Virtual Play
JFK’s middle school Crusader Theater is pleased to present The Virtual Family on Friday, April 23rd and Saturday, April 24th. This play will be performed on YouTube via a live-streamed Zoom. Performances begin at 6:00 p.m. Tickets are available for sale now: $10 per person or $30 for families of four or larger. Please purchase a ticket for each member of our group. Proceeds from the ticket sales are used to pay for the performance rights of the play, scripts, props, etc. Upon receipt of your order form and payment, you will be sent the performance link. See below for more information:
Plant Sale Pick Up
Don’t forget to schedule a time to pick up your plants next week: Schedule Pick Up
Rock the Lot Gala
Buy your tickets now for a socially distanced (COVID friendly) rockin event in our parking lot on May 15th!
New Home & School Information on our Website
Home & School has new information and links available off the home page of our website: www.olvjfk.com. Included is the link to the Teacher Amazon Wishlists and general information. Don’t forget to connect to Amazon Smile through OLV CHURCH for donations from Amazon that benefit H & S.
Water Bottles from Home. Additional Face Coverings Available at School
Please remember to send your child with a fillable water bottle from home each day. These can also be filled throughout the day at school as our touchless bottle filling stations are open. If your child needs a fillable water bottle, please let the office know, as we do have some donated that can be distributed.
While we do have disposable bottled water available, as we’d never want someone to go without water, there are both financial and environmental costs to using disposable bottles. To provide you with some scope of our usage, we are buying cases of bottled water by the pallet and go through about a case or more per day.
It also might not be a bad idea for your child to have an extra well-fitting face covering at school. Face coverings do occasionally get wet and/or dirty during the day. While the school, again, has extra face coverings, they may not fit the best for your child. Face coverings should:
- Have 2 or more layers of washable, breathable fabric
- Completely cover one’s nose and mouth
- Fit snugly against the sides of one’s face and not have gaps
Calendar Highlights
It’s nice to have some more “normal” things on the school calendar as well. Yesterday, for example, we had Confirmation, and I was able to attend one of the two special Masses.
April 19-21: Sound system installation in the church. Another project funded by our capital campaign
April 22: Oversize/Comfy Dress Day
April 23/24: Crusader Theater
April 25: First Communion
April 26-29: ISASP and Iowa Assessments Testing by K-8 students
April 29/30: Plant Sale Pick up
April 29: Parent University Zoom with Julia Cook
May 3: Blood Drive
May 7: 8th Grade vs Staff VB games
May 15: Gala
June 11: Last day of school for JFK. The DCSD will continue until the 16th. Because June 11th is not Davenport’s last day, there is no early dismissal at JFK on June 11th. Our last day will include both Mass and field day.
The full 2021-22 school calendar is finally available: JFK 2021-2022 Academic Calendar
Charge Tablets and Chromebooks at Home
The number of students who are at school in the morning without their tablets or Chromebooks charged is too high. Without charged devices, students may not be able to participate in class. While we may try to let students get some power at school, running electrical cords across the floor to their desks is not safe, and, due to COVID restrictions, we can’t just move students to desks near the wall outlets. As we come closer to the Iowa Assessments of Student Progress, which will have all 3rd-8th grade students online at the same time, flexibility with uncharged devices will narrow. Please have students charge their tablets and Chromebooks at home each evening.
Discounted Registration Period Coming to an End Soon: Tuition Contracts for 2021-22 PS-8th Grade and ECLC Registration
Tuition contracts for 2021-22, which represent the official registration document for next school year, were mailed during spring break. Please return them ASAP so we can plan for 2021-22! Time is running out for the discounted registration fee.
Preschool registration for 3, 4, and 5 year olds and ECLC (childcare) does remain open. If you have not yet registered for these programs, please contact the school office ASAP.
Ad Hoc Policy Committee Invite
Each year the board of education reviews about 1/3 of the policies contained in the Parent and Student Handbook. Dress code policies are reviewed every year. If you would like to be involved this spring, please send me an email.
Anticipated Openings at JFK
JFK will be looking for several teachers, possibly both to replace teachers who may be leaving and for new federally funded positions for 2021-22. We are casting a wide net regarding licensure and endorsements and will adjust staff assignments to best take advantage of teachers’ qualifications. In the lower grades, that means we are looking for K-6 licensed teachers, especially those who have an additional endorsement, such as in reading. In the upper grades, where subject area endorsements are required, we would be interested in talking with those who have K-8, 5-12, or middle school endorsements in ELA, math, science, and social studies.
School Bookkeeper/Secretary Position
JFK has an upcoming opening for a school bookkeeper/secretary as Emily Sanderson will be transitioning to another position at JFK. The school bookkeeper/secretary position is year round and includes a tuition benefit. The qualified applicant must be detail oriented with accounting knowledge and have strong interpersonal skills with both adults and children. The ability to multi-task with frequent interruptions is a must. Interested candidates should send a letter of interest, resume, and references to chad.steimle@olvjfkmail.com, or complete an application in the school office. We hope to have the position filled within the next few weeks, and the new staff member will begin yet this school year.
COVID Data
Below is a link to a .pdf file that shows several graphs of Scott County and JFK data.
- The 7-day positivity rate in Scott County dipped today to 9% after stubbornly being above 10% for the last three weeks. After having the worst 7-day positivity rate among Iowa’s 99 counties on Saturday, Scott County’s rate today puts it as tied for the worst with two other counties. Scott County’s positivity rate is still more than double the state average.
- Across Iowa, approximately 12.3% of the population, including people of all ages, has tested positive since the beginning of the pandemic. At JFK, since this school year began, about 4.2% of our PS-8th grade students have had COVID and 17% of our staff.
- It seems like there have been plenty of milestones that I’ve experienced with COVID-19, both good and bad: the first time I knew someone who had to quarantine, the first time I knew someone who had COVID-19, the first time I knew someone who had recovered from it, the first time I knew someone who was hospitalized with it, and the first time I knew someone who had passed because of it. I then turned the corner with the first time someone I knew who was vaccinated. Unfortunately, I felt a setback this week with the first time that someone I knew had a “breakthrough case.” A breakthrough case is when someone who is fully vaccinated comes down with COVID-19. I’m looking forward to positive milestones with student vaccinations.
Chad
