Focus on Leadership

The focus of this week in the high school has been developing student leadership.  Last night we celebrated the induction of 10 new students into the National Honor Society. These students were inducted based upon the evidence of character, scholarship, leadership, and service. Check out some pictures from the induction at CCS’ Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/conestogachristianschool .

Today in chapel, our student chaplains, grades 9-12,  took us to the Scriptures imploring the high school students and faculty to encourage one another in words and deeds. They admonished students in their use of social media when posting things about others and explained the negative and positive impacts their posts can have.  The chaplains addressed sarcasm and how it can often be hurtful. They presented how a kind word or deed can make an everlasting difference in a person’s life. They spoke about how one’s attitudes and actions can either encourage or discourage others. It was a good reminder of what James wrote in regard to the tongue:

With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.

Hebrews reminds us:  And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.

Friday our chaplains, student council members, and NHS members will be traveling off campus to Truth and Grace Church to study leadership and develop a project that benefits and serves the high school student body at CCS. They will be gone all day but will return in time to catch the buses.

Note: Tomorrow is picture day. If you are planning on ordering pictures, don’t forget the ordering packets.

Note the upcoming events for the high school and CCS:

September 25        Picture Day

September 26         HS Leadership Retreat

October 15              PSAT/Stanford Achievement Test - Grades 9-11, HS Powderpuff

       Tournament

October 17              CCS Chicken Barbecue

October 18              CCS Country Auction

Finally, I encourage you to visit ParentsWeb regularly to check on your child’s grades and lesson plans. Often a teacher needs to change their plans due to having to adjust instruction because students are taking longer to grasp concepts than was planned.  Please, if you have any questions and concerns about a class, contact the teacher immediately.

Communication is Important

It’s hard to believe that we are over halfway through the month of September.  By now on ParentsWeb you should see some grades appearing in each of your child’s classes.  Under lesson plans you should be able to see what activities your child is doing in class as well as when they have homework, quizzes, tests, and projects due.  I encourage you and your child to check ParentsWeb daily.  If you do not yet have access or are having trouble accessing ParentsWeb, please contact our Director of Technology, Ginnie Lodge, at virginia.lodge@conestogachristian.net  and she will assist you.

One of the keys to your child’s success is communication. With ParentsWeb we are trying to provide you with information that will enable you to work and communicate with your child for his/her success. However, if you have any questions or concerns about a class, please contact your child’s teacher before contacting me or Mr. Parris about a classroom concern or issue. If after talking with the teacher you still have a concern, then contact me.

One bit of advice someone gave me in the past is if I have a major concern about something, I should not email but instead should call or set up an appointment. Often, emotions or assumptions can be read into emails that were not intended by the one writing the email.  With conversation, there is opportunity to hear tone of voice, see body language (if conferencing in person), ask questions, give feedback, and more quickly and easily resolve an issue.

Over the next month we have several things happening here at CCS. If you haven’t done so already, mark your calendars for the following events:

September 23   NHS Induction

September 24 See You at the Pole

September 25 Picture Day

September 26 HS Leadership Retreat

October 15 PSAT/Stanford Achievement Test - Grades 9-11

October 17 CCS Chicken Barbecue

October 18 CCS Country Auction

On September 23 our NHS induction will be held at 7:00 p.m. in the multipurpose room. Join us and celebrate with our new inductees.

On September 24 at 7:30 a.m. students and teachers from all grades will gather in the gym to participate in the annual See You at the Pole event to pray for our world, nation, community, and school.  Parents, grandparents, pastors, and youth leaders are invited to join us.  While we do not have a flagpole outside of CCS, we do display it in our HS building as a recognition of the blessings God has given us as citizens of the United States. However, we also recognize that for Christians, our ultimate and eternal citizenship is not of this world but is in His kingdom.

For the high school Leadership Retreat on September 26, student leaders (chaplains, NHS members, and Student Council members) will travel off campus to study leadership and develop a project that benefits and serves the high school student body at CCS.

On October 20, West-Mont Christian Academy in Pottstown, PA, is sponsoring a college fair for juniors and seniors. More than twenty colleges will be represented. Students who wish to attend should see Mr. Greenly to sign up.  There will be limited space for this event so sign up today!

Cell Phone Policy

Periodically, I will send out policy reminders in my blog. Here is a policy reminder now that we are well into the school year. Please note that:

Students in grades 9-12 may have their cell phones on during lunch and after school only. High school students may receive and send text messages during lunch and after school; however, during classroom instructional time all high school students must have their cell phones turned off - not just silenced. With teacher permission, students may use their cell phones.

After school starts we should only see and/or hear phones during lunch unless a student asks his/her teacher or a staff member for permission and it is granted.  Students do not have permission to use cell phones during breaks unless they have permission from their teacher or a staff member. After 2:39 p.m., they may then again use their phone.

Also, for safety's sake, students are expected not to use their phones when they are walking in the parking lot during dismissal.

If students are found using their phones at an inappropriate time or their phones are heard at an inappropriate time, they will be asked to turn over their cell phones and they will be given to me.  When a teacher or staff member ask students for their phones, students are expected to honor the request without argument or complaint.  If students have an issue in regards to the phones, they should discuss the issue with me when they see me later that day.

Failure to follow these expectations will result in restricted phone use and/or availability while on campus. It may also result in a parent conference being required in order for a student to receive his/her phone back.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns regarding the school, please feel to contact me.

Randy Hepler

Five Days of School This Week!

Over the weekend, the CCS community received joyous news announcing the birth of Marcus David Garcia, the son of our MS and HS Spanish teacher, Mrs. Garcia. Marcus weighed in at a healthy 7 pounds 11 ounces. Congratulations to Mrs Garcia and her husband on the addition of Marcus to their family.

This past Friday, our high school students traveled to Berks Christian.  We will be seeking feedback from students concerning the trip but would also like your feedback as parents. Please anonymously share with us what you might have heard from your child in regards to the day by clicking on the link below:

HS Spiritual Emphasis Day Feedback

This week begins our first full week of school. In looking over ParentsWeb lesson plans, students are starting to have quizzes, tests, and some projects soon coming due. Remember that you can not only see your child's grades on RenWeb but also what they are doing in class as well as homework, quizzes, tests, and projects.

Later this month we have some exciting events happening:

September 23  NHS Induction

September 24 See You at the Pole

September 25 Picture Day

September 26 HS Leadership Retreat

On October 20th, West-Mont Christian Academy in Pottstown, PA, is sponsoring a college fair for juniors and seniors. There will be over twenty colleges present. Students who wish to attend should see Mr. Greenly to sign up.  There will be limited space for this event, so students should sign up today!

Finally, you may have heard recently about the spread of a new virus that seems to have started in the midwest and is heading east.  For your information there is a link below to an ABC news post about the virus.

New Mystery Virus

More information will follow in later blogs.  As always feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Entering Week 2

ENTERING WEEK 2

Not only are we entering week two of the school year, but we are entering the month of September and students should begin to get back into the routine of school. However, students may see the need to make schedule changes for which they should see Mr. Greenly, our new Director of Student Life, who is also serving as our high school guidance counselor.  Students have until next Wednesday, September 10, to make any schedule changes.

If you have any questions or concerns about any of your child’s classes, please contact his/her teachers. Our teachers are open and willing and want to be available to you to discuss your child and his/her classes. The easiest way to contact teachers is by e-mail.  You may find links to their e-mail addresses in ParentsWeb under the links for each of their classes.

As I mentioned in last week’s blog, this Friday, September 5, is Spiritual Emphasis Day.  The high school students will travel to Berks Christian for a Spiritual Emphasis Day with Tri-County Christian Schools (Berks, Conestoga, Westmont, and Covenant Christian will be joining us). The focus of the day is service and missions, encouraging students to serve in their communities and the world. The day will be similar to a college fair with individual charities, service  groups, and missions having booths or tables set up to present their organization. There will be a keynote speaker from Kensington which runs a mission out of one of the poorest sections of Philadelphia.

Students who are vocational, work study, or part-time students taking college courses should contact me to indicate whether or not they will be attending for the day.  If they choose not to attend, their absence will be excused.

If you have any questions about the event, please contact Mr. Greenly, CCS representative for the event, at jack.greenly@conestogachristian.net.

Last week our soccer team kicked off their season defeating both Hershey Christian and Johnstown Christian Schools. This week our JV and varsity volleyball teams kick off their season playing Berks Christian today at Berks with the JV starting at 4:00 p.m. and the varsity playing at 5:00 p.m. The varsity soccer team also plays at Berks at 4:00 pm. To see all of the teams’ schedules, go to  http://www.ccaconferencepa.org/g5-bin/client.cgi?G5genie=683&school_id=3.

Later this month we have some exciting events happening:

September 23 NHS Induction
September 24 See You at the Pole

September 25 Picture Day

September 26 HS Leadership Retreat

More information will follow in later blogs.  As always feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Randy Hepler