Dear St. Francis de Sales Catholic Academy Families,

As we enter the fifth week of Lent, we continue to reflect on the themes of renewal, compassion, and preparation—both spiritually and academically. Our students are working diligently as they prepare for the upcoming New York State exams, and we’re proud of their efforts and focus during this important time.

This week in recognition of Autism Awareness Month, we will be hosting a special assembly for Grades 3–8 in partnership with the Brooklyn Autism Center on Friday 4/11. This meaningful event, much like the impactful assemblies held in April 2022, will help foster a deeper understanding of autism while promoting inclusion and empathy within our school community.

Lastly, we want to wish the best of luck to all those attending and supporting our annual Card Party—thank you for helping make it such a special tradition at St. Francis de Sales Catholic Academy!

Have a great week,

Dr. Scharbach

Principal

All families are asked to register for the Egg Hunt in advance via this form

We were made aware last week from the Diocesan leadership that there are new VIRTUS trainings that must be completed each year (see below for more information) for anyone volunteering in our school and in the parishes. If you plan to volunteer in any capacity, please ensure you have completed this mandatory training. Thank you for your attention to this important requirement.

When we return from Easter Recess, the New York State English Language Arts (ELA) (Grades 4,6, and 7) on April 30th and May 1st, Science (Grades 5 and 8) on May 12, and Mathematics (Grades 4,6, and 7) on May 7th and 8th Tests will be administered to students .The computer-based test will have the same questions as the paper version but students will take the test on their Chromebooks. Below you will find a summary of the changes that were made to the English Language Arts and Mathematics Tests over the past few years.

• Fewer testing sessions. Four years ago, the ELA and Math Tests were reduced from three test sessions per subject to only two sessions per subject, meaning each subject will have two days of testing instead of three. With fewer test sessions, each test will have fewer questions than in past years, lessening test fatigue for students and better enabling them to demonstrate what they know and are able to do.

• The tests continue to be untimed so students who are still working on their exams will be allowed to continue to work, within the confines of the regular school day.

• Test questions reviewed and written by New York State Teachers. Hundreds of New York State educators were involved in creating and reviewing questions for the 2025 ELA and Math Tests and selecting the questions for the test forms.

Our school has partnered with Hallow, the #1 Catholic prayer platform to provide Hallow as a resource to strengthen both the mental and spiritual health of the school community.

Hallow contains over 10,000 audio-guided prayers spanning from quick minute meditations to entire holy hours, dozens of music albums and ‘praylists,’ and everything in between. The app is specifically designed to offer something for everyone, and in the classroom we’ll use Hallow to help our religion classes.

Through the school's partnership, you have the option to create an account on behalf of your student to access everything on the platform, including hundreds of prayers specifically designed for Kids, Teens, and Families. Pray along on evenings and weekends!

1. Go to https://access.hallow.com/redeem/code

2. Enter the following promo code: StFrancisdeSalesNYstudents2425

Any issues please let us know.

We are looking forward to our Passion Play on Tuesday, April 15th at 1:30pm where many of our 7th grade students reenact the solemn events that occurred through Jesus’s journey towards death and resurrection. All parents of the 7th graders who are in this year’s Passion Play are invited to join us and watch their child’s performance.

Just a reminder as we continue into the third trimester, please make sure that you are sending your child(ren) in with a written absence note/doctor’s note when they return to school after being out sick. If your child is on a Buddy Day, documentation from the school visited is required. Calling the main office to let us know is great, but a paper trail of sorts is also required by law.

The Graduating Class of 2025 will be organizing a fun night for our Kindergarten through 3rd-grade students. This SFDSCA 8th Grade Babysitting Night allows you to enjoy two hours and 15 minutes kid-free on Thursday May 1st 2024 from 5:45 pm-8pm. Open to kids Kindergarten- 3rd grade. This opportunity is open to SFDSCA families ONLY. This will only be open to the first 150 students.

Your kids will be supervised by school staff, 8th-grade students, and 8th-grade parent volunteers (VIRTUS trained). Children will be treated to a movie, games, crafts, and organized sports and activities. We will provide the children with a snack (drinks and chips, etc.). Please be sure your child has dinner prior to coming.

The fee is $20 for the first child and for each additional child is $5. Please submit the form below and send in payment separately to the main office. in an envelope marked “8th Grade Babysitting Night”.

Please RSVP BY April 18th. We cannot accept registration after the 8th for planning reasons. You will NOT be able to register the night of the event.

As we journey through Lent and Easter, our 3rd-8th grade students will participate in a special retreat centered on the theme "Opening the Door with Kindness." This retreat will offer students a meaningful opportunity to reflect on the power of kindness in their daily lives and how small acts of love can bring us closer to Christ. Through prayer, discussion, and interactive activities, they will explore ways to open their hearts to others, just as Jesus calls us to do. We look forward to this time of spiritual growth as we prepare for Easter. Our next retreat will be for our 5th grade on Wednesday 4/9, and on Friday 5/2 for our 7th graders.

Futures in Education is proud to provide partial tuition assistance for families demonstrating financial need, and who meet eligibility requirements, to attend a Catholic academy or school in Brooklyn or Queens. We are also a proud partner with Children’s Scholarship Fund, which administers the Teddy J. Forstmann and Bishop’s Scholarship programs.

Families requesting tuition assistance must complete a financial aid application with Futures in Education through our third-party vendor, FACTS AND submit supporting documentation, which will be used to verify all application responses.

Families can visit the Futures’ website at: https://futuresineducation.org/scholarships/ to apply.

Priority awarding and other important information:

• April 30, 2025 – Priority awarding for all applications completed by this date.
• Awarding will begin May 1st and will continue on a rolling basis for eligible families until funding is exhausted.
• Returning parents should log into their existing Facts account to reapply using the email they used in the previous year.
• New families (and anyone not previously awarded) should apply with the link above.

Important: Teddy Forstmann Applications Open in February! (This is for returning Teddy Forstmann students only).

• Students who received a Teddy Forstmann award in previous years must only apply with Childrens Scholarship Fund (CSF).
• CSF will send emails directly to returning TF families in February with a link inviting them to re-apply.
• Teddy Forstmann families should NOT apply through Futures/FACTS and must not have two applications.

PDHP is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83080641921

Meeting ID: 830 8064 1921

The NYC Department of Education (DOE) has released the Parent Letter of Intent (Found below) for the 2025–2026 school year. You may have already received this letter via email from the DOE. This document is critical to ensure that your child receives the necessary services without delay. We are urging all parents to submit this letter as soon as possible to avoid any interruptions in services.

This year PNIs will only be accepted from parents or attorneys with a signed confidentiality release. PNIs submitted by schools or other entities will not be accepted.

What You Need to Do:

• Submit the signed PNI before June 1, 2025.

• Parents are asked to CC the school at mbuckley@stfrancisschoolbh.net for help in tracking to make sure all families are in compliance. If you have already submitted the PNI please the school at mbuckley@stfrancisschoolbh.net.

How to Submit:

• Email the signed PNI to your CSE Office at CSE4PNI@schools.nyc.gov

or

• Mail/Drop Off the signed PNI to your CSE Office at 82‐01 Rockaway Boulevard. 2nd Floor Ozone Park, New York 11416

CSE Confirmation:

You will receive written confirmation once your PNI is received.

Important Deadlines:

• The DOE has established a strict deadline of June 1, 2025. Letters submitted after this date will result in your child being ineligible for services until the following school year.

• Eighth-grade families: Please ensure you indicate the high school your child will attend. Even if your child is considering public school, submitting the Letter of Intent will preserve options for private or Catholic high schools.

• Pre-K families: If your child is entering kindergarten, you must also submit this letter.

We have seen the significant impact of delayed submissions this past year, and it is imperative that we meet this deadline to ensure there is no disruption in services for our students.

Thank you for your cooperation. If you have any questions or require assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me at mbuckley@stfrancisschoolbh.net

Come and see our brand new online school store. We have some great items with our school name and Franny, our Mascot.

Choose your own designs! These are great items to wear on dress-down days, weekends, Blue and Gold Day, or just around the house.

Great brands (Nike, North Face, Under Armor, Puma, and more) and great quality. All orders are shipped directly to your home.

Pease note the DOE Caregiver App is part of the OPT Modernization efforts that will provide families, schools, and administrators with the real-time location of the child’s school bus. New York City Student App (NYCSA) access will allow parents to see their child's transportation services and access the new NYCPS Caregiver App (Available in the Apple or Google Play store). Eligible parents/guardians must create or update their NYC Schools Account (NYCSA) https://www.schoolsaccount.nyc/ to access the Caregiver App, the NYCSA username and password will be used for both applications. Please note you must use the email address that is linked to OPT. If this email needs to be changed please let the main office know. Please note it will take 2-3 business days for the change to go in effect.

Any questions or issues please email Mrs. Kenny at ckenny@stfrancisschoolbh.net

This year St. Francis de Sales Catholic Academy breaks for Easter Recess starting on Wednesday, April 16th and returns from break on Monday, April 28th

Students are invited to dress down in Red, White, and Blue on Monday 4/28 for just $1!
All proceeds will go to support the Timmy Klein Foundation 💙❤️🤍

🚫 Please note: NO SHORTS are permitted.

Thank you for helping us support this important cause while showing your patriotic spirit! 🇺🇸

Starting on Monday, May 12th students can begin to wear their summer uniforms. This is just a reminder if anyone needs to purchase summer uniforms you should think of ordering them soon.

Please save the date for Friday, May 16th for this year’s Sweetheart Dance. This will be an opportunity for the girls of our school to have their Sweetheart (Dad, Uncle, Grandfather, etc) join them for a special night out.

Please save the date of Friday, May 30th for our annual Msgr. Geraghty Golf and Tennis outing. This is a great day to get out on the course and courts to support our great Academy. Tickets and Sponsorships are on sale now by clicking on the link below.

🎉⚾️ SAVE THE DATE: SFDSCA School Spirit Night at the Brooklyn Cyclones! ⚾️🎉

On Wednesday, June 25th, 2025, St. Francis de Sales Catholic Academy is hosting a SCHOOL SPIRIT EVENT at Maimonides Park during the Brooklyn Cyclones game! The Cyclones will be taking on the Jersey Shore Blue Claws, with first pitch at 6:40 PM and gates opening at 5:30 PM.

👕🎓 Students, faculty, staff, families, and friends of SFDSCA are all invited to join us for a night of baseball, fun, and school spirit!

🎟️ Tickets are only $20 EACH!
➡️ For every ticket purchased, $2 goes back to support St. Francis de Sales Catholic Academy!

💥 Want to upgrade your experience? Choose the $25 ticket option, which includes a Dr. Chris Scharbach and Mr. John O'Brien Bobblehead—part of the Brooklyn Cyclones Catholic Schools Night celebration!

🧢 PLUS: Everyone in attendance will receive a FREE Brooklyn Cyclones hat!

If you have any questions about the event, feel free to reach out to Helen Endall at (718) 634-2775 or via email at hendall@stfrancisschoolbh.net.

🎟️ To purchase tickets, please click the link below:
👉 https://www.gofevo.com/event/Stfranciscsn

Let’s pack the park with SFDS blue and gold spirit! 💙💛

St. Francis de Sales Catholic Academy

Principal: Dr. Christopher Scharbach

Asst. Principal: Mrs. Maureen Hayes

Email: admin@stfrancisschoolbh.net
Website: https://stfrancisacademybh.org/
Location: 219 Beach 129 Street Belle Harbor, NY 11694
Phone: (718) 634-2775
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SFDSCA