Dear St. Mary’s Families,
This week we have shifted our focus from being FRIENDS to being LEARNERS. As learners it is important to be curious, open minded, and have the ability to critically think by considering multiple perspectives. That is a tall order, but it is what we are committed to at St. Mary’s. I am confident that our students will meet this challenge.
At Prayer Square this morning we talked about how to be a great student. Great students have the right body and language and never miss the opportunity to be engaged. Students should always try to SLANT.
- S- Sit up
- L- Lean in
- A- Ask a good question
- N – Nod your head in the affirmative
- T- Thank you
If students can follow this simple set of instructions, they will look and be more engaged, develop better learning habits, and dazzle their teachers by being the most engaged and well-behaved student in the class.
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.
Baptism
A number of our families have been reaching out to inquire about baptism. Please contact the Parish office (208) 344-2597 to discuss this or any other questions about the church and ways to explore your faith. 
MAP Testing – September 8 – 17
We are finishing MAP testing this week. The students have done exceptionally well. They have taken them seriously and helped to create a positive testing environment for their classmates. We will send home your students results the week of October 3rd.
Fall reports are great to look at. They give the teachers insight into each student, where they are, what they know and where opportunities exist. We look at the reports from both an individual and class perspective. It is easy to get wrapped up on the achievement score, please keep in mind that the Fall reports are the baseline to measure student and class growth throughout the year.
NWEA provides extensive resources to families to improve their understanding of the assessments and their purpose. Please refer to the Family Toolkit for more information.
Peach Sales – Incredible Success
Thank you to the PTO and Sarah Brown for leading the Peach sale this year. Their efforts resulted in more pounds of delicious, mouth wearing peaches to be sold than any prior year. If you missed the opportunity but would still like a chance to enjoy them. We have a few boxes in the office for sale.
Thank you again to the PTO and Sarah Brown for their commitment to the school and helping us raise the funds necessary for the 8th grade retreat and other student adventures during the year.
Security at Mass
Today was our first day with a security office at Mass. We appreciate the steps Fr. John and the parish have taken to improving the school’s and student’s safety. If you plan on attending Mass on Wednesdays, we encourage you to be on time. We are locking the doors as soon as Mass begins.
School Counselor Information – St. Mary’s is very blessed to have Mrs. Brooke Maritt join us this year. Mrs. Maritt is actively getting to know the students, teachers, and school. Below is information about what Mrs. Maritt will be doing during September.
A reminder to fill out the counseling consent form if you have not yet.
Let’s learn to ACT! Mrs. Maritt will be providing the SOS training to grades 6th-8th during the month of October. In order to continue our partnership with parents, Mrs. Maritt would like to offer the option of a parent night to share what the students will be learning. Even though the training is only provided to middle school students, we welcome all parents to attend. We know after school is a busy time for families and having the flexibility to attend a parent night might not always be an option, so we want to hear from you! Please let us know which option you would like by filling out this form.
Safe Environment training is required for any volunteer that will be around students in the school.
Please be sure to keep current with your safe environment. You are asked to complete an on-line training session to renew using Virtus each year. Background checks are scheduled to be renewed every five years. If you have never been through Safe Environment, you will need to attend the in-person class first.
To find the list of in-person training, please follow the above link to Virtus, create an account and follow the prompts to the available classes.
OktoberFest – St. Mary’s Foodbank – September 22, 2025
The St. Mary’s Foodbank is hosting its annual Oktoberfest at Payette Brewery on September 22nd. This is a fun event bringing the parish, the school and the foodbank together in community in support of the foodbank. It is a night full of beer, brats, and friendship. Please see the flyers around the school and parish for more information.
Payette Brewing Company is a family friendly brewery. Please bring the entire family to enjoy the event and community. Prost!
2025-26 is going incredibly well. We appreciate our students, families, staff, and parish. It is inspiring to work at a school with immense support from the community.
Thank you!
Calendar of Events
- September 8 – 17 – MAP Testing
- September 19 – Teacher In-Service – No School
- September 19 – TVCS 7th and 8th Grade Dance at St. Mary’s
- September 22 – Oktoberfest – Payette Brewery
- September 26 – Hispanic Heritage Fair – More details to follow
- October 6-10 – MOSS 5th and 6th Graders
- October 8 – Picture Retakes
- October 16 – S.O.S Training 6:30 pm (Placeholder – waiting for survey results)
- October 17 – Spartan Run
- January 31, 2026 – St. Mary’s Annual Gala – Please save the date
God Bless and Take Care
Kevan Grant
St. Mary’s Catholic School – Principal
Go Spartans!
Other Things
- School Choice – 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 Idaho Parental Choice Tax Credit page. It provides information about the bill along with courses to help families understand the finer details.
- Mexican Dance – Wednesdays – Open to All Students – Gloria Munoz at the Parish office graciously donates her time and expertise to our aspiring dancers. The group practices weekly on Wednesdays after school. No experience necessary. The group performs at events at St. Mary’s and throughout the city, including Dia de los Muertos, Our Lady of Guadalupe, and Festival of Trees.
- After-School STEM Club – Spartaneers – Tuesdays – Jason Jaszkowiak is giving his time and experience to lead students in an after-school STEM program after school at St. Mary’s. Please refer to the link above for more information.
- 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 local businesses.
- 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.
- St. Mary’s and Niche – Marketing the school is incredibly important. We utilize a number of avenues to let others know about St. Mary’s. One tool we use is Niche. Niche is an on-line school directory. Each month we have people from all over the country and some international families visit our Niche website to discover more about St. Mary’s. If you have a moment and want to share your experience, please complete a review of the school using the link above.
- Technology and Social Media Last year, I sent this linked letter to our families about some of the struggles we have experienced using technology, social media, or even gaming. As we enter into a new school year, it is a good idea to review or establish the necessary controls with respect to home technology usage. In addition to the tips provided in the letter, St. Mary’s has invested in the Social Institute to provide meaningful lessons to our students. The website allows for family access to the vast resources of tips, tricks, settings, and other controls to help families keep their children safe.
- To sign up for access, you can use the QR code on the document ( The Social Institute – Family Tool Kit ) or you can access the website directly to sign up to access the family resources. Please use the following school code: Code 3d1bC5B9403C65
- The site provides families resources to spark engaging conversations as well as application playbooks, which help you understand and set the necessary controls to restrict usage and/or functionality.
- Nationwide and statewide there are a number of programs supporting families and providing best practices to help keep our children safe. One initiative is Wait Until Eighth. Below is information concerning students in Idaho and nationally with respect to smartphone usage.
- 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
