Upcoming Dates

Tuesday, January 30  Deal Night @ Murch, 6:30 pm
Monday, February 19   Presidents’ Day NO SCHOOL
Friday, March 2 Parent-Teacher Conference Day NO SCHOOL
Saturday, March 3         Murch Auction 6:30-10:00 pm

Preparations for the 2007 Murch Auction are well underway. You should have received your invitation in the mail this week. They were designed by Murch parent, Jenifer Sessums and are truly beautiful, so please make sure to thank Jenifer for donating her time. The event is scheduled for Saturday, March 3 at the Carnegie Institute for Science (16th & P Street, NW). Please take a moment to fill out the reply card and return it right away. Having a head count early helps in our planning.   

Do you have something you can donate to the auction? Tickets to the theater, a sporting event or music venue? Do you have a special skill such as graphic design or landscaping? Do you own a vacation home? Please consider making a donation this year. Donation forms are available on the HSA table or you can contact Alison Howard at AMHoward@starpower.net.

Please mark your calendars for Deal Night Tuesday, January 30 at 6:30. Principal Melissa Kim will be coming to Murch to talk with parents interested in sending their children to Deal. She will be addressing the renovations plans for Deal and its conversion to a Middle School as well.

This week, you should have received an electronic version of this newsletter. The HSA is considering converting the newsletter to e-mail only format. The paper version takes a great deal of time and money to produce. We would still produce a small number of paper copies for the families without e-mail. If you have a strong opinion AGAINST this idea (or if you do not have e-mail), please let us know. If you did not receive the electronic version, please send your e-mail address to MarthaNS@aol.com with a note asking to be added to the list.

Michelle Cochran                                                 Martha Saccocio
MichelleCochran@starpower.net                     MarthaNS@aol.com
237.6617                                                              237.6967

Auction Invitations have been mailed!  Invitations to the Murch Auction 2007 have been mailed to all Murch parents with complete addresses in the directory. For those families who did not list  addresses, the invitations were distributed to the classrooms for delivery. Reply cards may be mailed in the envelope provided or dropped in the Auction Reply box on the HSA table. If you did not receive an invitation, please contact Anne Morin at ahmorin@aol.com.
Invitations were mailed to all Murch parents with complete addresses in the directory. For those families who did not list addresses, the invitations were distributed to the classrooms for delivery. Reply cards may be mailed in the envelope provided or dropped in the Auction Reply box on the HSA table. If you did not receive an invitation, please contact Anne Morin at ahmorin@aol.com. You can also access the invitation online, and pay for tickets at www.murchschool.org. 
 
Please remember that we do not issue tickets for the auction. Once you RSVP, your name will be added to the registration list. You simply check in at the registration tables at the Carnegie Institute and you are all set.
 
Friends to Invite? Please let us know if you have friends, neighbors or prospective Murch families who would like to receive an invitation. Please send their names and complete address to Anne Morin at ahmorin@aol.com.
   
Messages, Tributes or Ads in the Auction Catalog. There are a number of ways to support the auction in addition to donating items and showing up to purchase them.  Please consider buying an ad, sending a message or becoming a sponsor.  Here is how:
For $25,  send a message in honor of a child
For $25,  write a special message
For $80+, Purchase an ad in the auction catalog.
For $50+.  Become a sponsor of the auction. If you just want to support the auction without a lot of fuss, please consider making a tax deductible gift. The categories are:
Benefactors:  $250+
Donors:  $100-249
Friends  $50-99
 
Forms were sent home last week and can be found on the HSA table. The deadline is February 2. All checks are made payable to the Murch HSA.  Forms may be returned to the Auction Reply Box on the HSA table. Questions? Contact Anne Morin at ahmorin@aol.com

For more information about the auction, visit the Murch website, www.murchshool.org or reference the specific url for The Sky’s the Limit www.murchschool.org/auction2007.htm

Principal’s Corner by Carolyne Albert-Garvey

Geography Bee
Congratulations to Ike Allen (Otten) – Winner
Congratulations to Lydia Schwartz (Levy) and Giang Le (McCoy) – 2nd Place
Ike will be representing Murch in the district-wide bee. We’ll keep you posted. Thanks to all participants! This was a fun event! Special thanks to Ms. Martell-Stevenson, Ms. Walker, and Ms. Otten! This event would not have happened without you.
 
Murch nominated for Blue Ribbon Schools Program by Dr. Janey
The No Child Left Behind—Blue Ribbon Schools Program honors public and private K-12 schools that are either academically superior in their states or that demonstrate dramatic gains in student achievement. Our Chief State School Officer, Dr. Janey nominated Murch as a “high performing school.” High performing schools are in the top 10 percent of all schools on state (DC) assessment scores in both reading (language arts or English) and mathematics, regardless of their demographics. To meet final eligibility, the school must meet the state’s adequate yearly progress (AYP) requirement in the year it receives the award. Nominated schools may be nationally recognized for their academic achievement as some of America’s most successful schools. Nomination is a way to acknowledge the hard work of students, staff members, families, and the community. Murch administrators and several Murch teachers and staff members have been working on the application. The application is due to the Department by February 9, 2007. The Secretary of Education will announce the 2006 No Child Left Behind—Blue Ribbon Schools in September and two people from each school, the principal and a teacher, will be invited to a ceremony where the schools will receive a plaque and a flag signifying their status. We’ll let you know has soon as we find out!
 
Staffing Update – Please join me in welcoming our new staff members!
We have a new PERMANENT nurse! Her name is Caridad Wright. Nurse Wright came to the US as an exchange visitor nurse from the Philippines. She has worked in several hospitals including the Children’s National Medical Center. She is also a teacher, having taught adult students in the practical nursing program in a private school in Arlington, VA. Nurse Wright has a background in pediatric nursing and has dealt with a wide range of pediatric emergencies. She is glad to be a member of the Murch family.

I will be forever grateful to Cathy Reisher for temporarily leaving her job to be at Murch full time this fall.

Marina Hodges is our new kindergarten aide in Miss Bickart’s class. Marina is a graduate student at Trinity University. Miss Lansing resigned just before the winter break. We are very lucky that Marina was available to start at Murch on the first day back at school.

Ellen Hays, a former Murch parent, is our new special ed. aide. Ellen is a recently retired budget analyst. She was awarded the Girl Scout Council of the Nation’s Capitol Outstanding Leader Award in the spring of 2005.

Doretha Prince is our new food service manager. Doretha has worked at several DCPS schools. She has already adapted to not having a kitchen or cafeteria!
 
Deal – Conversion to Middle School
Murch 6th graders will not move to Deal until the fall of 2009 when construction is scheduled to be finished.
Deal Night at Murch – January 30, 2007 @ 6:30 pm Meet principal Melissa Kim.

Directory Updates.A number of new families have joined the Murch family since the publication of the directory.  We have distributed directory information sheets to these new families and will soon publish an addendum.  We can also publish any corrections or changes to existing listings.  If you wish to add, change or correct information in your listing, please contact Anne Morin at ahmorin@aol.com.

My caring and reliable sitter is available for sitting or light housekeeping M-F from 8:30 am-2:30 pm, and Mon. and Wed. for full days/evenings (she doesn’t drive). Please contact me if you are interested in talking with her – Tien Pasco 249.9810.
 
Si usted llegara o necesita alguna ayuda para traducir algo al espanol contacteme. Sara Villeda: telefono 202.244.7493/email savll@aol.com.