LETTER FROM THE PRINCIPAL

Dear Parents,

Welcome back to another great year at SJA, a nationally recognized Blue Ribbon, STEM Certified, Middle States School!  Last summer was so busy with moving the entire school from Areba Avenue to Sand Hill Road, that I thought it could never be busier!  However, with so many new students and so much interior construction, this summer was busier than ever, all good!!!
This year’s theme is BUTTERFLIES.  I’d like to think of last year as a year of being in a COVID cocoon, all closed up and waiting to emerge.  This year we will begin to burst forth from COVID and emerge as beautiful butterflies with more freedom to get back to “normal,” whatever that may be.  It is a slow process with “hiccups” along the way, but hopefully, by the end of the year, we will pray to be “free” from COVID.

We are happy to welcome a number of new faculty/staff members to the members of the SJA Family.  Father Josh Weaver, Mr. Faris Beshara (Assistant Principal), Ms. Susan Spoljaric (Pre 3 full day), Mrs. Amy Brennan (Pre 4C), Miss Elizabeth Rugalla (KC), Mrs. Amy Waning (5A), Mrs. Colleen Denisco (6B), Mr. Allen Boyer (7B), Mrs.Maria Milliken-Flores (Spanish), Mrs. Mary Ann Kindred (Aide Pre 3 half day), Mrs. Marsha Emery (Aid Pre 4C), Ms Julia McMullen (Cafeteria Assistant), Mrs. Alison Brooks (Cafeteria Assistant), Mrs. Melissa Marchelonis (CAIU Reading/Math), and Mrs. Erin Waltz (CAIU Counselor).

We are very happy to welcome back all of our teachers, aides, and staff!  It takes a village!  They have all been working very hard over the summer to provide new and exciting experiences for their upcoming students.  We thank our maintenance and custodial staff for making the school look so beautiful.  They had to “create” several new classrooms for our increasing enrollment, and did a great job.

We welcome over 125 new families to our school community, bringing our total to 489 students, which makes us the largest Catholic school in the Diocese of Harrisburg.

It looks like we will be getting free lunches again this year, due to COVID.  Families who qualify for free or reduced lunch must still fill out forms in the event that we no longer get free lunches.  Government subsidies are also based on these statistics.  I must point out that each child may get ONE free lunch.  If students go back for seconds, we must charge you for that.  Many times parents wonder why they are getting bills for “free lunch,” but are not aware of the many “second lunches” their child may be getting.
We are continuing to work on the Centennial Capital Campaign which is destined to complete the third floor of our school, as we commemorate the 100th anniversary of SJA Parish on December 5, with a big celebration.

​If you ever have any concerns, suggestions, ideas, please do not hesitate to let us know.  We are all one big happy family that works together as partners in “our” children’s education.
HAPPY NEW SCHOOL YEAR!
 
Sister Eileen Marie, DM
Principal

ABOUT SISTER EILEEN

Sister Eileen is a dedicated, highly qualified principal
who is committed to providing a high quality education to our students
in a nurturing atmosphere that encourages life-long learning, critical thinking, and growth mindsets.

View Sister Eileen's Full Bio