St. Joseph High School News 10/5/20 - 10/9/20
St. Joseph High School News
Message from Dr. Bruce, Superintendent SJPS: Sunday 10/4
Good Afternoon SJ Families,
I am sure many of you are aware that the Michigan Supreme Court ruled late Friday afternoon that Governor Whitmer “did not have the authority after April 30, 2020, to issue or renew any executive orders related to the COVID-19 pandemic.” It is important to note that legally the court's ruling does not go into effect for 21 days. At the same time, there are a number of perspectives on this topic and a need for clarity this coming week.
St. Joseph Public Schools will continue with our current practice regarding all safety protocols, inclusive of masks as found in our Return to Learn Plans. Our position is to keep staff and students safe while at school or on school grounds. Our plans were based on recommendations from the CDC as well as the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services and our own Berrien County Health Department (BCHD). Moreover, SJPS has not had a positive COVID-19 case related to a school activity; we post our current information on our website within the COVID-19 Information tab. We firmly believe that our safety protocols are working. Therefore we will remain committed to our protocols to keep our schools safe for staff and students. Students, staff, and visitors will be required to wear masks while on school property (BP 8450.01, BP 8420.A, as well as the previously Board adopted Return to Learn Plans and Emergency Preparedness and Response plans).
Over the next twenty-one (21) days, we will receive further guidance and direction from the State of Michigan, our legal counsel, and the BCHD. The 21 day ‘stay’ for SJPS is prudent and will allow us to once again, possibly adjust our plans based on the best scientific evidence and student educational benefit. More to come.
When your student(s) return to school on Monday, we will continue with ALL the health and safety protocols outlined in our Return to Learn plans.
I have communicated these expectations to our staff members earlier today.
Thank you for your continued support,
Thomas Bruce, Ed. D.
Superintendent
SJPS!
St. Joseph Virtual School Weekly Blog:
https://stjoevirtualschool.blogspot.com/2020/10/october-5th.html
October Bears of the Month!
Congratulations to Luke Bingaman & Elle Pavlopoulos for being recognized as our October Bears of the Month at SJHS!
Interact Club:
Please click on the link to access the Interact Club update: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1OjaLQ5IrIjE87OTgpDuy4t6lq5Vr0jaK/view?usp=sharing
Student Senate:
SAT Testing:
Due to the fact that our Seniors missed the opportunity to take the SAT last spring because of Covid, the
State of Michigan is requiring us to provide an opportunity for all of our Seniors to take the test onsite.
We have scheduled next Wed., Oct. 14th as that date. Seniors will need to arrive at 7:30am and report
directly to the competition gym where they will take the SAT test from approx. 7:30am to 1pm, once
they finish the SAT they will be released for the remainder of the day.
Picture Day:
This Thurs. Oct. 8th is our school picture day! Please use: Geskus Photo's to order online. Forms were sent home last week.
Yearbook:
Yearbook 2020 update:
The 2019-2020 yearbook has been delivered to current 10th-12th graders as of Friday, Oct. 2. If you
ordered a book and did not get one delivered, please contact jhunter@sjschools.org. Extras are available
to purchase for $70.
A separate email will go out to the Class of 2020 and to virtual students as to how those books will be
distributed.
Please check this list to see if a book has been reserved for you: 2019-2020 Yearbook Sales List
Yearbook 2021 update:
You can reserve your 2020-2021 yearbook now: 2020-2021 Yearbook Order Form
Seniors, we're ready for your senior portraits! Please follow these guidelines: Senior Picture Requirements and Submission Steps
Remember, we can also use the picture from Picture Day, which is Thursday, Oct. 8. This is an
inexpensive way to get a quality image for the yearbook.
Foods and Culinary Class News:
The Foods and Culinary classes are participating in the Great Lakes "Great Apple Crunch" on Thursday,
October 8th. The students will be making healthy juice drinks that include apples from their own
original recipes. A huge thanks to Nyes Apple Barn for donating the apples for this project!
Guidance Department News:
From the Guidance Department
We are excited to be back and seeing all of the students! With all of the changes
happening this year, we’d like to take this opportunity to update you on some resources.
Our google site - COVID-19, Guidance & SEL. This is a great resource for families with
crisis, community, counseling, and parent resources as well as self-care, wellness, and
apps to manage stress. We recently added information about self-care, social media,
positive news and a community & crisis resource. Please consider bookmarking this site.
As we migrate from ItsLearning to Google Classroom, please know that your student is
part of a classroom community for their graduation year (in addition to their teachers’
classes). We will communicate with the students in this classroom. We will be sharing
multiple resources to help with college/career planning as well as other resources.
Virtual College Visits:
Juniors & Seniors can sign up for Virtual College Rep Visits scheduled specifically for SJHS students
(they will be in the evenings this Fall). Students can sign up by filling out the google survey. List, dates
and links found on Guidance website: https://sjschools.org/guidance/college-information-guidance/college-rep-visits
It will be the students responsibility to log on to the link on the scheduled date - write it down on your
calendar!
Colleges are being added daily so check often!
Athletic Events:
Monday:
10:00 Girls Golf @ Regional Golf (Yankee Springs)
5:30 9th/JV Volleyball vs. Battle Creek Central
6:30 Varsity Volleyball vs. Battle Creek Central
6:30 9th Football @ Portage Central
Tuesday:
4:00 Varsity Golf @ Lake Michigan Hills
5:00 JV/Varsity Soccer vs. Kalamazoo Central
6:00 Swim vs. Battle Creek Central
Wednesday:
11:00 Regional Tennis tournament
5:00 Cross Country @ Mattawan
5:30 9th/JV Volleyball @ Portage Central
6:30 Varsity Volleyball @ Portage Central
Thursday:
5:00 JV/Varsity Soccer--SMAC Tournament
6:00 Swim vs. Otsego
Friday:
7:00 Varsity Football @ Lakeshore
Saturday:
9:00 Varsity Volleyball @ Niles Quad
9:00 9th Volleyball @ Three Rivers Quad
9:00 Boys/Girls XC @ Little Portage Invite
10:00 JV/Varsity Soccer --SMAC Tournament
Upcoming Events:
10/7 - Wed. - 1 Hr. Late Start
10/8 - Thurs. - Picture Day @ SJHS
10/14 - Wed. - SAT Testing for Seniors 7:30am - 1pm - Competition Gym
