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Family Focus May 13, 2022

05/18/2022

Kris Sauer

May 2022, 2021-22

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"But Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him." Jeremiah 17:7 (Bible verse of the year chosen by Peer Ministry)

May 13, 2022

Dear BA Families: 

Minnesota weather - isn't it a joy! This Wednesday scholars and staff were drenched on their way to Mass. During our concert, as many of you know, we were interrupted twice by area weather warnings and sirens. What a day! Although we completed our choir concert, we will be adding our Middle School and High School Band Concert performances to two events already planned the last week of school - we hope you can join us! Thank you for your patience and understanding during the concert as we followed safety protocols.

TUITION AGREEMENTS & FINANCIAL AID: Please watch for these notifications in your email boxes. This will come from FACTS and could end up in your junk mail. You may also login and check the status. Please reach out if you have any questions to Kris Sauer at .

END OF YEAR SCHEDULE CHANGES & CONCERT ADDITIONS: Please note that the last week of school we have special schedules. 

• Wed, May 25:
  • 1 p.m. BA Mary Ceremony - at the close of the ceremony, scholars are released. (~2:30 p.m.)
  • 7:30 p.m. Baccalaureate Mass is at DMCC
• Thurs, May 26: Students will be released at 1 p.m. *Please note, there are golf, track and softball games, as well.
• Fri, May 27: LAST DAY OF SCHOOL!  
  • 9:15 a.m. Middle School Band Concert
  • 9:30 a.m. Awards Ceremony
  • 11:15 a.m. Dismissal for scholars Grades 6-11
  • No lunch will be served
  • 11:15 a.m. Senior/Staff Brunch
  • 7 p.m.  High School Band Concert in gymnasium
  • 7:30 p.m. Commencement in gymnasium.

STILL NEED PLANTS? The FFA Plant sale will continue Friday after school in the greenhouse and possibly Saturday morning at the Fairgrounds, if there are plants left. Stop by!

CELEBRATING RETIRING STAFF: Please send cards to send off Sue Jandro, Mary Herzog (It was Nurses' Day this week, too!), Hugh McCusker and Cassie Kratt as they depart from our school family for retirement or other life adventures!

KUDOS: Congratulations to our BA Manta Rays Vex IQ Robotics team at tying for 6th place in their division at World Championship this past week! Thank you to Mr. Robinson, their coach, chaperone Bob Crone, and all of the parents for their support. Kudos to Mrs. Kratt and Mr. Wendt for the spring concert, despite the interruptions! Thank you to Mrs. Jandro for coordinating the prom and all of her work with the committee. Thanks to our parents for Post Prom!

UPCOMING EVENTS: Additional activities and sporting events online. Join us weekly at Immaculate Conception Church for Mass on Wednesdays.

• May 17: WIN Day
• May 20: Middle School Lock-In and DMCS Family Fun Night
  • DMCS Family Fun Night - 3:30-7:30 - Student volunteers needed for Family Fun Night! Sign up HERE
• May 24: HS Finals, Red Periods 1-3; Senior Rehearsal
• May 25: Gr 9-11 Finals Period 3, Cardinals A-C (See schedule above)
• May 26: Gr 9-11 White Day Finals 1, 2; Early dismissal at 1 pm
• May 27: Last Day of School! (See schedule above)
• Click HERE for the 2022-2023 BA School Calendar
• Find our event school calendar on our website HERE

Prayers for Ukraine and all of our scholars who received the Sacrament of Confirmation! Please join us during the month of May in saying a Hail Mary or the Rosary as we celebrate Mary.

ALL BA UPDATES

Student Service Hours: Does your scholars still need service hours for the semester? DMCS is hosting a family fun night Friday, May 20 and student volunteers are needed! Sign up HERE

SUMMER CAMPS: Join our championship volleyball and robotics teams at camps this summer! Lots of options for students grades 2-12, including volleyball, boys & girls basketball, football and robotics. Non-BA students welcome to attend! Find information and registration forms and get signed up at: Summer Programs

Positivity Project Home Activities: To help extend the learning to your students' homes, we encourage you to share these P2 for Families resources with your students' families. The password is: P2- 6-8 | 9-12

Talk to your Teen: Mental Health Resources: We know that at this time we are seeing an increase in the mental health needs of our scholars. Find lots of great resources on the BA COUNSELOR'S CORNER webpage HERE. And Here is a link to Rice County resources. 

HIGH SCHOOL INFORMATION

Class of 2022 Info:

Family Focus May 6, 2022

05/10/2022

Kris Sauer

May 2022, 2021-22

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"But Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him." Jeremiah 17:7 (Bible verse of the year chosen by Peer Ministry)

May 6, 2022

Dear BA Families:

It's May! Happy Mother's Day to all of the BA mothers. As we celebrate you, we are also honoring Mary. This week we began by joining DMCS for the Crowning of Mary at Mass. Along with Mass and prayers, BA will culminate our end of year events with the traditional Mary Ceremony the last week of school. Join us in praying the Rosary this month as we celebrate Mary.

END OF YEAR SCHEDULE CHANGES: Please note that the last week of school we have special schedules and two early release days. 

• Wed, May 25: 1 p.m. is the BA Mary Ceremony - at the close of the ceremony, scholars are released. (Most likely 2:30 p.m.) Baccalaureate Mass is at 7:30 p.m. at DMCC.
• Thurs, May 26: Students will be released at 1 p.m. *Please note, there are golf, track and softball games, as well.
• Fri, May 27:  The Awards Ceremony will begin at 9:30 a.m. Students grades 6-11 will be dismissed at 11:15 a.m. for the summer; No lunch will be served; Senior/Staff Brunch @ 11:15am; Commencement is at 7:30 p.m. in the gymnasium.

CELEBRATING RETIRING STAFF: Please send cards to send off Sue Jandro, Mary Herzog, Hugh McCusker and Cassie Kratt as they depart from our school family for retirement and other life adventures!

KUDOS: Thank you to all of the BA Board, Home & School and our parents for sending in treats, cards and flowers to honor our teachers this week! Congratulations to our FFA officers and members and special thanks to Casi Jensen in coordinting "Baby Animal Day."

UPCOMING EVENTS: Additional activities and sporting events online. Join us weekly at Immaculate Conception Church for Mass on Wednesdays.

• May 7: Prom - See details in the HS section below
• May 10: Spring Parent Survey deadline
• May 11: Spring Choir & Band Concert
• May 12: WIN Day
• May 17: WIN Day
• May 20: Middle School Lock-In
• May 25: Mary Ceremony, 1pm & Baccalaureate, 7:30pm
• May 26: Early dismissal at 1 pm
• May 27:
  • Awards Day, 9:30 am
  • 11:15 AM EARLY DISMISSAL/LAST DAY OF SCHOOL, Grades 6-11 (no lunch served)
  • Senior/Faculty Brunch @ 11:15am
  • Commencement, 7:30pm
• Click HERE for the 2022-2023 BA School Calendar
• Find our event school calendar on our website HERE

Prayers to support Ukraine and all of our BA mothers!

ALL BA UPDATES
SUMMER CAMPS: We have several summer camps this summer for students ranging from grades 2-12, including volleyball, boys & girls basketball, football and robotics. Non-BA students welcome to attend! Find information and registration forms and get signed up at: Summer Programs

Earn Scrip Credit: Sell @ Masses! The DMCS Scrip Program is looking for people to sell Scrip after weekend Masses for the upcoming year (May 21, 2022 – May 14, 2023). The Scrip Program allows participating families the chance to earn tuition credit at Divine Mercy Catholic School and Bethlehem Academy. You will receive an additional $7 tuition credit in your Scrip account for each Mass that you sell Scrip. If you are interested in learning more about this opportunity, please contact Peggy Johnson at (507) 334-7706 Ext: 2206 or pjohnson@dmcs.cc as soon as possible. 

Positivity Project Home Activities: To help extend the learning to your students' homes, we encourage you to share these P2 for Families resources with your students' families. The password is: P2- 6-8 | 9-12

TALK TO YOUR TEEN: MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES: We know that at this time we are seeing an increase in the mental health needs of our scholars. Find lots of great resources on the BA COUNSELOR'S CORNER webpage HERE. And Here is a link to Rice County resources. 

HIGH SCHOOL INFORMATION

PROM Saturday, May 7: Rustic Romance – PROM 2022 Information. SADD will be sharing special safety demonstrations with high school scholars this coming week. On Saturday, May 7, here is the schedule:

2:00 Pictures at Derham Farm (Barns at Crocker Creek)
4:15 arrive at BA
4:45 line up by the vending machines
5:00 Grand March
5:30 Senior/Junior couples load bus
6:00 Arrive at the Owatonna Country Club 
6:30 dinner  -- buffet style
7:30 – 11:00 Dance
11:00 load bus to return to BA
11:30 Arrive at BA

During pictures at Derham Farm and at the Grand March, Brent Zabel will be taking photos of each couple, groups of couples, and class photos; a link will be shared with parents.

Post Prom May 7-8:  BA students and their guests are invited to attend Post Prom May 7-8, 2022. Permission slips must be signed and turned in to the BA Front Office by Friday, April 29. Click HERE for the permission slip plus event information.

1. Students are still in "school" mode, so they're mentally warmed-up for testing.
2. They've got plenty of time to submit applications for scholarships and schools if they meet their performance goals.
3. If they decide to retest, they know the areas they need to work on.
4. June is one of only three chances per year to purchase their Test Information Release (TIR) to help them prep. A TIR is an official copy of their questions, the answer key, and the answers they submitted.

MIDDLE SCHOOL INFORMATION

Click HERE to register!

JOB/COMMUNITY INFORMATION

Pregnancy Options Pancake Breakfast May 14: See flyer at left; tickets available at BA from Jen Robert '22. 

Americorps Jobs: A full description of the various positions can be found here, healthycommunityinitiative.org/americorps. 
 

DIVINE MERCY CATHOLIC SCHOOL AND CHURCH

Registration for the Steubenville Youth Conference is now open! Open to grades 8 (going into 9th next year) and up. July 29-31 at the University of St. Thomas. Cost is $275 per person, $100 deposit to hold your spot. Register online HERE. Find the conference video teaser HERE. 

Summer Youth Formation Programs! Summer Stretch and Totus Tuus registration is open! There is a program for everyone, grades 1-12! Teen leaders also needed. Find more information and register online HERE. 

CALENDAR LINK
Click the link below for the school activities calendar.

• BA School Calendar 
• Spring Coop Sports Schedule - Week of May 9

Family Focus April 29, 2022

05/06/2022

Ed Friesen

2021-22, April 2022

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"But Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him." Jeremiah 17:7 (Bible verse of the year chosen by Peer Ministry)

April 29, 2022

Dear BA Families:

Theater is back at BA! I hope that you are able to come out for one of the performances this weekend, April 29-May 1. BA Scholars are performing the play Clue at the Paradise Center for the Arts and the creative results are astounding. We are so blessed to partner with the Paradise and Patrick Braucher for this production. See you there!

TEACHER APPRECIATION WEEK-May 2-6: Join us in celebrating our dedicated teachers next week. You're invited to send in treats, share an email or drop off a card. Our teachers go above and beyond to educate and support our scholars as they live out the mission of BA. WE ARE THANKFUL FOR OUR TEACHERS!

TESTING COMPLETE: For the last two weeks BA scholars have participated in various tests. Our Middle School scholars take the NWEA MAP test, a national assessment in reading, language usage, math and science. Our 9th and 10th grade scholars took the Pre-ACT test. These results will be available to all families in the upcoming weeks. We are proud of our scholar's hard work throughout these exams. 

SPRING STAFF CHANGES: Each spring staff share with administration their plans for the upcoming school year. It is with heavy heart that we announce that three staff will be leaving the BA family for various reasons and we will miss them: Sue Jandro, HS Math; Cassie Kratt - MS & HS Choir Director and Edward Wendt, Band Director. We also have two retirements to celebrate: Mary Herzog, our school nurse, and Hugh McCusker, one of our maintenance assistants. Please pray for these transitions and ask God to direct the right staff to BA!

KUDOS: To our Theater Director and scholars involved in this year's Spring Production of Clue!

UPCOMING EVENTS: Additional activities and sporting events online. Join us weekly at Immaculate Conception Church for Mass on Wednesdays.

• April 29-May 1: BA spring play, Clue, at the Paradise Ctr for Arts
• May 1: Family Rosary Procession from State Capitol to Cathedral of Saint Paul with the Diocese (Link)
• May 2: Daily Senior open campus begins
• May 2-May 6: Dress up days for Prom Week (Details below.)
• May 4: 8:30am Joint BA-DMCS Mass
• May 5: Student of the Month, 7:30am
• May 7: Prom - See details in the HS section below
• May 10: Spring Parent Survey deadline
• May 11: Spring Choir & Band Concert
• May 12: WIN Day
• May 17: WIN Day
• May 20: Middle School Lock-In
• May 25: Mary Ceremony, 1pm & Baccalaureate, 7:30pm
• May 27: Awards Day, 9am
• May 27: 11:15 AM EARLY DISMISSAL/LAST DAY OF SCHOOL (no lunch served; Senior/Faculty Brunch @ 11:15am)
• May 27: Commencement, 7:30pm
• Click HERE for the 2022-2023 BA School Calendar
• Find our event school calendar on our website HERE

Prayers to support Ukraine at this time, the Diocese has fundraising information: https://www.archspm.org/helping-ukraine/

ALL BA UPDATES

SUMMER CAMPS: We have several summer camps this summer for students ranging from grades 2-12, including volleyball, boys & girls basketball, football and robotics. Non-BA students welcome to attend! Find information and registration forms and get signed up at: Summer Programs

Earn Scrip Credit: Sell @ Masses! The DMCS Scrip Program is looking for people to sell Scrip after weekend Masses for the upcoming year (May 21, 2022 – May 14, 2023). The Scrip Program allows participating families the chance to earn tuition credit at Divine Mercy Catholic School and Bethlehem Academy. You will receive an additional $7 tuition credit in your Scrip account for each Mass that you sell Scrip. If you are interested in learning more about this opportunity, please contact Peggy Johnson at (507) 334-7706 Ext: 2206 or pjohnson@dmcs.cc as soon as possible. 

Positivity Project Home Activities: To help extend the learning to your students' homes, we encourage you to share these P2 for Families resources with your students' families. The password is: P2- 6-8 | 9-12

TALK TO YOUR TEEN: MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES: We know that at this time we are seeing an increase in the mental health needs of our scholars. Find lots of great resources on the BA COUNSELOR'S CORNER webpage HERE. And Here is a link to Rice County resources. 

HIGH SCHOOL INFORMATION

PROM Saturday, May 7: Rustic Romance – PROM 2022 Information. SADD will be sharing special safety demonstrations with high school scholars this coming week. On Saturday, May 7, here is the schedule:

2:00 Pictures at Derham Farm (Barns at Crocker Creek)
4:15 arrive at BA
4:45 line up by the vending machines
5:00 Grand March
5:30 Senior/Junior couples load bus
6:00 Arrive at the Owatonna Country Club 
6:30 dinner  -- buffet style
7:30 – 11:00 Dance
11:00 load bus to return to BA
11:30 Arrive at BA

During pictures at Derham Farm and at the Grand March, Brent Zabel will be taking photos of each couple, groups of couples, and class photos; a link will be shared with parents.

Post Prom May 7-8:  BA students and their guests are invited to attend Post Prom May 7-8, 2022. Permission slips must be signed and turned in to the BA Front Office by Friday, April 29. Click HERE for the permission slip plus event information.

Attention 9^th & 10^th Grade Parents: Pre-ACT scores are back!  We are excited to share with you the results of the Pre-ACT tests that were taken April 5 and April 7.  It is a lot of great information! Pick up their scores at an informational meeting on Wednesday, May 4, at 6:30pm in the BA gym.  We will spend about 30 minutes reviewing scores, what it means now and what it means for the future.  

1. Students are still in "school" mode, so they're mentally warmed-up for testing.
2. They've got plenty of time to submit applications for scholarships and schools if they meet their performance goals.
3. If they decide to retest, they know the areas they need to work on.
4. June is one of only three chances per year to purchase their Test Information Release (TIR) to help them prep. A TIR is an official copy of their questions, the answer key, and the answers they submitted.

MIDDLE SCHOOL INFORMATION

Click HERE to register!

JOB/COMMUNITY INFORMATION

Pregnancy Options Pancake Breakfast May 14: See flyer at left; tickets available at BA from Jen Robert '22. 

Americorps Jobs: A full description of the various positions can be found here, healthycommunityinitiative.org/americorps. 
 

DIVINE MERCY CATHOLIC SCHOOL AND CHURCH

Registration for the Steubenville Youth Conference is now open! Open to grades 8 (going into 9th next year) and up. July 29-31 at the University of St. Thomas. Cost is $275 per person, $100 deposit to hold your spot. Register online HERE. Find the conference video teaser HERE. 

Summer Youth Formation Programs! Summer Stretch and Totus Tuus registration is open! There is a program for everyone, grades 1-12! Teen leaders also needed. Find more information and register online HERE. 

CALENDAR LINK
Click the link below for the school activities calendar.

• BA School Calendar 
• Spring Coop Sports Schedule - Week of May 2