Letter from the Principal - October 2022

October 12, 2022

Dear Parents, Guardians, and Students,

As you know, a major initiative for us this year is our focus on campus climate, culture, and community. We cannot build a positive and healthy school culture without our parents and guardians. Conferences are an opportunity to partner together to discuss your student’s academic progress. We look forward to meeting with you.

Please  join us for in-person conferences on Tuesday, October 18, or virtual conferences on Wednesday, October 19. Sign-up will start on Friday, Oct. 14.

We continue to build a healthy school culture in many ways. All of our students experienced a traditional and beloved rite of passage and community-building a couple of weeks ago— Homecoming! Thank you to the Student Council and their advisors for planning so much fun to promote the true spirit of Homecoming and pride in our school. It is difficult for me to capture their school spirit in a newsletter, but you can enjoy a peek into our pepfest in this Instagram reel we posted (follow us on Instagram @CretinDerhamHall). Both students and faculty/staff went ‘all-out’ with their energy, creativity, and school spirit - and were engaged, supportive, respectful - and loud! I was  happy for our students that they were able to participate fully  in this traditional and important school experience. 

And that positive spirit has become an important thread throughout all of our big gatherings and celebrations this year. Our all-school Masses have been both prayerful and joyful, with beautiful leadership from our campus ministry team and student musicians, readers and more. At the JROTC Diamond Promotions, the students cheered each other on with gusto as they announced the promotions of the brigade leaders.  Students have also been enthusiastically engaged in our two assemblies this year including our Hispanic Heritage month celebration and the JustMove cultural presentation.  

These events are important because student engagement is a key component to building a positive and successful learning environment. Parent and guardian engagement is also essential. Our hope is by offering an in-person and an online option for conferences, it is more convenient for you to participate in this process. Your involvement and partnership assist us in providing a strong academic experience for your students.  

Happy “conferencing!” 

Mona Passman

Principal