DISCOVER Bishop McNamara - You BELONG Here - Admission's Viewbook

Bishop McNamara High School

Dr. John Barnhardt

Welcome to Bishop McNamara!

I am honored that you are considering our community of innovators, believers, peace-keepers, disruptors, and leaders. The world today demands much of our young people. Inner peace, a pursuit of equity, and the ability to engineer an innovative solution are all skills that our graduates are called on to demonstrate in college and career. Here at our beloved Bishop McNamara, your child will grow into an adult, capable of knowing themselves in the context of a complicated world and equipped to thrive in a global community.

Bishop McNamara High School was founded in the tradition of the Brothers of Holy Cross who also founded the University of Notre Dame, King’s College, St. Edward’s University, and Stonehill College. Fifty-eight years of history and over 12,000 alumni is evidence enough that our belief in the unique, God-given talents of every young person walking our halls equips our students to take on the world. Our alumni community includes internationally acclaimed authors, philanthropists, elected representatives, professional athletes, collegiate educators, change makers, and religious leaders.

Our innovative college-preparatory curriculum is delivered by an award winning faculty team and supported by a topof-class Performing and Fine Arts program along with a nationally competitive Athletics program. It’s often shared that when you walk through the doors of McNamara, you feel an overwhelming sense of belonging. Our approach to education is different. Our core mission and values are anchored in Christ and the educators who teach, coach, council, and mentor our students, do so with love and a commitment to the unique identities and dreams of each student.

Whether in the classroom or concert hall, on the stage or the athletic field, in a lab or in a rehearsal room, Bishop McNamara High School stands for excellence. Experience Bishop McNamara, where we inspire the hearts and minds of our students to innovate, transform, and thrive!

Dr. John Barnhardt President/CEO @barnhardt

“We are Bishop McNamara. We are Holy Cross. We choose through our words and actions to build family, show respect, educate our hearts and minds, and bring hope. We choose to think with Christ”

School Code, Bishop McNamara High School

Our Vision and Mission

THE 4 PILLARS OF HOLY CROSS:

• Building Family • Educating Minds and Hearts

Our Vision:

Empowered leaders, inspired by the Gospel, transforming the world.

Our Mission:

To educate hearts and minds in a dynamic, inclusive Catholic school community rooted in the Holy Cross tradition.

I always remind students that we all have dreams and aspirations to be something great, but if we embrace the words in James 1:19 and, ‘are quick to listen, slow to speak and always slow to become angry’, God will speak to us in marvelous ways. He accepts us on our best days an gloves us all the same on our worst days - his love is unconditional.

Dian A. Carter

Principal, Bishop McNamara High School

• Showing Respect

• Bringing Hope

Blessed Basil Moreau founded the Congregation of Holy Cross as a religious teaching order. The cornerstone of a Holy Cross education is the belief that minds and hearts should be educated as one; the mind is never prioritized over the heart. In order to accomplish this goal, over the course of their history, Holy Cross schools have focused on teaching Gospel values alongside the core academic curriculum. A Holy Cross education is respectful and inclusive of all faiths. The order embraces the idea of a global community and, above all, is committed to providing students with a quality education exemplified by the highest standards.

OUR GUIDING PRINCIPLES:

• Bishop McNamara is committed to developing in all students a sense of self-worth and accomplishment.

• By welcoming students from diverse backgrounds, the School exposes its students to a variety of traditions beyond their own, instilling a respect for the cultures and values of others.

• Bishop McNamara serves those within our community without prejudice, accepting all persons as they have been created in God’s infinite goodness.

• Through spiritual and academic guidance and service to others, the School provides an opportunity to participate in the practice of the Catholic faith in an atmosphere supportive of religious values.

• This faith message is taught not in isolation but is integrated with learning and living by relating the Gospel message to content areas, by the living example of faculty and staff, by partnership with families, and by service to the outside community.

• Students learn a sense of responsibility for one’s actions and for the well-being of the local and global community through a range of evolving curricular, co-curricular and institutional programs.

• Bishop McNamara provides a strong, challenging and diverse curriculum that allows each student to achieve success commensurate with ability and effort.

• Bishop McNamara helps the student develop the power to reason independently and think creatively.

Campus Expansion at Bishop McNamara

In the last 20 years, we have dedicated more than $20 million to renovating, upgrading, and expanding our facilities to better serve our students.

Often referred to as “The Campus That Never Sleeps,”

McNamara High School is a truly unique and special campus. Our students consider their school to be a second home. Over the last decade, Bishop McNamara has continued to grow and change with time. We have transformed our academic and athletic facilities to encourage growth and inspire our community.

The La Reine Science & Innovation Center

With the vision to ‘Innovate, Transform, Thrive,’ the La Reine Science & Innovation Center, scheduled to open in the fall of 2022, will be a hub for technology, collaboration, and discovery by offering new academic programs in science, technology, cybersecurity, engineering, entrepreneurship, and multimedia. By providing students with next generation, hands-on learning experiences, Bishop McNamara High School hopes to develop the innovators of tomorrow.

The La Reine Science & Innovation Center is a 20,000 square-foot building that will provide deep, hands-on learning experiences for the student community to explore, create, discover, collaborate, and innovate. The Center will offer seven classrooms, five of them as customary science labs,

featuring two chemistry labs, two physics labs, and a health science lab. It will also include a cybersecurity lab, multimedia studio, and entrepreneurship workspace, and the state-ofthe-art innovation lab will be the centerpiece to the building, complete with industry-leading hardware such as 3D printers, vinyl cutters, drill presses, and computer components that can make a machine run and affect its performance.

As Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks says, “The La Reine Science & Innovation Center will be a game changer, not only for Bishop McNamara students, but for the Prince George’s County community as a whole. We know that STEM education is critical to ensuring our young people can compete professionally after high school.”

Academic Profile

Bishop McNamara High School opened its doors in 1964 and has been providing an extraordinary Holy Cross education for our students ever since. With a co-educational advantage, students - regardless of genderlearn to collaborate on academic and extracurricular endeavors side by side with one another.

The School graduates more than 200 students each year, and we know that they go on to become forces for good. Through our tradition of academic excellence and our commitment to faith and service, our students become counter-cultural contributors to society with the confidence to lead, the competence to see, and the courage to act.

Our students are empowered leaders inspired by the Gospel. They are purposeful and intentional in their devotion to bringing hope and change to the world by helping those in need on the local, national and international levels. Their deviation and passion continues long after their high school year. Thanks to the rigorous curriculum we provide at Bishop McNamara, our students think creatively, and crucially; they embody strong morals and exhibit their own self-awareness and understanding of faith; they gain an appreciation for a broad range of disciplines and subjects; they come to embrace differences in culture - in short, our students become informed, formed and transformed throughout their Bishop McNamara education.

Academic Excellence

our rigorous, college-preparatory curriculum,

McNamara High School educates the minds and hearts of each and every student in a thriving, inclusive

community.

make sure to provide engaging, hands-on, inquiry-based

opportunities for our students beyond the classroom, including internships, online learning opportunities, guest speakers, field trips and even chances for students to travel abroad and experience other cultures first-hand.

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Emily Koenick English Teacher, Bishop McNamara High School

Faith & Service

Bishop McNamara is proud of its Catholic identity and Holy Cross heritage. We are committed to providing opportunities for our students to live out the Gospel message and put into action the Catholic Social Teachings. As a part of that commitment, our students complete hours of community service to a variety of people in need. These service experiences are designed to help our students go beyond the required hours and build a habit of serving their communities.

Prayer is woven into the fabric of the Bishop McNamara experience. We begin everyday together - taking a moment to pause, center ourselves, and offer our day to God. Additionally,

our students participate in monthly, schoolwide liturgies and participate in an annual retreat that is reflective of our core values. Our Campus Ministry department strives to create meaningful experiences for our students in order “to make God known, loved, and served.”

Our goal is to create spaces where students can reflect on and process their everyday lives through the lens of spirituality. We do this through the formal programming mentioned above, but we also do this by being available to our students informally between classes or before or after school.

CLASS RETREATS

Each BMHS student attends a retreat every year. Freshman year it is apart of the orientation, sophomore year students focus on respect and bravery, junior year student attend a 3-day Kairos retreat, and senior year focuses on bringing hope in the next chapter. These opportunities are designed to provide time for spiritual formation, class fellowship, and greater understanding of themselves.

HOLY CROSS SERVICE PROGRAM

Guided by love of neighbor and the work of social justice, students are encouraged to move out of their comfort zones as they seek to help those in need.

M.E.L.T. —

McNAMARA EMERGING LEADERSHIP TRAINING

MELT stands for McNamara Emerging Leadership Training. It is a leadership training program for rising juniors and seniors during the summer that exists to aid in the formation of leaders who will serve the school and their communities. Participating students also help to plan and conduct the Freshman Experience in August, and are expected to help the school community by infusing their various activities with the leadership skills they have gained.

PEER MINISTRY

Students who are selected for the Peer Ministry program and choose to enter it spend their entire Senior year in a course primarily focused on their personal growth as communicators, leaders, and persons of faith and justice. Although the course is the central focus of the Peer Ministry program, students also attend a Peer Ministry Retreat in August, mentor the freshman class through visits to their Theology classes, set up and usher for several of the school Liturgies, and serve as student leaders at the Junior Kairos Retreat.

SERVICE TRIPS

Once a year, Campus Ministry takes a small group of students to the Romero Center in Camden, New Jersey. The 4-day, 3-night Urban Challenge program leads students through a variety of reflective and educational activities while also providing an opportunity to volunteer in Camden and the surrounding area.

“With eyes of faith consider the greatness of your mission and the wonderful amount of good which you can accomplish.”

Fr. Basile Moreau, Christian Education, 1856

Technology & Innovation

Through our expansion of our science curriculum and of our spaces such as the CITE (Creativity, Imagination, Technology, Education) Lab, Bishop McNamara High School is working towards a new era of S.T.E.A.M. education for our students. We were proud to launch a Foundations of Engineering class to give students hands-on opportunities to learn about the basics of programming and engineering. Students interested in working with technology and computers are able to attend class and spend free periods in our CITE Lab. Under the instruction of four knowledgeable faculty and staff, students are able to design pieces they want to create with our stateof-the-art 3D printer, or learn how to program Raspberry Pi handheld computers. We have found that if students are able to do the hands-on work themselves, their interest in the subject matter skyrockets!

To help students learn different applications and uses of technology, we have implemented a 1:1 educational device program at the School – teachers utilize online assignments and classroom activities, while students store presentations and assignments that are more easily accessible. This has encouraged more group-based work and cooperation between students when handling projects.

The classroom of the past featured lecture-based learning where the teacher was the primary focus of the room. As we have seen from student interaction and our classrooms and teaching style development, the classroom of the future will focus on the student. Studies have shown that each child learns differently, and re-arranging the workspaces in the classroom encourages students to learn through group discussions with their peers and sharing experiences and reflections based on shorter lectures provided by the teacher. Through this new method of teaching, students are able to provide more input in the lessons they want to learn – and thus feel more empowered to contribute during class – while simultaneously absorbing the information necessary to succeed in our college-preparatory education.

INNOVATION and

Athletic Pride

Bishop McNamara High School maintains a proud tradition in athletics. We expect our athletes, coaches and fans to represent the student body and the Bishop McNamara community by displaying the highest standards of sportsmanship and self-discipline. The Athletics Department at Bishop McNamara educates the whole person, not just the athlete. As an extension of the classroom, athletics at Bishop McNamara instill Christian values on the playing fields, in the classroom and in the community. Bishop McNamara High School provides a variety of sports and athletic programs for our students. Our student-athletes are driven by core values of faith, dignity, determination, sportsmanship and teamwork. While

many student-athletes continue their athletic

the collegiate level, and some even at the professional level, the times they cherish most are the times they spent here at Bishop McNamara. The bonds they form here remain with them long after graduation, making them Mustangs for L.I.F.E. - Leadership, Integrity, Faith and Excellence.

BMHS Athletic Programs

FALL

Cheerleading - Co-ed JV, Varsity Cross Country - Co-ed Varsity Dance Team - Girls Varsity Football - Boys Freshmen, Varsity Soccer - Girls JV, Varsity Soccer - Boys JV, Varsity Tennis - Girls Varsity Volleyball - Girls JV, Varsity

WINTER

Archery - Co-ed Varsity Basketball - Girls JV, Varsity Basketball - Boys Freshmen, JV, Varsity Cheerleading - Co-ed JV, Varsity Dance Team - Girls Varsity Indoor Track & Field - Co-ed Varsity Swimming & Diving - Co-ed Varsity Wrestling - Co-ed Varsity

SPRING

Baseball - Boys JV, Varsity Golf - Co-ed Varsity Lacrosse - Girls JV, Varsity Lacrosse - Boys JV, Varsity Outdoor Track & Field - Co-ed Varsity Softball - Girls JV, Varsity Tennis - Boys Varsity

Class of 2022 Athletic Commitments

Jordan

Favour

Brock

Nickolas Butler-Simpson ‘22 (Track) - University of Michigan

Gia Cooke ‘22 (Girls Basketball) - University of Maryland

Marcus Goodley ‘22 (Boys Soccer) - St. Joseph’s University

Cameron Jones ‘22 (Baseball) - University of Maryland

Natalia Kebange ‘22 (Softball) - Gettysburg College

Mya Lee ‘22 - Elon University

MaKayla Marbury ‘22 (Softball) - North Carolina

State University

Francesca Smith ‘22 (Girls Lacrosse) - Shorter University

Bryce Thompson ‘22 (Baseball)

- Christopher Newport University

Yonta Vaughn ‘22 (Girls Basketball)

- West Virginia University

Cody Webb ‘22 (Football)

- Tennessee State University

Quincy Williams ‘22 (Football)

- Wake Forest University

Isaiah Woodley ‘22 (Football)

- Bowie State University

Through our Holy Cross, college-preparatory

Bishop McNamara High School

challenged

think creatively and critically, ask thought-provoking

and solve problems concerning local, national and international issues. Our students are instilled with the confidence to see and the courage to act; they collaborate with others to put their academic, personal and academic skills to use in facing these challenges. Through service learning and campus ministry opportunities, students explore and reflect on their personal faith. Through this foundation, our students go on to embody strong morals to face difficult decisions and act in a manner which reflects an understanding of the dignity God affords all people. They feel a commitment and social responsibility to help those in need, and learn to appreciate cultures and backgrounds different from their own.

These teachings remain with them long after graduation. Bishop McNamara High School students don’t just learn skills and study habits that are only useful in the classroom, they also learn how to be good people; servant-leaders committed to solving problems and embracing others - regardless of cultural differences.

McNamara

Paul O’Brien, Theology

CARPOOLS:

Bishop McNamara High School partners with CarpooltoSchool, an online carpool service that’s fast, easy, and secure. For more information and registration, visit CarpoolToSchool.com.

BUS TRANSPORTATION

INFORMATION:

Bishop McNamara partners with the following companies to help our families find the best transportation options that work for your convenience.

• JMM Transportation - 301-906-0147 jmm.distributors21@gmail.com

• Street Transportation Services - 301-254-4160 streetconstructiongroup@yahoo.com

• Capital Area Transportation - 301-437-1031 CATEShaythe@gmail.com

• Student Transportation Logistics (formerly the Student Shuttle) - 240-736-8276 studenttransportationlogistics@gmail.com For more information, please contact admissions@bmhs.org

METRORAIL AND METRO BUS

Please contact WMATA for exact routes, times, and fees. Possible routes may take you to the Suitland Metro Station (where you may take the K12 bus) or the Addison Road Metro Station (where you may take the J12 bus to the stop across the street from our school).

Routes and stops may change from time to time, so we recommend visiting www.wmata.com or the WMATA app for the latest information.

LIST OF CITIES OF CURRENT STUDENTS

Accokeek Alexandria, VA Annapolis Arlington, VA Baltimore Beltsville Bladensburg Bowie Brandywine Bryans Road Capitol Heights Cheltenham

Chesapeake Beach Cheverly Churchton Clinton College Park Columbia Crofton District Heights

Dunkirk Forestville Fort Washington Gambrills Germantown Glen Burnie Glenarden Glenn Dale Greenbelt Hughesville Huntingtown Hyattsville

Indian Head

Joint Base Andrews Landover Lanham Largo Laurel Lothian

London, England (UK)

Mitchellville

New Carrollton Oxon Hill Pomfret

Port Republic Saint Leonard Seabrook Seat Pleasant Silver Spring Springdale Suitland

Temple Hills

Upper Marlboro Valley Lee Waldorf Washington, DC White Plains

The Admissions Process

CREATE YOUR MACCESS ACCOUNT

Whether you are adding your name to our mailing list, scheduling a visit, or submitting an application, you must first create a MACCESS account. Your MACCESS account is the portal that will house all documents related to the admissions process. From your account you will be able to:

• Submit an application

• Download forms and upload documents

• Register for all admissions events

• See your admissions progress and decision

• Access important information

LOG INTO YOUR ACCOUNT

Once you submit an inquiry, you will receive an autogenerated email inviting you to activate your account and set up your password (please check your spam folder). Your username will be the email address you used to set up the account.

Once your account has been created, our staff will assign a checklist based on the information you provided. If for some reason you do not receive an email with login instructions, please contact us at admissions@bmhs.org.

ACCESS YOUR CHECKLIST

When you log in to MACCESS, you will see an Admissions Progress Page with a checklist of items to complete so the Admissions Team can evaluate your student.

Details and documents to download are available and accessed by clicking on each checklist step. The checklist does not have to be completed in the order listed.

In order to mitigate any delay with processing your student’s application and issuing an admissions decision, please be sure to review your checklist frequently to ensure that all of the required steps are completed and all documents have been provided in the designated format.

We invite you to visit our Admissions page to get your journey started! www.bmhs.org/admissions

Start Your Journey Today!