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Week of April 20, 2020
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Principal Notes

What's Important this Week at Mercy High School
20 April 2020
 
Dear Families,
 
Yesterday was the Feast of the Divine Mercy, which the Church has celebrated on the Octave of Easter since 2000. In her diary, the Polish nun St. Faustina Kowalska reported her many conversations with Jesus, who asked her to portray a vision of the mercy that flows from Him to the world. St. Faustina wrote that her prayer, the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy, serves three purposes: to obtain mercy, to trust in Jesus’s mercy, and to bring mercy to others. Like the Rosary, the Chaplet repeats this clear prayer:
 
For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.
Although we are still virtual, all of us at Mercy hope that you and your family had a restful Easter break. As you know, Maryland schools will remain closed until May 15, and we will continue with Mercy Online 2.0The schedule and calendar are attached. We have been especially concerned over the amount of screen time that has been necessary for both our Mercy Girls and our faculty, so we will have two days of respite – tech-free days, time to step away from our screens with no direct instruction, but time to relax and reflect. These days will be held on Friday, May 1 and Friday, May 15; they are listed as R & R.
You will notice that Mercy Online 2.0 includes daily Magic Time at the end of the day, and this is devoted to celebrating our community and addressing the health and wellness of our Mercy Girls. Before the current pandemic hit, adolescents were already feeling a good deal of stress, and now they and we are feeling even more. The American Psychological Association is a very good resource for families, and provides tips to help us help them manage stressful lives.
 
Mindfulness is another way that parents can approach the stress we are feeling during the pandemic. This link includes a number of helpful hints for parents to approach mindfulness in families – and be sure to notice that adolescents are addressed at the very end! 
As all those in our community know, the environment is one of the Critical Concerns of the Sisters of Mercy. On Friday, April 24, students in Law and Social Action will meet with Caryn Brookman, Owner/Principal, and Bob Maimone, AICP, P'19, Senior Environmental Specialist, Blackwater Environmental, which specializes in compliance with the National Environmental Protection Act for companies and institutions offering environmental planning services. Blackwater Environmental Group's clients include several State of Maryland agencies, including Baltimore City. More information can be found here. It is important that Ms. Brookman and Mr. Maimone talk with the students this week, as we celebrate Earth Day on April 22
Let's not forget our artistic outlets! Show us your art is back this week with an Earth Day theme! Send us photos of your photos, knitting or crocheting, paintings, drawings, mixed media, and more! Make some music! Dance in your living room! Write a poem! Please submit to showusyourart@mercyhighschool.com to be shared! Parents, faculty, alumnae, and of course students--we can't wait to see what you're working on!
Just announced! Mercy High School will host a NEW Dance Camp this summer for rising 6th-9th graders. Read more and help us spread the word!
Please join freshman Eva Cahill to write letters to nurses, doctors, technicians, environmental services workers, nutrition providers, social workers, and all those on the front lines of this pandemic to thank them for their service. Letters can begin with “Dear Healthcare Provider.” You can offer a “Thank you!” and “Please keep going!” For more information, please read Eva’s explanation.

Letters should be sent to: 
Johns Hopkins Medicine Unified Incident Command
Attention: Operation Thank You
600 North Wolfe Street
Billings Administration Building 
4th floor, suite 411
Baltimore MD, 21287

If you have any questions about this project, please email Ms. Marion at  memarion@mercyhighschool.com.

Ms. Kristy Cummings, Director of College Counseling, and I have prepared a two-part presentation for parents and guardians of sophomores. The first is on course planning for junior and senior years and the second is focused on your daughter’s upcoming college planning process. These presentations and supporting documents can be found at:

Sophomore Parent Night Part 1 Video
Sophomore Parent Night Part 2 Video
College Planning Reference Sheet

We know that there is no better way than to meet in person, but right now our best option to give you the information that you need in virtual meetings. If you have any questions, please be in touch with your daughter’s adviser or with either one of us. 

Finally . . .

On this Divine Mercy Sunday, we are grateful for the final prayer that St. Faustina presents to us:
 
Eternal God, in whom mercy is endless and the treasury of compassion inexhaustible, look kindly upon us and increase Your mercy in us, that in difficult moments we might not despair nor become despondent, but with great confidence submit ourselves to Your holy will, which is Love and Mercy itself.
 
Please be in touch with your daughter’s adviser, her teachers, Ms. Marion, or me if you have any concerns or questions. We will be sending out a survey at the end of the week for both parents and for students, so please look out for it.


Have a good week! Pray, keep structure, love your children, and stay healthy.
 
Warmest regards,


Jeanne A. Blakeslee
Principal
Club and Organization Meetings:
 
Club and organization meetings rescheduled as virtual meetings will be posted on PlusPortals.

More Links and Information
for This Week

Registration for Mercy Online Summer classes is now open. These are courses taught by faculty from Mercy schools across the country. Some are skills and refresher classes, and others are courses for original credit. The original credit courses range in content from astronomy and economics to street law. More information is included on the registration forms for original credit courses and for the skills classes.
In terms of their planning for next year, current sophomores need to complete their junior course selection sheets and check-in with their advisers to finish the process. On Monday during Magic Time we will have advisee meetings; sophomores should expect to continue these conversations about their classes for next year with their advisers. The paperwork should be complete and submitted by April 30. Current freshmen will begin the process later in the spring
In addition to our new Mercy Online web page, we will continue to update our COVID-19 Response and Resources page with helpful resources and each communication from our Leadership Team.
Our Student Services Team, including our Counselors, Learning Specialist, and College Counselor, are all available to support your daughters. Please don’t hesitate to be in touch with them, as you would if we were on campus.
Catholic Charities would welcome our support. Click here for a list of their in-kind needs, including simple items like prepared casseroles.
 
We have several alumnae who work for the Maryland Department of Public Health; they are in need of washable face masks that cover the nose and the mouth. If you or anyone you know would be interested in working on a project like creating face masks from cloth items that are around the house, please be in touch with Ms. Becky Hogg at rhogg@mercyhighschool.com.
 
Looking forward to summer and a return to normal activity? So is Magic Nation Athletics! There's more room to PLAY at Mercy, and we have expanded our 2020 athletic summer camp offerings, which now include:
  • Basketball
  • Volleyball I
  • Volleyball II
  • Lacrosse
  • Soccer I
  • Soccer II
Registration is now OPEN!
The Mercy bus will be coming to Harford County and Perry Hall to meet our growing demand from those areas. Morning bus service will be offered for the 2020-2021 school year, and the route will be determined by the response. Interested? Fill out this quick form.
The date of the Garnet Gala has changed! We have postponed this wonderful evening everyone was so looking forward to until Thursday, June 18.  Thank you to all of our sponsors and patrons for your flexibility! This fabulous night is sponsored by the Mercy High School Alumnae Association. Tickets, Sponsorships, and Ads are still on sale!

Dreaming of summer? This is the last week to grab your deeply discounted Hersheypark tickets for this summer offered by the Mercy High School Alumnae Association! For more details and to purchase your tickets, click here.

Copyright © 2020 Mercy High School Baltimore, All rights reserved.


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