ST. COLUMBA SHEPHERD
GUIDANCE FOR THE WEEK AHEAD
EACH WEEK THE ST. COLUMBA SHEPHERD
provides all the information you need to know and links to things that you might need to cross off your list. Stay organized by reading it every week and making sure that you add events and deadlines to your calendar!
LET'S DO IT!
DATES TO REMEMBER
1/15 - School Mass - 3rd Grade Leading Liturgy - 8:15
1/16 - Early Dismissal Pre-8 - 11:30 - Teacher Workday
1/17 - No School Pre-8 - End of 2nd Qtr - Professional Development
1/20 - No School - Martin Luther King Jr Day
1/21 - First Day of Second Semester
1/22 - School Mass - Staff Leading Liturgy - 8:15
1/24 - Middle School Dance - 6:30
1/25 - Catholic Schools Week Kickoff Mass, Family Game Night, & Chili Starting with Mass at 5:00 1/25-1/31 - Catholic Schools Week See the schedule and dress up days below 1/27 - Catholic Schools Week MassMass on Monday this week - 2nd Grade Leading Liturgy - 8:15
1/29 - Annual Day of Giving
2/5 - School Mass - 8th Grade Leading Liturgy - 8:15
2/6 - Prayer & Praise Assembly / 2nd Quarter Excellence - 8:15
2/12 - School Mass - Kindergarten Leading Liturgy - 8:15
2/14 - Valentines Parties - 2:30
2/17 - No School - Presidents Day
2/19 - School Mass - 7th Grade Leading Liturgy - 8:15
2/20 - Middle School History Day 2/26- School Mass - 1st Grade Leading Liturgy - 8:15
3/3-3/7 - ITBS Testing
Catholic Schools Week
January 25-31
The last week in January is National Catholic Schools Week (CSW) recognizing Catholic Schools as a great gift to the Church and nation. We will be celebrating St. Columba School all week with several activities and dress up days. Students will come to school dressed in outfits for that days theme and following our free dress guidelines HERE. This year we are embracing the Snowdown theme of board games. Students have voted on their favorite school lunches which will be served throughout the week. Please keep an eye out in Tuesday folders for CSW service hour opportunities.
Monday, January 27
School Mass with Fr. Derek Scott from the Diocese of Pueblo - 8:15
Dress up Day: Mr. Chick’s wear your best school uniform day
Activity: Classroom activity related to the vocation of the clergy
Tuesday, January 28
Dress up Day: Pajama Day
Activities: Classroom door decorating contest
Buddy classes get together for an activity and a fun board game photo booth.
Wednesday, January 29 - Annual Day of Giving
Dress up Day: Fress Dress for Day of Giving
Activities: Students and Staff Dodgeball Tournament for 4th-8th grade, K-3 afternoon of games. Ice cream social for all! Time TBA
Thursday, January 30
Dress up Day: Lite Bright Day - Dress in Bright Colors
Activity: Talent Show - Time TBA
Friday, January 31
Dress up Day: Scrabble Day - Wear a plain shirt with appropriate bottoms. “Scrabble tile” stickers will be provided by the school.
Activity: Bible Bee Spelling Bee with terms used in the Bible and the Catholic Church - 8:15
Join us for Catholic Schools Week
Kickoff Mass and Family Game Night
Saturday, January 25
Mass will begin at 5:00
Please plan to first attend Mass to celebrate our amazing school as a St. Columba Family.
Families are invited to join in for a night of fellowship and fun in the school gym after Mass as we will be hosting a chili dinner and family game night. Each family should bring a game that takes less than one hour to play.
While the chili dinner and night of fun is FREE to thank you for being a part of the St. Columba community, we would love for you to take a minute to RSVP HERE to help us plan.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Congratulations to our Lego League Team!
The St. Columba Lego League Team (aka Builders in Black) competed this past November and achieved 1st Place for their Innovation Project! As part of this project, the team created a prototype robot called the Sea Saver. They demonstrated to judges how this robot could help keep trash out of our oceans by implementing a fun and educational way to recycle. (A special thank you to Phoenix Recycling for spending over 30 minutes answering questions and teaching our team about recycling.)
We couldn't be prouder of the team!
Erin Cuthbertson and Mindy Potter
Parent Volunteers and Team Leaders
From Left to Right:
Ian Cuthbertson, Beth Cuthbertson, Daniel Madu, Elly Krier, Adam Cuthbertson, Fernanda Gregg, Clairey Potter and Jack Kleva (Not pictured Zaria Smith) The Sea Saver!
Join our After School STEAM and Spring LEGO League Enrichment Offering for students grades K-4 in collaboration with The Powerhouse!
Classes begin Wednesday, January 15th, 3:05 - 4:15pm
The Winter/Spring curriculum will be exploring Dinosaurs for the first unit where students will work together to solve openended STEAM challenges. After dinosaurs, students will transition to STEM based LEGO League.
First Lego League is so much more than simply playing with Legos! FIRST LEGO League guides youth through STEM learning and exploration at an early age. From Discover, to Explore, and then to Challenge, students will understand the basics of STEM and apply their skills in an exciting competition while building habits of learning, confidence, and teamwork skills along the way.
Registration Information:
Grades K-4
Wednesdays from 3:05 - 4:15pm, January 15 -February 5
Dinosaur STEAM - $50
Wednesdays from 3:05-4:15pm, February 12-May 7
Lego League Explore - $150 Payments made in Blackbaud.
Scholarships are available if payment is a hardship. Please inquire by emailing office@stcolumbaschooldurango.org.
Please sign up HERE!
Spots are available on a first come first serve basis.
Mark Your Calendars!
In just a few weeks, St. Columba will be hosting our Day of Giving on Wednesday, January 29, 2025!
This 24-hour online Day of Giving event is our biggest fundraiser of the year, bringing together parents, grandparents, alumni, students, faculty, staff, parishioners, and friends to make a powerful impact on the 280 extraordinary students learning and growing at St Columba every day.
Our goal is to raise $250,000!
During our 2024 Day of Giving, over 400 donors came together and contributed more than $228,000. We hope to build on that success this year, with a goal of $250,000. Funds raised during the Day of Giving will be put to immediate use supporting ongoing and newer initiatives including: enhancing academic and enrichment offerings, teacher compensation and professional development to attract and retain the best teachers, improvements to facilities (including classroom equipment, safety, technology, and infrastructure support), and to provide tuition assistance to support a student body that is as diverse as our local community.
We’ve reached remarkable milestones in our ongoing capital campaign to improve our church and school campus, and are currently at around 80% our goal for that endeavor! While the capital campaign is completely separate from the Day of Giving (which supports our students and teachers in their immediate needs), the generosity displayed is a true testament to you, our wonderful, dedicated community members, and your unwavering commitment to our mission.
We ask for your continued support to help us meet operational priorities and respond to future needs.
To help us reach our goal and support our mission, it is our hope and prayer that all members of our community will come together to support St. Columba School and Catholic education.
Stay Tuned for more details and ways to get involved as the big day approaches!
Thank you for supporting St. Columba School!
End of 2nd Quarter
It’s hard to believe that the end of the 2nd quarter is less than a week away. The official last day of the quarter is Friday, January 17th. Remember that Preschool-8th grade will have early dismissal on 1/16 @ 11:30 for a teacher workday and will not have school on 1/17 for end of the quarter professional development.
Please remember that you can always check your student’s grades and assignments in Blackbaud. Please reach out to the office if you need help with login information.
History Day Judges Needed
While there are few people who would list their career as historians, anyone who has written a research paper can judge a History Day project. There are well defined criteria that we can share that make it pretty straight forward. Would you consider helping out with this event? It will be on Thursday, February 20, from 8:00 until about noon.
If you are able to assist, please let the office know.
Thank you to all who joined us for our middle school theater performances this weekend!