Crusader Newsletter
October 23, 2026
All families must sign up for parent-teacher conferences, October 28 & 29!
Beyond the Report Card: Growing Saints and Scholars
At St. Louis Academy, some of our most important lessons never appear on a report card!
Every day, our Crusaders are learning skills that extend far beyond reading, writing, and mathematics. They're learning to shake hands confidently, look someone in the eye, work through disagreements, take responsibility for mistakes, and recognize when someone needs a helping hand.
These seemingly small moments are intentional. If you watch the news, scroll social media, or listen to the radio, no matter your political affiliation, you know these skills are what the world needs to become a more peaceful and loving place for future generations. Catholic education challenges us to develop not only strong minds but also compassionate hearts, confident leaders, and faithful disciples of Christ.
Here's a challenge for our families and parishioners this week: When you see one of our students after Mass or around the community, ask them, "What's something you've learned at school that wasn't on a test?" Their answers might surprise you!
As we begin another quarter, we're reminded that education is about more than what students know. It's about who they're becoming.
Every Student Grows. Every Adult Contributes. And our parish family is part of that mission!
Safety Committee News
Committee Mtg Notes 10/08/2026
- EVERYONE visiting the school during school hours- whether there to volunteer in classrooms, during recess, to set up for an event, etc, MUST sign in at the front desk and get a visitor's sticker.
- If you want to volunteer this year to help for any HASA events, to volunteer in your child's classroom, or to chaperone for field trips, you must have the new extended background check. This new process takes several days, sometimes up to a couple weeks. You also have to have your past addresses, which may take you some time to gather. For all these reasons, if you plan to volunteer at SLA, please don't hesitate to reach out to Miss Angie at abraun@stlouisacademy.org, so you can begin the safe environment process as soon as possible.
- Last week, Father Sam and I attended the Fall Diocesan Pastor and Principal Meeting. Our focus was safety. We were given the scenario (posted below) and asked to brainstorm what we would do in this situation if it were to happen at St. Louis Academy. Then we were asked to share with others our plan. I brought it in front of our SLA Safety Committee because I wanted to know their interpretation of this scenario and plan regarding this situation, and I wanted to share what we were suggested to do according to the diocesan policy that exists for situations such as this.
- Please see the three-page letter below created by Bishop Rhoades, which has been included in this newsletter since the letter's creation in May 2025. Bishop believed such a policy was needed to create a zero-tolerance approach to materials that contain children (minors, 18 years or under) involved in inappropriate images, photos or videos. Specifically, on page 2 the policy says,
1) Knowingly or intentionally sending, displaying, possessing, accessing, uploading, downloading or distributing immoral, pornographic, obscene or sexually explicit materials, messages or pictures of individuals under the age of 18 through the use of written material, the intent, digital or "PDA" device, cellular telephone or through the use of an artificial intelligence medium will be deemed a violation of the Diocesan Educational Policies.
2) A violation in #1 above shall be deemed to occur whether the impermissible conduct occurs on school grounds or is found to have occurred off campus.
3) A principal having belief that a violation of #1 has occurred shall immediately report such violation to the Indiana Department of Childhood Services and/or local law enforcement.
4) A principal having belief that a violation of #1 has occurred shall report such violation, together with any findings, to the Superintendent of Schools who, in turn, shall report such incident to the Vicar General who will relay the information to the Bishop.
5) The Bishop may then choose to seek the advice of the Diocesan Review Board, a consultative board which assists the Bishop regarding claims of sexual abuse. If a determination and finding is made that knowing or intentional violation of #1 has occurred, the student shall be expelled from school with no right of re-entry. If a determination is made that the facts do not support a knowing or intentional violation of #1, the Bishop, in consultation with the school principal and pastor (as applicable), shall determine the consequence, if any, as provided in the Diocesan Education Policies.
6) The determination of expulsion or other discipline pursuant to #5 above shall be final and not subject to any appeal.
- I am not sure how many of you have ever read this policy. It is VERY high-stakes, and such a policy, if broken, could greatly impact the future of your child. It was suggested by the Safety Committee to hold a parent info night around this policy. The tentative date for this night is NOVEMBER 19. Please mark your calendar and plan to attend this event. This is an event for at least one parent from each family. If possible, we'd like you to bring your student(s) in grade 5-8, and any child as young as grade 3 if he or she has a cell phone.
From the Bishop's Office- Diocesan Educational Policy re: Pornography
Links for Pornography and our Youth
From the Bulletin
Please plan to attend these amazing opportunities at St. Louis Besancon Parish!
Summer 2027 CYSC Links:
High School Great Lakes Session 4: June 27-July 2
Middle School Great Lakes Session 6: July 11-16 (Fr. Sam will be there that week)
Code: LOUISHAVEN27
Reservation ends at the end of October!!
Partnering with Crosswinds for 2026/27
We are thankful to partner with Crosswinds Counseling once again this year. Parents can complete a consent form at the link below, or print off the form below, complete, and send to school with your child. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1F5bYMcIMwkn3p9QS00ehBioV7XCA8cGo/view?usp=sharing
If you have any questions about Crosswinds Counseling, please reach out to your child's teacher or Principal Diller.
🎡 HASA News 🎶
🏅Crusader Athletics 🏐
Please make sure your child has his/her 1) physical, 2) code of conduct, and 3) consent form completed and on file in the office. All three items must be on file before a child may begin practice. Also make sure your child's coach has your email address to connect you with TeamSnap, our athletic communication platform.
If you have any questions, or missed the parent information night on Wednesday, please reach out to our Athletic Director, Jim Hale, at athletics@stlouisacademy.org, with questions about our upcoming basketball season.
2027/2028 Athletic Committee Openings
At the end of this school year, our Athletic Director, Jim Hale, and our Athletic Committee Finance Chair, Joe Wharton, will be completing their terms. If you are a candidate for one of these two roles, or if you have someone in mind that I should personally reach out to, please contact me at vdiller@stlouisacademy.org. Thank you!
Handbook Reminders & Updates:
Homework due to Vacation and Attendance
Homework due to Vacations/Planned Absences
The school calendar provides for extended weekends and breaks throughout the school year. Parents are encouraged to schedule trips or family outings during these times so as to eliminate the need to interrupt a child’s learning process. Missed assignments are the student’s responsibility. Teachers are not required to give make-up tests or assignments in advance for absences due to vacations. Please do not ask the teacher to make an exception or offer payment for homework given in advance of an absence.
Homework Policy Due to Illness
When a student is absent for three or more days, a parent may call the school office before 9:30 AM to arrange for homework assignments. Homework assignments may be picked up at the school office between 2:00-3:15 PM. Students may also receive missed assignments from their teacher when they return to school. Students will be allowed one day for each day of absence due to illness. For example, a student who was absent three days should be given three school days to complete the missed work.
Arrangements for regular classroom tests missed because of an absence are to be made with the individual teachers. These tests must be taken within one week of the original test date. Due to the educational advantage of returning graded tests to students in a timely manner, some missed tests may not be made up. Absence During the School Day Students needing medical appointments during school hours require a written note by the parent. Parents are required to sign out their child. If the child returns to school during the same school day, he/she must be signed back into school in the office. Students who are away from school for an appointment for 3 ½ hours or more will be counted as absent for ½ a day. Three (3) early withdrawals each of which are less than 3 ½ hours are considered a one-half day absence. Students who are tardy more than 8 times a quarter may result in a parent meeting with the principal. Due to compulsory attendance requirements, excessive tardiness (totaling more than 20 in a school year) may result in a student needing to be retained and to repeat the school year. Excessive absence of 12 days or the equivalent of days absent combined with total tardies may cause a student to be retained in the current grade for another year unless waived by the principal. Families of students with continued and excessive absences and tardies without serious reason (exceeding 5 a quarter) will be contacted by the principal, and a conference may be called to discuss the matter.
UPDATE TO THE HANDBOOK, 10/02/2006:
Lunch and Cafeteria Guidelines
(Underlined and bold sentences indicate handbook change.) Students who bring lunch from home should bring food that is ready to eat or can be kept at an appropriate temperature in an insulated lunch container or thermos. Microwaves are not available in the cafeteria for student use, and school staff are unable to heat or prepare individual student lunches. Lunch monitors are responsible for actively supervising students throughout the lunch period and must remain in the cafeteria to ensure appropriate and safe supervision at all times. Parents are asked to plan accordingly when packing lunches.
When packing lunches, students should not bring glass bottles, soft drinks, or excessive amounts of chips or candy. Parents are not permitted to bring or have delivered lunches or drinks from carry-out restaurants. If a student forgets a packed lunch at home, a parent may bring the forgotten lunch to the school office.
School lunches are to be paid for in advance. Any unpaid cafeteria balances at the end of the school year will result in grade cards being held until the balance is resolved. Milk is available for students each day.
Students are expected to demonstrate appropriate manners and behavior in the cafeteria and to follow the directions of lunch monitors. These expectations help us maintain a safe, orderly, and enjoyable lunch period for all students.
Questions regarding school lunches, cafeteria accounts, or other cafeteria procedures may be directed to cafeteria@stlouisacademy.org.
This can be found on page 23 of the handbook HERE.
Courtesy Reminders
Some reminders on our Uniform Policy:
The following Uniform Policies have already been broken by several students, so I wanted to bring them to your attention, parents, to assist in rectifying them asap.
Thank you for your attention to this matter!
*** Girls (K-8)***
False nails are not permitted. No dark nail polish.
Hair: Hair should be clean and combed, and hairstyles must be appropriate. Dyed, streaked, highlighted, or tinted hair is not permitted - no extreme styles. No tinsel, beads, or other inserts are permitted to be worn in the hair at school.
Shoes: Gym/tennis shoes with laces are required. HeyDudes with laces are permitted with normal shoe lining (no fur) and full backs. Separate gym shoes are to be kept at school for students in Grades 3-8, and used only in gym classes. HeyDudes are not permitted for gym class.
Makeup: Girls only may wear the following: clear lip gloss and clear or light pink nail polish. These are not permitted: Heavy foundation, blushes, eye makeup of any kind (mascara, eye shadow, eyeliner, etc.), dark lipsticks, or dark nail polish.
*** Boys (K-8)***
Undershirts: All t-shirts worn beneath school shirts must be plain white.
Hair: Should be clean and combed. Dyed, streaked, highlighted, or tinted hair is not permitted - no extreme styles. Hair should be above the collar. No ponytails. No lines or designs may be cut into the hair.
UNIFORMS: The uniform policy HAS NOT CHANGED for the upcoming year. I believe we had an exceptional year last year with uniforms and I believe this coming year will be even better, thanks to you parents! You are aware of what the students can and cannot wear because you read the policy, and if your child is out of uniform, you are understanding when you are notified and the clothing or hair is corrected. This eliminates the wasted time of reminders or having to call home, and provides more time to do what we are here to do- teach. If you have any questions on the uniform, please feel free to email me at vdiller@stlouisacademy.org. It's better to confirm before you buy.
**Our weekly Spirit Wear Day, where students can wear spirit shirts with their uniform shorts or pants, is still every Wednesday.
PARENT RECESS HELPERS: We have changed the timelines for lunch and recess, and there will be much less overlap of grades, particularly for the older students. However, we could always use additional recess monitors. If you are willing to help out once a month, once a week, or an alternative, we must ensure all your safe environment protocols are up to date. We will have a sign-up sheet for volunteers at Back to School Night and will confirm from that list, or you can see Miss Angie, our school secretary, as soon as we begin school to ensure you are caught up.
SAFE ENVIRONMENT: The diocese put into place more strict guidelines on who receives safe environment screening, and who has to receive a more advanced screening. If you plan to drive for a field trip, volunteer in a classroom, help at recess, or do anything else with your child in any capacity at St. Louis Academy, we need to ensure your safe environment protocols are up to date. If you've never volunteered and are eager to help this year, please see Miss Angie, our school secretary, as soon as we begin school to start the process. Any volunteering for the school is greatly appreciated!
SEATS STILL AVAILABLE IN SOME CLASSROOMS: Some classrooms are at capacity but some of our classrooms still have open seats. As of right now, our enrollment is lower than last year. If you know a family who would add to our already amazing community, who may be looking for a change, or looking for a school for the first time, please encourage them to reach out to me for a tour!
Parent Resources
***Safe Environment Student Training***
Safe environment training for students will be happening during the month of November. Safety and the well-being of our students is a primary concern for us. If you don't want your child to participate, please fill out this form: Safe Environment Refusal
Classroom Newsletter Links
*Reminder, if you have any questions or concerns, please follow the proper procedure and go to your child's classroom teacher FIRST. If the concern does not get resolved or the question is still unanswered, please go to Principal Diller. If you are still unsatisfied, please go to Father Sam Anderson. Father Sam Anderson has the final word on all matters of the parish and school.
📆 Upcoming Events
*Grades 3-8 ILEARN Checkpoint 1 Window, October 12-15
*Reunification Drill, Early Dismissal (1PM), Friday, October 16
*NO SCHOOL- Fall Break, Monday & Tuesday, October 19 & 20
Reunification Drill Directions- October 16
*2026/2027 School Calendar*
*Some dates subject to change*
