Joyfully Embracing Our Mission

As they approached the village to which they were going,

he gave the impression that he was going on farther.

But they urged him, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening and the day is almost over.”

So he went in to stay with them.

And it happened that, while he was with them at table,

he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them.

With that their eyes were opened and they recognized him,

but he vanished from their sight.

Then they said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning [within us]

while he spoke to us on the way and opened the scriptures to us?”

Then the two recounted what had taken place on the way

and how he was made known to them in the breaking of the bread.

~ Luke 24:28-32, 35

On Friday, our teachers and instructional assistants attended a diocesan collaboration on the importance of parent/family participation in the success of their students. The data presented highlighted the importance of the following:

• the amount of time and quality of the family’s participation in the life of the school (as in volunteering, involvement/attendance in community events)

• the respect given by families to education and educators, and

• the family’s role in engaging with the child’s learning

St. Clare School prides itself on engaging the parents in the life of the school. Parents/Families respond to requests to help out daily and abundantly. Families continue to broaden their involvement by using their gifts and talents, and for those who have the time, their help to improve our programs and support our initiatives. For this, I am grateful.

I have had many conversations with parents who speak about the importance of education for their children, and I can see the deep sacrifices many families make in order for their children to be able to attend our school. For this, I am in awe.

I observe parents/families and teachers partner together to let each other know how the child is doing. This critical piece allows the home and school to function as a team for the student. This is what we are all called to do. When we presume positive intentions and foster collective responsibility, we are practicing student-centered learning. When we communicate challenges at home and/or at school, we are able to work together to resolve them together for the good of the child.

When a teacher asks that families read to and with the child, we see the results in the classroom of a child whose vocabulary is growing, whose worldview is widening, whose mind is able to form opinions, whose voice resonates with courage. The child whose parents read with and to them is the child who will think more critically, formulate solutions innovatively and be more willing to take risks, fail and try again. These skills are the skills of leaders, particularly leaders who will work for justice in our world.

I’ve included a copy of the poem by an unknown author called, “Whose Child Is This?” that was shared with us at our collaboration on Friday. I think that you will find that it will resonate with you as it did for us, your partners in the formation of your children.

​​Whose Child is This? Author Unknown

"Whose child is this?" I asked one day

Seeing a little one out at play

"Mine", said the parent with a tender smile

"Mine to keep a little while

To bathe his hands and comb his hair

To tell him what he is to wear

To prepare him that he may always be good

And each day do the things he should."

"Whose child is this?" I asked again

As the door opened and someone came in

"Mine", said the teacher with the same tender smile

"Mine, to keep just for a little while

To teach him how to be gentle and kind

To train and direct his dear little mind

To help him live by every rule

And get the best he can from school."

"Whose child is this?" I ask once more

Just as the little one entered the door

"Ours" said the parent and the teacher as they smiled

And each took the hand of the little child

"Ours to love and train together

Ours this blessed task forever."

“Whose child is this?” I asked in prayer,

As the little one slept, unaware.

“Mine,” said God with a loving smile,

“My creation I’ve giv’n you just for a while.

To love and respect, to nurture and guide;

To allow him to learn as he walks by your side.

Made in my image, his heart’s full of love

I entrust him to you.” From your God above.

PARTNERSHIPS

Also on Friday, our instructional assistants met with our Learning Specialist to see how they might best support the classroom teacher to develop ways to differentiate learning for our students. We value the role of our instructional assistants and fully commit to supporting them in order that the classroom teacher can focus on instructional leadership.

In addition, faculty and staff were trained on how to handle an anaphylaxis emergency by St. Clare parent and Fire Captain Brent Rapport. Brent and Luisa Rapport have been members of our campus safety committee (SAC) since 2018. Their expert advice and guidance have helped us with the formulation of our Emergency Operations Procedures, our acquisition of adequate emergency supplies in the event of a catastrophic emergency, and they, along with RN Katy Kerns, Nursing Manager Marah Gebala and Dr. Cristina Cunanan, helped put together our COVID-19 Response Protocols.

I’d like to thank Brent and Luisa for donating two AED machines to the school and parish. As many of you know, AEDs have been instrumental in saving many lives in a cardiac emergency. The faculty and staff were recently trained and certified on how to use an AED. We are so grateful to them for this generous gift that we hope we will never, ever have a need to use...ever!

RAINY DAY PROTOCOLS

We are so grateful for the life-giving rain this weekend, which could possibly be around until Monday. As much as it is possible, outside activities will continue as long as it is safe to do so. There will be some modifications for DROP OFF and PICK UP if it is raining during these periods. You will get a Smart Alert if we need to implement Rainy Day procedures at least 15 minutes before DROP OFF or PICK UP, or, if it is obviously raining steadily (heavy downpour, steady rain). Here are a few things to remember:

DROP OFF

• Drop off in the usual spots, except for middle school siblings

• IMPORTANT REMINDERS:

• Drop off all middle school students in the middle school lot.

• Communicate procedures with family or friends picking up for the first time on a rainy day

• Pull ALL THE WAY TO THE FRONT of each drop off zone

• Get students ready to disembark quickly to speed up the drop off

PICK UP

• Pick up in the usual spots, including middle school

• IMPORTANT REMINDERS:

• Prominently display student’s name and grade so that it can be seen as cars approach

• Remind siblings to stay together

• Communicate procedures with family or friends picking up for the first time on a rainy day

• Elementary siblings continue to proceed to classrooms as usual

OUTERWEAR/UMBRELLAS

Dress students in layers, providing them with water-repellent outerwear with a hood. The St. Clare jacket is a fine choice. However, if this is not available, a raincoat is fine, knowing that it will be removed before entering the classroom. Umbrellas are fine, too. They, too, will remain outside the classroom.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR ENCOUNTER, ENGAGEMENT AND ACCOMPANIMENT

• Red Ribbon Week -- see original post from Student Council. Thank you for your support of their leadership as they take the initiative to find ways to build community. The themes they came up with come from a deep desire to unite the community. In support of them, kindly help your children appreciate and understand the importance of the themes using the following resource:

• RED RIBBON WEEK @ ST. CLARE

• Halloween Events -- thank you to Student Council, PTG, room reps, teachers and Zaira Martinez for all the work to plan a fun, safe and joyful event for our students.

• Please see ParentSquare for Particulars and consult HALLOWEEN@ST.CLARE

• You and siblings are invited to join us at the Parade which begins at 1 P.M. (Read above link.)

• There may be opportunities to volunteer or send in treat for loot bags. Please contact your room rep.

• A Cup with the Principal -- Thursday 6-7 P.M. via All-School Zoom for an opportunity to connect regarding parent engagement and school-home partnerships.

• Join Zoom Meeting | https://dsj.zoom.us/j/753421694

• Morning Assembly at St. Clare -- Starting November 1, you are invited to come join us each morning for morning assembly, but particularly on Wednesdays when we honor our weekly Silver Box students. After dropping off students as usual, find a parking spot in the lot or on the street. Line up against the fence outside the Santa Clara or Lexington Gates. Once the students are in line after the first bell at 7:55 A.M. you will be allowed to come in to proceed to the back of the lot by the play structures where you may stay for the duration of our Morning Assembly. You will need to remain at least ten feet from the students, six feet from another family, wear face coverings over your nose and mouth (children 2 years of age and older must also wear face coverings), and more importantly, you have self-screened for COVID-19 symptoms:

• Fever or chills

• Cough

• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing

• Fatigue

• Muscle or body aches

• Headache

• New loss of taste or smell

• Sore throat

• Congestion or runny nose

• Nausea or vomiting

• Diarrhea

As always, we appreciate your support and your partnership. I continue to encourage you to communicate with your classroom teacher regarding ways to strengthen the home-school partnership and to build a positive community culture among the families in your children’s classrooms. Your support is what sustains our work and our mission. Thank you for accompanying us on this journey.

With gratitude,

Mrs. Cecile Mantecon, Principal

All absences must be reported to the school office and to all of your child's teachers. Call or email the office and teachers by 8:15 A.M. when a student is absent.

Attendance Email: stclare-attendance@dsj.org

Attendance line: 408-246-6797 x 106

DISTANCE LEARNING IS A RESPONSE TO A CRISIS.

If your child is absent due to an illness or due to family vacation, Zoom accommodations will NOT be made. Treat this as if there is no option for distance learning. You may make up work missed when you return.

Distance Learning may be offered if a student has to quarantine due to COVID-19 exposure (household contact or positive case).

We have gently used uniforms free to all families. Plenty of polos, sweatshirts, and PE clothes. Swing by the office at any time if you are in need of any school uniform items.

We are also accepting spirit shirts. If your child has no need for their prior year's spirit shirt and you'd like to donate it to the school feel free to drop them off at any time.

Until last year, most of us took clean air for granted. Then came Covid, a deepening drought worsening allergies, and a wildfire season lasting months. For over a century at St. Clare School, our classrooms were cooled by the South Bay breeze, but we learned this is no longer reliable. Last fall we scored some of the worst air quality in the world after the lightning storm caused hundreds of wildfires, so windows had to stay closed. Our central boiler which provides heat in the winter is also no longer reliable.

Our school is working to upgrade the heating system and add air-conditioning to maintain a steady climate and a clean learning environment inside the classroom. Beyond good health, several academic studies have found a link between clean air and academic performance. In the Covid era, we know that continually cleaning air and maximizing airflow is the most important way to reduce viral transmission, even more important than surface disinfection.

Please support our efforts to improve our school air quality for students and staff. In coming months there will be several opportunities to be a part of this effort, which will require considerable financial resources. We ask you to remember our students and staff in your prayers, participate to the best of your ability, and consider a sustaining gift that will pay dividends to our community for years to come. Thank you for your generosity.

If you can help spearhead this effort, contact Michael Adams who is coordinating the multifaceted efforts to bring HVAC upgrades to St. Clare.

Below, you will find the Calendar Grid for the school year. Some find this difficult to navigate, so I’ve created the Calendar Highlights document which I hope will make it a bit easier for you to consume.

Some changes since the end of the school year: we added September 20th as a NO SCHOOL DAY and our School Year will end a day earlier. The original calendar had us attending 183 days of school, knowing that we had three days over the required 180 days. We are keeping the 181 days in the event we have to close for an emergency due to poor air quality.

Other options to view the calendar include a Google calendar synched to ParentSquare, or subscribing to the St. Clare School Public Calendar below:

Google Public Calendar

You are invited to subscribe to the St. Clare School *PUBLIC* Google Calendar which is also synched to ParentSquare.

PUBLIC URL TO ACCESS FROM A WEB BROWSER

https://calendar.google.com/calendar/embed?src=drexelschools.org_u0vj6uj1r91qlk8hu9uk1t7qro%40group.calendar.google.com&ctz=America%2FLos_Angeles

PUBLIC ADDRESS IN iCAL TO ACCESS FROM OTHER APPS

https://calendar.google.com/calendar/ical/drexelschools.org_u0vj6uj1r91qlk8hu9uk1t7qro%40group.calendar.google.com/public/basic.ics

Oct. 25 | RED RIBBON WEEK THEME DAY BEGINS | Theme Dress: Choose Teamwork Wear Your Favorite Team Sports Gear

Oct. 26 | RED RIBBON WEEK THEME | Theme Dress: Choose Friendship Dress Up Like A friend

Oct. 27 | RED RIBBON WEEK THEME | Theme Dress: Choose Kindness Wear Bright Colors

Oct. 27 | Picture Re Take Day | Bring Formal Sweater To Wear Over Theme Dress

Oct. 28 | RED RIBBON WEEK THEME | Theme Dress: Choose Unity In Our Diversity Dress In Colors That Represent The School Plaid (Blue, Gray, White, Silver)

Oct. 29 | Come to school in Halloween Costume | Parade at 1 P.M. followed by class parties

Oct. 30 | Proposed Trick or Treat Open House

Nov. 1 | All Saints Day Mass & 5th Grade Bible Ceremony | 10:45 P.M.

Nov. 2 | Celebration of Dia de los Muertos

Nov. 19 | End of Trimester 1

Nov. 25-26 | Thanksgiving Break

Dec. 16 | Christmas Program | 6-7 P.M.

Photo by Ed Carlo Garcia www.edcarlogarcia.com

Forming hearts and minds since 1856.

Email: office@stclareschool.org
Website: https://www.stclare.school
Location: 750 Washington Street, Santa Clara, CA, USA
Phone: 408 246-6797
Facebook: facebook.com/stclareschoolsantaclara