curriculum-based video clips that teachers in our school will be able to download, plus a library of lesson plans. Our teachers are already taking advantage of SmartBoards in the classrooms, but now we will be able to offer faster internet speeds to use this technology.

Fundraising for Technology

The grant will supply us with all of the equipment we need to get started, including web conferencing units, video conferencing units, a router, and extensive staff development to prepare our teachers to use the new WAN applications. However, the monthly cost of the service is still our responsibility, which is why your fundraising efforts are helping to make this all possible for our school. Thank you to all who participated in the Race for Education 2010. Your involvement greatly impacts the progression of our school and keeps us competitive.