February 10, 2023

Manager of Special Events and Volunteers, Tricia Ferree

This past Saturday night, we hosted our 42nd Annual Rocket Spectacular, one of the longest-running and most successful fundraising events in our community. It was another sold out crowd of over 550 attendees including our amazing volunteers as we celebrated our Derby themed event of “Run for the Rockets”. The night kicked off with Steve Buttleman, official bugler of Churchill Downs and parent of Dr. Megan Buttleman Coriell ’09, with the traditional call to post.   

Even more exciting, we went way over our “finish line” goal and shattered all previous fundraising records. While we are still crunching numbers, early estimates indicate we raised an all-time high of over $575,000 (net)!      

Rocket Spectacular continues to be our largest fundraiser and greatest source of support for our financial aid program.   In just the past three years alone, we have raised over $1.3 million through Rocket Spectacular to support students in need.  

We also congratulate our Tuition Raffle Winner, Amanda Palazzo – parent of Evelyn Palazzo ‘25 and our $20,000 Rocket Raffle Winner, Ed Fisher.     

Our deepest appreciation and heartfelt congratulations go out to each of you. Your support of Assumption’s mission is what makes the magic happen.  Whether you bought Rocket Raffle tickets, secured or donated an auction item, volunteered your time, or attended the event, you made a difference!  Because of you, even more young women will have the opportunity to enjoy a superior Assumption education than ever before. 

We are excited to share that senior Josie Deye has been named a National Merit Finalist this week!  We are so proud of her academic achievement.  Additionally, Josie will be honored at the 2023 Salute to Catholic School Alumni dinner in March with the Father John H. Morgan Scholarship sponsored by the Catholic Education Foundation. Josie will receive a $9500 grant to the college of her choice. Congratulations, Josie!  

FATHER-DAUGHTER DANCE: The Father-Daughter Dance will be held on Saturday, February 11, from 8:00-11:00 p.m. in the gym. This dance is open to ALL students— freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors. We encourage all to attend and dance the night away with their fathers or father figures!  Please plan to enter at the main entrance/atrium doors.  Tickets may be purchased at the door for $30. The dance theme is “A Night in Vegas” and is casino inspired! Guests are invited to dress for the theme, but of course, themed attire is not required.  Music will be provided by the band Famous on Friday. Hope to see you there!  

SPIRIT WEEK:  Next week, February 13-16, is Spirit Week. Our Varsity Club and Student Activities Office have planned several different activities to show support for our students and all that they do to make us proud. All dress-up days and penny war contributions are voluntary, but we highly encourage students to show their school and class spirit by getting creative and participating in some capacity. Penny War proceeds will go to fund Varsity Club endeavors and incentives, with any extra proceeds being donated to financial aid!  

  • Spirit Week Dress-Up Days: Students are invited to dress up according to a different theme each day next week. Students have been emailed the dress-up day descriptions and rules, so they may begin planning their costumes. Costumes are all or nothing (no “partial uniform/partial costume” dress); students may not wear costume masks or face paint; and current school policies regarding shoes and hair color still apply.  On Monday, our theme is “Groutfit”; on Tuesday, Jersey Day; Wednesday is Derby Day; and Thursday is a Pink Out for our freshmen, sophomores, and juniors and a black out for our senior “Fly Girls.”  Students will be eligible for prizes at lunch for participating in dress-up days and for best costume!   
  • Class Penny War: A penny war between classes will be held every day during lunches with the results announced at the pep rally. 

WINTER BREAK: School will be closed for Winter Break from Friday, February 17, through Monday, February 20.  Classes will resume on Tuesday, February 21.   

8:15 WEDNESDAY SCHEDULE ON ASH WEDNESDAY:  As we mentioned at the beginning of the semester, Wednesday, February 22, will be an 8:15 schedule due to our Ash Wednesday Prayer Service.  

PARENT PRAYER: Our parent prayer group will meet on Tuesday, February 14, from 8:30–9:00 a.m. in the AHS chapel and will continue to meet each Tuesday morning throughout the school year. Please park in any open space and enter the school through the main entrance. During the year, we pray for every student by name twice. Next week, we will be praying for the GALWAY Family juniors and seniors. Please join us for any or all of these opportunities.  All are welcome! 

During LEAD & Learn time last week, students experienced their first ever Rockets Taking Initiative (RTI) Week in which students had an opportunity to engage in academic enrichment activities during LEAD & Learn time.   

Next week, students will learn about our upcoming Mission Week and have an opportunity to do some purposeful Mission Week planning with their homeroom advisement group.  

REMINDER ABOUT STUDENT ILLNESS: We are seeing an uptick in cases of COVID, mono, and other contagious diseases at AHS. If your daughter is not feeling well – no matter how minor her symptoms may be – please keep her home. Symptoms such as headache, sore throat, fever, cough, fatigue, and congestion are all signs of COVID.  We recommend home testing if COVID symptoms are present.  In addition, families need to be vigilant for symptoms especially if there is a positive COVID case in the home. In this way we can help keep our school community healthy.  Please reach out to our school nurse, Ms. Laura Burnam, at laura.burnam@ahsrockets.org at 502-271-2507, with any questions or concerns regarding your daughter’s health.   

REMINDERS AND REQUESTS ABOUT MORNING DROP-OFF AND AFTERNOON PICK-UP – CARPOOL LANE:  The parking lot proctors and parents in the carpool lane would like to remind you that drivers need to  pull up as far as possible in the carpool lane before stopping, and that once the vehicle has pulled up as far as possible behind the car in front of it and stops, the student is to get out of the car and then walk along the sidewalk to the entrance of her choice. Please do not stop short so your daughter will be close to her preferred entrance. When you stop short, it causes the carpool lane to stop and traffic to back up on Bardstown Road; it also creates a dangerous situation when the student takes what seems like a long time to get herself and her belongings out of the car and those in line behind the stopped vehicle try to go around the vehicle and block the flow of traffic in the two-way drive, which is used by those who need to drive in the opposite direction of the carpool lane to get to their parking spaces. 

NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY (NHS) APPLICATIONS: Completed hard copy applications are due by 3:10 p.m. on Thursday, February 23, (before Mission Week) to the Guidance office.  NO APPLICATIONS WILL BE ACCEPTED AFTER THIS DEADLINE!  The application requires both student and parent/guardian signatures. Remember, only sophomores and juniors who attended one of the NHS application informational meetings held in January and who met the GPA and discipline requirements may apply. Any questions? Contact NHS adviser Kelly Kirwan. 

BETA CLUB INFORMATION FOR SOPHOMORES AND JUNIORS: Qualifying sophomores and juniors will be invited to join Beta Club this month for the 2023-2024 school year. Beta Club is an organization dedicated to honoring academic achievement and encouraging school and community service. Qualifying students must have a 3.5 cumulative GPA and no more than two demerits on their discipline record. Members are required to attend 75% of scheduled meetings unless they have an excused absence from school. They must complete 20 service hours their junior year and 20 service hours their senior year. Members must maintain a 3.5 cumulative GPA and may not accumulate more than two demerits (equal to six detentions) throughout their membership. Parents/Guardians of qualifying students will receive an invitation letter by email. Qualifying students will receive an email invitation as well. There is a one-time membership fee of $15 to join.  Details for the application process, which includes attending one of two possible discernment meetings and a discipline check, will be included in the invitation emails.  *Current junior class Beta Club members will not receive an invitation as they are already members, and their membership will roll over into their senior year as long as they attend the discernment meeting and meet all qualifications at the end of the school year. This was communicated to the students directly at their junior class Beta Club meeting this January.  

2025 SUMMER INTERNATIONAL EDUCATIONAL TRIP – WORLD WAR II & THE HOLOCAUST: We are excited to announce we will be offering a once-in-a-lifetime educational trip focused on World War II and the Holocaust in the summer of 2025. This trip was specifically designed by history teachers, Ms. Long and Ms. Rose, and will explore important events and places related to the Holocaust and World War II in Europe.The trip will begin in Munich with a visit to the Nymphenburg Palace, a guided sightseeing tour of Munich, a visit to the Olympic site of 1972, and a visit to Dachau concentration camp.  We will also go on an excursion to Neuschwanstein Castle.  We will then head to Prague and see many important landmarks including a guided tour to of the Prague Communism and Nuclear Bunker site.  Our trip concludes in Krakow with a sightseeing tour and a guided visit to Auschwitz and Birkenau. This trip is open to all current freshmen.  We plan to have a meeting in the fall 0f 2023 with more information about this fantastic trip. For more information and to sign up, please visit www.educationaltravel.com/long-9651/. If you have any questions or need further information, please email Beth Long at beth.long@ahsrockets.org or Megan Rose at megan.rose@ahsrockets.org. 

ARCHDIOCESAN PARENT PRESENTATION:  The Archdiocese of Louisville invites all parents to a special presentation. Roy Petitfils, a Catholic author, speaker, and psychotherapist in private practice, will present “Helping Teens with Stress, Anxiety, and Depression” on Monday, February 27, from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at St. Margaret Mary Church. No registration is required.  Please see the flyer in this link for additional information: ROY PETITFILS PARENT PRESENTATION 

HIRING FOR FACILITY/MAINTENANCE TEAM AND CUSTODIAL TEAM: Parents, do you know of someone who would be a good fit for Assumption? We are hiring for our Facility/Maintenance and Custodial Teams. Full-time and part-time positions are available. Good starting pay and benefits along with a great work environment. In addition, employees receive a 50% discount off their daughter’s tuition. Please email Michael Clark, Facility Director, at Michael.Clark@ahsrockets.org for more information. 

MISSION WEEK: Mission Week is Monday, February 27 – Thursday, March 2. We will begin school each morning one hour later at 9:15 a.m. and dismiss each day at 3:00 p.m. We believe that Mission Week activities are so important that we suspend classes for the week; all students are required to attend and participate in the activities scheduled, both on and off campus. All attendance policies apply during Mission Week–if your daughter is ill and unable to participate on a given day, please call the attendance office as usual. If at all possible, please do not schedule medical appointments for your daughter on days when she will be participating in activities off campus.  During Mission Week, before-school supervision will be provided in the cafeteria as usual beginning at 7:15 a.m. each day.  After-school supervision will also be provided each day in the cafeteria until 4:30 p.m. as usual.  There is no school on Friday, March 3.  More details about Mission Week were sent in a Special Message from the Principal email on Monday, February 6, and can also be accessed through this link:  SPECIAL MESSAGE – MISSION WEEK 2023 

MISSION WEEK PERMISSION SLIPS FOR SENIOR PARENTS: In the next week, seniors will be completing detailed permission slips for Mission Week activities which will require your electronic signature at the end of the form. Please ask your daughter about this if she does not mention it to you.  Senior permission slips are due on February 16, and senior service hours need to be submitted to MobileServ by March 7. 

SENIOR RING INFORMATION: Our Balfour representative will be visiting during all lunches on Wednesday, February 8, for students to ask questions and shop class rings in person. The deadline to order from Balfour is Friday, February 24. 

The Speech Team who competed in the regional tournament on Saturday. Assumption placed fourth out of 16 teams, and all 18 Rocket Speech Team Members qualified for the state tournament next month.  Additionally, Senior Mary-Claire (MC) Schmidt was tournament champion for broadcasting, MC Schmidt and sophomore Breigh McFadden were runners-up in Duo Improv, and freshman Agnes Boyer was runner-up in Storytelling! 

Sophomore Tatiana Hamilton who participated in the KMEA Violin Solo/ensemble festival this past weekend.  Tatiana earned Distinguished rating, which is the highest rating presented by KMEA! 

Freshman Eva Smith  who auditioned with over a thousand students and was selected to the KMEA All State Junior High Mixed Chorus (grades 7-9). Eva rehearsed with over 200 students and performed Thursday night on stage at the Kentucky Center for the Arts.  Way to go Eva! 

Music teacher Jackie Metry was recognized for 35 years of service in the Kentucky Music Educators Association. Her choirs have consistently been rated at the Distinguished level in District and State Choral Assessments and her students participate in KMEA sponsored events.  

NORTON SPORTS HEALTH ONLINE SCHEDULER:  Norton Sports Health is determined to continue to improve access and provide an “easy button” for getting student-athletes in to see a physician. They have developed an online scheduler that allows a patient/guardian to schedule an appointment in the moment for the first available time. The scheduler can be found at this link:  https://nortonhealthcare.com/request-an-appointment/ 

SPRING SPORTS TRYOUTS: Spring sport tryouts begin next week! Click here to find out more information about Lacrosse, Softball, Tennis, and Track & Field.

Congratulations to:

The Swim and Dive Team for finishing as the runner up at the regional meet. Every swimmer who competed scored points for the team. 

The Basketball Team for defeating Eastern 81-19. 

Next week in Athletics:

Tuesday, February 14 

  • Basketball vs Anderson County. Freshmen 5:00pm, JV 6:00 p.m., Varsity 7:30 p.m.  **Basketball and Dance Senior Night** 

Thursday, February 16 

  • Basketball @ Christian Academy, Freshmen 5:30 p.m., JV 6:30 p.m. 

Friday, February 17 

  • Swim @ State Meet @ University of Kentucky 

Please follow Rocket Sports on Social media for schedule updates and scores!