News

Dear JPII Family,

Here we are in the last week of school, and it is a bittersweet moment for all of us. The excitement and anticipation of finishing the year have been overshadowed with feelings of isolation, anxiety about the future, and the challenges of our daily lives. However, we have proven that with faith in God, the right mindset, and the support of our community, we can make the best of any situation. 

I know that my fondest memories of JPII, and my career, will be solidly linked to the things that have happened in the past two months. Like teachers creating an online school, Campus Ministry and Student Life creating a virtual community, Jacob and PB bringing us morning video announcements and the many events like Senior Drive and Senior Awards Night. These experiences redefined how we honor one another. We know that online learning is no substitute for the daily interaction that makes our school special, but we made it work. I thank everyone for working as a team and bringing us to this point. We are resilient, we are strong, and we are uKnighted. 

Seniors, I congratulate you on completing your high school career and for showing great courage and determination during the past two months. Graduation is in the works, and we are considering dates in June. We are committing to June because we know some of you will have college obligations in July. I cannot provide any details at this point because we are waiting for information about locations and social distancing policies. Please be patient for a few more days, and we will update you by the end of the week. We are 100% committed to having a live event, and we are considering the best option that will allow us to include parents and potentially extended family. Graduates will receive their graduation cords at the live event. 

As a reminder, all students must come to campus and clean out their lockers and have their iPads updated; this is a requirement. Grades and transcripts will not be complete until every student has checked out. Please sign up for your campus visit: https://jp2hsorg.finalsite.com/administration/campus-visit 

Many have been asking about Camp JPII. I am sad to announce that it is cancelled. We know this is a disappointment, but it is in the best interest of everyone. We will take the summer to continue to protect our community and focus on reopening the building safely for fall. We love having Camp JPII and being a part of making special memories for campers, but it is necessary to cancel camps. We will refund all registered campers. 

We are also working on reopening phases for the campus. Summer athletics and summer academic classes for students in KSP and Study Skills will take place at JPII. Coaches will be reaching out to their teams regarding schedules for tryouts and availability for workouts on campus. We will operate these programs following safe social distancing requirements. JPII Summer School will take place online through BYU. Our focus is on preparing for a return to school in the fall, so we must limit our activities this summer to the essential programs. 

We will continue to communicate with the community throughout the summer, but we will not be sending Knight Notes again until the start of the new school year. I promise you that during the summer, we will work as hard as we have these past two months to prepare for the coming year. We are eager to get our students back on track, and we are ready to adjust to the challenges that the pandemic and the economy have presented. Our Board of Trustees and our administration are preparing for any contingency, and we intend to have our campus ready to welcome our students back. Policies and procedures might change as needed, but our mission is the same, and through God, we will find the energy to make the experience of being a JPII Knight event better next year. 

May God bless you and your families and keep you all safe. Have a wonderful summer. Go Knights!

Sincerely in Christ,

Michael A. Deely