Athletics Interest Meetings
Girls’ Basketball: There will be a girls’ basketball interest meeting held immediately after school today in room 301 with our newly-hired girls’ basketball coach.
Girls’ Volleyball: There will be a girls’ volleyball interest meeting held tomorrow at 5:30 PM in the gym with our newly-hired girls’ volleyball coach.
Boys’ Basketball: There will be a boys’ basketball interest meeting held immediately after school this Thursday with our boys’ basketball coach.
Parents of interested athletes are encouraged to attend these meetings. For questions regarding athletics, email Mr. Howell, Athletic Director, directly at thowell@weareuca.org.
Cell Phone, Dress Code, Food Ordering, and Attendance Policies Reminders
As a reminder from Parent Orientation, if a student is found using their cell phone (or electronic watch, earphones, etc.) during the school day (with the exception of lunch only), it will be confiscated and kept in the Dean of Students’ office until dismissal. Additionally, the student will serve a consequence for the infraction.
Thank you for your partnership in ensuring your student is in alignment with UCA’s dress code policy before leaving your home. If you want to review the dress code policy at any time, visit pages 24-25 of the Community Handbook (always accessible to you on this website under the Current Families tab).
As a reminder, neither students nor parents are allowed to order food via a delivery service (UberEats, DoorDash, etc.) during the school day. If a driver attempts to deliver food, it will be turned away. Related to this, parents are no longer allowed to bring in food/treats to be shared with other students for their child’s birthday. Thank you for complying with this protocol amendment as we endeavor to keep all students safe.
All attendance policies are in effect and have been since last Thursday. You may re-visit pages 18-21 of the Community Handbook for a reminder of attendance policies.
If you have any questions regarding matters of Student Conduct & Discipline, please email Mr. Howell, Dean of Students, directly at thowell@weareuca.org.
Please return all documents in the “Parent Forms to Sign & Return” packet to Ms. Grant by no later than next Wednesday, August 31.
All School Outing: Shrek at Marcus Theater
On Friday, September 2, UCA will take all students on an outing to Marcus Theater in Country Club Hills to watch Shrek (2001) in a rented theater. This is a Community Life outing that is designed to foster fellowship and bonding amongst the student body.
This event is at cost to UCA families. Ticket admission is $8/student. If your student desires to purchase concessions, it will be at their own expense above the $8 ticket price. UCA lunch will be held on campus prior to boarding the bus.
Students should arrive at the normal Friday time between 9-9:25 AM. Deeper Learning Block will be held that morning. At 12 noon, we will load up the bus and travel to Marcus Theater. Students will be back by 3:30 dismissal at UCA.
Students can dress as their favorite character from Shrek that day! The class with the biggest participation will win a class prize! Go all out!
Please click here to read an information letter from Mrs. Veldboom, Community Life Coordinator, regarding payment details.
Curriculum Night:
Please mark your calendar for UCA’s first-ever Curriculum Night to be held on Thursday, September 8 at 6PM. This will be an important opportunity to visit all of your student’s classrooms, discover more about the curriculum for each department, learn about Standards-Based Grading, and ask questions of faculty. We are seeking 100% participation, with at least one adult representative from every UCA family in attendance. Contact Mrs. Bootsma, Head of Academics, at cbootsma@weareuca.org with any questions regarding Curriculum Night.
PowerSchool:
PowerSchool, UCA’s newly-chosen Student Information and Learning Management System, will be up and running in the coming weeks. You will be able to view grades, attendance, course information, discipline records, and more in PowerSchool. Additional information, including your login credentials and parent training, will be communicated soon.
Parking Lot Thank You:
Thank you for following the new traffic pattern in the parking lot. For the most part, pick up and drop off ran smoothly last week. As a reminder, we will continue to require all drivers to enter at the north entrance and exit at the south entrance. If you have any questions or suggestions regarding the parking lot, please email Mr. Harrison, Head of Administration, directly at sharrison@weareuca.org.
Brain Gains:
"Brain Gains" are weekly thought prompts and activities for students to take advantage of on their walk to class or lunch time. These will be posted within this newsletter each week to give families an opportunity to connect with their students on what they're seeing in the hallway bulletin board each week. Click here to see this week’s Brain Gains! For any questions or suggestions regarding Brain Gains, email Ms. Mikitka, School Social Worker, directly at mmikitka@weareuca.org.
Bond-Fire & Glow Party
Bond-Week is an annual week of fun, student bonding activities sponsored by Student Government. This year, the week will conclude with:
Our annual Bond-fire on Friday, October 7, at First Reformed Church in South Holland, from 6-8PM, and
Our first-ever fall dance, a Glow Party, on Saturday, October 8, at UCA, from 7-10PM. Students should dress in neon for this event. A professional DJ will provide the music. Light refreshments will be served, but dinner will not be provided. A date is not required. Additional information about the ticket price and other details will be announced in the coming weeks.
You can contact Mrs. Veldboom with questions or suggestions regarding Bond-Week.
Winter Jam: Faith Formation Retreat
UCA’s first-ever overnight Faith Formation retreat will be at Winter Jam at Silver Birch Ranch in White Lake, WI on February 3-5, 2023.
The max number of UCA students we can take is 60.
This is open to ALL grade levels (9th-12th).
Sign up is first come, first served.
The cost is $200/student.
Spots can be reserved by making a $50/deposit (toward the $200 cost) in the main office via cash, check, or card. The deadline to reserve your student’s spot is November 1, 2022.
Final payment is due January 9, 2023.
This will be a wonderful opportunity for your student(s) to have their faith deepened, be spiritually revived, and have lots of fun with their classmates and other high school students from all over the Midwest! Click here to watch a brief promotional video highlighting the event. If you have any questions regarding this retreat, please email Mr. Harrison directly.