MARCH 11, 2022
In 2015, AHS embarked on an ambitious five-year strategic plan that opened a new chapter here at Assumption. This aspirational plan allowed Assumption to not only build on its past success but also carve a broad vision for the future. Many of our recent accomplishments, including our successful capital campaign, building expansion and facility enhancements, expanded academic and co-curricular programming, and growth in our endowment including increases in financial aid and scholarships opportunities are a direct result of this transformative plan. Our 2020-2023 plan continued our forward momentum in those areas as well as chartered our course in the development of a separate, five-year DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) plan.
Given this success, Assumption is ready to move forward in creating a new vision for the future. But instead of looking three or even five years out, we recognize an exciting opportunity to look beyond what success looks like in the near term but to consider what lies ahead in the next 10 to 20 years. While our next strategic plan will take AHS to 2028, we understand that what is accomplished in the next five years will lay the important groundwork for an Assumption that will be the unqualified Catholic high school of choice for young women in Louisville and surrounding areas. What could be more exciting?!
Our first step in this visioning process begins with our most important and committed stakeholders: our current parents and students. Input from our school families is critical in helping AHS create this future vision. While there will be additional ways for parents and students to participate and contribute to the strategic planning process, our first step is to conduct a schoolwide survey to provide feedback on the strength of our school culture.
Through our sponsors, the Mercy Education System of the Americas, AHS will be participating in a school culture survey with other Mercy schools. This best-in-class survey has been developed by Johns Hopkins University School of Education and its Institute for Education Policy. This research-based survey seeks to identify the alignment of a school’s mission with its daily practices to determine the degree to which they support academic achievement, social and emotional well-being, and civic formation. Strong school cultures have been linked to numerous positive academic and other outcomes – from short-term assessment performance to long-term civic engagement and educational attainment. This anonymous survey is voluntary and involves separate survey instruments for parents and students as well as faculty and staff.
Additionally, the survey will be open from Monday, March 21, to Friday, April 8. A separate document will be sent to parents with more details and a survey link. AHS’s goal is to reach 70% parent participation. If we reach that goal, your daughters will have a free dress-down day scheduled for later this semester.
We look forward to your participation and thank you in advance for your participation in Assumption’s next steps in creating our vision for the future!
To keep our families informed of the impact of COVID on our school, we continue reporting our positive COVID cases each week via the Rocket Report.
- This week, (reporting from Thursday 3/3/22 to Thursday 3/10/22); AHS had NO new positive COVID cases.
- Since the start of this semester, AHS has had 201 positive COVID cases. 177 were students and 24 were faculty/staff.
Mask Mandate: As we mentioned in our special message sent on February 10, AHS moved to mask optional starting February 14. We will be moving between being mask optional and mandating masks depending on the circumstances. We will review the situation on a weekly basis making a determination regarding masks for the following week. Based on our current Covid numbers and declining cases in the greater community, AHS will continue to be mask optional for next week.
Update on Mask Policy for Buses and Vans: Per the CDC, masks are no longer mandated on school buses. Therefore, starting today, the mask-optional policy now extends to school bus transportation including our school vans.
We happily welcomed the Class of 2026 on campus last night for their registration. They were so excited to officially become Assumption Rockets. Thank you for your support and prayers as we worked to recruit a healthy class of incoming freshmen who will continue to carry on the tradition of an Assumption High School Catholic education.
COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIP NIGHT: All parents are invited to attend our College Scholarship Night on Monday, March 14, from 6:30-7:30 p.m. This event will be held virtually, and the link will be shared with students and parents prior to the event. There will be different colleges represented for a panel discussion about college scholarships aimed at helping juniors and even sophomores understand what colleges are looking for in a strong scholarship candidate. If you have any questions, please contact LEIGH JACKSON or KIM HABICH, our college counselors.
PARENT/TEACHER/STUDENT CONFERENCES: Conferences are scheduled for Wednesday, March 16, from 5:00-7:30 p.m. in order to give students and parents the opportunity to meet with teachers about students’ progress. We will be offering the opportunity to schedule either an in-person or a TEAMS conference with your daughter’s teachers. Please use this link: Spring Conference Signup to schedule a conference with your daughter’s teacher. All parents are invited to attend, but parents of students with a D or F in in a class or classes as of March 15 are required to attend. Our last official grade update was on Wednesday, March 9. We recommend, however, that you check your daughter’s grades on PowerSchool between March 9 and March 15 to make plans to attend if needed. If you have any questions that cannot be addressed at parent/teacher/student conferences, please contact your daughter’s dean – JUDY FIELDHOUSE (students whose last names begin with A-K) or THERESA SCHUHMANN (students whose last names begin with L-Z).
2022-2023 SCHOOL CALENDAR: We are in the process of working on the 2022-2023 school calendar. Although we have not finalized the calendar, we recognize that our families may need general calendar information in advance. In order to help with this need, the tentative key calendar dates for 2022-2023 are now posted on our website through this link: IMPORTANT DATES FOR 2022-2023 SCHOOL CALENDAR
PARENT PRAYER Our parent prayer group continues to meet each Tuesday morning from 8:30-9:00 a.m. in our new chapel. This group is more than just prayer; it’s community. It’s a chance for parents to pray for their daughters and their daughters’ friends and time to get to know more Assumption parents. Please park in any open space and enter the school through the main entrance. Please join us for any or all of these opportunities!
This week during LEAD & Learn Time, all students were in homeroom on Monday as they engaged in reflection about what they learned and will take away from their Mission Week experiences. On Tuesday and Thursday, students alternated between homerooms and class meetings. In homeroom, students all engaged in a Battle of the Books bracket competition sponsored by our Library Advisory Council with our traditional spin on March Madness. Sophomores, juniors, and seniors learned about the work of the Red Cross and the importance of blood donation in preparation for next week’s blood drive on campus. On Friday, students engaged with their homeroom as they celebrated March birthdays and showed their family spirit by wearing family color shirts with their uniforms.
Next week during LEAD & Learn Time, students will have the opportunity to engage with their families in family meetings preparing for our Family Program Compassion Connections Lenten drive. Club leaders will also meet for training on leadership succession planning. On Thursday, classes will be in either homeroom or class meeting. And on Friday, we will come together as a school to celebrate the accomplishments of three of our coaches, Rick Stewart (swim), Barry Haworth (cross country), and Ron Kordes (volleyball) who have received state and national recognition.
UPCOMING BLOOD DRIVE: On Thursday, March 17, and Friday, March 18, the National Honor Society will be hosting a Red Cross blood drive from 8:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. at Assumption. Interested student donors must be at least 16 years old and may only sign up to donate during study hall. If your daughter has expressed an interest in participating, parents/guardians will receive an email with more information so that you can support your daughter in her experience. We are also inviting parents/guardians/grandparents to donate. You may SIGN UP HERE through the Red Cross online scheduling system. New donors need to sign up for an account if you have not done so before. This is a wonderful way that you can make a difference during a time of critical need. Any questions? Contact KELLY KIRWAN. In advance, thank you for considering!
ALL SCHOOL DANCE/JUNIOR PROM: We know that many of our students are looking forward to coming together to enjoy our traditional all-school dance this school year. Our junior class has been hard at work in the process of planning the details for this dance which also serves as our junior prom. Based on our current circumstances, we confirmed for students this week that we are moving forward with our current planned date, Saturday, March 19, which we announced last fall and posted on the website calendar. Students may choose to bring a guest to the dance if they wish. The all-school dance/junior prom is a traditional semiformal school dance – we shared information about our usual dance policies and the dress code for the dance with the students last week: ALL-SCHOOL DANCE/JUNIOR PROM INFORMATION. Please take a few minutes to look it over so you can help your daughter know what is expected when she is making plans to attend the event and deciding what to wear to the event. In doing so, we ask that you pay particular attention to the dance dress code requirements. More information, including theme and ticket details and information about time and expectations, will be forthcoming after Mission Week.
ROCKET PARENT NETWORK (RPN) NEWS: Assumption’s Rocket Parent Network invites you to come for a speaker meeting with Sgt. Craig Browning of LMPD. Sgt. Browning is with the traffic unit and will discuss teens and impaired driving. All AHS parents are invited to attend this program, which will be held on Tuesday, March 29, at 6:30 p.m. in the AHS theater.
SUMMER ACADEMIC OPPORTUNITIES: Academic opportunities for the summer have been UPDATED. You can find these on our guidance department page by clicking here: SUMMER OPPORTUNITIES 2022. There are numerous opportunities available with many costing less than $1,000. Programs are grouped according to areas of interest like STEM or creative arts/design or general summer pre-college programs, etc. Applications are due in March and require the assistance of guidance for transcript releases, recommendations, and other documentation. Please contact LEIGH JACKSON or KIM HABICH with any questions.
AHS SUMMER CAMPS: We are excited to announce that our 2022 summer camp schedule is now open! This year, Assumption is offering over 40 fun-filled enrichment and athletic sessions (including 10 co-ed opportunities) to all K-9 students. Our goal is for each camper to have an exciting, safe summer and build new friendships. Registration is linked here. Please share with family and friends. Contact LAUREN LEGA with any questions.
AHS MOVIE DAY: On Sunday, March 13, we invite all past, present, and future Rockets to join us for an Encanto movie afternoon in the Assumption gymnasium. Bring your sleeping bags, pillows, and chairs and spread out on the gym floor to enjoy Encanto at AHS. Doors open at 1:30 p.m., and the movie begins promptly at 2:00 p.m. Come early to enjoy some popcorn and get comfy before the movie begins.
ALUMNAE UNITE: The AHS Advancement Office is excited to announce the Alumnae Unite Campaign taking place March 23-25! Alumnae Unite is a giving campaign between the female graduates of Bethlehem, Holy Cross, Mercy, Presentation, and Sacred Heart. The purpose is to raise funds for each school’s Annual Fund, which provides vital funding for student programs, activities, and tuition assistance. This year, we are All for 22 with each school trying to reach 22% alumnae giving participation. AHS is currently at 5.5% and needs 1,600 more alum donations to reach our goal. As an alumna, or parent of an alumna, we invite you or your daughter to support current and future students by making a donation during this campaign. For more information, click here or contact Abby Martin.
AFTERNOON CROSSING GUARD: The Louisville Police Department is actively seeking a traffic guard for AHS and St. Raphael in the afternoon at Bardstown Road and Lancashire. Please share this job posting with anyone who may be qualified or interested in being trained for this position: TRAFFIC GUARD JOB DESCRIPTION
LETTERS FROM COLLEGES: Attention, senior parents! Please have your senior daughters submit ALL letters received from colleges regarding admissions decisions, scholarship offers, and admission to special programs and honors colleges to the Guidance Office. The majority of colleges DO NOT provide this information directly to high schools, so your daughter is often our only source of information about this. Her timely sharing of this information is vital to the Senior Honors Celebration as we work to make sure we have all the correct information to celebrate your daughter and the Class of 2022. These letters can be hard copies, faxes, or scanned copies and can be emailed directly to COLLEGE.LETTERS@ahsrockets.org. We ask that students submit all of this information by Thursday, March 31.
SENIORS – MOTHER/DAUGHTER BREAKFAST: Just a reminder to our seniors and their mothers or mother figures in their lives – the Mother/Daughter Breakfast is Saturday, March 26, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel (830 Phillips Lane by the airport) from 9:30-11:30 a.m. Optional pictures will be available beginning at 8:00 a.m. Please note that it’s best to arrive early for photos so that you don’t have to wait until after the breakfast to get yours. After the event, you can go online to order photos at https://shop.studioillumination.com/. If your daughter hasn’t RSVPed already, please let MARY ANN STEUTERMANN know by March 16 if you are NOT able to attend.
NATIONAL ACT FOR JUNIORS: On Tuesday, April 19, all juniors will take the National ACT at Assumption from at 8:15 a.m. Juniors will be dismissed at 1:35 on this day. Just like in October, there is no makeup date for this ACT at AHS, no signup is needed on the part of each family, and this test fee is covered by your tuition dollars. Please encourage your daughter to use the test prep program ALBERT provided by AHS for practice over this next month to help her achieve her best score. This score can be sent to colleges and universities and used for admission and scholarship purposes. Please contact JUDY FIELDHOUSE if you have any questions.
MISSION WEEK T-SHIRT: As a part of your daughter’s Mission Week last week, they had the option to purchase a t-shirt designed by members of their class as a reminder of what they learned. T-shirts can be purchased online until Sunday, March 13 here! See the t-shirt design below.
Senior Laiken Kirby who competed in the Kentucky Catholic Forensic League qualifying tournament. She placed sixth in Lincoln Douglas debate and earned a spot to compete in the National Tournament in Washington, D.C. in May. Good luck to all of our Speech Team members as they travel to Northern Kentucky University on Friday to compete in the state speech tournament.
Congratulations to…
Sophomore basketball player Delaney Cooper for making the 7th Region All Tournament Team!
Next week in Athletics
Tuesday, March 15
Lacrosse @ Collegiate: JV at 5:30 p.m. and Varsity at 7:00 p.m.
Tennis @ KCD: Varsity at 4:00 p.m.
Thursday, March 17
Lacrosse vs. South Oldham: JV at 6:00 and Varsity at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, March 18-19
Tennis @ Chattanooga
Please follow Rocket Sports on Social media for schedule updates and scores!