APRIL 2013 SCHOOL HIGHLIGHTS Notre Dame High School Our

APRIL 2013
SCHOOL HIGHLIGHTS
Notre Dame High School
Notre Dame announced the top five students for the Class of 2013. Standing next to Mr. Perry
Storey is Kate Westman, Valedictorian, daughter of Carl and Heather Westman; Steven Dorris,
Salutatorian, son of Richard and Suzanne Dorris; Sydney and Darby Lundquist, daughters of
Thomas and Kirsten Lundquist; and Michelle Lee, daughter of Gi Jin Kim.
During a brief ceremony at the 2013 Prom, Michael Labbe and Mariana Esparza were crowned
Mr. and Miss Notre Dame. This year’s candidates for Mr. and Miss Notre Dame were Tess
Brock (Signal), Katie Ward (37405), Mariana Esparza (East Brainerd), Laura Champion (Hixson),
Ellie Newell (East Brainerd), John Jancewicz (Hixson), Tony Marini (Hixson), Rick Prochazka
(Ooltewah), Tim Barnes (Soddy), and Michael Labbe (East Brainerd). Candidates are nominated
by the senior class and must be in the top 50 percent academically. The entire student body
votes for the candidates to determine the winners.
Two seniors recently signed scholarship offers to continue their athletic careers. Lauren
Simpson signed to row for the University of Tulsa, Oklahoma and Stedmon Ford signed to play
basketball for Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee.
Our Lady of Perpetual Help School
We collected over $3,000 for the Rice Bowl collection which was under the guidance of Mrs.
Morrison, our eighth grade students took charge of the Catholic Relief Services Lenten Rice
Bowl fund and collected $2866.
The eighth grade students went on their Washington D.C. trip and had a wonderful time and
experience.
The third graders had a World Culture Day which involved research and a presentation.
The first grade students had a hatchery of baby chicks. This was a project during the study of
the life cycle which is done every year around Easter.
The two biggest Spring Events of OLPH are Grandparents' Day and First Holy Communion. As
part of the First Holy Communion activities, the 2nd graders, with their parent/guardian, created
banners to be hung in the church during the ceremony.
First Holy Communion was a beautiful ceremony celebrated by Father Jim Vick and Father
Mike.
Grandparents' Day was a huge success as always. We had 320 grandparents in
attendance. After mass, a brunch was served and the students did a musical program in their
honor. Following the program, the grandparents had the opportunity to visit the classrooms
and the student art show.
The spring sports of tennis and track are going well.
St. Jude School
The Second Annual Fine Arts Festival was held at St. Jude School on April 11 th, featuring many
talented students who displayed proficiency in band, piano, guitar and multiple visual art
mediums. An addition to this year’s Festival was the “Community Room,” offering school staff,
parents and parishioners the opportunity to display their artwork. It was a great night of parish
and school community involvement.
Eighth grade students, along with their teachers, principal and several parent chaperones
visited Washington, DC from April 18th – 23rd. Students had a wonderful time visiting various
museums, Arlington Cemetery, Gettysburg and the National Cathedral.
In spite of rainy weather, the Second Grade Class enjoyed a very nice pre-Communion retreat,
hosted by their parents, and a beautiful First Communion service on April 27 th, with a reception
presented to them by the third grade.
Knoxville Catholic High School
Honors Week was celebrated at KCHS the week of April 14th-19th at KCHS. Special Events
included the Induction Ceremony for National Honor Society, Principal’s List Brunch and the
Honors Ceremony and All School Mass.
The annual KCHS Honors Ceremony is one of the greatest days of our school year as we honor
students in every grade level and subject for their outstanding work in the classroom. We also
take time to recognize members of the senior class who have demonstrated excellence in
academics, co-curricular activities and service to others. We congratulate John Clary and Elliot
Consoli, who were named as recipients of the Sedes Sapientiae Award for the Class of 2013.
These two outstanding young men will represent the senior class as graduation speakers on
May 18th. Congratulations to them and to all of the students who were honored at the
ceremony.
On April 17th, five seniors signed letters of intent to continue their athletic careers in college.
Congratulation to the following; Mason Sawicki – Baseball for Roane State Community College,
Tyler O’Brien-Football for The College of Mount St. Joseph in Cincinnati, Will Easley – Football
for Sewanee-College of the South, Abby McCollough – Basketball for Bryan College, and Olivia
Hoffman – Dance Team for Tennessee Technological College.
Following All School Mass on April 18th, KCHS held an Enthronement Ceremony. An image of
the Sacred Heart of Jesus was placed in every classroom and meeting place so as to recognize
Jesus as our King and our friend. This was a very special time for our entire school community.
The Theater Department presented the spring play “Grease” on April 19 th – 21st.
Congratulations to Chris Cox for being named to the Knoxville News Sentinel’s All Prep X-Tra
Boys’ Basketball Team. Congratulations to Jordan Anderson who was named the Knoxville
News Sentinel Sophomore of the Year.
On April 22nd-26th, KCHS celebrated International Week. Each day, the Morning Prayer was said
in a different language and there were daily trivia and photo identification contests. On April
24th, the cafeteria was closed, and we enjoyed ethnic food from Soccer Taco, Taj, and Mama
Mia for lunch.
Congratulations to the KCHS Combined Women’s Chorus who performed at the Tennessee
ACDA State Choral Festival on April 26th and received a score of 10.5 out of 12 (A), rating them
among the top choirs in the State of Tennessee.
Sacred Heart Cathedral School
A Casual Evening in the Low Country: The 23rd Annual Dinner, Dance & Auction, “A Toast to
the Coast”, was celebrated on April 20th at Lighthouse Knoxville. Items up for bid included: a
Maltipoo puppy, Private Party with Live Music at Buckethead Tavern, Gumbo and Good Times
Party, Ultimate Volunteer Fan Package including football skybox tickets and basketball luxury
suite tickets, Mountain Getaway for 4, Handmade Persian rug, Beach Getaway to Cape San Blas,
Florida, Grillin & Chillin with Father David, Bourbon and Cigar Tasting Party for 12, plus a new
event at this year’s auction . . . visit the Wine Dock! Each Homeroom also made a Class Basket
that was bid on.
Meet the New Principal: Parents and community members came out and met incoming SHCS
Principal, Mrs. Sarah Trent, on Thursday, April 11th at 7:00 p.m. in the gym.
New SHCS Website: Introducing the new school website – same address – www.shcschool.org
– new sleek design and easy navigation. Thanks to our partners at Slamdot! The new school
site was developed to be a marketing piece for our wonderful school and highly informational.
Quick links include menus, daily mass readings, facts tuition, facilities reservations, handbooks,
and ParentsWeb. ParentsWeb will now be your main source for forms, registration, important
letters, teacher contacts, student assignments and other nuts and bolts.
Book Fair News: The Scholastic Book Fair was held April 22nd – 29th with the theme of “All Star
Book Fair, Every Reader is a Star”. The Library was open for business at noon on Monday and
opened daily afterschool until 4:00 p.m. so students could come with their parents to shop.
Families were able to check out the fabulous books and share in the fun on Family Night,
Wednesday, April 24, from 5:30-7:30. Dinner was served in the café on Family Night.
New School Logo: The Sacred Heart Cathedral Parish and School logo (brand) is the
centerpiece of our visual identity. It is important because it is the key design element that
visually symbolizes our devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. As we are the Cathedral of the
Sacred Heart of Jesus, our “mark” should reflect three essential components: the Cross, the
Heart, and the Thorns. Each of these elements speaks of the love of Jesus for us. The new logo
is pictured below and was unveiled on April 15th.
St. John Neumann School
Construction on the new Kindergarten addition is fully underway. Footers have been poured
and walls will be going up in the next couple of days. The current Kindergarten classrooms will
be converted into preschool rooms for a new Pre K-3 and a new Pre K-4 program.
Congratulations to the SJNCS National History Day State competitors! James Hermes and Conor
Metz finished fourth in the Group Documentary category; an awesome achievement out of 14
state level entries! Tyler Hayes, Sean Purcell, and Macklin Stephenson finished second in the
Group Exhibit category; a phenomenal accomplishment in a competition with 18 state level
entries! We applaud these students and wish Tyler, Sean, and Macklin best wishes as they go
on to compete in the National History Day Competition in Maryland in June.
Seventh grade students received state recognition for their performance on the ACT test
though their participation in the Duke University Talent Identification Program (Duke TIP).
SJNCS students received the following honors: Grand and State Recognition was awarded to
Nathan Geist. State Recognition was awarded to Vanessa Belanger, Cassi Jones, Madeline
Pabst, and Nicholas Parsly. Vanessa Belanger, Nathan Geist, Cassi Jones, and Nicholas Parsly
also qualified for the Center for Summer Studies. Madeline Pabst is eligible to participate in the
Summer Studies programs at Appalachian State University, the University of Kansas, and Austin
College.
The 2013 SJN Wild West Dinner, Dance & Auction was an awesome event! Special thanks go
out to all those who worked tirelessly to make this annual fundraiser such a huge success! We
are incredibly blessed to have such dedicated and motivated members in our SJNCS family!
St. Joseph School
Saint Joseph School hosted a Grandparents and Special Friends Day on Wednesday, April 10 th.
Grandparents and Special Friends were invited to a special Mass, classroom presentations, a
concert, and lunch. Many visitors came for an enjoyable morning.
Saint Joseph held their annual Spring Concert on Friday, April 26 th. Students performed many
songs during the concert which also featured the band, strings, hand bells, select choir and
accompaniment by students on guitar, percussion, keyboard, and flute.
St. Mary School – Oak Ridge
Spirit:
On April 19, the St. Mary’s School Crusader Ensemble and combined 5 th and 6th grade student
singers performed at the 10th Annual Fighting Irish Spring Classic high school baseball doubleheader to benefit Catholic Charities of East Tennessee pregnancy aid and adoption services. The
students sang “God Bless America” before the start of the Knoxville Catholic High School game
and a special rendition of “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” at the bottom of the 5 th inning.
Knights of Columbus event organizer Tom Ciaccia commented, “Your students were a wonderful
gift to our event. They capture the spirit of what the event is all about. Please consider the
Crusader Ensemble invited for next year. Thank you again for all the Crusader Ensemble Family
did to make our event a great success!”
Mission:
On April 4, 17 students from St. Mary’s School middle school received awards at the annual
Southern Appalachian Science and Engineering Fair—including the top prize of grand champion,
junior division, given to 8th grader Daniel Mountain, and 5th place, junior division, to 7th grader
Jacqueline Zuraf. The students also received a combined total of 18 honorable mentions and
certificates of excellence, with special awards from the following organizations: American
Meteorological Society, Jacqueline Zuraf and Natalia Sychtysz; American Psychological
Association, Elena Martin; Mu Alpha Theta Sorority, Shannon Rearden; United States Air Force,
Sierra Mushett; United States Public Health Service, Olivia Milloway; United States Department
of Agriculture, Jacqueline Zuraf; and Science Applications International Corporation, Olivia
Milloway. Congratulations to all the participants!
Service:
On April 26, St. Mary’s School hosted its Grandparents’ and Special Friends’ Day, with an encore
performance of the spring musical, “This Pretty Planet: A Song, A Dance, A Holy Place.” Directed
by music teacher Carol Villaverde, the performance showcased the vocal and dancing talents of
everyone from PK to 8th grade, as students sang, danced, and played throughout the show.
Selections were from around the world, and students sang in languages from German to Latin
to Gaelic...even Hebrew! All grandparents and special friends attending—including many of St.
Mary’s senior parishioners—were treated to a complimentary homemade breakfast prepared
by the Home & School Association.
St. Dominic School
During National Library Week (April 15-19) we had a Scholastic Book Fair. Many people bought
many books for summer reading. It is so important that children continue to read during the
summer months!
Earth Day Celebration
The children saw a skit about how we can each help save our Earth. At lunch each child ate a
cupcake. When all the cupcakes were together they made a picture of the Earth with its land
forms and oceans.
Operetta
The Fifth Graders were the stars in this year's operetta Thursday evening, April 25. It was
entitled "Aid For the Struggling Patriots". It took place during the time when the American
Colonies were fighting for their independence from Great Britain. The cast was made up
of second through fifth grade students. They did a wonderful job acting and singing!!
The Fifth Grade Trip
In the spring the 5th Grade class takes a three day educational trip. This year they traveled to
Chattanooga. They left early Tuesday morning, April 30 and arrived home Thursday evening,
May 2. They visited many wonderful places such as, the Creative Discovery Museum, Hunters
Museum of American Art, the Aquarium, etc. They experienced doing many new things. They
made their own blown glass ornament and rode on the train. It was a great trip!
St. Mary School – Johnson City
Our Monday Club Poetry Winners were honored at a reception at the Johnson City Public
Library on April 6th.
First Place
Mara Donahue – first grade
Austin Harris – fourth grade
Hannah Donahue – sixth grade
Third Place
Audrey Harris – second grade
Lane Caughron – third grade
Honorable Mention
Jacob Allen – first grade
Carmen Palileo – first grade
Mara Donahue also won first place in State for her poem.
Austin Harris and Hannah Donahue won second place in District for their poems.
Congratulations to our students who placed in the ETSU Regional Science Fair:
First Place – Biological
First Place – Biological
Grand Prize
Sarah Ann Kenneson – eighth grade
Hannah Donahue – sixth grade
Zuzia Smurznska – seventh grade
Our Annual Auction was held on Saturday, April 20th, the theme was There is No Place like
Home; due to moving it back to our school, after trying another venue in town for the past two
years. The night was enjoyed by around 150 people. We started with a preview of our silent
auction, followed by dinner, and verbal auction. We raised approximately $48,000.00 before
expenses. The class art and pottery was a big hit, along with signed sports memorabilia, and
trips.
Our school has started a Student Wellness Committee to look into healthier lunches and more
opportunities for exercise for our students as well as parents and faculty/staff.