“I feel that it is very important that young women receive a good Catholic education. They are our future.”
– Cheryl Oram ’60, Blue Tie
Sponsored by the National Catholic Education Association (NCEA), National Catholic Schools Week (CSW) is an annual celebration of Catholic education in the United States.
This year, NCEA created a new theme to celebrate this annual week “Catholic Schools: Learn. Serve. Lead. Succeed.” to include key teachings and values within Catholic schools across the nation. In addition, NCEA recognizes how parents make sacrifices to afford the cost of tuition as an investment in their child’s values, faith and academic development. Many families rely on financial assistance, scholarship opportunities and development support from schools to bridge the gap. As a new initiative to reconnect people with Catholic school communities, NCEA is launching the Many Gifts, One Nation: A Day of Giving to Catholic Schools to support the existing development and advancement efforts from Catholic schools. Scheduled for January 30, 2018, 9 AM EST to January 31, 2018 9 AM EST, this is a time for individuals to give back to local Catholic schools.
Since 1889, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet have ensured the graduates of St. Mary’s Academy were exposed to the core teachings of Catholic education. By educating young women to become lifelong learners and to serve the “dear neighbor”, St. Mary’s Academy is instilling character, compassion, and moral values in each student to fulfill its mission of developing the future women leaders of our communities.
St. Mary’s Academy invites alumnae, friends and local community members who have been impacted by Catholic school education to celebrate this national day of giving back by making a donation today to our school’s Greatest Needs Fund.
Help ensure the financial sustainability of St. Mary’s Academy!
Donors who invest in our school are essential to our future growth and ability to provide a learning environment with advanced technology, Christian service, student leadership and college preparation
Learn.
St. Mary’s Academy is committed to providing an engaging and hands-on learning academic environment for our students. Through donations from our stakeholders, necessary enhancements to the school’s facilities have been implemented including air conditioning/heating systems and security cameras to provide a safe and comfortable environment. In addition, the school was able to purchase a new kiln for our Arts Career Path Program and upgrade the classroom projectors.
Serve.
St. Mary’s Academy is committed to instilling a lifelong calling in our students to serve the “dear neighbor” in their homes and local communities. As part of their service to our SMA community, our Belles have learned to play on keyboards and sing to share their gifts for our school Liturgies and Prayer Services. Furthermore, the funds received towards serving the “dear neighbor” enables our Campus Ministry to provide bus transportation for retreats to incorporate both spiritual reflection and hands-on service to local non-profit organizations, such as the Los Angeles Food Bank. The moral and compassionate development of our students is the true essence of a Belle of St. Mary’s Academy.
Lead.
St. Mary’s Academy is committed to forming tomorrow’s leaders to take their places in the world. Our faculty and staff recognize the importance of educating students beyond the classroom. This past weekend, the Student Leadership Council hosted their annual Belles and Beaux dance event at our school, inviting students from other local schools to join our school community. As part of her commitment to developing student leaders, Ms. Lynna Landry, the Director of Student Activities, has received support from her parents (Mr. Bruce and Mrs. Monica Landry) through monetary and in-kind donations (Belles and Beaux flower arrangement centerpieces) to support student activities and school events because they understand the value of volunteering items, money and time towards Catholic education. Both parents are products of K-12 Catholic education and have continued to support Catholic education by investing in their children to attend K-12 Catholic schools and supporting their daughter, Ms. Landry, who is a dedicated Catholic school teacher who firmly believes in the benefits of attending a Catholic school.
The Robotics Team Moderator for our school’s SMArtBots (Team #3759) is Mr. Joe Condrat, who provides volunteer hours on weekdays and weekends during competition season to ensure our Belles continue to develop in the STEM field through Robotics competitions. In addition, he advocates with local engineers to mentor and donate towards competition costs and materials for our SMArtBots student members to extend their leadership in the technical field.
Succeed.
St. Mary’s Academy is committed to preparing the next generation of women pursuing their professional aspirations. Through the fundraising efforts of our Parent Association, the College Center has received new furniture, computers and physical renovations to provide a space for graduating students to receive college guidance, access to online college preparation resources, and a space to meet Admissions staff from various colleges. Providing access to innovative technology is key to the success of our students which includes upgrading the Media Arts lab with new Apple iMac computers and iPads which allow students to learn how to make films, design a yearbook, and edit photographs.
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