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The 2007-created Strategic Plan, Celebrating our Legacy, Securing Our Future, remains in front of us as a living guide. A strategic plan should be an ongoing strategic think, after all.
This year, as goal #1 of the Third Year Action Plan, we are collectively working very hard to promote and celebrate the 400th anniversary of the founding of the Visitation Order. This is a celebration of the Visitation legacy – our Catholic identity and Salesian Spirituality. And we are seeking every opportunity to weave this special celebratory thread throughout our school year.
This year’s second goal for the Catholic Identity/Salesian Spirituality portion of the Strategic Plan is to integrate Salesian leadership more intentionally throughout the whole school environment. All school divisions have embraced this goal, resulting in more opportunities across and between the grades for conversation and leadership development. Even our youngest students are getting in the act, so to speak.
The Administrative Council is spearheading many an initiative to move our Strategic Plan forward – to continue to give it legs.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Friday, October 2, 2009
Health and Well-being
The number of Visitation students falling ill these days is growing. And we realize that this situation places stress on students and families alike. I would like to offer some reassurance as well as ask for your help.
Our faculty is committed to the holistic health of each one of our students, and they each stand ready to support students who need to be home recovering from whatever illness befalls them. In addition to the general empathy that our faculty and staff demonstrate in trying times, they also, very practically, have at the ready both class assignments and other instructional hints. Please check individual teacher webpages or email the teachers to ask for assignments or assistance. However, most importantly, our Visitation team wishes to mitigate the angst that our typically very conscientious students experience when they are away from school. We are proponents of rest and recovery before assignments are tackled. Recovering from some of these illnesses requires a great deal of rest. We want this rest to occur and will assist students upon their return to school regarding catching up on essential educational pieces. Please be reassured in this regard.
As for the help that we need, we now must require that students (K-12) are fever and symptom-free for a full 48 hours before returning to school. In order not to infect others or prompt a relapse with the student in question, we must abide by this directive, as encouraged by the Board of Health. Given that many of our students are suffering recurring illness in very short order, we feel that this 48 hour period at home after the fever and symptoms abate is essential. As previously communicated to the parents of the youngest among us, the Child Care and Montessori students must stay home for a minimum of seven days from the onset of symptoms, as per the Board of Health. We realize the various strains that this can place on households, but we must maintain our position on this in order to promote the health and well-being of the whole school. Of particular note at Visitation are the two groups who are especially vulnerable – the wee ones in our Child Care and Montessori programs, and the elderly Sisters in the Monastery.
We wish all of our students smooth sailing through the month of October. But this will only occur if we all do our part. Please remember that we stand ready as a professional team to support our families during these times so beset by illness.
Our faculty is committed to the holistic health of each one of our students, and they each stand ready to support students who need to be home recovering from whatever illness befalls them. In addition to the general empathy that our faculty and staff demonstrate in trying times, they also, very practically, have at the ready both class assignments and other instructional hints. Please check individual teacher webpages or email the teachers to ask for assignments or assistance. However, most importantly, our Visitation team wishes to mitigate the angst that our typically very conscientious students experience when they are away from school. We are proponents of rest and recovery before assignments are tackled. Recovering from some of these illnesses requires a great deal of rest. We want this rest to occur and will assist students upon their return to school regarding catching up on essential educational pieces. Please be reassured in this regard.
As for the help that we need, we now must require that students (K-12) are fever and symptom-free for a full 48 hours before returning to school. In order not to infect others or prompt a relapse with the student in question, we must abide by this directive, as encouraged by the Board of Health. Given that many of our students are suffering recurring illness in very short order, we feel that this 48 hour period at home after the fever and symptoms abate is essential. As previously communicated to the parents of the youngest among us, the Child Care and Montessori students must stay home for a minimum of seven days from the onset of symptoms, as per the Board of Health. We realize the various strains that this can place on households, but we must maintain our position on this in order to promote the health and well-being of the whole school. Of particular note at Visitation are the two groups who are especially vulnerable – the wee ones in our Child Care and Montessori programs, and the elderly Sisters in the Monastery.
We wish all of our students smooth sailing through the month of October. But this will only occur if we all do our part. Please remember that we stand ready as a professional team to support our families during these times so beset by illness.
Monday, August 31, 2009
A Special Year
Each new school year offers us new ways to “live Jesus,” the motto and mission of our dear Sisters. This year we celebrate an awe-inspiring milestone: the 400th anniversary of the Visitation Order. Rather than hosting one super event, we are infusing an anniversary spirit into every special event held during the 2009-2010 school year. We’ll recognize it at our Sept. 25 opening Mass and Flag Raising. Alumnae will toast to it that evening during a cocktail reception at the James J. Hill house. Our benefactors will celebrate it at their Sed Vitae Dinner in October. And our senior class will graduate on June 6, 2010 – 400 years to the day that Saint Jane de Chantal and two other women opened the first Visitation Monastery in Annecy, France.
The work we do here in Mendota Heights is part of something much bigger, a community that stretches across the globe and spans the centuries. I encourage you to get involved in this special celebration and share the joy and graces of the year. Please join us at one of our anniversary events that will be promoted throughout the year. We also encourage you to purchase and read one of the many books that have been recently published as part of our commemorative Salesian literature:
1.) The Visitation: A monastic way of life in the Church – This colorful coffee table book lays out the backbone of the Visitation Order and its beloved Salesian Spirituality, highlighting the 12 monasteries in the U.S. It features some great snapshots of our Sisters, including Sr. Marie Therese on the organ and Sr. Katherine Mullin smiling with a young North Minneapolis resident and so on. The $20 book can be purchased at the Portress or ordered for an additional $4 of shipping and handling. Just email visitationbooks@yahoo.com or call 703-451-7786. Learn more at www.thevisitationorder.blogspot.com.
2.) Gentle Fidelity – Sr. Peronne Marie’s book reflects the wisdom and poetry of Salesian Spirituality. Every time I read it, Sister Peronne’s insights feel delicate and fresh. To order your limited edition copy of these poems for $15, swing by the Portress, call the Development Office at 651-683-1704 or email Gina Carlson at gcarlson@vischool.org
3.) Extraordinary Ordinary Lives – Retired administrator and Vis alumna Elsa Thompson Hofmeister ’56 chronicles the vocational call of 14 women who responded “yes” to God’s invitation and joined our Visitation Monastery. She describes their joys and fears, trials and triumphs with detail, clarity and respect. The stories are fascinating! They renewed my appreciation for these women who quietly, joyfully “live Jesus.” The $20 book is available at the Portress or online at www.visbooks.org. Learn more at http://visnuns.blogspot.com/.
The work we do here in Mendota Heights is part of something much bigger, a community that stretches across the globe and spans the centuries. I encourage you to get involved in this special celebration and share the joy and graces of the year. Please join us at one of our anniversary events that will be promoted throughout the year. We also encourage you to purchase and read one of the many books that have been recently published as part of our commemorative Salesian literature:
1.) The Visitation: A monastic way of life in the Church – This colorful coffee table book lays out the backbone of the Visitation Order and its beloved Salesian Spirituality, highlighting the 12 monasteries in the U.S. It features some great snapshots of our Sisters, including Sr. Marie Therese on the organ and Sr. Katherine Mullin smiling with a young North Minneapolis resident and so on. The $20 book can be purchased at the Portress or ordered for an additional $4 of shipping and handling. Just email visitationbooks@yahoo.com or call 703-451-7786. Learn more at www.thevisitationorder.blogspot.com.
2.) Gentle Fidelity – Sr. Peronne Marie’s book reflects the wisdom and poetry of Salesian Spirituality. Every time I read it, Sister Peronne’s insights feel delicate and fresh. To order your limited edition copy of these poems for $15, swing by the Portress, call the Development Office at 651-683-1704 or email Gina Carlson at gcarlson@vischool.org
3.) Extraordinary Ordinary Lives – Retired administrator and Vis alumna Elsa Thompson Hofmeister ’56 chronicles the vocational call of 14 women who responded “yes” to God’s invitation and joined our Visitation Monastery. She describes their joys and fears, trials and triumphs with detail, clarity and respect. The stories are fascinating! They renewed my appreciation for these women who quietly, joyfully “live Jesus.” The $20 book is available at the Portress or online at www.visbooks.org. Learn more at http://visnuns.blogspot.com/.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Ready to Go
Soon the bustle will return. A new cycle of school life awaits. This is an exciting time, filled with all of the positive anticipation that a new school year evokes. Fresh slates. New beginnings. Reconnections. Welcoming the new. A few short weeks. I can’t wait.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Summer Diligence
The work proceeds carefully. Floor scrubbing and waxing. Carpet shampooing. Desk sanitizing. Touch-ups here. Touch-ups there. Readying the building for the next school year’s cycle.
With quiet efficiency the work proceeds – coordinating efforts with the many activities that happen at Visitation during the summer. Summer School. Summer Camp. Year-round Child Care. The refurbishing efforts continue.
Then in late August the new school year will begin within the gleam of this work.
We are so grateful for the care and concern – the love, really – that our maintenance team demonstrates toward our school
With quiet efficiency the work proceeds – coordinating efforts with the many activities that happen at Visitation during the summer. Summer School. Summer Camp. Year-round Child Care. The refurbishing efforts continue.
Then in late August the new school year will begin within the gleam of this work.
We are so grateful for the care and concern – the love, really – that our maintenance team demonstrates toward our school
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Extraordinary Ordinary Lives
Working at Convent of the Visitation School moves one along the continuum of having a job, to embracing a career, to finding a vocation. And this transformation is in no small part due to the influence of the Sisters of the Visitation, whose life’s work and life blood have fueled this school since 1873. These women are remarkable.
A beautiful view into the calling to religious life of these low-profile Sisters is now available in the newly published book by Elsa Thompson Hofmeister ‘56, Extraordinary Ordinary Lives: Vocation Stories of Minnesota Visitation Sisters. This exquisite tome is based upon interviews with fourteen Sisters, whose paths were quite different, yet led to the same beautiful calling. The stories are inspirational and only underscore the honor it is to serve in the school that they brought to life.
A beautiful view into the calling to religious life of these low-profile Sisters is now available in the newly published book by Elsa Thompson Hofmeister ‘56, Extraordinary Ordinary Lives: Vocation Stories of Minnesota Visitation Sisters. This exquisite tome is based upon interviews with fourteen Sisters, whose paths were quite different, yet led to the same beautiful calling. The stories are inspirational and only underscore the honor it is to serve in the school that they brought to life.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Grandparents Galore
May Day was filled with special blessings for Visitation. The morning was given over to a wonderful liturgical celebration, attended by the entire school and hundreds of grandparents and special friends.
I had the opportunity at this gathering to welcome and extend our collective gratitude to all present. We are so appreciative for all of the love and support that so many have demonstrated toward Visitation over time. And as I said in my welcome, each person present has her/his own special and profound connection to this place. Nurturing that connection remains our goal.
So many have helped and supported Visitation over time – helping us sustain our mission and secure our school’s future. At Visitation, we challenge ourselves every day to do just a little bit better. We do so because we are stewards of a place that exists because of so many people who have so generously given so much to our school, and who are the very bedrock of the traditions that sustain us.
During this liturgy, we also asked for special blessings upon our precious seniors and spirited sixth grade boys, who will be embarking upon learning adventures beyond Visitation next year. We have certainly been blessed by their presence.
After Mass, our special friends visited classes, dined, and simply took in the Visitation of today. What a wonderful May Day.
I had the opportunity at this gathering to welcome and extend our collective gratitude to all present. We are so appreciative for all of the love and support that so many have demonstrated toward Visitation over time. And as I said in my welcome, each person present has her/his own special and profound connection to this place. Nurturing that connection remains our goal.
So many have helped and supported Visitation over time – helping us sustain our mission and secure our school’s future. At Visitation, we challenge ourselves every day to do just a little bit better. We do so because we are stewards of a place that exists because of so many people who have so generously given so much to our school, and who are the very bedrock of the traditions that sustain us.
During this liturgy, we also asked for special blessings upon our precious seniors and spirited sixth grade boys, who will be embarking upon learning adventures beyond Visitation next year. We have certainly been blessed by their presence.
After Mass, our special friends visited classes, dined, and simply took in the Visitation of today. What a wonderful May Day.
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