Our 8th graders just finished up their last full week of school and today concluded their time here at St. Ignatius. We are very proud of these students and their accomplishments and cannot wait to see what the future has in store for them. I want to thank them for their hard work and their leadership this year, and we will celebrate some of their remarkable accomplishments on Tuesday at their Awards Ceremony and Boat Trip. Their Graduation Ceremony will be held on Wednesday evening, here at St. Ignatius. Congratulations Class of 2024! Go and Set the World on Fire!

I would also like to recognize five wonderful staff members who will be retiring at the end of this school year. 

**Mrs. Joan Burrill, Kindergarten aide, has been a huge part of our Kindergarten team at St. Ignatius for 20 years, and has helped shape the minds and hearts of many, many children. We are so grateful for her loving and caring nature!

**Mrs. Denise Schnur has been our preschool director since we first opened the preschool five years ago. She was instrumental in helping to get the program up and running, and she brought with her a wealth of experience in early childhood education. She greets all her students every morning at carpool with a warm smile and caring heart. 

**Mrs. Beth Reynolds, cafeteria manager, has been keeping our students and staff fed for the past 15 years. When I asked her why she wanted to work at St. Ignatius her response was, “My own children went here and were so well cared for that I wanted to do the same for the students and staff.” Her favorite lunch to serve is popcorn chicken because it’s one of the most popular!

**Mrs. Cathy Grote, grade 1, has been an intervention specialist here at St. Ignatius for 16 years. She worked in education for 15 years prior to coming to St. I, and said that after she got her intervention license, getting a job at St. Ignatius was an “answer to her prayers!" She has helped so many 1st graders grow and thrive in reading! She has a special gift for sure!

**Mrs. Judy Crowley, grade 2, has been a teacher at St. Ignatius for 22 years and during that time also facilitated the Girls on the Run program. She has been offering her time and talent to St. Ignatius much longer than that, though! Before beginning her teaching career here, she taught PSR classes and was a substitute teacher for quite a few years. She got married at St. Ignatius, has been a parishioner, and her own children were baptized and attended school here. She told me that she’ll never forget the phone call she received from Mrs. Schoettmer asking her to teach PSR. It was the catalyst that led to an amazing career and lifelong friends and memories made here at St. Ignatius.

We are extremely grateful for these five dedicated and compassionate staff members and the many years of service they have given to our school and community. It’s hard to comprehend how many children’s lives they have touched. We wish them the very best in their retirement! They have earned it!!

Please pray that as we end our school year our students, parents, staff, alumni, and friends continue to see God in all things and do “all things for the greater glory of God.”

In Christ’s Peace,

Angie Heisel

Principal

Just a friendly reminder that all fees (cafeteria, before and after care, field trips, retreats, etc..) and tuition balances need to be paid in full prior to the last day of school in order for report cards to be distributed on the last day. Any fees/tuition paid after dismissal on the last day may have up to a two-business day wait before report cards are emailed.

If you received a grant from the Catholic Education Foundation (CEF) for the 2024-2025 school year, please send a copy of your award letter to the school office. CEF grants will be checked for verification with the CEF office before being recorded as credits in FACTS.

We are finishing up MAP make-up tests and soon you will be receiving the MAP Growth Family Report, which summarizes how your child is performing academically, as measured by the recent MAP Growth Test. These tests and scores help teachers check student performance by measuring achievement using a RIT score. RIT scores have the same meaning across grade levels. Being that this is our very first MAP test, there is nothing to compare to yet for student growth. Growth will be the most important measure moving forward. After the upcoming fall test in September of 2024, teachers will be able to use test results to tailor classroom lessons and set goals for students. This stable scale allows teachers to accurately measure each student’s academic growth throughout the school year and over time.

MAP Growth tests are unique and adapt to your child’s responses to measure your child’s knowledge. If your child answers a question correctly, the next question is more challenging. If they answer incorrectly, the next one is easier. These results will provide a more complete picture of where your child is on their learning journey—regardless of whether they are on, above, or below their grade level.

For more information about MAP Growth, visit NWEA.org/familytoolkit.

Students will wear their brand new 2024 iWalk shirts which students will receive soon! On iWalk day, students should also wear appropriate shorts and may wear hats to protect against the sun. We ask that iWalk dress be similar to a Spirit Day, as students will be in class for the majority of the day. 

For Olympic Day, students can be more creative, but we ask that students not wear or bring any face or hair paint/coloring.