St. Stephen Catholic School
April 20, 2023
Important updates in this week's Tidbits
PTCO General Meeting
CSTAG Application in FACTS
Summer Sports Camps
Vacation Summer Bible Study Signup
Principal's Points
Good Afternoon St. Stephen Families,
As you may know, we are having our final PTCO General Meeting on Monday, April 24 at 6:30 pm in the school's Media Center. We are hoping that many of you will be able to join us. You should have received an email from me this morning telling you all the reasons why you should come. Your child will say it's because you can get a free-dress pass for them, but the real reason is that you will have an opportunity to learn more about our PTCO and all they have done for us this year. Babysitting is available and you will have the chance to win a $50 gift card to Risse Brothers.
Please read the attached letter from the PTCO President, Nicole Rodriguez to learn more about the changes to the Bylaws and the nominees for office. To help you review the Bylaw changes, all additions/changes were done in red. Anything removed is indicated by the red line through the text. Those in attendance at the meeting on April 24 will be asked to approve the changes to the PTCO Bylaws.
Next Tuesday, students in grades 2-8 will be taking the ARK test. The Assessment of Religious Knowledge (ARK) helps us improve the way we educate our students in the knowledge and practice of the Catholic Faith by learning more about what students know. The assessment is online and will take approximately 30-40 minutes. Please be sure your child is on time for school that day.
Thank you and have a wonderful rest of the week.
Peace,
Linda Umoh
Upcoming Events
April 25 - ARK Test Grades 2-8
April 28 - Jean Day
May 1 - 4 - i-Ready Testing
May 1 - 4 - Teacher/Staff Appreciation Week
May 3 - May Crowning
May 5 - No School
May 8 - 11 Spring Mustang Writes
May 10 - 11 - Math Final Exam Grade 8
May 13 - 14 - Holy Card Uniform Weekend
May 14 - Mother's Day
May 15 - Holy Card Free Dress Day
May 15 - 16 - 8th Grade Trip to St. Augustine
May 18 - Graduation Brunch
May 19 - Last Day of School for PreK/Noon Dismissal
May 19 - 8th Grade Graduation @ 6:30pm
FACTS (CSTAG/Heart to Heart) Applications
2023-2024 School Year
The FACTS Application for financial assistance from the school and Diocese is open for the 2023-2024 school year. Applications and documents must be received no later than April 30, 2023, for initial consideration. Please log into your FACTS account to complete the application.
Important note: Diocesan aid is limited. Applications received after the initial consideration deadline of April 30, 2023, for the 23-24 school year maybe be subject to a reduced rate.
For information regarding all financial assistance opportunities, please click here.
Thank You For Donating to the Rice Bowls
Our students had the opportunity to practice almsgiving during Lent by filling up their Catholic Relief Services "rice bowls" with coins or money they earned from allowance or chores. Thanks to their generosity, students this year donated $818.27 to help those in need around the world. Thank you for encouraging a spirit of giving.
Registration Now Open!
St. Stephen Catholic Church
Vacation Bible School -
Date: June 12-16, 2023
Vacation Bible School -
Date: June 12-16, 2023
Time: 9:30 – 12:30 pm
·Location: Family Life Center
Attention Scholarship Parents
The letter below was sent to your email.
Dear Parent/Guardian,
We’re excited to tell you more about our new platform: EMA, your Education Market Assistant.
EMA will be launched to families later this spring. Here is what you can expect:
- Families will create an account within EMA. Through EMA, families with children benefiting from different scholarships will be able to manage the scholarships for all of their children within ONE account! Additional information on how this will happen will be provided when it is time to create your account.
- Once a family creates their account in EMA, they will be able to complete an Intent to Continue for renewing students or an application for new students for the 2023-24 school year. The Intent to Continue is how families notify us that their current scholarship student will continue on the program for the upcoming school year.
- For parents/guardians with a student using the Florida Tax Credit (FTC) Scholarship or the Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options (FES-EO) private school option, the process to approve payments will be much easier! Currently, these parents/guardians must approve their student’s payment four times a year. Through EMA, parents/guardians will give approval at the beginning of the school year for all payments while their student remains enrolled at that school.
These are just a few highlights of what you can expect with EMA.
What's Next: EMA will become available to families later this spring. We will host webinars to guide you through the process of creating your EMA account and completing your Intent to Continue or application. Additional resources including videos and instructional guides will also be available. Please monitor your email for more information, including webinar dates which will be shared as it is available.
Mustang Sports
MUSTANG SPORTS:
Boys Flag Football: The boys flag football team lost both of their games this week. The Mustangs lost to St. Lawrence, 35-0. They also lost to Nativity, 26-6, with the St. Stephen touchdown scored on a run by QB John Michael R. The Mustangs wrap up the regular season next week with two home games Tuesday against St. Joseph at 4:00 and Thursday against Mother Teresa at 4:15.
Girls Track: Here are the Mustangs that placed in the top 8 and earned points for the team at the first Field Event Meet on Tuesday, April 4. Francine A.-3rd JV Long Jump (12'1"), Alannah M.-5th JV Long Jump (11'9"), Kaylee C.-6th Varsity Long Jump (12'9") & 8th Varsity High Jump (4'0), and Leah M.-8th Varsity Disc (54'2"). The second field event meet is today at Christ the King at 4:00. The first running and relay meet is Saturday at Tampa Catholic from 8:00-11:30. Meet results information will be posted in next week's Mustang Sports.
The St. Stephen Sports Ceremony is Wednesday, May 10 from 5:00-6:30 in the FLC. All St. Stephen student-athletes for the 2022-23 school year will be recognized for their hard work and accomplishments at the ceremony. Pizza, cake, and refreshments will be provided for all student-athletes. An invitation and RSVP will be handed out and emailed to all student-athletes tomorrow. The RSVP is due to the office by Friday, May 5. The ceremony is for student-athletes and their families.
St. Stephen Summer Sports Camps are the weeks of July 10-14 and July 17-21. Please see the camp information and registration link flyers below if interested.
Go Mustangs!
Coach Green
Summer Camp
Nature's Classroom Institute.
Summer is right around the corner, and Nature's Classroom is excited to announce that they are officially launching an NCI Summer Camp for ages 10-14.
Campers will splash, explore, and learn through hands-on experiences for a full week, June 12th- June 16th, 2023, at their Brooksville site. Details, prices, etc., can be found at: https://www.discovernci.org/florida-summer-camp
For questions, reach out to:
Britta Wood
Education Director-Florida
Nature’s Classroom Institute
682.804.2483
PTCO Now Offers Scrip
Help PTCO earn cash back from gift card purchases.
A simple and easy way to purchase gift cards!
How does it work?
Use the Raise Right App to buy an electronic or physical gift card for hundreds of stores! The school receives a percentage of the gift card purchase! Click here for more information about the program.
Many of your favorite stores and restaurants are included – Target, Walmart, Publix, Outback, Panera, and more!
Going shopping? Buy an electronic gift card for the approximate amount and use it at the check-out line! Click here for more information about ecards.
To get started today, review the RaiseRight Enrollment using the link here and if you have questions, please contact ngallagher@sscsf.org
Thank you for your continued support of SSCS! We hope you find this to be an easy way to make a difference for our school.
Please watch the video here to see how easy it is to purchase scrip from Raise Right.
Easy way to support the PTCO and get your Holiday Gift Cards.
Alumni Updates
Attention: Current School families who have children that are SSCS Alumni
Please help us follow the success of our former students. Kindly share with us updates on how your SSCS graduate is doing in school, in their profession or in pursuing their dreams. We want to be able to congratulate our alumni when they achieve amazing
things and wish them well when they venture into something new and exciting.
A few lines providing name, year graduated from SSCS and update should be sent to ngallagher@sscsfl.org
Please join us for Bingo Nights!
COVID 19 Decision Tree
Safe Environment Training and Fingerprints
Everyone needs updated safe environment training and fingerprints in order to volunteer in the school or to chaperone a field trip. Safe environment and fingerprints are good for 5 years. Attached here are the instructions on how to get your safe environment certificate and to have your fingerprints done. If you have any questions please contact Karen Biase at kbiase@sscsfl.org or call the front office at ext. 1100. Click the link for information here regarding fingerprints. Click for the live link here. For the safe environment click here for the live link .
Check out our
Mustang News morning show!
You can join our Mustang News team each morning at 7:50 as we stream live on YouTube to begin the day with prayers, the pledge of allegiance, and news. Subscribe to our channel here.
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Mission Statement
St. Stephen Catholic School is devoted to inspiring students to achieve their full academic potential while demonstrating a desire to continue Jesus' mission by applying Catholic morals, beliefs, values, and practices in their everyday lives. We are committed to motivating students to sustain a lifelong love of learning.