Back to School Social September 13

The rain held off on Sunday, September 13, as parents enjoyed an afternoon of meetings with teachers and lovely catered cocktail party in the courtyard for Villa’s Back to School Social.

Beginning with an assembly in the gym with talks by Sister Susan, Sister Nancy, our Parent Guild President, and our Student Leadership President and Vice President. During the assembly, parents were filled in on the newest improvements to the school and the academic curriculum thanks to the generosity of our amazing parents and donors.

According to the Strategic Plan survey results, improving the academic curriculum and staying up-to-date on the latest technologies and advancements in curriculum were number one on parent’s lists.

Thanks to the generosity of our parents and donors, we have made the following improvements this year:

• Villa has purchased robotics kits for students in grades K-8.
• Programming for students in grades 7 and 8 will continue with Mrs. Dow.
• Grade 8 will also continue their participation in Sea Perch – a program sponsored by the Office of Naval Research with the end result is the construction of an underwater robot.
• In addition, the Bringing Science Alive Program will be used in grades K-5. This is a digital program based on the next generation science standards.
•  Our teachers have received professional development in the use of Next Generation Science Standards. Unlike many curriculum standards written today – these standards focus on inquiry based instruction and note on content. Villa will also host a professional seminar from the DaVinci Science Center in October.

Many thanks to Parent Guild members Nikki and Rusty Kondrath for planning such an enjoyable afternoon for all Villa Parents, Faculty and Staff. And to all to all of Villa’s teachers who opened their doors for an informative day for our parents.