Spartan Spotlight – Week Ending February 27, 2026

Dear St. Mary’s Families,

Our Lenten journey is well underway

Many of us have joined the Hallow Lenten challenge. It is a 40 day challenge to spend time in prayer and/or reflection each day. While each day is unique, there is a prayer being shared frequently.

Lord, empty me – fill me – use me 

Empty me of anything that pulls me away from You, God

Fill me with Your grace, Your love, Your presence

Use me, use my life for Your goodness

Amen

Please join us for Stations of the Cross

• Friday, March 6th at 2:30
• Friday, March 27th at 2:30
• Wednesday, April 1st at 2:30 – Living Stations of the Cross
• Wednesdays, April 1st at 8:30 – Grandparents’ Mass – All are welcome 

Hallissey Tournament 

It is Hallissey Weekend – Good luck to our 7th and 8th graders competing in this annual tradition. Please join us for a Pep Assembly on Friday at 2:30 in the Gym

Our teams will be playing all weekend – We will use our extensive social media presence to share their results and upcoming games. Please click on the link above to access QR codes for schedules, breakfast, and other tournament information. 

St. Mary’s first round games are: 

• 7th Grade – Friday, Feb. 27 at 5:30 @ St. Ignatius vs. St. Joe’s Melba
• 8th Grade – Friday, Feb. 27 at 5:30 @  Carley Center at B.K. vs. Our Lady of the Rosary 

 

It is important to keep the mission of the school top of mind in all we do. The ability of the school and families to work cooperatively towards a common goal enhances the student learning academically, spiritually, and socially. 

OUR MISSION:

St. Mary’s School is to provide a Catholic environment that instills academic excellence while preparing the whole child for life-long personal and spiritual growth, empowering them to become global citizens. 

Staff Changes

It is with mixed emotion to announce the departure of Miss Jones and Mrs. Beason for the 2026-27 school year. 

Miss Jones shared the information with her class last week. She has loved her time at St. Mary’s, but has chosen to pursue a career where she is able to leverage her business education. Miss Jones has had a tremendous impact on her students and the community. We appreciate all she brought with her to the school and all she is leaving behind. 

Mrs. Janielle Beason will also be leaving the school at the end of the year…. But do not fret, she is not going far. We are all ecstatic to learn that Mrs. Beason will be working in the front PARISH office. We are excited for her and for the possibilities for the overall community. Roxanne has left big shoes to fill, but I am certain Janielle is up to the challenge. 

The open positions are posted on the school website, if you know of anybody interested in working at St. Mary’s. 

 

Digital Billboards 

It is the last week of our digital billboards. It has been fun seeing our school all over town. If you have not seen them yet, there are still a couple of days left.  The billboards are located at:

• • State Street and Willow Lane (near Burger and Brew) – Facing West

 

• • State Street and Arthur St. (just before you cross Veterans’ Memorial) Facing West
  • Fairview and Five Mile 

• THIS WEEKEND ONLY – Franklin and Maple Grove as you drive towards the Mall!

It was wonderful to see our students’ artwork and perspective of St. Mary’s each day. We will see what new and creative ideas we can come up with for next year!

2026-27 Re-enrollment and Enrollment

St. Mary’s is growing. We have great retention of our current students and their families as well as substantial interest from new families in all grades. Thank you for sharing your experiences with other families. The number of tours and inquiries has been record setting. If you know of anyone interested in looking at St. Mary’s, please have them call the office to set up a tour. 

Thank you to Miss Hailey, Mrs. Elliott, and all the other volunteers who helped with our spectacular Kindergarten screening. We are excited to have a whole new bunch of students join us in the BIG school.  

 

Pi Day – March 12🥧

Each year on Pi Day (March 14 – 3/14) Mrs. Russell celebrates by selling pi(es). Believe it or not there are not many Math holidays, so she makes the most of this one 🙂 – Mrs. Russell is looking for Pi(e) Day volunteers to contribute pies to the cause. 

All proceeds are donated back to the school to build our STEM program both in and out of the classroom. Last year she was able to raise just over $3,000 which allowed us to purchase the Blue Bots – programmable robots in which every class has been able to use and develop their programming skills and mathematical thinking. 

Please contact Mrs. Russell if you would like to contribute to the festive occasion jrussell@stmarys-boise.org

 

Bishop Kelly STEM Fair

Bishop Kelly’s Women in STEM club is hosting a STEM fair for students (and parents) from Kindergarten through 8th grade on March 7th from 10:00 am – 2:00 pm. You can:

• STEM Exploration
• 20+ Activities to Experience
• Prizes

Please see the linked flyer for all the details. 

 

Hallow at St. Mary’s

Students and teachers are registered with the school subscription to Hallow. As mentioned earlier, the school is utilizing the application for classroom activities. Students will also have access using their school gmail account. Each user can sign into 6 devices. Therefore, if you would like to use your student’s account for your personal or family use, that would be fine. 

We are in the process of understanding the access and security issues with the application and the student’s accounts. We appreciate the patience. 

They are promoting a Lenten prayer challenge if you are interested. 🤲

BK Music Dept. Spring Concert – Wednesday, March 11 @ 7:00pm (REG Gymnasium)

The award-winning BK ensembles will be performing a wide variety of music, along with many students from our TVCS partner schools. Doors will open to the public at 6:30pm. The REG is the old gym located in the main building just past the fountain through the front entrance.

Admission is $5 for adults, $3 for HS students, $2 for younger students and senior citizens, and kids age 5 or younger are free.

 

 Bishop Kelly – Flag Football League 

This spring, Bishop Kelly will be hosting a Flag Football League designed to provide students with a positive, development-focused opportunity to stay active, build football fundamentals, and compete in a structured, high-energy environment.

The league emphasizes skill development, teamwork, and sportsmanship, and is open to athletes who are interested in learning the game in a fast-paced, supportive setting. All sessions will take place on the Bishop Kelly campus and will be led by experienced coaches.

The practices and games are on Sundays from March 22 – May 17 – Please use the link above for all information and registration 

 

8th Grade Girls Lacrosse 

The Bishop Kelly Lacrosse program is opening invitations to any and all 8th grade girls interested in participating. 

Calendar of Events 

• February 27 – Hallissey Pep Assembly – 2:30 in the gym 📣
• February 27-March 1 – Hallissey Basketball Tournament 🏀
• March 6 – Stations of the Cross – 2:30-3:00
• March 7 – STEM Fair at Bishop Kelly 10:00-2:00 hosted by BK’s Women in STEM
• March 12 – Pi Day Celebration 𝝅
• March 13 – Teacher In-Service – No School
• March 16-20 – Spring Break – No School 😎
• March 27 – Stations of the Cross 2:30-3:00
• April 1 – Grandparents Mass 8:30 am 🧓
• April 1 – Living Stations of the Cross 2:30-3:15 ⛪
• April 3 – Good Friday – No School
• April 6 – Holy Monday – No School 
• April 10 – Class Photos 😁

God Bless and Take Care

 

Kevan Grant 

St. Mary’s Catholic School – Principal

Go Spartans!

Other Things 

• Idaho Today (KTVB)  – On January 26, Idaho Today aired a segment about St. Mary’s. The segment is posted on the Homepage of the Website – We are also sharing clips on social media. Please share with your friends, neighbors, and acquaintances. 
• Tuition and Registration 2026-27 – Tuition and fees for the 2026-27 school year have been set. Please check the link above to review. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Mr. Grant to discuss. 
• The 2026-27 School Academic Calendar has been set. I am excited to announce the first day of school in the Fall of 2026 will be August 19th.  We still have a number of events to finalize, but the linked calendar gives you the days we are in and out of school.
• School Choice Letter Diocese – Additional Information  – The Idaho Tax Commission is working to educate the public about House Bill 93, the bill designed to help families with the expense of non-public education. The link above will bring you to the latest information from the Diocese. You are also encouraged to visit the Idaho Parental Choice Tax Credit page. It provides information about the bill along with courses to help families understand the finer details. School Choice Tax Credit – IDLA – and How to Apply
• Mathnasium – St. Mary’s will be providing Mathnasium time on Mondays and Thursdays from 3:30 -4:30 to work with our interested students. The first session will be held on Thursday, February 5 at 3:30 in Miss Heffner’s room. There is still time to sign up if you or your student is interested. Please use the QR code on the flyer below. 

• • Please call Dan at 208-800-1155 to coordinate a free student math assessment at St Mary’s or any Mathnasium center
  • Let Dan know any time if you want to enroll your student/s
  • Mathnasium at St. Mary’s 

• Recycled Textiles – St. Mary’s is going to be collecting used clothing, purses, bedding, towels, hats, bags and other used garments for recycling. We are entering into a partnership with Just Porch It to collect and recycle textiles. We will have a bag in the cafeteria beginning in January if you have any items to discard. 
• Partnership Page St. Mary’s school initiated a partnership page on our website to share information about businesses that are associated with and support St. Mary’s. If you are looking for something, I encourage you to check out the directory. If you are interested in listing your business, please contact Mandy at the front office. We would love to continue to grow our partnerships and encourage support for our St. Mary’s businesses. 
• Mexican Dance – Every Wednesday, Ms. Gloria will be teaching, inspiring, and choreographing the St. Mary’s Mexican Dancers. It is open to any student that would like to show up. If you are interested, you can show up on Wednesdays.
• Dress Code – As the weather becomes colder and the first semester comes to an end, it is important we reiterate our dress code expectations with you and the students. Please find the specifics in the link above. Please take a few minutes to review the dress code with your students. We would appreciate your support with:
  • St. Mary’s Sweatshirts are the only sweatshirts permitted. All other sweatshirts are to stay at home.

• • Hair must be trimmed neatly and not fall into the students eyes. Hair is not to be colored. 

• Nurse Notes – February – Heart Awareness Month
• Return to School Policy – Each year the nurses evaluate and provide a return to school policy to keep us as healthy as possible during the school year. Please be sure to review the linked letter. 
• Bishop Kelly Athletics – Bishop Kelly has a plethora of athletics happening throughout the year. The BK website has a link to team pages with game schedules.
• Get your Uniforms and Spirit Wear from Educational Outfitters