Category: General

The GRACE Catholic School System is committed to our mission. We are not just Christians on Sunday but at all times and in all aspects of our life. Likewise, at school, we aim not merely to integrate our Catholic faith but to be rooted in it in all ways. One of the defining characteristics of our schools is that we are always “steeped in a Catholic worldview.” So whether we are teaching the Revolutionary War in middle school social studies or learning about how seeds become plants in second grade, we seek to find opportunities to show children the centrality of God and the influence of the Church in the world.

This year the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) announced a national Eucharistic Revival, whose aim is to encourage “a movement of Catholics across the United States, healed, converted, formed and united by an encounter with Jesus in the Eucharist.” In support, Bishop David Ricken wrote a beautiful letter to our Diocese titled, Encountering Jesus in the Eucharist: Disciples Called to Worship.

During these next three years, Bishop wishes to lead us on a journey to better worship Jesus by focusing on encountering Jesus more deeply in the Word and the Eucharist. At GRACE, we aim to support this mission as we endeavor to help make sure all children know and love Jesus Christ.

Catholics believe that the greatest prayer of all is the Holy Mass, and it is especially beautiful when we bring our family on Sunday. As we seek to grow in our relationship with Jesus and strengthen our prayer lives, consider how your family will continue to make Sunday Mass attendance a priority.

In The Sacrament of Charity, Pope Benedict XVI told us, “The love of God that we receive in the Blessed Sacrament should lead us to love our neighbor (88).” Our GRACE teachers are hard at work each day, teaching children to pray, how to approach the Sacraments, and how to live our Catholic morality by guiding the way they act in the classroom and on the playground. We are proud of the ways we celebrate liturgical seasons like Advent and Lent, and each school attends Mass weekly as a community.

This year we ask all members of our GRACE community to join this great movement in our Church as we seek to encounter Jesus deeply and personally through the Eucharist. Parents can support our faith mission by asking their children what they are learning in religion class, taking time to pray as a family, going to Eucharistic Adoration, and attending Mass weekly as a family.

GRACE is proud to announce that technology services team member Lynn Fink has been recognized in a recent article by the local Catholic Diocese publication, The Compass, for her outstanding work in IT. Lynn has been working in the GRACE System since 2004 when she was first employed at Our Lady of Lourdes in 2004. Read the entire article celebrating Lynn’s work on The Compass’s website by clicking here!

Project Lead the Way (PLTW) enhances our rich educational experience through interactive, hands-on experiences. Our faith-filled teachers will lead the instruction while ensuring that our Catholic values and Catholic Social Teaching concepts are expertly woven throughout the content. Through PLTW Launch (K-5), students will become collaborative problem solvers and creative thinkers. Students use structured approaches, like the engineering design process, to employ critical thinking skills to solve scientific issues that relate directly to real life experiences. They will apply STEM knowledge and learn that it is okay to take risks and make mistakes.

Our Catholic worldview will be threaded through each lesson and hands-on experience. This program will allow students to develop a strong foundation in math and science, and make connections between their classroom and future careers. PLTW Launch taps into students’ exploratory nature, engages them in learning that feels like play, and encourages them to keep discovering — now and forever. Each semester, GRACE families receive their student’s individual NWEA MAP Student Progress Report accompanied by an explanatory summary letter.

Impact of Project Lead the Way

A recent study shows PLTW students outperform their peers in school, are better prepared for post-secondary studies, and are more likely to consider STEM careers compared to their non-PLTW peers. Students find PLTW programs relevant, inspiring, engaging, and foundational to their future success.

GRACE middle school is also updating its science curriculum resource to iScience. During the selection process, iScience stood out to our middle school teachers because it enforced the three key discipline areas: Life Science, Physical Science, & Earth and Space Science. In addition, the materials the program provides will prepare students for high school science classes. This includes non-fiction reading skills, hands-on collaboration experiments, academic writing, and more.

I am pleased and humbled to serve as the newly appointed Superintendent of GRACE school systems. I wish to outline and clarify some of the distinct duties and responsibilities that fall into my role as Superintendent. My service to our GRACE schools has a primary aim of looking to the future for our growing system rooted in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

• Curriculum– GRACE has many ongoing processes to review, update and adopt curriculum resources. In collaboration with GRACE Curriculum Director Laura Blicharz, I will lead and oversee these processes. Likewise, I will lead the planning and implementation of the professional development of our teachers to ensure they are prepared to teach our students.
  
• Technology Integration– Along with the leadership of Technology Integration Coordinator Carrie Gossens, I oversee the long-term planning in place for the ways technology is used to support learning. Aspects of technology integration that fall into my duties include overseeing how technology is used in our classrooms, the training our teachers have, and the so ware that is approved.
  
• Communications/Marketing– Building on the success of GRACE’s enrollment growth and successful techniques to invite families to join
  our community, I am developing comprehensive strategies and identifying new ways to tell our
  story and engage new families. With the support of Marketing and Communications Director Madeline Janssen, I am overseeing our internal and external communication plans to continue sharing the Gospel and the good work going on in our schools.
  
• Support for Leadership and Strategy– Our GRACE principals are some of the strongest, most hard-working leaders in Green Bay, and I am supporting their work and leadership by providing resources and helping to steer unifying long-term strategies in our GRACE system.

My office is located at the GRACE Riverside Drive office, and I enjoy regularly getting into each of our nine schools. It is a full-time role, and I report to the President, Kim Desotell. I welcome you to reach out and connect with me as we work together to provide the best in Catholic education for the children in Green Bay.

In Christ,

Drew Mulloy

GRACE Superintendent

Catch up on all of the latest GRACE news by checking out the Fall 2022 Newsletter. Read about Chesterton Academy of St. John Paul II’s updated science lab, follow St. Bernard Catholic School principal, Crystal Blahnik, on her trip to the Third International Congress in Rome, see photos of what our students have been up to recently and more!

Do you possess a bachelor’s degree? If so, you may be qualified to support our school through substitute teaching—-a teaching degree is not required! Lesson plans and support are always provided.

By substitute teaching at GRACE, you can:

• Generate income with flexible hours you choose
• Come and go with your children
• Choose your buildings and types of classrooms
• Share special moments with your child during a quick lunch, recess, or in the hallway unexpectedly

Your comfort and convenience are important to us. Do you only want to substitute teach at a specific school? No problem! Open to other GRACE schools? We would be happy to assign you to additional sites that work for you.

To help GRACE as a substitute teacher, please reach out to your school principal or learn more by clicking here.

You can also share this post with those who may be interested by copying the URL and pasting it to them. Consider a retired grandparent who would enjoy visiting the school once a month or so, for example. Lastly, please keep our school and staff in your prayers while we continue to navigate this extraordinary time of staff shortages. Thank you!

Children need healthy meals to learn, and GRACE offers healthy meals every school day. Did you know your children may qualify for free or reduced price meals?

Through participation in United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s National School Lunch Program (NSLP), GRACE is able to offer the free and reduced meal eligibility program, which aids in providing healthy, nutritious, and affordable meals to all students. To find out if your children are eligible, learn more on the GRACE food service webpage. Program materials are available in both English or Spanish online, and paper copies are available in the school office.

If you have any questions, please contact Wendy Gierczak, GRACE Food Service Administrative Assistant via email or by calling (920) 499-7330, ext. 1004.

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Los niños necesitan comidas saludables para aprender, y GRACE ofrece comidas saludables todos los días escolares. ¿Sabía que sus hijos pueden calificar para comidas gratuitas o a precio reducido?

A través de la participación en el Programa Nacional de Almuerzos Escolares ( USDA ) del Departamento de Agricultura de los Estados Unidos (NSLP), GRACE puede ofrecer el programa de elegibilidad de comidas gratuitas y reducidas, que ayuda a proporcionar comidas saludables, nutritivas y asequibles a todos los estudiantes. Para saber si sus hijos son elegibles, obtenga más información en la página web de servicio de alimentos de GRACE. Los materiales del programa están disponibles en inglés o español en línea, y las copias en papel están disponibles en la oficina de la escuela.

Si tiene alguna pregunta, por favor comuníquese con Wendy Gierczak, Asistente Administrativa del Servicio de Alimentos GRACE por correo electrónico o llamando al (920) 499-7330, extensión 1004.

The GRACE school system is excited to announce that the GRACE Community 5K Wellness Fun Run/Walk will be returning this summer. The event is scheduled for Saturday, August 28, 2021.

For more details and to register, please click here. The registration fee is only $5 per person and includes a T-shirt, post-race activities, and a prize drawing.

This wonderful, non-timed event promotes wellness and strengthens our GRACE community of schools and parishes. We look forward to seeing you there when we gather together to help kick off the 2021-2022 school year!

All GRACE students will receive free meals during the 2021-22 school year (milk must be purchased separately) as the result of a USDA/DPI Federal Funding Grant called Seamless Summer Option (SSO).

But normal program requirements and options remain the same. So if you typically applied for the Free and Reduced Meal Eligibility Program, please continue to do; that information is used for other program benefits such as Pandemic Food Share (P-EBT).

The Free and Reduced Meal Eligibility Program forms and additional details are available here: English | Spanish

Paper copies also are available at the GRACE Riverside Office, 1822 Riverside Drive, Green Bay, and at all school offices.

If you have any questions, please contact Wendy Gierczak, GRACE Food Service Administrative Assistant, at (920) 499-7330, ext. 1004.

Please click the link below to view Dr. Tyrrell’s Weekly Newsletter.

Spanish Newsletter

English Newsletter