Letter from the Office of the Principal Mailed July 7, 2015

 
 

De La Salle

Office of the Principal

 

 

July 7, 2015

 

Dear Cavalier Parents and Students:

Welcome to the 2015-2016 school year!

We are eagerly anticipating what promises to be a transformative year for De La Salle and its community, and we are completely committed to the vision of our founder, St. John Baptist de la Salle, to “teach minds, touch hearts, and transform lives.”

We have been very busy this summer with numerous activities, along with the preparation for the beginning of the school year.  Summer student activities included our Foundations Program, Summer School, athletic summer practices and leagues, college visits, and various summer camps and workshops.

We are finishing a major renovation of our main building, including significant improvements to our heating, cooling, and lighting systems.

Also, we welcome three new teachers to De La Salle:  Ms. Gabrielle Bethancourt (’07) in the English department; Ms. Jennifer Blanchard in the Science department; and Mr. Bobby Sanders in the Computer Systems and Math departments.

 

SCHEDULES

Enclosed you will find your child’s course schedule for the upcoming school year.

As per the policy stated in the De La Salle Student Handbook, all final decisions regarding student placement and schedules will be made by me.

We have worked diligently throughout the summer to ensure that your child’s schedule satisfies all the necessary requirements for both De La Salle graduation and Louisiana education standards, while meeting the needs and requests of the individual student.   NOT ALL REQUESTS CAN BE MET.

Changes to your child’s schedule will be considered for the following reason only:  you believe that your child has been incorrectly placed in a course (i.e., she has already taken Biology and has again been placed in Biology; or, he has been incorrectly placed in Honors English III when he should have been placed in College Prep English III).

Students requesting a schedule change for the above listed reason must email me at [email protected] before Friday, August 1st, with the change they are requesting and the reasons why they request the change.   I will respond to all email requests by the afternoon of Monday, August 3rd.   In the case that I agree to a scheduling change, the student MUST COME TO SCHOOL on Tuesday, August 4th, between 8:00 am and 12:00 pm to meet with me and finalize the change.

Schedule changes requested for any other reason, including but not limited to teacher preference, fall vs. spring preference, or last minute tracking placement preference, WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED.

 

WELCOME TO DE LA SALLE (DLS) DAY

“Welcome to DLS Day,” on Monday, August 10, is a mandatory school day for all students. A flyer is enclosed with this mailing that highlights the schedule times for the day.  Please adhere to these times.  It would be helpful for each student to be accompanied by at least one parent or guardian unless the student has the capability to handle purchases by check or credit card without adult assistance.  Some of the “Welcome to DLS Day” opportunities and payments include:

  • Purchasing DLS apparel (both mandatory and optional dress apparel);
  • Purchasing locks and physical-education uniforms;
  • Acquiring a Piccadilly Food Services account number;
  • Taking a school picture for yearbook and student ID card;
  • Acquiring an Edline code for new students;
  • Paying $50.00 in dues to the Cavalier Athletic Club (mandatory).

 

SCHOOL CALENDAR

The calendar for the upcoming school year is posted on our website (www.delasallenola.com).   Holidays, exams days, student activities, etc., are all posted to this calendar.  Please begin to familiarize yourself with this calendar immediately.

Parents and students are encouraged to check the calendar frequently as events and/or activities are occasionally added, changed or deleted.

 

ORDERING TEXTBOOKS

Many courses use state textbooks, and these textbooks will be distributed on the first day of class at no charge to the students.  However, there are several courses that use workbooks and non-state textbooks where state assistance is not available.  Therefore, workbooks and non-state textbooks (example: religion texts) must be ordered through the DLS on-line bookstore, MBS Direct.  Now that you have received your child’s schedule in this mailing, you are encouraged to visit www.mbsdirect.net to order your child’s books for the school year.

You will use the indicated course numbers on your child’s schedule to order your books. Instructions from MBS Direct are included in this mailing.  As indicated to you in an earlier mailing, MBS Direct is offering free shipping on orders placed July 26th through August 1st on orders $99 and over.  To ensure timely delivery, we strongly suggest you place your book orders during the early part of this free shipping week.

(Note:  For 8th graders, Language Arts will appear in the fall and spring semesters so the books are repeated. You need NOT order two sets of the same materials. For 9th graders, English will appear in the fall and reading or writing will appear in the spring, but only one set of books is needed for this year-round course).

 

STUDENT HANDBOOK

The student handbook is posted on Edline and on the De La Salle website (www.delasallenola.com). The second page of the handbook is a contract certifying that parents and students have carefully read the handbook and fully agree to adhere and abide by the school’s policies, procedures and rules.

For the convenience of parents and students, this contract that parents and students are required to sign will be distributed on “Welcome to DLS Day.” Consequently, it is expected that Cavalier parents and students familiarize themselves with the student handbook prior to attending “Welcome to DLS Day.”

 

LUNCH PROGRAM

Piccadilly Food Services will again be our lunch provider. At “Welcome to DLS Day” parents and students will be given specific information about the lunch program as well as account numbers for on-line payments.  The on-line URL for on-line payments is www.payforit.net.

 

SCHOOL PICTURES AND I.D. PICTURES

School pictures will be taken by Romaguera photographers on “Welcome to DLS Day.”  Students will be photographed in their official white De La Salle uniform shirtBoys are reminded to wear their ties.  Forms for ordering pictures are enclosed with this mailing.  Parents and students have the option to pre-order or turn in the form on “Welcome Back to DLS Day.”  Those wishing to pre-order should log on to http://delasalle.romaguera.com.

School pictures will also be used for class pictures in the DLS yearbook and for student identification (ID) cards. Student ID cards will be distributed to the students during homeroom at the beginning of the fall semester.  Students are expected to carry their ID cards at all times while on campus.

 

EDLINE/BLACKBOARD

As mentioned in the last parent/student mailing, parents and students are assigned codes that allow them to access the grade-reporting system Edline/Blackboard.  New parents and students will be issued these codes on “Welcome to De La Salle Day” (August 10th).

During the school year, it is the responsibility of parents and students to frequently check the students’ progress, attendance, and discipline records on Edline/Blackboard.  

 

NEW PARENT SOCIAL

On Tuesday evening, August 4th, from 5:30 pm to 7:00 pm, we will host a New Parent Social in the De La Salle Library.  Any new parent to De La Salle is welcome at this event.  Adult beverages and hors d’oeuvres will be served.  Please, we ask that no students/children attend this event.

 

NEW STUDENT / NEW PARENT ORIENTATION

There will be an orientation for new 8th and 9th grade students and all new parents on Wednesday, August 5th at 4:00 p.m.  Parents will report to the cafeteria (1st floor of the Brother Arsenius Center) and students will report to the theater (3rd floor of the Brother Arsenius Center).

We strongly encourage all new parents to attend this orientation—it is an excellent opportunity to have any questions answered.

 

SENIOR PARENT NIGHT  (Parents of members of the senior class only)

This event is on Thursday, August 6th, in the library, and will begin at 6:00 pm.  Email Kerri Caruso at [email protected] with any questions.

 

DLS CLOSED IN JULY AND EARLY AUGUST

De La Salle and its offices will be closed for maintenance purposes from July 18th-August 2nd.   We thank the maintenance staff for their efforts during this time period to ready the campus for the opening of school and for their dedication during the school year to maintain and operate the school plant and facilities.

We look forward to hosting you on our campus, and we thank you for the gift of your child.  Enjoy the remainder of your summer, and may God bless you and your family!

 

 

Sincerely,

Paul Kelly, ‘83
Principal

 

Live, Jesus, in our hearts, forever!

 

 

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