Holy Name Junior Senior High School

The school week has ended, and February Vacation has begun.  Our students were excited to mark this transition today with a Mardi Gras celebration at all lunches today.  This celebration, sponsored by the French Club, featured New Orleans decorations in the cafe, the sale of beads, treats, and dipping dots, and performances by the jazz band.  A good time was had by all, and there was a great deal of positive energy in the cafe.  All monies raised have been directed to relief for New Orleans.

It has been a great year at Holy Name.  The students have maintained good behavior, good grades, and a positive spirit.  We look forward to the Spring and all the optimism and joy this season brings.  As always, time does fly, and we consistently remind our students and each other to reflect with prayer and give thanks to God for all of life’s blessings.

I hope that you and yours have a happy, healthy, safe, and blessed February Vacation!

I would like to take this opportunity to remind all Holy Name families that now is the time to re-register their students for the 2012-2013 school year.  This is easily done through our web site by clicking on student enrollment at the bottom of our home page and then following the links and directions.  We would especially need to share this reminder with families interested in receiving Tuition Assistance as there are very rigid deadlines concerning this process.  As always, if you have any difficulties navigating this process, please contact Mrs. Norgren at 508.753.6371.

We have been extremely pleased at Holy Name with the number of interviews for acceptance and shadow experiences that have been recently scheduled.  There is a great deal of enthusiasm about our school, and I appreciate all that our community has done to spread the word about the Good Works ocurring everyday at our wonderful school.  Many interested families have indicated that they have arrived at Holy Name via the guidance and advice of current and past Holy Name families.  I thank all for the positive words they share with the greater community!

I would also like to commend our current students who either tour families or guide prospective students on their shadow days.  Without fail, I hear about how friendly, welcoming, and knowledgeable our student ambassadors are.  It is evident that our students take great pride in their school and enthusiastically share this with others.  Please continue to speak well of Holy Name; the support of our families and friends makes Holy Name What a 21st Century Catholic School Should Be.

Each school year, our students engage in two school wide fundraising efforts with proceeds going to support extra curricular activities at the school. At Holy Name, we are extremely proud of the fact that over eighty per cent of our students engage in some sort of extra curricular activity, and we are especially proud of the students who fundraise to help support activities such as athletics, theater, music, mock trial, SADD, SMASH, National Honor Society etc. The first of these fundraisers is the Magazine Drive which occurred at the start of the year. The second is the Musical Ad Drive which kicked off today and will continue until February vacation.

We are asking students to sell ad space in the Spring Musical Program. We have instructed them to visit businesses, places of work, places of worship, family, and friends in order to solicit support of Holy Name through these advertisements. Ads can cost as little as ten dollars for a Best Wishes line advertisement. Prizes and incentives will be awarded to student salespersons throughout the drive. Although we use the Spring Musical Program as a basis for this drive, it is important to recognize that funds raised are directed not only to the theater but also to the other extra curricular groups.

I would encourage all members of the Holy Name community to be supportive of the students as they undertake this endeavor. It is essential that students recognize the sacrifice that parents, faculty, and staff make in order to for them to attend this wonderful Catholic school; it is also important that they do their part to support the community. This is an opportunity for them to do so. May God Bless You and Yours. Enjoy this weekend. Go Pats!

The Holy Name Advisory Board has taken the initiative to examine how we can make the school uniform and Holy Name spirit wear more easily accesible to community members and also improve the quality of such items while maintaining or lowering costs to parents. We are always cognizant of the sacrifices that families make to send their sons and daughters to our wonderful school, and we try to be proactive in lowering ancillary costs such as uniforms and books. We always welcome input from families to this end, and, as a result of responses to last month’s Advisory Board Question of the Month sent to all by Constant Contact, we have decided to allow families to purchase uniform pants for next school year from outlets other than the uniform store: more information on this will come shortly from the school principals.

Next month’s Advisory Board Question also involves uniforms and will be sent by Dr. Audette next week. The question seeks suggestions concerning the concept of selling uniform items such as shirts, sweaters, and skirts through the bookstore. To make this switch would involve a great deal of thought regarding the process, and we would only pursue such an avenue if we had the support of parents. Please respond to this thoughtfully and carefully, so that if we do make this transition, we minimize any pitfalls.

At the same time, we are working to increase the availability of Holy Name spirit wear through the bookstore. We have had conversations with various suppliers to find a way to use on-line resources, including our web site and pay pal button, to make it easier for parents and other community members to purchase a greater variety of spirit wear items. We are attempting to establish relationships with vendors that would allow for us to offer some items by order only so that we do not run the risk of maintaining an extraordinary and idle inventory. Again, any positive sugestions in this realm are greatly appreciated and can be sent in response to the Question of the Month.

I hope that all enjoy what is left of this winter; please take the time to cherish each day and give thanks to God for each blessing that comes your way.

Yesterday, the entire community at Holy Name was treated to a performance by SMASH (Stop the Madness and Severe Hating), a student group dedicated to ending bullying in schools. Portions of this assembly can be viewed by clicking on the YouTube link on our home page. I would like to commend all the involved students; their moderators, Mrs. O’Neil and Mrs. Hughes; and Mrs. Ivas and Mrs. Kohn for their assistance in producing the performance. I would also like to commend the entire student body for their behavior during these assemblies; they were respectful and thoughtful, and I am certain that the essential message of SMASH was received and understood.

We were fortunate this year to be able to hire a production company to videotape both performances and also film interviews with members of the group. Over the next month, this company will be editing this raw footage and producing and duplicating a DVD that highlights the work of SMASH at Holy Name. We will be distributing these DVD’s to Catholic and public elementary schools as well as CCD classes throughout the Diocese. We hope that these DVD’s will be shown often as we spread the Good Works of Holy Name High School.

We will also be sending out a representation of SMASH to select schools to perform live for younger students. Unfortunately, we can not satisfy the incrceasingly large demand for this group as we are hesitant to send the students out too often; their first responsibility as students is to their academics. We are, as always, extremely proud of our student body as they live out the Mission of Holy Name High School: to study and apply the Gospel values and moral principles of Jesus Christ.