November 12^th, 2008

Dear Parents:

The Guidance Department would like to get you up-to-date on some topics we have discussed with your daughters this semester, and we want you to know about our upcoming events.

Our school wide testing date was October 15, 2008. Please refer to your daughter’s grade-level guidance handbook to see which test was administered to your daughter. In addition, the PLAN was administered to the sophomores on October 21, 2008. The purpose of our comprehensive testing program is to help students identify their strengths and weaknesses early and improve accordingly. We will return test results to your daughter later this semester during a Guidance Friday meeting. The Guidance Department encourages you to ask questions and go over the results with your daughter.

As part of the Safe Environment Program mandated by the Archdiocese of New Orleans, the counselors and the religion teachers had training programs for each grade level focusing on all types of harassment and abuse, including information on improper, unhealthy relationships. This program helps teach our young women how to identify trustworthy adults and peers.

The Guidance Department has worked with the 8^th and 9^th graders on exam preparation this month. During Guidance Friday group meetings, counselors helped our students devise a study plan, and counselors gave them the opportunity to ask questions about exam week. Also, students’ identified their learning type. Is your daughter an auditory, visual, or kinesthetic learner? For many 8^th and 9^th graders, December exams will be their first comprehensive exams. The key to success is early preparation! It is a good idea to start getting organized to study during Thanksgiving holidays.

Sophomore Interviews will begin in January, 2009. The Guidance Department requires all sophomores and parents to come for a thirty-minute interview with your daughter’s counselor to discuss her progress during the 8th and 9th grade and to plan for her future over the next two years. We request that sophomores and sophomore parents check Edline frequently for more information regarding interviews.

At this time of year, it is important for juniors to continue to stay focused on their college-search process. Early next fall our juniors will be applying to college! Please talk to your daughter about taking advantage of her vacation time this year to visit college campuses she may be interested in. Please refer to the college search timeline in your daughter’s junior guidance handbook to assure that she is working toward selecting the perfect college for her. Also, junior grades are very important in the college admission process. We encourage our students to start preparing for exams. They are right around the corner!

Seniors should be aware of important scholarship and college deadlines that are fast approaching. November 15^th is a deadline for many colleges. In addition, all seniors should complete a transcript release form and turn it in to her counselor. Please remember that teachers and counselors need two weeks notice to complete letters of recommendation.

This month we will be finishing a very successful semester of Parent to Parent meetings. We offered three different opportunities for parents to attend and the response was the best ever. We already have several parents who are willing to lead more sessions in the spring semester. When these dates become available we will let you know. Here are some of the comments made by some of our parents who attended:

“I was surprised how early kids start using drugs and having sex. I think I will now pay more attention to my child’s behavior.”

“I no longer tolerate being treated as a ‘doormat’ by my child when she is cranky and I respond to her lovingly and empathetically.

As we approach the holiday season, may we all be encouraged to spend some time giving thanks for the many blessings we have received from God. An attitude of gratitude, as the saying goes, can produce positive emotions in one’s own life, enhance the relationships that are dear to us, and generate the kind of creative energy that brings about change.

·   What would it be like if instead of complaining or focusing our attention on the negative aspects of life, we offered up a silent prayer of thanks for the growth that will take place in our souls because we persisted through our trials?

·   Can we imagine the healing that could take place in our relationships if instead of uttering a harsh or unkind word, we thanked others for the positive contributions they make in our lives, even if those are hard to find?

·   How much more wisely would our time be spent listing several things, each day, that we are truly thankful for instead of keeping mental logs of all the ways others have hurt us, life has disappointed us, or suffering has broken us?

Let us be thankful then that God has blessed us beyond what we truly deserve - that He has given us the gift of faith to sustain us, the gift of living in a free country, and the gift of an outstanding school that educates the minds and souls of its students. We thank you especially for giving us the gift of your daughters who daily remind us that there is goodness and beauty in this world. May your holidays be filled with the joy and peace of Christ that surpasses all understanding.