TH E TH UN DER RO L L S - St. James Academy

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St. James Auction The St. James Academy Annual Auction will be held on Saturday, October 13, 2012. Update your calendars now for these important SJA dates! You don’t want to miss out! TEAM CONNOR DRIVE NEW THIS SUMMER … ENRICHMENT CAMPS In the February Parent Newsletter we included a story about Mary Kate Lynch’s Way and the naming of the circle drive. This month is a continuation of that story and of Mary Kate’s “Way”. Last month Mary Kate decided that the name of the circle drive should be changed to Team Connor in memory of Connor McCullough. Thank you, Mary Kate, for this generous gift of remembrance for all who enter our building to see. Registration is now open for the Grade School and High School Summer Camps 2012. See our website at www.sjakeepingfaith.org for registration forms and important deadlines. “ Experience St. James Academy Summer Enrichment Camp! The offerings focus on making new friends in a Catholic setting where skills and learning can take place in a faith-filled relaxing environment. Every child who enrolls in this program will have a great opportunity to make the most out of summer,” commented Mrs. Engen, Director of Community House System. St. James teachers and department leaders created new summer camp opportunities to supplement the athletic camps we’ve offered in past years. “St. James Academy is excited to offer additional summer programs to our community that further our Mission and commitment to spiritual and academic excellence,” said Mrs. Maddox, Director of Students Services. Managing Information Overload will help students with managing technology to enhance their study and organizational skills. Catholic Leadership Camp offers skill development for junior high students who hope to take leadership roles in their current school as well as when they reach high school. High School students also have the opportunity to attend Survival Spanish for the Traveler, as well as “Bridging the Gap” for incoming freshman to help them prepare for the rigor of high school Spanish courses. There is a Freshman Annotation Workshop to help incoming 9th graders with the summer reading assignment. Drum Line and Flag Team will also conduct camps for all high school participants. Check www.sjakeepingfaith.org under Activities News for details about camps for 6th-8th graders, as well as high school age students. Please take advantage of these unique programs and sign up early. So that the instructors can plan for participants, registrations should be submitted by May 22, 2012 unless otherwise noted.
SJA FAMILY HOSTS EXCHANGE STUDENT By: Moira Reilly You might be wondering how my family decided to host an exchange student. The process officially started in January of 2011, when we signed up with Ayusa (an exchange student program), but it really started years before. In 6 th grade, my fascination with foreign culture began, particularly Japanese culture. In fact, I researched Japan for a major paper that year. Since then, my entire family has become more familiar with their culture. My sister especially has gotten into Anime along with her friends from school. This was the perfect setup for a Japanese exchange student to stay with us 3 years later. Eiri Inaba We were so excited to finally get to meet Eiri Inaba, with whom I had been an e-mail “pen pal” for several months. Her hometown in Japan is called Aichi, which is about two hours West of Tokyo. It’s near a factory that manufactures Toyota cars. She brought many things from Japan with her, including her calligraphy set. Eiri taught us how to make sushi and other Japanese foods. Part of the exchange program asks her to share her culture with Americans, so she did a presentation at St. James. In Japan, giving gifts is very common. Eiri brought my family kimonos and traditional shirts to wear; her parents sent us Christmas presents. Eiri is 17 years old. She is enrolled as a junior at St. James, and she is staying for the entire school year. While being here, she is encouraged to try many things to be involved in American culture, The Reilly Family takes Eiri sightseeing and she has done just that. At school, she sings in choir and is also in jazz band. She is also in my American Sign Language class. Last fall she tried golf, which is not as available in Japan. (With limited space in Japan, golf is very expensive and usually done on indoor, multi-level courses.) My family has gone on many road trips this year to show her how diverse America is. Eiri has now been to (or driven through) 18 states. She’s had many experiences; including: skiing in the Rocky Mountains, seeing alligators in Florida, going ice skating with a group of exchange students from Ayusa, celebrating Christmas and Thanksgiving with my family (neither of which are very big in Japan) and visiting the stockyards in Dallas (and trying on cowboy boots!) It’s been such an amazing experience for my entire family. NEW STUDENT FAIR All in-coming Freshmen for Fall of 2012 are invited to attend the New Student Fair on April 18 beginning at 7:00 p.m. in the gym. Students will learn more about our Academics, Faith Formation, Summer Camps, Clubs, Athletics and Activities. Bring your 2012 Freshman out to enjoy another opportunity to get together with friends and make new friends with their classmates from the Class of 2016. Colleen Pikus, Mary Engen, Christina Colling
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TH E TH UN DER RO L L S - St. James Academy

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