February Parent Press

PARENT PRESS

Engaged, Inspired and Prepared with Character, Integrity and Respect A Newsletter for the St. Paul’s Family

Feb. 2012

Academic

Spirituality

Arts

Athletics

Dr. Howard, Finding Kind, & Author Visit

Character Counts & Community Service

Students Accepted into Art Competition

Basketball, Track & Golf

February Calendar

How to Get Around On St. Paul’s New Website

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Pre-K-12 Early dismissal 1:00pm

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Morning Prayer every Thursday 7:20am

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Girls Indoor Track AHSAA State Tournament 9:00am Boys Indoor Track AHSAA State Tournament 12:00pm

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Book Fair Tuesdays at Two every Tuesday

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PreK-2 Dauphin Island Sea Lab visit

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MS/US Out of Uniform Day All State Orchestra Festival 7:00am Pre-K Doughnuts with Dad 7:30am VGBB Area Tournament 4:30pm

• Once you have logged in and are on your My Page, click on “My Profile.” You will see a list of options of specific areas on your profile to edit.

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Philanthropy Ambassadors VOA Mardi Gras Parade 9:00 am Kindergarten Grandperson’s Day Program 9:30am Senior Break 9:35am BVBB AHSAA Area Tournament 7:00pm

• Click “Edit Profile,” to be able to control which information other people can view. To hide information such as your phone number, click the option on the right-hand side of the screen.

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ACT 8:00am 2nd Annual Alumni Baseball Game 2:00pm

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Kindergarten Dauphin Island Sea Lab 8:00am BVBB AHSAA Area Tournament 7:00pm

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Church MS Full Dress 8:35am Church US Full Dress 9:47am

• In order to change your password, click the “Edit User ID/Password” on the left-hand side. This will allow you to change your password and create a reminder phrase to self-manage your account.

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MSCC & Band MARC Mardi Gras Parade 9:00am VGBB AHSAA Sub-State 1st Round 6:00pm

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VB Soccer Southern Shootout Big Brother/Sister Mardi Gras Party 9:00am BVBB AHSAA Sub-State 1st round 7:00pm

20-24 Mardi Gras Break 20

AHSAA Regional Tournament 8:00am BVBB AHSAA Regional Tournament 7:00pm

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BV Golf Blue/Gray Tournament AHSAA State Tournament 8:00am

This month we will focus on how to update your profile and how to control what information you see on the website.

Set Up Your Profile

Managing the Master Calendar There are several ways how to control what information you see on the Master Calendar. The Master Calendar groups all the calendars located throughout the entire website into one central calendar. However, you can control how to view the calendar as well as how much content you would like to see. First, click “Show Event Filter” located just above the calendar on the rightContinue on page 2

ANNOUNCEMENTS Continued from page 1 hand side. By unchecking event categories or entire sub-calendars, you can hide events you do not want to see. Next, scroll to the bottom of the filter to save your filter settings. Click “Hide Event Filter” to close this area and view only the master calendar. You must be logged in to your account to have your settings save.

You can also customize how you view the calendar by changing to List View rather than Grid View. The List View option is located in the center of the page just above the calendar. When you click “List View,” you are taken to a list of today’s events. By clicking on the down arrow, you can select alternate date ranges to view. Once the range has been changed, select “Go” to update the calendar.

For those with a Smart Phone or who use Microsoft Outlook, there is another feature of the Master Calendar. On the upper right-hand side of the Master Calendar there is an “Export as ICalendar” option. This will export the calendar into a format for Smart Phones or Microsoft Outlook. Please note, once exported the calendars are static and will not reflect calendar changes until re-exported to your device of choice.

In order to print the calendar, click “Print View” which is located next to “List View.” Print View will open up in a new window with a printable version of the Master Calendar. Right-click and select Print in the menu that pops up in order to print the calendar.

St. Paul’s is Now on Facebook and Twitter!

St. Paul’s recently opened an official Facebook page and Twitter account, so be sure to like and follow us!

The Facebook page is listed as St. Paul’s Episcopal School and will be updated with news related to St. Paul’s. There will also be links to other official St. Paul’s related pages such as the alumni page. The Twitter account is @StPaulsMobile and will similarly keep you updated.

Save the Date!

St. Paul’s Players proudly present

Meredith Willson’s

“The Music Man!” March 29, 30, 31 at 7:00 p.m.

March 31 at 2:00 p.m.

Tickets are $10 and go on sale February 27!

Magazine Sale Purchase or renew a magazine subscription through QSP. Deadline for orders - February 8.

QSP will reward St. Paul’s with 40% of the subscription cost.

On January 27 the Lower School celebrated 100 Days at School.

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Upper and Middle School students should return their orders to Mrs. Greer in the front office. Lower School (PK – 4) students should return their orders to their teachers.

ACADEMIC AWARDS

7th Grade Awards 8th Grade Awards English: James Courtney and Laura Adams.

Algebra: Kelly Jeon and Viktoria Boening.

History: Ryan Johnson and Ned Kemmerly.

Civics: Seline Morrissette and Elizabeth Morrissette.

Math: Sunya Reddy and Jack Citrin.

English: Key Lamberth and Seline Morrissette.

Science: Madeline Wing and Andrew Wing.

Latin: Emily Peeler and Miller Mosley.

Writing Workshop: Lauren Ritchie and Hartley

Science: Elizabeth Morrissette and Katherine Shulte.

Robinson.

Academic Excellence: James Courtney.

Citizenship: Brooke Baker and Hayley Baker.

Leadership: Peyton Spires.

Responsibility: Gracie Whiston.

Spirit: Mallory Messer.

Trans-Algebra: Sarah Uhn and Noelle Dean.

Academic Excellence: Viktoria Boening.

Citizenship: Ann Mason Hunter.

Leadership: Perry Myers.

Responsibility: Madeliene Thames.

Spirit: Dan Kavula.

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AROUND CAMPUS

Finding Kind Founders Present at St. Paul’s

Dr. Howard Addresses St. Paul’s Upper School On January 11, Hampden-Sydney College president Dr. Chris Howard spoke to St. Paul’s Upper School students about leadership, motivation, and character. Dr. Howard was an exciting speaker and was an inspiration to the students. He addressed 5 Be’s that he feels are important for a person’s character: Be yourself, Be humble, Be accountable, Be courageous, and Be the change you want to see in the world.

He is a Rhodes Scholar who earned his MBA with distinction from the Harvard Business School and his Ph.D. from Oxford University. At the request of President Obama, he serves on the National Security Education Board and the Council on Foreign Relations.

On January 12, St. Paul’s provided a warm welcome to Lauren Parsekian and Molly Thompson, the creators of the Finding Kind film and organization.

Last semester St. Paul’s showed the film to its Upper and Middle School girls, so the students were excited to finally meet Lauren and Molly.

The girls learned about kindness and friendship from the presentation. Lauren and Molly discussed the hardships faced by young women and how experiences during school can still affect you as an adult. Students filled out “Kind Cards” and “Kind Apologies” and gave them to others as a way to reflect on past behavior and plan for a “kinder” future!

Students Accepted to Juried Art Competition The biennial visual arts competition, hosted by Birmingham-Southern College, is open to all high school students in 10 Southeastern states. This year St. Paul’s had 6 pieces of visual art accepted for this prestigious competition. Rachel Williamson, Hannah Finkbohner, Katie Volkman and Mary Ball all had winning entries.

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AROUND CAMPUS

Miss Cotton’s Science Classes

Points of Light: Character Counts This week the first and second graders have been introduced to “Points of Light,” a Character Counts project that they are working on. A very large, dark blue “sky” has been placed on the end of the Lower School and the caption over it reads “Every Act of Kindness is a Point of Light.”

The 1st grade classes are learning about snow and ice by exploring hands-on ice investigations.

Each 1st and 2nd grade student has two stars they can put a friend’s, teacher’s or staff’s name on. Afterward they can decorate it and add it to the “sky.” Students are encouraged to watch for acts of kindness that will inspire them to dedicate their stars to worthy people.

Community Service

10th and 12th grade students volunteered to help recycle Christmas trees with Keep Mobile Beautiful on January 14. Volunteers worked at two locations and assisted with unloading Christmas trees and removing stands and plastic from trees. Lisa Knezha and Donna Landry helped supervise this productive service day.

Miss Cotton’s Kindergartners pretend to eat fish like a penguin and be Father Emperor Penguins by keeping the egg on their feet. It is hard to be a Daddy Penguin!

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AROUND CAMPUS Saints Basketball Players of the Week

In January, several of St. Paul’s basketball players were honored by being named Players of the Week. Greg White and Jamie Chapman were recognized by the Downtown Optimist Club, and junior point guard Joycee Wharton was named the 1-5A Girls Basketball Player of the Week by the Kiwanis Club.

Coach Santoli Golf Coach of the Year Coach Sandy Santoli was selected Boys’ Golf Coach of the Year by the National Federation of High Schools (NFHS) Coaches Association for the State of Alabama.

Author Visits St. Paul’s

SPS Indoor Track Team Excels in Birmingham On January 7 at the Icebreaker Invitational in Birmingham, St. Paul’s girls finished 4th in team competition, and the boys finished 7th. The indoor meet featured over 50 schools and 1300 entrants.

Leading our girls in scoring was senior Lacey Dent who was the overall winner in the 60M high hurdles, high jump and long jump. Lacey also finished 2nd in the triple jump with all her winning marks leading efforts in all classes of competition in the state thus far this season.

Our boys effort was led by senior Dan Drew who ran excellent 1600M and 800M races finishing in 4:24.03 and 1:59.88 respectively. 23 SPS student athletes participated in this meet, and all efforts were strong and showed definite improvement as our state indoor meet approaches the first weekend in February.

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St. Paul’s Lower School welcomed children’s book author Sheila Booth-Alberstadt for a fascinating and interactive author visit. Mrs. Booth-Alberstadt delighted students with information about her series The Wonderful World of Maggie McNair, which creatively tackles sensitive subjects such as hygiene and grief. Her gift of storytelling entertained students while providing valuable insight into the creative writing and publishing processes.

As author of her own publishing company, Mrs. Booth-Alberstadt offered firsthand anecdotes about illustrations, artistic control, and inspiration while encouraging children to pursue publishing their own creative works. Students were entertained by her reading of Maggie McNair Has Spiders in Her Hair, followed by a lively question and answer session.

LIVE AUCTION Saints’ Night Out March 16, 2012

questions at ABMoore@stpaulsmobile.net. We look forward to seeing you at Running with the Saints on March 11, participating in our on-line bidding for Teacher Adventures March 12-15, and at Saints’ Night Out on March 16 for great buys in our live auction, silent auction and student art.

Sponsored by Saints’ Night Out is quickly approaching!

Reservations can be easily made online on St. Paul’s website. Come join your friends on March 16 at True Midtown Kitchen at 6:30 pm. You will not want to miss the fun and fellowship!

This year Saints’ Night Out is offering very exciting and unique new items to the live auction. Start saving your dollars because you will not want to miss these fantastic opportunities! Some of the great items include:

1. Patio and Landscape Design by Turfmaster Landscape and Summer Classics 2. Jane Tucker Photography Package 3. Fabulous Room Transformation By Marisa Interior Design Studio 4. Bonnie Fuchs Custom Art Work Package 5. New York Trip to meet Designer Rolando Santana 6. Orthodontics Package by Dr. Keith Harvey 7. Trip to Tortuga Bay Dominican Republic 8. Totally “Chic” Freshman Dorm Room Design by Designer Katie Kirby of the Roost Interiors St. Paul’s website has an updated list and detailed description of all of the items. Simply click under Giving Back and Saints’ Night Out and then click Live Auction. Please check frequently as information is updated. Also, be sure to thank all of these businesses and people for donating their services and talents.

We encourage all families to participate in Saints’ Night Out and look forward to an exciting week of activities! Please contact Anna Moore for any

Running with the Saints 5k Run Sunday, March 11, 2012 4:00 p.m.

An exciting new addition to Saints’ Night Out fun and fundraising is our 1st Running With the Saints Run on Sunday, March 11, 2012 at 4:00.

Come join your friends at 4:00pm at the SPS Football Complex for a certified 5K run or walk through the campuses of St. Paul’s and Spring Hill College. Register on line at www.active.com starting on February 1 or in person at McCoy’s or Cammie’s Old Dutch Ice Cream Shoppe. The registration fee before March 1 is $25.00 and then $30.00. The fee provides a t-shirt, awards and post-race water and fruit. Help kick off our exciting week of events with this fun new race! For more information, contact Cammie Singleton at mattandcammie@att.net. We would like to especially thank Diana Nichols for designing this year’s logo!

Teacher Adventures Online from March 12-15 Look for our new Teacher Adventures available ONLY online from March 12-15. These are priceless opportunities for your students to have fun experiences with their current or former teachers. Great times include cookies, milk and a bedtime story from the Pre-K teachers, a picnic with the kindergarten teachers, movies with Mrs. Landry, a pizza party and free babysitting from Mrs. Mosley, an Amazing Spirit Race with Mrs. Bedsole and Ms. Dyess and a chance to compete in the 2nd grade Olympics, just to name a few! For more details, check the website and start bidding on March 12!

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PARENT COUNCIL

January Houndstooth - Next Meeting Thursday, February 16th Upper & Lower School Parent Council January Meeting Notes Thursday, January 19, 2012

across the bay. Tickets are limited. They will sell tickets before Saints’ Night Out or at the auction.

Invocation.

Look at the website for all auction info. Talked about sponsors.

Brenda Ferguson is leaving to take a position with St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. Anna Moore will be working with Parent Council.

Parent Council gave Brenda a gift.

Give away picked by Sherry: Ramona Robinson, Chelsea Russell, Lisa Stewart, Karen Alford, and Amy Browning. Winners must tell 5 friends about Auction.

Michele introduced the Live Auction. Discussed items that are Buy It Now, which are on the SNO webpage. Talked about the packages on the SNO webpage. Showed video of the items for Live Auction and Buy It Now.

Lower school meeting:

Teachers adventures: Janelle talked about this new idea this year.

Teachers are donating their time for these unique experiences.

Discussed the variety of items/ time offered. Starts March 12. This is an eBay type auction. Highest bidder wins.

Talked about the student art projects. They will be available at grandparent’s day event. They can be seen on the Internet.

Kim talked about business acquisitions. This year more items geared toward men such as huntring trips are being offered.

Cammie talked about the 5k Running with the Saints on Sunday March 11 at 4 pm.

Shelly talked about Saints’ Night Out-rageous for Upper and Middle school students. The students are coming up with ways to raise money to have Marty Lester, Scott McDonald, and Victor Helmsing do crazy things like wear a student uniform or sleep on the roof of the school.

Saints’ Night Out will be at True Midtown Kitchen.

Committee Reports: • Dogwood Campus Book Fair: Melanie Rowan.

• Teacher Appreciation PreK-2 Molly Broders, “Break for Breakfast” yesterday.

• Teacher Appreciation 3rd and 4th Cindy McFadden, Lunch today.

Budgets: Please turn in all expense receipts as soon as possible so I can update the budget.

Reports: Please make notes of all December activities in your report.

If you need the template emailed to you, please let me know!

Valentine’s Day Celebrations: Tuesday, February 14. This is NOT a parent attended party. Typically a sweet treat and drink are delivered in the morning for each class. This is a Parent Council sponsored event.

Tuesdays at Two: Molly Broders.

Victor Helmsing thanked the Parent Council and said Happy New Year.

Caring Saints: Abby McCall is the contact if you know of someone who needs a note of encouragement or a congratulatory note.

Natasha spoke about parent acquisitions for parents to donate grade-level basket funds or items for SNO. On Feb. 1 we will start calling. Will send an email that allows you to donate online. The call list updates with donations.

Teacher/Aide Birthdays: Up to $50 for each classroom teacher and $25 for aides can be reimbursed.

Karen talked about the ads. “Like” Saints’ Night Out 2012 on Facebook.

Logos: Crest

May 5 will be the Sunset at the Point party at the Vickers’ house

Birthdays: February 3: Susan Curtis, 3rd February 5: Melinda Kilcreas, PreK aide February 7: Elizabeth Campbell, 4th February 2: Lynn Wharton, reading 3-4

Please submit Alumni Success stories, news, and spotlights to Carey Golden at cgolden@stpaulsmobile.net.

Engaged, Inspired, and Prepared with Character, Integrity and Respect.

It’s what we teach.

It’s what we learn.

It’s what we live.