September 22, 2023

We couldn’t have asked for better weather as our Assumption community came together today to celebrate the 40th Annual Walk for Assumption where we strutted down the Walk of Fame! What better way to help fund financial aid for our student body then with this long standing and much-loved tradition. Even better – we conquered our school-wide stretch goal of 4,000 by selling 5,742 Rocket Raffle tickets AND raising $143,550 – an all-time high!  

With our record-breaking sales, students have earned two incentives this year. March 29th (the Friday before Spring Break) is now an official day off from school, and our students get to wear Halloween costumes to school on Tuesday, October 31st.  

The Rocket Raffle drawing will take place at Rocket Spectacular on February 3, 2024. Last year, Assumption raised an astounding $575,000 (net) at Rocket Spectacular with all proceeds dedicated to student financial assistance. Currently, 40% of our student body receives some form of financial support to attend Assumption, and this year alone AHS distributed over $1.5 million in tuition assistance. The Walk for Assumption continues to be a means for all of us to come together in our commitment to keep a life-changing Assumption education within reach for any young woman who wants to be part of our community. We thank you, our parents and guardians, for the many ways you supported your daughters in helping to sell Rocket Raffle tickets and exceed our Walk goals!  

We proudly recognize… 

Our top ticket sellers: 

  • 3rd place: Ella Dallenbach ’26 & Lily Combs ’27
  • 2nd place – Maddi Biven ’26
  • 1st place – breaking all previous records is Lily Bratcher ’25 with 175 tickets sold

The Winner of the T-shirt design: Abby Richardson ’24 and Annemarie Murr ‘24 

We want to extend our heartfelt thanks to all of our wonderful APO moms, dads, and grandparents who helped with the student walk collection and t-shirt distribution. It was two very busy weeks with collecting Rocket Raffle tickets and walk waivers. We could not have done it without each and every one of you! 

National Merit Recognition

We are thrilled to officially announce that seniors Lilly Rice and Mattie Whitworth have been recognized by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation as National Merit Semifinalists.  This means that Lilly and Mattie are two of the highest scoring students from our state and represent less than one percent of our state’s high school seniors! 

LEAD & LEARN WEDNESDAYS: Our first LEAD & Learn Wednesday will take place next week on Wednesday, September 27.  Please be sure to talk with your daughter about her plans for this day as her plan must be submitted for her attendance on Wednesday via an attendance online survey.  Students invited specifically to attend an academic help session were notified by their teachers this week via email (and a parent/guardian was copied on the email).  Please remember, we strongly recommend that students attend if an invitation is extended, and we ask that you and your daughter discuss this weekend how to ensure that she is able to do so.  Students may arrive for their scheduled meetings, if applicable, after 12:00 p.m.  Supervised study is available between 12:00-4:30 p.m. Please consult this message sent out previously to review additional details of the day: SPECIAL MESSAGE TO PARENTS – LEAD & LEARN WEDNESDAYS.

AC LEAD & LEARN DAY + WORK IT WEDNESDAY SCHEDULE: The Achievement Center is hosting students next week during the LEAD & Learn Day on September 27 from 12:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Students will receive an email on Monday to reserve their spot for this day. Students may work independently or request to work with an AC teacher during this time. Work It Wednesdays will resume October 4, 18, and 25. Students are invited to come to the Media Center from 7:45 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. to receive extra support in their classes from peer tutors, study groups, or the AC teachers. Please remember, students must RSVP in advance for both LEAD & Learn Days and Work it Wednesdays. 

MERCY DAY CELEBRATION ASSEMBLY: Mercy Day is September 24 each year, and it’s a special day for the Community of Assumption. It marks the anniversary of the day that Catherine McAuley opened the first House of Mercy in Dublin, Ireland. Catherine went on to found the Sisters of Mercy who sponsor our school.  We will be celebrating with a special assembly on Tuesday, September 26 at 10:40 a.m. in the AHS gym. We’ll honor not only the legacy of the Sisters of Mercy but also the many ways our community is living out the Mercy charism in our daily lives.  

ASSUMPTION PARENT PRAYER: Our parent prayer group will meet on September 26 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 BOOTERSTOWN Family Juniors and Seniors. Please join us for any or all of these opportunities! 

PRAYER INTENTIONS: The Community of Assumption knows the power of prayer! All AHS parents and alumnae are invited to submit prayer intentions online. These intentions are then lifted in prayer altogether during Five-Minute Prayer in the chapel on Wednesdays and weekly on the PA during morning prayer. If you would like to submit an intention, you can do so here. They will remain there for about two weeks, but feel free to post the same intention again later if needed. Also, you may wish to consider adding the intentions you find there to your own personal prayer! 

Our LEAD & Learn time this week will allow students to receive information regarding prevention practices for suicide in our community through discussion and resources exposure.  September is National Suicide Prevention month, and our Guidance and Counseling department makes sure that we all know that preventing suicide is everyone’s business.  Students will learn strategies to help themselves, their friends, and those they interact with daily–knowing that their first step should be to contact a trusted adult. Other resources to promote mental health care for self and others continue to be available on the Guidance and Counseling page of our Assumption website.   

Our sophomores and juniors will have the opportunity later in the week to hear from students who have attended the Governor’s School for the Arts program, Governor’s School for Entrepreneurship program, and the Governor’s Scholar program.  Through testimonials and under guidance of Ms. Colleen Murphy, our McAuley Scholars director, these students will hear of the benefit of these programs as well as information about applications this fall.  

POWERSCHOOL APP: An easy and convenient way to see your daughter’s grades and upcoming assignments in real time is to use the mobile app. PowerSchool Mobile for iPhone and Android is available in the Google Play Store or the Apple Store.   

Our passcode for the app is BRSC. 

TESTING DAY: Wednesday, October 11, is the National Testing Day for all freshmen, sophomores, and juniors.  We will have a regular 8:15 arrival on this Wednesday. We will dismiss at approximately 12:00 p.m. So as to not disturb any testing, we wait for all rooms to finish before we dismiss.  If your daughter is in our Learning Differences program and qualifies for extended time testing, please ask her what time she will finish.  Juniors will be taking the new digital PSAT by reservation, sophomores will be taking the PreACT or PSAT (depending on their English class), and freshmen will be taking the PreACT test.  All students taking the PSAT MUST bring their laptop computer with the Bluebook software downloaded and fully charged.  Please encourage your daughter to maximize the benefits of this day by getting a good night’s sleep, eating a healthy breakfast, and bringing her calculator and pencils with her on Testing Day.  There is no make-up day for these tests and no replacement for the valuable feedback they provide for both the school and your daughter, so attendance on this day is very important.  

CAREER DAY: Assumption students will be participating in our annual Career Day on Tuesday, October 3. This event will take place during the school day. Students in all grade levels will participate in activities to help them think about careers and college. Freshmen will use a skill inventory to explore careers that match their interests and hear from an alumna from Bellarmine University’s Career Development Center about how the habits they develop in high school and their academic progress have an impact on their future career pursuits.  Sophomores and juniors will have the opportunity to learn about several careers including nursing, finance, aerospace engineering, event planning, and many others from alumnae who work in those fields. Seniors will have the opportunity to participate in the Career Fair or work on college application and scholarship tasks.   

DRIVER’S ED: AHS and the Kentucky Driving School will be providing a driver’s education program towards the end of September. Click here to learn more.  

ASSUMPTION PARENT ORGANIZATION (APO) NEWS:   

  • Walk for Assumption 2023 and Rocket Raffle: The walk was a great success! Your support of the event is so appreciated. Thank you to all of our parent volunteers who helped make our walk collections and t-shirt distribution run smoothly. It could not have happened without you! We reached our schoolwide goal and will receive the day off of school on Friday, March 29, 2023. Please note that Rocket Raffle tickets will continue to be available until the drawing at our Rocket Spectacular Benefit Dinner and Auction that will be held on February 3, 2024. Tickets can be purchased through Rocket Raffle – Assumption High School (ahsrockets.org) 
  • Rocket Spectacular Benefit Dinner and Auction 2024: Saturday, February 3, 2024. Mark your calendar–you won’t want to miss it! This event will SELL OUT. Our theme this year is “Bowties and Bubbly,” and plans are underway!  We are currently looking for event sponsors. If interested, please contact Michelle Farmer 502-271-2518 michelle.farmer@ashrockets.org. We need your help with donations toward our silent and live auctions as well as the bourbon pull. Please contact tricia.ferree@ahsrockets.org if you are interested in helping.  Watch for more details in the coming weeks.  We hope to see you there!  

ROCKET PARENT NETWORK: This is your last chance to join the Rocket Parent Network and/or order a Student/Parent Directory. The Rocket Parent Network is a trustworthy group of Assumption parents united to provide a drug- and alcohol-free social environment for teens. Parents commit to chaperoning their daughters and their friends to be sure that alcohol and drugs are not used while at their home. Membership dues are $10 per year, or $30 for four years. A directory is free in a parent’s first year of membership and may be purchased for $5 per year in subsequent years. If you would like to join the RPN, please visit this website: RPN Website for a membership form. If you would like to order a parent directory, please contact Meghan Rogers at 458-9551 ext. 2539 or by email at meghan.rogers@ahsrockets.org. 

INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL OPPORTUNITIES – INTEREST MEETING REMINDERS:  

  • PARIS TO NORMANDY TRIP – Summer 2025: Note from Mrs. Shirley: Merci to all who attended the Paris trip meeting last Sunday.  If you were unable to attend or attempted to open the main office doors with no entry, my apologies.  I submitted an announcement to students that everyone needed to enter through the theater lobby doors.  I would like to offer an additional trip meeting for Wednesday, September 27 at 6 p.m. in room 120.  Please plan to enter through the THEATER lobby doors as the rest of the building will be closed.  The deadline to register and save money for the lowest price is September 28.  We have 10 spots left on the trip.   Here is the link to register: www.educationaltravel.com/Shirley-7508 . Feel free to email me if you have any questions at jennifer.shirley@ahsrockets.org.  The meeting will also be available virtually using TEAMS.  Please see the following code and link to join: Click here to join the meeting  Meeting ID: 239 298 289 789 Passcode: SQou5q  
  • WORLD WAR II/HOLOCAUST TRIP – Summer 2025: 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. An informational meeting will be held Thursday, September 28 at 6:30 p.m. in Room 305. 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@ahsrockets.org or megan.rose@ahsrockets.org. 

ROSE AWARD NOMINATIONS: Current parents, past parents, alumnae, students, faculty, and staff are invited to nominate a current administrator, faculty, or staff member who has made a significant difference in their lives or the lives of their daughters.  The Rose Award is a $5,000 grant endowed by an anonymous donor to recognize an Assumption employee who serves as a role model and is a positive influence in our community. Past winners are Katie Hughbanks, Cindi Baughman, Kelly Kirwan, Kathy Fleischer, Dawn Deweese, Angela Lincoln, Barry Haworth, Jackie Metry, Doug Sumey, Judi Erskine, James Sutherland, Mary Ann Steutermann, and Janet Adkins along with several other retired faculty and staff members.  These individuals aren’t eligible to win again. Nominations may be submitted HERE and are due by Friday, October 21. Nominations must include a detailed description (three-paragraph minimum) supporting your nomination.  The award will be presented at the Thanksgiving Celebration on Tuesday, November 22.  If chosen, your nomination submission may be read at the prayer service. 

TESTING DAY FOR SENIORS: Since seniors are not involved in taking standardized tests on Testing Day, Wednesday, October 11, they are excused from coming to school on this day. We strongly encourage seniors to use this day for making college visits. Since Thursday and Friday of that week, and Monday of the following week, are Fall Break days, this is a great opportunity to make a visit to an out-of-town college. 

ARISE MISSION TRIP: Seniors who plan to participate in an ARISE mission trip during Mission Week this year need to turn in their commitment form and deposit by Monday, September 25. They can turn this into Ms. Culver or Ms. King in Campus Ministry or to the main office. If you have any questions, please contact Katie Culver at katie.culver@ahsrockets.org.  

ACTS PARENT SURVEY: On Tuesday, September 12, an email was sent to all parents and guardians of sophomores regarding the sophomore ACTS service program. Included in this email was a link to a form that asks for your insights about your student’s strengths and interests to help match her with an ACTS agency that will be a good fit. The survey also asks for information regarding your student’s vaccinations and immunizations so that we can make appropriate agency assignments. We ask that you complete this form by September 29. In addition to this form, there is other important information in the letter, including information about the ACTS uniform pants and service dates. If you have any questions, please contact Katie Culver (katie.culver@ahsrockets.org) 

Senior Mattie Whitworth ’24 on becoming an author in a published medical article. Mattie participated in a summer internship at U of L focused on breast cancer. Mattie did cell counts, gel electrophoresis, and used reverse transcriptases to form DNA from RNA. This hard work has resulted in Mattie becoming an author on a published medical article titled, “MicroRNA Regulation of the Serine Synthesis Pathway in Endocrine-Resistant Breast Cancer Cells.”

Congratulations to:

  • The Freshmen Volleyball team for winning the Freshmen LIVT 
  • The Varsity Soccer team for finishing as Runner-Up at the Lady Knights Challenge Cup and for defeating Brown 3-0.  The Freshman Soccer team for beating Providence 2-0 and the JV Soccer team for picking up wins against South Oldham and Conner 
  • The Varsity Field Hockey team for beating Ballard 2-1 
  • The Golf team for qualifying for the Top 15 Tournament 

NEXT WEEK:

September 22- 23 

  • Varsity Field Hockey @ Max Proving Ground in Conshohocken, PA 
  • Varsity Volleyball @ Durango Classic in Las Vegas, NV 

Saturday, September 23 

  • Cross Country @ Palatine Invitational in Chicago, IL 

Sunday, September 24 

  • Soccer vs Sacred Heart.  JV 4:30 p.m., Varsity 6:00 p.m. 

Monday, September 25 

  • Freshmen Soccer vs Oldham County. 6:00 p.m. 

Tuesday, September 26 

  • Field Hockey @ Christian Academy. JV 6:00 p.m., Varsity 7:30 p.m. 

Thursday, September 28 

  • Volleyball @ McAuley HS (IL). 7:00 p.m.