Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee must meet standards to receive accreditation.  This accreditation process is extensive and is completed every seven years.  Beyond accreditation, the Archdiocese bestows Exemplary Status to Catholic schools that are outstanding in specific areas of emphasis.  Lumen Christi Catholic School is very proud to announce that we have received Exemplary Status in the areas of Catholic Identity and Information, Technology, & Media Skills.

In the area of Catholic Identity, the evaluators noted the following insights:

• The integration of Catholic Teachings is clearly articulated in each subject.
• Most impressive was the students' ability to speak to the mission.
• Prayer permeates every part of the school day.  The priests respect each other's gifts and are visible in every aspect of school life.
• The school and parish provide many opportunities for service and the students are very knowledgeable as to the purpose and impact of what they do for others.
• The parish is to be commended for the Catholic Identity Statement document.
• What Lumen has is what others seek to build.

In the area of Information, Technology, & Media Skills, the evaluators noted the following:

• There is a high percent of teacher involvement in technology.
• There is a high degree of technology use/integration throughout the school.
• Exemplary Technology Plan exists with SMART goals and measurable targets.
• Staffing exists to support technology -- priority is in educating students in 21st Century learning skills.

We are extremely proud of these recognitions by the Archdiocese of Milwaukee.  We would like to congratulate the Faculty, Staff, and Students of Lumen Christi Catholic School in their collaborative effort to accomplish this honor.

If you felt the ground shake slightly on May 5th, it was not an earthquake.  It was just millions of children all over the world exercising simultaneously.  With childhood obesity on the rise, and young children showing risk factors for heart disease, children are starting to fight back.  Lumen Christi Catholic School - Thiensville participated in this amazing event under the direction of their physical education teacher, Dana Berns.

Project ACES is an acronym for All Children Exercise Simultaneously.  Len Saunders, a physical education teacher from New Jersey, started it in 1989.  Len and HJ Saunders, of The Youth Fitness Coalition, now organize the event each year.  "Children need motivational and fun tools to enjoy exercise," explains Len Saunders.  ACES is just that . . . a fun way to exercise.  Children get excited to exercise because they know kids from all over the world are exercising along with them.  In fact, millions of children from all 50 states and over 50 countries joined in the excitement.

At Lumen Christi, the whole school gathered outside on the playground on the beautiful May morning.  Mrs. Berns led them in warm up exercises and then turned on the music for the real fun to begin.

The whole school performed a dance to "Party in the USA", complete with choreographed moves that all the children could follow.  The school then divided into their grade levels and rotated through stations of a variety of physical activities, including jump rope, hula hoop, and many others.

It was a wonderful way to celebrate exercise and fitness with millions of children around the world!

The 4th graders at Lumen Christi Catholic School completed their unit on the State of Wisconsin with a fabulous trip to Madison.   

During their trip, they toured the Wisconsin Veterans Museum.  A veteran provided them with first-hand accounts of his experiences in the armed forces.

At the Wisconsin Geology Museum, our students were very fortunate to see the display of the meteor rocks.  This display was only available for one week, as the meteor rocks were then returned to their owners.  It was perfect timing to see such a unique exhibit!

The students' tour at the Wisconsin State Capitol rounded out their educational day in Madison.  Governor Doyle was available to visit with the students for a short time, which was a pleasant surprise. 

This day at Madison was a wonderful way for our 4th graders to experience their social studies topic in true form!

Fourth graders at Lumen Christi School had the opportunity to learn Irish dance during physical education class from a professional dancer.  Sean Beglan, a former dancer with the River Dance Company, came to Lumen Christi to teach the students Irish dance moves as part of their dance unit. 

Mr. Beglan currently owns Rince Nia Academy of Irish Dance and had just returned from the World Competitions in Ireland.  Two students from his dance academy, Addie Kirtley and Livvie May, are students at Lumen Christi.  They assisted him in teaching Irish moves to the 4th grade students. 

It was a unique and enjoyable experience for our students.  As you can see from the picture, they all had a "jolly good time"!

Lumen Christi Catholic School is especially proud of its graduates this week.  Twelve graduates from the Lumen Christi Class of 2007 were inducted into Homestead High School's National Honor Society last week.

Students are selected for the National Honor Society by the high school faculty for their outstanding leadership, character, service, and scholarship.  The following Lumen Christi graduates were inducted this year:  Liza Basso, Ingrid Bergquist, Keali Bjork, Carly Caputa, Erin Hawley, Corey Mattson, Mollie McCormick, Kayla Pulito, Suzi Schmitt, Max Vielmetti, Caitlin West, and Amy Wright.

This year's HHS National Honor Society also had two Lumen Christi graduates as its officers:  Hannah Happ for Character and Kaitlin Bobber for Service.

This is an incredible testament for our school, for it is at Lumen Christi that each of these students began.  Congratulations to all of these outstanding students -- we are very proud of you!

Imagine gathering a group of three friends and reading 45 pre-chosen books.  This does not seem difficult, until you realize that you will be quizzed on these books in incredible detail.  Because these books are from a variety of genres, this is an awesome experience for grade-school children.

This undertaking is called "Battle of the Books" and Lumen Christi Catholic School offers it as an extracurricular activity for its 4th, 5th, and 6th graders.  After the students engage in competitons amongst their classmates, a winner is chosen at each grade level.  Each grade-level winner advances to a regional competition, where students from Lumen Christi compete against students from 13 other schools.

This year, Lumen Christi sent 3 teams to the Regional competition, which was held at St. Monica's Catholic School on April 21st.  The 4th grade team, Pokie Pals (Adam Blatz, John Cesarz, Robbie Barr), placed 6th at the Regionals.  The 5th grade team, Video Game Masters (Jonny Langenfeld, Danny Soto, Ben Starsky), placed 4th at the Regionals, and the 6th grade team, Book Bugs (Lauren Bartlett, Douglas Kellner, Allison Rowe), placed 2nd at the Regionals, winning a team and individual trophies. 

Congratulations to all the participants on a job well-done.  We are proud of our students!

Lumen Christi Catholic School selected 6th and 7th grade students as representatives to the Divine Savior Holy Angels Excel-a-Thon.  This year's 6th grade team included Nikki Albrecht, Lauren Bartlett, Allison Rowe, and Lizzy Schauer; the 7th grade team included Jane Moede, Kelly Ochocki, Michaela Rusch, and Allison Stendler. 

The Excel-a-Thon is an academic competition hosted by Divine Savior Holy Angels High School for area grade schools.  It includes tests in the five subject areas of mathematics, English, science, social studies, and current events. 

Lumen Christi's 6th grade team placed 3rd out of 35 entries in the team competition.  Lauren Bartlett received an individual 3rd place ribbon in the area of mathematics.  Congratulations to all our participants!

6th grade team with their 3rd place trophy.

Lumen Christi Catholic School was proud to have its 8th grade boys' and girls' basketball teams invited to the Padre Serra Basketball Tournament.  The Padre Serra is an invite-only tournament that is held at the end of the basketball season to determine the top teams in the Catholic school leagues.

The boys' team won its first-round game in double-overtime during a high intensity match up against St. Roman.  It dropped its second-round game in a hard-fought battle against St. Boniface - Germantown.

The girls' team lost during the first round in a tough game against Christ King - Wauwatosa, who went on to win the Padre Serra Tournament.

Lumen Christi School is very proud of its student athletes!  A spirit bus went to each of the games at Mount Mary College, full of students dressed in green to support their teams.  Thank you to all athletes, parents, staff, and students for a wonderful basketball season.

Last week, Lumen Christi Catholic School engaged in a friendly classroom competition known as a Penny War.  Classes received positive points for pennies.  Classes could penalize each other with other coins and dollars, which resulted in negative points.  The class with the most points at the end of the week was declared the winner. 

The real winner, though, was Haiti Earthquake Relief.  As a result of this friendly competition, $3200 was raised by Lumen Christi School for this wonderful cause.  In the picture above, Student Council members (left to right) Peter Bersch, Hannah Schramka, Maggie McGauran, and Sydney Beckers prepare MANY rolls of pennies to be taken to the bank for counting.

Congratulations on a job well-done for a very worthy cause!

Each year, Lumen Christi Catholic School selects 7th and 8th grade students as representatives to the Dominican Challenge.  This is an academic competition in 8 subject areas that is hosted by Dominican High School for area grade schools. 

Lumen Christi's team placed 2nd out of 18 schools at the recent competition.  Congratulations!!  The team members were:

8th Graders: Clare O'Malley** (Art), Sophie Kirtley* (English), AJ Bolles (Math), Livvie May** (Religious Studies), William Thoma (Science), Hayden Hussey (Social Studies), Gretchen Thomas (Spanish), Ali Walton** (Performing Arts)

7th Graders:  Kevin Mikolajczak (Art), Michaela Rusch (English), Jack Pulito (Math), Madeline Fricker (Religious Studies), Anders Bjork (Science), Jonathan Bartlett* (Social Studies), Kelly Ochocki (Spanish), Grace Bobber* (Performing Arts)

* Individually placed 1st in respective subject

** Individually placed 2nd in respective subject.

Lumen Christi Catholic School's popular fundraiser, Shamrock, will take place on Saturday, March 20, 2010, at Ozaukee Country Club.  This will mark the 26th anniversary of Shamrock.  Over $2 million dollars have been raised for our school since Shamrock was first introduced.

This year's theme is "A Tropical Evening Awaits You".  The festivities begin at 5:30pm with tropical-inspired cocktails and appetizers, raffles, and a sient auction.  A buffet dinner will be served at 6:30pm, featuring delicious tropical fare.  The live auctions begins at 9:15pm with KB of WKLH fame as our auctioneer.  There are many amazing auction items, including a vacation home in Vail, Colorado for 6 days and 5 nights; front row pew for the 4:00pm Christmas Eve Children's Mass at Lumen Christi Mequon, with 2 reserved parking spaces; and a Brewer game and tailgate party with Father Peter Berger, just to name a few.  In addition, our school children have created beautiful glass fusion projects for the silent auction -- they are priceless!

To round out the evening, Lucille's Rockin' Pianos will perform at 10:00pm.  They are new to our Shamrock event and will provide excellent entertainment for dancing and socializing.

Tickets for this spectacular event are $75 each; adults 65 years or older are $40 each.  An invitation/registration form can be found on our website www.shamrockfun.com .  This website also highlights many of the awesome auction and raffle items -- check it out!

Lumen Christi Catholic School will be having an Open House on Thursday, February 4th, 2010.  It will be held from 6:00-8:00pm at the Thiensville campus, 116 N. Orchard Street, and the Mequon campus, 11300 N. St. James Lane.

There are many reasons to consider Lumen Christi Catholic School: a secure, faith-centered environment; a comprehensive, high-quality education; a partnership with parents to instill both values and knowledge.  Our doors are always open to families who want the unique benefits of a Catholic education.

We offer 3K-8th grade, all-day and half-day 5K options, and after-school care.  Academic excellence, a demanding curriculum, outstanding teaching staff, and a wide range of extracurricular activities provide a well-rounded educational experience.

Come see for yourself!   If you are unable to attend and would like to schedule a personal tour, please contact Laura Rowe at (262)242-7960.

Lumen Christi Catholic School kindergarteners hosted a Breakfast with Santa for the kindergarten classes at St. Rose Catholic School in Milwaukee on Friday, December 18th.

The children from Lumen Christi were paired with children from St. Rose for the morning of activities.  This included a full breakfast, many Christmas crafts, and a personal visit with Santa.

This is a wonderful service project that the children look forward to each year!

The 1st graders at Lumen Christi Catholic School performed in their Christmas pageant, "The Savior that God Sent," on Wednesday, December 9th. 

Mary and Joseph brought the Baby Jesus to the stable and shared their story with the villagers, shepards, and animals.  An angel choir sang intermitently throughout the performance, as well as sharing the message, "This is the Savior that God sent," in sign language.

The children depicted their characters in full costume and told a beautiful rendition of the true meaning of Christmas. 

Angel Choir at Lumen Christi Catholic School's 1st Grade Christmas pageant, "The Savior that God Sent"

The Lumen Christi Catholic School 1st Graders and the Service Committee of the Student Council organized a collection of items for Thanksgiving baskets. 

Notre Dame Middle School in Milwaukee had over 100 families who were in need of donated food in order to have a Thanksgiving dinner.  Lumen Christi was able to provide all the food and supplies for 33 of these needy families.

It is through the generosity of our school children and their families that we are able to serve others.  This picture is just a portion of the items that were donated to the families at Notre Dame Middle School.

Come enjoy the true meaning of the Christmas season at Lumen Christi School's 1st grade Christmas pageant and the all-school Christmas concert.

On Wednesday, December 9th, the 1st graders will perform a Christmas pageant, "The Savior that God Sent."  It will be held at 9:30am at the Lumen Christi Thiensville Church, 116 N. Orchard Street.

Come enjoy the sounds of the Christmas season at Lumen Christi's all-school Christmas concert, "A Journey Through a Night in Bethlehem."  All children in grades 3K through 8th grade will perform beautiful vocal and instrumental arrangements.  It will be held on Thursday, December 17th at 7:00pm at the Homestead High School Auditorium, 5000 W. Mequon Road, Mequon.

Don't miss these wonderful opportunities to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas!

The Lumen Christi Catholic School 3rd grade classes participated in a service project on Veterans Day to honor our soldiers.

Each 3rd grader wrote a letter to a soldier who will soon be going overseas.  These letters will be included with quilts that are given to service men and women before they go abroad. 

This endeavor is part of the Camo Quilt Project, which is led by a women's group in Plymouth, Wisconsin.  The 3rd graders were proud to offer their personal words to these soldiers, especially in honor of Veteran's Day.

Congratulations to Caitlin Bobber, Lumen Christi Catholic School Class of 2006, for recently being named an outstanding writer by the National Council of Teachers of English. 

A total of 1,783 juniors in the nation were nominated last year by their teachers, and 544 of these students have been named the best student writers in the nation.

Caitlin, who will graduate from Homestead High School in 2010, is one of just 14 students in Wisconsin to receive this honor.

Congratulations, Caitlin!

Lumen Christi Catholic School is proud to congratulate Elizabeth Linnemanstons, Class of 2006, for being named a National Merit Semifinalist for 2010.

Elizabeth is currently a senior at Divine Savior Holy Angels.  She was among the over 1.5 million students from 22,000 high schools who were entered in the competition. 

Nationally, less than 1% of each state's high school seniors earn Semifinalist recognition.  At DSHA, 7.6% of the Class of 2010 earned honors as a Semifinalist.

Congratulations, Elisabeth!

Lumen Christi Catholic School's 6th grade girls' volleyball teams played in a thrilling end-of-the-season  Washington-Ozaukee Catholic Conference tournament this past weekend.

Lumen Christi White won the tournament, beating Lumen Christi Green in the semi-final and St. Francis Cabrini in the final.  Lumen Christ Green placed 3rd in the tournament.

Lumen Christi fields two 6th grade volleyball teams, Lumen Christi White and Lumen Christi Green.  The teams are equally divided by ability and both teams played very well throughout the season. 

Players on the Lumen Christi White team include Nikki Albrecht, Lauren Bartlett, Allie Beckers, Nada Botros, Mary Lawlis, Riordan Ryan, Sami VanDrisse, and Nicole Zingale. 

Players on the Lumen Christi Green team include Madison Clements, Virginia Lee, Sarah Mai, Sarah Rolfs, Allison Rowe, Maddie Schultz, Anna Ward, and Julia Warshauer.

Congratulations to all the girls on a fantastic season!