We have maintained contact with the Clark County Health Department throughout the summer and school administrators had a conference call last week to discuss plans for the new school year. The State Health Department also updated schools on protocols and mitigation strategies. Health Departments are encouraging masking in schools, but are not mandating their use. Any student who wishes to wear a mask in the school building is more than welcome to do so. The quarantine period for positive cases is still 5 days. Students may return on day 6 if they have been fever and symptom free for at least 24 hours, but the CCHD requires the positive case to wear a mask on days 6-10. We will continue to stay in touch with the health department throughout the year and we will be prompt in updating our families when necessary. If your child is not feeling well, please keep them at home. Also, if your child has tested positive for Covid notify the office immediately. We will send more information home in next week’s Bear Facts.

We will have a spirit wear day once a month this year. Our spirit wear day will always be the 2nd Friday of the month. Students will be allowed to wear a St. Anthony spirit wear shirt with uniform bottoms. Our first spirit wear day will be Friday August, 12. Let’s go Bears!

Don’t forget that school sweatshirts and PE uniforms must be purchased through RiverCity Workwear. They also have some spirit wear available. Make sure to visit the store in New Albany or visit our online store. http://www.rivercityworkwear.com/unsec-stanthonystore 4020 Earnings Way, New Albany, IN 47150

A reminder that extremes in hair coloring and styles are not permitted for boys or girls. All hair shall be worn above the eyebrows and must be kept clean, neat, and trimmed. We want to see those eyes! For males, extremes in length can be defined as anything longer than the collar of a dress shirt. In addition, boys may not have ponytails or man buns. If a haircut has not yet been scheduled and your child falls into the above category of extreme length or you can't see their eyes, please be sure this is taken care of prior to Wednesday, August 17.

School pictures will be taken on Thursday, August 18th for all grades. We will again use Inter-State Studio this year for our school pictures. Order forms will be coming home today. It is highly recommended that families place orders online. You can access that by clicking this link: https://inter-state.com/FlyerEntry/68782VA. Students may be out of uniform on the day that their picture is taken. Guidelines for out of uniform days are in the school handbook.

There have been a few changes in our cafeteria this year. First, the USDA is no longer offering free lunches to all students. Student lunches cost $3.75 this year. A regular lunch consist of the entree, vegetable, fruit and milk. A student can order an extra entree for $2.00. They can also purchase an extra milk for $0.50, juice for $0.50 and water for $0.70. We are also only offering 3 lunch choices this year. We have our Lunch of the Day, Chicken Patty, and PBJ. Free and reduced lunch applications are available in the front office. You may pick up in the office or you may call and we will send home with your child. Applications need to be filled out ASAP. Even if you have qualified for Free or Reduced lunch in the past, you must fill out an application every year. If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Tucker.

As a reminder, we will not open the doors until 7:15 in the morning. Students may be dropped off on either side of the annex. Please make sure children are ready to exit the car immediately. If you need to help your child get out of the car, please park in a spot. You may walk them to the breezeway door if you would like, but parents may not enter the building. In the afternoon, dismissal will be from 2:40-2:50. At 2:50, we will begin to bring the students inside. Students will be taken to After School and will be charged for attending. When you enter for Morning Drop Off and Afternoon Pickup, all cars must enter from North Marshall Avenue. This is the back entrance to the school. Please do NOT enter from Sherwood Avenue. All car riders must be picked up in the car line. You may not park on Sherwood and walk back to get your child. You will be asked to pull around and join the car line.

The YMCA is providing Afterschool Care in our school this year. Afterschool Care is provided from 2:40-6:00. Children must be registered to attend Afterschool Care. You can follow the link below to register or you can call the YMCA 812-288-7275 or email Amy Wade at awade@ymcalouisville.org . https://www.ymcalouisville.org/programs/child-care/school-age/clark-county#register

I want to take this opportunity to welcome everyone to the 22-23 school year. I am so excited to start this year with all of you. I want to welcome back our school families and extend a warm welcome to all of our new families. We are so happy that you have become a part of our school community. When you see a new family, please make sure to introduce yourself and share any information you can about our school. Our enrollment has really grown this year. We currently have 227 students in Kindergarten through 8th grade. We are so happy to have so many new families. With the increase enrollment, we do have a couple of waiting lists. If you know of any family interested in learning more about SAS, please have them contact me at s.tucker@stanthonyschool.us or 812-282-2144. As we start this new year, I would like to welcome new members of our faculty and staff to our school community: Kathy Hoon - 3rd grade teacher Tracey Stumler - 7th/8th grade Math teacher Gerald McCullum - 7th/8th grade Science teacher Erynn Dickson - Instructional Assistant Shelby Williams - Instructional Assistant

We will have our Parent Orientation on Wednesday, August 10. We will have 2 sessions, our first session will begin at 6:30 and our second session will begin at 7:05. Doors will open at 6:20PM. The Orientation is for parents only. Parents will meet in their child’s classroom and learn about daily routines, expectations, and academics. 7th and 8th grade parents will meet in the cafeteria. It is very important that parents attend this meeting.

I want to give a shout out to our students who participated in the Deanery Musical, Lion King Jr. The show was amazing and all the kids did a great job. Thanks to Providence High School and Mrs. Ellen Holifield for providing this great opportunity for our Deanery students. Luke Bettler Miles Conner Emma Holifield Sophie Singleton Lena Veasey Naimah Vizhnay

It is hard to believe that we are ending this school year and already looking to our next school year. We want to wish the best of luck to a couple of members of our faculty and staff who will not be returning next school year. Mrs. Stephanie LaMaster and Mrs. Emily Fisher are both retiring to spend more time at home with their family. We can’t thank them enough for their service to our school. They will both be missed immensely! I am very excited to say that our enrollment continues to increase and we continue to enroll new students. With this increase in enrollment, we are looking to hire teachers. Please help spread the word about the open positions here at St. Anthony School. 7th/8th Grade Math Teacher 7th/8th Grade Science Teacher 3rd Grade Teacher Interested candidates should contact the principal, Mrs. Stephany Tucker. s.tucker@stanthonyschool.us 812-282-2144

WOW!!! We surpassed our goal of $15,000 collecting just over $18,000. Our school community truly came together to achieve a goal! We were blessed with beautiful weather for the Walk A Thon and everyone enjoyed the day. Students enjoyed Kona Ice after the walk and even enjoyed some dancing. With the money raised, we plan to purchase new student desks for classrooms. Thank you to all of your who donated, shared, and advertised for this event. Way to go Bear Nation! Top Class - 6D Top Students 1st Place - Naimah and Zaina Vizhnay 2nd Place - Lennox Spann 3rd Place - Henry Luker 4th Place - Ryder Baxley 5th Place - Miles and Sadie Conner

This week we had a visit from the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. Mrs. Peggy Olsen and Mrs. Mary Pat Sharpe from the Office of Catholic Schools of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis visited our school for our Continuous Improvement Journey Visit. This particular site visit takes place every three years. We were previously scheduled for this, but due to COVID, it was rescheduled for this school year. During this visit, Mrs. Olsen and Mrs. Sharpe were looking at 4 Domains of St. Anthony School and Preschool: Mission & Catholic Identity, Governance & Leadership, Academic Excellence, and Operational Vitality. They met with all faculty and staff, a student group, a parent group, and our School Commission. They also toured the school led by 3 of our students. This was a great opportunity for the Archdiocese to see the great things happening at St. Anthony School. They were very impressed with our School Community; they spoke highly of our positive, family atmosphere and the many activities that we offer to our students.

Please make sure to pay any overdue bills you may have for the 21-22 school year. Bills for tuition, After School Care, Lunch Bills, and library charges need to be current for the end of the year. It is very important that bills are current by the end of the year.

Every family will be receiving registration packet for the 22-23 school year. Please make sure to read information and complete and return all necessary paperwork. We recommend returning the paperwork by next week. If you do not turn in by next week, then you must return the paperwork by July 22nd. We are also making revisions to the School Handbook. Once this is complete, we plan to send a copy home to every family. It is very important that you read the handbook and understand the rules and expectations. We will make sure to highlight changes that have been made to the handbook.

St. Anthony School is seeking a certified 7th and 8th grade Science teacher for the 2022-2023 school year. The ideal candidate should possess an Indiana Teaching License in Middle School Science and be familiar with the Indiana Academic Standards. The candidate should be a passionate, student-focused and innovative educator. Candidates should desire to serve in the ministry of the Catholic Faith and be capable of incorporating lessons that uphold and build upon the school’s mission. Interested candidates should contact the principal, Mrs. Stephany Tucker.

Please help spread the word. St. Anthony School is seeking a certified 7th and 8th grade Math teacher for the 2022-2023 school year. The ideal candidate should possess an Indiana Teaching License in Middle School Math and be familiar with the Indiana Academic Standards. The candidate should be a passionate, student-focused and innovative educator. Candidates should desire to serve in the ministry of the Catholic Faith and be capable of incorporating lessons that uphold and build upon the school’s mission. Interested candidates should contact the principal, Mrs. Stephany Tucker.