Living, Loving, and Learning Our Faith Through Jesus

Living as members of our Catholic Faith Community;

Loving God and all of His creation; and

Learning for our future on Earth and in Heaven.

Important Upcoming Dates

Monday, August 25 - 3:30 p.m.-5:30 p.m. Back To School Night (No Fall pictures this night)
Wednesday, August 27 - First day of School
Monday, September 1- No school Labor Day
Thursday, September 4- First Mass of the Year; Grades (1-8)
Thursday, September 11-Fall Pictures
Friday, September 19 - Fall Count day
Friday, October 3 -No School Teacher In-service
Friday, October 24-No School Teacher In-service

GREETINGS!

July 2025

Dear St. Rita Families,

I hope this message finds you enjoying a joyful and restful summer with your children. These warm months offer a special opportunity to slow down, reconnect, and make lasting memories as a family. Whether it’s a trip to the park, a shared book, or simply time spent together at home, these moments are truly precious.

As we look ahead, we are excited to welcome everyone back for the 2025–2026 school year! Our first day of school is Wednesday, August 27th, and we can’t wait to see our students’ smiling faces once again.

In the meantime, I want to encourage all families to support summer learning and reading. Teachers have already sent—or will soon be sending—lists of learning tasks for incoming students. Research shows that students who do not read over the summer often return in the fall at a significant disadvantage. Please help your child stay sharp by setting aside time for reading and completing their summer assignments.

We’ve also updated school supply lists for each grade level, which are now available on our website. Having the right materials helps students start the year confident and prepared.

We’re thrilled to welcome two new members to our St. Rita family:

Mr. Pete Nees, who will be joining us as our new Physical Education teacher.
Ms. Meghan Gorman, who will be teaching 2nd grade.

Please join us in giving them a warm St. Rita welcome!

Our Student/Parent/Staff Handbook has been updated for the new school year. A few important reminders and changes include:

Afternoon Dismissal: All classes (3K–8) will now dismiss at the same time. For safety, we ask families to remain in their cars until all classes have exited the building. Please do not drive away while students are still leaving the building.
Uniform Updates: While our school colors remain the same, we have clarified expectations around skirt and jumper lengths. Fake fingernails are still not allowed. Please review these updates with your child.
Footwear Reminder: Athletic shoes are always required so students can safely participate in gym and recess.

We encourage all families to review the Uniform Dress Code section with their children to ensure a smooth start to the year.

You can find the link to the revised Handbook at the bottom of this newsletter. It contains all of the above information and much more to help guide a successful school year.

Thank you for your continued partnership and support. Enjoy the rest of your summer, and we look forward to seeing you in August!

Warmly,
Beth Woodward

Principal, St. Rita School

St. Rita School Staff

2025 Emergency Card Due August 2nd

Hello!

The Emergency card is ready for you to complete through the PowerSchool Parent Portal (works best with Google Chrome and Firefox) or the PowerSchool App (District Code: MTPB). No other submission is available. In order to do this, you must have your own parent account in PowerSchool. You also have to fill it out for each student.

Here's how you will complete the Emergency Card:

Go to: https://saintcats.powerschool.com/public/home.html to login in. If you forgot your Username or Password, click on the Forgot Username or Password?. If you need help creating an account, please email me and include the name of your student.

When you are logged in, click on the FORMS icon on the left or MORE on the bottom left, then forms in the App.

All your available forms will display. Click on 1. EC – Emergency Card.

There will be nine forms that you need to complete (most of the pages will be filled in for you). If you prefer to view the form in Spanish, click on the dropdown box in the upper right corner to change from English to Spanish. You will automatically move on the next form when you click submit:
- EMERGENCY CARD – This page verifies the student demographic/contact information. If something needs to be updated, click “No” and make the changes.

- PARENT/GUARDIAN INFORMATION – The Parent/Guardian information is listed here. All guardian information should be here, regardless if they live with the student or not. Families can add step-parent information (up to four contacts). Family members listed here will receive communications from the school.

- EMERGENCY CONTACT INFORMATION – This should list contacts in case the Parent/Guardian is unavailable. Up to four contacts can be listed. One contact per name line – do not use, for example, Jane and John Doe. The contacts here will not receive communications from the school.

- HEALTH AUTHORIZATIONS – This should list the Medical Contacts and Health Authorizations for the student. There are links on this page to various forms that parents/guardians need to complete if Prescription and Non-Prescription medicine needs to be given during school hours. There are also a couple of consents that should be agreed to.

- FAMILY RELIGION AFFILIATION – This page for religious affiliation and parish. It will list the current information. There are also a couple of legacy questions.

- ALTERNATE HOUSEHOLD INCOME – Required State form.

- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS – This page gives parental Acknowledgements of the Family Handbook, Permission Slips, Photography Consent and possible School Directory. They are required.

- TECHNOLOGY ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY – Read the policy and provide confirmation that you understand.

- INTERNET ACCESS AT HOME SURVEY – Questions regarding internet access at home.

Once the last form is submitted, you will receive a message confirming your submission. You can return to any tab at any time to make changes.

2025-2026 Calendar

MASTER CALENDAR SIENA 25-26.pdf

2025-2026

School Supply List

2025-2026 School Supply List.docx.pdf

St Rita School FAQ

ST. RITA FAQ

Medication forms

Medication forms should be submitted yearly.

Before and After Care Registration

If you need to sign up for our Before and After Care Program sign up here.

A $50 per family fee will collected prior to attending BASC. If not collected, the fee will be billed with the first use of services. This fee is for all families that use BASC. Checks can be made payable to the school or Siena Catholic Schools.

Hourly Rate

$3.75/hr per child (3K-8th)

Fees will be charged in 15-minute increments.

Billing is done through SMART Tuition.

If a family has an existing SMART account for paying tuition, BASC charges will be added to their monthly bill. Choice students will have a SMART account created for them and BASC charges will be billed monthly and due on the 28th of the following month. SMART Tuition will charge a $40 late fee for payments not received by the 28th. Cash or checks can be paid in the school office. Families that have unpaid charges may not be eligible to continue using the program.

2025-2026 Free or Reduced Meal Application

Free or reduced meal Application can be found through Meal Magic.

You can also create an account to add money to your child's account.

https://sienacatholic.familyportal.cloud/

Safe Guarding Events

Thinking about Volunteering for field trips this year?

You must be Safe Guarded. Click on the link to take a class.

https://www.archmil.org/offices/safeguarding/Safeguarding-Events.htm?DateRange=month&Date=7/1/2025&Classifications=!

Here are the upcoming l for Safe Environment. Important communication for families, especially our new families. All volunteers in the classroom or for field trips must be safeguarded. Below you will find upcoming safeguarding classes for August and September.

DIRECTIONS- https://www.archmil.org/ArchMil/Resources/SAFE/CathMutual/Safe_Environment_Program_instructions.pdf

Saturday, August 9

4:00 PM - 7:00 PM