Sacred Heart Magazine | Spring '23

Marching Forward

PASSION PROJECT AMPLIFIES VOICES OF WOMEN CHANGEMAKERS

HIGH NOTE

With clear sounds, high spirits, and warm hearts, the entire third grade performed a concert of Christmas carols for the RSCJ living at Oakwood Retirement Center on campus in December. The program included traditional tunes and perennial favorites, and was delivered to the delighted audience in Oakwood’s main chapel.

48 Marching Forward

Inspired by RSCJ and backed by a grant from Harvard, SHS educators Kristen Kelly and Serene Williams seek to transform the national history curricula, bringing women’s voices to the forefront.

Director

DEPARTMENTS

Cyclical Network Evaluation Returns to SHS

Every five years, the North American Network of Sacred Heart Schools requires each institution to participate in a yearlong self-reflection process, initiated by the Network’s Sacred Heart Commission on Goals (SHCOG) and intended to help each Sacred Heart school understand how it is living out— and living up to—the mission entrusted to us by the Society of the Sacred Heart. The SHCOG process at SHS is led by a steering committee composed of a cross-campus team of SHS educators who facilitate or execute the required self-study components. It is designed around a series of active dialogues and thoughtful reflections among each constituency group in our community— from leadership to families, educators to administrators, alumni to students.

In fall, the first step in this process began, with families, administrators, trustees, and educators invited to take part in hour-long conversations around how SHS is carrying out its fidelity to the Goals and Criteria, and how each member of our community actively and daily commits to its support. Within the self-evaluation discussions, participants were asked to reflect on and share how Sacred Heart’s Goals and Criteria resonate with their personal experiences on campus and with one another. Information gleaned in these initial discussions then serve as the basis for further study, discussion, and the composition of a formal report which will be submitted to the Network’s commission group in late summer.

Next fall, a SHCOG contingent will visit campus to observe and substantiate the report findings, as well as offer commendations for highly successful aspects, and recommendations for improvement.

Notably, SHS’ prior SHCOG review in 2017 was extremely strong, with several commendations, and very few recommendations, ultimately given by the visiting group. However, the objective of this process remains to identify areas and opportunities to continue improving—a wonderful, timely, and highly beneficial exercise for all.

DearSacred Heart Family,

With deep gratitude and a renewed sense of purpose, I am happy to report that we have celebrated a full return to “normalcy” on our campus and throughout this academic year. Academics are in full swing, all extracurricular programs are restored, our student fieldtrips, immersions, and retreats have fully resumed, and our campus arts and competitive athletics programs are thriving even more than pre-pandemic. In our community, events and activities have equally returned in full force—and with unprecedented attendance and participation—underscoring that such an essential component of a Sacred Heart experience is the true desire to be in community with one another. After such an odd interruption in our history due to the pandemic, we more than welcome this heightened and generous activity among, and with, our entire school family.

Beautifully aligned with this revitalized campus energy, this past fall we began our SHCOG evaluation process, a cyclical obligation to the Network of Sacred Heart Schools that each school in the organization undertakes every five years. Our SHS process will conclude at the close of the next academic year (2023-24), and provides us with a wonderful opportunity of time and space to think deeply about how our particular campus is living out, and living up to, the mission entrusted to us by the Religious of the Sacred Heart. We look forward to sharing with you the results of this good work in future. (Read more on opposite page.)

Most exciting of all, we are in the final stages now of planning for our 125th anniversary of our Sacred Heart campus which takes place throughout the 2023-24 school year. We intend to mark this special milestone in many ways, sharing stories, pictures, and moments from our school archives, inviting contributions from our older alumni and more recent grads, and giving special nod to those pioneering Religious who created such a special place that has endured. Most especially, our celebrations will give thanks for the blessings of 125 years of Sacred Heart educators—the RSCJ and laypeople—who, throughout these decades, guided thousands of Sacred Heart children to lives of meaning, purpose, and faith.

In fall of 1898, the Academy of the Sacred Heart (now known as Sacred Heart Schools, Atherton) opened its doors to welcome its very first group of eager young students. There was a single school structure which served as dormitory, classrooms, dining space, chapel, and offices, and the surrounding grounds—while expansive—were wholly undeveloped. And while in 2023 our grounds and facilities have certainly grown and changed, our unwavering commitment to serve our mission, our students, and our families to the very best of our abilities has not. With great intention and purpose, ours has been, is, and will continue to be a whole-child education that emphasizes character and intellect, faith and service, growth and grit—and most of all, heart.

So, on behalf of our RSCJ, our trustees, senior leadership, faculty, and staff, I share with you that we remain deeply proud to preserve and uphold this important tradition entrusted to us by the RSCJ—and to carry it forward for the next 125 years.

Sincerely,

EDITOR

ELIZABETH W. NIXON

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

DANA A.S. RAKOCZY

ART DIRECTION AND DESIGN

GINNY WARREN

COVER ART DESIGN

SAMUEL PETERSEN

INSIDE BACK COVER DESIGN

FEI PENG

CLASS NOTES

SHANNON MELINAUSKAS

PHOTOGRAPHY

ABEL SANCHEZ/GOLDEN IMAGES

CARL CRUM SHP ’24

SHS ALUMNI

SHS ARCHIVES

SHS FACULTY

SHS PARENTS

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WE ENCOURAGE ALL COMMENTS, SUGGESTIONS AND QUESTIONS; EMAIL SHMAGAZINE@SHSCHOOLS. ORG. PLEASE NOTE, SUBMISSIONS MAY APPEAR IN A FUTURE ISSUE AND MAY BE SHORTENED FOR LENGTH OR CLARITY.

2022–23 BOARD OF TRUSTEES

MARNIE MARCIN, CHAIR

JEFFREY BIRDWELL

DEVON BRIGER

RICHARD DIOLI

BUNNY FLICK, RSCJ

KRISTEN GARLINGHOUSE

NANCY HEAFEY

ERIC HOLLAS, OSB

GARY KIRKHAM

CASEY LYNCH

SUSAN MAXWELL, RSCJ

MELISSA MCJANNET

ELIZABETH MUIR

ANTHONY NOTO

RICK OSTERLOH

ADRIAN PERICA

SARA ANN RUDE, RSCJ

PAUL SALLABERRY

DAVID SCHNEIDER

SCOTT SMITHERS

ELAINE SHEN

KIMBERLY SUMME

THEANNE THOMSON

ALISON VAN DYKE

ANNA VISHRIA

JASON WHEELER

Richard A. Dioli Director of Schools

NEWS

OUT OF THIS WORLD

Getting a taste of what it might be like to be an astronaut, a planetary explorer, or an aerospace engineer, fifth graders took a field trip to the research-level observatory Chabot Space & Science Center to complement their science curriculum with hands-on learning and experimentation. At the facility, which has a featured partnership with NASA Ames Center, students spent time learning how to design a Mars lander and test its endurance in a twostory drop, along with exploring dozens of hands-on exhibits, watching a planetarium show, and seeing a live science demonstration featuring rockets.

Vision Quest

VR TECHNOLOGY ENHANCES LESSONS, LEARNING

The Sacred Heart Schools, Atherton (SHS) technology department is always on the lookout for the newest tools teachers can use in their classrooms. SHS Academic Technology Coordinator Cristina ParedesMurrell spent nine months learning how to use virtual reality and debuted its use last fall in the high school Spanish classrooms.

“Virtual reality will be used to enhance teachers’ lessons and provide a new set of skills to students,” said Paredes-Murrell. “One of the best virtual reality apps is Gravity Sketch. This app is being used by big companies in designing cars, clothes, shoes, and more. But we are using it to design a scene in Mexico in our Spanish classrooms.”

In Spanish 4 at Sacred Heart Preparatory (SHP), the students along with their teachers Jesús Ramos and Rolando Victoria, used virtual reality to create a café in downtown Mexico City. In groups of three, the students assumed the persona via an avatar of one of three well-known

Mexican creatives—artists Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, and journalist, author, and Sacred Heart alumna Elena Poniatowska.

The three meet up in the virtual café to talk about the challenges they face within their communities, and the strengths and gifts they each contribute as they strive to improve their respective communities. The conversations, all in Spanish, are recorded so their virtual reality “worlds” can be shared out from the small groups with the wider class.

“In my 30-plus years as an educator, this collaborative effort with my Spanish-teaching colleagues and Cristina has been one of few truly inspirational, aspirational, creative, communicative, and most definitely ’messy’—in a good way—opportunities to partner and learn with our students,” said Ramos. “It’s been incredible working together to identify effective, efficient, joyful, and fun ways to integrate virtual reality into the teaching and learning of a world language.”

Kate Messner, author of more than 50 fiction and non-fiction books, spent an afternoon chatting with SHS fourth and fifth graders, as part of the Stevens Family Library’s ongoing “Author Visit” series. During the session, Messner shared about her writing process and answered questions from our curious students. The multi-award winning and New York Times-bestselling author also talked about the various places she’s traveled and people she’s met that have informed and inspired her writing.

THE WRITE STUFF

Decoding the Future

CS INTEGRATION LED BY ALUMNA, TEACHER

A new program launched at SHP in the fall to integrate computer science into non-tech classes, a move that will ensure each student will receive instruction in computer science at least four times throughout their high school years.

Aided by a donation to the school, a new position was created and alumna Kayla Holman (SHP ’16) was hired to design and implement the new computer science integration (CSI) initiative, as well as work with computer science head and teacher Kevin Morris (SHP ’90) to plan and propose new course offerings for next year. She also teaches two sections of calculus and supports the robotics club.

So far two CSI projects have taken place this school year. Holman visited all Algebra 2 and Algebra 2/Trigonometry Honors classes where students undertook a calculator programing project, learning to code the quadratic formula. She also visited every freshman at the school in their Modern World History classes, where students developed an app around a history topic of their choosing.

“I think it’s incredible that we’re able to jump into their classes and meet them where they are in terms of experience level, whether they’ve never coded before, or whether they’ve been coding a long time,” said Holman. “When developing the app, students utilized skills learned during history class, like how to use citations and conduct research on a historical figure—so our instruction is fully integrated with the class they’re taking.”

In the spring semester, all chemistry and chemistry honors courses will incorporate a CSI project, and next year a project is in development for all junior-level religion classes.

It’s not Holman’s first foray into teaching. She holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and computer science with a mi-

nor in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She has several years’ experience designing curriculum and teaching high schoolers machine learning at Inspirit, a Bay Area-based startup focused on immersive educational technology.

“That was the bridge between dipping my toes in the water within an education setting and really deciding I wanted to pursue this as my career,” said Holman.

But she wouldn’t even be in the computer science field if it wasn’t for a class she took her senior year at SHP with Kevin Morris.

“He was my swim coach for four years; I loved him as a coach so I knew I wanted him as a teacher,” said Holman. “I took AP Computer Science—I had no idea what computer science was when I jumped into that class, but taking it was probably the best decision I made in high school. I wouldn’t have pursued computer science in college otherwise. I wouldn’t have grabbed coffee with ‘KMo’ [Morris’ nickname across campus], and I wouldn’t have found out about the position.”

Together the pair is drumming up interest and excitement in computer science and proposing more course offerings. And it comes on the heels of real growth and recognition for computer science at SHP—last year the school won an award for achieving greater gender parity in computer science. (See Sacred Heart Magazine, W ’22)

“Our goal is to get people bitten by the computer science bug and wanting to do more,” said Holman. “Computer science is so relevant today—no matter what field these kids end up in, at least someone adjacent to them will be coding. SHP students will be able to understand how computer science works, why we should care about it, and how they can potentially use it to further their career; hopefully these projects are helping them enjoy it.”

Freedom & Faith

ANTHONY RAY HINTON SPEAKS AT SHS

As part of its ongoing commitment toward diversity, equity, inclusion, and access, SHS is proud to welcome guest speakers to our campus community who offer messages that both challenge and inspire us. Each opportunity is intended to provide students, educators, families, and the wider community with a chance to deepen their experience and understanding of others and self, within the context of Sacred Heart’s Goals of faith, intellect, service, community, and growth.

This spring, New York Times- bestselling author Anthony Ray Hinton was our featured speaker. In his celebrated memoir—The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row —Hinton recounts his wrongful conviction for two capital murders, his 30 years of incarceration on Alabama’s death row, and his eventual exoneration and release in 2015. In his compelling narrative, he takes an unflinching look at racial and economic injustices and the need for criminal justice reform—and equally as important, to the power of friendship, faith, and forgiveness.

Today, as an activist, educator, and author, Hinton continues to work with the Equal Justice Initiative and its founder, attorney Bryan Stevenson, who tirelessly fought for his freedom from prison and exoneration from conviction. Hinton’s story is alluded to in the award-winning feature film, Just Mercy, which is based on Stevenson’s own memoir.

SELF-STARTERS

Each year, a group of SHP seniors present their final senior honors independent study (SHIS) projects. Each has a faculty mentor and sponsoring department supporting their self-guided, in-depth research into an academic topic of their choosing. The following 12 seniors presented their findings during the first two weeks of January 2023.

Logan Aboudara, English, How to Write a Screenplay

Bella Choi, Social Sciences, Stories in STEM: Gender Inequality in High Schools

Paul Fong, Religious Studies, Driven by Climate Change: U.S. Immigration from Honduras

Martin Freeland, Science, Integrative Biology of Pacific Birds: Evolution, Conservation, and Natural History of Hawaiian and Australian Endemics

Sophie Frolik, Science, The Future of Stem Cell Therapies: Harnessing Extracellular Vesicles for Immune Modulation

Tristyn Girouard, Social Sciences, The Power of the Screen: The Stigmatization of Mental Illness Through Cinematic Portrayal

Armin Hamrah, Social Sciences, History for the 21st Century: A Constructivist and MysteryHeavy Approach

Carter Kling, Social Sciences, Sino-Russian Relations: Is an Alliance Possible, and What Impact Will That Have on the World?

Alexander Medel, Social Sciences, Of the People: The Impact of Political Socialization on the Political Efficacy and Civic Engagement of High School Youth

Elsie Ragatz, Computer Science, An Analysis of Cyber Risk Management and Vulnerabilities

Jack Richardson, Religious Studies, Accelerationism: Philosophy From the Future

Will Thomson, Social Sciences, Electric Vehicle Incentives: The Behavioral Economics Behind the Adoption of Sustainable Cars

During his visit on March 16, Hinton gave a community talk and book-signing, and met personally with a small group of Sacred Heart high school students.

CULTIVATING HEARTS

Growing Faith, previously known as Sharing Faith, is a weekly dropin meeting open to any SHS community members, led by Dr. Sally Vance-Trembath, SHS parent educator, who provides a short teaching from Christianity and its parallel in the Bible as a prompt for a group discussion. The format of the meeting has been redesigned this year. “We used to read a book or long article. This year, every session will be free standing, allowing people to come and go when they can,” said Vance-Trembath. The mission-aligned program Growing Faith meets in the Lane Chapel on campus each Wednesday morning during the school year, and is open to all currently enrolled family members, alumni, and past parents/guardians.

TURKEY TROT

A school-wide “Donating for Dignity” Thanksgiving food drive collected 90 full meals, over 300 turkeys and hams, and over $6,000 in gift cards to help fight hunger within our school and larger community during the holiday season. Meal packages were sorted, assembled, boxed, and delivered to scheduled

locations by groups of our SHS students, educators, and family volunteers. Overall, the many generous donations went to partner organizations of St. Anthony’s Padua Dining Room, Catholic Charities, and The St. Francis Center/ Siena Youth Center, and benefitted many families in need this holiday season.

Global Service

Experiencing a tangible “living our mission” moment on foreign soil, more than a dozen international Sacred Heart students visiting from sister schools in Spain, Austria, and Italy joined together to take part in a service activity at local nonprofit My New Red Shoes. While there, the group helped prepare boxes of donated winter boots which will be provided to displaced Ukrainian refugees. The outing, coordinated by the SHP Student Exchange Program, was the second in a series; earlier in October, four visiting students from our Sacred Heart school in Nantes, France had the opportunity to serve at St. Anthony’s in Redwood City, to assist with that organization’s daily meal prep and produce box distribution (pictured).

HEART IN THE HEARTH

Since 2008, the HeArt Exchange program has enabled SHP students to work with and learn from the community of the St. Francis Center/Siena Youth Center in Redwood City and its executive director, Sr. Christina Heltsley. In the true spirit of reciprocal partnership, each Tuesday a group of SHP students

travel together to the Siena Youth Center to tutor in an after-school program, then a group of middle schoolers from Siena are transported back to the SHP campus for an hourlong SHP student-led enrichment workshop. Over the past several years, the selection of

workshops has expanded from an original list of fine arts disciplines to include a diverse array of options in the arts, sciences, English, cooking, athletics, sustainable agriculture, robotics, computer science, and more.

A PARTICULARLY SPECIAL DAY

In October, SHS’ fifth grade classes planned, led, and hosted a Special Olympics event on campus, partnering with teachers and adaptive physical education coordinators to hold a soccer skills day for a group of visiting participants. While suspended during the pandemic years, the return of this beloved grade-level

service event was a true celebration of community, learning, and Sacred Heart’s mission in action. Not only providing students an important way to tangibly learn about, and learn from, other children with developmental and physical differences, this event always delivers a lot of joy, pride, and sense of accomplishment

among all those taking part. Notably, it also illustrates the strength of the Sacred Heart Network of Schools’ long-standing relationship with the Special Olympics organization, which goes all the way back to the 1960s, when it was begun by Eunice Kennedy Shriver—a graduate of Convent of the Sacred Heart, Manhattanville.

GIFTS OF THE SEASON

From puzzles and Legos to books and stuffies and a variety of learning toys, dozens of preschool families generously took part in the school’s holiday toy drive. Among those helping organize the collection and readying it for transport were SHS

Montessori Preschool teachers Melissa Greenleaf (L) and Michele Turchetti (R), pictured here. As a precursor and part of the overall effort, the young students gained a powerful lesson about service and compassion by each selecting and donating a new toy to give to a child in need.

STREET CHURCH

Left: Continuing an annual service trip to better the community, seventh graders joined in with Street Life Ministries—known affectionately as “Street Church,” to provide meals to unhoused and at-risk youth and adults.

COASTAL CLEANUP

Left: First through 12th graders participated in Coastal Cleanup Day in September. Faculty and staff members, students, and their families visited two locations—San Francisquito Creek in Menlo Park and Cooley Landing in East Palo Alto—to pick up trash and debris, saving local waterways from contamination.

PJS AND PANCAKES

Below (L to R): A few of our eighth grade helpers, Elizabeth King, Emme Linthwaite, Victoria Sanchez, and Caroline Selna, ensured a fun time for all at this event for preschool through fifth graders.

NEW TRAILS (L-R): SHP teachers Jake Moffat and Guy Letteer, and Maya Moffat (SHP ’23)

ENSURING SOUTHERN COMFORT

Traveling to Louisiana in fall, 15 SHP students took part in a service immersion opportunity with the organization

“Youth Rebuilding New Orleans,” whose mission it is to reduce blight by rebuilding

distressed and foreclosed homes while engaging local youth in the recovery of the New Orleans area. With tools in hand, the Sacred Heart high schoolers eagerly contributed a healthy amount of

“sweat equity” to help put the finishing touches on a home in the lower Ninth Ward, a neighborhood that was completely leveled by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. On their off-hours, the group

New Trails

Heading efforts for this year’s annual bicycle drive, senior Maya Moffat (SHP ’23) collected a total of 50 bikes of all sizes and in various shape for donation. Traditionally the bikes have gone to benefit the Siena Youth Center, but this year, as Siena was unable to take delivery, an unexpected alumni connection led to a new partnership of support.

Thanks to Sister Christina Heltsley, Siena’s executive director, Moffat was put in touch with “Good Karma Bike Shop,” a San Jose-based volunteer organization that refurbishes used bikes and either sells or gifts them to those in most need—“primarily homeless in recovery, veterans, low-wage workers, and low-income families” according to its website. The Sacred Heart donation would prove especially

also had a chance to visit areas of interest, including the historic Whitney Plantation, and learn about the impact and repercussions of slavery throughout the New Orleans region.

timely, as Good Karma was in dire need of new stock ahead of the holiday season.

In a surprising twist, the nonprofit’s director of development turned out to be none other than Jenny (Circle) Cronin, SHP alumna of the Class of 1995 and former Gator basketball superstar. Guy Letteer, SHP teacher and founder of the school’s annual bicycle drive, was especially thrilled to work with Cronin to facilitate the donation and cement this new partnership.

“Jenny is very excited to work with SHS on behalf of her organization, and all of us look forward to working together on this effort in future,” he said. “What a fortuitous connection that has now begun!”

St. Madeleine Sophie Awards

Three members of the SHS community were honored in September with the school’s prestigious St. Madeleine Sophie Award, named after the founder of Sacred Heart schools globally. They join a distinguished group of past recipients ranging from members of the RSCJ to parents, educators, staff, and SHS trustees.

The awardees—James Everitt, Brisbane Mendoza, and Nancy Tarantino—represent a combined 60 years of service to the school. Everitt is a current SHS administrator; Mendoza is a current P-8 staff member and current parent; and Tarantino is a past SHS staff member and past parent.

“Each in their own way, James, Brisbane, and Nancy have demonstrated a consistent and outstanding commitment to our mission and values, our educational philosophy, and our school community,” said SHS Director of Schools Richard Dioli in his opening remarks. “They have earned this special acknowledgement by modeling the unwavering spirit of St. Madeleine Sophie Barat, the courageous determination of St. Rose Philippine Duchesne, and the faithful presence of the Society of the Sacred Heart in the 21st century.”

The awards were presented during a formal ceremony and reception for family, friends, and invited guests held Thursday night, Sept. 15, outdoors on Conway Court at SHS.

Speaking about James Everitt was current parent and SHP Religious Studies Co-Depart-

ment Head Virginia Boesen, whose friendship with Everitt extends 30 years.

Boesen said Everitt shows a “care and concern” for those he meets and works with that is “astonishing;” forging relationships that last beyond a student’s graduation, or a colleague’s departure from the school. “James invests in people. Mentoring, counseling, accompanying.”

Applauding his work on campus, Boesen said, “He is a person of tremendous integrity whose actions show us how to ‘walk the talk.’”

“Your commitment to amplifying the voices of those on the margins, placing them at the center of your work, and forging bridges of empathy to increase access and equity, call the rest of us to be better,” said Boesen.

Preschool – Grade 8 Principal Francesca Brake spoke about Brisbane Mendoza, whose “positive ‘can do’ attitude” has been a hallmark of her work across the three school divisions since joining SHS in 2006.

As the P-8 events and calendar coordinator, a position she has held since 2015, [Mendoza] “has defined Sacred Heart hospitality,” said Brake, “ensuring everyone’s needs are met and people have whatever they need to engage fully in the moment.”

From coordinating a graduation ceremony during the height of the Covid pandemic for over 70 eighth graders and their parents, to “beautifully navigating numerous tricky situations, competing agendas, and impos-

sible obstacles,” Mendoza rises to the task. “She just smiles and says, ‘no problem.’ And you can truly trust, and believe, she means it wholeheartedly,” said Brake.

SHS Director of Schools Richard Dioli and SHS Assistant to the Director of Schools Lisa Gamitian delivered the introduction for Nancy Tarantino, who first came to SHS as a parent in 1998.

Speaking about her work as a parent volunteer and integral member of the parents’ association, Dioli said, “Nancy fit perfectly into the ethos of the school; smart, kind, generous with her time, a community builder and always gracious to everyone.”

Tarantino’s talents were evident in the many positions she served, from vice president and committee roles to eventual parents’ association president, and, beginning in 2006, as an SHS employee in the office of institutional advancement. “Each job Nancy took on, she did with such enthusiasm, care, and love for the Prep community,” said Dioli.

Gamitian, who worked alongside Tarantino in the advancement events office, spoke about her lasting impact on the community. “Nancy, during your 23 years at Sacred Heart, you have touched so many lives and you have permanently changed our world for the better. You guided, you inspired, you planned, you shined, you cared deeply. You always knew what to say, and always with a smile, generosity, compassion, and grace.”

JAMES EVERITT, ED.D, BRISBANE MENDOZA, AND NANCY TARANTINO NAMED 2022 AWARDEES

L to R: Director of Schools Richard Dioli with honorees Nancy Tarantino, Brisbane Mendoza, and Dr. James Everitt

Imagining the Possibilities

NYC-ATHERTON PROGRAM CHARGES INTO 2ND YEAR

Now in its second year, “Exploring Entrepreneurship,” a two-week summer program for girls, remains a popular opportunity for rising juniors. The program launched in 2021 as a partnership between SHS and Convent of the Sacred Heart “91st Street” in Manhattan. The 2022 program had about 10 students from each school spending one week in New York City together followed by a week in the Bay Area.

As the program focuses on experiential learning across industries “native” to New York and the greater Silicon Valley/Bay Area, the group got to engage with young industry leaders; participate in daily field visits with expert panels, workshops, and hands-on design sprints; and attend networking dinners with women entrepreneurs.

In New York, the group visited financial and investment corporations on Wall Street, a health and wellness company, and a biopharmaceutical company. Next, heading to the San Francisco Bay Area, they visited tech and bio-tech companies, as well as a maker space business, and a coalition that created a hiking trail spanning across San Francisco.

Program directors Dan Brady, SHP assistant principal for strategic projects, and Charlene Chuang, Convent of the Sacred Heart director of network programs, spoke about how students’ entrepreneurial spirit was ignited through the program.

“A sense of purpose is a really important ingredient to creative thinking, creative work, and in cultivating an entrepreneurial mindset. Integral to that is being a part of making the world a better place,” said Brady. “A word we use is vocation or calling—for a student to have a meaningful life, they need to feel purposeful in their career. This program is one of the many things we’re doing as Sacred Heart educators to help students imagine themselves in careers and learn about the new and emerging possibilities of the future world.”

Brady explained the program was geared toward sophomore girls for two reasons—as a practicality because 91st Street is an allgirls school, and to “empower young women by giving them direct access to young women entrepreneurs.”

“The world would benefit from more women entrepreneurs, and if you empower young women to be leaders, that is what will make the world a better place,” said Brady.

Along with interacting with young leaders in various fields and

learning how to network, students learned emotional intelligence, empathy building, and community building within their cohort.

A central part of the program was a series of “design sprint workshops,” which were based on methodologies from Stanford’s Design Thinking; a high school program called Project Invent; the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship; and LaunchX, a high school summer program from MIT. For this, the cohort was split into five design groups and posed a challenge to “redesign an experience for the older population,” explained Chuang. “We sprinted through five design phases—to find a need by interviewing elderly people, synthesize what they learned, ideate a prototype, test their prototype (which they did by meeting with the RSCJ at Oakwood), and then tell the story.”

Entrepreneurs meeting with the students all emphasized the importance of hard work, passion, being curious, and asking good questions, she added.

“I think what makes our Sacred Heart entrepreneurship program distinct, is students lead from their heart. Each student understands that they can help co-build a better world,” said Chuang. “They’re equipped to trust themselves, learn how to ‘fail forward’ and learn from their mistakes, and how to center humans—to really listen to others and understand their needs.”

Makena Tom (SHP ’24) spoke about what resonated most for her about the program. “I enjoyed [spending time] with the nuns, getting to hear their feedback on the projects we’ve been working on for the past week and a half, and then everything coming together—from the lessons we learned in the finance world, to the community building that happened.”

In terms of that one “nugget” of knowledge she’ll draw upon in the future, Tom said there was a “recurring theme” among the businesses visited, and a common piece of advice given by many of the women entrepreneurs: Learn by doing.

“You shouldn’t be afraid of trying something just for the purpose of figuring out you don’t like it, so whether that’s through internships, or a job you try because you want to learn—nothing is a bad experience, because you learn from everything you do.”

VIEWING

To watch a video about this exciting new program, please visit: vimeo.com/ 736345986/ 4429058ede

Math Matters

A group of six SHS core teachers from grades K through 5 attended a math conference in October, collectively taking 77 sessions to learn the latest methods and research in math instruction.

The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) conference allowed the faculty to take away strategies from top experts to renew their practice and deepen students’ problem-solving skills.

Lower School Math Department Head Amy Owens said the mission and vision of math instruction is evolving in the elementary campus division.

“Because we were able to travel and experience the NCTM conference together, we’ve been able to bond as a team and build a very strong foundation of common ground within our teaching practice and content knowledge,” said Owens.

K-8 Instructional Coach Ellen Carroll, whose role includes supporting teachers and planning professional development opportunities, said attending the conference is one of the ways in which the math department is meeting several of its goals.

“One goal is to renew ourselves and find new energy around teaching. We want to ensure there’s vertical alignment in those practices along the trajectory from kindergarten to grade 5,” said Carroll.

Teachers are targeting areas where student assessments are not as strong, said Owens. “Some areas are measurement, data, and geometry, as well as fact fluency.”

In terms of fact fluency, added Carroll, in the past 10 years research shows that for students to understand facts, the best practice is not just memorization. “We know that students need conceptual understanding in order to move in the direction of knowing and recalling facts,” said Carroll.

Another goal for the teachers includes “going deeper with problem solving,” so students can better explain their mathematical understanding, which helps teachers differentiate between the needs of many learners and design lessons accordingly. One of the categories of sessions at the conference was mathematical understanding.

“That’s an area of focus for us—to create more discourse and bring forward more student voices in our classes. Solving and explaining math rationale brings all voices to the table, creating a sense of belonging for students and allowing them to find their access point,” said Carroll.

One such strategy involves looking at the different types of math fluency and providing math games and problems where students are given different roles. “That allows a structure

so each person in the group has a specific role, so each can contribute equally to small group problem-solving,” said Carroll.

SHS Kindergarten teacher Carol DeZutti appreciated the ability to talk with and attend sessions with Sarah Schaefer, one of the authors of the new SHS kindergarten math curriculum, “Developing Roots,” based on Singapore math and Montessori math.

“The curriculum is working as a bridge between the SHS Montessori Preschool math and the Lower School Singapore math curriculum,” said DeZutti. “The curriculum encourages children to explore multiple ways to solve problems, and teaches students to think deeply about math, talk about math, and reflect on their learning.”

Schaefer asked DeZutti to stay in contact with her and join her online group, where DeZutti has already found many new ideas to bring to her kindergarteners.

Several speakers encouraged the teachers to design lessons that “stick.” These lessons capture students’ attention immediately and make a deep impression which helps them retain the information.

“This is not always easy to do—I’ve been trying to tweak my lessons to make them more ‘sticky,’” said DeZutti. A couple ways to do that is by offering something unexpected

in the math problem that fires up the “guessing machine,” or a scenario that connects with the students emotionally, giving them an “aha” moment.

This conference and others going forward are made possible by another new initiative on campus: the associate teacher program, which ensures continuity of classroom structure and routine in the temporary absence of a core teacher for any reason.

Overall, professional development for teachers at SHS is a vital priority, said Carroll. “A huge aspect of why it’s important is that it [requires and] allows us to examine our practice and make sure it matches the current research. [Additionally,] it’s rejuvenating to deliver your instruction in a new way that keeps you excited and engaged.”

SHP’s LatinX student affinity group, Mi Gente, held a food festival in honor of LatinX Heritage Month in October, and to highlight how central food is to a multitude of LatinX and Hispanic cultures. Students, parents, clubs, classes, and departments came together to prepare meals or bring dishes to share with the entire student body.

A beloved annual tradition in our Montessori Preschool, the Bulb-a-Thon is a special event where Sacred Heart’s littlest students participate in beautifying the campus planting bulbs, guided by parent volunteers. Students learn about the importance of service and giving back, and come spring, enjoy a vibrant display of flowers in the Montessori Circle garden.

Solving and explaining math rationale brings all voices to the table, creating a sense of belonging for students and allowing them to find their access point.

BULB-A-THON

FOOD FEST

OLIVE HARVEST

In early November, preschoolers and ninth through 12th graders harvested olives from Sacred Heart’s Koroneiki and Arbosana trees in the garden grove. The 700 pounds of olives were pressed and made into 150 bottles of premium extra virgin olive oil, which were sold at the annual Holiday Boutique. Parents of alumni bottled the olive oil

led by Doyle Pitchford, SHS sustainability coordinator. It was a smaller harvest than the last two years but a higher yield in terms of percentage of total weight that was oil, said Dr. Stewart Slafter, director of the sustainable garden and farm program at SHS, “possibly a result of a hotter, drier year,” he said.

NATURALLY

Following tradition, the entire sixth grade class headed to the Santa Cruz Mountains for a multi-day “outdoor education” program, with a goal to build class community, as well as class unity. Always a highly anticipated adventure, the trip immerses students in nature, taking part in trust exercises, climbing and ropes courses, team building, and other fun activities to spark new friendships and bolster ongoing connections among the class—which typically welcomes a large number of incoming students new to Sacred Heart (about 30 percent).

Sheparding Faith

Among our many outstanding educators joining the campus this past fall, SHS was blessed to welcome John Kellet as the new P-12 director of prayer and worship and campus liturgist. With a master’s in theological study from Santa Clara University, and a bachelor’s in jazz studies from San Jose State University, Kellet brings a strong blend of skills and experience to elevate the school’s religious activities in both word and song. Prior to Sacred Heart, he served as the director of worship for the Diocese of San Jose, as liturgical music coordinator for the Jesuit School of Theology at Santa Clara University, and as music director for St. Catherine of Alexandria School, among other posts. In particular, his selections of liturgical music harmoniously blend contemporary and traditional hymns, infusing the all-school and Family Masses with a new and palpable energy, escalating vocal participation among attendees, and are well-suited to the student musicians who serve. An especially gifted liturgist as well, Kellet effortlessly contextualizes Gospel readings and lessons, and makes easy connections for listeners across all ages, beliefs, and faith traditions.

A Real Treat

The 3rd Annual Trunk-or-Treat attracted a record attendance and participation, with close to 300 guests and more than 25 themed “treats and games” stops created by preschool through grade 5 families. Among the most popular costumes seen included pro sports team gear, traditional witches and vampires, and of course, Disney movie and video game characters. Showing some serious game, the decked-out cars hosted scenes such as “Where’s Waldo,” “Creepy Carnival,” “The Sandlot,” and the “Wizarding World of Harry Potter.” Rounding out the fun were Director of Schools Richard Dioli and Principal Francesca Brake, who handed out candy and hosted the popular jungle-themed treat stop “Gator Wild.”

Spirited

Not even a torrential downpour outside could dampen the spirits of the more than 150 attendees at the 2nd annual “PJs & Pancakes” breakfast with Santa Claus in December. Families in preschool through fifth grade enjoyed connecting in the indoor Spieker Pavilion for festive morning treats and warm beverages—and of course the chance to snap a photo with the jolly man himself, THE Santa Claus.

Festively attired, families get in the spirit for a photo with Santa.

Scandinavian Sights

As part of the preschool’s “Heritage Visit” program—in which students’ families share about their respective culture and traditions in the classroom—one family of siblings delivered a memorable presentation on St. Lucia Day, the Scandinavian festival of lights. For the event, siblings Lewa White (SHP ’26), Ginny (’31), and Pia (’31) joined their sister Adeline (’36) in her preschool classroom— all four wearing traditional white gowns with red ribbon sashes and a crown of candles symbolizing warmth and hope. During the presentation, the sisters talked about the history of St. Lucia, who brought saffron buns to villagers in the middle of a dark winter.

They also shared their own family tradition, in which early in the morning of St. Lucia Day (December 13th), the four girls all dress as St. Lucia and bring homemade saffron buns to their parents and brothers to celebrate the beginning of the Christmas season. The White siblings then showed students the saffron buns, shaped to look like sleeping cats, and displayed a poster board with facts about St. Lucia Day, as well as photos of their grandmother celebrating the holiday when she was a little girl. Concluding, they handed out a special treat—a Danish butter cookie for each preschool child to take home.

TRADITION

The SHS Christmas Family Mass featured the traditional production of the Nativity Play, this year performed by the fifth grade class. Making their usual entertaining cameo were live goats from the SHS Farm, perfectly wrangled by their student shephards.

Each fall, first graders are paired with an eighth grade buddy, and they share in fun activities together throughout the year. In September, the buddies connected and built friendships over lawn games and a picnic in the Michael Murphy Grove.

BUDDY PICNIC

Global Gold

In November, SHP’s 40-member Model United Nations (MUN) team received several honors and commendations at the Stanford University MUN conference, marking the first time the team has received recognition at this competition, viewed as one of the most competitive events on the West Coast with the highest level of delegates. For many of the high schools that compete, MUN is an academic course with multiple coaches, while SHP’s MUN is a student-led club.

“This makes it an even more amazing feat that our team won five awards,” said faculty advisor and SHP social studies teacher Dan Allari. “It was especially fun to see our four underclassmen do so well. This really was like starting a North Coast Section championship game as an underclassman against veteran seniors.”

What is remarkable about this group, Allari added, is

the level of leadership displayed and amount of time students invest in each event. The four leaders—club presidents Samir Ravi (SHP ’24), Raina Singh (SHP ’24), Makena Tom (SHP ’24), and Isabella Tapper (SHP ’24), and the senior members—organize and design each team meeting and practice plan. While at other schools the position papers are part of class assignments and graded by a teacher, at SHP, student volunteers edit the position papers.

“This shows extraordinary effort and dedication by members of the club, as many of our students are also involved in other extracurricular activities and leadership responsibilities at school,” said Allari.

SHP MUN also competes at the Santa Clara MUN conference in January, and the prestigious Berkeley MUN conference in March.

OUTSTANDING

The following students received awards at the Stanford University

MUN conference:

Outstanding Delegate: Kate Ragatz (SHP ’25), Commission on the Status of Women

Duke Tom (SHP ’26), World Health Organization

Research: Carter Kling (SHP ’23), UN Security Council

Commendation: Brooke Soderbery (SHP ’26), Issue Based Coalition Makena Tom (SHP ’24), Issue Based Coalition

Writing Fellow

Seventh-grade history teacher Jen Vaida was named a teaching fellow with the Bay Area Writing Project (BAWP), a division of the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Education, after completing its Immersive Summer Institute program this summer.

“It’s so humbling,” said Vaida. “The brains I was around were just astounding. It was the most uplifting community of teachers, writers, and learners—all so committed to creating a more just, exciting, and more accessible experience for kids to practice writing.”

FARM VISITS

Each week, preschoolers head out of the classroom and into either the SHS Farm or Organic Gardens on campus. Guided by “Farmer Slafter”—Dr. Stewart Slafter, who heads these SHS sustainable programs—the young students get to experience the natural world—its biomes and botany—in a variety of impactful ways. Among the lessons shared are how to plant and tend the garden; the various colors, tastes, scents, and uses of herbs and vegetables; and how to milk a goat and hold a baby rabbit.

ENGAGING

The BAWP aims to provide teachers from elementary school through college instruction levels the tools and techniques to incorporate writing into curricula, across all disciplines, not just the humanities.

A cohort of 20 teachers spent three weeks

Middle school history teacher Jen Vaida leads a seventh grade class through an ancient worlds unit.

meeting daily for a course of study Vaida described as being “like a condensed, concentrated graduate program.”

“Our goal was to share and learn best practices from each other and support one another as writers ourselves, because the idea is you can teach writing more effectively if you are a writer yourself,” said Vaida.

That meant tackling four or five writing prompts per day along with producing two ready-for-publication pieces by the end of the program: one professional and one personal.

Participants read aloud, received critique, and revised their own writing, while also engaging in pedagogy study. Each day, at least two members of the cohort shared a best practice; mentors who were also the BAWP’s facilitators were on hand to ensure the best practice demos were top caliber.

“I came away with this amazing array of tips that I’m now using in my classroom— and my first thought was, ‘oh my gosh, I

have to change everything now,’” says Vaida with a laugh. “But it was really good to be reminded that writing is so much bigger than just the essay, and that anything that engages the student authentically with language is valuable, and that doesn’t always have to be via the academic essay.”

First up “blackout poetry” in which a student selects a page of text, chooses words to leave on the page, and then blacks everything else out so the words that remain read as a poem. Next, students created a “TED Talk-like” argument answering the question, “Is history important?”

“I’m so grateful to have the support from Sacred Heart’s administration allowing me the agency to bring these lessons to the classroom,” said Vaida. “I know that’s not always the case for teachers at many other schools.”

In her history classroom last fall, students undertook a first unit “different from any I’ve done before,” said Vaida. “[One] that is less text heavy, and more discussion- and imagebased to bring out more creative word play.”

In her new role as a fellow, she will engage with other educators around the Bay Area as an instructional writing coach. It’s a full-circle moment for Vaida, who recalls several years ago being first introduced to the BAWP on the Sacred Heart campus.

“It’s super exciting—I’ll be able to go out in the field, coach other teachers, and help them bring writing into their curriculum, just as they had done for us at Sacred Heart.”

YOUNG PHILANTHROPIST

Kip Nilsson (SHP ’24) has been named the AFP’s 2022 recipient of the Outstanding Youth in Philanthropy award for his work leading two hugely successful fundraisers and community-builders in spring of 2022 to support Diabetes Youth Families. SHP Creative Inquiry teacher and advisor to the project Jake Moffat said, “Even at such a young age, Kip stands out as a model of how to engage in philanthropy with a full heart and an open mind.”

In her new role as a fellow, she will engage with other educators around the Bay Area as an instructional writing coach.

A Peek Inside Our New Podcast

READ THE BIOGRAPHIES OF OUR PODCAST GUESTS, AND GET A TASTE OF THE FIRST FIVE EPISODES EXPLORING RESTORATIVE JUSTICE AND SACRED HEART’S FIVE GOALS

Faith & Right Relationships

Sally Vance-Trembath oversees parent and educator education around Sacred Heart’s mission and Catholic identity. VanceTrembath also serves as a senior lecturer in the department of religious studies at Santa Clara University. She earned her master’s degree and Ph.D. at the University of Notre Dame, and has worked in Catholic education all her professional life.

“The world is a just place when we recognize that God is inviting us into a friendship. When we recognize that we are sisters and brothers of one human family, when we recognize that the natural world is not a commodity to be used but a holy place that requires our tending and care.”

– SALLY VANCE-TREMBATH, PH.D.

The Building of Community

Lauren Benjamin is the assistant principal of mission and culture at SHP, a role that allows working with both educators and students in ways that support the school’s mission and diversity, equity, inclusion, and access (DEIA) efforts. At Sacred Heart, Benjamin has also been an educator, has served as fine arts chair, and brings a wealth of experience working with young people and in the arts.

“We should build community with the intention of drawing from the deep well of our inherent worth, dignity, and goodness. Scripture tells us that where there are two or more gathered in Jesus’ name, God is in the midst of them. Building community is how we access and express God in us, and all that is meant for us, as God’s creation.”

– LAUREN BENJAMIN, MA, EDUCATION

Community Circles

For more than a decade, Brisa Diaz has been an equity-centered teacher, leader, and restorative justice practitioner. The proud daughter of Mexican parents, and a first-generation college student who discovered her passion for education while attending UC Berkeley, she received her master’s degree from Loyola Marymount University. She is the director of mission and culture for the Preschool – Grade 8 division at SHS.

Social Awareness

Matt Carroll is currently serving as the director of campus ministry at SHP; he is also a member of the religious studies faculty and has been involved in SHP’s immersion and service learning programs. Prior to coming to Sacred Heart, Carroll served in the Jesuit volunteer corps, which allowed him to work for Homeboy Industries in LA, the largest gang rehabilitation program in the world.

myself: ‘fake it till you make it,’ I suppose.”

–

Wise Freedom

Ben Su is the director of diversity, equity, inclusion, and access (DEIA) at SHS, where he brings an extensive background in crosscultural settings and roles, including posts with AmeriCorps, the Peace Corps, the Institute of International Education, and with BUILD’s college access program. He holds a doctorate in interdisciplinary studies from Graduate Theological Union; a master’s in religion and culture, as well as his secondary teaching credential from Creighton University; and a bachelor’s in English language and literature from UC Berkeley.

“One of my students suggested that we begin each class with an espacio (an extended moment of silence or contemplation), and it was truly impactful in helping my students to transition into our classroom because it affirms so many of the fundamental beliefs of restorative practices. My students had exercised ‘wise freedom,’ and I had learned how to be a better educator for them and for my future students.”

– BEN SU, PH.D.

“Responsive circles not only help to resolve conflicts but also build socio-emotional and ethical capacity in those involved. It looks for the root causes of the harm, supports accountability for the one having caused harm, and promotes healing for all involved.”

– BRISA DIAZ, MA, URBAN EDUCATION & ADMINISTRATION

“Anytime I was asked about my dad, I’d always reference, ‘turn the other cheek,’ and convince whoever had done the asking that I would forgive him because, that’s what Jesus taught. In hindsight, it was more aspirational than factual, though I think I even started to believe it

MATT CARROLL, M.DIV

ARTS

CREEPY & KOOKY

Perfectly premiering just before All Hallows’ Eve, the fourth through eighth grade musical comedy production of “The Addams Family: Young @ Part” captured center stage at SHS’ Performing Arts Center to the delight of soldout crowds.

Finely Tuned

STUDENT SHINES AT CARNEGIE HALL, GIANTS STADIUM

Shen. “This is what being a part of the Sacred Heart family is all about—it was another student who first inspired me to take up singing, and yet another student connected me with this opportunity to sing the National Anthem,” said Shen.

Leading up to this pivotal moment, Shen concentrated on growing her performance and vocal abilities. That meant performing in every school play at SHS from first through eighth grade, and participating in choir from fourth grade through freshman year (she’s taken a break the past two years to focus on academics). In the eighth grade she joined the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM), where she spends every Saturday from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. in workshops and rehearsals, her supportive parents shuttling her back and forth to the city.

Shen also researches the meaning behind each word and line.

SHP choir teacher, Clement Cano, stepped in to help.

An expert in languages and pronunciation, Cano “went through the song word-by-word with me: ’this is how you pronounce this certain word,’ ’make an ’O’ motion with your lips’ type of thing,” said Shen. “That was amazing—I saw Mr. Cano four or five times last year leading up to the performance. I’d go into Harman [Auditorium] and practice being on stage.”

And for the Giants game, Cano again helped Shen prep. “He suggested the high note, and I think that’s what took the performance to the next level,” said Shen.

With a passion for STEM, Shen has also been influenced by another favorite mentor —SHP science teacher Chris LaBonte. “As a student, occasionally I doubt my abilities. Mr. LaBonte was always there for me. He taught me to trust in myself and my capabilities. He devotes so much time and energy to the students—he will readily sacrifice after-school time or any free time just to help out.”

SHP junior Kelly Shen remembers the moment then-high schooler Veronica Mendoza (SHP ’15) took the stage for rehearsals in the SHS all-school musical Beauty and the Beast and began to sing in a rich, operatic soprano voice. Then a second grader, Shen was mesmerized. She thought to herself: Maybe I could sing opera one day. Nearly a decade later, at 18-years-old, Shen realized that ambition, performing an opera aria at Carnegie Hall in New York City last spring and singing the National Anthem to open an SF Giants game last summer.

During the American Protégé International Voice Competition Carnegie Hall event, she was joined by 40 other soloists in a range of age categories from around the world, from a young Japanese boy to a teenager from Eastern Europe, to seasoned Broadway performers.

After SHS published her vocal performance on social media, another alum, Amanda Suzuki (SHP ’12) who works for the SF Giants booking talent, asked to be put in touch with

In the fall, she rejoined campus musical theater in the role of Mother Abbess in SHP Drama’s production of The Sound of Music Her drama education has been invaluable, says Shen. “Participating in school plays and just growing as a student here—becoming more confident in my academic and other abilities—has really allowed me to gain the confidence and trust in myself that I need to perform. Walking onto the stage at Carnegie Hall, or in front of a crowd of 20,000 at a Giants game, you have to put on that diva personality.”

For her Carnegie Hall performance, she chose Psyche by French composer Émile Paladilhe. Singing in a mezzo soprano voice, she portrays Cupid falling in love. To prepare, Shen wrote on the history of the song, the composer, and the poem Psyche is based on, all to help her get into character. “You have to understand what your character wants, and how to portray that through your actions and words,” says Shen. With songs like Psyche that are in a foreign language,

In 2021, when she was just 16, Shen synthesized her three passions: singing, writing, and STEM in an essay titled, “From Babbling to Birdsong: What Finches Can Teach Us About Vocal Learning,” which was one of just 11 winning essays in the New York Times’ The Learning Network’s STEM Writing Contest.

Whether she pursues performing arts or STEM in college, Shen is sure of one thing: singing will always be part of her life.

The sentiment is echoed by Veronica Mendoza, who first inspired Shen. Now a second-year MBA student at the University of Notre Dame, Mendoza still finds time to sing. The pair reminisced about their time rehearsing together in the school play and connected over listening to each other’s recent performances.

“I’m really flattered that Beauty and the Beast was such a pivotal moment in Kelly’s musical career,” says Mendoza. “One of my favorite experiences with the SHS drama department was the ability to work with students across all grades. Watching Kelly perform on stage at Carnegie Hall, and hitting that high note at the Giants game is such a surreal moment for me—you never realize how much you can impact someone’s life at any point in time.”

Switching up the playbook, this year’s middle school music program took a more formal route to celebrate its usual holiday concert performances, opting for a two-night production: one for instrumental works, one for choral. The change enabled all student ensembles to have adequate performance time and space, and elegantly showcased the range of styles and talent these young adults are developing under the tutelage and direction of the SHS middle school music faculty: Amanda Poon (choral), Jonathan Hostottle (band), and Hilary Lewis (strings).

A Very Classical Christmas Got Game

With selections from classical and contemporary composers, holiday favorites, and world music on the menu, the performers clad in traditional “concert blacks” took the audience on a magical journey of harmonious sound. At the choral show, audience carol “sing-along” opportunities flowed seamlessly with spoken word introductions, all-grade performances, and a song sung in Latin with complex harmony, beautifully presented by the 12-member Gator Tones a capella group.

A group of SHP singers were selected to perform the national anthem at a Golden State Warriors game in November, under the direction of Clement Cano, SHP music teacher. The SHP Pulse dance team also performed one number during the primetime slot before the game, led by SHP dance teacher Matthew “Monte” Montenegro, who is a coach for “Blue Crew”—the professional male dance team for the Golden State Warriors.

Music and Movement

Fridays are music days in the SHS Montessori Preschool and Kindergarten programs, and new this year is a dedicated space, and face, of the program—Matthieu Roques. The veteran elementary and middle school teacher, who hails from France, has transformed room five in the preschool building into a music and movement room, decorating it with music-themed mottos and imagery. It’s there that he teaches six 35-minute music classes back-to-back to each of the preschool and kindergarten classes. The kindergarteners, in their new building across the playground, take a short walk on Fridays to the music room.

With students ranging in age from three to six years old, Roques focuses on the basic elements of music and forming a foundation of music literacy and appreciation. “Even at this age, it’s important not to minimize their potential,” said Roques. “They can get tricky concepts.”

Roques had just finished up a class where the preschoolers were rehearsing for their first performance of the year—Christmas carols to sing to their parents and teachers on the last day of school before winter break. During the class, Roques taught the students a new

term, “dynamics”—the idea that “songs have moments of quiet.” The lesson came a week after Roques explained the opposing musical term, “crescendo.” The classroom is decorated with a “crescendo crocodile” to help students remember the concept.

The movement piece of the class is also key in helping students retain new information. Students create “mimes” to match the lyrics, which gets their bodies moving and imparts coordination and a sense of timing.

Body percussion is another element woven into the curriculum. “There are many sounds you can make by clapping, tapping, and stomping, and also sounds you can do with your mouth. This is so much fun for them, and it’s the best possible way to get into rhythm,” said Roques.

Above all else, the biggest emphasis is on being together. “This interaction as a group is so important at this age—there’s a dimension of equality when all come together to sing and dance as one group. It’s a joyful celebration of their experience at school.”

Quilt Art

Fifth graders in Lower School art teacher Ciara Bedingfield’s class took a deep look at artist Faith Ringgold’s social activism. As an advocate for free speech in the 1960s and 1970s, Ringgold adapted centrifugal compositions and rhythmic repetition from Kuba textiles of modern-day Democratic Republic of Congo to make paintings using words.

Taking this as its inspiration, the fifth-grade class created a project titled, “What Shapes You—Word!” Each student crafted a square with a word holding meaning or importance for each student. “Placed together symmetrically, these squares give us a sense of what fifth grade students held close to their hearts as they embarked on the 202223 school year,” said Bedingfield.

Students in second and fourth grade art classes created colorful positive and negative space designs reminiscent of Ringgold’s famed quilts that portray a message of social activism. Each student made one design for a sketchbook cover and one to donate to a group project, which will border a larger piece of art for the Lower & Middle School art show slated for May.

Botanical Illustrations

Complementing the sixth-grade science and history curriculum that explores using evidence-based claims, the class created black ink botanical illustrations of campus trees, and endemic and non-native flora, to examine the idea of evidence from an artistic viewpoint.

“Observational drawing lets us question whether art can be objective or subjective,” said Lauren DiCioccio, Middle School art teacher. With the beauty of the SHS campus serving as inspiration, the project had an underlying goal: many new students enter Sacred Heart in the sixth grade, so DiCioccio was intent on “getting them outside, exploring and learning about our campus, and also working in community with each other, as they get to know each other as sixth grade students.”

Ultimately, the class intends to transform the pieces into a collective public art project, forming a labeled map that will serve to guide those new to campus around the 63-acre grounds, observing a variety of native and non-native plants and trees.

Ceramic Banquet

With the theme of giving everyone from the class a “seat at the table,” an eighth grade “Ceramic Banquet” project allowed students to observe how identity is tied to familial history or social strata, and craft an artwork connected to the “language of food.” Projects ranged from a grandmother’s chocolate cake recipe to ravioli served as a beloved traditional Christmas dish, to a ceramic bowl representing social identity: an intentionally placed crack reflects societal pressures and the concept of ideals versus reality. “Each sculpture acts as a place setting that will be displayed together around a table, using the metaphor of a banquet meal as a statement about how our community comes together from diverse perspectives,” said DiCioccio.

Eighth grader Sophia Kaushik (SHS ’27) chose to make a dessert platter reflecting her dual heritage of India and Ukraine. “I made three ceramic treats from both places and arranged them in a pink bowl to reflect how these aspects of my heritage come together to represent me. [These] pieces demonstrate the sweet treats that have been my favorites as I grow up,” she said. The finished sculpture features the Indian treats ras malai, soan papdi, and jalebi, along with sweets from Ukraine: blinchiki, baranochki, and belochki.

Tin Stars

Third graders celebrated Mater Admirabilis by designing and constructing an artwork inspired by Hojalatas (Mexican tin art). Students reflected on Mater in religion class and created their own symbols to represent Mater’s qualities. Exploring traditional Mexican art and learning the embossing technique, the students created this work to show which qualities they seek to embody in their own lives.

Proceeding down the aisle with their pieces during the Lower and Middle Schools’ Feast of Mater Admirabilis Liturgy was a proud event for these young artists.

Channeling History

THIRD GRADERS HONOR NATIVE LAND WITH NATURE TILES

Each fall, third graders learn the history of the Ohlone people who served as caretakers of the region from San Francisco to Point Sur.

The social studies lessons, field trips, and projects in their homeroom classrooms that focus on Native American history are complemented by art studies on the same topics.

“It creates a really nice, project-based learning loop between their homeroom and the work they undertake in the art studio,” said Lower School art teacher Ciara Bedingfield. “We talk about the fact that we are ‘ancestors-in-training,’ and how we must be good stewards of Mother Earth. By learning about Ohlone cultures, not only in the past, but also today, we hope that we will learn how to live in

a closer way with other people and with nature.”

At the same time students are undergoing lessons about Ohlone culture in art classes, they also experience hands-on learning in their homeroom. During a field trip to Foothill Nature Preserve in September, students were able to grind acorns to see how Ohlones survived off the land, learn how to make fire, and play a traditional Ohlone game.

Together the students and Bedingfield also went beyond the classroom to observe the beauty on campus and the importance of its native animals and plants to the Ohlone. “The students collected leaves, acorns, and other plant material from the majestic White Oak outside the art room. They picked plants from the garden and included local shells from our beaches. Making some careful observational drawings, they then designed and finally glazed a tile for a group mural project,” said Bedingfield.

The tiles from last year’s third grade class were installed in the school art courtyard earlier in the semester, making a lasting tribute to Ohlone land.

Ancestral Art

Last fall, Advanced and AP Studio Art worked on an ancestor project to portray someone they chose from their family lineage. The works were included in the Holiday Treat art exhibit in December. The aim of the narrative paintings was to tell the story of students’ ancestors through art; students used a medium of their choice, including acrylics, charcoal, oil pastel, gouache, ink, pencil, and even some embroidery.

“Using elements from their ancestors’ story, students decided how to represent that person—either through portraiture or a more abstract portrayal,” said Susannah Emerson, SHP visual arts teacher. To settle into the process, the entire class underwent a meditation

exercise on “accessing ancestors” from the book, My Grandmother’s Hands by Resmaa Menakem.

Alexandra Barycza (SHP ’24) chose to create a portrait in acrylics and pastels of her grandfather on her maternal side. “I chose my grandpa because he passed away during quarantine—my family is from Poland, so I never really got to say goodbye to him,” said Barycza. She spent summers with her grandparents in Poland growing up, and was very close to him. “I really love portraiture, so I enjoyed the process. It was emotional because I was painting this not just for my art class, but so I could show my family. I hope I captured his warmth and his essence through his expression.”

Kinder Selves

Recent projects from kindergarten through middle school reflect a deep dive into self-identity.

Kindergarteners in Soraya Chowdhury’s class undertook a creative, two-part Thanksgiving-themed self-portrait project in the fall. Selecting from a variety of skin tone paints, the students each created a self-portrait, then took the project outdoors for a “leaf hunt” to gather colorful fall foliage, which they applied to the artwork for a layer of texture and dimension.

From these earliest grades, students examine self and identity through art. By the time they reach eighth grade, students are ready to use advanced techniques and symbolism to explore personal identity. Art should function as both a mirror and a window, says SHS Middle School art teacher Lauren DiCioccio.

“Eighth grade is a year of big transition, when students are standing at the threshold of adulthood,” said DiCioccio. “To look at oneself at these major periods of change is a really important job, not only in the present moment, but as a gift for your future self to look back on; to see yourself as you once were through your artwork is a really beautiful thing.”

Eighth graders portrayed themselves with a symbolic object, color, or place, adding a layer of meaning to how they represent themselves.

For her self-portrait titled, “Three Stages of Me,” AJ O’Donnell-Fernando (SHS ’27), chose to represent her sixth, fifth, and eighth grade selves. Using “cold, cool colors” and a mask conveys the gloominess of the global pandemic. Positioning the fifth and eighth grade selves next to each other was intentional, “to symbolize our similarities: regaining a lot of strength and happiness and [using] warm color palettes,” said O’Donnell-Fernando. Her piece is featured as the artwork introducing this magazine issue’s feature story on page 48.

PORTRAIT EXPRESSIONS

SHP AP and advanced digital art students’ work was displayed in an exhibit, “Portrait Experiments, Portrait Expressions” at PAMF San Carlos in the fall. Students considered a range of approaches to creative portraiture— blending image layers, digital collage, drawing vector shapes, and integrating printed or handwritten text.

Row 1. Chiara Libraro, SHP ’23

Row 2. Iris OConnor, SHP ’23

Row 3. Taolue Yu, SHP ’24

Row 4. Nicholas Zamboldi, SHP ’25

Soraya Chowdhury

Nicholas Zamboldi (SHP ’23) explored the tension between nature and the constructive environment in this digital illustration, depicting how humanity is imposing itself upon nature, and the connection between consumerism and environmental degradation.

Iris O’Connor (SHP ’23) dove into a study of self in a series of photo collages for her AP advanced digital arts final project. Her works progressed through a look at the innocence of youth, to the preoccupation of self-image as experienced during preteen years, and finally to the viewpoint of a teen confronting society and asking, “where do I belong in this big, complicated world?”

Students approached images and text through a personal narrative project, “uncovering the potential creative interactions of a photograph they captured with an artfully written personal narrative,” said Moshe Quinn, SHP fine arts teacher. “It’s a rich resource to draw from—crafting a story that can take us to a specific memory or situation. The last challenge was adding an extra layer of surprise or emotion to give it an unexpected ending— students needed to think about the unexpected artistic interactions, such as processing for color value or tone to lend an extra emotional or psychological interaction.”

This project was a creative challenge in exploring different emotions through articles of clothing or accessories. “This piece takes inspiration from collage elements and color usage to convey my feelings on concepts of direction and movement through the symbol of shoes,” said artist Elise Chee (SHP ’24). “I like to leave my work up for interpretation because I believe that each person can gain something different [from viewing it].”

ELISE CHEE

NICHOLAS ZAMBOLDI

COLE BALLARD

IRIS O’CONNOR

DIYAS

Second graders created diyas (oil lamps) out of clay in celebration of Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights. Students studied the iridescent feathers of the peacock— the national bird of India and a sign of good luck and prosperity—and using hand-building techniques, formed the diyas, which were later glazed and fired in a kiln.

Another stellar opportunity is offered to students in grades 4-8 interested in learning technical stagecraft, this time in the area of character makeup. Preparing the small student crew who would design and execute the facial makeup each performance night of more than 40 unique character actors for “The Addams Family: Young @ Part,” makeup and wig designer Lindsay Saier led a hands-on workshop teaching the craft of shading, contours, and contrast for stage. The makeup crew was one of several student teams handling all aspects of backstage technical production for the show, from operating the lighting and sound boards, to moving set pieces and scenery, to running special effects and more.

GHOUL GROUP

Musical Moment

The timeless and beloved show The Sound of Music launched SHP’s 2022-23 theatrical season, featuring a wonderfuly talented student cast and crew. Prior to each performance, director Jeffrey Adams shared the show’s dedication to all Religious of the Sacred Heart—past, present, and future. In attendance—some for multiple performances—RSCJ from nearby Oakwood Retirement

Center were invited to join in the many prayerful songs and chants that ran through the Abbey scenes. As part of the Abbey set, a portrait of Sr. Nancy Morris hung prominently above the desk of the “Reverend Mother”—a nod to the role’s originator at Sacred Heart back in the early 1980s. (Sr. Morris played the role of Reverend Mother in a school production.)

OLIVE OIL ARTWORK

This year’s label artwork for Sacred Heart’s own premium olive oil from the garden grove was created by J.J. Boesen (SHP ’24) with a linoleum cut, a form of relief printmaking.

The Fine Arts Boosters’ (FAB) event raised $23,000 to fund fine arts field trips and competitions, which have included New York City and Disneyland for drama and dance, Los Angeles for band, and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival for drama.

CHILI COOK-OFF

SPORTS

FAREWELL

Graduating senior athlete Kellyn Zirn and her family charge through the “teammate tunnel” on Gator volleyball’s annual Senior Night. The tradition, celebrated uniquely by each Gator sport annually during a regular season’s game night, honors the outgoing senior players with appropriate fanfare, well wishes, and cheers.

The Golden Ticket

WATCH & LISTEN

The first time you tried out for the USWNT was in 2008, then you were on the training roster for the 2013 and 2017 squads, and finally on the 2022 roster—through it all, what is your biggest takeaway?

I think the biggest challenge is that it has taken so long… On the training team, you’re getting to play against [and train with] some of the best people in the world. But to be the last person cut always gets at you, right? You're the third goalie out of the two they can take. But [it’s also about] believing in yourself that one day you're going to make it. It’s been a real blessing to play with some amazing people for these 12 years, but it's also brought a lot of perseverance out of me. It's been good and I wouldn't have it any other way. I like to tell players at the Prep [and] the Middle School, in any sport you play, you're going to fail. But if [failing now] means later you can succeed, are you going to take [the chance]? I think failing is such an important part to every aspect of life—and to give kids permission to fail is just so huge as a coach and as a teacher.

What was it like to win the gold medal?

Last summer, full-time Lower School PE teacher, associate dean, and Gator lacrosse coach Liz Hogan stepped out of her SHS administrator role, and stepped onto the international stage, serving as starting goalkeeper for the U.S. Women’s National Team (USWNT) at the 2022 World Lacrosse Women’s World Championship. Though called up previously to the U.S. rosters, this was Hogan’s first time playing in a senior world championship—and with her help, the team went on to capture the gold medal—its fourth world title in a row.

In the December 2020 issue of USA Lacrosse Magazine , Hogan was the subject of a feature profile (“Becoming Liz Hogan,” by Kenny DeJohn)—evidence she was already on the radar within the sport. This past September, SHS published its own feature video interview with Hogan, in which she shares her backstory and origins with lacrosse, the lessons she’s learned and passes along to Gator student-athletes, and the experience of competing for the U.S. Below is an excerpt from the full interview, which can be viewed via the SHS vimeo account.

It was pretty wild. I ended up playing that whole game, almost. I got a yellow card in the last two minutes of the game. So, while in my dreams I always pictured being on the field when that final horn rang, I was actually on the sidelines. But to be able to run out to your teammates and celebrate—and know that this is IT, you're on top of the world—was incredible.

Other than that, any particularly memorable moments from the games this summer?

I think my favorite moment of all time was [playing] Australia— there was a torrential downpour. I don't think I've played with it raining that hard since maybe I was a kid. My shorts were falling [down], my jersey's soaked, my gloves… I can barely feel my stick… But everyone's like, "This is the coolest thing ever." I literally felt like I was five- or six-years-old all over again. It truly reminds you that you're playing a sport because you love the game. No more, no less. It's supposed to be fun. And in that moment, everyone on the field, their smiles were just so wide, even though you could barely see the middle of the field, right? I can't really see what's going on at the other end—but I know we're all having fun.

How has this experience given you a platform to grow the game, especially via coaching?

I think it's really cool to play professionally and have that platform to share [your experience] with kids… To not only play it and inspire kids all over the world, but to directly influence the kids coming through Sacred Heart has been a blessing. I want them [to see] that I'm an everyday kind of person, and if you put the work in, you can have just as much success, too. I like to balance “Yes, I play on the national team and I'm here with you guys, but also I'm just like you. I'm at school all day and I put my own work in too, so I can get to where I am. So nothing can stop you if you really want something."

To watch the full video interview with Liz Hogan, please visit: vimeo.com/ 743604198

300th Win

Coach Tony Martinelli earned his 300th varsity win of a 16-year career as head of the SHP boys’ basketball program in January, as SHP cinched a 61-59 victory over crosstown rival the Menlo School Knights. Junior center Erick Osterloh grabbed an offensive rebound and put in the game winning shot. “It was a pretty memorable one,” Martinelli told the San Mateo Daily Journal of the nail-biter game. Martinelli’s storied coaching career began at his alma mater Mills High School in the mid-90s, after pursuing a baseball career; he went on to coach at Menlo College and landed at SHP in 2004 as the junior varsity coach, becoming the Gators’ head varsity basketball coach in 2007. During his career at SHP, Martinelli has achieved eight 20-win seasons and six Central Coast Section championships.

Think Pink

STUDENT-ATHLETES HOLD SUCCESSFUL FUNDRAISER

On an autumn evening last fall, a crowd gathered to cheer on the SHP girls’ volleyball program. But it wasn’t an ordinary game. The McGanney Sports Center was transformed with bright streamers, ribbons, and balloons, all in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month—a cause close to the girls’ hearts.

Led by players Jillian Amaro (SHP ’24) and Naomi Watson (SHP ’24), the team’s first “Pink Out” fundraiser supported local nonprofit organization Cancer Support Community (CSC).

The pair were drawn to the organization’s mission to provide 100 percent free care, such as counseling, education, nutrition services, and more.

“Naomi and I have both seen firsthand the painful impact of cancer on our families,” Amaro said. “We both lost our grandmothers to cancer, and we wanted to raise awareness but also support cancer patients and their caregivers.”

The volleyball program raised funds for the cause by hosting a serve-a-thon a week

before the Pink Out game, where family and friends could pledge a donation per serve or give a flat amount.

“The entire volleyball program really embraced fundraising for the serve-a-thon; we were so proud to have 100 percent participation across the entire program. Every single player raised funds,” said Watson. “There was amazing energy in the room with all athletes trying to get in as many serves as possible since they knew the impact of their efforts.”

“Jillian and Naomi are truly an inspiration,” said Dawn Hemm, SHP girls’ athletic director. “They rallied the entire volleyball program with their heartfelt cause… Our entire athletic department could not be prouder."

Patricia Falconer, a member of the CSC board of directors, agreed. “The girls did an outstanding job inspiring their teammates, families, friends, coaches, and alumni,” said Falconer. “The donations will help CSC support people facing cancer in our community to become healthier, live longer, and live better. Through our incredible collabo-

ration, Jillian and Naomi turned their words into action, ensuring that no one will face cancer alone.”

Planning two large-scale events meant the girls acquired valuable community organizing skills. Together with their teammates, they made posters, decorated the gym in pink, and baked over 50 pink cupcakes for the event.

“We’re also grateful for our very own SHP volleyball alumni for collaborating to design our ‘Pink Out’ T-shirts,” said Watson. “We even got our dean of students Mr. Quattlebaum to wear pink. That’s an endorsement in and of itself!”

“I learned a lot about communication during the process,” Amaro added, “including how to craft a clear call-to-action so all players understood the bigger mission and what their role was; it was amazing to see everyone come together. We’re so appreciative of our administrative team, coaches, teachers, players, and parents for going above and beyond.”

International Waters

Another Gator student-athlete was “called up” to compete at the highest levels this summer, this time for the FINA U16 World Championships in women’s water polo. Selected from hopefuls across the country, SHP sophomore Natalie Szczerba (SHP ’25) made the final cut for the 14-member Team USA roster, and as a result, served as an attacker at the Cadet games held in Larissa, Greece in August. Szcerba’s squad played eight games in all, the final four of which they easily claimed victory, playing against Turkey (15-5), Israel (13-5), Switzerland (24-1), and South Africa (18-4). The team’s other games resulted in a draw with Australia (10-10) and losses to Hungary (8-10), Spain (3-6) and Japan (10-11).

Interviewed by student newspaper The Heartbeat on her return to campus, Szcerba had this to say about her experience abroad: “The most memorable part for me was the opening ceremonies. We had been in Greece for about a week for training before the tournament started, but we didn’t get to see much of the other teams [until that event]. The sheer number of people who were there to support [us] was incredible…It’s amazing to think that the love of a sport can introduce you to so many new experiences and people that I now have lifelong bonds with. I was also very lucky to be asked to represent the United States and hold our flag for the ceremonies. It was very special for me, and [something] I will never forget.”

GATOR GLORY

For the fall 2022 SHP Gator competitive athletics season, the following 42 student-athletes across six different sports were recognized for their individual play and performance.

INDIVIDUAL LEAGUE HONORS

Andrew Latu (SHP ’23), Football, PAL-Bay Division Back of the Year

Isabelle Marco (SHP ’24), Volleyball, WBAL Most Valuable Player

Shay O’Kelly (SHP ’23), Football, PAL-Bay Division

Defensive Player and Linebacker of the Year

Carter Shaw (SHP ’23), Football, PAL-Bay Division

Offensive Player of the Year and Wide Receiver of the Year

WEST BAY ATHLETIC LEAGUE (WBAL) ALL-LEAGUE RECIPIENTS

Jena Azmeh (SHP ’26), Tennis, First Team

Tatum Baker (SHP ’23), Volleyball, Second Team

Mischa Chaikovsky (SHP ’23), Golf, Honorable Mention

Sophie Cheung (SHP ’25), Cross Country, Second Team

Jasleen Chohan (SHP ’26), Tennis, Honorable Mention

Sadie Goldstein (SHP ’25), Tennis, Second Team

Emily Hallum (SHP ’26), Golf, Honorable Mention

Nick Karros (SHP ’24), Cross Country, Second Team

JP Killmond (SHP ’23), Cross Country, Honorable Mention

Neha Lalia (SHP ’23), Golf, Honorable Mention

Mia Radeff (SHP ’24), Volleyball, First Team

Elsie Ragatz (SHP ’23), Tennis, Second Team

Arjun Singh (SHP ’25), Cross Country, Second Team

Julia Soderbery (SHP ’23), Cross Country, First Team

Avery Wagner (SHP ’25), Cross Country, Honorable Mention

Naomi Watson (SHP ’24), Volleyball, Second Team

Charlotte Weber (SHP ’26), Tennis, First Team

Ellie Wheeler (SHP ’24), Volleyball, Second Team

PENINSULA ATHLETIC LEAGUE (PAL) ALL-LEAGUE RECIPIENTS

Mason Chetcuti (SHP ’23), Football, First Team

John Chung (SHP ’23), Football, First Team

Aseli Fangupo (SHP ’25), Football, First Team

Andrew Latu (SHP ’23), Football, First Team

Anthony Noto (SHP ’24), Football, First Team

Shay O’Kelly (SHP ’23), Football, First Team

Carter Shaw (SHP ’23), Football, First Team

RJ Stephens (SHP ’23), Football, First Team

Sean Tinsley (SHP ’23), Football, First Team

WEST CATHOLIC ATHLETIC LEAGUE (WCAL) ALL-LEAGUE RECIPIENTS

Luke Bachler (SHP ’23), Water Polo, First Team

Margaret Brandin (SHP ’24), Water Polo, First Team

Paedrin Gillett (SHP ’23), Water Polo, Second Team

Vivian Golub (SHP ’25), Water Polo, First Team

Riley Hocker (SHP ’23), Water Polo, Honorable Mention

Tyler Hogan (SHP ’24), Water Polo, Second Team

Hassen Hove (SHP ’23), Water Polo, First Team

Megan Newby (SHP ’25), Water Polo, First Team

Harrison Rohlen (SHP ’23), Water Polo, Second Team

Andrew Spencer (SHP ’24), Water Polo, Honorable Mention

Charlotte Summe (SHP ’24), Water Polo, Second Team

Will Swart (SHP ’23), Water Polo, First Team

Natalia Szczerba (SHP ’25), Water Polo, First Team

Jake Tsotadze (SHP ’23), Water Polo, First Team

PHOTO CREDIT: CARL CRUM ’24/THE HEARTBEAT

Class Act

11 INDUCTED TO SHP HALL OF FAME

Making Sacred Heart history as the largest inductee group, a total of 10 SHP grads from the classes of 1993 to 2011 and one storied Gator head coach were inducted into the 2022 SHP Athletics Hall of Fame at a formal ceremony held last April on campus.

These outstanding alumni athletes carved their respective mark on the overall Gator sports program on our hardwood, in our pool, and on our fields. Since their days on campus, each has gone on to achieve further distinction in sports, studies, career, and/or service—including one who climbed to international acclaim competing for Team USA in both the Women’s World Cup and Tokyo Olympic Games.

Established in 2011, the SHP Athletics Hall of Fame recognizes individuals with significant achievement in his/her sport at the high school, collegiate, or professional/amateur level. Those selected exemplify the principles of sportsmanship and Christianity as

illustrated in the Goals and Criteria of Sacred Heart Schools in addition to athletic achievements.

While in prior years Hall of Fame inductions were held as part of the school’s annual fall Alumni Day, this year’s event was reformatted to a stand-alone, more formal celebration that took place in spring. Frank Rodriguez, outgoing SHP vice principal for athletics and longtime leader for the high school Gator sports programs, played an instrumental role leading a collaboration of on-campus departments to successfully bring this re-envisioned event to elegant fruition.

The 2022 Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony drew more than 200 attendees of Sacred Heart alumni, parents of alumni, current and former SHS educators and coaches, family, and friends. Celebrating community, commitment, and camaraderie, the evening’s theme was clearly echoed throughout remarks shared on behalf of each inductee receiving the recognition.

CLASS OF 2022 INDUCTEES

Abby Dahlkemper (SHP ’11)

Yvonne “Vee” Dunlevie (SJS ’05, SHP ’09)

Trinchy Floro (SHP ’93)

Pete Lavorato (former SHP football coach)

Pallavi Menon (SHP ’08)

John Oppenheimer (SHP ’10)

Paul Rudolph (SHP ’09)

Ryan Sakowski (SHP ’09)

Austin Stahley (SHP ’07)

Colin Terndrup (SHP ’11)

Elizabeth “Lizzy” Weisman (SJS ’06, SHP ’10)

Thank you to all members of our community who submitted nominations. Learn more about nomination criteria and previous inductees at www.shschools.org/alumni.

NEWLY MINTED

Back row, left to right: Colin Terndrup (SHP ’11), John Oppenheimer (SHP ’10), Pete Lavorato (former SHP football coach), SHS Director of Schools Richard Dioli, Ryan Sakowski (SHP ’09), Austin Stahley (SHP ’07).

Pictured, left to right: Matt Moran (past parent and former Gator football coach), 2022 Inductee Pete Lavorato (head Gator football coach), and Frank Rodriguez (past parent and former SHP assistant principal of athletics).

Front row, left to right: Yvonne "Vee" Dunlevie (SJS ’05, SHP ’09), Pallavi Menon (SHP ’08), Elizabeth "Lizzy" Weisman (SJS ’06, SHP ’10), Trinchy Floro (SHP ’93), Paul Rudolph (SHP ’09).

Not pictured: Abby Dahlkemper (SHP ’11).

1 The LMS FLAG FOOTBALL season finished strong with the Varsity A team tied for the WBAL League Championship and with a 4-1 overall record. The 6th grade team was split into two groups, both to play in the JV A division; the teams finished in 2nd and 3rd places respectively. The Varsity B 7th grade team also finished in 2nd place in league.

2 With 50 middle school participants, the LMS CO-ED SWIM team joined in three meets, concluding the season by winning both the boys’ and girls’ division in the annual league swim meet held in October at Dunlevie Aquatic Center. The LMS league swim meets involve the JV Prep boys’ and girls’ water polo teams, who assist as timers.

3 Fifty-seven 4th-8th graders participated in the school’s 15th season of LMS CO-ED CROSS COUNTRY . This year the runners participated in four regular season meets with 28 runners qualifying for the league championship. The team was in the top three for team results in all four races, taking 1st in the 4/5/6 girls, 2nd by small margins in 7/8 girls and boys, and missed 2nd by just one point in the 4/5/6 boys. Thomas White (SHP ’30) was a 1st place finisher in the 6th grade boys’ race (as a 5th grader).

4 In the fall, 59 middle school students participated on the LMS GIRLS’ LACROSSE team. The girls participate in "play dates" that involve three to four schools at a time in a jamboree format with small-sided games. Six schools in the WBAL middle school league currently have lacrosse teams.

5 The SHP BOYS’ CROSS COUNTRY team earned a bid into the CCS Division IV Championship Meet after finishing 3rd, 4th, and 4th in the three WBAL League meets. The Gators finished 11th overall at the CCS Championships, led by Nick Karros (SHP ’24) and Arjun Singh (SHP ’25), both of whom finished in the top 25. Karros also set a school record in the Boys 3 miles, surpassing Daniel Hill’s (SHP ’15) record set back in 2014.

6 For SHP GIRLS’ CROSS COUNTRY, eight races the fall season were highlighted by a 4th place finish in the WBAL Championship Meet, qualifying them for the CCS Division IV Championship Meet. The Gators finished 4th, led by Brown-commit Julia Soderbery (SHP ’23) and sophomore Sophie Cheung (SHP ’25), who finished 3rd and 9th overall, earning them both spots in the State Championship meet.

7 It was one of the SHP FOOTBALL team’s most successful seasons in program history, finishing 9-2 and winning their first league championship since 2015. The Gators went a perfect 5-0 in PAL-Bay Division play, highlighted by a 34-7 win in Valpo Bowl XX. The Gators advanced to the CCS Division 1 Tournament where they lost a last-second heartbreaker to Salinas, 28-21.

8 The SHP GIRLS’ GOLF team’s nine league wins were the program’s most in over a decade. The Gators won nine of 11 matches to finish the season, ending with a 9-5 record in the ultra-competitive WBAL. The girls’ best performance of the season came in a 225-229 win over crosstown rival Menlo in late September. Mischa Chaikovsky (SHP ’23), Neha Lalia (SHP ’23), and Emily Hallum (SHP ’26) each garnered All-League honors.

9 Sixteen wins for the SHP GIRLS’ TENNIS team were its most since 2016, earning the Gators a trip to the CCS Team Championships where they fell to eventual CCS Champion Monta Vista 4-3 in the 2nd round. Charlotte Weber (SHP ’26), who played #1 singles for the Gators, also qualified for the CCS Individual Tournament.

10 The SHP GIRLS’ VOLLEYBALL team finished a historic season 24-6 overall, claiming their first West Bay Athletic League-Foothill Division Championship since 2012, and their first outright WBAL title since 2011. Perhaps even more impressive was the fact that the Gators did so with an unblemished 10-0 record in league play. The Gators rattled off 17 straight wins to finish the regular season and made it all the way to the CCS Open Division Semifinal where they fell to Archbishop Mitty, the nation’s 17th ranked team. The Gators’ season ended with a loss to San Ramon Valley in the 1st Round of the NorCal Regional Open Division Tournament.

11 Winning its 12th straight league championship, 11th straight CCS Championship, 5th straight CCS Open Division Championship, and 2nd straight NorCal Championship, the SHP BOYS’ WATER POLO team finished with a 25-7 overall record, and a perfect 7-0 in WCAL play. The boys defeated Bellarmine 12-9 and 16-4 to claim their WCAL and CCS Tournament Championships, and then went on to defeat Bellarmine 16-11 to win back-to-back NorCal titles for the first time in program history. The Gators finished the season as the country’s 4th ranked team according to MaxPreps.

12 The SHP GIRLS’ WATER POLO team's overall record of 21-9 included a perfect 6-0 record in league which earned them their 11th straight league championship. After winning the WCAL tournament, the team made it all the way to the CCS Open Division Championship, where the Gators fell to Soquel, the nation’s 2nd ranked team. The season ended in the CIF Northern California Regional Quarterfinal in a 9-7 loss to Campolindo. The Gators finished the season as MaxPreps’ 8th ranked team in the country.

“The team showed grit and dedication this whole season. In practice we focused on building relationships among team members and coaches while executing our running and strength workouts. It paid off—both varsity teams advanced to the CCS meet and two individuals advanced to the state meet. I am proud of who the team has become and look forward to where we will go.”

— SHP CROSS COUNTRY HEAD COACH MARISA BECK 2 3

"The coaches of the Lower & Middle Co-Ed Cross Country team want to acknowledge the unmatched hard work, sportsmanship—and love of Otter Pops—of all of our team members this season!"

—LMS

CO-ED CROSS COUNTRY COACH TEMO BARRERA

PHOTO CREDIT: CARL CRUM ’24/THE HEARTBEAT

PHOTO

CREDIT: CARL CRUM ’24/THE HEARTBEAT

Marching

Forward

Passion Project Amplifies Voices of Women Changemakers

By Elizabeth Nixon

When longtime Sacred Heart Schools, Atherton educators Kristen Kelly and Serene Williams set out to the East Coast last summer as recipients of a prestigious grant from Harvard, their initial mission was singular: to undergo research at the Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America with the aim of updating the requirements of advanced placement (AP) government courses to be inclusive of women. They would then share their findings with the College Board, which runs the AP program.

The AP U.S. Government and Politics course currently requires students to learn nine foundational documents, all of which were written by men. “It makes sense, however, that there are no foundational documents written by women required in this course since women are still not considered foundational to the American political system,” write Kelly and Williams in their grant proposal. AP government courses also sorely lack an intersectional lens, they argue—improvements are needed to incorporate the study of race and class as systemic reasons that minorities are disenfranchised and underrepresented throughout history.

Once they found themselves in the research library this past summer, equipped with support to access archival materials through the Teacher Support Grant they were awarded, what they uncovered inspired them to extend their initial goal further: it was clear that what the national AP slate of course offerings needed was a course focused solely on women’s history. They determined then that their new goal would be not only to petition for “writing women into AP government courses” and rewriting the existing exams, but they would also design and write a new curriculum proposal for a standalone AP U.S. Women’s History course and begin the herculean task of garnering support to petition the College Board for the creation of this new course.

“After completing a study of the College Board-released exams for U.S. government, we discovered they rarely ask questions about women in the course and exam description (CED),” says Kelly. “The point of this new course is that it would be intersectional, giving voice to womanism, giving voice to the Chicano movement, giving voice to diverse world religions and religious feminists—that’s a big part of it.”

IT WAS CLEAR THAT WHAT THE NATIONAL AP SLATE OF COURSE OFFERINGS NEEDED WAS A COURSE FOCUSED SOLELY ON WOMEN’S HISTORY.

What they didn’t expect to uncover in the halls of Harvard’s research library were archival materials containing clues to Sacred Heart’s own history of involvement in social justice and feminist activism. Names of religious sisters from Sacred Heart Schools’ founding order, RSCJ, were discovered among the artifacts in the Schlesinger Library as supporters of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) in the 1970s, the heyday of activism for passing the constitutional amendment. What many don’t realize is that the ERA has never passed. Constitutional equal gender rights are not law of the land, yet more than 80 percent of United States citizens mistakenly assume the ERA has passed.

While it wasn’t entirely surprising for Kelly and Williams to find RSCJ among the documents at the library, as the RSCJ order has long held political stances on social justice issues, such as health care, immigration, and poverty, it is rare for these instances of feminist activism among women religious to be written about publicly.

“When students learn about the political history of Catholic women in their K-16 history courses, it is often in the context of conservative Catholicism. Activists, like Phyllis Schlafly, and groups, such as the Eagle Forum, who clearly identified as anti-feminist, are routinely highlighted,” write Kelly and Williams in an article published by Harvard’s Religion Matters website last August.

“We believe it is especially important for Catholic school educators to counter those narratives by lifting up Catholic women who were pioneers in gender justice,” they continue. “Such lessons also contribute to students’ greater understanding of the women’s rights movement more generally. We simply do not want students to miss learning about all the interesting direct actions undertaken over the decades by feminist nuns who supported constitutional gender equality.”

For Kelly and Williams, the original educational activist and feminist was founder of Sacred Heart schools Saint Madeleine Sophie, who strove to create free education for poor girls in 19th century France. Over the ensuing decades and centuries, the school network blossomed and became the robust organization it is today, with 150-plus Sacred Heart schools worldwide. RSCJ continue to carry the mantle to bring education to girls (and now boys, in many schools) and place importance on serving under-resourced and minority students.

“Saint Madeleine Sophie is our source of inspiration, and many other inspiring RSCJ women religious,” says Kelly. “We’re continuing a long Sacred Heart tradition of teaching students to go out into the world dedicated to fighting discrimination. Students deserve to learn a fuller picture of the ongoing struggle for women’s rights in our country.”

With the grant lasting from 2022 through 2023, Kelly and Williams have a series of ongoing goals stemming from their summer research at Harvard that will continue to unfold this school year. After relaying the plan to create a new AP U.S. Women’s History course to their students and various student groups across SHP, many began to organize around the effort. A petition to the College Board was created by Kelly and Williams in October on Change.org that has so far gained 1,500 signatures, and a group of 20-plus students formed a student advisory to assist the pair.

Called U.S. Women’s AP History League (USWAPHL), and pronounced “waffle” for short, the student advisory group formed in November with the core goal of organizing a task force to advocate for the creation of the new course. With a logo, website, mission statement, and plan of action, the group quickly helped collect hundreds of signatures for the petition. Over the course of three group meetings from November to December, task force teams have conducted letter-writing campaigns to the College Board, historians, women’s studies scholars, businesspeople, and others to ask for support. The group is also preparing a presentation about their efforts for the annual student-led Social Justice Teach-In event held on campus each spring semester, which offers a broad array of social justice-themed workshops and group discussions to all SHP students. A variety of other outreach and marketing initiatives are underway, including creation of brochures, social media campaigns, and student research projects that all help make a case for the new course. The group plans to fundraise so some of its student leaders can attend the upcoming June Berkshire Conference of Women Historians to co-present about the need for the course alongside Kelly and Williams.

“The kids have really given it the momentum,” says Kelly. “We were stuck at 400 signatures, then the students took it and ran, and we were suddenly well over 1,000 signatures. As a teacher, it’s so much better that it’s coming from the students. The scholars and businesswomen that our students are connecting with are also giving us scholarly feedback, since the proposed curriculum is right there on the Change.org petition, so that is invaluable. A few of the women said, ‘you need more women scientists in the curriculum’—so the feedback is being crowdsourced from these powerful women scholars and supporters, by these empowered young women. It’s becoming this amazing movement.”

CONSTITUTIONAL EQUAL GENDER RIGHTS ARE NOT LAW OF THE LAND, YET MORE THAN 80 PERCENT OF UNITED STATES CITIZENS MISTAKENLY ASSUME THE ERA HAS PASSED.

Samantha Pyle (SHP ’25), one of the students involved in the WAPHL letter-writing campaign, says sharing her personal testimony is an effective tool that makes for a convincing argument.

“The current AP curriculum tells the stories of men from a man’s perspective,” says Pyle. “It promotes that men were the important ones in history; they were the ones to create our country, and they have a larger role in the functioning of our society than women. There needs to be an AP U.S. Women’s History class to empower girls from a younger age that they deserve to belong in all places men do… it is important that girls have the opportunity to see themselves in history—to know that they had a role in shaping our society as it is today, and also that they have the power to change it.”

A leader in WAPHL and the SHP women’s group, the largest affinity group on campus with a membership of 150, Helen Nguyen (SHP ’25), said asking students like Pyle, “what do you want to learn?” was “really powerful in helping WAPHL develop its platform.”

“Establishing a course like this is pretty timely right now— students want to learn about women’s history, intersectionality, and become involved in advocacy and reform around these issues,” says Nguyen. “We know women were a foundational part of U.S. and world history; it’s important that’s shared not only for girls, but for boys, and for people who are discovering their gender, or who are interested in learning about the diversity of perspectives that helped shape our country.”

Paving the Way

Over the past 10 years, Kelly and Williams have taken hundreds of students—boys and girls—under their guidance and involved them in important feminist scholarship and research projects, resulting in dozens of published student works on Wikipedia and in academic journals and websites, and helped them forge connections with scholars and organizations that often led to internships or other opportunities. They have also brought nearly a dozen students along to co-present at the most important women’s studies, social studies, and history conferences in the nation, including the Berkshire Conference of Women Historians, National Women’s Studies Association conference, and National Council for the Social Studies conference, to name just a few.

One alumna, Sierra Burton (SHP ’19), recalls presenting at two conferences with Kelly and Williams to argue the importance of requiring comprehensive women’s history curricula in middle school.

“As a Black, Queer woman that attended Sacred Heart and other private, predominantly white institutions my entire academic career, I found it really difficult to feel empowered in who I am. It was not until I met these two brilliant and inspiring professors that I learned there is an entire side of history that has been erased,” says Burton.

The three courses she took from the pair were “the most impactful” of her life.

“[Prior to that], I had no idea about intersectionality, and had never been taught an intensive women’s history course,” says Burton. “I remember how addicting it was to be in a learning environment that taught history from an accurate and holistic lens.”

That led Burton to major in political science in college, create a feminist zine, and pursue “intersectionality, curriculum reform, and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)” as career choices.

As a result of Kelly and Williams’ scholarship and research, in which they intentionally elevated the work and voices of students, inroads and relationships with important feminist organizations and scholars have been established that are now serving useful as they seek support for the creation of a new AP course.

PUBLISHING IS GREAT FOR OUR STUDENTS BECAUSE THEY GET TO WORK WITH AND MEET OTHER FEMINISTS AND HISTORIANS. IT’S REALLY EMPOWERING FOR THEM.

L to R: Kristen Kelly, Gloria Steinem, Julia Basnage (SHP ’16), and Serene Williams at the 2015 National Women’s Studies Conference in Milwaukee, WI

There are two key organizations Kelly and Williams are planning to lobby for support, an important step in gaining the College Board’s attention. Williams recently wrote two biographies on Catholic feminist women for The Smithsonian’s American Women’s History Museum currently being built in Washington, D.C., where Williams also has a contact.

The other is the National Women’s History Project, which is the group that established the March National Women’s History Month. SHP students have in the past interned with this organization and written suffragist biographies for its website during the 2020 centennial celebration of the passing of the 19th amendment.

“What I’d like to do is have students do this outreach and make the ask—I think that will make a big impression on these organizations,” says Williams.

Kelly and Williams expect the petitioning process to the College Board will be a five-year plan. They are looking at two recent examples of new courses that the College Board is considering, namely AP African American Studies, which was piloted in 60 schools nationwide beginning in the fall of 2022, with more schools having been added to the pilot since.

That course gained momentum through student advocacy as well. “It got 100,000 signatures, and the College Board was very responsive to that,” says Williams. “It got picked up by the New York City Department of Education and expanded from there, so that’s the kind of backing we need as we consider organizations and institutes that could lend support. Our students and their parents have incredible connections to organizations like The Smithsonian, important college committees, and boards of Fortune 500 companies, so we’re hopeful that we can make progress.”

As part of the five-year outreach plan, the pair is currently working on conference proposals to attend and present with students about the course and their efforts at more than a half-dozen upcoming conferences, including those held by the National Women’s Studies Association, American Historical Association, National Council of Social Studies, Intersectional Inquiries Conference, Seneca Falls Dialogues, Berkshire Conference for Women, and culminating in the 2024 College Board conference.

WHAT THEY DIDN’T EXPECT TO UNCOVER WAS... SACRED HEART’S OWN HISTORY OF INVOLVEMENT IN SOCIAL JUSTICE AND FEMINIST ACTIVISM.

Conferences are where they make connections with other academics doing similar work, says Kelly. “Essentially we have spent the past decade on the conference circuit, talking about religious feminism within education,” she says. “All of this enhances our curriculum that we teach day-to-day here at SHP, as we have always incorporated intersectional feminism, particularly religious feminism, into our courses.”

The College Board conference “will put us right in front of other AP educators as well as the leadership at the College Board,” says Williams. “It’s hard to get a response from the College Board. It’s considered radical to have a new course proposed and designed—more frequently it’s a course redesign.”

And redesigning AP U.S. Government and Politics’ CED—Kelly and Williams’ original goal coming out of their fellowship—is still a part of the plan.

“We would like to release an open letter to the College Board for the government course this year, 2023, to coincide with the centennial of the ERA being introduced to Congress in 1923,” says Williams.

Another key piece associated with the letter is a student-led project to write biographies about RSCJ and their activism work over the past many decades.

“We want to write biographies and give credit to the RSCJ who worked for the ERA while the centennial of the ERA is happening,” says Williams.

Those, in turn, could become Wikipedia pages or blossom into a larger student-built website database useful to Sacred Heart schools worldwide. “Publishing is great for our students because they get to work with and meet other feminists and historians—it’s really empowering for them,” says Williams. SHP students have been involved in the Wikipedia Women in Red project for the past five years—an initiative to create Wikipedia pages for important women in history where they did not exist before—and have created 16 Wikipedia pages so far.

Researching the progression of RSCJ activism will not only help preserve history, it will allow students to tap into a vast holding of archives located in the Main Building on the SHS campus. A year ago, a dozen students launched a special archival project guided by Kelly, Williams, and SHP instructional librarian Sheila Chatterjee to scan and catalog 125 years’ worth of photographs and documents into an online archival database. Each student involved is trained in PastPerfect Museum software and learns how to use a new, large-format scanner housed in the Lucas Family Library.

“Our school and RSCJ have such an amazing legacy,” says Kelly. “It’s something we should be proud of and highlighting constantly. It resonates with these kids and helps create a more deeply connected Sacred Heart family in a way.”

IT IS IMPORTANT THAT GIRLS HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SEE THEMSELVES IN HISTORY, TO KNOW THAT WOMEN HAD A ROLE IN SHAPING OUR SOCIETY AS IT IS TODAY, AND ALSO THAT THEY HAVE THE POWER TO CHANGE IT.

In the Library

Kelly and Williams’ experience inside the Schlesinger Library itself proved to be more complicated than they expected as they requested source materials to potentially incorporate into the new AP course curriculum.

“We thought we could just go to the library and request all these documents, and if we wanted to do something with them we could just say, ‘courtesy of the Schlesinger Library,’ but we quickly discovered each document is owned by different families and descendants, so gaining permission to access or use the documents is very complicated,” says Williams.

“I feel like I got a degree in coding because of how complicated it was to get these archives,” says Kelly with a laugh. “It took me two weeks to figure out how to ask the correct permission.”

While up to 10 boxes of documents could be ordered at a time, they could only be accessed one at a time. And Kelly and Williams could not look at them together. “So, when I saw something that I wanted Serene to look at, I had to take a picture of it and text it to her,” says Kelly. “I have so much newfound respect for scholars who write books and do this kind of research daily.”

An interesting experience, Williams says, was reaching out to the husband of a prominent feminist writer and activist, the late Andrea Dworkin, for permission to view her papers.

“I wrote to him explaining our project, saying we’re trying to get more women in AP government courses—we think Andrea Dworkin’s story is important to that—would you grant me permission to see it? And he did.”

Williams was looking for specific documents on when Dworkin appealed to the Supreme Court with an argument that pornography was a form of violence against women and violates the Civil Rights Act as a form of discrimination. “She couldn’t get it to the Supreme Court, and in her papers, it shows her inner turmoil. She overcame a lot of self-doubt, while in public she was so confident. Her husband lovingly protects her privacy, which is so interesting. That was a highlight for me—getting permission from him to research her, and then figuring out how to message that story, with all its complicating factors, for high school students. The students find it very interesting because the anti-pornography movement is often described as one of the least successful social movements in recent history, because society went the opposite way with a body/sex positivity argument.”

For Kelly, the most interesting documents were those of the late Gerda Lerner, feminist scholar and pioneer of the field of women’s history, who they include in the AP U.S. Women’s History curriculum.

“I love seeing the personal lives of my intellectual mentors because it humanizes them,” says Kelly. Particularly of note, as a teacher, was observing her report cards, in which she received Bs. “I was surprised because she was such an accomplished academic, to see her not getting As.” Lerner

Project Dedication

This project is dedicated to Sr. Fran Tobin, a well known, politically active RSCJ Sister and retired lawyer who advocated for feminist causes.

was also in her late 40s when she obtained her Ph.D., and “the random jobs she had to do to put herself through her Ph.D. program were fascinating—she worked at a cleaners, and as a substitute teacher—she kept all of her pay stubs.”

Another figure they researched for inclusion in the new AP course was Civil Rights activist and gender equality advocate Pauli Murray. “A lot of people are looking to research Pauli Murray as a non-binary figure, and the Murray papers are so desirable that we would read some, turn them back in, and someone else would be waiting for them and immediately check them out,” says Williams.

While they brushed shoulders with other researchers, there was no sense of community among them at the library.

“It was a very rules-driven, cloistered space,” says Kelly. “We went in thinking there might be a common area, or that researchers might eat at the same place together, and we could share about our research with other Schlesinger Library fellows, but there was none of that. At least we had each other.”

Catholic Feminist Support for the ERA

Coinciding with the Schlesinger Library fellowship, Williams received a separate 2022 summer sabbatical from SHS to research Catholic women religious and RSCJ at Notre Dame University, resulting in a paper co-written by Williams and Kelly that has been submitted to Feminist Studies in Religion.

While support for the ERA in the RSCJ order was not public, in the 1970s many RSCJ individually backed constitutional gender equality. During the 1978 congressional hearings for an extension to ratify the ERA, Sister Judith Cagney, RSCJ, publicly lent her support. RSCJ were also vocal on social justice issues such as immigration, poverty, and human rights in war-torn Nicaragua.

In the documents the pair requested to review at the Schlesinger Library were small, typewritten postcards that the Catholics Act for ERA organization mailed to various religious orders, including the RSCJ, that sisters could individually return to indicate their support. “Part of my research was looking at the resulting list of names and checking which were RSCJ,” says Williams.

As Kelly and Williams’ research has uncovered, RSCJ Mary O’Callaghan was a member of the organization National Sisters Network, which endorsed Catholics Act for ERA. Also mentioned in numerous archives is Faine McMullen, RSCJ, who was a board member of Catholics Act for the ERA and was politically active in supporting many feminist causes.

RSCJ Maggie Fisher was another Catholics Act for ERA supporter; her name was included in a list sent to “Friends of Equality,” a feminist group whose first member was Susan B. Anthony, grandniece of the original Susan B. Anthony. Fisher and Sister Kathleen Keating, SSJ, also co-signed a letter circulated to supporters that read, “Catholics Act for ERA brought Catholic support for the Equal Rights Amendment alive in Illinois. Efficiently organized, highly visible in the media, perpetually active, this group was extremely effective in mobilizing grassroots Catholics behind the ERA.”

KELLY AND WILLIAMS’ INDEFATIGABLE DRIVE TO BRING AWARENESS ABOUT LESSER-KNOWN WOMEN FIGURES IN HISTORY, AND THE PIONEERING WORK OF THE RSCJ, HAS THE POTENTIAL TO EFFECT LASTING CHANGE BOTH ACADEMICALLY ON A NATIONAL SCALE, AND WITHIN THE NETWORK OF SACRED HEART SCHOOLS WORLDWIDE.

While students learn about the ERA in current AP government course offerings, if they learn anything about Catholic women, it’s about the conservative Catholic viewpoint, says Williams. “That’s a misrepresentation, as there were many faith-based feminists who were working on the ERA and this campaign for constitutional gender equality.”

Their proposed new AP U.S. Women’s History curriculum aims to change that; a section within the Feminist Waves & Backlash of the 1973 to 1991 period deals specifically with the ERA and Catholic feminist nuns, as well as the Catholic-affiliated Grassroots Group of Second-Class Citizens.

Telling the stories of women religious is “essential to a comprehensive understanding of the political struggle for the ERA,” write Kelly and Williams in the Religion Matters piece. “They are certainly as important to the women’s liberation movement as more famous feminists like Gloria Steinem and Betty Friedan.”

With SHS celebrating 125 years as a school this coming fall, preserving the history and contributions of RSCJ sisters is especially timely. Kelly and Williams’ indefatigable drive to bring awareness about lesser-known women figures in history, and the pioneering and courageous work of the RSCJ, has the potential to effect lasting change both academically on a national scale, and within the network of Sacred Heart schools worldwide. Perhaps more importantly, the pair serve as an example to our students that change can come from within—an entire movement can begin with just one spark of inspiration. As Saint Madeleine Sophie famously stated, “For the sake of one child, I would have started the Society.” For 200 years, the legacy of Sacred Heart has held steadfast to a solemn mission of nurturing the lives of young people, so they may go out into the world knowing that their commitment to serve others can be truly transformative.

Elizabeth Nixon is the associate director of communications and public relations at Sacred Heart Schools, Atherton, and an award-winning journalist. Her work has appeared in a wide range of outlets including Entrepreneur Magazine, The Washington Post, Business Insider, and MSNBC. She has a bachelor’s degree in feminist studies from UC Santa Cruz, where she founded the women’s desk for the university newspaper, City on a Hill Press.

AS SHS CELEBRATES 125 YEARS THIS FALL, PRESERVING THE HISTORY AND CONTRIBUTIONS OF RSCJ SISTERS IS ESPECIALLY TIMELY.

Serene Williams

SHP educator Serene Williams earned her bachelor’s degree in political science from Purdue University, and her master’s degree in political science from San Francisco State University. For nearly 20 years she has taught a wide variety of political science and history courses at the high school and collegiate levels, 14 of those years at SHP. A reader for both AP U.S. Government and Politics and AP Comparative Government and Politics exams, Williams has also written curriculum for many unique University of California-approved honors women’s history courses, including History Seminar Honors: Women in U.S. History and Advanced Topics in Women’s History & Women’s Religion. A frequent invited guest speaker for conferences and meetings, she has presented on teaching intersectional feminist political history at the National Women’s Studies Association Conference, National Council for Social Studies, and the Berkshire Conference of Women Historians, to name a few. An active scholar, Williams is an independent researcher of the California women’s suffrage movement, and has authored original profiles of lesser-known suffragists published in the Women & Social Movements database. A prolific Wikipedian, Williams has written and contributed numerous pages about the California women’s suffrage movement and feminist politics in general, and most recently, she completed the Wiki Scholars Program—a partnership of the Wikipedia Education Foundation and the National Archives—where she wrote about suffrage history to become a certified Wikipedia suffrage scholar.

Kristen Kelly

SHP educator and active scholar Kristen Kelly has taught all high school levels at Sacred Heart for the past 16 years, notably designing the Gender & Sexuality in the Bible course and co-teaching interdisciplinary Women’s Studies courses for the past several years. Currently, along with colleague Serene Williams, Kelly co-teaches AP Comparative Government & Politics. An outstanding and eager collaborator with scholars and teachers alike, she has presented at The National Women’s Studies Association Conference, The National Council for Social Studies, and The Berkshire Conference of Women Historians, among others. Kelly holds a master’s degree in cultural historical religion from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, and loves teaching religion and history from an intersectional lens, focusing especially on gender and sexuality issues.

ALUMNI

SERENE SOJURN

Often, our RSCJ residents and campus historians are tapped to lead the community in special spiritual programs, offer perspective on living a prayerful life, and guide adult retreats or talks.

Pictured here, Kathleen Dolan, RSCJ and current member of the P-8 campus ministry team, headed a meditative walking tour of campus sacred spaces, open to all alumni, past parents, and current parents. Other programs offered this year have been a Labyrinth Walk with Sr. Nancy Morris, a weekly “Come to the Quiet” prayer service with Sr. Dolan, and a “Sisters in Colloquy” program featuring RSCJ at Oakwood.

ALUMNI BOARD 22–23

Lauren (Boyle) Berman (SHP ’07), President

Ruthie Bacon (SHP ’06)

Hannah Cevasco (SHP ’19)

Brandon Child (SHP ’04)

Wayne Costigan (SHP ’16)

Miles DeLong (SHP ’09)

John Geary (SHP ’11)

Monica (Manno) Graham (SHP ’88)

AJ Hamer (SHP ’16)

Douglas Hosking (SHP ’07)

Jack Larkins (SHP ’19)

Jackie Lechin (SHP ’20)

Kevin McFarland (SHP ’07)

Tim Norton (SJS ’04, SHP ’08)

Lynn (Rudolph) Rosendin (SHP ’05)

Kate (Ceremsak) Seabolt (SHP ’08)

Galilea Silva (SHP ’12)

Abby (Mates) Smith (SHP ’88)

Madeline Smith (SHP ’20)

Dear Fellow Alumnae/i,

I am honored and excited to serve as your new Alumni Association President. The Alumni Board and I are committed to building upon the momentum we have gained from the incredible guidance of our outgoing President Abby (Mates) Smith (SHP ’88).

Over the past several months, I have been working closely with Sacred Heart leadership to understand how our Alumni Board, and all alums, can best support the School and its mission. Our goal is to increase alumni awareness, interest, and participation in our program offerings focused in the following areas:

• Professional Resources – Adding internships, mentors, and networking opportunities

• Milestone Class Reunions – Outreach and contact information updates

• 125th Celebration participation

• Class Note submissions for the Sacred Heart Magazine

• Tuition Assistance and Endowed Scholarships for students

• Sacred Heart’s social media network –Increasing friends and followers of Madeleine Sophie accounts

I am confident that the Alumni Board’s collaboration, creativity, and dedication will advance the Sacred Heart Community towards achieving its goals. We are always seeking new members to become an active part of the Alumni Association and we welcome your interest and involvement.

It is our hope that the Sacred Heart Community continues to be a part of your life, long after you graduate. If you have not been back to campus lately, please come by and visit—we would love to welcome you home.

Please feel free to reach out to our Alumni Engagement Manager at alumni@shschools.org or connect with an Alumni Board member if you’d like to learn more about our Alumni Association.

Thank you all for your support and dedication to your alumnae/i community!

Sincerely,

Lauren (Boyle) Berman (SHP ’07), SHS Alumni Association President

SHS Alumni Board members take part in an annual service project bottling campus-made olive oil.

Here’s the Pitch

REFUGEES BENEFIT FROM YOUNG GRAD/PAST PARENT CLINIC COLLAB

The network of Sacred Heart alumni and parents can often come together in serendipitous ways, long after a child graduates from a Sacred Heart school. With a robust community of alumni, students, parents, past parents, and teachers that extend around the globe, opportunities abound. For Sacred Heart Preparatory alumnus Kyle Nilsson (SHP ’21), a chance to help Ukrainian refugees arose this past summer while he was in Germany interning for a tech company.

Linking up with family friend and past SHS parent Frauke Janssen, Nilsson, a former SHP soccer star and current Middlebury College player, joined forces with Janssen’s nonprofit organization GoldenHearts to launch a soccer clinic for Ukrainian refugee children in Pforzheim, Germany. GoldenHearts’ mission is to teach language and other skills to refugee mothers and children seeking a haven in Germany.

A huge proponent of sports as a community unifier and a way to communally have fun and build relationships, Kyle got his start

with building soccer clinic programs like this at SHP, where he teamed up with nonprofit Grassroots Soccer under a Creative Inquiry project, then at Middlebury he organized and led a similar clinic his freshman year.

Heading into his sophomore year and working full time over summer as a tech startup intern in Darmstadt, Germany, Nilsson still opted to carve out time on a weekend in June to travel two hours to a small town called Pforzheim. Once there, he worked around a language barrier to collaborate with four soccer coaches at a local clinic to plan a schedule for the day.

“One of the biggest challenges was language, because none of the 20 kids spoke English or German,” said Nilsson. “We quickly learned that the best way was to show them how to do things… So, gestures, tone, and mannerisms were really important. And being excited when they scored and yelling, ‘Good job.’ Having positive body language was also important to the success of the activities.”

After some basic exercises: dribbling through cones, small-sided [small games] of two players versus two players, and practicing shooting goals, the entire group of children and coaches hopped in together to play a game.

“It was a beautiful, full-circle moment where everyone's just enjoying basic scrimmage… and all the parents were lined up on the side filming their kids playing,” said Nilsson.

After the game, parents inquired with the coaches about their children signing up for soccer lessons.

“[My hope is] the clinic helped take their mind off their situation for a moment. And maybe they're too young to understand it, but I'm sure they understand that they're going through a major transition or major shift in their life, where they’ve had to flee their homes… the kids were all smiling and having fun. It brought me back to my childhood when I had no other worries except how to play the game.”

Kyle Nilsson (SHP ’21)

PALs Head Back to School

Under a canopy of soft lights, and in the shadow of the graceful Main Building Bell Tower, more than 200 Parents of Alumni (PALs) returned to campus this past fall for the third annual PALs fall social, “Valparaiso Vineyards.” The always-spirited group congregated on the new outdoor mall that stretches from the Main Building to the William V. Campbell Center, and enjoyed the chance to reconnect, catch up on family news, and share laughter and good memories

as a community. As usual, the event featured wines poured from fellow PALs’ own cellars and personal vineyards, a selection of heavy appetizers, and—of course—capped off with the famous “Rich Dioli Raffle.” In attendance were parents whose children graduated as far back as 1989 (Richard Dioli’s first year as an employee of SHS!), and as recently as 2022.

Thrive at 95

NANCY MORRIS’ MILESTONE FÊTE

Last summer, family, friends, alumni, and colleagues gathered for “Goûter at the Grotto” to celebrate the 95th birthday of Nancy Morris, RSCJ on her actual birthday of June 2.

Welcoming the more than 200 guests in attendance, Deacon John Kerrigan—a past and current SHS parent—began with a blessing for Sr. Morris at her favorite place on campus, The Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes (located across from Oakwood Retirement Center). “[Nancy,] your presence among us has been an inspiration to generations of students and families,” he said. “For so many years you have helped open our eyes

to the presence of God in education, nature, art, and contemplative prayer.”

Next, with a ringing of the historic Main Building bell and a moment of reverent silence, SHS Director of Schools Richard Dioli presented her with a special surprise: a dark blue ribbon. This deeply appropriate and meaningful award is traditionally the highest honor bestowed upon a Sacred Heart student at graduation, signifying an outstanding and lived fidelity to all five Sacred Heart Goals: faith, intellect, service, community, and growth.

Rounding out the brief program of recognition were longtime friend, housemate, and colleague Ann McGowan, RSCJ, and Bill Morris, the celebrant’s younger sibling, who each shared their favorite stories and memories of “life with Nancy.”

Concluding the event, guests sampled a few sweet treats, offered their own well wishes and reminisces, and enjoyed a sweet “Happy Birthday” serenade by members of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in attendance.

SR.

Home-Coming

For more than 20 years, Sacred Heart has hosted an annual all-school Alumni Day, in which all graduates and former students who attended any schools on the Sacred Heart Schools, Atherton campus for one year or more, are considered SHS alumni. This includes attendees of all the school’s past incarnations and names: Academy of Sacred Heart, Convent of the Sacred Heart Menlo (CSH), Sacred Heart Elementary (SHE), Saint Joseph’s School (SJS), Sacred Heart Preparatory (SHP), or Lower & Middle Schools (LMS).

On a beautiful and temperate October weekend last fall, we welcomed back home to campus over 200 alumni—graduates from the Classes of 1954 to 2017 and their guests. Our special PALs (parents of alumni) attendees included two 98-year-old mothers of alumnae from the Class of 1972, who were celebrating their 50th reunion—one of them being Maryann Robbiano, who had served previously as one of our school nurses. Throughout the day, the gathering offered something for everyone, and milestone reunions were celebrated for high school graduating classes ending in 2 and 7.

Starting the day was the “Très Bien Tea, Luncheon, and Diploma Ceremony” for our 50th and 60th milestone reunion classes, held on Conway Court, formerly known as “Palm Court.” The afternoon continued with a reverent Alumnae/i Mass in our beloved Main Building Chapel, featuring readings by our alumnae and Sr. Nancy Morris and punctuated by lovely music selections. Capping off the event was the evening’s Oktoberfest celebration, with plenty of music, food, and beer poured from traditional wooden kegs, donated by PALs Dan and Melissa Gordon and Gordon Biersch Brewery.

Presented by Director of Schools Richard Dioli, this year’s “Spirit of Mater” award went to Christine Lussier Dyer (SHE ’63, CSH ’67)—a particularly appropriate and well-deserving recipient, pictured on the top right of p.67 with Director of Schools Richard Dioli (L) and her daughter Alison (Dyer) Howard (SHP ’01), far right. Without question, Chris—who still teaches in the elementary grades and leads the second grade Sacramental preparations—has radiated Mater’s spark of divine spirit and employed life in a manner representative of the Sacred Heart Goals and Criteria for so long and to so many, so it was wonderful to have her recognized in this manner.

Learn more about our alumnae/i awards nomination criteria and past recipients at shschools.org/alumni

Among our most wonderful pairs of attendees, milestone reunioner Nancy Ann Farrell Freitas (CSH '72) and her mother Marian Moreno - a proud "PAL" (Parent of Alumna)!enjoyed the day's events.

Of note, 2023 will be Sacred Heart Schools’ 125th celebration and milestone reunions for classes ending in 3 and 8. Dates and details will be shared via email, Sacred Heart Alumni Facebook and Instagram social media channels, and mail. Ensure the SHS Alumni Office has your most current email and mailing address at alumni@shschools.org. Information will also be updated on our website at shschools.org/alumniday as soon as it becomes available.

Director of Schools Richard Dioli, Christine Lussier Dyer (SHE ’63, CSH ’67), and daughter Alison (Dyer) Howard (SHP ’01)

Parent of Alumni Dan Gordon and son Oliver Gordon (SHP ’07)

Twilight celebrations begin at Alumni Oktoberfest 2022.

In Memoriam: Mary “Be” Mardel, RSCJ

On the Feast of St. Francis, October 3, 2022, Sr. Mary “Be” Mardel (CSH ’35, San Francisco College for Women ’39) passed away peacefully at Oakwood Retirement Center at 104 years of age. Born in 1918 at the end of World War I, Mardel had seen and been part of so much transformation in the world in which she lived and served as an RSCJ for more than 40 years. An alumna of the Convent of Sacred Heart, Menlo (now SHS), and one of the founding mothers and subsequent teacher, principal, and director of schools for Convent of the Sacred Heart-Broadway & Stuart Hall in San Francisco, she clearly and contentedly lived a life dedicated to serving God and others—as an activist for those with no voice, an advocate for change, and a savvy leader both in the Sacred Heart Order and its schools. Following her retirement and despite her advanced age, she was a constant presence at events, beloved at both SHS and Broadway, and her soft voice, playful sense of humor, and always-kind countenance was a wonderful addition to the Oakwood community. Sr. Mardel was often referred to as the “heart and soul” of the Broadway school, and in 2014, Broadway’s campus chapel was fittingly named in her honor.

At her 100th birthday celebration, she told attendees: “There is so much love in this room that it’s tangible. Now it’s up to us to go out and give that love to others…I want to leave you with one of my favorite quotations from Saint John of the Cross. He said, ‘In the evening of life, we will be judged on love.’”

With love, sadness, but great joy in our hearts for having known her, we take comfort that she now rests in God’s loving and eternal embrace.

At press time, the Sacred Heart Magazine learned of the passing of longtime beloved fine arts and literature educator Isabel Peterson. In a later issue, we plan to honor Ms. Peterson with a full-length obituary.

Rita Schweitzer Godward (CSH ’41) passed away surrounded by her family on July 19, 2022. A fourth generation San Franciscan and an accomplished equestrian, she is survived by her three loving daughters, 10 grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren. Rita’s book of life has many chapters during her 99 years, including her and her husband Alfred’s (Bud) close relationship with the Queen of Egypt, Queen Nazli Sabri, and her daughter Princess Fathaya Gahli. Queen Nazli gifted Bud and Rita six of her own royal straight Egyptian black Arabian horses, which began the equine bloodline in California in 1950.

Leonore Rooney Daschbach (CSH ’46) a longtime resident of Atherton, passed away peacefully at her home on June 24, 2022. A loving wife to her husband of 59 years, Howard M. Daschbach, Jr, (who passed away in 2012) and loving mother of six, grandmother of 18, and great-grandmother of 16. Although an only child herself, Leonore will be remembered as the matriarch of her large family and all their friends. A fourth generation Californian, she was born on June 11, 1929, in San Francisco. At the age of five, her family moved to the home in Atherton that Leonore lived in for 87 years until her death. She attended the Convent of the Sacred Heart in Menlo (now Atherton) for 12 years (making her First Holy Communion in the Main Building Chapel), and completed her education at Lone Mountain College in San Francisco. It was only fitting that she died on the Feast Day of the Sacred Heart.

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SACRED HEART PREPARATORY

CLASS OF 1992

Gadiel Morantes is head of partner development at Pilot, which provides finance, accounting, and tax services for startups and growing businesses. An accomplished executive with a degree in psychology from San Jose State University, Gadiel has successfully spent his career building long-term relationships throughout the country with key partners in the venture capital, private equity, and privately held business ecosystems.

CLASS OF 1993

Margarita Alvarez Neuman is a senior vice president for Wells Fargo in the Strategy, Digital, and Innovation division. She is a graduate of Stanford University Graduate School of Business; of the Women’s Executive Program at the University of California, Berkeley Haas School of Business; and of the University of the Pacific, where she earned her undergraduate degree in business administration and political science. Ongoing, Margarita serves as a professional resources mentor for the SHS Alumni Association’s Alumni Mentor Program, and this past fall, expanded her role to SHS parent: her daughter Julia is now a sixth grader in Sacred Heart Middle School.

Turning out in style to celebrate new SHP Hall of Fame inductee Trinchy Floro (SHP ’93) at the April 2022 ceremony on campus (see article p. 44) were classmates Erin Sefcovic, Wendy (Miller) Quattlebaum, Nikki (Coco) Boyle, Danielle Chaudoir, and Elizabeth (Rizzo) Covey

1 HANGING AT THE HALL OF FAME.

A group of ’93 grads reconnect at the SHP Athletic Hall of Fame event in April 2022.

Pictured, from left to right: Mike Ciardella, former SHP basketball coach and 2013 Hall of Fame inductee; Trinchy Floro (SHP ’93), new SHP Hall of Fame inductee; Erin Sefcovic (SHP ’93), SHS Admission Assistant; Wendy (Miller) Quattlebaum (SHP ’93), SHS Director of Admission & Tuition Assistance, and 2016 Hall of Fame inductee; Nikki (Coco) Boyle (SHP ’93), SHS Director of Events; Danielle Chaudoir (SHP ’93); Elizabeth (Rizzo) Covey (SHP ’93), 2011 Hall of Fame inductee; and Richard Dioli, SHS Director of Schools.

CLASS OF 1994

2 Using her Sacred Heart International Passport last summer, Kate (Kappler) Parsons visited the original “Mater Admirabilis” in Rome with her daughters Hailey Parsons (SHP ’26), Alden Parsons (SHP ’24), and mother-in-law Suzanne Murphy Parsons (SH-Broadway, SF ’59).

CLASS OF 1996

Taji Brown is a dedicated restorative justice professional with more than 12 years of experience in youth and family support, including case management, advocacy, and counseling in both public and private sectors. He is currently a program manager for the Oakland Unified School District’s African American Male Achievement Department.

CLASS OF 1997

After 15 years, the Los Angeles law firm for which Michael Lee has worked is closing its doors. He plans to take a short sabbatical and cross a few items off his bucket list, including attending an underwater archaeology field school in Bulgaria (with thanks to Chris Pieper), acquiring the seamanship skills necessary to crew on the Drakan Harald Harfagre (if it ever leaves Connecticut again), and making some good memories with his parents, who have never been to Portugal.

CLASS OF 2000

Martin Corpos is a senior manager at Apple in the SoftGood EPM division. He earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Stanford University in 2004. Martin is a volunteer for the Professional Resources Alumni Mentor Program for Sacred Heart.

CLASS OF 2002

Since completing her residency at University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School in 2013 and medical school at Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine in 2010, Maria PatriciaBraziel, MD now resides outside of Boston in Dover, MA with her husband Andrew, and two children Bella (3.5) and James (1.5), and their beagle Oliver (8). She practices Internal Medicine/ Primary Care at Tri-River Family Health in Massachusetts and is also an assistant professor of medicine at UMass. Maria’s parents still live in the Bay Area, and she remains the best of friends with SHP classmates Michelle Rodriguez Flores and Jessica Clee LaMotte. In August last summer, Maria and her family were in Jackson Hole, Wyoming to celebrate the wedding of her brother (and fellow Gator alumnus) Gabriel Miranda, Jr. SHP ’09.

3 Pictured are her parents, Gabriel Sr. and Maria Villa, Maria Patricia Miranda-Braziel, MD (SHP ’02), her husband Andrew, and their two children; Melissa Miranda (SHP ’03), and her two children; Margarita Miranda Sankar (SHP ’06) and husband Lakshman; and Gabriel Jr. (SHP ’09) and his wife Annabel Klees, a graduate of Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart, Maryland ’10.

CLASS OF 2007

Kevin McFarland is internal communications manager at Meta in Menlo Park and a freelance writer and reporter. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Northwestern University in radio/television/film. Kevin recently became a member of the Sacred Heart Schools, Atherton Alumni Board.

CLASS OF 2008

4 Kate (Ceremsak) Seabolt and Alden Seabolt (SHP '06) moved to Burlingame midpandemic and are enjoying life on the Peninsula. Before their first child was born in the fall, they gathered for a backyard baby shower that included many of their favorite Sacred Heart Prep classmates. Pictured: Laura (Child) Meisel ’08, Kate (Ceremsak) Seabolt ’07, Cristina Zappacosta ’08.

CLASS OF 2010

5 Paul Samra became assistant district attorney for the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office in January 2022. He manages a case load of 150-200 cases, conducts trials, hearings, arraignments, case review, discovery, and plea negotiations. He works to settle cases by researching, orally arguing motions, and advocating for the People before the courts. Paul received a doctor of law (JD) degree from the University of San Francisco School of Law and the State Bar of California credential in 2021. Paul earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of California, San Diego in math while being a member of the NCAA men’s rowing team as an oarsman and bowman in 2010–2011. His favorite classes at SHP were Mr. Bonnell’s AP literature and Mr. McDade’s religion class. Paul played junior varsity baseball and is happy to see the new and improved baseball field for the community to enjoy.

Alumni entries are categorized by highest year of attendance. If an alumnus/a is a graduate of multiple campuses, a notation will appear next to the name, prior to the submitted news.

Sacred Heart Elementary (SHE)

St. Joseph’s School (SJS)

Convent of the Sacred Heart, Menlo (CSH)

Sacred Heart Preparatory (SHP)

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CLASS OF 2011

6 In June, Jacqueline Hong graduated with an MBA and MS in design innovation from Northwestern University—Kellogg School of Management and McCormick School of Engineering. It was a wonderful two years both personally and professionally, and she’d be happy to chat with anybody thinking about applying to business. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Duke University in international comparative studies with a minor in visual arts. Jacqueline recently moved to Amsterdam to work at Nike’s European headquarters as a senior product manager. She’s excited to fulfill a lifelong goal of working internationally. If you’re stopping through Amsterdam or have any friends to connect her with, please let her know! Her favorite Sacred Heart Prep tradition will always be Spirit Week, so if anyone wants to plan an alumni version, you know who to call.

CLASS OF 2011

7 Rooney Pitchford married Gracie Glidewell in Taos, New Mexico on August 27, 2022, with many Sacred Heart alumni, family, and friends in attendance. Pictured, L to R: Matt Hardy (SJS ’07, SHP ’11), Spencer Lamb (SHP ’11), Rooney Pitchford, Gracie Glidewell Pitchford, Colin Terndrup (SHP ’11), Patrick McNamara, and Bo Sakowski (SHP ’11).

CLASS OF 2012

8 Amanda Suzuki is live experiences and entertainment manager for the San Francisco Giants, where she has worked since 2017. She earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California in international relations, global economy in 2016 and was a member of the Trojan Marching Band.

CLASS OF 2013

9 Maddy Matthews graduated with a dual MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and MS in design innovation from the McCormick School of Engineering in June 2022. She cherished her time at Kellogg—from soaking up all the marketing, strategy, and management classes, to traveling the world with new lifelong friends. She is thrilled for her next step at Google, where she will be the Go-To-Market Lead for YouTube TV, based in Chicago. If any SHP alums are in Chicago or have questions about business school and tech in the Midwest, please reach out!

CLASS OF 2014

10 Lauren Mohrman graduated from the University of San Diego in May 2019 with a degree in mechanical engineering, and was a dedicated 5-year athlete on USD’s Division I Women’s Rowing Team. She flourished in three internships in the construction industry, and developed a very well-rounded background for her current role as senior project engineer for Critchfield Mechanical, Incorporated.

CLASS OF 2015

11 Veronica Louise Mendoza (LMS ’11) is a second-year MBA student at the University of Notre Dame. She completed a summer internship at the Atlanta-based headquarters of The Coca-Cola Company in its marketing operations division.

CLASS OF 2016

12 Lapitu “Pitu” Mahoni earned his business scholars degree from LEMO U and started his entrepreneurial journey through food, creating Haka Bros LLC, a catering business focused on delivering simple American cuisine with his own spin and flair. He and his team have catered several events at Sacred Heart and he loves connecting with (and feeding) the Sacred Heart community. Now Pitu splits his time between two passions: food and motorsports. When he’s not in the kitchen he is working on rc (radio controlled) cars, Go Karts and more with students just like him at the LEMO Foundation.

Marggi de Lusignan earned a bachelor’s degree in communications from Santa Clara University in 2020. She is a full-time account executive at SIMPL and a member of the 2022-23 Kings Dance Team, performing at NBA’s Sacramento Kings games.

CLASS OF 2017

13 Maggie O’Keeffe currently attends the Yale Physician Associate Program, having earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of San Diego in 2021.

14 E. Daley Smith graduated magna cum laude in 2021 from Tulane University with a bachelor’s of science in public health, and minors in psychology and management. She serves as a healthcare policy analyst with the Marwood Group, focused on research and policy analysis for investments within the healthcare industry and political sphere. Daley also volunteers with Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine’s alumni mentoring program.

CLASS OF 2019

15 Gretchen Connors is certified as a nursing assistant/aide in Tennessee, Montana, and Indiana, and currently attends the University of Purdue pursuing a bachelor’s in nursing. During the summer of 2022, Gretchen had the privilege of being a patient care partner in Tennessee’s only regional burn center. She cared for a large range of patients, including burn, trauma, and general internal medicine cases, from infants to the elderly. She cared for more than eight patients each shift, monitored vitals, drew labs, assisted patients, and helped with wound care. “The burn unit at Vanderbilt University Medical Center has such an incredible team and I am so thankful to have been a part of it.”

16 Claire Van Dyke (LMS ’15) is in her junior year at Santa Clara University, studying psychology and serving as a campus ministry intern. Last November, Claire organized an informal networking gathering for fellow SHP alums and SCU students with current and past parent John Kerrigan. The group enjoyed reconnecting and having fun with some SHP and SCU trivia! Pictured, L to R: Kennedy Anderson (SHP ’20), Franchesca Valdivieso Mestanza (SHP ’20), John Kerrigan (current and past parent), Kristine Fischer-Colbrie (SHP ’19), Hannah Nguyen (LMS ’16, SHP ’20), Claire Van Dyke, Britney Avila (SHP ’19).

CLASS OF 2021

Majoring in biology at Pepperdine University, Jessica Calderoni also competes on the school’s women’s swimming and diving team. Making it to the Pacific Collegiate Swim Conference Championships last February—in which Jessica swam the 200 fly event—the Waves’ squad wound up taking the top team title, the first in the program’s history.

Middlebury student-athlete Kyle Nilsson is currently a sophomore and plays for the Panthers men’s soccer team. Last summer while working in Pforzheim, Germany, he organized a soccer program for 20 Ukrainian children ranging from ages six to 17 with the help of a family friend and SHS past parent Frauke Janssen (see article, p. 63).

From There to Here

In 1899, the newly opened Academy of Sacred Heart—as it was once called—graduated its very first student on this campus. At the time, the school had launched as a boarding facility for students in first grade through “superior,” which was the equivalent of a college level. That first graduate was Eleanor Deming, who would go on to enter the Order of the Religious of the Sacred Heart, and return to the Atherton campus two times in future—both times to serve as its Mother Superior.

More than 123 years later, Sacred Heart Prepartory held its own most recent graduation exercises—this time celebrating the 154 students who composed the Class of 2022. These newly-minted graduates have since gone on to college, internships, travel, experi-

ence sports successes, and mark numerous accomplishments in the arts and other areas of interest. We are excited to see what they will do, and who they will ultimately become—and to see if any, like Deming, will return to serve others on this beloved Atherton campus! Today, we are extremely blessed and excited to welcome back so many graduates of this special place who have chosen to enroll their own children and grandchildren in this school, and those more than 34 current alumni-turned-employees—inclusive of teachers, administrators, coaches, and parents—who completed their Sacred Heart education on these grounds across the years and are now giving others that same outstanding experience.

At left, Eleanor Deming, first graduate of our Sacred Heart campus. Below, the 154-member Class of 2022 celebrates Commencement Exercises last May.

YEARS

SAVE THE DATE

125th Anniversary & Alumni Day

September 29–30, 2023

Celebrate Our Anniversary

At the close of the 19th century, the RSCJ established its 13th Sacred Heart school in the U.S. and second on the West Coast—the Academy of the Sacred Heart—a boarding school for girls located on the San Francisco Peninsula. Under the direction of founder and headmistress Rev. Mother Jane Fox, the school opened its doors in 1898 and began to flourish. Additional land was donated by the Donohoe family and St. Joseph’s School opened in 1906. A college division for women opened in 1921 (sold to USF in 1978), and a preschool was started in the 1970s.

Our beloved RSCJ, educators, and campus continue to enrich our Sacred Heart community in so many ways. Please join us in honoring our history and embracing our future by celebrating this milestone and your Sacred Heart class reunion with us.

KEEP INFORMED

Do we have your current email and mailing address? Ensure you receive the latest news and event information. Email alumni@shschools.org with your updated contact information so you don’t miss out on timely and important dates and details.

STAY INVOLVED

Contact your Class Agent to share news and information with your classmates, be a resource for our archive efforts, or share a class note for the Sacred Heart Magazine. Learn more at shschools.org/alumni

GET INVESTED

Help us build the next 125 years of Sacred Heart education through a bequest in your will. Your gift will help us ensure long-term support for our mission and preserve our cherished Sacred Heart experience for generations to come. Learn more at shschools.org/legacygiving

BE INCLUSIVE

Reach out to your fellow Convent of the Sacred Heart Menlo, St. Joseph’s School, Sacred Heart Elementary, and Sacred Heart Prep classmates, family, friends, and faculty to include and encourage them to be a part of our 125th anniversary of these sacred grounds and the vital educational experience we deliver.

Don’t miss out on our 125th Celebration!

Once a child of the Sacred Heart, always a child of the Sacred Heart. To learn more, please contact your Alumni Engagement Office at alumni@shschools.org, 650.454.8394, or visit shschools.org/alumniday

150 Valparaiso Avenue

Atherton, California 94027-4402

LOVE FEST

Welcoming in the new 2022-23 school year with panache, the popular “GATORFEST” event returned to campus, bringing popular “yacht rock” group Mustache Harbor to Gator Nation Field for an evening of good music and good fun. Scattered in informal groups, more than 1200 Gator family members from preschool to high school filled the field to picnic, reconnect, dance, and sing along to some nostalgic tunes under a perfect September sky.