Good afternoon! Here are this week's news and announcements from St. Johns Country Day School:
Scott Named All First Coast Best
Last week Spartan Taliah Scott '23 was named 2022 All First Coast Girls Basketball Player of the Year. She was propelled into the rankings during the 2021-2022 season when she averaged 31.5 points per game. "This is such a well-deserved honor for Taliah," said Varsity Girls Basketball Coach Yolanda Bronston. "She puts in countless hours to work on her game and it is great to see all of that hard work pay off. Taliah has been an amazing addition to our team and her presence has helped elevate our program to the next level. It's great to have Taliah represent not only our women's basketball program, but also our school." Click here to read the full story on Jacksonville.com.
Pickett Named for Coaching Hall of Fame
In more great sports news, the Florida Athletic Coaches Association (FACA) released its Hall of Fame slate for 2023 with Head Girls Soccer Coach Mike Pickett '83 on the list. "Coach Pickett's coaching success is undeniable," said Director of Athletics Traci Livingston '90. "With 14 State Championships to his credit and dozens of players at the next level, this is a truly well-deserved honor." The Hall of Fame award is the highest honor presented by FACA.
Uniform Update
Per Mrs. Baker's Friday email message, the results of the uniform vendor change made over the summer have not been what the School or our families expected and hoped for. Effective September 1, 2022, St. Johns will return to Lands' End School as our uniform vendor. Uniforms will be available for online shopping at landsend.com/school. Once there, select "Shop by School" to find St. Johns. The Lands' End store will be up and running effective September 1. For the upcoming year, uniforms purchased at either Custom Shirts & Uniforms or Lands End will be acceptable dress code attire. If you have any questions, please direct them to Auxiliary Programs Coordinatory Sherry Burnside.
Orientation Day Friday
This Friday, August 5, plan to come find classrooms, meet teachers, and set up lockers or cubbies. Orientation for Middle and Upper School families new to St. Johns will be at 8:15 a.m. in the Performing Arts Center, and Lower School Orientation for new families will begin at 8:30 a.m. in the Pace Lecture Hall. Returning students (and their families) are welcome to campus between 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.
Here are a few more reminders about the start of the school year:
- First Day of School, Tuesday, August 9. We can't wait to see you!
- Supplies. Supply lists for Middle School students are available in My School App. Upper School students are not issued lists of required supplies, and are asked to provide an ongoing supply throughout the year of whatever they might need (paper, pens, notebooks, etc.), depending on their course requirements. Teachers will let them know during the first week of school if any particular supplies will be required for their class. For Lower School students, all necessary supplies will be provided.
- Open House. Be sure to mark your calendars now for Lower School Open House on Tuesday, August 23, from 7:00-8:00 p.m., and for Middle/Upper School Open House on Wednesday, August 24, at the same time.
- Questions? Have another question or think of something we forgot to mention here? Please reach out to your child's classroom teacher (in Lower School) or Division Assistant (Kim Kurnitsky in Middle School or Dana Goode in Upper School).
New Magnus App
Magnus School health management has a new app, Magnus Health, which they recommend parents use for managing student health data over the previous "Magnus Mobile" app. The new app is available in both the Apple App Store and Google Play and is available now for download. Parents are asked to log into the app and update student health information and forms prior to the start of school. Having trouble? Please call the Magnus Help line at (877) 461-6831. If you have any questions, please reach out to School Nurse Michele Adams-Lentz '89, RN, MSN, ARNP.
Athletic Start Dates
Most fall athletics started practice yesterday, with the exception of cheerleading, which starts Monday, August 8, and boys golf, which starts on Tuesday, August 9. See the chart below for details. Questions? Reach out to Kim Kurnitsky for cheerleading or Bryan Kipnis regarding golf.
| Sport | Date | Time | Location | Coach | |
| Golf (Boys) | Aug. 9 | 4pm | Fleming Island Golf Club | B. Kipnis | bryan@solegolf.com |
| Cheer (V) | Aug. 8 | 3:30pm | Brown Gym | K. Kurnitsky | kkurnitsky@sjcds.net |
| Cheer (MS) | Aug. 9 | 3:30pm | Brown Gym | K. Kurnitsky | kkurnitsky@sjcds.net |
(Photo by Kate Jacobs '24.)
2022-2023 Technology
Beginning this coming year, all Middle and Upper School students are required to bring to School each day a fully charged laptop. Visit the Middle or Upper School Technology page in My School App for all the details, including laptop requirements, and don't miss the link to access special St. Johns family pricing in our exclusive online Apple Store.
Student Handbook
The 2022-2023 Handbook has been posted to each division's Topics page on My School App. If you have any questions, please reach out to your Division Head, or see "Where to Go for Help" on page 41 of the Handbook.
Contacts
St. Johns staff stand ready to assist with anything you might need. Please feel free to reach out at any time to:
| Head of School Valorie Baker | vbaker@sjcds.net | |
| Head of Upper School Jackie Lentini | jlentini@sjcds.net | |
| Head of Middle School Ben Magidson | bmagidson@sjcds.net | |
| Head of Lower School Otis Wirth | owirth@sjcds.net |
We hope you have a great week!