OFFICE OF THE SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS ARCHDIOCESE OF NEW YORK

1011 First Avenue,
NewYork, NewYork 10022
Phone: (212) 371-1000 Fax: (212) 758-3018

November 16, 2012

Dear Parents,
I hope this letter finds you and your family well and recovering from the effects of Hurricane Sandy. I apologize for the late notice of this communication which was delayed due to the storm. Please know our thoughts and prayers are with all of you.
I would like to take this opportunity to update you on developments in the implementation of our regionalization plan. The Boards of the new
pilot regions for the schools of the Archdiocese of New York, located in Rockland, Staten Island and the Northwest and South Bronx, are now fully operational. These Boards were created as part of the multi-year regionalization process which will align most parish elementary schools into geographic regions. As one of their most important tasks, the pilot boards, composed of both clergy and laity, have begun their comprehensive review of the current status and long term viability of the schools in their respective regions.
This review will include all relevant data, including enrollment, financial, academic and local demographics, allowing the Boards to make fully
informed and necessary decisions that will result in financially healthy schools. The Boards will also consider the best allocation of resources, with the goal of maintaining sustainable, local school options for every family who wishes a Catholic education.
In the non-pilot regions of the archdiocese, ad hoc "Reconfiguration Committees," composed of local clergy and members of the laity, have been appointed to mirror the evaluation process being done by the pilot Boards. The pastors serving as Chairman of the non-pilot Reconfiguration Committees are:

• Orange/Ulster/Sullivan -Rev. Thomas Byrnes, Sacred Heart in Monroe
• Northern Westchester/Putnam- Rev. Msgr. George Thompson, Saint Patrick in Bedford
• Central Westchester- Rev. Msgr. Dennis Keane, Annunciation in Crestwood
• Northeast/East Bronx- Rev. Stephen Norton, Saint Benedict
• Manhattan - Rev. Msgr. Lawrence Connaughton, Saint John the Martyr, Saint John Nepomucene
• Dutchess- Rev. Msgr. Francis Bellew, Saint Mary in Wappingers Falls

Their work on a Reconfiguration Committee is separate and distinct from application and approval for the non-pilot region Boards of Trustees. Candidates for all non-pilot Boards of Trustees will be vetted and approved in a separate process during the winter and spring of 2013.
Pilot region Boards and Reconfiguration Committees have respectively begun to analyze each school region and will continue their review through mid-November. Following the timeline of previous reconfiguration process for the schools of the archdiocese, any school identified as "at­ risk" for possible closure, after careful review by respective pilot region boards or Reconfiguration Committees, will be informed of their status in late November.
In addition, given the catastrophic effects of Hurricane Sandy on Staten Island, the Board of Trustees and the Office of the Superintendent of Schools for the Archdiocese of New York are engaging local pastors, principals, administrators and elected officials in continuing, in-depth discussions regarding how to best serve the needs of Catholic school families and students on Staten Island as we evaluate the original late November timeline for "at-risk" notification. The results of these ongoing local discussions will be announced shortly.
I remain deeply grateful to our parent community, which has demonstrated patience and a strong commitment to Catholic education during this rigorous and sometimes painful process. Your support, and that of our dedicated pastors, principals and teachers, is of the utmost importance to me and I am confident that regionalization will help to ensure that a Catholic education is available to any child that wishes one throughout the archdiocese.
I will, of course, keep you informed as the process unfolds, and invite you to visit the Superintendent of Schools websi.te: www.adnyeducation.org for up-to-date information.


Timothy J. McNiff, Ed.D. Superintendent of Schools

TWO HALF DAYS THIS WEEK - Please read carefully.


Report Card Day- Tuesday November 13th
Early Dismissal Day 12:00 NOON

Report Cards and Honors will be distributed by Fr. Antonio
at the following assemblies:

Grades 5-8 at 9:00 AM
Grades 1-4 at 9:30 AM

Kindergarten will be distributed in the classroom at
10:00 AM for parents wishing to attend.

Parent Teacher Conferences
2:00 PM - 7:00 PM - you are asked to please limit
your time talking to your child's teacher to approximately 10 minutes.
If there is a need to talk longer to your child's teacher ---- please
speak to the teacher about setting up a mutually agreeable time
to meet.
Grades 1-8 will meet in the school auditorium.
PreK and Kindergarten teachers will meet in their classrooms.
Mr. Woods will be in the school auditorium if there are
any questions.

Superintendent's Common Core State Standards Meeting -
November 15, 2012
Dismisissal at 11:00 AM
The meeting that was cancelled last week has been rescheduled
for Thursday November 15th.
Dismissal on Thursday will be at 11:00 AM to allow
time for the teacher's to travel to the training site.
After School Program will be in session that day and parents
who may need the After School Program for the day should see
Mrs. Resto in the tuition office.

Canned Food Drive
During November canned foods are being collected for
distribution by the Confirmation Class to the poor of the
parish.
Please try to send your donation in this week so that
they may be packed over the weekend as distribution will
be next week.


Tuesday - November 13th - Feast of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini
Dismissal at 12:00 noon
Report Card Day

Wednesday- Canned Foods

Thursday- Feast of St. Albert the Great
Dismissal at 11:00 AM
Superintendent's Conference on Common Core State Standards

Friday- Feast of St. Margaret of Scotland

Sunday- 12:00 noon Confirmation Class
1:00 PM - Mass for all students.

Class Picture Day - Tuesday
November 6, 2012
All students should be in full dress uniform for picture day.
Students may bring their gym uniform in a bag to change.







Tuition Suspension Day - Cancelled
Due to hurricane Sandy tuition suspension day is cancelled.
A reminder, though, that Report Cards are being
distributed on November 13th. No report card will be
distributed if there is an outstanding balance on the
tuition account from Smart tuition. Please check your
balance with Smart Tuition.

Early Dismissal Day Thursday November 8th ----------11:00 AM
This Thursday there is a Common Core Workshop scheduled for the teachers.
Dismissal on Thursday will be at 11:00 AM to give ample time for the
teachers to travel to the Workshop.
Parents in need of child care in the After School Program
should see Mrs. Resto in the tuition office or Mr. Placido, the
director of the After School Program.

Yearly Calendar Update
Mr. Woods is waiting for direction regarding the days that school
was closed by Mayor Bloomberg and the NYS Department of Education.
As soon as information is obtained and dates set it will be posted
here for parents.

Monday November 5, 2012
First Quarter ends today

Tuesday November 6, 2012 - Election Day
Group Picture Day - all students in full dress uniform.
Look as clean and polished as you did on the first
day of school.

Wednesday November 7, 2012
If you need the After School Program for Thursday please
see Mrs. Resto or Mr. Placido by today or call the office
at 212-567-3190

Thursday November 8, 2012 ----EARLY DISMISSAL DAY 11:00 AM

Friday November 9, 2012
TACHS exam for 8th grade students.

Saturday November 10, 2012
Mr. Woods will meet with parents regarding tuition from
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM.

Sunday November 11, 2012
No Classes today.
Mass at 1:00 PM for all students in sacramental program.
Parent Meetings regarding tuition 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Monday November 12, 2012 Veteran's Day
School Closed

SCHOOL CLOSINGS - Maybe - Maybe Not
In light of the storm this week parents and students are to be aware that
Our Lady Queen of Martyrs School will
only close when the New York City Public
schools close. There will be an IRIS alert sent immediately upon the announcement.
Parents are reminded to have their telephone numbers updated should they
change telephone numbers. Please call or see Alana on Sundays from
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM should you want your IRIS account changed.
Parents are to be aware that should school close the day must be
made up at a later time so that the school meets New York
State Education requirements of 176+4=180 school days.

Tuition Suspension Day---Monday ----November 5th
As mentioned on your tuition card that you received
in the mail during the summer there will be a
tuition suspension day on Monday November 5th.
All tuition should be up to date before that
date for your child to be permitted in class.
Mr. Woods will meet with parents who need an extension for tuition on
Saturday November 3rd from 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
and Sunday November 4th from 2:00 PM - 6:00 PM.
Parents are reminded to call SMART tuition before November 1st
or should see Mrs. Resto.
Letters will be sent home with your child on
Thursday November 1st if there is an outstanding tuition balance.
As a reminder to parents in the After School Program - payments
for the program are also due to SMART tuition for the program.

Class Picture Day
Class picture Day is Tuesday November 6th
All students should be in regular school uniform.
No gym clothes etc. so the class pictures are all the same.

Monday - October 28th
School Closed - Hurricane Sandy hits NYC

Tuesday - October 29th
School Closed - Hurricane Sandy hits NYC

Wednesday - Halloween October 31st
School Closed - Clean up after Hurricane Sandy

Thursday - November 1st
Feast of All Saints - Holyday of Obligation
Mass at 9:00 AM led by the students of the
7th grade. Students are to be in uniform.
Tuition Suspension letters will be sent home.
Calendars for November will be sent home.

Friday - November 2nd---Feast of All Souls

Saturday- November 3rd--Feast of St. Martin de Porres
Tuition meetings with Mr. Woods 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Sunday --November 4th
12:00 noon- Reconciliation Class
1:00 PM - Mass for all students in sacramental program.
2:00 PM - 6:00 PM - Tuition meetings with Mr. Woods

This week is National Chemistry Week
parents seeking activties
to do with their child this week may log on to
www.acs.org.
Under the tab Education you can find
Activities for Kids.

Catholic School Value Survey
A Catholic School Values template has
been developed by St. John's University
to assist Catholic Schools in understanding
their role in education today. If you would
like to be able to voice your choices on the
values you see and experience here at
OLQM please send an e-mail to Mr. Woods at
olqm1@aol.com. Mr. Woods will forward you the
questionnaire that you should return either
by e-mail or in hard copy to Alba in the
school office. At the end of the month Mr. Woods
will publish the results here on the blog.

Safe Environment Curriculum
Dear Parents,
Our Catholic tradition has always affirmed the
dignity of the human person as created in the image
and likeness of God. Every person with whom we come
in contact deserves to be seen by us with th eyes of
God. We know that ministry with children and youth,
in particular, is a sacred trust. We, at Our Lady
Queen of Martyrs School are committed to preserve,
at all times and in all places, this sacred trust
which is rooted in our faith in Jesus Christ.
In 2002, the United States Bishops approved
The Charter for the Protection of Children and
Young People in an effort to protect children
and youth from sexual abuse at ;all levels of
church life and to restore trust in a Church
scarred by the scandal of clergy and sexual
abuse. Article 12 of the charter directs all
dioceses to create programs and processes
to teach children and youth about sexual abuse
and prevention. In the Archdiocese of New York,
this training will be integrated this week.
October 22nd-October 26th into the religious
education program in our school.
We thank you for your support and interest
as we partner to give our children the safest
possible environment to grow in faith, in
our parish, school and in our homes.


Progress Reports
Progress Reports were sent home with
your child on Friday October 19th.
All children received a Progress Report.
It was printed on yellow paper.
Look for it in your child's book bag.

Halloween 2012
The annual PreK and Kindergarten Halloween parade
will take place on Halloween October 31st.
Parents are invited to join in the celebration.
Parents are requested to check with their child's
teacher regarding classroom Halloween celebrations.

Unit I Exams Grades K-8
Unit I exams will be administered to students
in grades K-8 this week.
Wednesday October 24th - Reading & Mathematics
Thursday October 25th - Social Studies and ELA
Friday October 26th - Science and Religion.
Exams are based on the weekly quizzes along with
essays that require application of knowledge
learned during the past 6 weeks.

Sacrament of Baptism
There are presently four students enrolled
to receive the Sacrament of Baptism.
This is a final reminder that parents wishing to
have their child Baptized should see either
Fr. Antonio or Mr. Woods.

Monday - October 22nd
Have you requested a Catholic Schools
Value Survey from Mr. Woods at
olqm1@aol.com

Tuesday- October 23rd
Feast of St. John Capistrano
World Astronomy Day

Wednesday- October 25th
Feast of St. Anthony Mary Claret
United Nations Day
Unit Exams Reading and Mathematics

Thursday- October 26th
Unit Exams - Social Studies and ELA

Friday- October 27th
Unit Exams- Science and Religion
Rowland Reading Coach (Superkids)
will be in PreK, Kindergarten,
First and Second grade classrooms today.

Earth Science Week and Science Fair
Earth Science Week takes on an important
theme this year as the focus of the school
and district Science Fairs this year is
Earth Science. Parents wishing to assist
their child in the development of a Science Fair
project may visit the web sit at the bottom
of the logo to the left.

Progress Reports
Progress Reports will be sent home on
Friday with every child in the school.
Parents should address any academic area
where there is mark below 60.
Appointments may be made with Alba in the
office or by calling 212-567-3190.
Parents wishing to receive the login in and
password for their child's gradebook on the
student information system (SIS) should see
Alana on Sundays from 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM.

School Value Survey
A Catholic School Values template has
been developed by St. John's University
to assist Catholic Schools in understanding
their role in education today. If you would
like to be able to voice your choices on the
values you see and experience here at
OLQM please send an e-mail to Mr. Woods at
olqm1@aol.com. Mr. Woods will forward you the
questionnaire that you should return either
by e-mail or in hard copy to Alba in the
school office. At the end of the month Mr. Woods
will publish the results here on the blog.

IRIS Testing
The IRIS alert system will be tested on
October 29th during the day. The main office
of the Archdiocese will test the system and
you will receive the alert sometime during the
day.

Unit One Exams
Unit One exams will be administered
Monday October 22nd- Science and Religion
Tuesday October 23rd - Social Studies and ELA
Wednesday October 24th - Reading and Mathematics
The exams will cover the material from the
weekly quizzes along with analysis, word problem
along with complex reasoning questions as recommended
by the Common Core State Standards.

New York City Department of Health Screening
To say the least it was amazing to see the results
of the screening for vision by the Department of Health.
Over 1/2 of students in grades Kindergarten, Grades 1
and Grade 2 are in need of glasses.
School success in all subject areas can only
be accomplished if the student can see what is
on the Smartboard, what is in their textbooks,
what the teacher is pointing to on a chart.
It is utterly unacceptable that a parent would
just think to remark --"... move my child to the
front of the classroom or closer to the teacher.;.."
will enable them to see.
Please address the letters sent home with an
ophthalmologist as soon as possible.

Monday October 15th- Feast of St. Teresa of Avila
Unit I Week VI
ITBS labels etc put on test answer sheets.
Grade 5 - CoGat Testing

Tuesday October 16th -
ITBS-- READING

Wednesday October 15th
Feast of St. Ignatius of Antioch
8th grade parent meeting regarding
High School Application Process
7:00 PM - Mr. Placido's room.
ITBS - Listening and Written Expression

Thursday- October 16th
Feast of St. Luke
ITBS Grades 1 and 2 Language

Friday - October 19th
Early Dismissal Day 12:00 noon
Faculty meeting
Progress Reports will be distributed
to all students by Fr. Antonio.

Sunday - October 21st
Parish Flea Market in auditorium
12:00 - Communion Class
1:00 PM - Mass for all students.

October 11th is the
50th anniversary of Vatican Council II
and the beginning of Pope Benedict's call
for us to begin a Year of Faith to explore,
examine and study our faith more deeply.
Students will explore different topics in
religion classes to have them understand the
Holy Father's call to discover their faith
more fully.


ITBS Testing Grades 1-8

ITBS testing begins this week. Students
should go to bed early each night and
have a full breakfast each morning during
the testing period. Since the test this year
is new and based on the Common Core Curriculum
students may struggle with some of the
new components of the test. The ITBS is a
diagnostic tool that the schools of the
Archdiocese use to improve education. It is
NOT an IQ test but a tool to assist educators
on needs of students individually and as a
class group.
Parents are requested NOT to stress their children
over these tests but remind them to do the best they
can and to concentrate during the test.
Parents can assist in grades 3-8 by having their child
review the multiplication tables if they are still
struggling with them, read non-fiction books like
they do in class and ask them questions about their
reading.

Smart Tuition
Mrs. Resto will now handle all Smart Tuition
inquiries. Mrs. Resto is in her office from
7:30 AM - 3:00 PM.
The school office will no longer be open on
Saturdays as the parent response for assistance
does not warrant staffing the office. All
inquiries should be done on
Sundays from 10:00 AM until 4:00 PM.

Candy Bars for Fund Raising
Candy bars are available in the tuition
office to assist parents in their
fund raising. Please check with Mrs. Resto.

IRIS Testing
This month the IRIS system will be tested
during the day. This is a test to see if
you would receive a message from the school
in the event of a school emergency.
Further information will be made available as
to the date etc.
Parents are requested to notify the office
if emergency numbers change.


Monday - October 8th
SCHOOL CLOSED

Tuesday - October 9th
ITBS grids filled in etc.
Students will need at least
three number 2 pencils.
No testing today just paperwork
completed.

Wednesday - October 10th
Fireman Bill will be here to talk
to students about Fire Safety as part of
Fire Prevention Week.

ITBS Testing Grades 1-8
Mathematics Parts I & II
Grade 5 ONLY - Mathematics Computation


Thursday - October 11th
NO ITBS testing today
Year of Faith begins

Friday-October 12th
Feast of St. Wilfred
Map a Month due
Vision and Hearing Screening by
the New York Health Department
ITBS testing Grades 1-8
Vocabulary, Spelling, Capitalization, Punctuation
Mathematics Computation.
Grade 5 ONLY - CoGat testing

Sunday October 14th
Confirmation Class 12:00 noon

Mass for all students in sacramental
program 1:00 PM

SIS passwords etc. will be distributed
from 10:00AM - 4:00PM by Alana in office.