School Blessing and Dedication Ceremony - Guidelines This document is meant to accompany the School Blessing and Dedication Ceremony - Work Plan. Please refer to the work plan document for details on when items should be completed.
Table of Contents A: Objectives B: Budget C. Statement on Blessings - Canadian Council of Catholic Bishops D: School Responsibilities 1. Choose a Date 2. Select a Committee 3. Book staging and AV 4. Invitation Card and List 3. Program 4. Protocols 5. Set Up 6. Reception E: Communications Department Responsibilities 1. Choose a Date 2. Gifts for the School 3. Prepare Ward Trustee for Duties 4. Letters to Dignitaries 5. News Release and Media Coverage Appendix 1: Standard Program Format for School Blessing and Dedication Celebrations
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A: Objectives The objectives of a school blessing and dedication ceremony are: ● To officially bless, through a formal ceremony, a new school property and community. ● To provide an opportunity for parents, the local parish, local community, school district, city and provincial officials to celebrate the opening of a new school and encourage them to have future involvement with the school. ● To affirm the Calgary Catholic School District’s support of the new school. ● To acknowledge the efforts of the school board, administration, staff, parents, the City of Calgary, and the Province of Alberta, who work together to build and develop new schools ● To create awareness of both the school and the district in the community and city.
B: Budget School Dedication Ceremony - Guidelines
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A total of $1000 is provided to each school from the Communications department budget to help defray the costs of the ceremony. The school should pay for any necessary materials and products directly. After the ceremony, the school must send the original receipts to the Communications department with a summary of expenditure details. The Communications department will complete a cheque requisition and forward it to the Accounting department for reimbursement to the school. School administration and/or ceremony planning committee members are urged to: ● Seek parental support in organizing the celebration (decorations, supplies, food, etc.) ● Use district resources and service departments where possible ● Seek donations (financial and material) from school council, community businesses and organizations to subsidize the ceremony Examples of items to budget for: ● Program design and printing ● Invitation card design and printing ● Purchase and framing of patron saint print ● Music copyright fee(s) ● Flowers or silk plants (rental or purchase) ● Reception food: appetizer trays, cake, coffee/tea/juice/bottled water ● Decorations and other supplies: tablecloths, plates, napkins, cups, etc. ● Technical or audio-visual equipment ● Memento for students/guests (ex: magnet, bookmark, embossed pencil, pen, pin, eraser, ribbon, etc.)
C: Statement on Blessings - Canadian Council of Catholic Bishops
The following are excerpts from the Statement on Blessings by the Canadian Council of Catholic Bishops. Celebrating Blessings One of the most touching scenes in the gospels shows Jesus welcoming little children, putting His arms around them, and blessing them (Mark 10:13-16). As He is ascending into heaven, He raises His hands and blesses His disciples (Luke 24:50-51). He blesses food before it was eaten (Mark 6:41). At other times, we see Him blessing and praising God, and thanking Him for His many gifts to His beloved people. Examples of these prayers are given in Matthew 11:25 and John 12:41. Meaning The word blessing has two distinct and related meanings. It refers to our praise of God, and to our request for His loving care for us (see Psalm 134; Psalm 115). As we praise God over people and things, they are blessed for His service. A Long Tradition School Dedication Ceremony - Guidelines
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We have inherited the practices of blessings from the Jewish religion. Over the centuries, the Catholic Church has encouraged the use of blessings. Some of these are celebrated within the liturgy, and some at other times. Types of Blessings Three types of Blessings are common: 1. Blessings of persons, wherein we ask God to show His love for these people and to help them in their daily living. 2. Blessings of places, wherein we bless a place and praise God for the people who are in this space. We are asking Him to bless them and what they do there. 3. Blessing of things, wherein the blessing does not change a thing. It is our prayer that God may bless the people who use this article, and help them to use the goods of creation for His greater honour and glory. When is a blessing celebrated? A blessing may be celebrated at any appropriate time.
D: School Responsibilities 1.
Choose a Date: The blessing and dedication ceremony is to take place as early as possible in the first school year. A good time to plan for is during the months of October and November. Duration: The ceremony should be planned for approximately 90 minutes, during the school day so that the students are present and can participate in the event. Date options: Choose several options which has some significance either to the patron of the school (i.e. birth date or date of death of the patron), or some appropriate feast day of the Church. If possible, choose a Friday date as this is the most convenient for politicians. Discuss these choices with your parish priest. Together, decide on options for the date and time that also fit his schedule. The priest will be responsible for conducting the liturgical aspects of the ceremony. Confirmation: Inform the Communications department, as soon as possible, of your proposed date and time choices and any blackout dates for your school. Communications will then check with the Board of Trustees, the chief superintendent and the area superintendent, in order to ensure that there are no conflicting district events or meetings. Once a suitable date is determined, Communications will contact the school to confirm the date and time.
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Select a Committee: The school is responsible for selecting a committee that will plan and execute the blessing and dedication ceremony. The committee should be selected before a date is chosen. The committee should involve school administration, staff, school council and the parent community. The committee will be involved in planning various
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components of the celebration. The planning committee should meet on a regular basis to discuss and organize the ceremony, budget, program, decorations, sponsorships, donations, etc. 3.
Book staging and AV: Book any portable stages that are needed from the Distribution Centre as early as possible as they book up quickly. The school’s administrative assistant must process a Materials Movement Request (MMR) to have the staging transported to and from the school. Any additional audio visual equipment that is needed can be obtained from outside vendors. In order to reduce costs, the planning committee can try to obtain sponsorships from these vendors.
4.
Invitation Card and List: The school is responsible for preparing an invitation card to invite special guests. Refer to past blessing and dedication ceremony invitation cards for design ideas. Document Services can help with design and printing (they now have a standard format for these cards). Communications can help with editing and final proofreading. Communications will create an invitation list (as an Excel spreadsheet) for tracking a ll invitees and then send it to the school to add their special invitees. - Communications should add: The Board of Trustees, district personnel (superintendents, managers at Central Office, senior administration, program supervisors, coordinator, Construction and Maintenance, Purchasing department head, Document Services, the district photographer) all invited dignitaries (indicating which are invited to bring greetings) and any other VIPs (such as the school’s parish priest/pastor, the Bishop, architect of the school and the general contractor). - The school should add: Anyone external to the school who has taken part in planning the ceremony, school council members, volunteers, or people with other special relationships to the school and important community members and/or community association representatives. The school may choose to also invite the principals of district feeder schools or CCSD schools in close proximity. The school is responsible for designating someone to update the invitation list as RSVPs come in, so there is an accurate number of how many people to prepare for. As RSVPs from dignitaries may arrive at central office rather than the school, Communications and the school should liaise to keep the invitation list up to date. The school should distribute invitation cards to all guests on the invitation list, including district personnel (through pony) and dignitaries. (For dignitaries who have already received an invitation letter, this will serve as a second reminder to RSVP.) As well, parents are to be specially informed of and invited to the ceremony through an announcement in the school’s newsletter or a letter home.
5.
Program: The program should follow the format as outlined in the appendix on page 9. Student performances (I.e. music, drama, speaking) the prayers and speeches by
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dignitaries are the highlights of the celebration and should be alternated where possible. (See ‘Protocols’ section below for more details on program order.) ● Master of Ceremonies (MC): The principal is usually the MC. However, an alternate designate (such as the vice principal) can be appointed if necessary. ● The parish priest should be involved from the beginning in the planning of the liturgical portion of the program. Consult with him to determine which readings, prayers and hymns to include in the program. If you have any questions regarding the protocol of the Blessing, please contact the Religious Education team. ● For the music selection, contact the music consultant/Religious Education for assistance, if needed. Check with them with regards to the music copyright fee needed if new music is chosen for the liturgical part of the ceremony. ● Make sure to complete several dress rehearsals and include the parish priest. This will help ensure everything is timed well and flows seamlessly on the day of the ceremony. ● Items Recommended for the Celebration: - Candles for the procession and for each classroom. The school is to obtain these (i.e. Universal Church Supplies), in consultation with the parish priest. - Crucifixes for each classroom. These are supplied by the district’s distribution centre prior to the school’s opening, through a statement of needs list for furniture and equipment, etc. - Water bowls for the holy water. These are supplied by the school. The priest usually brings the aspergillum (sprinkler) with him to bless the items with holy water. - Anything else the priest may require. ● Program design: Communications can provide samples of past ceremony programs for design ideas. Draft the program to be distributed to everyone in attendance (except for students). Keeping the program succinct (to one piece of paper) will save printing costs. Typically for imagery, the school banner, logo or patron saint is used. After the text of the program is drafted, email the draft to Communications for editing and final proofreading. Document Services can help with design and printing. ● Order of speeches: For the order of speeches, the person of the highest rank speaks last, and the person of the least rank speaks first. 6.
Protocols: The school should follow the appropriate protocols when creating the program and hosting the blessing and dedication ceremony: ● Protocols for introductions: When the MC makes the welcome introduction at the beginning of the event, dignitaries are introduced i n the order of the person of the highest rank to the person of least authority. As with all events where Trustees and special district staff are in attendance, the protocol to follow is mention the Trustees first (if a trustee is speaking at the event, do not introduce them individually as they will introduce the board in their greetings), then the chief superintendent, followed by any other superintendents in attendance. (Please contact Communications if there are any questions about the order.) ● Throughout the ceremony, the MC should also take the podium to briefly invite each speaking dignitary up to the microphone before they speak (in effect, passing the podium off to the speaker). ● Because this is public event, the national anthem must be sung.
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The chief superintendent brings greetings on behalf of the district and presents the framed district Mission Statement. The ward trustee brings greetings on behalf of the Board and presents the framed calligraphy artwork. Protocol for speeches: The order of speeches is the same as for introductions. The person of the highest rank speaks first, and the person of the least rank speaks last. (Communications will confirm the appropriate order of the speeches when proofreading the program.) If the Mayor is not in attendance the attending alderman is referred to as Deputy Mayor.
Set Up: The school is responsible for setting up the gymnasium. The school must also set up a smaller area for a short reception after the ceremony. (See ‘Reception’ section below for details.) ● Gymnasium set up: Choose designated seating areas for: students, parents, attending media, dignitaries/speakers, District personnel and other special guests. Take into consideration spacing for choir risers and music equipment. Consult with Communications to help designate specific areas and appropriate seating order, especially for speaking dignitaries. Speaking dignitaries should be seated as close to the podium as possible and should be seated in the order that they are to present. ● Gift table set up: Ensure a table(s) is set up near the podium on which to lay the gift items (not displayed) until they are presented by district representatives and dignitaries. Involve students (with guidance and assistance as necessary) in accepting the gifts from the presenters, holding them up for the audience and placing them on an appropriate display surface. Students can place received gift items back onto the gift table in propped up/visible positions. The gifts that will be presented are: framed Mission Statement (by chief superintendent); Calligraphy art work (by ward trustee); Bronze plaque with staff names (ATA); Bronze plaque and provincial flag (Alberta Infrastructure representative); and the Coat of Arms (by the school’s MLA). ● Gymnasium decoration: Decorate the gymnasium with student artwork, lighting, flowers, plants, etc. You may try to borrow potted flowers or plants from Sunnyside, Golden Gate or other garden centres. (Alternately, to offset costs, some schools have chosen to pre-sell potted flowers to parents/students for pick up after the ceremony.) In addition, it needs to be ensured that a Canadian flag is placed somewhere visible in the gym during the ceremony. If your school does not have one to place in the gym, Communications can bring a standing one. ● Gifts and patron saint picture: As part of the blessing and dedication ceremony, the school receives several gifts. These include a wooden cross crafted and painted by local artist Al Gerritsen (this is a gift for the school from the Diocese); framed prints of the Pope and the Bishop. As well, the school is responsible for obtaining a framed print of the patron saint. If required, Document Services can help to locate an appropriate print. The cost of the patron saint print and its framing is not covered by the district. These four items should be on display at the front of the gymnasium during the ceremony. Communications can supply three easels if needed. ● Nametags and seat labels: Prepare nametags and seat labels for all special guests and speaking dignitaries (who should sit at the front, near the podium). Double-check all nametags and seat labels for spelling of names and appropriate titles. Ensure all names are printed in a large and legible format. Communications will help with order
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of seat labels before the event. Each board member should have their own seat label with their name on it. Ushers: Select student volunteers as ushers to show each special guest (Special dignitaries, Board of Trustees, chief superintendent, area superintendent, and Central Office staff) to their designated seat. Memento: Choose a memento of the school dedication ceremony for each student and special guest (ex: magnet, bookmark, embossed pencil, pen, pin, eraser, ribbon, etc.)
Reception: The school’s planning committee should arrange for a small reception following the blessing and dedication ceremony for approximately 150 guests. This is to be held for parents, special guests, representatives and dignitaries. The school council may wish to assist in preparations for the reception by baking or donating the food. The school may wish to have a cake inscribed, offer beverages (such as coffee, tea, juice and/or bottled water) and serve appetizer/finger foods (such as trays with fruit, small pastries, cookies and/or simple hors d’oeuvres). Typically, the reception is held in the school rotunda or library. The location should be mentioned in the invitation, ceremony program, as well as by the MC in the closing remarks.
E: Communications Department Responsibilities 1.
Choose a Date: Communications checks first with the school to determine any blackout dates, then with the Board of Trustee’s office, the chief superintendent, the area superintendent and the MLA, to narrow down available dates and times. Once a suitable date is determined, Communications contacts the school to confirm this date. If possible, choose a Friday date as this is the most convenient for politicians.
2.
Gifts for the School: Communications is responsible for preparing the following gifts to be presented to the school by district representatives during the celebration. Communications will either have the items delivered directly to the school prior to the ceremony, or bring them on the day of. From Central Office: ● District Mission Statement: presented by the chief superintendent ● Calligraphy Piece: School administration (along with school council and committee members, if appropriate) will select an appropriate poem, verse, or scripture passage that embodies the theme of the school or is in keeping with the school’s namesake. The school, Communications representative and calligraphy artist should meet to discuss the piece that is to be created. This gift is presented by the ward trustee (or board chair if ward trustee cannot attend). ● Wooden cross: Communications will contact local artist Al Gerritsen to order the wooden, painted cross. This is a gift for the school from the Diocese. ● Framed print of Pope and framed print of Bishop. Other gifts:
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The dignitaries, who will either bring the gifts with them in person, or send them to the school prior to the event, will present the following gifts. Communications must contact Alberta Infrastructure early to arrange paperwork and plaques (as soon as date is confirmed). Allow at least eight weeks production time for the bronze plaque. In order to complete the order, a Notice of School Opening Ceremony form and School Opening Information Sheet need to be completed and faxed in. For the ATA plaque, the school must send the ATA president a complete list of the name of every employee at the school. From the Province (Alberta Infrastructure) ● Bronze plaque ● Provincial flag From the MLA ● Coat of Arms (Alberta) From the ATA ● Bronze plaque engraved with all staff members name at school 3.
Prepare Ward Trustee for Duties: Contact ward trustee and inform him/her that they will be asked to bring greetings and formally present the calligraphy piece at the dedication ceremony. Communications should prepare speaking notes for the ward trustee. Speaking notes templates are on file on the R drive/Communications.
4.
Letters to Dignitaries: Communications prepares and sends letters inviting the below dignitaries. Dignitary letters templates are on file on the R drive/Communications. The following receive a letter to bring greetings: ● ● ●
Bishop Minister of Education Minister of Infrastructure
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MLA Mayor of Calgary Local A.T.A. President
The following receive a standard letter of invite: ● ● ● ●
Alberta Education Facilities representatives Calgary Regional Office of Alberta Education representatives Local CUPE President Local CEP President
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Alderman for the ward Local Priest (invited by the school to lead the religious portion of the ceremony) School architect
Please note: Communications and the school must liaise regarding incoming RSVPs from special guests and dignitaries, so the school can finalize the program and so the school has an accurate number of how many people to prepare for.
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5. News Release, Media Coverage and Photography: Communications invites members of the media to cover the blessing and dedication ceremony. Communications will prepare a media release/invitation to be distributed to all local media the day before the event. The school should prepare an area near the rear of the gymnasium for any attending media. Members of the media may show up unannounced, so both Communications and the school should be prepared for this. The district’s blessing and dedication ceremony is to be considered a public event. Photography and/or videotaping of the ceremony are permitted. The district photographer will also be present at the celebration to take photographs for the purpose of CCSD’s records and archives. Please note: Because the blessing and dedication ceremony is considered a public event, FOIP forms are not required for students. However, if there are students whose parents have not given them permission to be photographed or videotaped, it is the school’s responsibility to ensure these students are flagged either to the reporter or Communication department individual. Interview requests will be facilitated by a member of the Communications department at the event.
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APPENDIX 1
Standard Program Format for School Blessing and Dedication Celebrations 1. Musical Interlude 2. Welcome 3. O Canada 4. Processional Hymn 5. Opening Prayer 6. First Reading 7. Responsorial Psalm 8. Gospel Reading 9. Reflection by Parish Priest 10. School Blessing (Blessing of crucifixes or of audience) 11. Prayers of the Faithful 12. Closing Prayer 13. Greetings from the Chief Superintendent (Presentation of Mission Statement) 14. Greetings from the Ward Trustee (Presentation of Calligraphy) 15. Student Performance 16. Greetings from the ATA (Presentation of Bronze plaque) 17. Student Performance 18. Greetings from the municipal representative (Presentation of Coat of Arms) 19. Greetings from the provincial representative (Presentation of Bronze plaque and Alberta flag) 20. Student Performance 21. Closing Remarks 22. Closing Song / School Song 23. Recessional Considerations: • •
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An altar is not needed for this ceremony. However, discuss with your priest how he would like things set up on stage during the religious portion. If the school wishes, the opening procession can include a cross bearer, candle bearers, the lectionary and the priest. The procession can also include a student, a teacher and, if desired, parent representatives carrying class crucifixes, water bowls, flowers, etc. The Processional Hymn should be well known by all to encourage community singing while the procession enters. The Diocese of Calgary presents the school with a cross. This also may be carried in the procession but must be placed on the stage in time for the commencement of the ceremony.
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It may be feasible to choose a theme: e.g., the particular qualities of the patron of the school, which are desirable to emulate, and choose readings pertinent to that theme. **NOTE: It is important that the parish priest be consulted concerning the liturgy. There are several different ways in which to conduct the school blessing component of the ceremony. Some may prefer to have all the classroom crucifixes in one place on a table, bless them, and return them to the individual classrooms. Others may prefer for the priest to visit each classroom (after the ceremony) where a crucifix is placed on a special table/altar and blessed individually. If the priest and the school prefer the latter, this will need to be mentioned and printed as a note at the end of the ceremony program. Please contact the Religious Education team for assistance with any questions concerning the liturgical portion of the School Blessing and Dedication Ceremony.
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