SPX Back-to-School Newsletter

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Welcome to the 2022-2023 school year at St. Pius X School! I hope your family was able to recharge and make many special memories together this summer. I feel incredibly blessed and excited to be chosen to lead a school with a phenomenal pastor, a hard-working assistant, extraordinary teachers, talented staff members, and a wonderful community of students and families; I assure you that I am dedicated to the continuous improvement of SPX. It is because of the love I have for this community that I accepted the principal position, so you have my word that I will do my best to ensure your children are enriched spiritually, academically, emotionally, and socially.

The summer was packed full of a plethora of exciting changes and improvements that we are anxious to share with our families. During the summer, Miss Bernadette Buzenski, my incredible assistant principal, and a number of other staff members, worked hard to give our school several necessary facelifts! Most of the improvements to the physical space would not have been possible without our amazing maintenance staff, led by our Director of Facilities, Mr. Scott Marsh, and his team members: Mr. Doug Brock, Mr. Gene Huck, Mr. Steve Fox, Mrs. Mara Matheny, Luke Gilmore, Andrew Bassetti, and Ryan Bassetti. Our enrollment manager, Mrs. Cheryl Van Meter, also shared her talent and redecorated several of our spaces. If you see any of them around the school, please be sure to thank them!

Beyond the typical maintenance projects, we have had many artistic touches added to the school! We are thankful for Mrs. Matheny who painted an incredible mural in our gymnasium and repainted our outdoor sensory path, Mrs. Maloney, Mrs. Fersch, and Sylvie, Maggie, Ellie and Eva Malpass for painting scenes on several of our old classroom radiators. I would also like to thank Victoria Nedeau for painting a mural in Senora Nedeau’s new Spanish classroom on the stage, in addition to a historical timeline in Mr. Kehres’ classroom. Everyone will have the opportunity to check out our fun updates during our Sneak Peek (see below for more information).

Because our faculty believes in the importance of lifelong learning and continual school improvement, many of our teachers spent time this summer attending professional development or taking graduate courses. Thirteen members of our faculty attended a phenomenal two-day professional development event entitled, Making Learning Irresistible, where we were energized and inspired to create more authentic learning opportunities and service learning experiences. Additionally, our entire faculty will also attend a full-day of professional development with the same focus before school begins. During our new accreditation cycle, which runs through 2028, we will be focusing on these two goal areas. By focusing on these goals, we will prepare our students to be disciples of Christ who are active learners, critical thinkers, creative problem solvers, effective communicators, and strong collaborators. This year, we plan to be more intentional about our Catholicity and more intentional about making learning irresistible through authentic learning experiences.

Thank you for entrusting us with your greatest gifts! YOU are your child’s first teacher, and we consider you an integral part of our team. I have had the great privilege of working with the SPX staff for the past four years, and I can assure you, they care deeply about your children. They go above and beyond to provide an extraordinary Catholic education and a caring learning environment. Our theme this year is, “Go Make a Difference,” and Miss B and I are committed to making a positive difference at SPX and leading by example. Please pray for the health and safety of our community and please do not hesitate to reach out to me with any questions or concerns.

Please continue reading below for more important information.

*An asterisk next to a title indicates the information pertains to our preschool, too.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Lisa Ruth, Principal

We are excited to announce our new staff members:

Mrs. Jennifer Angle, Kindergarten

Mrs. Sarah Meyer, 6th Grade

Mrs. Michelle Dennett, JPS Secretary/Office Assistant

Mrs. Sharon Ryan, 3rd Grade Aide

Mrs. Emily Tetreault, Band Director

Please be sure to give them a warm welcome and show them just how wonderful it is to be a part of the SPX family!

What is better than beginning our year by joining together in prayer as a community? All of our families are invited to our Opening Mass on Tuesday, August 23, 2022 at 8:30 a.m. at St. Pius X Church. Immediately following Mass, families will be invited to the school for a quick treat and a social gathering in the cafeteria. Once the teachers have had time to get settled in their classrooms, we will allow families to tour the school to meet teachers, put away school supplies, say hello to classmates, and check out our exciting updates! Be sure to stop by the gymnasium, the Spanish classroom, and the Innovation Lab. If you are not attending Mass, the school doors will open at 9:20 a.m. In order to get our staff to an All-Staff Meeting, the Sneak Peek will end promptly at 10:45 a.m.

You should have received an email around the middle of July with your child’s Phase-In Day. There will be no busing on Phase-In Days and we will follow our normal start (8 am) and dismissal (2:25 pm) times. Since we will not have specials during Phase-In Week, all students should wear their regular school uniforms. If you did not receive your child’s Phase-In Day, please email bbuzensk1@cdeducation.org.

Kindergarten parents will be invited to walk their children into the building during their Phase-In Day for a Kindergarten Orientation in the gym. Parents should drive through the morning carline and let a teacher on duty know you are kindergarten parent. You will be shown where to park and asked to wait in your car until 8:00 a.m. We will have all kindergarten families enter the building together promptly at 8:00 a.m.

During Kindergarten Orientation, you will have time to meet the teachers, learn about procedures, and walk your child to class. We look forward to meeting you!

In order for SPX students to ride the public school buses, parents are required to register with their local school district’s transportation department. Please refer to Cheryl Van Meter’s email from August 8, for more detailed information. If you have additional questions, please email cvanmete@spxelementary.com .

The burning question is always, “When will my child know his/her homeroom teacher?” You will be able to see your child’s teacher’s name by logging into your FACTS Family Portal on Tuesday, August 16, 2022.

We are excited to announce the opening of our new Innovation Lab which will help us make learning irresistible! The open concept of our Innovation Lab will provide students a space for more project based learning and collaborative experiences through STEAM type activities. The Innovation Lab will also house the new morning announcement anchor desk, robots for new robotics classes, and Makerspace materials. Donations from A Night in Green and designs by Mrs. Kister, our talented tech teacher, helped make this exciting new space a reality!

We are incredibly excited about our upcoming St. Pius X - Seton End of Summer Carnival on Saturday, August 27, 2022 from 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Please bring your friends and join us for a day of food, fun, inflatables, games, raffles, and community! While many of our teachers will be working games, several of your children’s favorite SPX staff members will be in the dunk tank, so bring your kiddos for a chance to dunk Father Dave, Mr. Sharpe, Mr. Marsh, Mr. Kehres and Miss Weber! All proceeds will go towards repairing our roof, so please come out and show your support!

We are looking for current and former Beta Club members and Student Council representatives to work games at our carnival. If your child is willing to work a shift, please email lruth1@cdeducation.org. They may even ask a friend to help!

All volunteers are invited to use this link to sign up to work a shift: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/508084fadab2babfc1-community

Please plan to join us on Thursday, September 1 at 7:00 p.m. for our Meet the Teacher Night. Parents will begin their evening in the gymnasium with staff introductions and messages from Father Dave, administrators, and the Home & School Association. Following our introductions, parents will have the opportunity to visit their child’s classroom to learn about classroom procedures and expectations. (This is an adult-only event.)

As many of you know, we are trying to proceed without having a mandatory volunteer hour requirement. With over 350 families, if each family volunteered for just one event, we should be able to safely run all of our events. Volunteering is also a wonderful way to meet new people and build community. We would like to challenge each family to choose one or two events from this list, but please don’t forget that all volunteers need Protecting God’s Children and BCI fingerprinting on file:

• Cafeteria Helpers-Please consider volunteering weekly or monthly!

• Library Helpers

• Musical and/or Drama Club

• Band (Monitoring Study Tables)

• Used Uniform Sales

• Home & School Committee Chairs

• School Board Members

• Community Carnival

• Grandparents Day (3rd Grade)

• Jesus Day (2nd Grade)

• Job Fair and BizTown (5th Grade)

• Room Parents-Class Parties

• A Night in Green-Live & Silent Auction (Volunteer-at-home opportunities available, too!)

• Trunk or Treat

• Book Fair

• Grade Level Field Trips

• Candy Sale

• Catholic Schools Week Activities

• 8th Grade Fundraising Chairs

• Secret Santa

• Father-Daughter Dance

• APEX Fun Run/Color Battle

• Fun Day

• Graduation/Confirmation Receptions

• Jr. High Breakfast

• Coaching Athletics

• Family Mentor

We are hoping to offer our Family Mentor Program again this year, but we need the help of our experienced families! Each new family will be linked with a mentor family in order to meet new people, ask questions, and receive direct support throughout the year.

Our HSA would like to link families by next week, but we are still in need of LOTS of mentors. Mentor families do not need Protecting God's Children for this volunteer opportunity.

If you are interested, please scan the QR code or use this link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1f9oionxgb_qEa6b44YzAOBfCNVCFO24byVFMYDbu3dM/viewform?edit_requested=true

St. Pius X will be offering one more Protecting God’s Children class before the school year begins. Don’t miss your chance to complete this requirement before a wonderful volunteer opportunity arises with your child. The class will be offered on Monday, August 22, from 6:00-9:00 p.m. in the parish center. Please use this link to register: PGC Registration

We would like to thank Mr. Paul Davis, SPX parent, for volunteering his time to make these classes available for our parents and guardians!

We are excited to offer Coffee with the Counselor this year! Please see the letter below from our school counselor, Bridget Saddler.

Coffee With The Counselor will be held each quarter on

October 13th, January 12th, March 9th, and May 11th at 8:30 a.m. in the parish hall. My goal is to discuss tips and strategies for parents and share different tools to help you support your child in many situations. Each meeting will be about 30 minutes and include:

• Discussion points for talking with your children

• Tips for kids on how to manage different situations

• Setting expectations and making a plan

Topics:

• Anxiety

• Internet Safety

• Bullying

• Confidence and Self-Esteem

Hope to see you there! ☺ Bridget Saddler

On Sunday, August 21, our Home and School Association will be holding a Used Uniform Sale in the school gymnasium from 11:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. Donations of used uniforms will also be accepted during those hours.

More information about the uniform policy may be found on our website under the uniform tab and in our Family Handbook. Please use this link for an additional photo guide:

https://irp.cdn-website.com/088422ed/files/uploaded/Uniform%20Photo%20Guide.pdf

Students may follow the Gym Uniform Guidelines on the following days of the week:

Kindergarten Tuesday, Friday

First Grade Monday, Friday

Second Grade Tuesday, Thursday

Third Grade Monday, Wednesday

4-211 Weber Tuesday, Friday

4-212 Mathys Monday, Friday

5-207 Barrett Thursday, Friday
5-209 Moriarty Monday, Thursday

Sixth Grade Wednesday

Seventh Grade Wednesday

Eighth Grade Thursday

The Home & School Fall Sports Spirit Wear Store is open now through Friday, August 26, 2022. The store has many new options for adults and children available! Please use this link to place your orders: https://2022spxfall.itemorder.com/shop/home/

All spirit wear does not meet uniform guidelines. If you are purchasing items for school use, please refer to the photo link in the uniform section above.

2022-2023 School Calendar

A detailed school calendar may be found by logging into your FACTS Family Portal and clicking on CALENDAR. You may reference this throughout the year. A list of days off may be found on the calendar tab on our website.

8/23/22 Opening Mass and Sneak Peek (8:30 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.)

8/24/22 Phase-In Day (8:00 a.m. - 2:25 p.m.)

8/25/22 Phase-In Day (8:00 a.m. - 2:25 p.m.)

8/26/22 Phase-In Day (8:00 a.m. - 2:25 p.m.)

8/27/22 End of Summer Community Carnival (10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.)

8/29/22 First Day for All Students

8/30/22 All-School Mass 8:30 a.m.

8/31/22 First Day for 4th/5th Band

9/1/22 First Day for 6th/7th/8th Band

9/1/22 School Picture Day (Order forms will be sent home with students.)

9/1/22 Meet the Teacher 7:00 p.m. (Adult Only Event)

9/2/22 Candy Forms Due

9/5/22 No School - Labor Day

9/6/22 All-School Mass 8:30 a.m.

9/13/22 All-School Mass 8:30 a.m.

9/14/22 Home and School Meeting 6:30 p.m. (All parents are invited to attend!)

9/20/22 All-School Mass 8:30 a.m.

9/20/22 School Board 7:00 p.m.

9/23/22 $1.00 Dress Down Day

9/23/22 Candy Sale Pick-Up

9/27/22 All-School Mass 8:30 a.m.

9/28/22 Zoo Assembly K-6 (Sponsored by HSA)

9/30/22 No School - Diocesan Administrator Retreat

This year, St. Pius X has added an Instagram page, in order to reach more of our families. When school begins, be sure to check out our social media pages each day for a peek into our school day!

Click on these links and follow us:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SPXSchoolReynoldsburg

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/spxreynoldsburg/?hl=en

During our carnival, we will be holding two separate raffles: one for children/teens and one for adults. These fantastic prizes will be raffled Saturday, August 27 at 3:45 p.m. Deadline to submit raffle tickets is Saturday, August 27 at 3:00 p.m. Winners do not need to be present.

Prizes for Adults:

Grand Prize: $5,000 Cash

2nd Prize HP Laptop: 14" LED Display with Windows 11

3rd Prize: Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer

4th Prize: Patio Heater - 47,000 BTU

5th Prize: 30" Black Finish Fire Pit

Prizes for Children/Teens:

Grand Prize: $500 cash

2nd Prize: XBox Series S

3rd Prize: Lenovo Chromebook 11.5" HD

4th Prize: Paintball USA - 18 Admission Tickets

5th Prize: Columbus Zoo - Family Plus

Please Include NAME and PHONE NUMBER when checking out.

Festival Raffle Tickets can be purchased by clicking the following links.

Children/Teen Community Carnival Raffle - 1 ticket for $5.00:

https://checkout.square.site/.../DNCW5QVL4YK4DY67YXKVLAOV

Children/Teen Community Carnival Raffle - 5 tickets for $20.00:

https://checkout.square.site/.../PDKGD5BB77BRGUCPKBAFS44W

Adult Community Carnival Raffle - 1 ticket for $10.00:

https://checkout.square.site/.../5ESPNGHQEYPFPSNT7ZUOOTO7

Adult Community Carnival Raffle - 4 tickets for $30.00:

https://checkout.square.site/.../KAHQ473QMEYYVFVJJ25RICPC

This year’s Community Carnival proceeds will go directly to the much needed replacement of the St. Pius X school roof.

Here is the link to our August/September Lunch Menu: https://irp.cdn-website.com/088422ed/files/uploaded/August%202022%20menu.pdf

This year, our daily lunch price will be $3.75.

The menu is always posted under "Cafeteria" on our website: www.spxelementary.com

Mark your calendars for September 15, 2022, and help save lives by donating blood at our St. Pius X Blood Drive!

https://www.redcrossblood.org/give.html/donation-time

Our 2nd largest fundraiser is our Anthony Thomas Candy Bar Fundraiser. Please see this link for more information:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pEVDUOqhILD6IAljQupAze22TVWqCNjtrv3McFuhFJY/edit?usp=sharing

Candy Option Form to be Completed and Returned:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1bajfves2P2AKp3kclCCOBdKqbaK-ahP8ZujpgFHzItQ/edit?usp=sharing

Picture Day will be on Thursday, September 1, 2022. Order forms will be sent home with your child during his/her Phase-In Day. All students will have individual photos taken regardless of whether photos are purchased. Additionally, HR Imaging will be taking class panoramic photos, so please keep in mind that these will be full body shots when selecting picture day clothing.

Since Meet the Teacher is an adult-only event, childcare will be offered in the Hohman Hall Latchkey Building on the evening of Thursday, September 1, 2022 beginning at 6:45 and ending immediately following the event. A fee of $10/child will be collected at the time of drop-off that evening (cash only). Please fill out the following link to reserve a spot. Spots will be limited. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe0gF-SQdQJnoXuVQPzOm9ZuhMdNkmA6fX-Drqa5yKtv-TgHQ/viewform?pli=1

If you are new to St. Pius X School, arrival and dismissal can be a little confusing. To offer a little assistance, our talented Welcome Center Receptionist, Laurie Louiso, created two explanatory videos. Please see below.

In addition, for dismissal, families who have students in our preschool may pick up their children at Door G. The parish center pickup line is reserved for families who have children in 6th, 7th, or 8th grades ONLY.

Email: stpiusx@cdeducation.org
Website: www.spxelementary.com
Location: 1061 Waggoner Rd, Reynoldsburg, OH, USA
Phone: 614-866-6050
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SPXSchoolReynoldsburg