St. Thomas High School - November Parent Newsletter

Principal's Corner

The recent Parent Social was a wonderful event for all who attended. Many first-time attendees now wish they had done so sooner! I would like to thank the many volunteers who put this event together. It is a pleasurable time and most importantly a time to meet and welcome new parents to our community. Many faculty members were able to attend as well and were equally complimentary of the effort. This is a wonderful community builder and I urge you to put it on your calendar for next year!

That night we announced the creation of our new Community Association for St. Thomas or CAST. This group is co-chaired by Anne Pickett and Kim Grondin and is in its beginning stages. We have seen the need for many years to have an organization that can facilitate the many ways in which parents, faculty and friends can be involved in the successful efforts to support our school. There is so much that can be done that can be organized by a vibrant support group. We are excited about the establishment of CAST and have high hopes in creating a stronger partnership with parents. The initial sponsored event will take place on Friday of this week. CAST will be hosting the Principal's Coffee which provides a time in which I can interact with parents on things that are happening at school. I hope you can join us.

The STA Stewardship Council is the consultative board of the school. It is made up of parents, alumni and interested community leaders to work with the Principal and the Diocese of Manchester in providing for the present and future needs of the school. Over the years there has always been a group that has helped the school meet the many challenges we face. We have just rewritten the By-laws and have reconstituted ourselves into the St. Thomas Aquinas School Board . Therefore, you will have to make the cognitive switch in recognizing that the old Stewardship Council is now the STA School Board. The Board has the same mission and intent but a different name and more explicit by-laws which will help us work effectively.

The Principal Search Committee has been formed with 10 individuals with representative interest and expertise. This Committee is charged with searching for the next Principal at St. Thomas. They are:

Larry Raiche, Chair Larry is presently the Chair of the STA School Board, alumnus and St. Thomas parent.

Fr. Bob Cole Fr. Bob is newly appointed to the STA Board and long time supporter of STA.

David Dupont Dave is an alumnus, parent and STA Board member.

Nancy Danford Nancy is currently the Vice Chair of the STA Board and parent.

Kristen Carmichael Kris is a Faculty member.

Paul DiPietro Paul is a Faculty member, Chair of the Accreditation Committee, and STA Parent.

Br. Mark Hilton Br. Mark is President of Bishop Guertin High School.

Shannon Dannible Shannon is an STA alum and Principal of St. Francis of Assisi elementary school.

Robert Decolfmaker Bob is a former STA parent, former President of McIntosh College and currently a consultant to Colleges, Universities and Schools.

Ron Holtz Ron is the STA Dean of Studies, as well as an STA Parent.

Please pray for this Committee that their deliberations be guided by the Holy Spirit.

Our annual Open House is this coming Sunday. You can help us by identifying quality candidates and encouraging them to attend our Open House Sunday from 1-3pm.

Winter athletic season has officially begun and soon we will be welcoming back many young alumni who will be home for Thanksgiving. It is always a blessing to see our recent grads come back after a few months of college. They are excited to share their new lives and perspectives with students at St. Thomas. With this anticipation I would like to wish each of you and your family a wonderful Thanksgiving gathering. God blesses us all.

God bless you,

Jeffrey A. Quinn

November Parent eNotes

Upcoming Events and News

Important Dates

Friday, November 16- Principal's Coffee
Sunday, November 18- Open House
Tuesday, November 20- Thanksgiving Prayer Service
Wednesday, November 21- Early Release Day
Wednesday, November 21- Young Alumni Day
Thursday, November 22- Thanksgiving Day
Friday, November 23- No School
Saturday, December 1- St. Thomas Entrance Exam
Thursday, December 6- Parent Teacher Conferences
Thursday, December 6- Financial Aid Night
Saturday, December 8-St. Thomas Entrance Exam
Saturday, December 8- Christmas Semi-Formal 7-11pm
Wednesday, December 12-School Mass

Open House This Sunday, November 18th, starting at 1:00, we will be holding our annual Open House for prospective students and their families. Hundreds of members of the St. Thomas community will be on hand to spread the word about our school. If you know of any families who may be interested in St. Thomas, please encourage them to attend. Do not forget to forward the PDF of our Open House flyer to those families.

Christmas Semi-Formal The Christmas Semi-Formal Dance will be held December 8th from 7-11. The STA Gym will be transformed into The Night Before Christmas. The Dress is semi-formal; dresses for the ladies and dress pants, dress shirt and tie, sports coat/blazer (if owned) and dress shoes for the gents. Tickets will cost $10 which includes a dessert buffet in the cafeteria. Tickets will go on sale November 28th. STA students will be able to bring a guest from another school as long as the STA student signs up with Mr. Quimby in the attendance office. Tickets must be purchased prior to the dance. Tickets will not be sold at the door. The Student Advisory Board is looking for dessert donations for the buffet that night. If you are able to donate a dessert, please contact Mary Chamberlain.

Tuition Reminder A reminder- The semi-annual tuition payment was due November 1st. Please remit promptly to avoid a late fee.

Senior Parents Needed On Wednesday night, November 7th many senior parents met to help organize the senior's graduation party, The Last Blast. Parents enthusiastically signed up to be in charge of the different locations for food, and to chaperone all night. We have all of the locations covered for volunteers, but, we are still in need of 3 male chaperones for all night. If this is something that you feel you could do please get in touch with Laverne Burridge as soon as possible.

Thanksgiving Break Families should note that school will be dismissed at noon on Wednesday, Nov. 21 for the Holiday. Please plan travel so that students may be in class on that morning.

Music Notes Congratulations to Robert Gaudette and Celia Ellis who auditioned for the NH Jazz All State Choir and were accepted. This is the second year in a row for Robert, and Celia's first time at an all state event. Special recognition should also be given to Tim Cilley II, who, for the second straight year, had the highest scores in the state for bass voice and has earned a spot in the Honors Jazz Choir for the third consecutive year. Nice work! Tim Cilley, Robert Gaudette and Ben Vaughan also represented STA at the Plymouth State University All New England Choral Festival on November 1st. They sang in a choir of over 300 voices and performed a recently completed composition for choir and orchestra by Gwyneth Walker, a Vermont composer well known by many in New England and beyond. She was present for the rehearsals and performance and was very pleased with the concert the students presented.

Please join us on Thursday, December 20th at 7 PM for the Christmas Concert Traditions from Around the World. It will feature favorite Christmas and holiday tunes from around the globe. You will hear many American favorites such as Jingle Bells, and It's the Most wonderful Time of the Year, but you will also hear the traditional German carol, Good Christian Men Rejoice and the French carol Sing We Now of Christmas, among others. Tower of Power will present a fun arrangement of In the Mood (with Christmas words, of course) and the band will play a contemporary arrangement of the Russian sleigh ride song Troika, as well as the Ukrainian Bell Carol. We will continue with selections from Handel's Messiah, and conclude with its famous,"Hallelujah" chorus. Members of the audience who are familiar this most famous of Handel's work will be invited to sing with us! Bring your scores and plan to join us! More information about the concert can be found by clicking here.

Advancement

CAST (Community Association of St. Thomas) In an effort to organize volunteer efforts at St. Thomas, we are pleased and excited to announce the official launch of our CAST, the Community Association of St. Thomas. This group of community volunteers will be relied upon in many ways here on campus. Just to name a few...organizing the committees for the Parent Social, Golf Open, and the Auction; helping in the Admissions office with various marketing and enrollment needs; growing the Aquinas Fund committee; aiding with arts, athletics and student activity enhancement and coordinating volunteers for campus events and concerts. We expect that the role of the CAST will develop over time and we look forward to the new ideas they bring and the energy they can provide to our school community.

Principal's Coffee Friday, November 16th, 8:15 am. The first coffee of the year will be co-hosted by CAST. This is an open forum, informal gathering...a chance for you to meet with school leaders and other parents. If you are able to attend please reply to Anne Fortin.

Parent Social Recap Over 180 parents braved the high winds and rain to venture to the Frank Jones Center on November 3rd for the annual Parent Social. Many thanks to all those who organized the event, for those who donated or provided food, and to those who attended.

Auction Save the Date -Saturday, March 29, 2008 -All that Jazz! Although the auction is many months away the auction planning committee is busy at work with preparations for the annual event in the spring. Please mark your 2008 calendars and be sure to join the fun. Item donation and Sponsorship/Advertising opportunities are available. Please contact the committee at auction@stalux.org.

Aquinas Fund Update The 2007-08 Aquinas Fund campaign is officially underway. Last year's Aquinas Fund appeal reached the goal and the overall giving to St. Thomas reached a record level demonstrating to us that so many people believe that our mission here at St. Thomas is worthy and important work. This year, we anticipate the same spirit of giving and we thank you for your past support and look forward to your continued support. This year the Aquinas Fund goal is $440,000. We are grateful to the 2007-08 Aquinas Fund Team of volunteers who are assisting us with this year's appeal. More information on the fund and the list of team members on the website AQUINAS FUND. We are seeking additional team volunteers for phone calling. If you would like to join the Aquinas Fund team please contact Karen Monaco

Guidance

Grade 11 Parents College Admissions workshop is Thursday, November 15 at 7 pm.

College Application Deadlines- Transcript Packet Request Transcript Packet Request forms are due to Mrs. Karwowski on Monday, December 3 for any college applications your student wants mailed before Christmas Recess. This deadline also applies for college applications with deadlines of December 15, December 31, January 1, January 2, or January 5. As a reminder, the guidance office is closed during Christmas recess.

Progress Reports will take place on Monday, December 3. Dismissal is at 12 noon. Parent/Teacher Meetings follow on Thursday, December 6 from 3-5 pm. This is a good opportunity to address briefly any concerns you have or, if necessary, to make an appointment for an extended conference at a later date.

Grade 12 Parents Financial Aid workshop is Thursday, December 6 at 5:00 pm.

SAT Registration Deadline Wednesday, December 26 is the registration deadline for the January 26 SAT I or Subject Tests. St. Thomas is not a test center.