St. Peter’s School |
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Ministry of St. Peter’s Parish |
St. Peter’s School |
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Ministry of St. Peter’s Parish |
We of St. Peter's Parish are a faith community who have
as our model our Lord Jesus Christ and the fulfillment of His mission. We
profess who we are by our shared belief and understanding of the Gospel. As
people called to conversion, we come together to celebrate and bear witness
to God's redemptive activity in our lives. We live out this mission of Christ
through prayer and worship and through our baptismal call, which challenges
us to minister to and with others.
ST. PETER’S PARISH VISION STATEMENT
St. Peter’s will
be a welcoming parish, a catalyst for spiritual formation, the living word
for the community, and an advocate for those in need.
In fulfillment of St. Peter’s
Parish
Burning in each child is the light
of Christ. Our commitment is to keep that light burning brightly through
our staff's professionalism and dedication. Our parents, students, faculty
and staff pride themselves on making St. Peter's a home for excellence and
achievement fostered by the appreciation of God's presence in each individual.
At the heart of our mission is our desire to bring all children to a deeper
knowledge and love of God. All St. Peter's students are led by their
parents and teachers through an exploration of the Catholic faith. This
endeavor is designed to reveal God's desire that we love unconditionally,
appreciate each individual's uniqueness, accept the responsibilities of Catholic
Christian, and develop an awareness and reverence for God's people and the
Earth we share.
We recognize that parents are the primary
educators for their children, and we work to complement the values taught
at home. At the heart of our mission is our desire to bring all children
to a deeper knowledge and love of God. Participation in the religious
program of the school is required for everyone. All children, Catholic
and those of other faiths, attend religion class, liturgies, and any programs
involving their grade levels. All-school Masses and prayer services
are scheduled throughout the year; times for these special services are listed
in the school calendar. Parents and friends are invited to attend at
any time. Teachers will share with parents the responsibility of preparing
Catholic second graders for the reception of the sacraments. Parents
are required to attend a meeting that focuses on the readiness of their children
for reception of First Communion and First Reconciliation.
The Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph
Parent-Teacher Covenant
Because our school strives to be
a faith community, parent cooperation and good parent-teacher relations are
essential. As members of faith community, our first instance is to assume
that all of us—teachers, administrators, parents, guardians and other caregivers
– have the child’s best interest at heart.
While our school is excellent in
many ways, no one within our community is perfect and problems and misunderstandings
will occur. When a problem or disagreement
arises, we will make every effort to contact you to clarify the situation.
Parents, guardians, and family members who experience problems, or
who are confused with some matter regarding your child’s educational experience,
are asked to show similar respect by a) striving first to learn the reasons
behind a policy; b) inquiring about the teacher’s or school’s understanding
or decision before judging or forming an opinion.
Those who are not satisfied with what they have learned are asked to
approach the administration to investigate the matter. In this way, positive
resolutions can be reached.
Parents and guardians are asked
to follow these guidelines for expressing concerns over a school matter:
With this in mind, parents and guardians
are expected to show the same concern and respect for the staff of our school,
as well as the other children and families of our community. The following behaviors, therefore, are unacceptable
within our community:
1.
We will not tolerate assaults or harassment of a staff member, student, parent,
guardian or family member.
2.
We will not tolerate intimidating or verbally abusing any member of the community,
in person or in writing.
Commission of any of the above acts
on the part of a staff member will lead to appropriate disciplinary action.
Likewise, misconduct on the part of a parent, guardian, or family member may
lead to a warning or one of the following actions:
1.
Limiting or refusing permission to enter or use school grounds or facilities;
2.
Asking that someone other than the person exhibiting poor behavior represent
the child’s interests on school matters;
3.
Refusing to allow the child to re-register, and in extreme cases, initiating
procedures to ask the family to withdraw the child from the school.
We rely on the good faith and sincere
efforts of everyone in the school community to keep the spirit of this covenant
so that we may become the genuine faith community we strive to be.
Office Hours
School Hours
Full Day
Half Day 8:00A.M.-
School Doors Open
Before School Care
After School Care
ECLC Hours
After School Care
School Lunch Hours:
Important Numbers
School
Phone 8
School
Fax 8
Parish
Office 8
Web Address: www.stpetersparishkcmo.org
Integrity: To act
according to what is right and wrong
Initiative: To do
something because it needs to be done
Flexibility: The
ability to alter plans when necessary
Perseverance: To
keep trying
Organization: To
work in an orderly way
Sense of Humor:
To laugh and be playful without hurting others
Effort: To do
your best
Common Sense: To
think it through
Problem-solving:
To see solutions
Responsibility:
To do what is expected
Patience: To wait
calmly
Curiosity: To
investigate and seek understanding
Cooperation: To
work together toward a common goal or for a common purpose
Caring: To show
or feel concern
Courage: To act
according to one’s beliefs
Pride:
Satisfaction from doing your personal best
Friendship: To
make and keep a friend through mutual trust and caring
Active Membership
Active
members of St. Peter’s Parish have access to all of the ministries provided by
the parish, including St. Peter’s School, grades K-8. To be considered an active member of St.
Peter’s Parish, the following conditions must be met:
1.
Registration in the parish for at least one year.
2.
Regular participation in Sunday
3.
Active involvement in some form of parish ministry or
service area.
4.
A current pledge card for financial support of the
parish is on file, and contributions must be current.
5.
The pledge amount must be at least 6% of combined
personal income.
6.
A pledge card in support of the Legacy Capital Campaign
must be on file.
Financial Benchmarks
In 2005 St. Peter’s established
benchmarks for school families to ensure stable financial support of the many
parish ministries. Parents of children
attending St. Peter’s School MUST pledge according to the following formula. The benchmarks for the 2007-08 school year
are as follows:
2
Children $7,500
3
or more Children $
Please
note these are only minimum pledges that allow St. Peter’s to keep our many
programs at their current level of support.
If you have been extra blessed, your larger contributions will only
enable the parish to serve more of God’s people.
Should
your 6% pledge be less than these benchmarks, verification of that fact will
allow your child(ren) to attend St. Peter’s School. Contact the parish business manager and provide
the necessary income documentation for your combined
income.
Parents
who are not qualified parishioners may apply to send their children to St.
Peter’s School on a tuition-paying basis.
This would include non-Catholics, Catholic members of another parish,
and newly registered St. Peter’s parishioners.
This would specifically include parents who have not consistently tithed
prior to the time their children begin school.
These families would attend their first year of school on a
tuition-paying basis.
Tithing
and tuition parents must remain current.
Those falling behind in their tithe may be asked to become a tuition
family for the following school term.
Children of tuition families falling two months behind in payments may
be excluded from classes. Quarterly
reports, transcripts, and diplomas may be withheld until payments are current.
Neither
tithing nor tuition families will be accepted for registration (held in
February) for the following school year unless the tithe/tuition is current,
and registration fees are paid. (Pre-registration
for ECLC and Kindergarten will be in October.)
We
understand financial situations can change, and we wish to work with all
families to ensure continued school attendance.
Families are encouraged to contact the parish business manager
immediately if a situation occurs which makes it difficult to maintain tithe
contributions or tuition payments.
If
an individual grade level enrollment reaches 69 children including parish
families and tuition families who enrolled prior to the following school year,
no new tuition families will be accepted for that grade. If the number of children in each grade level
exceeds 69 with these students, accommodations will be made so that the quality
of the students’ educational experience will not be compromised.
If
the class size of 69 children is not reached, tuition families with siblings
currently in school will be admitted.
Additional tuition families will be admitted based on the order in which
their registration material and school records (transfer students) are received
in the school office (updated April 2007).
Guidelines for Enrollment of Students with
Special Needs
Students with special needs will be
subject to the guidelines of the school registration process, as well as
additional guidelines specific to Special Education services as cited in the
Administrative Policy Manual #300.3.
1.
Parents of the students will notify the school
principal when diagnosis is determined and pre-enrollment procedures are
beginning.
2.
Prior to enrollment, parents of students will be
registered and active members of a parish, as defined by the local pastor and
principal.
3.
Parents of students, tithing parishioners, and tuition
families will become active members of the F.I.R.E. parent group to assist with
fund-raising activities.
4.
If the caseload for Special Education services as
determined by the principal and special education teacher has been reached,
students will be put on a “wait list” following the schools’ regular
registration guidelines.
5.
Prior to enrollment, parents will request an interview
with the school principal. All necessary
documents regarding the special needs of the student should be presented to the
principal at that time.
6.
The principal reserves the right to determine if the
faculty and staff are able to meet the needs of the student throughout the
school year as per Diocesan policy #300.3 (updated April 2007).
As
a ministry of St. Peter’s Parish, St. Peter’s School is available to all active
parishioners. Active membership in St.
Peter’s Parish requires support of the parish ministries, regular attendance at
Mass, and financial support of the parish by pledging 6% of their total family
income. If the class size of sixty-nine
students (in three classrooms) is not reached with parish children, students
paying tuition will be accepted in the following order:
While
no distinction or preference is observed regarding sex or race, we do reserve
the right to screen applicants regarding religious orientation and
practice. St. Peter's is a Catholic
school and active Christianity as a personal experience for each child is
essential for complete integration into our faith community.
For admission to ECLC
students must be three years of age and potty trained. Families of existing
ECLC students will receive registration materials during the month of October. Those materials must be returned to the
school office by the specified deadline.
If the materials are not received by the deadline, current ECLC families
risk losing their place in ECLC. After
the deadline, registration materials will be distributed to St Peter’s school
families and others that have requested a packet. New students will be accepted in the
following order:
For admission to kindergarten,
diocesan policy is followed requiring students to be age 5 by July 3
For those students transferring into St.
Peter’s, immunization information, sacramental records, and transcripts from
former school(s) must be sent to St. Peter's School; in addition, an interview
must be scheduled with a school administrator and parish priest (if there is
intent to join parish). The
administrator will place new students in classes according to their level of
achievement. Acceptance will be
determined by the results of tests, prior academic records, teachers'
observations, and parental input. All transferring students must have a
satisfactory disciplinary record from their prior school(s). Students are placed on a probationary period
through the first year. Students are expected to comply with all the school
regulations and to conduct themselves during class time in a way that is
conducive to learning. Parents will be
expected to show an interest in the education of their child by cooperating
with the administrators and faculty in school matters. If a student is unable
to progress in a regular school curriculum and meet with the expected code of
conduct, a conference will be held with the parents to explore the educational
resources in the area that might assist us or better meet the child's
needs. At the end of every quarter, the
faculty will review the status of all new students with respect to behavior and
academics. If registration is closed for any particular class, the request for
acceptance will be kept on file; parents will be notified of an opening.
In February, children are
registered for the next school year.
Registration packets are provided to parish families that are up-to-date
with their tithe. Tuition families must
be current in their payments to receive the registration packet. The family will complete the appropriate forms
and make a payment of one-third of the registration fee. The second payment is due in April, and the
balance is due in June. Registration is
open to current school families and parishioners through the month of February,
after which time classes will be opened to those outside the parish or school.
St.
Peter’s School is accredited through the National Federation of State
Non-Public School Accrediting Association and North Central Accreditation
Association. St. Peter's School offers a full range of classes: religion, language arts (reading and
English), mathematics, science, social studies, physical education, art, music
and computer science. Our program
stresses the development of critical thinking skills and individualized
instruction.
St.
Peter's School considers homework an extension of classroom experience. Homework provides children an opportunity to
practice and develop the concepts presented in the classroom. All children in
Grades
Daily
Recommendations
Grade
Grade 2—fifteen
to thirty minutes
Grades 3 and
4—fifteen to forty-five minutes
Grades 5 and
6—forty-five to ninety minutes
Grades 7 and
8—one or two hours
Parents are expected to monitor their
children’s completion of homework. If students are having difficulty completing
their homework, parents should contact the school. Students in fourth through eighth grades, who
are expected to assume the responsibility of completing their work, may receive
reduced credit for late assignments or be required to attend after school study
halls if the problem persists. Even if a
student receives a reduced grade, it is expected that the work will be
completed. To simplify the completion of
homework assignments, first through eighth graders use assignment notebooks
purchased through school. Parents are encouraged to check the notebooks
frequently.
All teachers at St. Peter's School will make
every effort to help all students deal with new challenges, academic and
otherwise. We request parents' help in
making sure that their children complete homework tasks each night, study for
daily work and tests, and realize that extra help should be sought early in the
semester if needed. There is a federally
funded program (Title I) for assistance in reading and mathematics available
for eligible students. If your child
qualifies he or she must either participate in the Title I program or take
part in a suitable program provided at the parent’s expense outside of the
school day. We also have lists of
tutors and agencies that provide testing or academic assistance at an
additional cost to parents. Please check
with an administrator or teacher if you are interested.
St. Peter’s has a full time special
education teacher available to help meet the needs of students on IEPs
(Individualized Education Plans). If you
have a child who may need special attention, please contact the school.
Enrichment
is offered through several programs.
During the school day the PTA sponsors and staffs Junior Great Books and
Art Smart; students’ field trips and assemblies are funded through the
PTA. Other opportunities are provided
after school hours for a fee for students in kindergarten through eighth grade;
in the past, course offerings have included drama, instrumental music, chess,
math club, book club, dance, and Spanish, depending on the interests of
students and the availability of instructors.
Kindergartners
through third graders will receive report cards four times a year marking their
progress in achieving academic goals; their accomplishments will be noted with
a code identifying their level of competence with skills or concepts. If a student receives an “Incomplete,”
usually the result of an extended illness, the work must be completed within a
reasonable amount of time, usually one to two weeks. After that time, the grade will be
calculated, with the missing work registered as a zero.
Third
graders (second semester only) and fourth through eighth graders are assessed
on the following diocesan scale:
A+ = 99.5 -
A = 93.5 - 99 C = 74.5 - 82
A- = 92.5 - 93 C- = 73.5 - 74
B+ = 9
B = 84.5 - 9
B- = 83.5
- 84 D- = 67.5
- 69
U* = 66.5 and below
*
A “U” indicates failure to fulfill minimal requirements.
Progress reports are mailed to the
parents of every student that has a C- or below in grades K through 8 each
mid-quarter; dates are indicated on the school calendar. If parents feel they
need feedback more frequently, they should contact the classroom teacher.
Honor rolls are calculated for junior high students every
quarter and for fourth through eighth graders at the end of the school
year. They are based on the following
information:
1)
A=4 points, B=3 points, C=2 points D=
2)
A student will be disqualified from the quarterly honor
roll if he/she has one grade lower than “C” or two lower than “B-”
3)
Final honor roll will be based upon the final grade
issued following the completion of the fourth quarter and averaging all four
quarters
4)
Honor roll classifications are determined by the
following scale:
4.0 Class Honors
3.69-3.99 First Honors
3.38-3.68 Second Honors
2.87-3.37 Honorable Mention
Children
in kindergarten through third grade qualify only for perfect attendance awards
at the end of the school year. Older
students (Grades 4-8) may receive certificates for perfect attendance,
exemplary kindness or service, and outstanding academic accomplishments.
Please
note the following:
2. The Spirit of
3. Homeroom teachers will honor the top five (or
fewer) individuals whose service at school is exemplary.
4. Those whose grades qualify them for the honor
roll will receive certificates recognizing their scholarship. In addition, students who are not on the
honor roll but who earn an "A" or "A-" final average in a
core class will also be awarded certificates.
5. For eighth grade students, an award for academic
excellence may be awarded to those who demonstrate extraordinary achievement.
PARENT-STUDENT-TEACHER
CONFERENCES
Parent-student-teacher
conferences are scheduled twice annually for preschoolers and kindergartners
through eighth graders. The purpose of
these meetings is to allow students to explain their academic progress to their
parents and to establish conditions for each student's success in school. If at
any time parents wish to confer privately with the teacher, an appointment may
be arranged. However, teachers may not be interrupted before, during, or
immediately after school hours for a conference; these should be scheduled
outside class hours in advance.
Retention
in Grades K-3 will be recommended based on perceived maturity and actual
academic achievement. Parents will
actively participate in this decision.
Retention
in Grades 4-8 may occur should a student earn a "U" average in any
two of these core subjects: reading, mathematics, science and English. Before a student will be promoted to the next
grade, summer instruction and/or assessments will be required for a
"U" average in any subject or per the teacher’s recommendation.
Please note the following: The summer
course needs to be approved by the teacher in advance, and a grade percentage
is required upon completion of the course.
If a student in grades 5-8 earns a
“U” average in any two of the core subjects for two consecutive semesters, the
student may be asked to transfer to another school.
Retention may also occur should a
student's absences exceed 20%.
SCHOOL HOURS
(School opens at
Unless
they are meeting with a teacher, children arriving at school before the
The
school day ends at
Good attendance is vital to a student’s
education, training and formation of attitudes of freedom, responsibility and
reliability. Excessive absences and
tardies hamper this education process.
Consistent or habitual tardies/absences is a serious offense. In the case of habitual tardies/absences, a
conference with the parent or guardian will be necessary. Absences and/or tardies that exceed 20% of
the scheduled days will be reviewed by the principal and may result in possible
retention or dismissal of the student. Students
arriving after
Children
with fevers, severe colds, persistent coughs, or flu symptoms should stay home
from school. In such cases, the parent
is asked to call the office (523-4899, extension 2
If
a child becomes ill during the school day, his/her parents (or those authorized
by parents to act in an emergency) will be contacted and asked to take the
child home. A student may not leave the
premises unless two conditions have been met: the child has reported to the
school office and the parents have given permission for the student to leave.
Students
are responsible for gathering information and completing all assignments missed
during an absence. This should be done before or after school. Parents who request homework for their
children must notify the office by
Families
are discouraged from taking extended vacations during the school term.
When picking up a child early, the
parent/guardian should sign the student out on the clipboard in the
office. Students should talk with their
teachers at the beginning of the day to get the homework for the classes they
will miss. Whenever possible, routine medical and dental appointments should be
scheduled on non-school days or after school.
If
school closings are imminent, the school reach system will be utilized to
inform school families. In addition,
please listen to your television or radio for official announcements of closings
for the Southwest Pod Schools—Diocese of
KCMO. We will also have late starts
(usually
On
afternoons when weather conditions prohibit cars traveling safely through the
playground, the Holmes (rectory) entrance will be blocked with orange
cones. On those days, students may be picked
up along
If school is closed for inclement
weather, extracurricular activities scheduled at St. Peter’s will be cancelled.