autumn/winter
2015/2016
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inside
autumn/winter
2015/2016
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Greetings from the Head of School Retreats Welcome New Faculty Retreat to Bèziers Zambia Student Trip EC Morning Meeting and Play Kindergarten Math Morning Yoga Community Dress Up Me Museum Human Rights Social Studies Elementary School Artwork Roman Studies Project Wizard of Oz Character Study After School Italian Class
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A Performance for ought Middle School Field Trips Studying the Stars HS Projects HS Artwork IB Update Varsity Sports DNA Faculty News Seniors Milano Expo Trip World Peace Day Founder’s Day PTO Events Alumni News From the Royal Liar
ON THE COVER Grade 1 students taking their Yearbook picture. Photo by Tracy Bobko. Marymount magazine is published by the Development Office for the Marymount community. Designed and edited by Vivian Barsanti. All photos by Vivian Barsanti unless otherwise noted. © 2015-2016 MARYMOUNT INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL ROME
Chant: It’s Fall, That’s All When the days get shorter and The nights get longer. It’s fall, that’s all When the north winds blow and the leaves swirl around. It’s fall, that’s all When leaves turn red and orange and yellow. It’s fall, that’s all When the leaves turn brown and Fall to the ground. It’s fall, that’s all When we rake the crunchy leaves and Jump into the pile. It’s fall, that’s all When we have cooler weather and We need to wear a sweater. It’s fall, that’s all Chant discovered in 2nd grade classroom. Photo: from the web
Greetings Maria Castelluccio Head of School
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he 2015-2016 year was off to a great start with our Welcome Reception and Welcome Coffee in September. is year we have welcomed more than 113 new students representing more than 16 nationalities continuing to make Marymount a very international school with a special focus on inclusion. We have also been joined by many new faculty members, as you will read about further on, who have quickly become important parts of our school community. We are proud and committed to continue following the school’s Mission: “... to guide students towards the achievement of their full potential by empowering them to think creatively, reason critically, communicate effectively and learn continuously.
It is our goal that a Marymount student should desire to celebrate God’s love, respond generously to the needs of the world, and promote justice and dignity for all. At Marymount, we strive to develop students who are capable, honest, and respectful, and, who are prepared both academically and spiritually to be lifelong learners and leaders of tomorrow.” In these turbulent times it is important that we all respond generously to the needs of the world. At our school we strive to involve our students in community service and events that help develop future leaders who will ultimately bring about changes for a better world.
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Retreats By Ann Haring
Photos: Ann Haring
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uring the month of September and early October, many of our Marymount classes participated in retreats designed to encourage this year’s school goal of encouraging and affirming personal growth and foster a personal relationship with God. e retreats were also designed to emphasize particular Marymount Learner Profile traits: thinkers, balanced, spiritual, reflective, principled. In early September, grades 6-8 journeyed to the Salesianum to participate in class retreats focusing on the theme of Friendship. Orientation days offer our Middle School students the opportunity to build relationships with their peers, teachers, the Marymount community as well as the greater community.
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Using the biblical story of Ruth and
Naomi, as well as pop-culture songs and various presentations, students reflected independently and in small groups on what it means to be a good friend, as well as how to solve friendship issues. ey also took time to think about what kind of friend they are, and identified specific areas where they can work to become a better friend. ere is a lot of excitement ahead of us, including new teachers and friends to meet, new books to read, and new skills to master. e entire Marymount staff is looking forward to a great year of academic and personal growth, challenges and accomplishments in the Middle School. In the chapel, students went through a quiet meditation about friendship, taking time to pray for all their friends. Following this, Fr. Steve celebrated mass, reminding
everyone to look to Jesus, who gave his life serving others, as the ultimate example of friendship. At the end of September, the senior class participated in an overnight retreat at the beautiful Mater Gratiae retreat center in Santa Marinella, which overlooks the sea. rough various whole group, small group, and independent activities designed to inspire reflection and team building, the students explored the theme of happiness, enthusiastically participating in a variety of activities that encouraged them to experience and think about the four levels of happiness: pleasure, achievement, contributing to the good of others, and ultimate happiness. Students recognized within themselves the universal human longing for the five transcendentals: love, truth, goodness,
beauty and unity. ey were invited to consider how these longings and their desire for happiness can find their ultimate fulfillment through deepening their relationship with the eternal God and serving others. e opportunity for the Sacrament of Reconciliation, a Taize prayer service filled with both silence and music, and a closing mass all gave the students a chance to encounter God and the joy and peace he offers. e students enjoyed the chance to retreat away from the demands of their everyday lives and appreciated the opportunity to spend time together while reflecting about happiness in a beautiful place.
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Welcome new faculty By Vivian Barsanti Photos: Pasquale Zinzi
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arymount welcomes fifteen new sta and faculty members this year owing to additions made to the Learning Support department, retirements, sabbaticals and maternity leaves that make up the regular ebb and flow of a vibrant international school community. Many are completely new to Rome, while others know the city inside and out - all are a now a part of the unique, gifted and international mix that makes up the Marymount family, immersed as they are in the multitude of events, field trips, choir, sports coaching and community services that create the Marymount experience.
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Vivian Barsanti Director of Development, Marketing & Alumni Relations
Tracy Bobko Grade 1 Teacher
Vivian is from Rome and a Marymount alumna. For the past 15 years she has worked in the field of marketing and communications at several firms in New York and London, and a 5-star luxury hotel in Rome. She is happy to be back in her old stomping grounds and put her experience to use.
Tracy is from Orange County, California. Before coming to Rome, she and her husband lived in Sao Paulo, Brazil for a year. She has taught at another school for the past 5 years and loves to be close to her nephews. She chose Marymount for its international environment and spiritual atmosphere and believes in what the school has to oer to its students.
Denise De Paoli Science
Gilberto Gangarossa Information Technology
Denise is from near coastal Sydney, Australia, and has worked as an educator for 14 years and coached Surf lifesaving for 5 years. She teaches Middle School Science and the Astronomy /Maker subjects. Before becoming a teacher, she worked as a scientist at the prominent Australian scientific organisation CSIRO researching water quality and plant genetics.
Gilberto has worked for international companies such as Telecom, Sun Microsystems, & Oracle, and played professional volleyball for 18 years. He is married to Lucy Alexander and feels as though he has joined a family that he already knew. His hobbies and passion are sport, photography, food, films and travel.
Dann Gronlund English
Yehia Hammad Math and Sciences
Dann studied at the University of Leeds and pursued his passion for Romantic-Period literature and culture with a Masters and PhD on John Keats and Charles Lamb. He taught in South London in the UK state-education system at a successful school. He is very excited about exploring Rome and teaching pupils from all across the globe.
is is Yehia’s 15th year of teaching. He graduated from Cambridge with a double major in Math and Physics. He currently teaches IB Physics, Algebra, Geometry and Integrated Science at Marymount. He loves soccer and fishing.
Kerri Martin Science
David Praveen Fine Arts
Kerri is from Austin, Texas, and attended Texas A&M and University of Hawaii. is is her 12th year of teaching and 6th year in international schools. She teaches IB Biology, Grade 10 Biology, Grade 9 Integrated Science and Anatomy and Physiology at Marymount.
David has been an educator for 16 years. He is from Bangalore, India. is has led him to focus his educational goals towards a digital learning generation. He has worked at three different international schools in India and Egypt as a visual arts teacher and has chosen Marymount for its religious mission and vision.
Yuki Sasaki Secondary School Lab Assistant and Substitute
Elisabetta Savignano Part-time Admissions Assistant
For 15 years Marymount was her second home. She came back after university in Canada and feels that not only can she teach and get some real-life experiences in becoming the teacher she wants to be, but also to be inspired and learn from the amazing teachers that make this school such a unique place.
An MMI graduate (‘93) Elisabetta has worked in the Regional Security Office at the U.S. Embassy for almost fifteen years. In 2010 she married Giorgio Vaglio (NDI alumnus) and they now have three children, Giacomo age 4, Virginia age 3 and Carolina age 1. Giacomo and Virginia attend Early Childhood at MMI.
Shelley Sayger Social Studies
Michelle Scherrer Science (Physics, Chemistry)
Shelley Sayger is from Florida. She graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in Education and spent the last 7 years teaching in Palm Beach. She spends her summers traveling with a teen travel company based out of Canada and enjoys the beach, playing volleyball and discovering new places.
Australian by birth, Michelle has lived in Europe for 10 years. In her free time she enjoys travelling, learning the local language, and getting to know other people’s countries and cultures. She has always wanted to live in Italy, especially Rome, and would like to influence her students in a positive way by showing them Science is fun.
Montserrat Solabarrieta ES Physical Education
Jennifer Swekosky ES Physical Education
Originally from Chile, Montserrat is a P.E. teacher who studied in Santiago, Chile. She loves to travel and experience new cultures, and has lived in Ecuador, Spain, and now in Rome. Her husband is from Spain, and 2 of their 3 children attend Marymount. She enjoys being outdoors, going for a bike ride, running or walking around this beautiful city.
Jenna is a new arrival to Rome. She holds a BS from JMU, a MEd from Virginia Tech, and is a former physical education teacher from the United States. She has two children, Joey and Lexa, who attend Marymount and her husband, Frank, works at the U.S. Embassy.
Bonnie Swesey Learning Support
Bonnie is from Arizona, and has been teaching internationally since 2001: Taiwan, Venezuela, UAE. She has taught elementary and special education, as well as ELL. She is also a certified yoga teacher, specializing in yoga for children. Her other hobbies include open water diving, mountain biking, camping - most anything where she can enjoy nature.
COMMUNITY / SERVICE
RETREAT TO BEZIERS By Mersedeh Cerasoli and Melinda MacKinnon Photos: Mersedeh Cerasoli
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his September, on one early ursday morning, six faculty members set out to make their annual pilgrimage to the Holy City Bèziers, France where on February 24, 1849 Father Jean Gailhac founded the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary (RSHM). Our journey soon unfolded to reveal our common connections to Spirituality and Religion. During our wonderful 3-day stay in Bèziers, we were gracefully hosted by Sister Bernadette and Sister Marion who led us in deep discussion, self reflection, and prayer. e Sisters made an urgent call. We were given a simple but difficult task: to listen and to hear our calling. A total of ten Marymount faculty members representing our schools in London, Paris and Rome came together, each one of us embodying different beliefs including: Catholic, Atheist, Religion Leader, Agnostic and some of us curious hearts with undeclared faiths. We were different but united in a web of interwoven connections. 12 | marymount
e Sisters asked us to reflect within: create a space for stillness and connect to our individual spirituality. Sister Marion heightened our understanding of Marymount School's origin and mission. We were asked to reflect on the Foundress and First Superior Mother Saint Jean Pèlissier Cure who along with a community of women (the RHSM) dedicated their lives to respond to the needs of their time: What did we have in common? What are the needs of our time? Sister Bernadette declared that an Ecological Conversion is required. We were reminded of our current world’s affairs and as it says in the Encyclical, it is a time to hear and listen to the “Cry of the Earth”, and the “Cry of the poor”. What Steps can we take towards an
Ecological Conversion? And what steps can we take to become protectors of the work of God, to cultivate an attitude of gratitude and grace and to be in union with all creation? e stillness within started to grow. On Saturday, just before midnight, each pilgrim returned home to the Holy City of Rome, awakened with a new- found realization in Spirituality.
How was the Zambia Trip in the summer of 2015? Well, the answer could be a ten-page long essay covering a wide variety of emotions from happy to touching and maybe a touch of sadness. Let’s start from the happy parts of the Zambia trip. I have memories of the six of us just laughing all the time from the time we played catch phrase to the time where the teachers danced with the children. Happiness was everywhere especially around the children who would run towards us offering us hugs and high fives. ey would have smiles ear to ear when they saw the gifts we brought them and when we played games with them like musical chairs and the concentration game. is experience has been one of the best ones in my entire life. e children would all want a last hug and a high five every time we left the school. ey would fight over our attention. ey would treat us like their friends even though we had just met. is was so touching because all the children wanted to do is learn, play and teach us about the way they communicate. e touch of sadness came the last day realizing that we had seen children who are fully happy even though they have such serious conditions. ey will most likely live with this condition for the rest of their lives and that is unfair, but they have managed to find a community they fit in and feel happy in, which reassured me that the children could be and apparently were happy. - Marta A.
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ZAMBIA COMMITTEE student trip By Christine Pagano
Photos: courtesy Zambia Committee
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s part of Marymount’s Zambia Committee, a group of four 11th grade students, Joseph Y., Selina B., Francesca S., and Marta A. and two teachers, Ms. Christine Pagano and Mr. Owen Schaner, went to Zambia for 10 days this summer in mid-June to visit St. Mulumba and Kalunda ka Maria, the two schools that Marymount supports through the RSHM mission in Africa. e students brought games, stationary and learning tools with them for the children, as well as the raised 11,000€ of the 15,000€ goal (originally thought to purchase a school bus). ey flew into Lusaka and from there took a fivehour bus ride to Choma where St. Mulumba's School For Children who Are Deaf, Blind, and Disabled is located. Christine Pagano remembers: “Our Marymount students were excited to work with the children after school and design a mural on St. Mulumba's new wall! e kids played with the toys we brought and learned sign language. One day we went to the daycare center for children who are HIV positive or have AIDS. e children come here to get lunches and catch up on their schoolwork since they miss a lot of school for doctors’ appointments to get medicine or just are sick. e kids felt this was very helpful because they actually taught them math, spelling, songs, and writing. We danced and played with them.” is boarding school provides education for 160 children with physical and mental disabilities. Support from Marymount achieved through its regular fundraising events such as Zambia T-shirt sales, bake sales,and Dress-Down day, enables the school to have electricity and pay for its teachers. e funds have also helped the school in the past to build a new dormitory and purchase a state-of-the-art piano for the visually challenged and an industrial-sized cooking vat, which facilitates meals for the children. About Kalunda ka Maria, which means “Mary on the Hill”, Ms. Pagano comments: “At Kalunda ka Maria we had the chance to teach the students games at recess while the teachers had the time to make copies. ere is no electricity at this school so the teachers had to hand write each copy of paper they wanted to give each child. I feel the teachers appreciated having us here this day.” autumn - winter issue | 15
EARLY CHILDHOOD By Julie Finan
the importance of play e chance to connect with the natural world; first hand experiences of life and growth; endless opportunities for creativity and imagination; improved fitness and physical development – the countless benefits of outdoor play have a real and positive impact on children's lives. ere has been much research on the subject of the benefits of outdoor play. Helen Bilton, an Educational Advisor and author of 'Playing Outside' describes the three main benefits as she sees them:
morning meeting ec1
Firstly, outside is a natural environment for children. ere is a freedom associated with the space, which cannot be replicated inside. If children feel at home in a particular space it seems natural to teach them in that area; education should not be a chore but an enjoyable worthwhile occupation. Children playing and learning in an outdoor environment appear more active, absorbed, motivated and purposeful, and develop a more positive attitude to learning.
Morning meeting is the time when our class gathers together on the carpet. It is the perfect time to teach children how to behave confidently and fairly in a group, and how to take turns talking and listening to each other. Our meeting time in EC1 usually lasts approximately ten minutes.
Secondly, the environment where we work and play affects our emotions. Children will often be less inhibited outside, and more willing to join in with activities, talk and come out of their shells. In overcrowded spaces children's behaviour can change, some can become more aggressive, while others become more solitary.
We begin by: Singing an action song called, “Good morning.” Weather check and dressing our puppet, Mikey, appropriately. Another action song or rhyme. A story or class discussion using our “Speaking Jewel”, which is passed around the group to whoever wants to share. Closing song.
irdly, outdoors is the perfect place to learn through movement, which is one of the four vehicles through which children can learn, the others being play, talk and sensory experiences. All of these happen more naturally outside, but with so much space and so many opportunities to move in different ways, the setting supports learning through movement particularly well. Children need freedom outside but they do not need a free for all; it is our job to make sure that all children can learn, enjoy and reach their full potential. By providing quality outdoor play we are making sure that each child can do just this!
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KINDERGARTEN
math talk in kindergarten By Carolyne O’Connor and Emma White Photos: Carolyne O’Connor
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or the past couple of years the Elementary school and the Early Childhood have been working on a new Math program based on the US Common Core State Standards. Two Marymount teachers, Ms. Christine Pagano (3rd Grade) and Ms. Carolyne O’Connor (Kindergarten), are participating in a 2 year Mathematics Specialist certificate program for K-8 mathematics teachers. What’s new about this program? In contrast to the way Math was taught in the past, we are now teaching children in a more conceptual way. Instead of just learning rules and algorithms, math is now more about discovering strategies, learning from each other, and making our students’ thinking visible. Mathematics teaching starts as early as EC1 with the introduction to number sense and the categorization and comparison of objects and shapes. ese concepts pave the way for addition and subtraction and early algebraic thinking. e foundations laid in the Early Childhood and the Elementary School form the basis for students’ future Math careers. How does “Mathematical thinking” start in Kindergarten? Our Math Workshop starts each day with fluency games that enable students to achieve automaticity in counting and representing quantities. We follow with the new math concept we are working on. Teaching takes place through the exploration and sharing of ideas and strategies. Students work in partners on the carpet, and at tables in small groups to practice the new concept. One way we share our work is with the “Mathematician’s Chair”. At the end of every lesson some students sit in front of the class in the Mathematician’s Chair and share their work, usually displayed via a photo or video projection on the interactive whiteboard. Emphasis here is on making learning visible through Math Talks. e teacher steps back and instead serves as a moderator for the students’ responses. Students are able to ask questions, get clarification, and expand upon the work of their peers. is exercise is a chance to model and practice many key skills, such as respectful listening and questioning, acceptance of differing viewpoints, and, most importantly, talking about math.
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Morning Yoga By Mersedeh Cerasoli
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ach day, after the morning meeting in Kindergarten Green, we begin our Yoga and Mindfulness practice. Children find a quiet space standing on the carpet. Mouths are resting, bodies are moving in this 2-3 minute easy to follow awareness practice.
Children use simple self touch movements and stretching to acknowledge and wake up their bodies. Gentle tapping to the toes, sliding fingers up to reach knee caps, finding hip bones can be tricky, rolling shoulders release tension, and my favorite shampoo massage to the head! Each time children are asked to pause and notice how each part feels. By the end of the practice even eyebrows, lashes, ear lobes and lips are ready and awake! To calm the nervous system, children practice deep breathing through the nose and out through the mouth making a H "haaaaaaa" sound. Daily Practice of yoga brings enormous benefit to children: - Helps develop an ability to focus attention - Be more aware of themselves and others - Direct attention to "no thought" and on what is happening in "the Now" - Release tension stored in the body
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elementary school Community Dress Up By Jackie O’Farrell and Geraldine Tyrrell
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s. O’Farrell and Ms. Tyrrell’s Second Grade classes got together on two fun occasions this Fall by celebrating “Community Dress Up Day” and ‘Me Museum’ Day. On “Community Dress Up Day” they dressed up as one of their parent’s professions (police, teacher, nurse, doctor and more), and on “Me Museum Day” they brought in three items that were special to them to share with both classes. ese days provided an opportunity for students to interact and socialize while learning many interesting things about each other. ey became aware of interests and achievements that many of them have outside of school and got to know each other better. e day ended with a small party to celebrate together!
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Me Museum
Mia “ We did a ME MUSEUM to show our past and our lives. I brought a shell because I like surfing and finding different coloured shells and making sand castles.”
Leo C. “Hello to everybody. I liked the ME MUSEUM because a lot of people said that they liked the walkie talkies and I brought my favorite book of DINOSAURS.”
Gianluigi “On Friday we had a ME MUSEUM and we all brought three things. I brought a mini book of my star sign which is Capricorn and some photos of me and my family - they make me SO HAPPY.”
Luca D. B. “I brought in my holiday album from the summer. I visited LEGOLAND with my mum and Hamley’s Toy Store in England. In Ireland there are pictures of me and my friends in soccer camp.”
Francesco L. D. “ I brought soccer shoes, a Brazilian flag and a trophy. e soccer shoes are special because my granny gave them to me on my 6th birthday. e Brazilian flag is important because I am one quarter Brazilian. e trophy reminds me of when I came first in skiing.”
Georgia W. “My special items were a Disney Hat, marbles and a memory picture of my pre-school. It was a picture of my friends when we were in a little preschool in Napa. I love my Disney Hat.”
Paz “We had the museum because we wanted to know more about each other and have more friends in second grade. Lots of us brought shells because we all like going to the beach. My favorite beach is in Alicante.” Rena “I brought a family photo, I am Japanese and I speak Japanese and English and a little Italian. I enjoyed the ME MUSEUM because my friends saw my special things.”
Ginevra F. “I brought in my basil plant. I grew it at home and I love the smell. I also brought in pencils from around the world and a flower I made from tissue papers.” Tancredi T. “I brought in my soccer medal and my diving mask. With my mask it was the first time I saw a jelly fish when I was diving at a beach. I was six. I was s bit scared but excited too. I also brought my family photo behind a giant heart in Paris.” autumn - winter issue | 21
elementary school human rights social studies unit By Helen Davico
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s our Human Rights Social Studies unit comes to an end, we arranged for a guest speaker from the World Food Program to talk with the 5th grade about the goals of WFP and the impact the organization has around the world.
“I’m glad that she (Ms. Adele) came because now we all know how much help hungry people need. I hope that in the future everything will change and there will not be any more hunger or at least that there’s only a little but WFP will help deal with that.” - Laura H. R.
“Today we learned so many things from Ms. Adele. It was really interesting. Did you know that one out of nine people in the world are hungry? Unfortunately it’s like that. Hunger is caused by war, disease, floods, drought, and rising food prices. e number of people in the world (who suffer from hunger), is more than the populations of the USA and Europe together!!! e goal of WFP is ZERO HUNGER; ending hunger is possible and it’s everybody’s business.” - Valerio I. 22 | marymount
Elementary School Artwork
Grade 3 studied the dinosaur era
Grade 2 “Falling Leaves”
Grade 3 and 5 “Self-Portraits”
Grade 2 “Falling Leaves”
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elementary school
Roman Studies Project
Rome’s Fountains
By Kerry Girod-Fedha Photos: Maria Raftery
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he Roman Studies project is a way to have our students learn about and experience the wonderful city that they live in, to build community through a whole-school endeavor, and to give students memories that they can share with each other and their families.
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î “is year teachers chose to study Roman fountains. Each grade level therefore chose a fountain, especially one that that might tie in with another area of the grade level curriculum. Students studied the fountains (the design, history, material and more) and classes planned field trips to visit them in order to then present their work to other classes and give the students a chance to talk about their discoveries and work.
elementary school
Wizard of Oz Character Study By Jennifer Belcher
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or the past month and a half we have been doing a novel study on the book "e Wizard of Oz" written by Frank L. Baum. e purpose of this study was to learn about how characters change and develop over time. We looked a lot at each character and the challenges and experiences they went through. As a way to end this study we put on this performance for our fellow students and parents. As books and movies are different, we took some scenes from the book and some from the movie to develop the show. Getting to play the characters and act out their parts really allowed us to learn about our characters in a deeper way as we had to become them. - Students of 3B
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above: class photo, courtesy Jennifer Belcher
After school Italian Class
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ur Italian teacher, Mr. Charlie Zoffoli, holds an after school Italian class on Tuesdays and ursdays for 4th graders where they learn Italian Math, History, Geography and Science.
In one of their recent classes, students participated in an interdisciplinary project on volcanoes which integrated geography (by studying Italy’s principal volcanoes and how they work), science (by studying how volcanoes erupt effusively or explosively), and art (by actually constructing four volcanoes).
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middle school a performance for thought By Gina Ferrarin
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rade 7 Drama students created some short performances based on the refugee crisis in Syria. ey looked at the situation from the point of view of the children who were forced to flee their homes and used a poem written by a 12-year-old Refugee.
In my group I experienced many new things. We had time to think about the disasters that happen around the world. During the performance we expressed what happens in Syria. Many children in Syria don’t have the opportunities that we have but they always have a smile on their face. I wish that they could start their life as we start ours. - Giovanni S.
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is year in drama we have been working on more serious pieces of work. Our latest project was a devised piece of theatre based on a poem written by a girl our own age, who is a refugee from Syria. is poem helped me understand what it must be like to lose everything. Especially during our final performance, I felt like I could empathize with Reema (author of the poem). It made me care a little more about recent events, especially after what happened in Paris during our rehearsals. Even without any costumes or props, this just made it seem even more real. And lastly, we didn't even have to move, our performance was a series of still scenes, to really touch the audience. - Elisabeth K.
Middle School Field Trips
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s. De Paoli accompanied Grade 6 students to visit children’s hospital Bambin Gesu’s labs and research units on occasion of the“European week of Science”. ey got to see how the cell is made and explore DNA, two topics covered in their science program. Ms. Di Monte's Seconda Media Tecnologia class visited a Travertine quarry in Guidonia to see a “bancata” (the first phase of the extraction), and to learn the production process behind the creation of objects made with this material. “One of the most exciting moments was to see a great piece of Travertine as it fell...we were all left agape when we heard the great echo as the great milky-white mass came down.” - Beatrice M.
Ms. Agata Di Monte and Ms. Denise De Paoli took Terza Media and Maker class students to the Maker Faire at La Sapienza.
high school studying the stars By Denise De Paoli Photos: Denise De Paoli
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he Astronomy class have been busy this year space walking through the wonders of the universe and analyzing spacecraft design. ey started off the semester studying the spectra of the elements in space which involved colorful flame experiments in the Chemistry lab. e Astronomy students are currently participating in an international cross-curricular project with Highland High School in Utah, U.S.A., which involves engineering a Lander and a Rover out of recycled materials. Each school will post their spacecraft to each other via mail and test the success of their design at their own school.
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Guest Lecture Series
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iovanna Iorio’s Senior Class IB Italian Literature studied “Poeti in Carne e.... Ossi” (Poets in flesh and...Bones) this semester, which delved into Eugenio Montale’s work and contemporary poetry. She invited one guest speaker a month to lecture the class via Skype or in person, discussing also some of the guest speakers’ poems with the students. e following poets participated: Dr. Marco Sonzogni, Claudio Damiani, Bruno Galluccio, and Professor Franco Ricci from University of Montreal (Canada).
The Winter Oak Tree
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s. Fiona Marshall’s ninth grade Advanced English class wrote their own original epilogues to “e Winter Oak”, by Yuri Nagibin, which they studied this year. 7th grade students created the oak tree so that the stories could be “hung” from it branches. autumn - winter issue | 31
high school grade 9 and 10 artwork
Grades 9&10 Flowers; Landscape top right and Tree - Tiany T.; Landscape perpective - Natalia H.; Blue flower - Sarah P.; Landscape water - Isabella R.; Grades 9&10 - Geometrical Design; Face left - Sarah P.; Face right - Drusa C.; Still life Natalia H.; Basic design- 9&10: Coee - Martina I.; Dress - Stella C.; Skirt - Yini L.
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his semester, David Praveen’s “Basic Design Course” for 9th and 10th grades incorporates freestyle, technical skills and technology. e first two units of the course studied organic designs from natural form and geometric design with the use of architectural instruments. Students developed their own original design from scratch either by sketching a part of a plant observed in nature or by using geometric tools. From their original drawings, students then created their own pattern on paper and scanned it into a digital image, which they then transformed by using various apps, such as Photo Booth, that created interesting effects and patterns. e second part of the unit involved the use of Photoshop to transfer their original design onto a functional product they felt was the correct match for their design. e pictures of these products will be displayed at the end of the year in an exhibition. Other courses this semester included “Computer Art” featuring exercises in surrealism, photo montage, and a play of black & white elements contrasting with color elements, and “Drawing and Painting” featuring architectural drawings and watercolor landscapes drawing inspiration from Georgia O’Keefe and Robert Delauney. autumn - winter issue | 33
IB
International Baccalaureate By Lucy Alexander
Update
Photo: Pasquale Zinzi
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he International Baccalaureate Diploma is a dynamic and rigorous educational program offered at Marymount since 1985. e following brief ‘IB Update’ provides a glimpse into the recent hard work, and academic achievements of Marymount’s IB students, and teachers, and some of the plans we have in the works for Second Semester. is academic year Marymount has a total of 91 students enrolled in the full IB Diploma or individual IB courses. e range of subjects offered remains high with 54 different courses available to students. is includes three or more subjects in each of the six IB groups (First Language, Second Language, Social Sciences, Experimental Sciences, Mathematics, and e Arts) with almost all courses offered at both higher and standard levels. e rigor of the IB program has been keeping the students busy. Seniors have already finished a number of ‘IB milestones’, such as the 4,000-word independent research project called the Extended Essay, and they are currently preparing for the remaining final assessment components. ese include audio taped, language oral examinations; scientific laboratory portfolios; an essay and oral presentation in a course called eory of Knowledge; and a CAS project, which requires them to engage in, and reflect upon, their participation in a variety of Creative, Action and Service activities. In late November a pizza lunch was held for the seniors to celebrate their academic milestones to date. For students in Grade 11, the first semester of IB courses are reaching an end and plans are underway for more exposure to the IB ‘Core’ in the second semester. In January, all juniors will take part in an Extended Essay seminar and in April, those working towards the IB Diploma will give individualized Extended Essay ‘Work in Progress’ presentations to their classmates. Also in the New Year, the current Grade 10 class will begin steps to transition into Grade 11. In February there will be meetings with Grade 10 students and with Grade 10 parents to discuss registration options for the following year. In March, Mrs. Alexander will meet individually with each Grade 10 student to discuss his/her course choices.
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Mr. McAndrews, the school’s college counselor and CAS coordinator, is often involved in these meetings and parents are welcome to attend as well. In order to keep our IB program on the cutting edge of trends in international education the IB Coordinator, Mrs. Lucy Alexander, attended the “Educating for Life” IB Regional Conference in e Hague in late October. Contemporaneously, Maria Castelluccio attended the IB “Shaping the World” Heads Conference. Keynote speakers included world-renowned educational researchers including Peter Senge (senior lecturer at MIT and best selling author of Fifth Discipline: e Art and Practice of Learning) and David Perkins (research professor at Harvard Graduate School of Education and founding member of Project Zero). In addition, six IB teachers attended IB workshops this semester to keep abreast of changes in the IB Program, and two more IB teachers have become IB Examiners. is means that over a third of Marymount’s teachers are now also IB examiners or workshop leaders (these include: Mr. David, Dr. D’Ezio, Mr. Iannone, Mrs. Iorio, Dr. Letendre, Ms. Rosato, and Mr. Sbardella). Finally, Marymount’s 5-year evaluation of its IB program, the “IB Self Study”, is well under way. Several special meetings have been held with representatives of the parents, students, administration and teachers to evaluate the school’s strengths and identify areas in needs of further development. e final report and 5-Year Action Plan will be submitted to the IBO in March 2016. In short, the IB program remains a strong, vibrant element of the school’s secondary school education. For further information or updates on Marymount’s IB program we invite you to visit our webpage or drop by Mrs. Alexander’s office in the Secondary School building at school. autumn - winter issue | 35
varsity sports
Cross Country Season Roundup By Denise De Paoli Photos: Denise De Paoli
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am the new and proud coach of the Varsity Cross Country team, a team where all six DoDDS European Championship competitors achieved their personal best to earn their place on the team. When I first heard their resonating war cries at our first meet, I knew that this team would be a sure contender at the European championships. is team runs together with heart, sportsmanship and sheer grunt because they have been together for many years and they have established an unorthodox weekly training regime. It comprises of interval training against the angry cinghiali which builds agility and speed, obstacle training through overgrown spikey blackberry bushes to build pain resistance, and hill repeats dodging passersby on the busy school driveway for building spatial awareness. All six European Championship competitors continued to improve their times each week. Riccardo used his speed and experience as an advantage, Ruben had determination and a consistent pace, Umberto hungered to chase his competitors down, Lorenzo used his speed at crucial points of the course to surprise competitors, Roberto had long strides that favoured downhill running to gain ground, and Simone finished strong and never stopped until the job was done. Riccardo, Ruben and Simone are in their final year at school so these championships were very sentimental. ey were outstanding role models for the team and have paved the way for the junior runners to be the best competitors they can be regardless of where they finish. All of the team’s runners worked hard this season and include the championship team as well as Salina, Rachel, Paz, Eiade, Tshiamo, Francesca and Giulio. Congrats, team, for a great year!
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Tennis By Marco Mascioli Photos: Various
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his year, once again, marked an important year for Varsity tennis! Our team won 1st place in Division II and III at the DoDDS European Championships in Wiesbaden, Germany, and the competitors came in 2nd place with boys double (Matteo B.- Mathias M.) and 4th in girls single (Isabella S.). e girls double (Julia H.- Elena V.) won 2 games at the championships and played very well. e rest of the team formed by Amedeo D. - Germano P., boys 2nd double, and Kazuki M., 1st boys single, did an excellent job during the season, showing huge progress and dedication, but did not qualify for the championship tournament. e ROYALS were simply great at the championship tournament! ey did something amazing, performing against DODDs Europe's best players, and showed a very high tennis level but first and foremost, fantastic mental condition. eir hard work, commitment and passion throughout the regular season prepared them for the championships and their results confirmed it! e aspect I want to underline most for the entire team is their good behavior and manners throughout the entire season, at home and when travelling, and I was very proud to be their coach! Last but not least....we had so much fun and I think that’s the secret to our success! ROYALS Forever! Congratulations to Francesco M. (Grade 10) who won the Italian Team Race Championship (June) and the National Championship title (September) in the 2015 O’Pen Bic sailing class Championships. He won the Italian ranking list of the 2015 Championship based on the results of all the 36 sailing matches he took part in 2015!
Girls Volleyball By Demetrius Laffitte Photos: Various
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t was a pleasure to be the coach for the Lady Royals Varsity volleyball team. Although this was my first year serving as the head coach, I noticed right away that the success of our season would not be determined by how many matches we won but more on individual development, teamwork and the enjoyment of playing the game of volleyball. I am proud to say the girls achieved this, and it was very obvious when you watched the team play with such spirit! Each match, the girls played hard and this made most matches very competitive. Although the end results of most matches did not result in a win, the team fought hard and played with great passion. anks to great efforts on behalf of our team captains Giulia G. and Gaia B. and the rest of the players on the team: Catie, Giorgia, Giulia S., Sofia D., Carolina, Belinda, Sophie, Chiara, Natalia, Arna, Carla, Isabelle, Tiffany, Sofia V. e team played in a highly competitive region of the DODDs league during regular season with competitor Sigonella finishing, post season, in the European Championship Tournament as the Division III European Champions and Vicenza as the Division I 2nd place team. Season highlights: 5 set thriller win against Florence International Catie C. was selected to the All-Region Team and the European All Star Team! Go, Fight, Win… Lady Royals!
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Boys Volleyball By Gilberto Gangarossa Photos: Various
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n just two and a half months we covered over 3,000 kilometres, played 16 games, trained under the hot sun (and in the drizzling rain) faced broken bones and pulled muscles and - thanks to great spirit and hard work increased our overall standing in the DoDDS League from last to almost first place. In short, the Boys Varsity Volleyball Team had an action packed season. At the beginning of the sports season the team struggled to find the minimum number of players to put together a team but before long we had a full cohort of 11 dedicated boys and by the time we left for the European Championships in Aviano we had won 70% of our games. î “e key match in the Championship Tournament was the semi-final game where the gymnasium was cheering on Marymount to win. In the final match for the first place title our team showed character, sportsmanship and strength in the face of an undefeated competitor. î “ey boys were excellent ambassadors for Marymount and left the European championships with a respectable 2nd place victory. Two of our players, Giovanni A. and Lotanna M. were named to both the All-Tournament and All-Region teams. Special thanks to Karen Valentini for all her support and to all the volleyball boys: Giovanni, Lolo, Jean-Luc, Marco, Adriano, Diego, Nizar, Alex, Isaac, Alex, Majd and a special thanks to our manager, Arwa. It was great working with you all!
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performing arts
DNA By Gina Ferrarin
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he High school drama group, e Marymount Players, performed "DNA", a very recent and modern play by the author of the hit musical Matilda, Dennis Kelly. is play, which was first staged in 2007 at the National eatre, is about a group of 15-year-olds who accidentally kill one of their classmates. When they realize the terrible mistake they’ve made, they try to cover up the crime, but inadvertently implicate an innocent man in the process. At each moment when they could come clean, the group instead weave a darker, more complex web of lies. rough its portrayal of a particularly disaffected and alienated teenage-orientated view of the ‘modern’ world, DNA deals with a whole host of contemporary issues. e teenagers within the play are forced to examine their relationships with their peers and confront issues of belonging, status and friendship in often uncomfortable and uneasy situations. A lack of communication with the world outside the friendship group leads the characters to make choices without considering the consequences. " Dennis Kelly's short, sharp shocker of a play cleverly piles on the twists, as guilt and madness work their poison on group dynamics…is is a jet-black comedy that lays bare the way that self-interest, peer pressure and an inability to really connect and empathise with others leads to a creeping corruption, as the kids become more and more determined to get away with murder.” Lyn Gardner, e Guardian, 2012.
is year’s group of performers includes: Azzurra M., Alya J., Paola F., Lorenzo B., Sarah P., Umberto G., Ellie P., Paz C., Oceane B., Dubem M. and Spela K. DNA’s music was created by Noah McGuire (a Marymount Alum) and during the interval his single “You made me”, by Sleeping Lion, played for all to enjoy.
Photos above left and right by Shariar Hossain
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faculty news
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arymount’s Head of Italian Department Giovanna Iorio’s new collection of poems called “Fragments of a Profile” (Frammenti di un Profilo) was published by Pellicano in October.
Se non avessi avuto il seno Vi avrei nutrito con la rugiada Vi avrei poggiato sulle labbra Il verde di una foglia Ma il latte è bianco Per una ragione a noi sconosciuta Al suo candore affidiamo Il pianto nella culla.
If I had not had breasts I would have nurtured you with dew I would have rested against your lips e green of a leaf But the milk is white For a reason to us unknown To its candor we entrust e cries in the cradle.
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nglish Literature and eory of Knowledge teacher, Dr. Marianna D’Ezio, has had her essay on Ann Radcliffe published in a special issue of Taylor and Francis’ academic journal: "Women's Writing" 22:3 (2015).
An excerpt from Dr. D’Ezio’s essay: “AS LIKE AS PEPPERMINT WATER IS TO GOOD FRENCH BRANDY”: ANN RADCLIFFE AND HESTER LYNCH SALUSBURY (THRALE) PIOZZI Although Ann Radcliffe never travelled to the “warm South”, most of her novels feature Italy and its landscape as their principal setting. Indeed, not having participated in the “magic procession” of the grand tour did not prevent her from depicting an extremely romantic and sensory version of Italian scenery and characters. Writers such as Hester Lynch rale Piozzi, a pioneer of women writers’ versions of the grand tour narrative, who penned her own Observations and Reflections (1789) as a travel book and not as a collection of letters or journals, provided Radcliffe’s novels with descriptions of Italy which she took almost word forword from Piozzi. eir appreciation was mutual. An indefatigable conversationalist and diary writer, Piozzi’s favourite topic of conversation—literature— included a discussion on Radcliffe’s novels in her correspondence with her friend Penelope Pennington. In turn, Radcliffe deliberately decided to borrow her primary materials for e Mysteries of Udolpho (1794) from Piozzi’s innovative narrative, precisely - as this essay aims to demonstrate—to support Piozzi’s personal experience as a social and literary outcast from London society, as well as celebrate her eccentric personality and her groundbreaking contribution to the literature of the grand tour.
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seniors
Senior Hoodies An interview with Arwa G. (12th grade ), President of the Zambia Committee, on the meaning of the hooded sweatshirts the Senior Class gave their teachers this year. When did this tradition begin and how are they made? “I don’t know precisely when the tradition began, but it has been going on for a good 20 years. ey used to be made with Marymount’s colors, simply writing the word “seniors” on them, and it slowly developed into what we have today: sweatshirts nicknames, classmates and slogans. Student nicknames are actually harder to choose than teacher ones. e tradition is that your friends choose your nickname, and it should be a surprise...this year we’ve changed things a little. We kept the idea of your friends choosing your nickname, but you were still able to change it if you wanted to. Every year the 12th grade organizes them in different ways. is year it was both a group and individual effort. I made sure that we had a list of nicknames completed by a certain date with the right sizes. As a class we collaborated with Mrs. Daniela Acampora, PTO President, in order to have them made. How are the nicknames for each teacher’s sweathsirt chosen and when are they supposed to be worn? We have been the first year to give our teachers sweatshirts - we decided that it would have been a nice gesture to thank them by making some for them. Each nickname is associated with the teacher in various ways. It could be something that they repeat constantly, or a gesture that they do. We decided to give one to every IB teacher we have, and we also wanted to include the head of department, because they do a lot of us, and we thought it was really nice to do so. ese sweatshirts are a memory of our days at Marymount, they aren’t suppose to be worn on any special occasion, they are a gift to our teachers to show our appreciation to them, and that even if we don’t always show it, we are thankful to have them as our teachers. Ms. Panta = Ms. Pantani Ms. Rosi = Ms. Rosato How do you know? = Ms. D’ezio Ms. fifi Jones = Ms. Letendre Miss deadlines = Alexander Has Bebido? = Ms. Romano Vivi Minga = Ms. Mingazzini Ms. Shera = Ms. Sherrer CEO = Ms. Castelluccio Jane Eyre = Ms. Iorio Ms. H = Ms. Hardin Mr. Prav = Mr. David
Southwell = Mr. Southwell Queen Dani = Mrs. Daniela Acampora Mr. C = Mr. Cestari Mr. (I) fumato? = Mr. Iannone intellectual = Mr. Zinzi e Boss = Mr. Romano Dr. Wilbo = Mr. Wilberding Sbardy = Mr. Sbardella Mr. G = Mr. Roland Mr. Jokes = Mr. McAndrews Principal Pink = Ms. Pinkerton Ms. Haring = Ms. Haring
Gina = Ms. Ferrarin Ms. KK = Ms. Valentini
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milano expo trip By Viviane Mingazzini Photos: Various
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xpo 2015 in Milan was a thrilling round-the world trip brimming with surprises. Every pavilion offered a journey through culture, colors and traditions of its people and a reflection on the theme of food access, quality and sustainability. Our IB students did not miss this incredible experience and were among the 200.000 visitors present on September 11th. All started in a French B class at the end of April when the core topic GLOBAL ISSUES was discussed and students made their own brochure of the French pavilion… a few days after they knew that EXPO would be indelibly engraved in their memories and …IB forms! eir first INTERACTIVE oral exam would be based on their visit… and during the tour of the Irish, UK, US, French, Spanish and Italian pavilions all students were fully engaged filming their interviews with guides or taking pictures trying to capture the unmissable for their participation in the MMI photo contest which took place the week after the overnight trip. But also laughing, tasting, walking and waiting … until midnight…when after the lullabye of the Tree of life show, we all collapsed in our beds. Another moment of great excitement and surprise was when on the third floor of Palazzo Italia we recognized the video produced by MMI Elementary students on one of the screens on biodiversity. e day after EXPO we visited the Triennale, a great art exhibition on food in art, as well as the dynamic city of Milan. is was a great educational experience with some hilarious and memorable moments to open the year and keep us united in spirit and welcome the new students. e photo contest on September 22nd was a great expression of visual art and language: besides Giulio S. who won the first prize for his Spanish « Aceite » many others deserved a special mention and their photos were displayed in the Media center which hosted the exhibition for one week. e jury was truly impressed by the artistic value of some of the pictures, and was chaired by Mr. Zinzi and composed by Ms. Hocker, Ms. Hardin, Ms. Rosato, Ms. Romano and Dr. Letendre. ank you grade 11 and 12 students for being phenomenal ambassadors and for inspiring us: we are getting ready for Kazakistan 2017…
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autumn - winter issue | 45
world peace day
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orld Peace Day was celebrated in September with the creation of a peace sign composed of Marymount’s entire student and faculty body. Prayers and songs accompanied this wonderful school-wide celebration and posed an opportunity for reflection on this timely issue. is special day is dedicated to world peace, and specifically the absence of war and violence. It was first celebrated in 1982 and has since become linked to peace education, the key preventive means to reduce war sustainably. Furthermore, Marymount hosted the Schools' International Peace Quilt, created on occasion of the 2012 Olympics and which has been traveling the world since then. e quilt includes two drawings by former MMI students representing the countries of Italy and Liechtenstein.
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founder’s day
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arymount celebrated its sixty-ninth anniversary on Friday October 16th. Over 100 persons attended the cocktail party, including local alumni, parents, faculty and staff. Speakers included two students: 12th grader Paola F. and 4th grader Federico K., and Sr. Joanne Safian, RSHM.
Guest speaker Mattia Barina (’12) said that the celebration was “an occasion to remember our school’s history, and appreciate how each of our individual stories has been touched, in some way, by this same history... that for sixty-nine years, Marymount has contributed to the academic and personal development of its students, who have been encouraged to think critically and reason creatively, communicate effectively and learn continuously... that it creates a vibrant culture where classmates have the unique opportunity to foster life-long relationships with other people around the world, and understand from an early age that diversity is a precious characteristic that should be encouraged, rather than an inconvenient obstacle that must be overcome.” Marymount embraces this diversity, and builds its community around it, creating an environment of religious, ethnic and cultural harmony. is is why our school, since its first class of 30 students in 1946, has educated thousands up to this day; this is why alumni regularly come visit the school even when most of their own teachers and peers have long left; and this is why once they become parents, these same alumni send their children back to Marymount.” autumn - winter issue | 47
pto events
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arymount wouldn’t be Marymount without its wonderful Parent-Teacher Organization! e first half of the school year has already been filled with exceptional events bringing us all together, including an Ice Cream Social, Welcome Coffee, Sports Day, several BBQs, Bake Sales, and an exceptional Halloween Party and anksgiving Breakfast for faculty and staff. e PTO continues to be an extraordinary group, whose energy and dedication help the school build an ever-stronger community making it an even better environment for its students. Let’s take a look....
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alumni news Kristinn Pálsson Kristinn Pálsson (’15) started at Marist College, NY, in September, where he is studying Business Administration and playing Division I Basketball. He was recruited over the summer with a full scholarship and is very happy studying and training hard for the start of the basketball season on November 13th. In his own words about his college experience so far: “the best moments are probably that I’ve already met a whole lot of new people that could even become lifelong friends.”
Alberto Rizzoli Alberto Rizzoli ('11) together with two co-founders, invented an App called "Aipoly" which allows a user to take a picture and successively receive vocal feedback on what it is they photographed. A groundbreaking invention that will aid millions of vision-impaired persons around the world! e App will be released by the end of the year with a new technology that sees and understands in 0.3 seconds.
“You are looking at a man in a white-collared shirt with hand forward, smiling”.
Alumni Career Networking Event Marymount hosted a Career Networking Event in October for local alumni and interested 11th and 12 graders on the topic of “Film and Media”, which took place in the Villa. e initiative was spearheaded by Claudia del Papa (‘83) and four other Alumna: Mary Alessi (’80), Lucilla Trucillo (’06), Hiroko Yabumoto (’85) and Veronica Crociani (’06), who decided to come together and form a Marymount “Alumni Career Networking Committee” in order to organize this event. Two eminent guest speakers, Ms. Barbara Boncompagni (’81), a television program author for RAI and SKY who has authored programs such as “Cuochi e Fiamme”, “Junior Master Chef ” and “Xfactor”, and Mr. Gabriele Muccino, award-winning film director and writer, who gained success with movies such as “L'ultimo bacio” and “Ricordati di me”, answered questions posed by Claudia del Papa on their chosen profession and gave helpful advice for those considering to pursue a career in this field. Guests then enjoyed reconnecting over a light aperitif. is was the first of other events of this type to follow, in the hopes of becoming a valuable asset in promoting career awareness among our alumni and current 11th and 12th graders as well as developing even further the strong sense of community that Marymount offers its alumni.
Clockwise from top left: Claudia del Papa introduces Mr. Gabriele Muccino; the Alumni Career Networking Event Committee together with Marymount alumna and actress, Pilar Abella; Claudia del Papa together with Ms. Barbara Boncompagni.
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ggg Loving, Learning, Leading By: Kristen O. November 6, 2015 ROME – Travelling back in time to Ancient Rome, simulating the life of a homeless person, and meeting our brothers and sisters from abroad; from the 4th October to the 7th October, eight Marymount Rome students were selected to attend the annual Leadership Conference, which was held in Rome. is conference involved four RSHM schools: Marymount International School of Rome (Villa), Instituto Marymount Nomentana, Marymount Paris and Marymount London. A few selected students from each of the schools joined to learn about leadership skills and how we put them to use in our own Marymount. On Monday, the many Marymount schools got together in a conference room and discussed issues in the world or just in our schools; we had to pick a problem and think of ways to solve them. Afterwards, we went on tours with the Nomentana School, where they explained the history of Ancient Rome, after their tour, the Marymount Villa students went to the rooms of St. Ignatius of Loyola. Towards the end of the day, each student had some time to reflect on the day and answer some questions of the idea of friendship. Afterwards, we went into our school groups and talked about friendship in the school, discussing some pros and cons of our own school community. On Tuesday, the 6th, we started off the day by playing a little game, we had to pretend to be homeless. We simulated a few months in the life of a homeless person. e teachers pretended to be different stations a homeless person would go to, to find a job and a way to live in general, for example, welfare center, employment office, grocery store, recycling center and more. Each month, we had to find a job, a place to sleep and food to eat, in order to survive. It was hard for many of us to even get one of those things. To get a job, you have to have an address, but to have a house, you would need money. All of the students thought it would be easier, but it really wasn’t. By the end of the game, we realized just how hard it is to be a homeless person; some people were able to be “alive”, but a lot of people weren’t. In this game we learned the struggles, a homeless person would go to, and our simulation of a few months in their lives, was still nothing compared to what they actually go through. e reason we played this game was because later on that day, we went to do service for homeless people, or refugees. Some students went to the soup kitchen for homeless people and others went to a refugee shelter. On the very last day of the Leadership Conference, the students got the chance to attend a General Audience with Pope Francis. e audience started at around ten o’clock and everyone was so excited to be able to see the Pope in person. During the audience, there were prayers being read in many different languages and at the end, everyone read an “Our Father” in Latin. After the Papal audience, we went on a stroll around Rome, spending time with our friends, before they left for the airport. It was a very emotional day because the students had to say goodbye to the people they have become friends with in the past few days, but it was also a great day because, when we got back to our schools we were able to start applying what we learned in this conference. is conference was an amazing experience for all the students, and it was a great way to explore leadership qualities of our founders and saints, but most of all in Jesus and God himself. We all searched inside ourselves and let out all of the hidden talents we had, applying them throughout the four days we were together. We also hope we get a chance to apply them in our lives.
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from... The Royal Liar Varsity Team By: Isabella R November 6, 2015 Joining the girls’ volleyball varsity team was for sure a great decision. When I decided to join I never thought it would turn out to be such a challenging yet so stimulating experience, both physically and mentally. Regular practice, daily from Monday to ursday, is strenuous but proves to be very rewarding. During these practices not only do we exercise to better our techniques and improve our physical skills, but also most importantly we strengthen our team’s bond. In fact, one big characteristic of our varsity team is the strong team spirit, which all of us have acquired. e opportunity to build a friendship with people with whom we probably wouldn’t have had the possibility to acquaint in everyday school life is a great aspect of joining a varsity team. Our team union leads us to always be willing and ready to help and encourage each other in difficult moments. Our coach, D. Lafitte, ensures our performance as a team providing us with challenging practices to train our improving team. He also strongly motivates us at each game, reminding us to focus, be ready, do our best and have fun. Our team captains, seniors Gaia Breccia and Giulia Gidoni also contribute to the motivation of our team, encouraging each member and behaving as strong leaders, strengthening our team through unity and encouragement. e team is composed 16 of girls from all grades, from freshmen to seniors, balancing the team with girls with more experience and girls with less, who all equally strive to achieve better results. For our games, we have the opportunity to travel to different cities to meet our opponents: until now we have traveled to Naples, Aviano and Florence, which all took us several hours of travel by bus. We also played two games at home, at Stella Azzura. In Naples and Aviano we had the chance to stay inside a military base, which is usually hardly accessible, this was a new experience for a lot of team members and we were all surprised by how incredible it was being in Italy and feeling like being in the US, because everything in the base is typically American, from the school to the fast-foods. When we travel, we sleep in a classroom, pushing the desks to the side and setting up all of our matresses to sleep and rest before our next game. Even though the girls’ team lost many games – most of the times being close to victory from only a few points, our constant improvement is demonstrated by the game we won against Florence (3-2) at Stella Azzurra in Rome on the third week of varsity! On the other hand, the boy’s team has not yet been defeated this season, and hopefully never will, as they have won every game! Now, our aim is to keep improving and give our best to beat our next opponents, and I can say for sure that I am very glad to have tried out for varsity at the beginning of the year: I advise everyone who loves or wants to further their knowledge on the different sports every season to give it a try.
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MARYMOUNT
INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL ROME Marymount International School Rome is a private, Catholic, co-educational day school where each student is valued and nurtured. We offer a challenging Pre-K through 12 American curriculum, the IB diploma program, a variety of extracurricular activities, and a vibrant community life that enriches our beautiful 40-acre campus in northern Rome.
Via di Villa Lauchli, 180 00191 Rome, Italy (+39) 06 362 9101 (+39) 06 36 30 17 (Fax) marymount@marymountrome.org
www.marymountrome.org