All school information Today at Mercy 
TONIGHT! - Wednesday, Dec. 9 - 5:00-7:00 pm, Great Hall
Dinner and Dessert will be provided. Please contact Lauren Conklin, lconklin@mercyhsb.com if you have any questions!
 TONIGHT! Parent Advent Evening
of Reflection - December 9, 2015
Please join us for our annual Advent Evening of Reflection. Pope Francis has declared December the Opening of the Year of Mercy and so our evening will focus on the theme of Mercy. Our evening of reflection this year titled: Pope Francis and the Year of Mercy will be presented by Sister Jean Evans, RSM.
Please join us in room 306. Everyone is welcome!
Schedule: 6:30pm Hors Devours
7:00pm Presentation by Sister Jean Evans, RSM
8:15pm Conclusion Please RSVP to Sandy Flaherty @ sflaherty@mercyhsb.com by 12/7/15. Click HERE for flyer.
 Host an International Student
with gphomestay!
Looking to share an international experience with your family without leaving the comfort of your home? Open your home to an international student and receive a monthly stipend of $1500! We’ve partnered with gphomestay and together, we are looking for caring host families for the Spring 2016 semester. Visit www.gphomestay.com for more information on how you can benefit from this cross-cultural experience. Contact info@gphometsay.com or click here to fill out a Host Inquiry Form. Click here for flyer.
Educational Travel click here for all educational trips  Travel to Italy and Greece
(ONLY 3 spots left!)
Summer 2016
Click here for more information on the trip. For more info contact Gary Ferguson at gferguson@mercyhsb.com.
VPA Student Trip Open to ALL Students
Lights, Camera, Los Angeles
Click HERE for Itinerary and cost Some tour highlights are Disney Imagineering, Universal Studios/ Acting and Cinema Secrets Workshops. This is a great opportunity for your daughter to tie her classroom experience to the real world. The proposed dates are February 12- 15, 2016. For more information contact Nadine Baroudi at nbaroudi@mercyhsb.com. Powerschool *PowerSchool will be unavailable 12/14 through 1/8 as teachers complete the S1 final grading process. It will be back online when Semester 1 grades are published. If you have any questions, please contact Stephanie Montoya at 650 762 1111 or smontoya@mercyhsb.com financial assistance *Financial Assistance Program for 2016-2017
Mercy High School recognizes that families have varying financial needs and make financial sacrifices which include adjusting spending priorities and maximizing both parents’ earnings to provide their daughters with a strong academic education. The Financial Assistance Program at Mercy strives to help those families who, even with personal sacrifices, have a difficult time meeting the full tuition obligation. Awards are made for a one-year period, families must re-apply each year. The application process is fair and confidential. Assessments are done by an outside firm (TADS) that specializes in school financial assistance programs. Financial aid awards are made based on a family’s demonstrated need and the availability of school funds. All families who would like to be considered for financial assistance for the 2016-2017 school year must complete an online financial aid application. Applications must be submitted by February 12, 2016* with all necessary documentation. This link https://www.mercyhsb.com/admissions/financial-aid-clone will direct you to our website for further information and the online TADS application. Please contact Lynn Beal at 650-762-1101 or lbeal@mercyhsb.com if you have any questions. *Please note returning 10th, 11th and 12th grade families must apply by February 12, 2016. Families that have both an applying 8th grader and returning student must meet the December 14, 2015 deadline. Late applications will be processed and reviewed, but meeting the appropriate deadline is strongly recommended. FirST semester finals First Semester Finals - see below "Guidance Department - Wellness Week" for Tips on Preparing for Finals Your daughter's finals are two weeks away!
Please take time to review the schedule with her: Monday, December 14 - 8-10AM: 4th Period Final
- 11-1PM: 6th Period Final
Tuesday, December 15 - 8-10AM: 1st Period Final
- 11-1PM: 5th Period Final
Wednesday, December 16 - 8-10AM: 2nd Period Final
- 11-1PM: 3rd Period Final
Thursday, December 17 *** Please note that zero period finals will be taken during the last two class periods the week of December 7. *** The cafeteria will be open for breakfast Monday- Thursday and for lunch Monday- Wednesday of Finals Week.
Students are only expected to be on campus when they have finals, so if your daughter only has one final on a particular day she only needs to come to campus for that final time slot. Please make sure your daughter arrives to school at least fifteen minutes before the start of her finals in order to ensure that minimal distractions occur at the beginning of each exam. Students may wear free dress during finals week. upcoming Activities
 Holiday Food Drive
for Second Harvest Food Bank
Dec. 7-11
Collecting in front of the Mansion 7:20am-8:00am
Mercy will be conducting our Annual Holiday Food Drive from Monday, December 8 to Friday, December 12. Food can be dropped off in front of the Mansion from 7:20am-8:10am each morning. All donations will be given to Second Harvest Food Bank in San Mateo.The following are suggested items, Food Bank needs nutritious, non-perishable foods:
- Meals in a can (stew, chili, soup)
- Tuna and canned meat
- Peanut butter
- Canned foods with pop-top lids
- Low-sugar cereals
- 100% fruit juices in single serving boxes
- Canned fruit packed in juice
- Canned vegetables (low salt)
- Please avoid donating items packaged in glass. Any questions please contact Campus Minister Angie Simonetti at 650 762-1149 asimonetti@mercyhsb.com.
Mercy Blood Drive on Tuesday, January 19th, 2016
Interested donors needed! Adults & Youth 16+ (with parental consent) welcome! Our Red Cross Club is looking for blood donors for our first ever Mercy Blood Drive! We need at least 50 people signed up by November 30th. Please sign up today! Did you know each donation can save 3 lives? Make a difference in the lives of others by donating blood at MHSB Red Cross's Blood Drive. Free refreshments and a complimentary gift will be provided.
Click HERE (google sheet link) to sign up!
Junior & Senior parents Yearbook Dedication!
Senior parents, Take out a dedication ad in the 2016 yearbook showing your pride in her. You can upload pictures and write a dedication saying how proud you are in her completing this chapter of her life in an easy-to-use design program. The prices vary by size click HERE for information. The final deadline is December 17th but don't wait too long.
-Randall Watts, Yearbook Advisor rwatts@mercyhsb.com
Early Dismissal for Seniors: Seniors will now have the early dismissal on January 27th since this is the new date for the curriculum presentation. Career Day has been moved to February 23rd. Seniors are expected to be on campus until 2:30pm on the 23rd. Athletics
Winter Sport rosters have been set. All athletes on a Winter team should be ordering their Sportpacks gear for their respective sport. Go to the Mercy website and go to Athletics and then CrusaderWear. All uniforms/gear from the Fall teams should be returned to the Athletic Director by Friday December 11. Please have them laundered when returning. Any uniform/golf bags not returned by a player will result in the family being charged a replacement fee for the missing uniform/equipment. Very Important: Every student who plays on a Mercy athletic team must be fully registered with the Appryse system. There will be no exceptions. You can access thru the Mercy website under Athletics/Forms.
Any student athlete participating in a sport must turn in both the athlete and guardian contract found in the Athletic Handbook. If the signed forms by both student and guardian are not turned in, the student will not be allowed to tryout. Click on the handbook link and print a copy of the contract after you have read the handbook. The Athletic Handbook can be found on the website under Athletics/Forms & Athletic Qualifications. The contracts to be signed are at the end of the handbook. The completed contracts must be returned to the Athletic Director or to the main office.
Any Parent who is available and/or willing to drive students to games must turn in all the paperwork to the main office in order to be cleared to drive. This would be for your own car or a school van. The forms can be downloaded from the Mercy website, Athletics/Forms or click HERE.
 *Mercy Athlete of the Week:
****Water Polo Player Maddy Gomes****
Maddy has had an amazing 4 year career in water polo at Mercy. Since the end of the season, Maddy has been recognized as 1st team all-league and MVP for the Ocean Division of the Peninsula Athletic League of which Mercy participates in. Maddy was named the offensive MVP of our Mercy team. She has also just been selected honorable mention for the entire Central Coast Section Division 2. Most impressively, Maddy has also been selected to represent Mercy in the CCS Senior all-star game vs NCS that will be played on Sunday, Dec 13 in Moraga.
All results of each team can be found: https://www.mercyhsb.com/athletics/scoreboard-enews *Click HERE for the schedule for team events for the upcoming week of Dec. 10-Dec.16.
Make sure to follow all of our Mercy team score updates as they happen via our athletics twitter page. Mercy Athletics@MercyAthletics
If you ever have any concerns/comments, please feel free to contact me, Charlie Dougherty, Athletic Director at anytime. I can be reached at my office at Mercy at 650-762-1107 or cdougherty@mercyhsb.com. I am looking forward to a great year with Mercy athletics. Guidance Department
*Students at Mercy celebrated Wellness Week last week and it was a great success!
 Counselors, with the help of our Educational Therapist, Carol Galletta, visited all the religion classes to share tips on preparing for finals (see the links below), and to discuss strategies for keeping anxiety levels low during this stressful time of year. Students also participated in relaxing lunchtime activities like restorative yoga and they treated themselves to a well deserved break watching the movie Inside Out on their lunch periods at the end of the week. The highlight of the Wellness Week was, undoubtedly, bring-your-dog-to-school day where playful pups shadowed students in their classroom and were enjoyed by all during breaks throughout the day.
College Counseling
*AJ Tutoring Test Prep Course
on campus this Spring!
Click HERE for more info/flyer.
CSU/UC Applications: The due date for the CSU/UC Applications is November 30th! Make sure you have your daughter's test scores and applications in. Your daughter can request her scores before she submits her applications.
CSU GPA: The CSU application asks the students to calculate their CSU GPA. Don't just take the GPA off the transcript. Students need to actually calculate the GPA with their requirements. The instructions help you calculate your daughter's GPA, but if you have any questions, please have your daughter come by and Mrs. O will calculate it with your daughter. Sending Test Scores: To send your scores to the various colleges you are applying to you must log on to www.collegeboard.org or www.actstudent.org. You will need to know the school codes and you can look them up on those two sites. Keep Naviance Updated: I know it is a pain but please make sure your daughter keeps Naviance updated. This is how the counseling team and your daughter's recommenders know when to send your letters of recommendation. Check their statuses on Naviance by clicking on "Detailed view" under the "colleges I am applying to" tab. You will see when we sent your transcripts. If you need me to send a transcript, please let me know and I will send it right away. Acceptances: Some of you are getting acceptances already (Congratulations!). Please put that into Naviance. It is a fun way for you to track your decisions and it helps us know where you are in the process. Letters of Recommendation: Students should have already requested their letters of recommendation. If your student has a January 1st deadline, please have them contact their recommenders so they have plenty of time before Christmas break to complete them. Mercy parent club Father Daughter Dance- Save the Date! Friday January 29, 2016 will be this year's Father Daughter Dance. Make sure to mark your calender for this special evening for Dads and Daughters. If you are interested in helping with this event, please contact Event Coordinator Jennifer Munsey at 650-762-1199 orjmunsey@mercyhsb.com Save the Date for Mai Tai's at the Mansion! Saturday March 5, 2016 at the Historic Kohl Mansion, transformed for a night you wont forget!!! To get involved with the planning of this event, contact Event Coordinator Jennifer Munsey at 650-762-1199 or jmunsey@mercyhsb.com SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES If you have any questions about the following service opportunities please contact Mr. Diaz at pdiaz@mercyhsb.com
Pacifica Beach Coalition MONTHLY beach cleanup
Click HERE for Saturdays of Service
cafeteria Specials
Lunch Order Form - to save time, students may fill out this form and drop off at the Cafeteria in the morning. Please Visit the cafeteria for our NEW and improved daily salad selections Thursday, Dec. 10: Pizza...Pizza...Pizza...
Friday, Dec. 11: Thai Chicken Wrap
* Lunch Specials the Week of Dec. 14th will be posted on Schoology
Kohl Mansion
 *Cafe de Kohl on December 7th
was a huge success!
We would like to thank the Mercy Community for their incredible support for Kohl Mansion's Cafe de Kohl the festive holiday fundraiser for the restoration of Kohl Mansion! It was a beautiful night and we are so thankful for the support we received from Mercy.
We would like to thank sophomores Olivia Benedetti and Madeline Morales for their contibutions to our raffle! They handle the job like a true Mercy young lady and were able to sell many raffle tickets! We would also like to thank Mrs. Matthews and the amazing Mercy Chorale. These young ladies are exceptional in everyway. They greeted our guests with their amazing voices and charm. We are most grateful for the Mercy High School Community and the night was a night to remember .............Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Terri and Dianne
*Kohl Mansion
Commemorative Gifts
$10
Bookmarks/ornaments $10 each.
Come to Kohl Mansion Office to
purchase this great holiday gift!
Musc at Kohl
Volunteer with Music at Kohl!
Our next concert is our Holiday Gala Concert on Sunday, December 20, featuring Geraldine Walther, violist and the Altius Quartet. The mansion will be fully decorated for the holidays and our reception will be extra special. If you would like to either attend the concert (see our website at: www.musicatkohl.org) or volunteer to help (and feel the holiday season all around you!), please contact Program Administrator, Yvonne Wun at admin@musicatkohl.org or 650.762.1130. We need volunteers to help at the front of house (taking tickets, distributing programs, helping to usher patrons) and with the reception (preparing food platters, serving beverages, set up and clean up). It's an enjoyable evening teaming up with your Mercy and Serra students and parents and community volunteers.
| 
