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Our seniors are a couple weeks away from their graduation at the Orpheum. Freshmen, sophomores and juniors have final exams in their sight with summer vacation soon at hand, and with planning already in full swing for the 2012-2013 school year, we are excited to welcome our new students in August!

Before the school year draws to a close, I want to share a schedule change that will occur in the final week of school. There will be no school for students on Mon., May 21. Students may use this day as an extra day to prepare for their final exams which begin on Tues., May 22. The building will be open and staff will be present on Mon., May 21 as a teacher work day. As a follow up from our state accreditation visit earlier this winter, and given the fact that we did not utilize any of our five built in snow days, the staff could utilize the extra day to address action items from our accreditation process before leaving for the summer.

As a reminder to upcoming events, the Baccalaureate Mass & Senior Awards Program will be held on Fri., May 11 at 7 p.m. at St. Patrick's Parish in Gretna. Graduation is at 2:30 p.m. on Sat., May 12 at the Orpheum.

Final exams for freshmen, sophomores, and juniors will occur as follows:

Tues., May 22
Exams for periods 1, 3, 5
Noon Dismissal

Wed., May 23
Exams for periods 2, 4, 6
Noon Dismissal

Thurs., May 24
Exams for periods 7, 8
10:35 Dismissal

Teachers may require students to be present after any of these days to make up any late work (if necessary.) Students are also expected to be at school during the designated times on Tuesday and Wednesday. On Thursday, if a student has an 8th period study hall, he/she may leave school early if written permission from his/her parent has been provided to the office staff.

I would like to again thank our parents, students, and staff for another productive school year. I wish you all a wonderful summer and look forward to working with you all in the school year to come!

I watched a terrific movie a few weeks ago titled "Of Gods and Men." It was the story of a community of Trappist monks who lived and worked in an Algerian village in the 1990's. It was a beautiful story of the relationship between this group of Catholic monks and the Muslim people that lived in the village. As civil war broke out and radical Jihadist groups began to terrorize the Algerian people the monks were faced with a decision to flee and save their lives or to stay with the people whom they loved. They chose love over fear and seven of the monks would eventually die as Martyrs in May of 1996. It struck me at the end of the film that as they were being led off to their deaths, I was half way across the world graduating from high school. I never thought at that time of my life that I would be a priest, and yet even then I shared the same vocation. In fact, we all share the same vocation. No matter what we are called to do, whether that be a priest, a religious sister, a husband, a wife, or whatever vocation we are called to live out we all have the same vocation, and that is the vocation to love. I was asked the other day if I had any words of advice for the graduating class of 2012, and I have to admit I was caught a little bit off guard. Because really, what can you say? I told them to keep going to Mass, to remember to pray, and to stay close to the sacrament of Reconciliation. But if I had to sum all of these things up, I would tell them to always choose love; to choose love over fear, over anger, over hatred, over despair, over power, over prestige, over popularity, even over success. Because that is how people will know who we really are and what we stand for. St. John said it best in his Gospel, "this is how they will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." It doesn't matter if we are a recent high school graduate or someone who graduated a long time ago, we never know what the world has in store for us tomorrow but if we remember to choose love we know we will always make the right decision.

As we near the end of the school year, it is good to review the many school improvement endeavors of 2011-2012:

• Accreditation
  • Skutt Catholic hosted its five-year Quality Assurance Review in February and was approved for full accreditation as a College Preparatory school
• Curriculum
  • SC Faculty completed a full mapping of the school curriculum
  • The John Baylor Test Preparation program was implemented to compliment SC's rigorous college prep curriculum and to provide targeted standardized test preparation to all students. Every 10th, 11th and 12th grade student received the complete JBTP curriculum
• Student Life
  • The Activities PLC has implemented a program to inform coaches and activity sponsors of their participants' academic performance every two weeks
  • The Classroom Management and Discipline PLC developed and implemented "Jr. Privileges" and other smaller incentives to reward students who are modeling the positive behaviors expected of all SC students
    
  • The Vision and Mission PLC developed and implemented "SkyHawks gone M.A.D." – a monthly program to recognize students who live out the Mission of Skutt Catholic and truly "Make a Difference"
    
  • The Student Advisory Board continued the student-initiated P.A.R.T. week (Project Acceptance-Respect-Tolerance) for the second consecutive year, leading the school in activities/reflections about the dignity of every human being
    
  • Prevention Council launched its Facebook page to raise awareness of student risk behaviors and positive prevention strategies.
    
• Support Services
  • Opening/development of the Academic Support Instructor position (Ms. Renee Saunders)
    
  • Revision of the Success Study Hall program to include both a Humanities instructor and Math/Science instructor to actively tutor students requiring additional academic support
  • A "Pyramid of Interventions" to support students was formalized
    
• Technology
  
  • Board Technology Committee reconvened – a 2-3 phase upgrade of the school's network backbone and wireless capabilities will be carried out beginning this summer
    
  • Upgrade to the school's student management system (currently JMC) is also being fully researched and heavily considered

Next year Skutt Catholic will continue moving forward on many fronts, but the following will be of primary focus:

• Accreditation
  
  • Develop action plans to address AdvancED's required actions:
    
    1. Establish a standards-based teacher evaluation system
       
    2. Better align professional development with the school's improvement goal(s)
    3. Develop a comprehensive student/school performance data collection and analysis system to drive the school's decision making process
       
• Curriculum
  
  • Development of common assessments to measure student learning of essential content/skills identified through the curriculum mapping process
    
• Student Life
  
  • The Classroom Management and Discipline PLC will continue researching policies regarding managing students' use of digital devices within the school setting
    
• Support Service
  
  • Continued implementation and refinement of SC's Academic Support program, Success Study Hall & Pyramid of Interventions
    
• Technology
  
  • Development of specific faculty/staff and student technology proficiencies
    
  • Possible integration of new Student Management System
    
  • Continued research into rolling out facets of e-learning at Skutt Catholic

Change is truly the only constant, and we will continue to develop and embrace changes/improvements that benefit the Skutt Catholic family.

Recycling Program
Just a reminder that we are still accepting used ink cartridges and cell phones. Please keep those donations coming!

Spring Break Trip to Spain/Portugal
Attention parents of Freshmen, Sophomores, and Juniors: There are 9 more spaces available on the 15th Annual Spring Break Trip to Spain and Portugal (with an excursion to Morocco and The Rock of Gibraltar!) This trip is an amazing opportunity for students to travel to Europe with their peers and immerse themselves in a culture that is very different from their own! Students will watch the classroom come alive as they discover their own independence in traveling abroad. We have 31 students signed up as of 4-23-12...but there are a few participant spaces left, and the spring pricing is now good until May 15! Contact Mrs. Johnson at aljohnson@schools.archomaha.org for more information or go to eftours.com and put in our tour number 1200480. All of the information that you will need is available on the website and you can sign up online.

Book Sale Volunteer Sign Up
The Skutt Catholic Book Sale for the fall semester is scheduled for Sat., Aug. 4 , 2012 for all grades. Many Skutt Catholic parents have discovered the way to save money on textbooks is by volunteering. Volunteer to work the Book Sale so that you can shop early and SAVE on your student's textbooks! See the attached form for more information on the book sale and the volunteer sign-up details.

Book Sale Information

Advocates for Academics Honor Assembly 9th through 11th grades
The Advocates final event for the year is the Honor Assemblies to be held at Skutt Catholic in the Commons on the morning of Fri., May 18. Parents are welcome to attend. The schedule is as follows:
Freshmen: 7:50 – 8:35 a.m.
Sophomores: 8:40 – 9:25 a.m.
Juniors: 9:40 – 10:25 a.m.

Welcome BBQ
The Welcome BBQ for new students and their families will be held on Thurs., May 24 from 6 - 8 p.m. Please go to www.skuttcatholic.com and click on the Welcome BBQ link, in the Upcoming Events section, for more information.

Study Survival Kits
Everyone knows that studying for finals is not easy, especially when summer is so close! Help someone make studying a little easier and more exciting by buying them a study survival kit! Buy them for a friend, yourself, for your child, or for someone special!

Study Survival Kit Form

Summer School Classes for Incoming Freshmen
Three classes are offered to SCHS incoming freshmen: Math Review, High School Preparedness, and Grammar Review. Classes run July 16-20. For more information please click HERE.

ACT Prep Classes
This ACT Preparation class will review each of the four required sections: Math, Science, English, and Reading for the ACT test date of June 9, 2012. For more information click HERE.

Physical exams for the 2012-13 school year will be held in May and July

Monday, May 21 @ GIKK
Time: Boys 5:30 p.m. & Girls 6:30 p.m.
&
Saturday, July 28 @ GIKK
Time: 8:00-10:00 a.m.

Cost: $25. Checks should be made to SCHS.

All proceeds will go to the SCHS Athletic Department.

We are in need of three doctors and three nurses on May 21 and/or July 28 – If you can help that day in this capacity, please contact Mike McMahon at: mpmcmahon@schools.archomaha.org. Thank you for any assistance!

ALWAYS BE AWARE OF LIGHTNING THIS TIME OF THE YEAR!

Reminder: Everyone must pay admission to: NSAA District Tournament Games (no passes.)

Website: www.skuttcatholic.com for Summer Camp information!

SCHS school/activity schedules now at: www.rivercitiesconference.org

Twitter: SCSkyHawks

LIVING THE GOSPEL – Summer is an excellent time to get a head start on the students' service hours for next year!  Summer camps, service trips, etc., have a limit of 8 hours/day towards credit.  Summer service hours need to be turned in to advisors by September 6.

Retreats
Thanks to all of the Juniors and Junior Parents for a successful Junior Retreat!

All-School Liturgies
The Light of Leadership Mass (Senior Mass) will be May 2, at 9:40 a.m. The Seniors will be passing on their 'light' to the Juniors during this special Mass.

Baccalaureate Mass – Friday, May 11, 7:00 p.m., at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Gretna. Congratulations Seniors!

Ascension Thursday Mass will be May 17, at 9:40 a.m.

Scholarship Letters
As your son or daughter receives award letters from the colleges he or she applied to, bring a copy to the Guidance Office.  The deadline to have awards published in the Graduation Program is past, but please continue to notify us about scholarships. All information we receive will be added to our permanent records.

Parents of Seniors
Once your child has made his or her final college selection, read ALL the mail the college sends.  Your child will be receiving important mailings regarding: housing, immunization records, financial aid, orientation, registration, Greek life, meal plans, parking, placement testing, and much more.  The Guidance Office at Skutt Catholic does not receive that information from colleges, but we would be happy to help you understand it if you bring it to us. 

Summer School
If your son or daughter received an F in any classes first semester or you anticipate a possible failing grade this semester, you should consider signing them up to repeat the course in summer school. Information is available in the guidance office about summer school at Westside, Millard, and Creighton Prep.  Call your child's counselor for more details.

Advanced Placement Exam Schedule
Letters were given to all students who registered for AP testing.  Please call Mrs. Reeves if you have any questions regarding your child's AP exam schedule.

Junior Newsletters
Parents of Juniors - Ask your child to show you the Guidance Office Junior Newsletter every month!

College Admissions Testing

Students can sign up for the ACT and/or SAT by going online to www.act.org for the ACT and/or www.collegeboard.com for the SAT.  Information about several local ACT and SAT Preparation Courses is also available in the Guidance Office.  See your child's counselor for more information.

Note of Caution to Parents
As the parent of a high school student you are likely receiving letters from companies promising you that for a fee they can find college scholarships for your child.  Many companies entice families to participate by offering a free consultation/interview.  These "free" services usually turn in to high pressure sales pitches. DO NOT pay these companies for their service.  They are actually charging excessive fees for things you can do on your own computer or that your child's guidance counselor does for SCHS students every day.  If you have questions about a company's legitimacy, contact your child's guidance counselor.

Counselor Alphabetical Organization
Mrs. Reeves: A–J
Mr. Schumacher: K-M
Mrs. Beckman: N-Z

Booster Club is a group of volunteer parents coming together to support the Skutt Catholic community and all of its activities including academics, athletics, extra-curricular activities, and school ministry.

Funds at Work: The following donations were approved at the April meeting:
-$1,000 to the Flight for Excellence Golf Tournament
-$10,000 towards the building of a press box for Girls Softball

Concessions: Thank you to the following people for all of their tremendous work efforts this spring with the SCHS Booster Club concessions: Boys soccer: Heidi Plance and Jane Steffes; Girls soccer: Julie Slattery, Colleen Pivovar and Susan Yordt; Cold drinks: Colleen Moseman; Perishables: Debi Myhra; Candy/Hot dogs etc.: Sheila Brown; Treasurer: Amy Vankat. A big thank you to Linda Legband for being the overall concessions coordinator all year! We truly appreciate her dedication to making sure concessions runs smoothly throughout the year.

Thank you: We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the amazing co-chairs that have done such a great job this past year. We have had a terrific year and it has been a pleasure to work with all of you. We thank you so much for your time and dedication. We certainly could not have done it without you!

Booster Club Looking Ahead to 2012-2013: Want to Get Involved? The Booster Club has many opportunities to become involved, meet new parents, and help build a vibrant environment for Skutt Catholic. The Booster Club supports academics, ministry, athletics, school sponsored extra-curricular activities, and many of the school needs. We need you!! We are in need of board members and chairs for the following positions: Co-Vice President, Athletic Program, Concessions (food or drinks), Scholarship, Chili Feed, Christmas Gift, and Communications Website. We can't do it without you, so please consider volunteering for one of the many activities listed above. Contact Kathy McGill 402-333-6312, kmcgill9@cox.net or Lisa Schwetschenau 402-496-4548, ljschwets@cox.net for more information on any of these positions.

Website: Logon to the Booster Page to volunteer for concessions, read the Booster Club Meeting minutes, or find out the date of the next meeting.

The Booster Club will not be meeting in May, but all Booster Club members are welcome to attend the next meeting on Wed., June 13 at 7:00 p.m. in the Media Center. Please call or email with any questions.

Kathy McGill 402-333-6312
kmcgill9@cox.net

Lisa Schwetschenau 402-496-4548
ljschwets@cox.net

All Metro Driving will hold three Drivers Education summer sessions at Skutt Catholic. The first session is June 11 – June 22. The next session is June 25 – July 6. The final session begins July 9 – July 20. Sign up sheets are available in the office or on-line. To sign up on-line or for more information, please check www.allmetrodrivingschool.com. Students must be 15-18 years of age with a valid learner's permit and at least 10-12 hours of behind the wheel instruction prior to the first day of class.

Walk on! This year's HawkWalk was a great success. Thanks to the generous contributions of SC students, parents, and staff we raised $24,000 to support the SC Financial Aid Fund. We're very proud of this vital fundraiser that enables deserving families to give their children a Catholic education and enables those students to make a difference here at Skutt Catholic.

On Wed., April 25 the entire school enjoyed a gorgeous Omaha afternoon as they walked the five-mile trek around Zorinsky Lake. Faculty and staff grilled nearly 800 hamburgers for the students to enjoy at a picnic following the walk. Bart Zavaletta's advisement hosted a water balloon toss in the afternoon to further their fundraising efforts. It was a great day to be a SkyHawk.

The annual alumni golf tournament Flight for Excellence, is schedule for Fri., June 29 at Pacific Springs in conjunction with the class of 2002's 10-year reunion to be held at Skutt Catholic on Sat., June 30. Please consider sponsoring the golf tournament and get your foursome ready for a noon shotgun!

Angel Flight 2012 "Under Southern Skies" is scheduled for Sat., Sept. 15 and committees are off and running, promising to make this year's event unforgettable. Please sign-up for a committee online at skuttcatholic.com.

Spring cleaning? Donate your old glass jars/vases/containers to Angel Flight. Drop them off in the main office labeled Angel Flight and see them repurposed at the party!

Spring Band Concert and Awards Night
The SkyHawk Band Program will be presenting its Spring Band Concert and Awards Night on Sun., May 6 at 5:00 p.m. in the SCHS commons. Everyone is invited and it is free to attend! The concert will feature the Concert Band, the SkyHawk Jazz Band, the Beginning Band, The Funk Brigade, The Jazz Bandits, the Trombone Trio, and a solo by Zach Beran. There will also be a presentation for the SkyHawk Color Guard. Many awards will be given out to students, including a $250 Band Booster Scholarship. The Concert Band and Jazz Band will be performing their district music in addition to other great pieces of music. Please come and support the SkyHawk Band Program!

SkyHawk Band and Color Guard trip to San Antonio
Every year the SkyHawk Band Program travels out of state for an annual band trip. In 2010 the band traveled to Chicago and in 2011 the band visited and competed at the Worlds of Fun Music Festival in Kansas City. This year the SkyHawk Band and Color Guard will be visiting San Antonio for a five day long trip. The Band will perform a Farewell Concert on Wed., May 30 at 3:00 p.m. in the SCHS commons before traveling to San Antonio. When the SkyHawk Band and Color Guard arrives in San Antonio, the students will take a tour of the Alamo and then perform in the Cavalry Courtyard at the Alamo at 12:00 p.m. During the students' stay in San Antonio, they will get to take a river cruise down the River Walk, visit the famous El Mercado, visit the Tower of America's, University of Texas at San Antonio, Six Flags, Chuck Wagon Dinner and Show, Sea World, the San Antonio Symphony, and have Sunday Mass at Blessed Sacrament Church before heading back to Omaha. In 2013 the SkyHawk Band and Color Guard will be returning to Kansas City to attend the Worlds of Fun Music Festival once again!

Exciting Band News for the SkyHawk Band!!
The SkyHawk Band had a successful first year with marching band while making school history with its first halftime shows. The SkyHawk Marching Band will be purchasing brand new uniforms for the 2012 football season! The Band hired a top-notch uniform company to create a custom made SkyHawk Marching Band uniform that looks modern, stylish, intimidating to competitors, and will appeal to all students at Skutt Catholic. Be on the lookout for the SkyHawk Marching Band's new look next season. The SkyHawk Band's enrollment will increase 60% next year making the band the largest it has ever been in our school history and also making this the largest freshman band class that Skutt Catholic has ever had! If you have a student not enrolled in band yet, now is the time to get them signed up. The SkyHawk Band Program is making school history every year and next school year is going to be an exciting year for the students. For more information about the band, contact Mr. Homan by phone or e-mail at jahoman@schools.archomaha.org. The SkyHawk Band Program works to provide the students with the best music education in the Omaha area. The program gives the students an opportunity to build on life skills including leadership experience and allows our students to bond and build great friendships, experiences, and memories they will have for the rest of their lives. Join the SkyHawk Band Program today!

We would like to invite everyone to our Spring Choir Concert on Sun., May 6 at 2:00 p.m. in the SCHS Commons. The concert will feature the Concert Choir, Hawkappella, Honors Concert Choir, and Vivace. We will honor and say farewell to 33 graduating choir seniors. In addition, the concert will showcase performances by several of our award-winning contest entries. To see a concert flyer click HERE.

Next year is a great time to get involved with vocal music. We are actively looking for musicians for Concert Choir, Vivace Show Choir, and the fall musical. Concert Choir is open to anyone at SCHS who is interested in singing - no audition or solo singing required. It is a great place to meet new people and to give yourself an artistic outlet from the rigors of the academic day. Vivace show choir auditions will be held on Tues. and Wed., May 15 and 16, in the music room. Audition information is available HERE. You only need to be present for one of the two days. To sign up for an audition time, please contact Mr. Storm. Lastly, if you are interested in playing an instrument in the fall musical pit orchestra, please see Mr. Storm or contact him directly at cjstorm@schools.archomaha.org. We are looking for woodwinds, brass, keyboards, and auxiliary percussion. Fall musical audition information for singers and actors can be found HERE.

Please support the choirs in their final can drive of the school year. Friday afternoon, May 4 – Sun., May 6, Can Pac Recycling will have a trailer in the SCHS lot for you to drop off your aluminum cans. All cans are recycled and the funds received benefit the students who participate in choir and show choir at SHCS. Please make sure that all cans are in a plastic bag, and if you are using grocery bags, please crush your cans to fit more inside each small bag. Thanks for your support.

It has been a very busy time in the Skutt Catholic Theatre Department. Thank you to everyone who came to one of the performances of our final production this year, the spring play, "The Arabian Nights" by Mary Zimmerman. It was very challenging theatre and the students learned a great deal as cast and crew members worked with professional designers. J.K. Rogers was the scenic designer that worked with Mr. Howard and came to school one day to teach the crew painting techniques. Lydia Dawson, costume designer, developed renderings for each student's character and presented them to the students. It was a new, professional theatre experience for our actors and stage crew.

Although it may seem like the school year is nearly over, we are in the process of celebrating the past theatre season and gearing up for the next one! "The Wilbers," our theatre awards evening, is scheduled for Wed., May 16 at 7:00 p.m. All theatre students and their families are invited. Please look for your invitation in the mail or contact Mr. Schnitzler about specific details.

We will have musical auditions for our fall production on Mon., May 14 and Thurs., May 17 at 6:00 p.m. both evenings. Monday night will include the vocal audition and students will learn choreography. Thursday night the students will audition the choreography and perform an acting scene. You may find all of the information that you need about auditions attached to this newsletter or contact Mr. Schnitzler. All students, including the incoming freshmen, are invited to audition. As always, students are encouraged to come and be a part of the theatre program with any or all of our productions as a performer or stage crew member. No previous experience is necessary and we would love to get students of all grades involved. Students may also become involved in activities sponsored by the International Thespian Society. ITS meetings are held every Monday, after school, in Mr. Schnitzler's classroom. We hope you get involved!

Congratulations to...

... the Science Olympiad State Team for finishing in the top ten at state on April 21! 30 teams competed in the high school division. Congratulations to the following students for medaling in their events:

Devin Christensen and Nina Chen, 6th place in Astronomy
Amanda Gordon and Carina Harrison, 4th place in Disease Detectives
Michael Pieper and Arlo Selix, 1st place in Dynamic Planet
Amanda Gordon and Devin Christensen, 6th place in Optics
Brittany and Alicia Margritz, 4th place in Water Quality and 3rd place in Write It/Do It
Devin Christensen, 4th place in Quiz Bowl

... to Danielle Desa whose drawing was not only accepted into the annual All Metro Senior Art Show at Bellevue University, but won Second Place. Her drawing, of water spreading in a sink, was on view during April and was one of her AP Portfolio pieces.

... to the following students were selected to have their art work displayed at the Catholic Schools Art Show, from Tues., April 17 through Fri., April 27.

Katie Batenhorst, Emily Bausback, Colleen Bernal, Nina Chen, Devin Christensen, Nicole D'Elia, Danielle Desa, Lucy Garro, Nathan Gradoville, Michelle Hickox, Libby Kane, Sarah Kathol, Jackie Koenig, Clare Koneck-Wilcox, Audrey Lanik, Taylor Lofdahl, Alicia Margritz, Justine McCarty, Caitlin McDermott, Lexi Mendick, Maddy Noren, Christina Novak, Hannah Parry, Lauren Pavel, Kaitlyn Peterson, Kate Quandahl, Rachel Persinger, Katie Schmitz, Kelsey Stratman, and Jared Vanlandingham.

... to Ashley Spurlock and the Student Advisory Board for their efforts in arranging for donations, organizing over 60 volunteers, and donating 123 blankets for Project Linus. For her service and dedication, Ashley received the Diamond Clover Award, Nebraska's 4-H Program's highest honor. She is the first member of Douglas/Sarpy County to receive this award!

... to the Skutt Catholic Engineering Team who have been meeting since October, putting in hundreds of hours preparing for competition. Team 1 presented a project involving the design of a commons renovation and new cafeteria at Skutt Catholic. Team 2 presented a project involving a mobile medical facility that could be deployed to a third world country, disaster zone, or war zone.

Competition involved 19 teams from 11 schools. Our teams did very well in the competition. Team 1 earned silver medals in the Research, Technology, and Presentation categories, and a gold medal in the Teamwork category. Team 2 earned silver medals in Applied Sciences, Sustainability, and Presentation; and gold medals in Proposal, Technology, Innovation, Research, and Teamwork. Team 2 also won the Award of Distinction, and finished in 2nd place overall in the competition. Team 2 missed winning the entire competition by only 3 points. In addition to a nice trophy, a cash award of $250 for Skutt Catholic was included in the Award of Distinction!

Please join me in congratulating the following students for their hard work and dedication!

Team 1
Broc Bettell, Liz Budden, Ellen Cihacek, Tyler Donan, Nichole Gottschalk, Nick Jensen, Ryan McKeever, Tom Peterson, Michael Rerucha, Peter Vankat, Tommie Vollmer, and Anna White

Team 2
Joe Baratta, Katie Batenhorst, Kevin Brittan, Jake Mekelburg, Kyle Newman, Nic Peterson, Hannah Richstein, and Nate Schmidt

... to the new cheerleaders for the 2012-2013 season!

Varsity Cheerleaders
Clara Burns, Monica Cable, Ashley Cardenas, Sarah Cundiff, Tori Gammel, Gabrielle Giesler, Dani Georgesen, Regan Jones, Megan Kolkman, Anna Meyers, Hanna Miller, Abby Nicholas, Maddy Noren, Taylor Price, Cora Scoville, Aly Schulte, Emily Vlach, Cylie Wieck, and Lucy Zadina

JV Cheerleaders:
Madison Collins, Sarah Fischer, Kirsten Hendren, Jennifer Hoody, Hannah Klemme, Megan Miller, Emily Newcomer, Francesca Romano, Sara Setlak, and Adriana Sneckenberg

... to the Girls/Boys State Representatives. Amanda Woodman was chosen to represent the Millard Legion at Girls State and Tom Peterson was chosen to represent the Arlington Legion at Boys State, this June in Lincoln.

... to Ceara Kirkpatrick for winning the UNL "Freedom of Speech" video contest.

... to the SkyHawk Band Program for having a successful weekend at this year's District Music Contest hosted at Platteview High School on Fri., April 20 and Sat., April 21. The Skutt Catholic Concert Band performed very well on that Friday and received an excellent rating from the three judges. The Concert Band was one point off from receiving an overall superior rating.

Congratulations to seniors Zach Beran, Mary Friedt, and Emily Pachunka for receiving a superior rating for their solo performances at District Music Contest. The Jazz Combo 1, also known as The Funk Brigade, received a superior rating for their performance of Wayne Shorter's Footprints. The judge was very impressed with the combo's jazz interpretation and musical creativity.

A special congratulation goes to the Skutt Catholic Trombone Trio for not only receiving a superior rating, but the group was chosen as one of only five solos or small ensembles to receive an Outstanding Performance Award at their district site. Members of the Trombone Trio are juniors Haley Eck, Ben Harrison, and sophomore Brandon Siracuse. Way to go trombones players!

On Saturday, the SkyHawk Jazz Band took the stage for an amazing performance that had many people amazed and very impressed. The SkyHawk Jazz Band received a superior 1+ rating which means all three judges gave the band a superior rating. This is the first district plaque that the SkyHawk Band Program has ever received from District Music Contest!

While preparing solos and small ensembles for DMC, the band and choir presented their first annual District Music Contest solo and small ensemble recital held in the SCHS Chapel on Thurs., April 12. Matt Sheppard, Director of Bands at Westside Middle School, was a guest instrumental music adjudicator who gave our students feedback to help them perform stronger at districts.

... to the Skutt Catholic choirs. They had a fantastic weekend at District Music Contest at Platteview, April 20 and 21. The Concert Choir and Vivace both received Superior ratings, including a perfect score for each group! These ratings help demonstrate the hard work that the students have invested through this year of classes and rehearsals.

Skutt Catholic was also well-represented by soloists, duets, and small ensembles. Congratulations to the following for their Superior Ratings: Hawkappella, Honors Concert Choir, Grace Eliason, Aubrey Fleming, Anna Kathol, and Zachary Pohlman. Also receiving Superior ratings were duets performed by Margaret Eliason and Anna Kathol, and Emily Pachunka and Alyssa Sloup. Excellent ratings went to solos by Zachary Kenney, Keanu Mendez, Morgan Olson, Emerald Stuttle, Samantha Sweeney, and duets by Danika Lang and Annie Moylan, and Sara Kleinsasser and Shannon Schrader. Krista Smith was awarded a Good rating for her solo. A great day for all involved and we are grateful to our friends at Platteview HS for hosting us.

... to the following students who were inducted into the International Thespian Society on Sun., April 15: Ann Belfiore, Brianna Donan, Grace Eliason, Margaret Eliason, Lauren Gehrki, John Martinez, Keanu Mendez, Annie Moylan, Stephen Olson, Trent Ostrom, Michael Pieper, Katie Pohlman, Talon Ramsey, Kolie Smith, Krista Smith, Ryan Steffes, and Samantha Sweeney. Also at Induction, the following students were installed as ITS officers for next year: Sara Kleinsasser—President, Hannah Richstein—Vice President, Gina Schnitzler—Secretary, and Katie Pohlman—Treasurer. The graduating seniors were also recognized and awarded their blue cords to wear at graduation.

Thank You
EPS ( Essential Pregnancy Services ) would like to express sincere appreciation to the students and families at Skutt Catholic High School. Your financial support is crucial to further support the overall mission and goals of EPS and the pro-life movement! A BIG THANK YOU for your participation in the Baby Bottle Campaign. Your good efforts generated over $3,100. May the Lord truly bless each and every one of you.

In addition, Bart Zavaletta and Carrie Stolinski, it was so awesome of you to invite Barb Maag and Kathy Onken to that special Mass where you presented the check to EPS, and that you shared information with all about the EPS mission and goals. You also indicated your desire to repeat this fundraiser next year. We are so gratified with your commitment to the pro-life cause.

Elaine Estee, co-chair of Baby Bottle Campaign

May 5 - 6: SCHS Choir Can Drive
May 6: Choir Department Spring Concert
May 14 & 17: 2012 Fall Musical Auditions
May 15 - 16: 2012-2013 Vivace Show Choir Auditions
May 21: Weight Room Summer Camp Freshmen Orientation
May 24: Welcome BBQ for all new students and their families
May 29 - 30: Softball Summer Camp for SC players & incoming freshmen
May 29 - June 1 & June 11 - 15: Volleyball Summer Camps
May 31, June 1, & 4: ACT Prep Class
May 31 - June 1: Softball Summer Camp
June 4 - 8 & 18 - 21: Girls Basketball Summer Camp
June 4 - 27: Tennis Summer Camp
June 4 - July 27: Weight Room Summer Program
June 11 - 13: Baseball Summer Camp
June 25 - 28: Boys Basketball Summer Camp
July 2 - August 1: Tennis Summer Camp
July 16 - 20: Summer School Classes for SCHS incoming freshmen
July 23 - 27: Football Camp for Incoming 9th - 12th grade Skutt Catholic students
Aug. 4 & 11: Annual Book Sale