News - October 2022

Mr. Evan Bourque is a new and excited member of the South Boston Catholic Academy family. He received his BA in Early Education and Care In Inclusive settings from the University of Massachusetts Boston. Mr. Bourque is a welcoming and accepting teacher who will provide a safe and fun environment. He along with his Assistant, Mrs. Lois Picard, are a wonderful team! In his free time you can find Mr. Bourque hanging out with family and friends and working at Fenway Park for the Kids crew. From Mr. Bourque…“My experience in K2C has been wonderful. Every day the students make me more and more happy with being a part of this wonderful school and community. The students in K2C are so creative, positive, and special! “I look forward to the rest of this year to learn and grow with the students in K2C.” New families are welcome to email our admissions team at: admissions@sbcatholicacademy.org for more info. about South Boston Catholic Academy.

Ms. MaryKate Bourdon is excited to begin her 5th year at South Boston Catholic Academy, starting in a new role as Director of the Early Childhood Program. She attended Loyola University Maryland for her undergraduate degree and received her Masters in Early Childhood Education from Gordon College. Prior to her new role, MaryKate taught K2 at SBCA for three years. MaryKate loves watching the students grow socially, emotionally, and intellectually. In her free time, MaryKate enjoys spending time with her family, catching up with friends, cooking and baking, and cheering on the Red Sox! MaryKate looks forward to partnering with the SBCA parents, students, faculty and staff to make the 2022-2023 school year a strong, successful and wonderful year. One of Ms. Bourdon’s favorite quotes…“Teachers who love teaching, teach children to love learning" by Robert John Meehan. New families are welcome to email our admissions team at: admissions@sbcatholicacademy.org for more info. about South Boston Catholic Academy.

You will notice a new playground at the former St. Brigid Convent lawn on East 4th Street. In Cooperation with Colin’s Joy Project this playground will be a welcome addition to our new Early Childhood Center at South Boston Catholic Academy. Colin was enrolled in our Early Childhood Program before his unexpected death in the summer of 2018. In his memory, this playground will keep Colin’s spirit of joy and laughter alive in the lives of the children at our Early Childhood Center. On October 4, 2022 the McGrath family along with the Toddler and K0 students, families, faculty and staff and Ms. MaryKate Bourdon, the Director of our Early Childhood Center celebrated the opening of the new playground. Dr. Helenann Civian, our Principal, expressed her heartfelt gratitude to the McGrath family on behalf of all us at SBCA, and Father Robert Casey, our Pastor, lead us all in a special prayer and Blessed the playground, then the McGrath Family officially dedicated and opened the playground in the memory of their son, Colin, with a ribbon cutting ceremony. Not only do the Toddlers and K0 students love playing in this new playground, the K1 students also enjoy playing in this fantastic and wonderful new playground! All of us at South Boston Catholic Academy are so thankful to the McGrath Family and the Colin’s Joy Project for giving us this amazing new playground - we will forever be thankful! New families are welcome to email our admissions team at: admissions@sbcatholicacademy.org for more info. about South Boston Catholic Academy.

Ms. Jessica Genovese, our new K0-K1 STEM Lab Teacher. She has been with South Boston Catholic Academy for the last 6 years as a K0 Teacher. Ms. Jessica is a graduate of Bridgewater State College where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree. After graduation, she obtained her Infant, Toddler, Preschool Teacher EEC Certification through the state of MA. She completed her Masters degree in Early Childhood Education through the Lynch Foundation at Cambridge College. This year she has switched gears to teach early childhood STEM classes for our K0 and K1 classes, helping them explore science, technology, engineering, and math concepts! In her spare time, Ms. Jessica enjoys spending time with her family and friends. Ms. Lauren Monaghan, is our new K2 to 6th Grade STEM Lab Teacher at South Boston Catholic Academy. While this is her first year with us, she cannot wait to be a part of the SBCA family and grow, learn, and thrive right alongside her students. She is a graduate of Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education with a minor in Educational Technology. Ms. Monaghan was born and raised in Pennsylvania and relocated to Boston about a year and a half ago. For almost a decade, Ms. Monaghan has worked with children of various ages in a multitude of settings, cherishing the importance of being a positive influence and helping to guide students to success both within the four walls of the classroom as well as the community. In her spare time, Ms. Monaghan enjoys reading, spending time with family and friends, and being outdoors. This coming school year, she is hoping to bring the STEM Lab to life as well as cultivate meaningful memories, magic, and instruction. STEM is a curriculum based on the idea of educating students in four specific disciplines- science, technology, engineering and mathematics- in an interdisciplinary and applied approach. Rather than teach the four disciplines as separate subjects, here in our lab, we are going to integrate them into a cohesive learning program based on real-world applications. With that being said, throughout the academic year, we will be focusing on hands-on instruction which gets students involved in their own learning. We look forward to giving you a look at all of the magic that we will be creating in the STEM room this upcoming school year! New families are welcome to email our admissions team at: admissions@sbcatholicacademy.org for more info. about South Boston Catholic Academy.

Filipino baritone Carlo Miguel C. Bunyi is a Boston-based soloist and teacher whose dedication to his craft and stylistic versatility has led him to explore a diversified range of musical activities both domestically and internationally. Carlo is a founding member of Filipino vocal ensemble PASIPO with whom he performed as a featured soloist in the Philippine premiere of Bach’s Cantata BWV 131, Aus der tiefen ruf ich Herr zu dir. A versatile artist, Mr. Carlo has essayed the roles of Timur in Puccini's "Turandot" (Opera51) , Baron de Pictordu in Viardot’s "Cendrillon" (Longy School of Music), and Simone in Puccini’s "Gianni Schicchi" (Lyric Opera of the Philippines). He was also featured in Philippine Opera Company’s Young Artist Series. He took part in the first reading of Niloufar Nourbakhsh’s new opera “We the Innumerable” held at Opera America and he also performed at the Shalin Liu Performance Center in Rockport, MA as part of the Longy Student Showcase. Mr. Carlo finished his Master of Music degree in Vocal Performance and Music Education at the Longy School of Music of Bard College under the tutelage of Metropolitan Opera artist Jeff Mattsey. He also holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Voice from the University of Santo Tomas. Carlo is a member-artist of the Lyric Opera of the Philippines and is currently a cantor at the Divine Mercy Parish in Quincy, MA. Quoting Mr. Carol Bunyi… “In music class, we are learning about different musical elements such as, beat, rhythm, melody, harmony and dynamics, as well as, song study and body movements. I’m, also, happy to have the SBCA Children’s Choir up and running again! In choir we are learning about the fundamentals of singing and musical expression. We are so happy to have Mr. Carlo as our Music Teacher and to have him share his love and gift of music with the students at SBCA! New families are welcome to email our admissions team at: admissions@sbcatholicacademy.org for more info. about South Boston Catholic Academy.

The K1 students all love spending time in the Idea Lab area where they can imagine, discover, explore and achieve. As you can see by the photos of Ms. Courtney’s K1 students, they are having a fun time exploring and learning. New families are welcome to email our admissions team at: admissions@sbcatholicacademy.org for more info. about South Boston Catholic Academy.

On Thursday morning, September 22, 2022 the students at South Boston Catholic Academy attended and took part in the Opening School Mass at St. Brigid Church at 9AM. At this Mass we prayed for a successful Academic Year for our students, families, faculty and staff. All Parents and Parishioners were invited to attend. Fr. Robert E. Casey, our Pastor and Fr. Christopher J. Boyle, our Parochial Vicar were the celebrants at this Mass with our special guest and celebrant at this Mass was Bishop Thomas A. Daly, Bishop of Spokane, WA. Bishop Daly is the current chairman of the United States Bishop Committee on Catholic Education. All were welcome to attend this Mass. Several students from grade 1 to 6 took part in this Mass and did a wonderful job as Greeters, Readers and Bringing the Gifts up to the Altar. Several comments were made after Mass as to how wonderful all the students did at this Mass and how great it was to hear the beautiful voices of the SBCA Children’s Choir singing again at Mass. The choir was led by Mr. Carol Bunyi, our new Music Teacher. New families are welcome to email our admissions team at: admissions@sbcatholicacademy.org for more info. about South Boston Catholic Academy.

“Welcome Back! I hope you had a wonderful summer. I also hope you are relaxed, recharged and ready to start a new school year. I am so delighted that you are part of our amazing learning community. I welcome and value your positive energy and dedication to excellence in education, and I look forward to working with you and your children. We are so thankful that we are starting the school year with such an amazing staff. We opened our new STEM class including our music and art wing with amazing and talented staff. We are excited to be able to offer extended learning opportunities for our students. Thank you for entrusting us with your child /children. We are honored to ensure they are learning and receive the highest quality of support and love. The student's at SBCA are amazing! New families are welcome to email our admissions team at: admissions@sbcatholicacademy.org for more info. about South Boston Catholic Academy.” From Our Principal, Dr. Helenann Civian Our First Graders had fun with their First Day of School Classroom Project…The children shared how they felt returning to school on their first day. Ms. McCarthy, Ms. Byrne and Ms. Gannon enjoyed reading a story called-"First Day Jitters" by Julie Danneberg because the children are surprised by the ending! (Author's message- even teachers can be nervous on the first day.) Then, they had the chance to drink some "Jitter Juice" in case there were still some "jitters" lingering! It was a fantastic start for all our students, families, faculty and staff and we are all looking forward to another fantastic new school year at South Boston Catholic Academy and at our Early Childhood Center.

The students at South Boston Catholic Academy had another great summer in the SBCA Summer Camp Program. Each week focused on a different theme. The children learned about camping, the ocean, space, community helpers, and animals to just name a few. The children had a great time spending time together playing outdoor games, making arts and crafts projects with their friends, taking part in our special Science Summer Camp Program, visiting the library and exploring the local beaches and parks. A Special Thank you to those who came to our summer camp this year…Scientist Dr. Genial Sklute, Dr. G along with her assistant who are with the Science Made Fun Program. The children loved taking part in some of their fun and educational science projects. Dani Crickman, the Children’s Librarian from the South Boston Branch Library. Dani came to read some fantastic stories to the children. We had a representative from the Curious Creatures Program come with some of her friends. The Firefighters from the K St. Station Engine 2 Ladder 19 came and the children loved being able to sit in an actual firetruck and to the Police Officers who brought the ice cream truck sponsored by the Boston Police Foundation. The children loved talking with the police officers and eating the delicious ice cream. Thank you to all our wonderful families, lead teachers, camp counselors and to everyone who helped to make this year’s SBCA Summer Camp possible. We are all looking forward to another wonderful new school year here at SBCA and at our Early Childhood Center. New families are welcome to email our admissions team at: admissions@sbcatholicacademy.org for more info. about South Boston Catholic Academy.