Faith and Knowledge

Growing TOGETHER

ST. FRANCIS CATHOLIC SCHOOL CELEBRATES 25 YEARS OF FAITH AND KNOWLEDGE

BY TIM WOOD | PHOTOS BY MADISON ELROD

It’s a time for looking back and planning for what’s next as St. Francis Catholic School celebrates its 25th anniversary this year.

The school that began with 45 pre-K and kindergarteners is now graduating its 20th eighth-grade class and principal Brian Pope has been witness to each of those ceremonies.

Pope began as a substitute teacher at St. Francis and is grateful to have experienced the same kind of personal and career growth as he witnessed among the hundreds of SFCS grads.

“Our motto for this milestone is ‘25 Years of Growing Together in Faith and Knowledge.’ It’s truly the lifestyle here and what drew me here and keeps me excited about leading the growth here along with Father Mike Oenbrink, our Parish Pastor,” Pope said. “The biggest comment we hear from parents and kids is that is a home away from home, and in that environment, we celebrate our successes together, work on our shortcomings together and grow together.”

The idea of St. Francis began when Bishop of Charleston David Thompson asked now-Monsignor Martin Laughlin to start the same kind of Catholic school on Hilton Head Island that he launched in Beaufort.

The concept proved to be a hit with the community, as first and second grades were added in 1997, doubling the enrollment to 95 students. Through the years, a new school building, gym/all-purpose center, fine arts center and playground were added to the campus to facilitate a full K-8 experience with enrollment currently at 215 students.

“Catholic schools offer three core principles — quality academics, a safe environment and Catholic identity and faith formation for parents who want to have their kids raised in the Catholic faith,” Pope said.

Non-Catholics are welcomed at SFCS, and while required to go to mass and worship activities, all faiths are welcomed and encouraged.

Pope, who has been principal since 2012, said he is proud of the school’s efforts to make a Catholic education attainable for all, with over $200,000 in financial aid and discounts provided this year alone to families. This is possible thanks to the relationship with the St. Francis parish and donations from parishioners and the parish thrift shop that helped build the school’s annual fund.

“We are so blessed to have the Parish support and the guidance of Father Mike and Monsignor Laughlin. They have made it clear that if a child wants a Catholic education, we will make it possible,” he said. “It has allowed us to focus on keeping tuition affordable and work to keep raises in the cost of tuition as small as possible in increasing accessibility.”

Pope and his staff have worked with Father Mike to build a comprehensive strategic plan to ensure the school is ready for the needs of tomorrow’s students and the growth that will help the school sustain and thrive through its 50th anniversary.

“Our numbers dipped to around 170 back in 2011 and 2012 and have experienced steady growth since then with enrollment now consistently well above 200,” Pope said. “We’ve done a lot of self-assessments and taken a look at what’s needed to meet the needs of our kids and our families as the landscape ahead of them is ever changing.”

While the school has evolved its technology to help train students, Pope said the school has been steadfast in teaching virtues and morals that are more important than ever as students have access to an endless flow of information and influences.

“We don’t vilify technology. We spend October teaching good digital citizenship,” Pope said. “But we also know the tech and the applications we teach now will completely change by the time these kids hit the job market. But engaging higher levels of thinking of truthfulness, gratitude, kindness, these concepts are timeless and so important to preparing our kids for the world ahead of them. Teaching them how to think, work with others and treat others, that’s the difference we can make in their lives.”

Pope said growing the school’s endowment and building alternative forms of funding will be key to the next 25 years for SFCS. The school can currently accommodate 250 students, though more growth would require additional faculty.

“The enthusiasm for a Catholic education and the involvement of our parents and the community has allowed us to grow,” Pope said. “Whatever form that growth takes in the next 25 years, our foundation will always remain grounded in faith, integrity and scholarship.”

For more information on St. Francis Catholic School, visit sfcshhi.com.

SFCS PRINCIPAL BRIAN POPE

Supporting HER STUDENTS

AIMEE WHITESELL HONORED AS TEACHER OF THE YEAR

BY NINA GREENPLATE

When the work you love, loves you back, the results can be extraordinary.

“It’s magic when I think about it,” says Aimee Whitesell, newly named Beaufort County 2021-2022 District Teacher of the Year, and Battery Creek High School’s teacher of the year.

The recognition for Whitesell has been sweet.

“Ask any teacher and most will tell you that they’re just doing their job,” says Whitesell, who leads the science department at the high school. “I love my school and my students.”

That devotion earned Whitesell the nomination and title from a majority vote by Battery Creek’s staff and fellow educators. The humbled biology teacher smiles, remembering her schools’ drum line loudly marching through the hallways.

“They came playing into my room, with students and staff filing in behind them,” she said. “Then they presented me the (teacher of the year) award. It was great.”

Whitesell was later announced as the district winner during a breakfast celebration for the region’s teacher of the year winners. Battery Creek honored her the next school day with more percussion and myriad accolades.

Teaching is Whitesell’s passion and purpose, but it was not her first vocational choice.

Pre-med tapped her interest and was her initial undergraduate pursuit. But chemistry was her nemesis. To pass the semester, she began tutoring sessions to help herself and fellow struggling classmates.

“I created easy tricks and watched videos on simple ways to do it (chemistry),” she recalls. “I taught everyone these techniques, and decided from that moment on, I needed to switch to education. I loved it.”

Whitesell completed her master’s degree in educational leadership from the American College of Education, and her bachelor’s degree in natural science and biology education from Missouri Western State University. She is working toward completion of her National Board Certification within the next two years. Whitesell said she’s honored when her students come to her for advice or a listening ear. “I feel proud that they trust me and come to me for help or an opinion on something,” she says. “It makes you appreciate them more. Some are dealing with so much.” Her students inspire her, and she returns the admiration tenfold. Whitesell works to have them not only enjoy learning, but to also recognize their worth. “I work very hard on relationships,” she says. “I want to make sure they know I’m a person and that I care about their feelings and what they think.”

This principle is a complement to Battery Creek’s Leader in Me program, a nationwide course-of-study where Whitesell serves as her school’s Student Lead Coordinator. She is a liaison between the administration and a student advisory team.

“Leader in Me is very individualized,” says Whitesell. “It’s cool to see how each student can learn to lead in their own way.”

The curriculum is broad and productive, with work created on per-grade fundamentals.

She helps students grasp and master leadership concepts on a variety of levels, determined by their personal strengths: from learning vocabulary words about leaders, mock interviews, completing job applications, proper handshaking, and the like.

Teacher and student pairings remain together throughout the four-year leadership course for continuity and connection.

“It is about making every student feel they belong to Battery Creek,” she says. “It’s the coolest thing and the biggest cultural shift I’ve seen in our school.”

Some may argue that Whitesell herself is even cooler.

“My students tell the story,” she says, “and they make my story spectacular.”

EDUCATION

NEWS

LOWCOUNTRY TEACHERS AWARDED WITH BRIGHT IDEAS GRANTS

Palmetto Electric Cooperative and Palmetto Electric Trust awarded $40,365 in Bright Ideas grants to 50 teachers in southern Beaufort, Hampton and Jasper counties. Since the program’s inception, area teachers have received over $640,000 in grants. Beaufort County winners were Bluffton Elementary School & Early Childhood Center, $350, Laura VanHorn; Bluffton Middle School, $240, Deborah Birkett; $1,000, Heidi McAllister; Cross Schools, $795, Lindsay Bowerman; $910, Heather Brougham-Cook; $625, Pam Donahue; $500, Karen Penale; $1,000, Dr. Nancy Ungvarsky; Heritage Academy, $800, David Fuka; $300, Janice Magnin; Hilton Head Christian Academy, $1,000, Amy Inglis; Hilton Head Island High School, $1,000, Tarken Best; $1,000, Matthew Pheiffer; $1,000, Corinne Spisz; $750, Robert Stine; $1,000, John Wyatt; Hilton Head Island IB Elementary School, $470, Jill Fernandez; $400, Terri Foy; $650, Katie Hawkins; $250, John Slaughter; Hilton Head Island School for the Creative Arts, $990, Jennifer FriendKerr; Hilton Head Preparatory School, $1,000, Laura Campbell; $525, Louise Goodman; May River Montessori, $1,000, Sari Kandel; Okatie Elementary School, $800, Amanda Altman; Sea Pines Montessori School, $1,000, Kathy Midkiff; St. Francis Catholic School, $430, Kelley Burke; and St. Gregory the Great Catholic School, $1,000, Christina Cleveland. For a complete list of winners, visit palmetto.coop.

TCL OFFERS FREE TUITION, FEES

Through newly available federal, state and private funding sources, the Technical College of the Lowcountry will cover tuition and fees for those who are eligible for the spring 2022 semester. The deadline to enroll for TCL’s Spring I semester is Jan. 6. Students must be enrolled in at least six credit hours, or about two classes, for the spring semester and complete the 2021-2022 FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid). For more information, visit tcl.edu.

PARENTS AS TEACHERS PROGRAM EARNS NATIONAL RECOGNITION

The Parents as Teachers’ National Center named Beaufort County School District as a Blue Ribbon Affiliate, designating it as one of the top performing homevisiting affiliates. BCSD’s PAT program includes home visits, group connections, child screenings, and connecting families to community resources. The district’s program underwent PATNC’s rigorous self-study and review process, demonstrating the accountability and credibility of BCSD’s PAT program to the community, elected officials, and partner organizations.

CYBERSECURITY SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE FOR LOWCOUNTRY STUDENTS

South Coast Cyber Center, in collaboration with the Beaufort Digital Corridor, University of South Carolina Beaufort, Technical College of the Lowcountry, CyberStart America, and the National Cyber Scholarship Foundation, is offering high school students the opportunity to win scholarships for certification and school tuition. Through April 27, students can register and begin the competition. Students must be at least 13 years old and in 9th-12th grades in public, private, charter or home school. CyberStart’s competition allows students to build a portfolio of desirable skills and certifications sought by employers. The registration link is register.cyberstartamerica.org/student. For more information, email cory@ beaufortdigital.com.

SCHOOL DISTRICT LAUNCHES PARENT CONNECTIONS STUDENT SUPPORT INITIATIVE

Parents and guardians of the Beaufort County School District can participate in free, virtual Parent Connections evening workshops aimed at helping them support their students in academic, school, and family-related topics. The goals of Parent Connections are to increase collaboration and engagement between schools, families, and community. Parent Connections will hold two sessions with new topics quarterly. For more information, email parent.connections@beaufort.k12. sc.us.

HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS NOMINATED FOR U.S. PRESIDENTIAL SCHOLAR HONORS

The Beaufort County School District selected three high school seniors to compete for prestigious U.S. Presidential Scholar Awards. Raul Leyva of Hilton Head Island High, Maximus Weitekamper of May River High and Anna Brown of Beaufort High will represent the district as candidates for nominations. The U.S. Presidential Scholars Program was established by President Lyndon Johnson in 1964. The program has honored more than 7,000 high school seniors based on outstanding scholarship. Nominees chosen to represent the state will receive an expense-paid trip to Washington in June and will be presented with the U.S. Presidential Scholars medallion at a ceremony sponsored by the White House.

LOWCOUNTRY SCHOOL HOLDS GROUNDBREAKING

Robert Smalls International Academy School held a groundbreaking for a new school, which marks the beginning of construction on the district’s largest referendum project to be funded through the bond referendum approved by county voters in November 2019. Large-scale construction begins in January with an anticipated completion date of August 2023 for the new school building. Athletic facilities will be completed in January 2024. A total of $62 million in referendum funds was budgeted for the project.