Welcome Back

J.W. Catharine Elementary School
August 26, 2019

Dear J.W. Catharine families:

Welcome back! Or, if you are new to our J.W. Catharine family, welcome and thank you for
choosing our amazing school for your child’s education. I hope you are enjoying a
wonderful summer and are ready to start a new school year on September 3rd.
Last school year was filled with lots of fun learning experiences and student successes. Here
are a few of our favorite memories:

● Our first annual Family Game Night
● Our first annual Literacy Character Parade
● Our Catharine choir and band performances

We are already gearing up for an incredible new school year. Our teachers have attended
training sessions to better help all students learn and grow. Our front office team is updating
student files and ordering new materials. Our hard-working custodians have spent the summer
cleaning our school. And, our cafeteria workers are preparing to serve your children delicious,
healthy and free breakfast and lunch each school day.

We’re also delighted to welcome a few new additions to our staff. This includes a new full time
Math Coach, Literacy Lead teacher, STEM teacher, Spanish teacher, and Bilingual Counselor.
Please come out on Friday, August 30th from 10am to 12 pm to meet and greet the new
members of our Catharine family. We will also we providing water ice and pretzels!

We are excited with all the school improvements that have been happening. Including having all
classrooms painted, all Kindergarten classrooms equipped with air conditioners, and investing
in providing a safer, healthier and more inviting learning environment for students and staff.
Be sure to visit www.philasd.org for important back-to-school information such as how to get a
Philadelphia School TransPass and a list of vaccines your child will need to attend school. I also
want to invite you to attend our Back-to-School Night on Wednesday, September 11th from
5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. This will be a great time to meet teachers and other families, and learn
more about the new school year.

All of us at J.W. Catharine look forward to welcoming students back to school on Tuesday,
September 3rd, and working with our families and community to support high-level learning. As
always, please feel free to reach out to me at 215-400-8150 with questions or concerns.
Together, we can make this school year our best one yet!

Best,
Lisa Wilmer, Principal