Happy Country Fair Weekend!

October 8, 2015

Dear Academy Families,

My heart is overflowing with gratitude for many things during this week prior to Country Fair; I will name two:

  1. The donation of time by our parents, grandparents, friends, faculty and staff in preparation for, and as part of, this weekend’s festivities not only models lives of generous service for our children, but creates a house of goodness! I thank God for your gifts of self, time, goodness and generosity. You can FEEL the goodness in the volunteer room and in the hallways this week!
  2. The income from Country Fair is one of the ways we fill the gap between the cost of an Academy education and the tuition we charge. Your participation helps us, in very concrete ways, deliver an education whose breadth is the five GOALS and each of their CRITERIA. For this I am deeply grateful because I wholeheartedly believe that an Academy education makes each person a better person and our world a better place.

So, thank you to each and every one of you for the MANY ways you have generously given and will generously give to make this weekend happen!

And, while we are working, let us enjoy being with each other, let us relish our children’s delight in simple joys, and let us appreciate the inner satisfaction of knowing that our service is contributing to the building of God’s Kingdom on many levels!

With a heart filled with deep and abiding gratitude,

Maureen Glavin, rscj

Camp Lakewood Experience

October 7, 2015

ASH eighth graders have been going to Camp Lakewood for 18 years! It is one of those opportunities that offers a memorable experience for every student. To some, it’ s conquering the high ropes course or mastering the Alpine rescue’s challenges. To others, it’s climbing the infamous tower or hitting a bull’s eye with a flying arrow or a spear! Through the  “Lakewood  experience,” some eighth graders  have discovered  a classmate’s strengths or found the opportunity to display their hidden talents.  Most students value the chance to spend  time  with their friends … sharing meals, cabin antics and campfire stories.

Educating to a Global Perspective

October 1, 2015

Part of the “x” factor of a Sacred Heart school is that we belong to something larger than ourselves; we are part of a national and international network. Participation in this larger “something” forms us in our unique educational mission.

At this week’s meeting in St. Charles of the Heads and Board Chairs of Sacred Heart schools throughout North America, we talked about the many ways our faculty, staff and students can connect.  

The Head of School from San Francisco recently did a study of excellence in schools. She found that excellence in education is found not so much in our competitors down the street or across town, but across the ocean—meaning internationally. According to her research, the best reading performance happens in Finland, and the best math performance is seen in Japan. As she studied these “best” schools in the world, she discovered that the number one indicator of success in of all those schools of excellence was educating to a global perspective.

Sacred Heart schools have long had this perspective as part of our very being. That was joyfully reassuring to us, as I hope it might be to you!

Happy October,

Sister Glavin
 

Fun and Games

September 28, 2015

Last Thursday evening, boys in grades 1-4 teamed up with their moms for some old-fashioned races and games, and a picnic supper. This Mother-Son event is an annual opportunity for some special “mom-and-me” time.

[nggallery id=169]

Mary, Undoer of Knots

September 24, 2015

Dear Parents,

This afternoon our Eighth Class students will lead our whole school community in an all-school prayer service. I am writing this before the prayer itself, but, the prayer has been inspired by a painting called “Mary, Undoer of Knots,” which shows Mary untangling a long ribbon, the symbolic action of which is evocative of smoothing life’s difficulties.

The painting hangs outside a church in Augsburg, Germany, where Pope Francis saw it before he was Pope (while studying in the mid-1980s). We know the painting is important to the Pope because when he was installed as auxiliary bishop in 1992, he distributed prayer cards featuring the image and, as pontiff, he had the image carved into a chalice that he presented to Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI.  Referring to the “knots” encountered in everyday life, Francis said during a prayer in St. Peter’s Square:

Even the most tangled knots are loosened by (God’s) grace.

In honor of the Pope’s visit, artists in Philadelphia have constructed an exhibit outside the cathedral that will house more than 30,000 knots, each representing a personal hardship or societal challenge.

Uniting ourselves with those prayers in Philadelphia, we at the Academy have, under the direction of the Eighth Class prayer leaders and Religion teacher Kathleen Hammell, created prayer knots that have been hanging in Mater’s Hallway.

During the prayer, our knots will be untied by others and woven together as we pray for the knots in all our lives and in our world.

May Mary, Undoer of Knots, pray with us as we offer our lives’ knots up to the One whose Grace can loosen them.

In union with that One,

Maureen Glavin, rscj

STEM Leadership Day

September 24, 2015

Six ASH students recently participated in a STEM Leadership Conference at Assumption School. They learned about the engineering design process, were challenged with engineering tasks, and sharpened their leadership skills. The day was fun, interactive, educational, and competitive; students worked with one another to build the tallest building out of cards, the fastest cars made out of random Lego pieces, and an egg drop. Representing the Academy were Sean and Emily (8th Class); Claire and Alex (7th); and Abby and Charlie (6th). Great job, ASH team and Coach Mr. Putnam! Our gratitude to Assumption School and event organizers for providing this opportunity.

[nggallery id=166]

Country Fair Craft Night

September 21, 2015

Thanks to the many enthusiastic participants at last week’s Moms’ Wine and Craft Night. Their creations will fill the shelves and straw bales in the Marketplace at Country Fair. Be sure to stop by the Marketplace for one-of-a-kind finds, delicious treats, and more!

[nggallery id=165]

Jack McClain ’15 Awarded Honor Medal

September 18, 2015

KSDK shared the story of Jack McClain’s life-saving rescue of a swimmer and recent recognition by the Greater St. Louis Area Council, Boy Scouts of America. Congratulations, Jack, you make us proud! To read the story, click here.

Merit Assemblies

September 17, 2015

Third and Fourth Class students had their first merit assembly of the year today. Merit assemblies are held frequently throughout the school year. Merits are given to students for both academic learning, effort and accomplishments, as well as for commendable habits and character traits. Students gather in the Shrine for this more formal assembly to receive his/her merit followed by applause from classmates.