ParentNewsletter The La Salle
FOR PARENTS AND FRIENDS OF LA SALLE HIGH SCHOOL • PASADENA • CALIFORNIA • FEBRUARY 2016
Principal Ideas Learn•Serve•Lead
The month of January has come and gone already. I have an inkling that this upcoming month of February will disappear just as fast. I wish to thank the parents who were able to be present at Backto-School Night on January 12 as teachers outlined their academic expectations and requirements. I also want to thank the parents of our seniors for meeting with Mrs. Jenné Hakanen (Graduation Coordinator) who was able to cover all of the important information regarding the approaching graduation activities for the Class of 2016. Later this semester, I will be sending a follow-up letter to all parents of seniors that will include updates and forms regarding the various graduation events that were spoken about at the senior parent meeting. I am also grateful that Ms. Kate Williams (Senior Class Moderator) was present to speak about the prom and grad night trip.
Honors Assembly On January 26, we held our Honors Assembly in which we acknowledged outstanding academic success for the past semester. This is a wonderful event with students where we celebrate their outstanding achievement in academic work! With 421 students meriting Honor Roll status, it is a tribute to them for the importance they place on taking care of their academic responsibilities. Well done!
The Challenge of Stress In my closing remarks to the student body at the Honors Assembly, I briefly spoke about the everyday challenge of stress. Stress is part of our life and we need to manage it. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burdens become increasingly heavy, we won’t be able to carry on. The longer I hold my burdens, the heavier they become. One of the best ways to manage stress is by learning to let go and to lay our burdens down. We have to learn to put them down for a while and rest with them. When we are refreshed, we can carry on with the burdens holding stress longer and better each time. I concluded by saying that Smokey Bear says, “Only you can prevent forest fires!” Brother Christopher says, “Only you can manage your stress!” Continued on page 2
More About The De La Salle Christian Brothers John Baptist de La Salle was one of the great practical pioneers of education for ordinary people. During the latter part of the 1600s, he completely changed the education system by teaching the poor and working-class in their own language, (rather than Latin), grouped students according to ability and achievement, integrated religious instruction with secular subjects and involved parents in the education of their children.
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