In this issue (click to jump to a section):
What is Mission Day?
St. Thomas More’s annual Mission Day is one of the special long-standing traditions of our parish school. This one-day fall festival for students in Kindergarten through 8th grade generates funds for a mission in need of support. The money raised at Mission Day is donated to an organization chosen by the 8th grade students. Games and activities are set up throughout campus, and the students participate while enjoying a fun day with their friends. A great way to have your child more involved in the purpose of Mission Day is to encourage them to find ways to earn/raise money for Mission Day, such as doing special chores around the house or helping out a neighbor in need.
Click here to view last year's Mission Day festivities!
Mission Day Volunteer Opportunities and Amazon Wishlist
Please be on the lookout for volunteer opportunities coming soon. Remember, to volunteer on campus, you must complete Child Protection Certification. Click here to view the Child Protection requirements. If you'd like to help from home, we will have an Amazon Wishlist with items that will help make Mission Day a success.
Mission Day Tickets
Families will receive an email the week of September 18 with the link to purchase booth tickets, pizza lunch and raffle tickets.
Due to safety and liability coverage, we cannot allow any other children or siblings, younger or older, not enrolled at STM, to attend Mission Day. Only students enrolled in Kindergarten through 8th grade at STM may be present.
Click here to order your blue and gold Eagle Gear - T-shirts, women's racerbacks, caps, visors, and STM polos. The online shop is only open through 8 a.m. Monday, September 4, so don't miss out!
Hearing and Vision Screenings for grades K, 1, 3, 5 and 7 will be held September 12, 13, and 27 in the STM Church Activity Center. Volunteers are needed for morning and afternoon shifts. Please click here to review the available slots and sign up. You do not have to have experience with screenings; we will be happy to train you. Current Child Protection Training is required for all volunteers. Thank you!
It's time to register for the K-8 Mother & Son Tailgate! Click here to register today! This special event is open to any STM male student in grades K-8 and their mother, grandmother, godmother, aunt, or other important female role model. All activities will take place on the STM athletic field and in the school gym from 1 to 3 p.m. on September 30. Hot dogs and hamburgers will be served, along with ice cream and drinks. We'll have indoor/outdoor games and multiple inflatables. Feel free to bring your lawn chairs and tents! Cost is $40 for a couple, and $10 for each additional male child. Click here to take a look at last year's fun!
Volunteers needed! Volunteers are critical for our event's success. While we welcome teen volunteers to assist with set up, take down, and checking in guests, we need several adult volunteers to monitor and assist children at the inflatables and in the gym and serve food during the event. We need YOU! Click here to sign up as a volunteer! Remember, to volunteer at STM, you must complete Child Protection Certification. Click here to view the Child Protection requirements.
Due to safety and liability coverage, with the exception of teen volunteers who sign up using the form linked above, we cannot allow any other children or siblings, younger or older, not enrolled at STM, to attend the Mother & Son Tailgate. Only boys enrolled in Kindergarten through 8th grade at STM may be present.
Click here to view the September Lunch Menu.
There is no school on Monday, September 4.
A reminder that, as stated in the STM Parent-Student Handbook, students are not allowed to have cell phones or other electronics (watches, smartphones, etc.) that connect to the internet in their possession. Students should drop off electronics/cell phones in the office upon arrival at school. Students should pick the item up from the office when students are dismissed. These items are not to be used at any time on campus. That includes during dismissal after students have picked them up from the office or in the event the device was never turned in to the office, unless permission is granted from a teacher or supervising adult. If a student is using a cell phone or other device, including a smartwatch, this behavior will result in an automatic consequence: a detention letter in grades 5-8 for the first offense, suspension for the second offense; conduct letter in all other grades. The item will be confiscated and a parent must pick it up.
Please click here to read the 2023-2024 STM Parent-Student Handbook.
The Diocese of Baton Rouge Child Nutrition Program is committed to providing an environment in which students can make healthy food choices that support success and lifelong health. Click here for information on how to set up your child's My School Bucks account and how to apply for free meals. After September 8, 2023, if you have not completed a meal application, your child's lunch status reverts to his or her lunch status from the 2022-2023 school year.
Monday, September 11 is Red, White, and Blue Accessory Day. Students are invited to wear red, white, and blue t-shirts in place of the uniform shirt or over the jumper, colored socks, ties, turtlenecks, bows, jewelry, beads, hats (not worn inside), scarves and sweatshirts with uniform bottoms.
“Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me." (Matthew 25:40) Feeding the hungry is one of the Corporal Works of Mercy, which are acts of love that address the physical and material needs of others. For our September service project, we will be collecting food for those in need in our community. Please bring nonperishable items to the school office from September 11-22.
Students who were absent or not yet enrolled at STM on picture day (August 17) will have their school portrait taken on Wednesday, September 13. If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Ashley Schade at schadea@stmbr.org.
Later this year, the Diocese will transition to a new system for Child Protection Certifications. To ensure all current applications are processed before this rollover, we ask that anyone who wishes to volunteer at STM and has not completed all Child Protection requirements, please do so by December 1. Click here to view the Child Protection requirements.
For the STM Athletics full calendar of events, go to stmbr.org/school/athletics.
CROSS COUNTRY
Back to School Nights: Thank you to STM faculty and staff for hosting two Back to School Nights in August! All STM parents were invited to hear an overview of the upcoming school year in the gym and then to their child’s classrooms for class-specific information.
Class Parents: We are so grateful for STM Class Parents for the 2023 – 2024 school year! Each grade level has class parent volunteers and you can find your child’s grade level class parents here. Class parents will be in touch throughout the year with opportunities for families to develop partnership roles in their child’s school life. For questions about class parents, contact Home & School Class Parent Coordinator Kayla Pollet.
Community Coffee Cash for Schools: Start collecting Proofs of Purchase from all your Community Coffee products. This is how we give our STM teachers their classroom startup money each school year and we need your help! Save your own Proofs of Purchase, plus consider posting this easy ask flyer at your or your family’s places of work or your STM family-owned local places of business. Send Proofs of Purchase to your child’s homeroom teacher or the front office – whichever is easier! For questions about Community Coffee Cash for Schools, contact Home & School President, Lindsey Guillot.
Home & School is a home-school partnership involving collaborative working relationships between families and schools and we look forward to working with you! Go to stmbr.org/hsa23 for information about STM Home and School events and committees, and to sign up as a volunteer. Please note that to take advantage of these volunteer opportunities you must be Child Protection Certified. Go to https://www.stmbr.org/volunteer23 for more information.
All students in grades K through 4 are invited to join Asian Club. Our first meeting will be on Wednesday, September 6 at 7:20 a.m. in the cafeteria. Students can go straight to the cafeteria upon arrival at school. Future club meetings will always fall on Wonderful Wednesdays.
The Asian Club was formed as a way for our students to gather and share the uniqueness of Asian culture with one another. The students learn traditions through crafts, discussions, taste testing, and much more! We also prepare for one of the most important holidays, Tet, which is Vietnamese New Year. Our students enjoy the opportunity to speak their native language with one another and to learn new words. Mrs. Thuy To is the faculty moderator for the Asian Club.
Congratulations to the following 8th graders, who were appointed as 2023-2024 Beta Club officers (left to right): Chaplain, Adele A.; President, Gwendolyn M.; Secretary, Tyler B.; and Reporter, Shelby C. Beta Club is an academic honors program with a strong emphasis on leadership and community service open to our 7th and 8th graders. Students must have a 3.2 GPA to be invited to join.
The St. Thomas More Student Council held its annual election on Tuesday, August 22. Junior High students ran to be the executive officers of the Student Council for the 2023-2024 school year. The Student Council is instrumental in encouraging school spirit and service through various events throughout the year. Students running for office campaigned Tuesday morning with campaign boards, tags, and treats. Later, the candidates gave speeches to the Junior High student body. Students elected to serve are (left to right) Vice President, Thomas W.; Treasurer, Sadie O.; President, Emerson C.; and Secretary, Edrick C. All candidates did outstanding jobs and will participate in club activities along with homeroom officers.
Blood Drive - September 24: Did you know that a single, whole blood donation can save the lives of three people? Be a donor! Please consider donating blood on Sunday, September 24 from 8 a.m. to noon at STM Church. STM is part of Our Lady of the Lake's Blood Assurance Program; if an STM parishioner needs blood, we have credit toward the cost.
Happy Labor Day weekend! The church office is closed on Monday, September 4, for the holiday. “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.”
Fellowship Sunday: Join us on Sunday, September 10, for fellowship and a light breakfast in the activity center after the 8 and 10 a.m. Masses.
RCIA: Parents, are you interested in learning more about the Catholic faith or becoming a full member of the Catholic Church? The Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA) is a process for adults to learn the basics of the Catholic faith and be formally welcomed into the Catholic Church through baptism (if needed) or by a profession of faith. The RCIA process will begin holding sessions on Tuesday, September 5 at 6:30 p.m. in the Mother Teresa Room at the parish. Please contact Sarah Neau (neaus@stmbr.org) for more information. The process can be adapted for children who are 3rd grade and older to bring them into the Catholic faith as well. The children’s group will meet separately from the adult group on Sundays beginning September 10.
Drive Thru Flu Shot Clinic - October 7-8: Sponsored by Walgreens. Those without insurance may get a shot at no cost. Walgreens also gives a shot to the developing world for every shot given here. Last year, more than 140 people received their flu shots without ever getting out of the car!
SEPTEMBER 4: Labor Day - No school
SEPTEMBER 6: Wonderful Wednesday - Students may wear STM spirit shirt with uniform bottoms.
SEPTEMBER 7: School Mass - Grades K-4 wear Mass uniform.
SEPTEMBER 11: Red, White, and Blue Accessory Day
SEPTEMBER 11-22: September Service Project - Please bring nonperishable food items to the school office.
SEPTEMBER 14: School Mass - Grades K-8 wear Mass uniform.
SEPTEMBER 21:
• Third Thursday Praise and Worship - 7:20 a.m. in the STM Gym for Grades K-4
• School Mass - Grades 5-8 wear Mass uniform.
SEPTEMBER 22: Parent/Teacher Conferences - Grades 1-4 (No school for these grades on this day)
SEPTEMBER 24: STM Church Blood Drive
SEPTEMBER 25: Monday Night Football
SEPTEMBER 28:
• School Mass - Grades K-8 wear Mass uniform.
• 7th grade retreat
SEPTEMBER 30: Mother & Son Tailgate - Grades K-8
OCTOBER 7-8: STM Church Drive Thru Flu Shot Clinic
OCTOBER 19: Mission Day - Grades K-8
NOVEMBER 3: STM Prom - Adults only
MARCH 9: Dad & Daughter Dance - Grades K-8
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St. Thomas More Catholic School admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at its schools. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, athletic, and other school administered programs.
