Dear St. Dominic School Families,
September 2022

Welcome returning families and 30 new families! We are growing as a school community. Continue to spread the word. On behalf of Fr. Edward Kearns and the staff of St. Dominic Catholic School, I invite you to begin an exciting and challenging year of learning, growing, and living as Jesus teaches us. We are committed to providing the best learning environment for our students.  We understand that a strong family-school partnership is a way to build faith-filled and academically prepared students.

We believe that school should be a safe and happy place to learn and to grow. Children will be educated holistically, as we model for our students, our school patron and namesake, St. Dominic. He took his sermons from the Book of Love and prayed to be filled with the true love of neighbor. He encourages us to be humble and make sacrifices. St. Dominic spread the truths of our faith with preaching and prayer, especially the Rosary. If we live out these words each day, we will have a safe, successful, and blessed school year. 

The new school year brings many changes, including several new faculty and staff, updated curriculum, and increased technology enhancements. To date, we have three brand new computer labs. Upstairs, we have a computer lab, with 35 brand new desktops and printers. We also have a new Chromebook lab for our students/teachers to use as a working-lab. Downstairs, our working-computer lab allows teachers to bring their class to the lab, to do research. All 3 Computer/Chromebooks are Air-conditioned as well. We have implemented 1:1 student/Apple I-Pads for every student in our school. Last  September 2021, that dream became a reality.  We are doing In-Person Instruction this September 2022-2023!  Our students will benefit greatly from these new improvements.  Our infra-structure had been upgraded and connectivity to ethernet as well as Wifi is fully operable.  We are presently working on continuing to stock our new STREAM Lab upstairs. Our goal is to continue with the FOSS Science Program- the Next Generation Series- for Grades 3-4-5-6 along with the NancyLarson Science Program for K to 6. This program will focus on lab-reporting and hands-on experiments at each grade level. Our Middle Schoolers will be using updated textbooks for Social Studies,  Earth Science, as well as Life Science and our Science Lab on the first floor, which will continue to be re-stocked. We are in the process, with government funding, to obtain a state-of-the-art Science Series for K-6. We have focused on Technology and Science Instruction this year, so our school will excel in both of these areas., which are so needed for our students to function in the future. We will have P.E. this year on Monday and Tuesdays and Computer Instruction for Grades 2-8 in Spanish, using the IXL online software program on Thursday and Fridays. We will also have First In Math on Wednesdays and Simple Solutions Math Enrichment Series K-8th, as well. We will have Art Classes this year and Library Period is back again. We focused on purshasing new textbooks for Social Studies in Grades 3-4-5-6. We are working to fill in the gaps and Learning Loss as a direct result from COVID 19 in the past two years.   We have also installed a brand new PA System to replace the ancient system we had and we installed a speaker for Marian Hall. This is much needed for communications between the main office and every area in our school. Our Lab Learner Lab for our middle school- using hands-on and highlighting the physical sciences and measurement will continue to be in use. On the second floor, we have AC for the new Chromebook lab and the new science lab.  We will have many different fundraisers this year and with continued support from our parents/guardians, relatives and friends we are able to make the necessary purchases to keep our school up to date and viable.  Your support with the various fundraisers is needed and most appreciated. We have accomplished much in the last five years of my administration and now we are in the process of our Middle States Re-Accreditation Process being re-scheduled. As we wait for EANS I & II Government Funding, our school has already received 17 brand new SMARTBOARDS for every classroom, valued over $85,000. Charging carts have been assembled for every room as well. And, we have received WONDERS, a brand new Reading Series for our students in Grades K thru 6th, valued at $91,000. Keep praying and I will keep you posted as the arrivals come to SDS! Second floor classrooms have been re-painted this summer.  This is definitely going to be an awesome school year filled with many memorable events. We will be celebrating 175 Years in Holmesburg, starting in 2023. Many events will be planned. 

We look forward to serving our students and families this school year. Thank you for your involvement in helping our school and for supporting Catholic Education.

Ever grateful,
Mr. Ralph A. Ciarroco- Principal

• I am a child of God created in the image and likeness of God.

• I do my best to keep our school a safe, welcoming, friendly, Catholic environment.

• I love our students and respect their individual differences and learning abilities and challenges. 

• I work to keep the lines of communication open between the children, families, staff, and community.

• I support our staff and work with them as we, together with the family, lead our children to Jesus.

• I set high expectations and opportunities for learning and for providing service to others. 

• I am the St. Dominic Catholic School Principal, and I make my family and my school proud of me every day.

Dear Parents/Guardians, Students, and Parish Community,

      As the Principal here at St. Dominic Catholic School, it is my pleasure and honor to join you in continuing the rich history of academic excellence and Christian-based education that this school has been known for, in the Holmesburg Community, for so many years. I am truly honored to hold this position and look forward to working with the dedicated faculty and staff to provide the best possible educational program for our students and help the school continue to grow. I have had the pleasure of working for St. Dominic School for 18 years and most recently as Principal (6th Year already!) and as the middle school mathematics teacher. I have a wealth of knowledge and experience to bring to this new position. I have watched our school change and grow. As of August 2022, we are enrollment continues to grow!  It is very exciting to see the dedication and love for Catholic education that the staff brings to the school every day. Spread the word!

      My goal as your school administrator is to provide the leadership that will facilitate a safe school environment to provide the best possible academic instruction to meet the needs of each student to the best of our ability. The educational program must be academically challenging, engage each student by linking the curriculum to previous knowledge and experience, and also be exciting to promote further learning and the exploration of new ideas. While I believe that academics is a very important part of our school, the love of Christ with morals and values is just as important in developing the "whole" child. I am excited to be here at St. Dominic School and it is my goal to touch the lives of many children and teach them about the love of Jesus.

      Through a close partnership with staff members and parents/guardians, I am confident that we can make our school a place where our students can continue to learn and grow academically and spiritually. All of us are eager and excited to begin what promises to be the best school year ever. This year is going to be amazing as we continue to provide academic experiences for our students that are rigorous, relevant, and help them build relationships while making real-world connections. As your leader, it is important to me that everyone who steps through our doors- teachers, students, and parents/guardians are excited to be here!

This attitude enables us to meet the challenges of academic excellence in a positive, fun, and nurturing environment. My door is always open and I welcome your input. Please feel free to call (215-333-6703) or email me at ciarroco@sdsphila.org  or  ciarroco@saintdominicschool.org to discuss any concerns you might have throughout the school year. 

I look forward to working with you as a team to help each student meet their goals and have a successful school year!

Sincerely,
Mr. Ralph A. Ciarroco
Principal