“The Power of Being a Girl” workshop will be held at Marymount Academy on Wednesday April 2. It is hosted by the YWCA/Genevra House as part of their education mandate and will be run by Marymount secondary students, led by Gr 12 Tania Shewring. This workshop is for Grade 7 and 8s students, and consists of “girls and young women coming together to build on their strengths and learn how they can become leaders…with their peers, in their schools and in their communities.” Discussion and dialogue will occur on matters which affect girls and young women in our community such as issues related to healthy relationships, self esteem and body image, in a forum of safety and inclusion.
Month: March 2008
Sudbury Catholic Schools to Participate in Earth Hour
The Sudbury Catholic District School Board along with its families of schools will be participating in the WWF’s Earth Hour on Friday, March 28, 2008.
On March 29th at 8:00 p.m. people around the world will turn off their lights for just one hour – Earth Hour – to show it’s possible to take action on climate change. Switching off lights is a simple action that school boards, schools and students can take, but one that helps make a difference and sends a powerful message that we care about our planet. After all, the actions we take today affect the planet students will inherit tomorrow.
Climate change is the biggest environmental threat to our planet and the number one environmental concern of Canadians. By participating in Earth Hour our schools and our students are demonstrating to the world that they want to be part of the solution.
In support of the March 29th initiative, Sudbury Catholic Schools will be taking the lead by turning off lights for one hour, on Friday March 28th. All Sudbury Catholic District School Board staff have also been encouraged to do the same by turning off their office lights for at least one hour during the March 28th workday.
For more information, on Earth Hour, please contact Mark Gervais,
Energy Coordinator for Sudbury Catholic Schools ph: 673-5620 ext: 424.
Pius XII School Drama Club to Present 1950 Fairy Tale “Doo-Wop Wed Widing Hood”
Pius XII School Drama Club is proud to present Doo-Wop Wed Widing Hood (Red Riding Hood). It’s a 1950 Rock and Roll fairy tale!
Date: April 22, 23, 24, 2008 beginning at 9:30 a.m.
Place: Pius XII School
Time: 9:30 a.m. (approximately 1 1/2 hours)
Cost: $2.00 per student
Please call Brenda Barbe to book your class.
Easter Message from the Director of Education, Catherine McCullough
Easter is a time for hope, renewal of spirit, rekindling of faith and rejoicing in the triumph of the Lord. It is also the time to reach out to our loved ones and come together in prayer and celebrations and glorying in the miracle of Easter.
During this Easter Break, I encourage you to take time to rest, visit with friends and family and rejoice in the glory of the Lord’s Resurrection.
For God so loved the world,
That He gave his only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in Him,
should not perish,
but have everlasting life.
John 3:16
Wishing everyone a Blessed and Happy Easter!
Catherine McCullough
Director of Education
Sudbury Catholic Schools
Sudbury Catholic Schools Prepare for the Triduum
Over the next three weeks Sudbury Catholic Schools students along with their parents/guardians families, teachers and Board staff will be preparing to celebrate the Triduum.
The greatest mysteries of the redemption are celebrated yearly by the Church beginning with the evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday and ending with Vespers of Easter Sunday. This time is called “the triduum of the crucified, buried and risen;” it is also called the “Easter Triduum” because during it is celebrated the paschal mystery, that is, the passing of the Lord from this world to his Father. The Church, by the celebration of this mystery through liturgical signs and sacramentals, is united to Christ, her spouse, in intimate communion.
The Easter fast is sacred on the first two days of the Triduum, in which, according to ancient tradition, the Church fasts “because the Spouse has been taken away.” Good Friday is a day of fasting and abstinence; it is also recommended that Holy Saturday be so observed, so that the Church, with uplifted and welcoming heart, be ready to celebrate the joys of the Sunday of the Resurrection.
The Easter Triduum is prepared for by Lent and it is prolonged for fifty days of the Easter Season. The Lenten Season has two purposes: a) to prepare catechumens to celebrate the paschal mystery through the sacraments of initiation; b) to prepare the faithful to celebrate the paschal mystery by penance for the renewal of their baptismal promises.
After centuries of neglect, Pope Pius XII restored the Triduum to its rightful place as the culmination of the liturgical year. The only way to really understand the Triduum is to savour it by active participation. In song, through ritual and sensory experience, the single, three day long liturgy plunges us into the Paschal Mystery. Our participation in the liturgical act is, then, the opportunity for us to enter into the mystery of Christ’s dying and rising. The life of the Christian is to be lived in union with Christ who “dying destroyed our death, rising restored our life.” It is the mystery of dying and rising with Christ that is at the heart of the Easter mystery.
St. Benedict Students Passionate About the Environment
St. Benedict Catholic Secondary School is located in the south end of the City of Greater Sudbury. Like many other high schools in the region it has great sports teams, high academic standings, terrific school spirit and a deep and caring concern for the planet. However, it is level, breadth and intensity of this concern for the environment that makes it unique. Through a core group of passionate and enthusiastic students coupled with supportive teachers and the integration of the Sudbury Catholic District School Board’s comprehensive Dearness Conservation (DC) program, St. Benedict has developed a reputation for being a dedicated steward of the earth.
In Spring 2006, DC approached St. Benedict CSS students to campaign in their neighbourhoods to promote the Interactive Home Audit. The Interactive Home Audit was an online survey that homeowners would complete to determine their energy consumption. The audit then offered suggestions on how energy and money could be saved by implementing simple, efficient changes.
Groups of two to three students canvassed their neighbourhoods distributing pamphlets and florescent light bulbs to residents who agreed to complete the Home Audit. The students were overwhelmed with the results of the campaign as they felt that they had reached a great number of homeowners in the Sudbury area with their targeted message. Upon the completion of the Home Audit program, Efficient Sudbury deemed the St. Benedict groups as the most efficient representatives based on the feedback from residents who were targeted by the campaign.
In November 2007, Dearness Conservation held a school wide presentation to give students and staff an update on climate change. The students were enthralled by a dynamic, comprehensive presentation highlighting the effects of climate change and individual choices that can be made to reduce the impacts on our planet. Following the presentation, interactive workshops were held with grade ten science classes which peaked the interest of many younger environmentalists.
The Sudbury Catholic District School Board’s DC Conservation Challenge was launched to encourage each school to reduce their waste, water, and energy usage with the incentive of winning $500 for re-greening initiatives. St. Benedict has also established itself as an environmental icon purely through the initiatives of its students. Each year the St. Benedict Environmental club competes in the Ontario Annual Envirothon and have won the Oral Presentation Award for the most practical solution for pressing environmental issues for the past two years. Students must employ their extensive knowledge of environmental topics, as well as their originality and creativity. Students are also in charge of many environmental services within the school. Weekly recycling is coordinated by students as well the collection of cell phones and used batteries for proper disposal. The Environment team is adamant about ensuring that all recyclables are placed in the proper bins and that students and staff are being environmentally conscious with energy and water consumption.
St. Benedict is a remarkable school that takes environmentalism to heart. With the culmination of the DC initiatives and resources, supportive teachers, and passionate students, St. Benedict Catholic Secondary School is a school with an environmental conscience.
SCDSB Laptop Program Empowers Students in new age of the Digital Village
The students at St. James Catholic School were among the over a million students from 20,000 schools in 150 countries worldwide who participated in World Math Day on March 5, 2008. The goal of this unique math event was to promote numeracy and improve mental arithmetic skills. Students played mathematical games in real-time with other children across the globe.
St. James students answered a grand total of 60,274 questions correctly. In addition the grade 6/7 and Grade 8 classes won a “Mathletic” licence which will allow students free access to use the Math World Website for a year.
Shown above is Ryan Duffy a grade 8 “Mathlete” using his MacBook to play an opponent in the United Kingdom.
Sudbury Catholic Schools Students Find the Formula for Success at Annual Science Fair
Catherine McCullough, Director of Education for Sudbury Catholic Schools visited St. Francis Catholic School to view a number of interesting and unique projects at the Board’s annual Science Fair. After the judges had completed their task, twenty-two of the more than one hundred Science Fair projects were selected to advance to the Regional Science Fair at Laurentian University on April 12 and 13, 2008.
St. Benedict CSS Students Win Funding for Local Non-Profit Organization in Philanthropist Challenge
St. Benedict Grade 12 students Dayna Corelli, Kathryn Piché, Kyle Deegan and Karen Lee competed againstt schools from the Sudbury Catholic District School Board and the Rainbow District School Board in the 2007 Young Philanthropist Challenge, hosted by Volunteer Sudbury recently.
The goal of the challenge was for each team of high school students to represent a non-profit organization and to prepare a business plan and presentation that displayed the role of the local agency within the community. Each team was evaluated on their business plan presentation by a panel of judges who decided which group of Young Philanthropists deserved to win funding for their organization. As co-winner of the event the St. Benedict team was awarded $2,500 from the Trillium Foundation to help the Sudbury Action Centre for Youth continue their programs for youth in the community.