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Hopefully you have managed to stay warm during the last cold spell and are enjoying the reprieve, however long it lasts.
We’ve seen an exciting month that included Exam Week, the Poetry Slam, and ongoing play rehearsals. The Board of Directors has also kept busy with short and long term planning for the Schola. More details to come as we start looking forward towards the next school year. Don’t forget to order your Christmas Baking Trays before they sell out. Our thanks to all the parents and volunteers who do an amazing amount of work behind the scenes!
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The SJCS 2024 AGM was held earlier this month. Thank you to all the parents that ventured out in the inclement weather to attend. Changes in our tutor staff, the student body expansion, financials, curriculum updates, and the strategic vision for the schola were all discussed. There was a Question & Answer at the end of the presentation to allow clarification and answer parent’s specific questions or concerns.
The results of the feedback survey to the parents was presented, as part of the Annual Continuous improvement process. Survey results were very positive and indicate a strong, united and engaged community. Admin staff, tutors, parents, students and volunteers have all had a hand in the success of the schola and all their efforts are greatly appreciated. The survey revealed a lot of diverse opinions, but some common themes and suggestions for improvement. Over the summer these suggestions have been captured as action items and of the 14 items identified, 11 are already complete. We are committed to maintaining and improving on the experience for the students and parents going forward. Meeting notes and survey results will be posted on the Family Page. As always we welcome feedback, questions, and comments [email protected] Thank you to all who gave us feedback through our survey before the summer break. We appreciate all of the responses and spent time over the summer reviewing the suggestions to see where we can make improvements. We have incorporated some suggestions: including modifications to the homework pages, evaluating homework load, staggering assignment deadlines and introducing volleyball to the senior students, and we will continue to consider your suggestions as we move forward. Thank you again to all of you who took the time to give us your feedback and ideas. Please come to the AGM on Monday October 21 at 7:00 at the Schola to hear more about how we are using your feedback to continuously improve the experience of being part of SJCS.
Our program relies on our dedicated and wonderful staff, who also volunteer in many ways above and beyond their job descriptions. Also, many parents volunteer in very significant ways, including the Family Welcome picnic, receptions after concerts, beautifully coordinated Nine Lessons and Tenebrae, our library, the play, enrichment and other fun events like pi day, and the medieval fair. The only way we can offer as rich of a program as we do is because of the significant contribution of volunteers. One thing that was identified was that it can be difficult for our parents to see how they can find time to help at SJCS and our very dedicated volunteers often feel maxed out as they are left to carry a disproportionate amount of the volunteer workload. In an effort to improve this situation, we have described the many volunteer roles at SJCS and their requirements, from large time commitments to very small time commitments. So far, the response has not been encouraging. Please find a way in which you can help that fits with your gifts and availability. Please reach out to the Schola administration, the Parents Society or one of the Board members to let us know how you would like to volunteer this year. We would be happy to discuss more or answer any questions. See you at the AGM! Monday October 21 2024 at 7:00pm at the Schola! As always, we welcome feedback, questions, and comments [email protected]
Greg is also the father of 6 children. The Abernethys are a longtime homeschool family here in Calgary, having homeschooled their oldest three children from primary through graduation. Congratulations go out to their eldest son, Sebastian, who was married this month. Greg’s daughter is a student at SJCS and Greg’s youngest sons frequently serve the schola’s First Friday Masses. Originally from Saskatoon, Greg has a degree in Electrical Engineering and currently works in the energy sector as a software architect.
The Board thanks both of these men for volunteering, and looks forward to the skills, wisdom and contributions they will bring to the team. As what has been a wonderful year comes to an end, the Board members are well into the work of making sure next year is even better. We look forward to the fun of doing another Musical, and welcoming several new families to our beautiful community. Finally, we continue to welcome any and all volunteers to help meet needs in several areas. So please reach out if there are gifts or skills you think could be of service. As always we welcome feedback, questions, and comments [email protected] We pray that all of the families of our Schola community had a blessed Holy Week and a happy Easter Octave!
As we enter into these final weeks of our Schola year, we want to take this opportunity to say thank you to our outgoing Chair of the Board and Director Trustee, Mr. Eric Milner. After many years of dedicated service, he is stepping down from the Board. We thank Mr. Milner for his key contributions and leadership, which will have a lasting impact on the Schola’s stability and policies. Please join us in wishing Mr. Milner the very best. We thank God for volunteers like Mr. Milner, and so many others, whose sacrifice of time and effort ensures that the Schola can keep thriving and supporting the unique Schola vision and experience, which is such a gift to all of our families. The Schola would not exist without the dedicated commitment of all of our volunteers, who serve in many diverse roles. Every one of us has something to offer; if you have time (a little or a lot), skills, talents or experience that could be of service to the Schola in some way, please reach out to Ana or Connie, or to the Board directly. We will find the best place for each person to use their gifts to keep building up the Schola for the Glory of God! The freshness of a new calendar year always seems to me to be a good moment to reflect on the blessings received in the year behind us as well as the numerous current and ongoing gifts the Lord is offering to us.
Our entire Board of Directors has so much to be thankful for. We are grateful for the prayers of the community, both the Prayer Guild and others who offer their prayer for the ongoing work of the Schola. Grateful to Jacquie O’Neil for her incredible sacrifice and creative work to bring this program into being and create such a unique and fruitful educational option for our families. Grateful to the parents who join together with us in this effort to offer classical, Catholic and choral education that is both exceptional and edifying. Grateful to our choir directors and liturgy team, especially as the echoes of nine lessons still lift our minds and hearts. Grateful for the many many volunteers who contribute in little and big ways; pots of soup, supervision, hours of behind the scenes organizing and baking and coordinating that make this place so special. Grateful to the tutors for their dedication and care, especially as we see our children and youth growing in wisdom and virtue under their tutelage right before our eyes. And grateful to Melissa Breedlove and our Executive Director who ran such a successful fundraising campaign at the end of 2023 among many other things. With grateful hearts, we are looking forward to the fun of being together at the family dance, as well as the lengthening sunlight each day and many more blessings to come. As always we welcome feedback, questions, and comments [email protected] Amy Salisbury on behalf of the Board of Directors As the calendar year comes to a close, we are so grateful for the many blessings of 2023 and look ahead with great hope for what 2024 will bring. One thing around the corner is registration for next Schola year.
Year over year, despite our rigorous frugality and commitment to maintaining affordability, the costs of running the program have climbed up. However, we are pleased to announce that we will be able to keep delivering an outstanding experience for our families without increasing tuition for this upcoming year. We know that despite this, the cost reflects substantial sacrifice for some of our families, and as a Board, we will continue to work with our incredible staff to provide a program that is worthy of that sacrifice. We also thank our donors who are funding bursaries to alleviate some of that burden. We look forward to singing with you all at Nine Lessons and pray you have a restful and joyful Christmas Season. We look forward to seeing you all again in the new year! As always we welcome feedback, questions, and comments: [email protected] How heart-warming to see so many attend our AGM on Monday October 16th!
Our Annual General Meeting is an opportunity for the board to review the highlights of the past year as well as share details of the financial health of the schola. There were many great questions asked and hopefully everyone in attendance had a chance to get to know our board better and stay informed. The board welcomes inquiries and can be reached at [email protected] Welcome to all our new and returning families. It was a joy to see so many of you at the Parent Meetings. A special welcome to our new students and families;
Please introduce yourself if you see a Board member at First Friday Mass, schola events, or at drop-off and pick up. This is going to be a wonderful year for our community of families and we are so glad you are here. The summer was full of preparations for this upcoming year. As you can read in the rest of this newsletter, there is much already happening as we jump right into the 2023-2024 academic year at St John Choir Schola. Of note, is the AGM taking place on October 16th at 7pm. All are invited to attend! A Special Thanks: The Board is grateful to the donors who support the Schola through their tax-deductible donations. It was those donors who made the bursary program that we launched at the end of July a possibility. We hope that this program can grow and continue to offer even more financial aid in the future. We pray that the donors to SJCS will be abundantly blessed for their generosity. As always, we welcome feedback, questions, and comments [email protected] |
Board of DirectorsSJCS is governed by the society board of directors consisting of both parents and community members committed to the success of the program and upholding our motto Ad Deum per Candorem (To God Through Beauty). Archives
December 2024
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