Alliance for Catholic Education
I can only begin to describe what a gift it was to visit all six of the Florida ACE Academies during Catholic Schools Week. Excellence happens on purpose and I witnessed each of your striving for excellence through the intentionality of your celebrating what it means to be a Catholic school and what it means to be a Notre Dame ACE Academy. I saw our mission being lived out in beautiful and unique ways at each school. A few of the many highlights are below. To each of you, thank you for your warm welcome and hospitality during my visit!
Holy Redeemer Catholic School
At the Holy Redeemer Open House, college displays lined the walls as students led prospective families down them, explaining how faith and excellence come together. Taya, one of the guides, spoke enthusiastically about learning religion from her teacher, Mr. Castaneda, and the opportunities to grow closer to God. It was clear that every parent who walked through the school, met the teachers and took tours with the students would leave convinced their child would go to college and heaven should they choose to send them there.
St. Andrew Catholic School
Monday morning, St. Andrew student representatives from every grade presented a project on their path to college and heaven. Many included research on Saints they looked up to as models in faith as well as colleges they are striving to attend. One student explained how she wanted to be a great teacher like her teacher, Ms. Volrath. The presenter for the 8th grade explained how St. Andrew's has prepared her for college by "teaching discipline, respect, and faith….Thank you to all my teachers…I am truly thankful."
Lourdes Academy Catholic School
Lourdes Academy had a busy day filled with trivia, athletic competition, and dancing! Middle school grades competed in the annual Catholic Bowl, displaying incredibly impressive knowledge of their faith. While 7th grade won the (literal) crowns, all teams showed the root belief of "together we grow in knowledge and faith" as they worked together in teams.
That afternoon, the 7th and 8th grade girls had a showdown on the powderpuff field, coached by their classmates and cheered on by the rest of the school. Ms. Gardella taught the whole school the School Choice Week official dance and this halftime performance was one to be remembered.
Back in the classroom, I saw a question on the wall that asked, "What does it mean to be a 5th grader at Lourdes Academy, a Notre Dame ACE Academy." The class had written essays on this question and I asked a student if he could sum it up for me. He looked at me, said "work hard" and got back to his fractions.
Basilica School of St. Paul
My time at Basilica School of St. Paul can be captured in two moments that genuinely filled my heart to the brim. It began in the 3rd grade classroom with Ms. Mackey's students, whose singing almost brought me to my knees. They sang "Glory" by Common, a song from the recent movie, Selma. Each student proudly sang the chorus, "One day, when the Glory comes, it will be ours, it will be ours." The talent, passion, and pride these students have is an inspiration.
Seventh and eighth grade students came together in the afternoon to serve people who are homeless in their neighborhood by making sandwiches. I noticed one young man being especially intentional with his peanut butter knife and looking deeply thoughtful. I asked him what he was thinking about as he made his sandwiches. He looked me in the eye and said with intense genuineness, "I just want to make sure they all eat." He kept spreading and I knew he was being taught to live for others.
Sacred Heart Catholic School
The ministry of hospitality is strong at Sacred Heart. Not only are the greetings of teachers and Ms. Boyle always warm, but the students welcomed me into every class with a handshake, explanation of the current activity, and an invitation to sit and stay. I asked some of the students questions about Catholic Schools Week and their Catholic school and I think their answers say a lot about the strong Catholic culture at Sacred Heart.
Why do we celebrate Catholic Schools week?
Because the principal plans the week and it's awesome!
Well…Jesus!
Why do you love your school?
I'm really good at reading!
Because God is important and we get to learn about Him.
My teacher tells me I have really good fluency!
I also had the privilege of listening to Ms. Mueller's 3rd grade students share their scholarly answers to questions on a story they read. Each person in the group shared and the listeners practiced giving specific compliments about the reader's sentence structure or answer. I learned a lot about what makes a good compliment from these scholars!
St. Joseph Catholic School
St. Joseph had a teach-in! This means that the 8th graders assumed the roles of each adult in the building. I have to admit, I was a bit confused when Sr. Nivia said to me, "here comes Ms. Budd and Ms. Wendy" and all I saw were two 8th grade girls walking down the sidewalk. Yes, "Ms. Budd" and a "Mr. Crafa" did walkthroughs in classrooms all day, observing their fellow student-teachers. Other students I saw were working in the office, assisting in the science lab during a worm dissection, reading to the Pre-K class, and teaching about space. I asked several about what they learned that day and a representative sample of answers are below.
Teachers don't get breaks!
I'm tired.
Our teachers work really hard.
The kindergarteners are SMART!
I had to agree.