Principal’s Note Lent 2020 · Noah’s Ark Adventure March 18 hildren entering kindergarten, pre-k, or preschool may attend the Noah’s Ark Adventure transition event on March

DEVELOPING MINDS. BUILDING CHARACTER. STRENGTHENING FAITH.

Lent a Season of Preparation

Ash Wednesday began the season of Lent with a sign of ashes on the forehead. We are created in God’s image and made to love Him and others, but we falter. The ashes remind us to repent and be the disciples that bring God’s kingdom to earth! During Lent, we are asked to devote ourselves to seeking the Lord in prayer and reading Scripture, to service by giving alms, and to sacrifice self-control through fasting. We prepare our hearts and minds for the summit of the Liturgical Year - Easter Triduum.

Lent is a favourable season for opening the doors to all those in need and recognizing in them the face of Christ." -- Pope Francis

Open House for New & Prospective Families, Sunday March 8 New families are invited to join us at an open house to learn about MQA and the

educational experience. It is for families with children entering preschool through

grade 8 and will be held at the Greenwald Site. Share this information with

anyone you know who may be considering a transfer or looking for a great

preschool program for their child. There is a registration link on our homepage at

www.mqaschool.org . Thanks for spreading the word!

Calendar Events

A Peek at the 2019-2020 Calendar for March/April

3/5 8:30 AM Mass at MSP Gr. 1-3

3/5 10:10 AM Mass at GS Gr. 6

3/6 PNUT Day

3/6 6:00 PM 4th/5th Grade Movie Night

3/8 12:30 PM Open House for New and Prospective Families

3/9 10:15 AM PS and PK Pediatric Dental Guest

3/9 12:30 PM Grade 4-8 Confessions

3/10 7:00 PM ALICE Parent Meeting

3/12 Save Day

3/12 8:30 AM Mass at MSP Gr. K-3

3/12 10:10 AM Mass at GS Gr. 4/5

3/12 12:30 PM Grade 2-3 Confessions

3/13 PNUT Day

3/14 NHD Regional Competition

Principal’s Note

Lent 2020

Whatever you do in word or deed, do all

in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving

thanks through Him to God the Father.

~Colossians 1:17

3/16 Valos Easter Candy Orders Due

3/17 Wear Green with your Uniform

3/18 6:00 PM Noah’s Ark Early Childhood Adventure

3/19 End of Quarter 3

3/19 8:30 AM Mass at MSP Gr. 1-3

3/19 10:10 AM Mass at GS Gr. 7/8

3/20 PNUT Day

3/20 1:00/1:110 Early Release Day, Dismissal at 1:00 from FRS/1:10 from GS

3/21 9:00 AM Make Me a Maker

3/25 Report Cards Issued

3/25 PRSEF Competition

3/25 6:00 PM Family Faith & Friendship

3/26 PRSEF Awards

3/26 8:30 AM Mass at MSP Gr. 1-3

3/26 10:10 AM Mass at GS Gr. 6

3/28 9:00 AM Make Me a Maker

3/31 Valos Easter Candy Pickup

4/1 Census Day 2020

4/2 8:30 AM Mass at MSP Gr. 1-3

4/2 10:10 AM Mass at GS Gr. 4/5

4/4 9:00 AM Make Me a Maker

4/8-4/14 Easter Vacation

4/15 Classes Resume

4/16 Save Day

4/16 8:30 AM Mass at MSP Gr. K-3

4/16 10:10 AM Mass at GS Gr. 6

Please access the Athletic Calendar weekly for practice times and game/meet times.

Noah’s Ark Adventure March 18 Children entering kindergarten, pre-k, or preschool may attend the

Noah’s Ark Adventure transition event on March 18th at 6:00 pm at the

Freeport Road Site. Click her to register online!

RSVP by March 11th to Mrs. Hansen at 724.335.5911.

Raffle Tickets for Debt Reduction Thank you, thank you, thank you! The raffle was a success. The profit of this drawing was $16,368. We can say that

the winner of the $2500 was Melissa Centazzo. Priscilla Hawk won $1000 and Joan Lorence won $750. Our thanks is

extended to our school family and the parishioners of our sending parishes, Mount St. Peter, St. Joseph, St. Margaret

Mary, and St. Mary of Czestochowa. The tickets were drawn at our CSW Open House on January 26th.

Night at the Races The Night at the Races was a lot of fun and was very successful. The profit of $4,028 will go to uniforms, gym rental,

and referee fees. Thank you to the SCG who helped with the event and to Mr. Collett who coordinates the fundraiser.

Latest Awards for MQA

Congratulations to the district winners of the Knights of Columbus

Free Throw Competition from our school, Lily Junod and Justin

Hyland.

Congratulations to the students who competed in the SWPA Forensics

Finals Tournament. Kylie Krzewinski was chosen for the Mary Fahey

award for long-term participation, excellence in presentation, and

support of others in the club. Logan Polito earned a first place in prose

and Mia Andring and Niviah Andee earned second awards. Elissa

Mlinarcik, Louisa Palumbo, and Vanessa Ibrahim earned a second places

in multiple reading. Maggie and Abby earned first place awards in poetry. Maggie also received a fourth place in All

Stars.

Congratulations to our winners of the Patriot’s Pen Essay Contest at the District level.

Veronica Koval won first place and Rory Pallone won second, and both girls are being

recognized by the VFW this month at a dinner where they will read their essays and be

presented with a monetary gift.

Students in grades three and four participate in the Hightower Scholars/Penn State New Kensington Essay and Picture

contest. Our first place essay winners were Evan Crimmins and Ava Shumaker. Our second place winners were

Carson Gray and Emmalin Domiano. Our first place picture winners were Corvette Ray Williams and Aria Bolcato.

Our second place winners were Sophia Troiano and Greta Magnusen. Ian Roberts was chosen to light one of the

Unity Candles with his favorite quote from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at the Unity Dinner Celebration.

Congratulations to all and thanks to Mrs. Hightower and Mrs. Bonk who facilitate the event.

Congratulations to the seventh and eighth grade students

who participated in the Pennsylvania Junior Academy of

Science Regional Competition. With first place awards, all

students are continuing on to the State Competition in May.

They presented projects in botany, biology, engineering and

chemistry.

Ella Anderson, “Can Yeast Be Used as a Sugar Substitute?”

Anthony Florian, “Do Different Frequencies Affect the Lifespan of Fruit Flies?”

Veronica Koval, “How Much Bt Concentrate is Needed to Kill Fruit Flies?”

Maria Kuhns, “The Effect of Rotation on Hydroponically Grown Plants”

Elaina Moore, “Does Chlorine Affect the Strength of Thread?

Donovan Polito, “The Effect of Coal Dust on the Growth Rate of Mung Beans”

Donovan also received a perfect score and Elaina received a certificate for Excellence in Chemistry and a medal from

Duquesne University. Thank you Mrs. Kestner for moderating this extra-curricular process.

Not Getting Texts from MQA? If you are not getting the texts, you can fix that by texting the letter Y to number 67587 and it will be resolved.

K-12 EITC Scholarship Application through Serving the Heart

The Serving the Heart Foundation of Armstrong County offers EITC scholarships to families who live or work in

Armstrong or Butler Counties. The applications are now open for the 2020-2021 school year. You can apply online at

https://servingtheheart.org/pre-k-12-tuition-assistance/how-to-apply.html. The deadline to apply is July 15, 2020. Directions

are found on the Foundation’s web site.

ALICE Training of Students at MQA The Diocese of Greensburg has committed resources to the training of all teachers and key staff at all our schools in

ALICE. ALICE is the acronym that stands for Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, and Evacuate. The key element to this

process is maximize steps that everyone, even the youngest children, can take if faced with an active shooter incident

in any location. The lessons are presented through the context of “I’m not scared; I’m prepared.” Coloring books and

lessons are used in preschool. A book and lessons are used in K-3. Videos from the ALICE resource site and lessons

are used in 4-6 and another set for 7-8. To inform you on what will occur in our classroom lessons and in our drills,

we are holding a parent meeting on March 10th from 7:00-8:00 at the Greenwald Site. Please RSVP at Signup Genius

at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/30E094CABAE2AAAFF2-rsvp

Information from CDC for Schools The goal of CDC’s aggressive ongoing public health response is to prevent spread of 2019-nCoV in in the United States. What you should do:

STAY INFORMED – CDC is updating its website daily with the latest information and advice for the public. (www.cdc.gov/ncov)

REMEMBER TO TAKE EVERYDAY PREVENTIVE ACTIONS that are always recommended to prevent the spread of respiratory viruses.

» Avoid close contact with sick people. » While sick, limit contact with others as much as possible. » Stay home if you are sick. » Cover your nose and mouth when you cough or sneeze. Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands; germs spread this way. » Clean and disinfect surfaces and objects that may be contaminated with germs. » Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand rub with at least 60% alcohol.

IF YOU FEEL SICK with fever, cough, or difficulty breathing, and have traveled to China or were in close contact with someone with 2019-nCoV in the 14 days before you began to feel sick, seek medical care. Before you go to a doctor’s office or emergency room, call ahead and tell them about your recent travel and your symptoms.

At MQA we are reinforcing the importance of students knowing and following proper handwashing procedures before eating and after sneezing, coughing, or using the bathroom. We are reinforcing with our custodial teams the importance of following our daily standard cleaning protocols using disinfectants and paying close attention to handles, handrails, light switches, and door hardware. In addition, the teachers and staff in concert with maintenance use disinfectants on frequently-touched surfaces in the classroom, often throughout the day. Hand sanitizer is available within classrooms and in all common areas. It is our practice to use the hand sanitizer as one enters and exits a common area. Our goal is to address the specific activities necessary to keep school open and operating while providing a clean and safe environment.

Re-registration & Applications We have many RSVPs to our New & Prospective Families Open House on Sunday, March 8, 2020. With the high

interest in MQA, I wanted to be sure you were all prepared to re-register for the upcoming school year. We have

always had plenty of space for our current families. While that is good for our families, late registrations cause delays

in administrative duties including establishing busing, awarding financial aid, and preparing summer reading and math

assignments. We are therefore asking you to be timely with your re-registration or transfer requests. Re-registration

and registration of new siblings and applications for new families began at the end of January. We are asking our

existing families to re-register no later than May 20, 2020 to guarantee a spot for the 2020-2021 school year.

Re-registrations for returning students are most easily done online. You need one submission per student. The

family $50 fee can be paid online. Siblings joining us for the first year and new families can also apply online using

the application form. One fee is required for the family, not per child. No application/re-registration is accepted

without the accompanying fee.

Financial aid applications are completed through your FACTS account online. If you do not have an account you must

create one. To recoup the financial aid application fee, complete the online form by March 15. The fee will be

deducted from your MQA tuition.

If you know of a family that is interested in joining us, please have them call the school office to schedule a tour,

conversation with the principal, and to arrange a shadow day before the summer.

Dinner Fundraiser for SJHS

Student A senior at St. Joseph HS is battling cancer and the school

community is hosting a fundraiser to help Eli and his

family. A form is attached if you would like to attend a

dinner that benefits Eli. There is an RSVP with money

due for dine in or take out.