Lumen News, 08/16/2016
Important Upcoming Dates:
- August 18th, 2016: New Parent Orientation at 6:30pm
- August 22nd, 2016: Classes begin
- August 26th, 2016: Back to School Night & BBQ at 6pm
Principal’s Update:
Over the past few months, it has been an honor to assume the responsibility of Principal from Mr. John Harmon. Lumen has flourished under Mr. Harmon’s leadership in recent years and we wish him well in his future endeavors! I am excited to grab the torch and continue ensuring Lumen lights the path to the future for our students.
I trust everyone is enjoying their last few days of summer vacation! It was a privilege to meet so many students and families during Registration. Thank you for the warm welcome and the great conversation. This past weekend, my family and I took a drive up to see our varsity soccer team compete against Delta Junction and Nenana. Our awesome student athletes played very well and finished the three day road trip with a 2-1 record. Well done Archangels! The junior high soccer program is underway as well, and the team is proud to include several 6th graders from St. Elizabeth Ann Seton School.
When you return, you will see a lot of new things around the school, including me as the Principal and Father Tom Lilly as the Pastor of St. Benedict’s. We welcome a new faculty member, Mrs. Megan Spillers, who will be teaching some of our history, language arts, and theology classes. Over the summer, Mr. Tutor and Mr. Whisman have made the inside and outside of the school shine, and hopefully, if the weather holds out, we will have a new coating on our parking lot as well. The parishioners of St. Benedict’s generously donated funds to purchase new computers and printers for the school staff and we have plans to improve our internet speed and connection. Our incoming 7th grade class is the largest that anyone can remember (21 students) and with three international exchange students joining us, there will be a lot of new faces around the school!
Our highly professional, dedicated, and wonderful teachers and staff are working hard to prepare for the start of school and the excitement is clearly growing the closer we get to officially opening our doors. We welcome everyone back soon and we look forward to talking with new parents on the 18th, greeting the students on the 22nd, and hosting the entire Lumen family for Back to School night on the 26th. Go Lumen!
New Parent Orientation: On August 18th at 6:30pm, all new parents are invited to attend New Parent Orientation. You will learn about Powerschool and receive log-in information so you can get access to your student’s grades. Principal Brian Ross and other school representatives will give an informative session on various topics that are important to our new families.
1st Day of School, August 22nd: Many of our students begin arriving around 7:30am (some earlier). The tardy bell will ring at 7:45.
IMPORTANT-Student Government Lunches: Student Government will not provide lunch items the first week of school so please be sure your child brings a lunch for the 1st week. Student Government lunches will begin the 2nd week of school.
Parent Coffee: All parents are invited to coffee and refreshments in the parish hall right after drop off on August 22nd. This is a great time to catch up after summer and meet new families. Our 1st school Mass will be immediately following at 9:15am and all parents are welcome to attend.
Back to School Night: Back to School Night will kick off at 6pm on Friday, August 26th, followed by a BBQ at 7pm. Arrive at 6pm to pick up your child’s schedule and visit each class, beginning with your child’s 1st period class. Be sure to stick around for a delicious BBQ provided by an alumni family.
Ride needed from Lumen to St. Elizabeth’s: Lumen teacher, Mr. Palumbo is looking for someone who would be willing to help drive his daughter to St. Elizabeth’s. Please contact him at bpalumbo@lumenchristiak.org for more information or if you are available to help with this.
PVO President & Vice President Needed: We are currently looking to fill our PVO President and Vice-President positions. Please contact the office if you are interested or have questions about either of these positions.
Parent Share Hours: Each family is a member of the PVO and has 40 parent share hours to complete (20 hours for single head of household) each year. At least 50{d4876d85bca45a190b33d6c696456a399841af28eb325342d1f9ba09483f3a19} of those volunteer hours need to be conducted on fundraising efforts such as the Gala, Concessions, the Archangel Attic, and etc. Parent share hours help bridge the gap between tuition and the actual cost to educate each child…keeping our tuition as low as possible. Each family is responsible for logging their own share hours in the parent share hour book located in the office. If you are unable to come into the office, please email Mrs. Estes a detailed account of your parent share hours and she will gladly enter them for you. In April, share hours will be assessed and any incomplete share hours will be billed at $35 per hour to your ledger in May. PLEASE NOTE: Parent share hours do not include community service you may have done outside the Lumen community.
A Reminder from the Yearbook Team:
Summer is a great opportunity to take great Senior photos at your favorite location. The colors are gorgeous, the leaves are lush and the photographer is not overbooked and has patience. Nothing but good reasons to schedule your Senior photos now to have them ready when the Yearbook team needs them much later in the year. Then you won’t have the nice outdoor display.
Fred Meyer Community Rewards-Time to Renew: Please take a moment to register your Fred Meyer card so that Lumen Christi can receive rewards from your shopping, a super easy way to help Lumen raise funds. If you have already registered your card, you may want to check to see if it needs to be renewed. Please click on this link and follow the steps: https://www.fredmeyer.com/topic/community-rewards-4
Catholic Student Exchange: Most of you may remember the 3 Guatemalan students that came to Lumen last fall for 8 weeks. They each had a wonderful time and had a great experience in a Alaska while attending Lumen Christi. If your family is interested in hosting a student from Guatemala from mid-October through Mid-December or If you’d like additional information, please let us know.