Dear St. Francis Families,

One of my favorite things about our students is their ability to work hard and play hard. This shined through during our week-long celebration of Catholic education for Pax et Bonum Week, where treats and creative dress-up days were in abundance. Our Troubies brought their energy, enthusiasm and school spirit every single day this week. Several members of our Board of Trustees witnessed our festivities firsthand when they joined us to celebrate mass, share in community lunch, and visit classrooms and departments.  

It was a fitting week to launch the official start of our Strategic Planning work with the first visit from our team of consultants from Meitler, who have a 50-year history of serving Catholic schools across the nation. The visionary, mission-driven, long range planning that takes place during the process aims to provide a clear vision for the future, define our key priorities for the medium to long term, and set out strategies for achieving goals and defined objectives. We are blessed to have a dedicated Strategic Planning Committee comprised of school affiliates, diocesan partners and community members. All of our parents/guardians will be asked to participate in a survey in March as part of our Strategic Planning work. We encourage and welcome your insights and input.  

We also cap the week off with an exciting announcement that we will formally share next week. St. Francis will be piloting a new program in fall bringing two college courses right here to our SFHS campus. This new partnership with the Los Rios Community College District will allow St. Francis students the chance to complete college credits without ever leaving our campus. We are grateful to American River College and the two professors who will be teaching the courses. We promise to share more details with all of you soon including course offerings, registration, and schedules.

We hope your daughters enjoyed celebrating the blessings of a St. Francis education with us!

In the spirit of Pax et Bonum,

Fadia Desmond
President