Teacher/Class Lists are announced the week before school starts - until then, know your students will find classmates and teachers they love! All of our teachers are listed on our contact us webpage.

School supplies list can be found at: school.stephen.org/school-supplies. 2023/2024 school year lists are posted.

Your child will have a great first day! We will focus on activities to help them get the feel for our classroom and their classmates.

2023/2024 School Year - Important First Week Dates:

• Monday, August 14: Back to School Night
• Thursday, August 17:
• First Day for K-8 (Noon Dismissal)
• First Day for TK A-L (Noon Dismissal - No school for TK M-Z)
• Friday, August 18
  • First Day for TK M-Z (Noon Dismissal - No school for TK A-L)
  • K-8 (Noon Dismissal)
• Monday, August 21:
  • First Day of Preschool & PreK
  • First Full Day For TK-8

• Email: There are many ways we communicate with our SSM school community, but email is our primary communication channel. All important notifications from your student’s teacher & Administration, including school closings, will be disseminated via email. Please keep your FACTS Family Portal updated with your correct email. Enrolled families are required to have one adult designated to receive correspondence emails. If you have questions on how to update your information in FACTS, please contact the school office at:school@stephen.org or (402) 896-0754.
• Martyr Messenger: The Martyr Messenger is a bi-monthly newsletter, distributed through email, intended to communicate school information and activities with parents and students. After email distribution, it is posted in our school app and online at school.stephen.org/martyr-messenger. The communications department coordinates publication in collaboration with the school office.
• SSM School App:We strongly encourage families to download our school app. It includes easy access to Announcements, the Lunch Menu, Martyr Messenger, our Google Family Calendar, Student Grades & Behavior, Volunteer & Sports Club sign-ups, FACTS Financial, etc. The app is FREE (thanks to generous funding from St. Stephen the Martyr Catholic School Home & School Association) and available to download in the Apple & Google Play stores. To download, visit your app store and search "SSM School".
• SSM Google Family Calendar: contains all scheduled school activities and parties as well as Martyr Mondays and and dress down days. Located here: school.stephen.org/google-calendar or add the calendar to your phone or computer by following the directions found on this web page.
• Teacher emails and classroom sites: how frequently you'll hear from your child's teacher(s) will be discussed at Curriculum Night. You can always reach out to your child's teacher directly via email.
• Friday Folders: teachers send home forms and flyers parents will need to review and possibly send back
• Social Media:
• Follow SSM on Social Media:
  facebook.com/ssmschoolomaha
  twitter.com/ssmschoolomaha
  instagram.com/ssmschoolomaha
• Home and School Parent's Association:
  facebook.com/SSMHomeAndSchool
  instagram.com/ssmhomeandschool
• Parish and School Sports Club: facebook.com/ssmsportsclub
• Private Facebook Groups for each grade level: search Facebook for SSM Class of 20XY to find your child(ren)'s group. Stay informed and ask questions about every day class activities, field trips, sports, parties, etc.
• Parish Martyr Moms: Private Facebook Group

Most of the below information is pulled from our Family Handbook. Please refer to the Family Handbook for complete school policies and procedures.

All school uniform, dress code and purchasing information can be found here: school.stephen.org/uniforms.

Morning Drop-off & Afternoon Pick-up information is listed on our Drop-off & Pick-up Procedures webpage.

For absences, tardiness or early departures, parents should call 402-896-9675 or e-mail school@stephen.org and their teacher. The below information is an excerpt from the Family Handbook. Please refer to the Family Handbook for complete policies.

Absences
If your child will miss school, please contact the school office and your child's teacher. If the absence is due to illness, please provide a brief explanation of your child’s sickness (helps with watching trends).
When a student is absent because of illness for up to two days, no homework needs to be collected. A student has a grace period and can receive work when he or she returns to school and will have two days to get the work completed and turned in. If a student is ill and absent for more than two days, the teachers will collect work to be picked up and/or will post it on Google Classroom. Work is not expected to be completed on the day of return. A student is given a day for each day missed. We care about the emotional and academic health of our students and do not expect children to work when they are too sick to be at school. All work will be in the North corridor by 4 PM to be picked up if a student is absent for two or more days. If a child misses school for sports or vacations, they should collect work before they leave if possible. It is not the responsibility of the teacher to collect their work. The teacher will determine when assignments should be turned in.

Tardiness
So that K-8 students are in their classrooms by 8 AM when school begins, the doors unlock at 7:50 AM for students to report to their classrooms. Students are tardy if they arrive after 8:00 AM. Any student arriving after 8 AM but before 8:05 AM will report to the classroom. The teacher will record the tardy. After 8:05 AM, students will report to the office for a tardy pass. A tardy student will not be allowed into the classroom without the tardy pass after 8:05 AM. We understand weather and/or traffic back-ups can sometimes cause our morning drop-off lines to take longer than usual. Our office staff and teachers take these situations into consideration and offer a 5-minute grace period when necessary.

Dismissal During the School Day
SSM is a closed campus, meaning once a student has arrived on school grounds, he/she may not leave until dismissal except with permission of the Principal. Those who have doctor and dental appointments or who must go home for some reason must have a written note or verbal communication from the parent. If a parent finds it necessary to withdraw a student before dismissal, then the parent or adult identified in advance by the parent must report to the School Office before taking the student. All students must be signed-out at the office prior to being allowed to leave. The Safe Environment provision for the care of minors is thus transferred directly to the care of the guardian/ parent at that time.
Upon return to school, parents are asked to accompany their students to the school office to sign in and receive an admittance slip to class. This procedure helps maintain accurate attendance and guards for the safekeeping of all student

2023/2024 Curriculum Night is scheduled for Thursday, September 14th. More details will be announced as we get closer to this date.

This event informs parents of the curriculum that used and covered in our classrooms. We will have tips on how you can support your student’s learning at home. Our teachers are also available to answer any questions you may have. Students do not attend curriculum night - just parents/guardians.

Read more about our Curriculum Standards at: lovemyschool.com/curriculum

Students in grades TK-8 can choose between bringing their own lunch or paying for our hot lunch program. The menu changes daily and is provided by Westside Public Schools Catering. You can view a sample lunch menu but pressing the "What's For Lunch" button on our homepage, school.stephen.org.

Our before and after school care program is called Kidzone. Learn more about Kidzone at: school.stephen.org/kidzone.

SSM observes the school closing policies of the Millard Public Schools and/or Omaha Catholic Schools. If either district calls off school due to inclement weather, St. Stephen the Martyr school will be closed. The announcement to close schools due to inclement weather should be communicated no later than 6 AM, there have been occasions when the announcement came a little later. When school is canceled, St. Stephen the Martyr Catholic School will send families an email (using the “Correspondence” email(s) the family has on file in FACTS) and in the case that SSM cancels when MPS and/or Omaha Catholic DO NOT, SSM will also contact the television stations (Channels 3, 6, and 7). Usually, school will not be dismissed once it is in session. If there is an off chance that we would feel the need to dismiss early, an email will be sent to our families. However, parents may come to the school to pick up children if there is threatening weather at any time during the day. St. Stephen the Martyr School does not utilize late starts. If Millard or Omaha Catholic calls a late start, St. Stephen the Martyr School will be closed. If Millard Public Schools and/or Catholic Schools announce a remote learning day in lieu of a snow day, SSM will not have remote school unless all allotted snow days are already used. If school is closed, meetings, practices, and KidZone will also be canceled. This policy is for weather-related closings.

Check student grades, attendance, class schedule, and more. For help accessing your FACTS Family Portal (which you created during enrollment) please contact the school office at (402) 896-0754. Reminder: Our district code is SSC-NE. Click here to login into your FACTS Family Portal.

As an enrichment to our daily school instruction and activities, we offer extracurricular activities for students. Other extracurricular experiences, not sponsored by the school, may be available. Visit: school.stephen.org/sports-activities

Scouting: Many grades start a scouting group. It just takes a few willing parents to get a group started! Parents from previous grades would be willing to help get you started.

Often parents will sign their kids up on the same basketball or t-ball teams through organization like the YMCA. Using your Class Facebook page is a great way to find out what activities your child’s classmates are participating in.

Parent involvement is key to creating and maintaining a strong SSM school and parish community. Our Home and School Association coordinates the many days, events and activities that support SSM. You can learn more about our current volunteer opportunities and sign up at: school.stephen.org/volunteer.

Learn more about our Home and School Association at: school.stephen.org/home-and-school. Contact H&S if you are interested in joining a committee or want more information on how to get involved.

All SSM volunteers are required to be Safe Environment Trained and Certified through the Archdiocese of Omaha. You can find a session that works for you on their website. Register here.

Our 1st-8th grade students attend mass two times/week. Kindergarten students attend weekly, beginning in October. Preschool, PreK & TK students do not attend Mass.

• Tuesday: 1st - 4th grade
• Wednesday: 5th - 8th grade
• Friday - All School Mass (including Kindergarten, beginning in October)

Our Kinder classes sit with 5th-grade classes and each student is assigned a 5th-grade buddy. We do special activities with these buddies throughout the year.

Families are welcome to attend school Masses.

Treats are welcome, however, be sure to discuss with your child’s teacher prior to bringing in any treats as there may be children with specific allergies. Be sure to consult the Family Handbook prior to selecting birthday treats.

The Lost & Found box is located in the commons under the trophy case. Should an item of your child’s go missing, please ask office staff to help you locate the box. Labeling your child's items is recommended for easy identification.

Regular recesses are scheduled for TK-5 students. Please make sure your child is appropriately dressed for the weather. When there is a wind chill below 10 degrees Fahrenheit, or other weather concerns, students will have indoor recess.

Students are invited to bring snow bibs/pants & boots to play in the snow when weather permits. Please label all of items & send in separate bag for easy transportation to and from school.

During enrollment you selected a payment plan with FACTS. If you have questions about which payment plan you selected, please contact the school office.

You also were asked to provide a payment form for incidental charges. Incidental expenses are invoiced around the 15th of the month and auto-deducted 10 days after the invoice date from your FACTS EFT account. Incidentals include lunches, field trips, sacrament fees, etc. Please contact the school office with any questions.

St. Stephen the Martyr Catholic Church is a community for all people to encounter Christ, know Christ, and proclaim Christ. We are the largest Catholic parish in Nebraska serving over 700 students in our School (Preschool - 8th Grade), 675 youth in our Religious Education and Youth Ministry programs and over 3,500 households, plus many more through our Care and Outreach Ministries. Our community is always growing as we welcome new individuals and families. Here you'll discover a spiritual family eager to help you grow in your relationship with Jesus. We offer many opportunities for you! Learn more at stephen.org

If you have questions specific to your student and the school day, we recommend starting with your child's teacher with an email. A full staff directory can be found at: school.stephen.org/contact-us.

The office and administration staff can help too. For general questions call 402-896-0754 or email school@stephen.org. Each of our administrative assistants will receive your email and respond accordingly.

Parents may also contact our administrators at 402-896-0754 or by email Mrs. Julie Perrault, Principal, or Mr. Greg Verraneault, Assistant Principal.