From the Business Office Go-->

From the Principal

Dear Parents,

Prayers
Please keep the following in your prayers, as they or members of their family face illness or recover from surgery: Mrs. Berlene West, mother of faculty member Joy Gardner; senior Crystal Cortés; sophomore Xavier Matthew; senior Laura de la Paz; Mrs. Krissy Kistner, wife of faculty member Michael Kistner; and Mrs. Louise Stratton, mother of cafeteria manager, John Forstner.

Please keep in your prayers those members of our community who are going through the difficulty of losing a family member: Director of Catholic Schools, Dr. Charles LeBlanc, whose mother, Lucille Martin LeBlanc, passed away; senior Cydni Robertson, whose grandmother Louise Freeny Lemons, passed away; seventh grader Kenne Johnson, whose 17 year old cousin, La Sharon Powell, passed away; eighth grader Isaac Huerta and freshman Kevin Olvera, whose aunt Giribalda Barrón, passed away; and sophomore Chris Palmer, whose great grandfather Rex Brooks, passed away.

Construction
Thank you to all our parents and students for their patience during construction. Over the break we were able to pour concrete without disturbing morning traffic routines. All permits have been finalized and the foundation for the field house will be laid within the next two weeks. Surveying for the football field reconstruction and new track is almost complete. Fire lanes should be painted this week, so that the buses can be moved back behind the school, freeing up parking for seniors. For photographs of our progress, please check our website. As traffic patterns and entry points to the school are disturbed, we shall communicate to parents via EdLine. Student movement will be carefully monitored after school so that all students are where they should be. Students should be in tutoring or with their coach practicing. Students who are not in tutoring or with their coach must be in after school care, which is free until 4:30 p.m. With so muchconstruction, it is imperative that students be where they should be for their own safety. Although there are fences surrounding the site, students must walk to the fields with their coaches and must not be outside without supervision. Police officers will be hired during construction time to protect the site, to assist with construction traffic to watch for student safety, and to help ensure that students are where they need to be. Students who do not follow directives will be fined.

Cafeteria Plans
Our architects have completed the cafeteria plans, which include a commons area, a new book and spirit store, state-of-the-art kitchen, new serving area, and several open air dining areas. Fundraising and grant writing for the new commons area has begun.

Winter Showcase/Open House
Bishop Dunne will be hosting a very special Winter Showcase and Open House program on Thursday evening, January 17, 2008, from 6:30 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. We will be featuring student-led performances, workshops and demonstrations all around the school. Currently, enrolled families are encouraged to bring along prospective families so they may see the students and faculty of Bishop Dunne in action, demonstrating how Bishop Dunne’s academic program helps us prepare and send 100% of our students to college. Scholarships and Financial Aid are available. Please feel free to visit www.bdhs.org or call Mr. Richard Mullin at 214 339 6561 extension 230 to learn more.

Re-Registration
It’s registration time at Bishop Dunne once again. Registration for continuing students who wish to be enrolled at Bishop Dunne for the 2008-2009 school year will begin in mid-January. This year will mark a milestone as we offer interactive online registration for the first time. With Bishop Dunne again at a point where our enrollment is near capacity, it is important to review the process.

Each Fall the Directors of Admission from the seven Catholic high schools in the Diocese of Dallas agree on a single release date for all of our admission letters for new students. We do this to avoid confusion and conflict, since we know many students will apply to more than one Catholic High School. New admission notification letters are generally mailed to families in the second week of March. Knowing exactly how many seats are available for us to fill has become increasingly important at Bishop Dunne as we approach our full enrollment capacity. For this reason for 2008-2009, we need to have your completed registration forms, and registration fees for your returning students back by March 1, 2008. Returning students in good academic and social standing who complete and return their registration paperwork and deposit by March 1, 2008, are guaranteed a space for 2008-2009. ALL RETURNING STUDENT REGISTRATIONS RECEIVED AFTER MARCH 1ST, 2008 WILL BE ACCEPTED ON A SPACE AVAILABLE BASIS, AND WILL BE SUBJECT TO A $200 LATE REGISTRATION FEE.

You may register by mail anytime after your account from this year is current by completing the Registration/Emergency Form. The fee for registration has been set at $300 per student. Those continuing students who register after the March 1 postmark deadline will be subject to a $200 late registration fee, resulting in a total registration cost of $500 for those registering after March 1, 2008.

If you use the Texas Catholic Community Credit Union (TCCCU) to pay the tuition and fees (excluding the registration fee) over time, the first of ten monthly payments will be due on July 5, 2008. In order to meet this first payment date, you must have submitted the TCCCU forms by March 1, 2008. By doing so, the Credit Union will have sufficient time to process your request and mail you the required payment information. If you plan to pay the upcoming year’s costs in advance, all tuition and fees marked in bold print above are due no later than July 1, 2008. Any additional individual class fees subsequently incurred will be billed at a later date.

As a reminder, we have a new financial aid vendor for 2008- 2009. Financial aid forms are now available on line at https://sss.ets.org/. Families who have completed all financial aid paperwork and forms by the January 15, 2008, priority deadline will have a response before March 1, 2008. After creating your own password, you will need to enter 4721 as the authorization code to gain access to the application. Bishop Dunne will continue to accept financial aid applications and will offer aid to families on a rolling, funds available basis after January 31, 2008. Notification of awards will take place 4-6 weeks after your file is completed at SSS.

Honors Breakfasts
Please congratulate all students who will achieve honor roll status for the first semester. We will be honoring students at honors breakfasts beginning Monday, January 28th, 2008. The dates for each grade level are listed below. Please check your child’s report card if you are unsure of his or her status. Breakfast will begin at 7:45 a.m.

• The 7th grade will be honored on Monday, January 28, 2008.
• The 8th grade will be honored on Tuesday, January 29, 2008.
• The 9th grade will be honored on Wednesday, January 30, 2008.
• The 10th grade will be honored on Thursday, January 31, 2008.
• The 11th grade will be honored on Monday, February 4, 2008.
• The 12th grade will be honored on Tuesday, February 5, 2008.

Parent Teacher Conferences
Parent Teacher conferences are scheduled for the afternoon of Friday, February 1, 2008. Please remember this is an early dismissal day. Check the web page (bdhs.org) to schedule conferences in advance. Please check to make sure the teacher is available to avoid scheduling conflicts. For specific questions contact David Beattie dbeattie@bdhs.org.

Early Dismissal Day of Faculty Professional Development
The Bishop Dunne faculty has the honor of working with Mr. Mike Brock on Friday, January 18, 2008. He will hold a workshop for Bishop Dunne faculty, guiding teachers in ideas for effective classroom management. In order to give the teachers ample time to work with an expert in the area, we will have an early dismissal day. Students will be dismissed at 12:25 p.m. and will need to leave campus immediately so the in-service may begin. Lunch will not be served on Januray 18. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding as we take this opportunity to gain knowledge to help our students.

Thanks to the Booster Club!
Thank you to the Booster Club and officers Mrs. Shellie Driscoll, Mrs. Lachon Jacobs, Mrs. Lynn Merlino, and Mrs. Amy Tawill for providing breakfast for the faculty and staff for Christmas. The Booster Club is a support group for students, parents, faculty and staff.

Farewell and Welcome
Farewell to staff member Ms. Michelle Reyes, Mr. Nick Trojan and faculty member Mrs. Ginger Zappone as they move on to other opportunities. We wish them every success in the future. Welcome to Mrs. Marianna Griggs, who is taking Mrs. Zappone’s schedule. Ms. Griggs has a Master’s of Science degree from Texas A & M University and has taught biology and forensic entemology at Baylor Univeristy and Texas A & M University, and one of her speicialities is teaching middle school. Ms. Celeste Arista is joining us as a lab assistant in Biology. Ms. Arista has graduated from the University of Texas with a bachelor of arts degree in biology.

Geotech 2008
TheGeoTech 2008 Conference will be held at Bishop Dunne during the last week of February. For 20 years the GeoTech Conference has provided a forum to inspire and motivate educators to teach about the Earth – its structure, societies, environments and their interplay – using a wide range of technologies. GeoTech brings together innovative presenters and teachers in all disciplines to share academic and technology innovations. Educators come to this conference seeking the latest in curriculum area content, technology information and training, and teaching ideas.

GeoTech 2008 offers a rich mix of activities spread across three days. On Thursday and Friday, (February 28-29), there are fourteen hands-on/interactive workshops centered around four strands: social studies, language arts, STEM (science, technology, engineering & mathematics), and geospatial technologies. Friday evening provides an informal setting with keynote speaker Dr. “Deepsea Dawn” Wright. Her keynote presentation will be on Saturday morning, kicking off the main GeoTech conference and exhibits. All conference presenters are leaders in the effort to integrate technologies and critical thinking across the curriculum in the K-12 classroom. The calendar of exciting GeoTech 2008 events is on our web site at www.bdhs.org/geotech.

Keynote presenter, Dr. Dawn Wright, is a professor of Geography and Oceanography at Oregon State University, where she has been on the faculty since 1995. Prior to joining the OSU faculty, she was a seagoing marine technician for the international Ocean Drilling Program and a post-doctoral research associate at the NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in Newport, Oregon. A few years after the deep-sea vehicle Argo I was used to discover the HMS Titanic in 1986, Dawn was presented with some of the first geographic information system (GIS) data sets to be collected with that vehicle while a graduate student at UCSB. It was then that she first became acutely aware of the challenges of applying GIS to deep marine environments. She has since completed oceanographic fieldwork (oftentimes with GIS) in some of the most geologically-active regions on the planet, including the East Pacific Rise, the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, the Juan de Fuca Ridge, the Tonga Trench, volcanoes under the Japan Sea and the Indian Ocean, and, most recently, American Samoa.

Previous keynote presenters include Dr. Robert Ballard, Dr. Wade Davis, Dr. Jane Goodall, Dr. Mae Jemieson, Coleman McCarthy, Sister Helen PreJean, Dr. Sally Ride, and Dr. Spencer Wells.

Geotech Lecture Series
In 2006, we instituted the GeoTech Lecture Series in order to bring important and exceptional speakers to our community. This year’s lecture series will begin with District Attorney Craig Watkins and Councilwoman Elba Garcia.

Work of Heart Awards
The Catholic Foundation Work of Heart Awards are given to faculty and staff members who live the mission of Catholic Education, giving of themselves for the good of the community. Mr. Ed Schaffler, President of The Catholic Foundation, visited Bishop Dunne to present the prestigious Work of Heart Award to Mr. Jim Martin and Sister Carol George, and thanked them for their service.

Textbooks and Uniforms
Please remember to order your student’s second semester textbooks at this time by logging onto the website at: http://bookstore.mbsdirect.net/bdhs.htm or by calling MBS Direct Customer Service line at 1 800 325 3252. If you need assistance or have any questions, please contact Mrs. Owens via email aowens@bdhs.org or calling 214 339 6561 extension 232. P.E. uniforms are available in our school store at a cost of $10.00 for each piece or $20.00 for the set. School uniform sweatshirts are also available at a cost of $20.00 each.

Scholarship Bulletin
We ask parents and students to frequently check the scholarship bulletin as it is updated. The link to the scholarship bulletin is on the BDHS website on the Guidance page.

Lost and Found
Please remind your students to check the Lost and Found for any items that are missing. All Lost and Found items left unclaimed after the first semester (January 11) will be donated to charity.

Middle School Engineering Opportunity
All middle school students are invited to attend SMU’s engineering program. Students will be exposed to the field of Biomedical Engineering. This will help them discover how math, science, and engineering are used to create technologies of the future by working with real engineers. If you are interested in taking your child, please register at www.theinstitute.smu.edu/visioneering or call 214-768-4038. The program will be held on Saturday, February 16, 2008, from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Moody Coliseum, 6024 Airline Road, Dallas.

National Junior Art Honor Society
The National Junior Art Honor Society will be holding elections for officers on Tuesday, January 15, 2008. All students in grades 7 through 9 who are interested in art are encouraged to stop by room 402 and see Ms. Zeske to pick up information on how to join the Honor Society. Beginning in February, the club will be taking field trips to museums, artists’ studios, and exploring different mediums. Come join in the adventure that is the art world!

Online Education Program
The Online Education Program (OEP) classes will begin the week of January 28, 2008. Registration began on January 4, 2008, and will continue through the end of January. Classes are $435 and registration must be completed through Mrs. Sandy Brooks in the Business Office.

Students who have failed a semester must enroll in the next available online course in the subject in which they failed. There will no longer be summer school courses during the summer at school. Classes are available for credit redemption, homebound students, and accelerated credit. Advantages for students will be immediate remediation with tutoring from teachers, online and personal mentoring from Mr. Copeland and Mrs. Gardner, online parental feedback, self paced timelines to suit students’ and parents’ busy schedules and transportation limitations, as well as freeing summer for acceleration and enrichment classes, field trips and camps.

Seniors must complete all credit requirements and course remediation by May 15, 2008, in order to graduate and celebrate commencement exercises with the class of 2008. For more information on the OEP or online tutoring, please contact Hill Copeland at hcopeland@bdhs.org.

Middle School Online Education
Students who fail (below 70) a Middle School level semester course in Science, Math, Literature, History, or English, must register for a Middle School Online Education makeup course. The Online Education Courses have replaced the traditional summer school program. First semester makeup courses will begin February 4, 2008. All course requirements must be satisfactorily completed by April 30, 2008 in order for the student to be considered for promotion at the end of the school year. The cost of each course is $430.00. You may register your student by contacting Ms. Sandy Brooks in the Business Office. For questions concerning this process, please contact Ms. Joy Gardner at jgardner@bdhs.org.

Catholic Schools Week
Catholic Schools Week begins on January 28 and runs through February 2, 2008. We have many exciting plans including Parent Appreciation Day and several class competitions. We will email parents with further details.

Calendar 2008-2009
The following are proposed dates for the 2008-2009 school year. The calendar will be finalized when approved by the Diocesan office. We hope this will help in your planning for the upcoming school year.

August 2008
August 20 - 7th Grade Camp and Orientation
August 21 - 8th Grade Camp and Orientation
August 22 - 9th Grade Camp and Orientation; new 10th, 11th, and 12th Grade Orientation
August 25 - 10th Grade Camp and Orientation; Combined Red/Blue day 7th, 8th, 9th grades
August 26 - 11th and 12th Grade Camp and Orientation; Combined Red/Blue Purple day 7th-10th grades
August 27 - Red Day for everyone

September 2008
September 1- Labor Day - No School

October 2008
October 13 - Diocesan In-Service - No School for Students
October 23 - 1st Quarter Ends
October 24 - No School
October 27 - 2nd Quarter Begins

November 2008
November 14 - Parent Teacher Conferences - No School
November 25 - 12:25 p.m. dismissal - Thanksgiving Break
November 26-28 - Thanksgiving Break

December 2008
December 19 - 12:25 p.m. dismissal – Christmas Break
December 22-January 2 - Christmas Break

January 2009
January 5 - School Resumes
January 16- End of 2nd Quarter
January 19 - Martin Luther King Day- No School
January 20 - 3rd Quarter Begins

March 2009
March 6 - GeoTech - 12:25 p.m. dismissal for students
March 9 - Inclement Weather Day - No School
March 16-20 - Spring Break
March 27 - End of 3rd Quarter
March 30 - Beginning of 4th Quarter

April 2009
April 3 - Parent Teacher Conferences 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. - 12:25 dismissal
April 9 - Holy Thursday - 12:25 p.m. dismissal for students
April 10 - Good Friday - No School
April 13 - Inclement Weather Day - No School

May 2009
May 15, 18, 19 - 8th and 12th grade Finals
May 25 - Memorial Day - No School

June 2009
June 1,2,3 - Underclass Finals
June 4 - Conflict exams

Donations to Darfur and Central Africa Republic
Mr. Daniel Wilson and his brother-in-law, Mr. Caesar Ricci, would like to thank the entire Bishop Dunne community for their kind donations of school supplies for refugees from the Darfur region and the Central Africa Republic. The response was overwhelming! Mr. Ricci, a medical student from the University of Texas in San Antonio and alumnus of St Elizabeth of Hungary, and his colleagues departed with several cases full of pencils, sharpeners and paper. Caesar delivered these supplies and much needed medical help to the war-torn region during the Christmas vacation and hopes to present his experiences to the Bishop Dunne community when he returns.

From the Athletic Department

The Bishop Dunne High School Swim Team
The swim team will participate in its second meet of the season Saturday, January 12, 2008, 9:00 a.m. at the Carrollton Farmer’s Branch Natatorium. Please support and encourage the following swimmers in their efforts to beat their personal best times: Sarah Azar, Stephanie Dossett, Vanessa Fiscal, Teresa Gully, Callie Heimburger, LaPaul Jacobs, Levi May, Miriam Montano, Stephan Powell, Kendall Ross, Christian Sandoval, Rebecca Santos, Jennifer Suter, Michelle Torres, and C J York. The Regional Swim Meet is January 19 at Mansfield I.S.D. and the State Meet in San Antonio closes the season on February 2, 2008. Please come out and support our swimmers!

The Bishop Dunne Swim Team also has a large group of middle school athletes in training! Their big meet is still to be announced but most likely in February. The students have worked hard for the last several months and have come a long way towards building a strong, stroke conscious team. Please congratulate these swimmers for all of their hard work both in dry land training and in the water: Jackie Arrambide, Donnis Broussard, Yanelia Fiscal, Nina Gavos, Anderia Hargis, DeWanna Jackson, Kelly Merlino, Bryttana Mitchell, Vicky Rubealcaba, Jason Simmons, Katlin Stubbs, Sidney Stubbs, and Will Hood.

Volleyball
Congratulations to Bishop Dunne Alumna Lady Falcon Volleyball Player Courtney Brown, who has verbally committed to go professional in 2010, after completing her Senior Year at Benedictine College in Kansas City.

From the Business Office

Class Fees for Second Semester
These fees will be billed after the start of the second semester and are due on the 15th of the month following billing.

Some textbooks are of a prohibitive cost, are outdated as the subject involves the latest technology, or are not required. Individual class fees cover the cost of: photocopying, computer printer costs, library and research materials, upkeep and updating of equipment and labs, field trips, band equipment, maintenance, new instruments, music association fees, art supplies, athletic training programs and supplies, and books purchased by the school that are distributed to the students.

Fees charged are dependent upon your student’s course selections and may be incurred each semester. The following classes will be assessed a $65 fee:

• ACT/SAT Prep
• Adult Christian Relationships
• African American Literature Art
• Athletic Training
• Broadcast Journalism
• Conditioning
• Digital Audio Production
• Eastern Religions
• GIS
• Graphic Design
• Holocaust Studies
• Human Nutrition
• Intro to Film
• Middle Eastern
• Religions
• Multimedia
• Peace Studies
• Psychology
• Social Justice
• Speech/Study Skills
• Strength
• Theatre Arts
• World War II

The PALS fee is $30.
The fee for Christian Service, PE, and Teens Teaching Teens is $50.

The following miscellaneous fees are assessed, as applicable:
Advanced Placement Tests $89
PLAN and PSAT tests $15

Bus Fees

The $50 non-refundable registration fee is due with the completed registration form. Semester Payments were due January 8, 2008.

Dates to Remember

• 5th of each month- payments are due to the TCCCU.
• 7th of each month- the Business Office will attempt to notify the responsible party of non-payment.
• 14th of each month- payments for balances at BDCS are due.
• 15th of each month- students whose accounts have a balance at BDCS are not permitted to attend class or participate in any extracurricular activities, including sports.
• 16th of each month- students whose accounts are not current at TCCCU will not be permitted to attend class or participate in any extra-curricular activities, including sports.

Financial Aid Requirements
Student requirements for financial aid include but are not limited to maintaining an overall grade point average of 80% and a good discipline record. Staff evaluates each student at the end of the first semester to determine whether financial aid will continue for the second semester. Please remind your student how important it is to maintain the required grades and a good discipline record so that tuition assistance will not be withdrawn after the first semester.

Tuition Refunds
If a student withdraws from BDCS prior to the end of the current academic year, the student and his or her family may be entitled to a refund of tuition for any unused school quarter. Any unpaid fees or fines will be deducted from the refund. Additionally, there will be an administrative fee assessed to all such refunds resulting from voluntary withdrawal from the school.

Extended Day Program
Note: Students are not charged for the Extended Day Program until 4:30 p.m.

The purpose of the Extended Day Program (EDP) is to provide a convenient, safe, and affordable Christian environment to complement the value system of Bishop Dunne. School policies, procedures, and regulations are in effect at all times. The EDP follows the same expectations and consequences as stated in the Bishop Dunne School and Family Handbook.

Hours of operation are from 3:30 p.m. until 6 p.m. Students who are left unsupervised on the campus after 3:30 p.m. must attend the EDP. Students are not allowed to roam the campus freely. Parents should strongly convey to their student(s) that any unsupervised student who does not report to the EDP promptly will be subject to a detention.

Students who participate in extracurricular activities are to remain with their coach or moderator until their transportation arrives. However, students are to be picked up promptly after extracurricular activities. Teachers will remain with students in tutoring for their assigned time. If parents are not on time to pick up their students after extracurricular activities or tutoring, the student will be sent to the EDP and parents will be charged for this service beginning at 4:30 p.m. There will be no free EDP beginning at 4:30 p.m. for students who come to EDP before the start of their extracurricular activities.

There are three payment options:

1. A monthly fee of $140 ($85 for December since school is in session for a shorter period of time), which is approximately $4 per hour and is payable in advance, offers a tremendous discount over the hourly rates. Because of the staggered start dates in August, the hourly rate of $10 per hour (option #3) will be charged in August, unless parents choose to make an advance payment (option #2)

2. Advance payment for students who do not use the EDP enough to warrant paying a monthly fee, but who attend the program regularly. Parents may purchase hours in advance. The minimum number of hours a student may purchase is 5 hours at $8 an hour for any portion of an hour used for a total of $40. However, parents may purchase as many hours as they wish at the $8 per hour rate. The sign-out sheets will reflect the number of hours paid and used.

3. The rate for drop-ins is $10 per hour for any portion of an hour used and must be paid when the student is picked up for the day.

Parents will be subject to the hourly rates until payment has been received for the monthly rate or the pre-paid rate. It is preferred that advance payments (options 1 and 2) be made to the Business Office. A receipt will be given for any cash payments. If students are not picked up by 6:00 p.m., a fee of $25.00 for every 10 minutes (or any portion thereof) will be assessed.

Please note: Students will not be released from the EDP program unless a parent is visible to the adult in charge. Students will not be released to meet their ride any place other than the south parking lot between the high school and middle school buildings.

Cafeteria Menus