Faculty and Staff

SERVICE IS AT OUR CORE

OUR MERCY CORE VALUES: RESPECT . INTEGRITY . JUSTICE . COMPASSION . SERVICE

Displayed in every classroom, students turn toward Notre Dame's Mercy Core Values to guide them. The Mercy Core Value of Service "…extends our energy and resources on behalf of the poor, sick and underprivileged working to relieve misery and address its causes where possible." The Honors Religion Service course, taught by Dr. Ellieen Ingbristen, allows students to extend their giving abilities beyond the walls of the school and into the grounds of the community. Students participate in hands-on service and are encouraged to take charge of their own projects. They are introduced to a new perspective on what it means to truly give back. “The Honors Religion Service Course allows students who have the common goal of helping the community to work together on different programs,” said Nina Consiglio ‘22, a member of the service class.

During the week of Halloween, the class hosted students from Sprout U School of the Arts, located in Trenton. A festive Trunk-or-Treat was set up in ND’s parking lot for the Sprout students to Trick-or-Treat. They spent time with ND students, worked on crafts, and got lots of candy. “It gives the children an experience they might not have been able to have outside of this environment and makes Halloween really special for them,” said class member Layla Gojaniuk ‘22. Outside the Honors Religion Service course, all Notre Dame students are required to complete a certain number of service hours per grade, but many strive to go beyond these requirements. The Notre Dame Service Learning Program inspires students to apply their faith in ways that benefit local and global communities. Notre Dame student clubs and groups organize numerous service projects throughout the school year. For example, The ND Cares Club hosts the annual Pink Out activities every October. Beyond this, they offer a wide variety of service opportunities. In December, they host an Adopt A Family program where children are able to pick out gifts they would like to give to their parents or guardians. Students are also able to participate in Boxes of Sunshine. Snacks and fun items meant to make the recipients smile are assembled and distributed to those in need living in the Bucks and Mercer County areas. During Thanksgiving, students donate different types of holiday foods to families who do not have the opportunity to celebrate a traditional Thanksgiving. Last year, the ND community donated 2,180 food items to Mt. Carmel Guild, an organization that Notre Dame has worked with for many years. Notre Dame also works hard to reach beyond the local community. The Operation Smile Program is a global organization that helps provide for children with untreated cleft conditions. Notre Dame’s own chapter of Operation Smile recently gathered to create hospital gowns for children undergoing this life-changing surgery. “We are helping kids in third world countries. A high school student in New Jersey can make a difference for people anywhere,” Gojaniuk says. With an average of over 30,000 service hours completed each year by the student body, service is truly at the core of a Notre Dame education. It may look like just a number, but it represents food on a dinner table, a day of laughter, or a large smile on a child miles away. To the Notre Dame family, 30,000 hours represent a year of following the important Mercy Core Value of Service.

CATHOLIC MISSION Special LITURGIES

The Notre Dame community gathers once a month to celebrate Mass. Throughout the school year, we also come together for special liturgies such as our Mercy Day Mass and the Mass celebrating Social Justice, Diversity and Inclusion. We open each new school year with our Mercy Day Liturgy to celebrate our Catholic identity as well as our proud heritage as a Mercy School. We honor the Sisters of Mercy who founded Notre Dame in 1957. A Notre Dame education is built upon the Mercy Core Values they brought to us including: Respect, Integrity, Justice, Compassion and Service.

In February, we gather for a Mass to celebrate our diversity, support social justice and promote inclusion. Members of the Notre Dame SHADES and Social Justice Clubs organized and participated in the Mass this year. Joining our chaplain, Fr. Jason Parzynski, in the celebration of Mass, was special guest Dr. Curtis Turner, Head of School at Saint Frances Academy and an ordained deacon for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington. Deacon Turner gave a moving homily. The program also included prayers spoken in various languages and the presentation of special gifts from different cultures. Allie Williams ‘24, Noelle Go ‘25, Lina Yang ‘25, and Abigail Hwang ‘24 performed a beautiful instrumental rendition of Amazing Grace and Wade in the Water during the Communion reflection. The program ended with the presentation of a poignant video produced by the SHADES Club.

RECEPTION OF THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION

We have been blessed to be able to conduct the RCIA process and Confirmation preparation at Notre Dame High School for the past several years. The acronym RCIA stands for the “Rite of Christain Initiation of Adults'' and serves as a welcoming organization for those who desire to enter into a faith-filled community within the Church.

The Notre Dame community was blessed to witness the Confirmation of five students during Easter Liturgy in April. Matthew Savage ‘23, Ryan Carr ‘23, Diego Mendez ‘24, Keihrah Boyer ‘24 and Kayla Cizmar ‘25, were confirmed by ND Chaplain, Fr. Jason Parzynski. We were excited to have the confirmandi’s families and sponsors join us for the beautiful liturgy.

CelebrateLifeACTIVITIES

Although the members of the Celebrate Life Club were unable to attend the annual March For Life held in Washington DC this year, they chose to advocate for the sanctity of life in different ways. They placed 970 miniature blue and pink flags at the school entrance to signify the lives lost to abortion in just an 8-hour workday. Banners were erected behind the flags, one of which encouraged us to pray for the healing of those affected by abortion. Club members also welcomed Notre Dame students and faculty to the chapel to pray the Rosary for Life the next day. Finally, Notre Dame’s Celebrate Life Club and Catholic Athletes for Christ members joined forces and collected over 28,000 diapers for HomeFront. The diaper drive was a competition among all of the Catholic high schools in the Diocese of Trenton and ND collected the most diapers.

Kairos returned to the Malvern Retreat House! Over 150 seniors attended one of the three retreats offered this past year. CATHOLIC ATHLETES FOR CHRIST PLAQUE PRESENTATION

A special plaque was presented to Notre Dame High School at the Catholic Athletes for Christ (CAC) Leadership Conference in remembrance of all that our beloved Coach John McKenna had done for the organization. Colin Treacy ‘22 and Rasheen Young ‘23 accepted the plaque on behalf of the ND CAC.

The plaque read in part: “For unwavering support and unrelenting guidance that helped in leading our path to success.” Coach McKenna’s legacy lives on in the work he did not only for our athletes, but also the CAC organization which he helped build and was so important to him. We are eternally grateful for his dedication and commitment to Notre Dame High School and Catholic education.

ICAN/SPIRITUALITY DAYS

Every school year, underclassmen experience a day of spirituality and community service with their fellow classmates. Each class has its own ICAN/Spirituality Day in the building dedicated to spirituality and community service. This year, students attended workshops, listened to guest speakers and completed community service projects including: packaging 20,000 meals for Rise Against Hunger, creating sock puppets, hospital gowns and cards for the Operation Smile organization and making over 800 food and hospitality/first aid bags for the Trenton Rescue Mission, HomeFront, and Anchor House.

Notre Dame Student Helps Get Bill Passed into Law

Governor Phil Murphy signed a bill into law that was championed by Notre Dame student Eva Drennan ‘25. Eva began the arduous task of helping to get a bill passed when she was in eighth grade at St. Gregory the Great Academy. The legislation, sponsored by Senator Linda Greenstein and Senator Steven Oroho, requires newborn infants to be screened for Congenital Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection. Moved by the story of one of her teachers who had contracted the virus while pregnant and gave birth to a son with cerebral palsy, she felt the need to help. “I thought, we can certainly get this done. My family and I later emailed Senator Greenstein and Senator Oroho and they instantly agreed to help us,” Eva said. The following months were spent contacting local legislators to help draft a bill requiring screenings for Cytomegalovirus. “In late June we dropped the bill and the process took off from there,” Eva told us. In early November, Eva testified in front of the State Senate and, later in the month, in front of the State Assembly. On January 18, Eva was excited to report that Senate Bill-3975 and Assembly Bill-5963, requiring screenings for newborn infants for congenital cytomegalovirus, became a law. “When I heard that the Governor signed the bill I was extremely excited. I was so happy that he recognized the importance of screenings for CMV,” Eva said.

WILSON TWINS EARN RANK OF EAGLE SCOUT

Congratulations to the Wilson brothers, Luke and Aidan, Class of ‘22, who achieved the rank of Eagle Scout. The rank of Eagle is the highest attainable in the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) and achieved by only 4% of scouts. A Court of Honor celebration was held for the brothers in May. The final requirement for the rank of Eagle Scout is the completion of a community service project. For his project, Luke led a team of adult and youth volunteers in the construction of an information kiosk which he designed and built at the CYO of Mercer County Day Camp. Aidan designed and installed two information kiosks at Sayen Gardens in Hamilton, with the help of his team of adult and youth volunteers.

SPIRIT WEEK ’22

CANDLE ROSE CEREMONY

In this special Notre Dame tradition, senior student leaders of clubs, athletics, service, performing arts, campus ministry, peer leadership, publications and National Honor Society, pass candles to the juniors taking their positions as a show of leadership change. The seniors passing down the light of leadership then receive a rose of gratitude from the juniors for their hard work and dedication to the student body.

Pink Out ’21

“Friday Night Lights” at Notre Dame came back this past year as did our annual Pink Out game. This is the 13th year Ms. Diane Wargo and the ND Cares Club honored cancer warriors and angels from our community. The Pink Out halftime ceremony included families escorting a warrior or cancer survivor on the field to be honored. Students also volunteered to have their hair cut to be used to make wigs for cancer patients. In the past 13 years of this tradition, over 750 ponytails were collected and donated.

Homecoming

Notre Dame crowned the Homecoming King and Queen under the lights of Msgr. Walter E. Nolan Field. Congratulations to the 2021–2022 KING & QUEEN James Primerano ‘22 and Kitty Vernon ‘22.

FASHION SHOW ’22

A TRADITION FOR THE SENIOR CLASS…

HOMECOMING COURT left to right: Matt Zietek ’22, Alrick Willie ’22, Raj Parikh ’22, Jimmy Burrows ’22, James Primerano ’22, Kitty Vernon ’22, Hannah Smith ’22, Stella Scudillo ’22, Adrienne Allison ’22 and Hope Aita ’22.

HOOPS FOR HOPE

The SHADES Club hosted the 4th Annual Hoops for Hope after a two-year hiatus. Hoops for Hope was started six years ago by the SHADES Club to join school clubs together to work toward a common goal centered around service and community. This year, 34 teams of approximately 300 students from all grade levels participated while countless other students sat in the stands to show their support. Carolyn Aranha ‘22 designed this year’s Hoops for Hope logo featured on t-shirts which faculty, staff and students purchased to raise money for Catholic Relief Services. Catholic Relief Services provides international assistance to the disadvantaged. This year, the Hoops for Hope event raised over $2,000.