In his Letter from Birmingham Jail, Martin Luther King said, "human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability, it comes through the tireless efforts of men." At the time, many people argued that activists should stop protesting and just "be patient." Their logic was that society was naturally getting better and that, eventually, equality would just happen on its own. King argued that change comes through continuous struggle. Change will always happen, but do we want to sit back and watch it occur, or do we want to lead the change and be a part of changing the future of education. While King's vision had a great impact on society, the vision of AI in education can have a great impact on the approach to education. The theme of this year's FETC (Future of Education Technology Conference) was Game Changers. Those of us who attended came away with a commitment to being game changers and intentionally deciding how these new tools will be used to enhance, not replace, critical thinking and help teachers differentiate for an academically diverse population. We want to move past the cheating conversation to the co-creation conversation and create authentic assessments which will prepare our students for a future in which AI exists. We do not wish to surrender to AI, but become co-workers in the evolution of intelligence. Change does not happen immediately, and there is much to consider in terms of privacy, ethics, bias, and more, but it also cannot be ignored. What many may not realize is that AI is embedded in many things we already use at school and personally. How it is changing is through the intentional use of Generative AI and this is what is creating many questions for educators. School districts and state departments of education are in the process of writing policy regarding AI and we will continue to follow the conversations, do our own research, and seek guidance from the Diocese when creating policy.  

Congratulations to Mabel in 8th grade for submitting the winning drawing for our Catholic Schools Week church bulletin contest. Be sure to look for it on the cover of the January 25, bulletin.  

This is a final reminder that Continuous Enrollment is coming soon. All students are automatically re-enrolled and families are charged the re-enrollment fee of $300 on Feb. 1. If your child will not be attending St. Stephen for the 2026-27 school year, it is important that you contact Gail Leung and complete the opt-out form prior to February 1. As you are making this decision, I want to share with you the tuition rates and fees for next year. At our School Advisory Board meeting this week, it was agreed that salaries would increase by 4% and tuition would increase by 7%. While 7% may seem high, it's not when you consider the security fee is being absorbed into tuition since Officer Bryan is now an employee. The actual tuition increase is less than 4%. The other change that was approved is increasing the Fundraising commitment to $300. To summarize, the changes you will see for next year are:

Everything else will remain the same on the fee schedule. The new fee schedule and more information will be sent home by email next week.

Enjoy your three-day weekend, and, like Martin Luther King, Jr., continue to dream about a future filled with love, empathy, and the moral courage needed for a world in transition. I hope to see many of you on Tuesday at the PTCO General Meeting. Please continue to read Tidbits for more information and have a fantastic rest of your week.  

Resource for Families:

                                               
A volunteer hour is valued at $50 and this is the amount you are charged for every hour not earned. Each school family is required to do 20 hours of volunteer time during the school year. BOGO can help you meet the 20-hour requirement. New families must have 4 of the 20 hours volunteering for the gala.
Angels Among Us will trade volunteer hours for your donation of wine (red, white, Prosecco, Champagne, Rioja). For bottle(s) valued at $45, one volunteer hour will be credited. Your out-of-pocket cost does not have to be $45 but the value of the donation must be at least $45. Thus, BOGO or store sales are great ways to spend less than $45 in exchange for one hour volunteer credit. Each bottle should have a value of no less than $15. Donations are accepted now through 2/1. Please plan on attending the gala fundraiser on 2/14 and join in Celebrating 26 years of Angels supporting SSCS.

***Restrictions apply.  The offer is valid on all new student enrollments at ALL Dance Quest locations when using Promo Code 2026DEAL.  The $35 Registration Fee and $75 Performance Costume Deposit are due at the time of registration.  The DQIStore.com Promotional code will be emailed after the promotion period has ended.  The promotion code may not be exchanged for cash.  Withdrawal from class may result in forfeiture of the promotion.***  

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 . 

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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