St.

Augustine Academy
130 South Wells Road Ventura California 93004 805-672-0411 Fax 805-672-2365 e-mail StAugAcad@juno.com www.SaintAugustineAcademy.com

October 18, 2013

Board of Governors President Thomas Q. Ellis Secretary Robert R. Orellana, Esq. Treasurer Michael C. Collins Members Abel Montiel Jeff Schuberg Michael F. McLean, Ph.D. Louise Warnert

St. Luke the Evangelist

It is always such a joy to have been able to go on retreat and get restored and refocused in the Lord. This particular week, I was doubly lifted: I received a dose of great Carmelite spirituality AND I was able to connect with many of the Catholic high school principals from around the diocese. This latter made me feel good that many good men and women are running high schools in our diocese, and made me feel great at the jewel we have in St. Augustine Academy! One thing, in particular, is the consternation and upheaval so many school are experiencing with the Common Core few know what it really is, and even less know what it will mean for their schools with respect to costs, curricular changes, and philosophical challenges. Yet here, at St. Augustine Academy, we still get to enjoy the freedom of the liberal arts. Common Core is about career and college readiness. We are about so much more! Career and college readiness is the short-sighted end of the latest modern educational fad. St. Augustine Academy, though, finds that college and career readiness is simply a lovely and useful by-product of our noble goal, the goal of a liberal education to make free men. Dr. Daniel Coupland, Dr. Jeff Lehmans new colleague, in a recent lecture at Hillsdale College, sums this up well: The ancients knew that in order for men to be truly free, they must have a liberal education that includes study of literature and history, mathematics and science, music and art. Yes, man is made for work, but he is also made for so much more. Education should be about the highest things. We should study these thingsstars, plant cells, square roots, Shakespeares Hamlet, Mozarts Requiem, Lincolns Gettysburg Addressnot simply because they will get us into the right college or a particular line of work; rather, we study these noble things because they can tell us who we are, why we are here, and what our relationship is to each other as human beings and to the physical world that surrounds us. And Professor Anthony Esolen, of Providence College: [W]hat appalls me most about the (Common Core) standardsis the cavalier contempt for great works of human art and thought, in literary form. It is sheer ignorance of the life of the imagination. We are not programming machines. We are teaching childrenWe are to be forming the minds, and hearts of men and women[and we should] raise them to be human beings, honoring what is good and right, cherishing what is beautiful.

Headmaster Michael J. Van Hecke, M.Ed. Vice President of Development J. Peter Slaga Board of Advisors Hon. Jeremiah Denton Former U.S. Senator Mr. Nicholas J. Healy, Jr. President Ave Maria University Dr. Ronald P. McArthur Co-founder Thomas Aquinas College Mr. Roy S. Rohter, S.F.O. Co-founder St. Augustine Academy Fr. Michael Scanlan, T.O.R. Chancellor Franciscan University Mr. James Stenson Educator and Author

PARENT TEACHER CONFERENCE REQUEST FORMS ENCLOSED TODAY Please fill out and return on Monday if you wish to schedule a conference. If a teacher is requesting a conference with you, you will be informed next Friday in the Blue envelope.

Over

CALENDAR EVENTS Oct. 18th Family Movie Night See Flyer End of First Quarter! th Oct. 25 Report Cards Sent Home Oct. 27th Family Oktoberfest and Dance at SAA. 5:00-9:00 PM th th Oct. 29 and 30 Parent-Teacher Conferences st Oct. 31 All Saints Presentations NOON DISMISSAL Nov. 1st NO SCHOOL All Souls Day COLLEGE VISIT BENEDICTINE COLLEGE, Atchison Kansas On Monday morning, October 28th, a representative from Benedictine College will be on campus to talk with students in grades 11 and 12. She will also be available for 9th and 10th graders to meet her at Morning Break. Parents are welcome to stop by and meet her, too, between 8:30 AM and 10:15 AM. OKTOBERFEST If you want to pre-order a collectors stein, please email mvanhecke@juno.com TONIGHT. Oktoberfest will be Sunday, October 27th at 5:00 PM - 9:00 PM. GALA NEWS Things are progressing along wonderfullywe have Carlos Gonzales who will open the evening with live Spanish guitar music, we have some wonderful Live Auction items (need a couple more) including a collection of Silver Coins from the Silk Road, going back 2500 years, and a custom (your label) case of wine. Drop off any items, gift certificates and wine bottles in the office WITH Donation Sheet filled out, please) in the next two weeks! [Note Wine bottles are for the auction, not Mr. Van Heckebut if there is no Donation Sheet, maybe he wont know it is not for him.] RENTAL AVAILABLE Mr. Faulk has a small house on his property in the Oaks in Santa Paula, that is available for rent, 1 bed, 1 bath, 540 s.f. Please contact Mr. Faulk for details 794-3131 JOG-A-THON I would love to report all the good news and the winners today, but the committee keeps ME in the darkI will find out when the students find out, at 2:15 PM today. Cant wait! (But I have to.) Thanks to everyone who worked so hard, especially Mrs. Schuberg and all her helpers who organized this years event. FOOTBALL Wednesday, October 23rd @ Our Lady of the Assumption VOLLEYBALL Thursday, October 24th @ St. Mary Magdalen VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT St. Bonaventure High School November 8th and 9th. PRAYERS We continue to keep all our friends and family in our prayers. For the soul of Mr. Henry
Teichert, Mrs. Grimms father, who passed away on Monday, and for soul of Mr. Zinkewichs mother and for consolation for the families. For Dr. Ron MacArthur, founder of Thomas Aquinas College, who fell asleep in the Lord on Thursday morning. For Natalie Gillette (a former SAA family), a 9th grader at Camarillo High, who was just diagnosed with brain cancer. For Fr. Scerbo OFM, of St. Paschals in Thousand Oaks, who is battling cancer. For Mario Antignani, grandfather of the Warnert boys, who is recovering from surgery. For the soul of Nathaniel Mota, a senior at Verbum Dei Hisgh school, who was killed when crossing the street after a youth group meeting at his parish. Please continue to pray for Phillip Vargas and for a relative of the Grimms, Adrienne. For a friend of some of our families, Eric Stoutz (a father of 8), who is gravely ill during his cancer battle. For a relative of the Schubergs who is in a coma following an auto accident. For Mark Meltzer, and his mother, Rose, a good friend of the school. For Sr. Mary Gemma, TOR. We continue to pray for Mr. Curry and for a very special intention. We pray for all our school families, their needs and those of their friends and relatives. We pray for our Pope, our Archbishop, all of our priests and religious, and, for each other.