Maypoll2012-2013Issue1

MAYPOLL 2012 - 2013 | I S S U E O N E

MAYFIELD JUNIOR SCHOOL OF THE HOLY CHILD JESUS

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Inspiring Innovation: 4Cs Institute

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Our Heritage: Holy Child Road Trip

Innovator’s Challenge

Goals for Schools of the Holy Child

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Goal 1

Holy Child Schools foster a faith commitment that engenders a joyous personal relationship with God in addressing the challenges of the world.

Goal 2

Holy Child Schools live, learn, and worship as a dynamic Christian community.

Goal 3

Holy Child Schools offer an intellectually challenging and creative program of study that develops a love of learning and academic excellence.

Goal 4

Holy Child Schools work for Christian principles of justice, peace, and compassion in every facet of life.

Goal 5

Holy Child Schools create a learning climate based on trust and reverence for the dignity and uniqueness of each person.

Goal 6

Holy Child Schools promote the personal growth and development of all who participate in the life of the school.

Goal 7

Holy Child Schools ensure the continuation and growth of Holy Child mission and philosophy in the school.

MAYFIELD JUNIOR SCHOOL OF THE HOLY CHILD JESUS

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2012 - 2013

Hearts and Minds

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Around Campus

Alumni Giving Back

Our Mission

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4Cs Institute page 5

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Innovator’s Challenge page 11

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Our Heritage page 16

by the Society of the Holy Child Jesus, implements the philosophy of the Holy

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Around Campus page 20

Child Schools which is based on trust and reverence for the dignity of every person.

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Hearts and Minds page 22

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Perspectives page 26

of diverse backgrounds. At Mayfield each child is challenged to reach his or her

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Alumni Giving Back page 30

potential. We encourage our students to respond to the needs of our time with

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Alumni News page 38

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Mustang Sports page 44

Mayfield Junior School, a Catholic independent school founded and sponsored

We are committed to the religious and educational development of each child and to maintaining a sense of community and family spirit that welcomes people

compassion, integrity and confidence in God and in their own gifts.

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From the Headmaster

This year, with clear intention, we have felt the surge associated with advancing the great educational experience our students enjoy here at Mayfield Junior School.

In keeping with what Mother Cornelia called; “meeting the wants of the age,” we carefully and enthusiastically pushed forward to integrate more contemporary teaching and learning strategies aimed at helping our students find greater success both in and out of the classroom.

Our goal continues to be providing students with lessons and experiences that will effectively support them as they move through life. Our faculty and administration, with the essential partnership with our parents, have taken a significant step forward to better serve the children as they navigate the complicated and performance-based world around them.

We have all heard the discussions on topics such as the flipped classroom, integrated learning and project-based curriculum. The variables available in modern teaching are endless and constantly shifting. A day doesn’t go by without hearing about the next great theory on student achievement or strategy for advancing a child to the front of the pack. The education landscape is littered with scientific studies, contentious debates and intellectual theories that claim to establish for us what is the best model for helping our children learn and grow.

In the midst of all this, we at Mayfield Junior School remain steadfast to identifying those practices and improvements that best serve our students in the classroom, while holding on to our primary responsibility of raising young people in the image of God. It appears that, in this fast changing and instant response world, the rush to success and achievement is found at the cost of strengthening the moral fabric of a child. We recognize that prioritizing one over the other, glory without God, is not a suitable roadmap for our children’s future. Finding happiness and success is a complicated journey, and we as educators need to consider, search and apply actions that aid this endeavor for those in our care.

Our Holy Child roots are deep and the obligation to each child is ever present. We can never become complacent in this effort to provide the absolute best Catholic education within a dynamic, challenging and balanced independent school program. Mayfield Junior School has a legacy of excellence, and we diligently do the necessary work to continue that tradition.

Teaching and learning may look and sound a bit different today than it did generations ago, but it is still built upon our dedicated work to give hope to our children.

Blessings, Joseph J. Gill

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inspiring innovation 4Cs Institute creativity collaboration communication critical thinking “Our goal with the 4Cs Institute was to give our teachers an expanded toolbox and wider range of strategies that would help them develop vital skills such as creativity and critical thinking in their students.�

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Inspiring Innovation: Mayfield Junior School’s 4Cs Institute Can inspiration lead to innovation?

This past summer Mayfield Junior School administrators set out to inspire innovation in education by bringing the 4Cs: creativity, collaboration, communication and critical thinking directly to the hearts and minds of their teachers in a weeklong intensive program called the 4Cs Institute.

Organized and facilitated by Mayfield’s administration team, the 4Cs Institute brought the entire faculty together in late August for an interactive agenda focused on nurturing out-of-the-box thinking in teaching across disciplines and divisions. An essential question addressed throughout the Institute was, ‘What updates should be made to our current practice to reflect the changing world and today’s learners?’

“Education is in such an exciting transition right now as we examine what a 21st century learner needs to be successful,” Lower School Director Laura Kennedy explained. “Our goal with the 4Cs Institute was to give our teachers an expanded toolbox and wider range of strategies that would help them develop vital skills such as creativity and critical thinking in their students.”

The Institute offered inspiration in many ways; there was time for teachers to collaborate with colleagues, explore creative outlets, laugh, think, plan, learn from outside experts and, perhaps most importantly, reflect on how best to encourage in their students the skills they need for today and tomorrow in this rapidly changing world.

Kicking off the Institute as keynote speaker was Kim Bearden, co-founder of the Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta, Georgia. Kim is a passionate educator with a wealth of experience and innovative ideas, and she shared many success stories from her school. Most began with transforming the learning environment or involving students in movement or musical activities to engage the brain. It was a wonderful presentation that provided teachers at all grade levels with ideas for every discipline.

Other presentations made throughout the week included a full day with a trainer from Kagan Cooperative Learning that had teachers quizzing each other and playing freeze tag, and sessions focused on the attributes of today’s learners, conflict resolution and project-based learning.

One afternoon was set aside for a workshop called “Teachers Get Creative” in which teachers led teachers in classes such as sewing, drawing, dance and even Robotics.

Another afternoon took teachers on a walking field study and scavenger hunt that highlighted historical landmarks and architecture in Pasadena, and illustrated the value of local resources in building important connections in learning. Additionally, assigned summer reading that specifically addressed evolving ideas in education such as “Out of Our Minds: Learning to be Creative” by Sir Ken Robinson and “A Whole New Mind: Why Right Brainers Will Rule the Future” by Daniel H. Pink, served as a starting point for several break out discussion sessions included in the schedule.

Between listening to inspiring speakers and participating in diverse activities that included group discussion, role-playing, practicing alternative methods of learning reinforcement, and a viewing of “World Peace and other 4th Grade Achievements,” a film featuring awardwinning teacher John Hunter, teachers finished the Institute with the tools and strategies to help them in the classroom, plus a new perspective and a renewed appreciation for the power of collaboration.

While the Institute provided the information, an Innovator’s Challenge, presented to teachers at the end of the week, provided the motivation. The Challenge, inspired by similar programs at other independent schools and modified for Mayfield’s needs, asked teachers to consider global perspective, student voice and choice, technology and media, and real world content when formulating a plan to grow their curriculum in a significant way. Examples of upgrades both in teaching skills and assessment were shared as well as information on upgrade challenges other schools had completed with great success. “We made it clear the challenge was an opportunity,” Middle School Director Bridget Kelley-Lossada explained. “ We hope every teacher took the skills and inspiration the Institute offered to make bold innovative changes in what and how they teach.”

To fully participate in the Innovator’s Challenge, teachers were asked to submit a written proposal with details on their upgrades. Proposals required the following criteria: collaboration with 2 - 4 colleagues, real-life application of skills, student connection/interaction with individuals outside of the MJS community using 21st century resources, a result or purpose useful or visible to a real audience, and a presentation to an outside panel associated with the topic or subject matter.

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Today evidence is everywhere that the momentum, begun in August for innovation in learning, continues.

Teachers across divisions and departments are collaborating more than ever, and the energy level in the hallways seems almost tangible. In sixth grade, history and drama teachers incorporated music and interpretive movement to reinforce a unit on the evolution of man, and music and drama teachers collaborated with religion teachers to make the student experience in performing the live Stations of the Cross more meaningful and alive.

Second grade teachers are using field studies, classroom transformation and an enhanced blend of science and history (even a Reach Out opportunity for a local homeless shelter) to increase connections and retention in their Read Across America curriculum, Lower School science

teachers revamped a third grade habitat unit into an “Outdoor Habitat Design Challenge,” and seventh grade teachers have turned a unit on the Mayan civilization, and the theory that water issues hastened its collapse, into a full scale water research and awareness campaign that integrates history, math, religion and science.

As the Innovator’s Challenge continues through the year there is more to come. From “mindfulness” exercises at the start of class to daily cooperative learning activities and other multi-dimensional projects under development, the enthusiasm for renewed innovation inspired during the 4Cs Institute is strong and nurtured daily. Can inspiration lead to innovation? To a group of vibrant educators, the answer is yes - in more ways than one.

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Innovator’s Challenge Teachers love a challenge, especially one that has the potential to benefit their students.

On the pages that follow we’ve profiled just three of many new projects and upgrades that took the Innovator’s Challenge to heart, and in doing so engaged and energized our community of learning.

Catalyst for Change: 7th Grade Water Project They’ve done the research, graphed the numbers, analyzed the data and even presented to the Board of Trustees. Now the 7th grade is ready to share their knowledge and spread awareness throughout the student body.

The message? Our water is precious and every drop counts.

Developed by middle school teachers, Nicole Sanders, Juan Garcia, Pamela Danni and Melissa White as an integrated learning experience involving history, math, science and social justice/responsibility issues, the 7th Grade Water Project began as students studied the Mayan culture and explored the role water issues played in its demise. A connection made between our own water issues today challenged the students to take a closer look at water usage and safety in our Mayfield community.

Five teams of students were organized to gather as much information as possible while chronicling their findings in detailed blog posts. A Challenge Discovery team researched the water limitations in developing countries.

Each team member chose a country, committed to living five days with those same restrictions, and noted not only their successes and failures, but how the water limitations changed their daily lives. The Data Analysis team reviewed water bills, both those of the school and volunteer 7th grade families, to assess consumption and compare with historical data from ten years ago. A Tap Water Testing team took water samples from all drinking water sources on campus to analyze for both toxins and taste, and then compared their findings to the Federal government’s safe level ratings. The fifth team, the World Water Use team specifically studied pressing issues such as shortages, drought, delivery and treatment methods. They zeroed in on Mayfield’s usage and researched ways to reduce waste and long-term costs.

What did they learn? Almost any 7th grader can concisely explain any of the data uncovered in the research phase: how access to water is critical to the survival of any culture and civilization, how today our society takes easily accessible, clean water for granted, and how we should make better choices in how we provide water on campus.

The integrated learning experience developed research skills, encouraged critical thinking, reinforced math skills, supported lessons in compassion and social responsibility, and provided good training in public speaking and formal presentation. What also evolved out of this exercise was a new appreciation of teamwork and shared mission.

Working together with common goals created an incredible dynamic within the class and gave each student the opportunity to contribute. They considered the data, debated, strategized and took ownership of the outcome.

In November, with the encouragement of their teachers, they presented to both the administration and the Board of Trustees not only their research, but also a proposal for changes that could make a difference. Is there a turf field in Mayfield’s future? Perhaps the initial cost is high, but the 7th graders appealed to the Board to consider the long-term savings.

With this newfound knowledge, the 7th Grade Water Project has now launched an awareness campaign.

Students have posted signs with water conservation tips in the hallways and stairwells. Announcements and reminders are promoted weekly to students at Morning Prayer and MJS Family meetings, and to parents in the weekly e-newsletter, the Maywire. They’ve also made it a mission to make plastic water bottles on campus a thing of the past. An arrangement was made with California Fresh, who provides a daily lunch service on campus, to switch from water bottles to large refillable tubs. Reusable water bottles with a custom designed logo were distributed to the student body for a recommended $10 donation with a plan to use the proceeds to purchase permanent refilling stations for the school.

The 7th Grade Water Project has taken students from the kitchen learning about Mayan culture, to the Arroyo Seco and to Mayfield’s own water fountains for data research, into the science lab for analysis, online for information and statistics, and finally to the podium to present their findings and challenge the community to change their habits. It has also taken them from passive observers to team members hoping to make a difference.

Who knows what may inspire them next.

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Designing a Dream: The Third Grade Outdoor Habitat Design Challenge Lower School science teacher Sara Crepaux truly believes children learn best when they participate in the construction of their own learning. That belief was foremost in her mind when she teamed up with colleague and fellow MJS teacher Myv Hopton this December to launch the Third Grade Outdoor Habitat Design Challenge.

From the very beginning, this long-term project has taken the children on a journey of discovery, understanding, perception, creativity and awareness…and it’s not over yet.

Created and structured as an enhancement to the current habitat unit in third grade science, the Outdoor Habitat Design Challenge started with the study of ecosystems, and the importance of the food chain and energy transfer in the natural world. The students explored the climates and terrain of several types of biomes and played an eye opening Food Chain game that highlighted the importance of all living things in the balance of life. The function and form of established landscapes and habitats were discussed in both classroom presentations and a question and answer session with MJS landscaper, Dennis Montanez. They then ventured outside the classroom to visit a variety of formal and informal gardens such as Mayfield neighbor, Mrs. Coleman’s home garden, the Santa Ana Botanical Garden and community-supported Arlington Garden in Pasadena. Each experience, discussion and activity provided knowledge and exposure to purposefully prepare the students for the design challenge that lay ahead.

With their new insight and understanding of plant life and functional design, students were given the assignment to work in teams as junior landscape architects and design

a garden for real life clients. In an effort to support the needs of the MJS community as well as the creativity of the students, the clients were faculty members from Lower School grade levels and Middle School departments. The student teams met to formulate a few ideas, and with preliminary concept drawings in hand and iPads set to record, they set out for initial client interviews. The teams were particularly interested in what types of activities or lessons their clients might find enhanced in an outdoor learning space and what items should be included in the space or garden to support them.

Inspired and excited by the challenge before them, the students began work designing and building threedimensional models and choosing plants with great creative enthusiasm. With no budget at this phase in the challenge the students were allowed to dream big and every detail was considered as the teams worked collaboratively to bring the spirit of their clients’ wishes to life. The results were imaginative and fun with everything from “The Fable Garden” for the English department and “The 7 Continents of Fun!” for foreign language to “A Garden of Frogs” for 4th grade and “Bamboo Stage” for visual and performing arts to name a few.

With the research, design and model construction phase completed, each team was then asked to present their garden to a review panel made up of faculty, administration, our neighbor Mrs. Coleman, members of Mayfield’s Board of Trustees and a graduate student working towards a degree in Landscape Architecture at USC. The five-minute presentations brought each team member to the podium to share the inspiration for their design, special features of the space and any activities available to visitors. The teams also explained how the food chain and energy cycle were considered in their plans, what they learned through the process, what they enjoyed most and what they would do differently if they could.

Sincerely proud of their work, the teams happily answered questions from the panel and revealed they not only learned about garden design and habitats during this project, but also how working as a team takes patience and compromise.

The next phase of the Third Grade Outdoor Habitat Design Challenge has yet to be revealed. What is next for our intrepid junior landscape architects? Although space is at a premium, one team’s vision of a vertical garden on the Waldo Avenue fence for the athletics department could become a reality. One thing is for certain - with one challenge accomplished, these third graders feel ready for anything.

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A Pilgrimage: Sixth Grade Stations of the Cross

For many years now Holy Week at MJS has included a live presentation of the Stations of the Cross by the sixth grade. Always reverent and beautiful, this year the planning and performance were updated with a special focus on the student experience and understanding. To begin students studied the Scriptural Stations of the Cross, and spent time researching the path Jesus walked and his relationships with those he encountered on the way.

Guided by director of religion, Susan Hubert, sixth grade religion teacher, Kathy Holtsnider, drama teacher, Lisa Byrne and music director, Allison Merryman, groups of

students worked collaboratively for nearly two months to stage each of the Stations, compose music (using GarageBand and recorded performance) to convey the emotion in each scene, develop gestures that invited the assembly to participate, and write personal reflections of gratitude, hope and humility to be read as part of the narrative. The hands-on student involvement, attention to detail and deeper connection that evolved from the process, made a difference in the energy within the live reenactment and in the experience of this creative and synergetic group of students.

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Our Heritage |

HOLY CHILD ROAD TRIP

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Sarah Lougheed- Gill

It was a sunny day late last June when Headmaster Joe Gill, his wife, Sarah, and their dog, Shasta, set out in a 1972 VW bus (endearingly called Mike) for a cross country adventure. Intrigued by Mayfield Junior School’s historical connection to Cheyenne, Wyoming, a former remote outpost of Holy Child in the West, the area became a planned destination for the wandering trio. In 1884 Holy Child Sisters came to Cheyenne to fulfill the mission of Holy Child education and the vision of Cornelia Connelly. The school flourished until the early 1930s when the Great Depression took its toll on local Catholic families, and the SHCJ opened our own Mayfield School in Pasadena, California where the climate was much more agreeable. Holy Child Cheyenne closed in 1933 sending many of its library books, religious pieces and other items to Euclid Avenue.

As the following memoir of their journey, written by Sarah, attests, what the Gills found was more than old photographs and remnant landmarks. The buildings may be gone and the memories locked away in archival records, but the spirit of what once was and what has continued in Pasadena remains.

Mr. Gill was looking forward to driving to Cheyenne, Wyoming last summer to see if we could locate the former site of the Academy of the Holy Child Jesus (1886-1933) rumored to have gifted Mayfield Junior School with the historic “Cheyenne Cross” that supports an armor of ivy on the south-east corner of our campus. We had an address of an intersection and a faded photo from a website to guide us through the contemporary streets of the most populous city of Wyoming. It occurred to me that the state capital probably housed the state archives and that was the beginning of our time-warp adventure.

After parking Mike on a shady side street so Shasta would be comfortable in the July summer heat of the windy high plains, we entered the cool, hushed atmosphere of the Barrett Building. We introduced ourselves and the nature of our quest, and after signing in at the Visitors’ Desk, we were transferred to a dedicated volunteer researcher. She was delighted to hear our connection from Pasadena’s Mayfield Junior School of the Holy Child Jesus to Cheyenne’s historical Academy of the Holy Child Jesus.

Leaving us alone at the solemn research tables, we whispered and giggled as we tried on the required white cotton research gloves before digging through the boxes of historical photos and documents that kept appearing from the back room. Astonishingly, or perhaps not really surprising, the photos of the children’s Spring Play in 1916 did not look unlike any recent production here at Mayfield Junior School. Mother Connelly’s commitment to teaching the whole child with a joyous spirit can be seen in the smiling faces of these Holy Child students at the turn of the last century. Drama, art, music, and dance were cornerstones of her joyous approach to teaching and these century-old photographs are evidence of the legacy that MJS has inherited.

While Mr. Gill indulged his visual sleuthing through dozens of file folders holding hundreds of photos, I found 16

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Academy of the Holy Child Jesus, Cheyenne, Wyoming 1886-1933

myself drawn into the life papers of Miriam Eugenia Crowley. She and her sister were students at the Academy between 1925 - 1933. Inspired by the Holy Child Sisters, Mrs. Crowley went on to study at Rosemont College, then Harvard University, and sustained a groundbreaking career as an academic. Personal letters, diaries, mementoes, and photographs are part of the archive’s treasure. I was fascinated to read through these primary source materials about life at the Academy in its heyday.

In 1933, with the decline of boarding students, the Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus were re-assigned to other schools outside of Wyoming and the Cheyenne building was given to the Dominican Order. It was renovated to accommodate the elementary classrooms of St. Mary’s Academy before being demolished completely in 1952, when St. Mary’s moved to its current site a few blocks away.

Hours after our historic project commenced, we stumbled back outside into the sunshine and proceeded to the Catholic Cemetery, hoping to find some old grave markers of SHCJ nuns. “Bump” went the steering wheel and again, “bump!” After an initial inspection, it appeared

Class of 1933-34 at Academy of the Holy Child, East 24th Street, Cheyenne, Wyoming

Wyoming State Tribune: picture of school opened in 1884 by Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus in former Catholic Church

that the drag link was about to disintegrate rendering Mike dangerous to drive. Where on a Friday afternoon in Cheyenne, Wyoming were we going to find a mechanic with the tools and experience to work on our 1972 VW van? And would they have a part to fix it?

We checked into The Historic Plains Hotel and hunkered down for the weekend. The part would be shipped to us from Seattle and we still needed to find a mechanic who could install it for us. Sunday morning found us strolling the five blocks to Cathedral of St. Mary for mass – where Rev. August Koeune, Rev. Thomas George, and Rev. Tim Martinson were being installed! Do you think

Mother Cornelia provided divine intervention for the Gills to spend three extra days in Cheyenne last summer, learning the history of the Academy, and meeting the contemporary parish of St. Mary?

With humble hearts, we read first-hand accounts of the historical hardships early settlers of Cheyenne endured.

We connected visually to the photographs left to the annals of history and our hearts swelled with the joy we recognized in those Holy Child students, so like our current students at MJS. Our trip to Cheyenne was remarkable, restorative in spirit, and deepened our faith in the mission of Holy Child schools, then and now.

Did you know?

The Cheyenne Cross Anchoring the campus on the corner of Euclid and Bellevue, the large topiary cross is a physical symbol of our Catholic faith and heritage. We pass it daily, often admiring the colorful flowers planted at its base, but did you know beneath the leafy vine lies a wooden cross that has been a fixture on our campus since the 1930s? Called the Cheyenne Cross for decades by the Sisters who lived and taught at Mayfield, this campus icon is a piece of history that connects us to one of the earliest western outposts of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus, Holy Child Academy in Cheyenne, Wyoming. A gift to the school from the class of 1927, the cross was a part of the Cheyenne campus until it closed in 1933. That following summer it traveled to Pasadena and was placed on the southeast corner of the campus on what was then the front lawn of the convent. It can be seen in the background of many First Communion and graduation photographs. Today a small piece of its Cheyenne roots remain as the cross still bears the small dedication plaque from the Holy Child Academy Class of 1927.

*For more information about Holy Child Academy in Cheyenne read “Mayfield The Early Years 1931-1950”

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The Society of the Holy Child Jesus: Lighting the Way For Cornelia Connelly, a person’s faith was as much about action, as it was about prayer and reflection.

So it’s no surprise that when she founded the Society of the Holy Child Jesus (SHCJ) in 1846, action was at its heart. For more than 160 years, as the Society and its works have grown in diversity, action has remained at the core. Today, that action empowers tens of thousands of people to develop their God-given gifts and talents and reach their full potential.

In addition to founding Rosemont College and the schools in the Holy Child Network of Schools, the Sisters have worked to develop innovative programs that serve some of God’s most vulnerable. For example, when Chiripa, a young child living in poverty in the Dominican Republic arrived at Our Lady of Good Counsel Dispensary, which the SHCJ founded, she was so sick that most thought she did not have a fighting chance. But with love and faith, and the expertise of the SHCJ’s medical staff, she survived and today, she is a thriving teenager.

When Tyrik arrived at Hope Partnership for Education, a middle school the SHCJ founded in partnership with the Sisters of Mercy in Philadelphia, PA, his behavior was so disruptive that the staff and faculty considered asking him to leave the school, but they also saw a child with great potential and they refused to give up on him. Their determination led to months of work that made a difference. Today, Tyrik is one of the best behaved students at Hope and is on his way to a successful high school career.

Despite losing his sight in a San Salvadorian earthquake, Luis, a 30-year-old father of two, established a successful business. His success made him a target for violent gangs and he was offered little protection from a corrupt police force that was involved in perpetrating the violence.

But with the help of the Casa Cornelia Law Center, which was founded by the Society of the Holy Child Jesus (SHCJ) in San Diego, CA, Luis and his daughters were granted asylum in the U.S. Transformation at Holy Child Ministries These are the stories of just three of the thousands of lives that are changed through the ministries of the Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus. Every year, ministries like Hope Partnership for Education, Casa Cornelia Law Center, and Our Lady of Good Counsel Dispensary lift up more than 5,000 of God’s most vulnerable and empower them to become all that they are called to be.

“Our ministries light the way out of poverty for so many. It’s amazing to see some of the transformations in people as they overcome obstacles of poverty, illiteracy, and prejudice.

Of all the things we do, giving light to the human spirit is the most inspiring,” shares Mary Ann Buckley, SHCJ. Sister Mary Ann is the American Province Leader of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus. Along with a team of four Sisters, she leads the Society in the U.S., Chile, and the Dominican Republic.

Partners in Mission But the Sisters of the Holy Child are not doing it alone. The students in the Holy Child Network of Schools and Rosemont College lend their time, talent, and treasure to these ministries, and are part of the legacy of helping transform lives through faith and action. For example, students from Holy Child schools have traveled to the SHCJ mission site in the Dominican Republic and spent time working with the children and painting residents’ houses. Holy Child students have volunteered, and even run summer camps at our newest

schools such as the Cornelia Connelly Center and the Washington Middle School for Girls. All of the Holy Child schools have raised and generously donated funds to support these works. Together, our Holy Child spirit of action is giving life to our mission of “helping others to believe that God lives and acts in them and in our world.” Just as Cornelia directed, our faith propels us to action.

To learn more about these inspiring works, join the Sisters’ mailing list.

Simply send your name and address to holychildsisters@shcj.org, 1341 Montgomery Avenue, Rosemont, PA 19010, or call the SHCJ at 610.626.1400, x320. You can also sign up on the Sisters’ website at www.shcj. org/american and “like” their Facebook fanpage at www.facebook.com/ holychild for all the latest news.

Holy Child Ministries California Casa Cornelia Law Center (San Diego) South Central Los Angeles Ministry Project (Los Angeles) District of Columbia Washington Middle School for Girls Illinois St. Martin de Porres High School (Waukegan) New York Cornelia Connelly Center (New York City) Cristo Rey New York High School (New York City) UNANIMA International (NGO, United Nations) Pennsylvania African Sisters Education Collaborative (Philadelphia) Hope Partnership for Education (Philadelphia) Providence Center (Philadelphia) Chile Centro Cornelia Connelly (Santiago) Dominican Republic Holy Child Elementary School, Fe y Alegría (Santo Domingo) Our Lady of Good Counsel Dispensary, Fe y Alegría (Santo Domingo)

Around Campus First Robotics Team Gets Their Feet Wet With a shared interest in engineering and design, eight students from fifth to eighth grade teamed up this year to create Brick Busters, Mayfield Junior School’s first LEGO® Robotics team. Several had discovered their interest through the fourth grade robotics curriculum, a collaboration of technology and science, and others had already been building and designing their own versions of robots at home. With the guidance of educational technology teacher Eunice Sosa, the team set their sights on competing in the 2012 FIRST LEGO® League (FLL) tournament. The League is a Robotics program for 9 -14 year olds designed to get children interested in science and technology while also teaching life skills. Yearly challenges hosted by the League have three essential elements: the Robot Game, the Project and the FLL Core Values, which emphasize purpose and sportsmanship in competition. The tournament challenge for the 2012 season was “Senior Solutions” with participants developing robotics that could improve the lives of senior citizens by helping them stay independent, engaged and connected.

The Brick Busters did their research, interviewing seniors for insight and understanding, and then set to work developing, building and programming an innovative solution. Mayfield’s young team members were recognized for their respectful demeanor and positive spirit in their first competition and were awarded the Gracious Professionalism Award. In the following tournament, the team earned a Judges Award in special recognition of their unique efforts.

Celebrating Our Diversity Mosaic Month and International Heritage Fair Hola! Privet! O-hayou! On any given day during the month of January, students, faculty and staff could be heard greeting each other in a variety of different languages. It was all a part of Mosaic Month, a celebration of diversity held on Mayfield’s campus. At Morning Prayer throughout the month members of the community generously shared the language and a favorite prayer from their cultural heritage, faith or international life experience.

Organized by MJS teacher Myvonwynn Hopton, this year the eighteen languages presented, including Spanish, Armenian, Cantonese, Telugu, Russian and Hindi among others, were chosen for their connection to cultural celebrations happening around the world. Presenters included students, teachers, parents and a special visit from Father Bruno D’Souza CP from Mater Dolorosa Retreat Center. “This year was simply a starting place,” Myv wrote in an email to the faculty. “With only a month and a world full of thousands of languages, there are many to celebrate in the future.” To complement the morning presentations many teachers took the opportunity to incorporate the 20

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different cultures into their classes. The daily lessons on different world languages, faiths and cultures were enriching and brought the community closer together.

To close Mosaic Month students, parents and teachers participated in an International Heritage Fair on January 31, 2013. This full day event was the perfect finale bringing the rich diversity of our community to life with colorful booths created and hosted by parents highlighting twelve different countries: Lebanon, Nigeria, Australia, Mexico, Germany, France, Morocco, Taiwan, Philippines, Great Britain, Colombia and Sri Lanka. Each booth offered samples of clothing, food and traditions reflective of the culture and history of the country represented. Middle school students attended the fair during their regular history class time and 7th and 8th graders also served as tour guides for the younger students. From the tasty food samples to the personal stories and information shared with pride by each of the parent volunteers, the International Heritage Fair was the best of both worlds – educational and fun!

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Hearts and MINDS

“ With a tap of a finger, they are given the opportunity to differentiate instruction, self-pace interactive problem-solving examples, scroll through the steps involved in solving complex algebraic problems, and at anytime access visual instruction with on-demand math video tutorials.�

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Teaching in a New World

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Kathy Holtsnider |

During my teaching career, I have used a filmstrip projector, a 16mm projector, a record player and later a tape recorder. I still remember showing videos on 13” TVs and later on a 25” TV with $29 speakers attached. Then there was working math problems with white chalk on a small black board to using a variety of color markers on many large sliding white boards. An overhead projector enabled me to face the students as I taught, prepare math problems before class and correct homework with ease.

During my many, many years of teaching, I have seen great innovation in education; however, never as much as the amazing developments in recent years. Today I say, “take out your iPads” and use a document camera or projector to share my screen.

At present my 8th grade math students use HMH FUSE 2012, a math application on their iPads. No textbooks, no workbooks, but a comprehensive interactive application.

We have been using online math textbooks since 2006, but this is more, much more. This is a revolutionary mobile platform for teaching and learning math.

From my perspective as a seasoned teacher, I believe the interactive experience inherent in this digital format benefits both the students and teacher. With such a progressive format, I am able to pick up the pace and the students seem more motivated during class time and more interested in the subject matter. I think this is because they are able to work more independently. With a tap of a finger, they are given the opportunity to differentiate instruction, self-pace interactive problem-solving examples, scroll

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through the steps involved in solving complex algebraic problems, and at anytime access visual instruction with on-demand math video tutorials. They are provided challenges that are not only pleasurable, but match current skill levels. Their math confidence builds.

My students also seem to be more organized with calendars, emails and reminder functions all easily accessible on their iPads. They may add notes in both text and audio format, and even customize and bookmark content for future reference.

One of the concerns for students has always been getting quizzes or tests back in a timely manner. Now students and I have immediate feedback, instant access to assessment data and constant tracking. The students take a test, and hit “submit.” Before they leave the classroom the test is scored and recorded with the option to correct and resubmit. That is fast!

The trick for the use of technology in the classroom is to be fearless. Mayfield not only provides some of the latest technology, but provides the training and ongoing support needed to both the teachers and students alike. And, of course, if I have a technological problem, I can always ask the students. Their ease and comfort with it all inspire me to continue trying something new.

As the technology changes, so do teaching methods and techniques. We have only scratched the surface of all the possibilities technology brings to education. I look forward to what’s next.

A Community of Readers: Inside Hodgins Library Hodgins Library is a happy home of books, a cozy location where students can relax and read. We are all so blessed to be at Mayfield Junior School where we have a well-supported library, parents who are champions of children’s literature, and a wonderful faculty and staff who encourage reading whenever possible. More importantly, we have students who are voracious readers when they enter our school at age five, and still have a hearty appetite for books when they are fourteen and ready to graduate.

Every day is a banquet of books!

There is such a wealth of book choices that the opportunity to read is boundless. What to read first? At Hodgins Library, we have patrons who ask regularly, “Do you have any new books today?” As librarians, Cathy Lin

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and I are always at the ready, armed with a well-researched list of books to recommend, always hoping that of the numerous titles that are put forth, one will connect and resonate with a child.

Students are always on the lookout for the next big thing in books; searching for up and coming authors as well as looking forward to books from their favorites.

Hodgins Library has been very proud to present over fifty-five authors and illustrators in the last ten years: Rick Riordan, Cornelia Funke, Susan Patron, Henry Winkler, Ingrid Law, Katherine Applegate, David Shannon, Kazu Kibuishi and many more. There is a special magic formed when you introduce a student to the creator of a book.

Students come prepared with amazing and insightful

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questions for visiting authors, and they walk away with a renewed sense of awe for the art of writing and illustrating. After an author visit, there are varied and wonderful results. For starters, there is an increase in reading, especially for that author’s works. But, we have also seen a new trend, one that leads a student to want to become a writer or artist when they grow up. Planting the seeds of literacy not only feeds the garden of reading, but also nourishes and nurtures our next generation of authors and illustrators.

Of course reading doesn’t just happen in the library.

As a school, we collectively pause every Friday afternoon for 20 minutes to Drop Everything and Read (DEAR), and every single person on campus is prepared to dive in to their favorite reading material. The DEAR program has now become an integral part of our community, and it’s no surprise that everyone is excited about having time for recreational reading. Some students have made DEAR a way to start the classics, tackling one title at a time.

Other students have decided DEAR is a way to make time to read some of their favorite magazines like Sports Illustrated for Kids, Discovery Girls or Zoobooks. Quite a few take on books that are outside their comfort zone and discover new reading material in topics such as biography, science and poetry. As reading and a good story are fun to share, on occasional Fridays the sixth graders take a favorite book of their younger years and read aloud to the kindergarteners. I am not sure which group enjoys it more!

The possibilities are endless with DEAR, and students on a weekly basis reinvigorate their need to read.

For several years now Hodgins Library has partnered with several children’s publishing houses that have generously shared Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) books

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with our students. An ARC is a book that is 3 - 9 months away from final publication, so students feel privileged when they are allowed this special sneak peek. We have even had a few intrepid students contact publishers to share their thoughts and comments on the advance copy they have read, or even email the author to offer them advanced praise for a job well done.

What does it mean to be a reader at Mayfield Junior School? A young student enters school in order to learn to read, and once they have mastered the basics, they read in order to learn throughout their academic career.

Everyone at Mayfield Junior School is supported by a true community of readers: faculty, staff, students, parents and visiting authors sharing their love of reading and modeling the benefits of reading. We have fifth grade Girl Scouts who regularly volunteer their time to read to young students.

We have a seventh and eighth grade elective class called Book Gurus, dedicated to literature and exploring new genres, and another called Poem, Story and Performance that explores writing technique and interpretation. The written word is studied, enjoyed and shared, whether book, blog, magazine or poem, commentary or reflection, fiction or non-fiction.

The wry and outspoken children’s author Lemony Snicket wrote, “A good library will never be too neat, or too dusty, because somebody will always be in it, taking books off the shelves and staying up late reading them.” It is gratifying to know that reading will always be a priority in the life of a Mayfield student. There is no greater joy than to witness students peruse the shelves of the library, stating aloud their good fortune to have so much reading material to choose from. We couldn’t agree more. We count our book blessings every day with a smile.

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Perspectives Founders’ Day | 2012

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Emma Baker ‘14

The annual Founders’ Day assembly had special significance this past October as Mayfield Junior School joined all Holy Child Schools in celebrating the 150th anniversary of Holy Child in America. The highlight of the assembly was a one-act play written by 7th grader Emma Baker and performed by her classmates. The play, which combined narrative with dialogue, brought the journey of the Sisters to life, from their voyage across the Atlantic through the many challenges they faced building the first American foundation and school in Towanda, Pennsylvania. Inspired by the Sisters’ courage, Emma took special care to portray each of them as individuals, and as having the perfect mix of personalities to carry on Cornelia’s vision under difficult circumstances. As Emma’s reflection below reveals, the exercise was an enlightening experience for a young writer.

Thursday is one of my favorite days of the week. On Thursdays, I tuck my books into my locker and trudge down the stairs to Ms. Byrne’s drama room. Often, the things that await me are improvisation exercises and games, enough to refresh me after a long week of studying. Sometimes, we rehearse for upcoming performances. But one Thursday was entirely different. After going through the usual warm-up, we sat down and listened to Ms. Byrne read an article about the journey of the Sisters of the Holy Child to America.

I was amazed. Such courage! Such sacrifice! I could not imagine leaving my home and family to come to a foreign land. Their story was enthralling, and I could imagine it clearly: the Sisters in their habits, saying goodbye to England, on the deck of the Scotia, sea spray whipping their faces, and on the road to Towanda, bumpy and rickety. I asked Ms. Byrne if I could read the packet about them to learn more about it.

Next Wednesday, Ms. Byrne approached my table at lunch. She smiled as she asked me to write the play, and I was thrilled. I looked on the Holy Child website that evening and found accounts of the journey written by the Sisters in the annals. Slowly, all the characters began to piece themselves together, and I found myself continually thinking about the ailing Mother Mary, the young postulant Marion, headstrong Sister Agatha, dry Sister Josephine, witty Sister Aloysia, and kind Sister Lucy. I started to write the script, but it fell apart after an inaccurate historical reference. I scrapped it all and started over, writing events that happened in the annals, taking away things, adding things. I presented it to Ms. Byrne after a couple of weeks.

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When we went to drama next Thursday, I saw people speak the words I had written. It seemed almost unreal to hear them spoken. Before, the play had gone on in my head, but as I saw it play out in real life, it really sunk in. People are actually going to see this, I thought. I wondered briefly if it was good enough, but I knew it was the best tribute to the Sisters I could give. Besides, I loved how my peers acted it out. It was so easy to imagine that they were the same Sisters I had written about.

The day before the play, it was rehearsed for the last time. I saw the Sisters march from stage left to stage right as they went through their journey. I saw the paper-andwood Scotia sail across a clear blue sea of fabric and Mother Connelly, albeit a seventh-grader, say goodbye. I decided that I was satisfied with my efforts.

The next day was a Spirit Day where we were supposed to dress up to reflect our skills. It was only fitting that I went as a writer.

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“See the little birds how they carry insect after insect to the nestlings, just so must we give moral and intellectual food to our dear pupils, that from this labour of love may flow the desired result.” Cornelia Connelly 2 0 1 2 - 2 0 1 3 I S S U E

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Learning, finding, reaching, giving, growing…

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Sofia Raptis

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Harry Foy

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Cory Luk

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2013 Spring Arts Celebration Week

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Mayfield Junior School Annual Art Show

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Greg Smith Memorial Gymnasium

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ACTIONS NOT WORDS

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Alumni GivingBack Whether advocate, fundraiser, mentor or counselor, many MJS alumni consider service and giving back a natural continuation of their Holy Child education. We like to think a little “actions not words” goes a long way. Here’s to the power of one.

MJS > What are your earliest memories of being involved in some kind of charitable cause?

Heidi McNiff Johnson ‘80 It’s not surprising that this year in observance of Lent Heidi McNiff Johnson ’80 made a commitment to do a random act of kindness each and every day. As the founder of the Spiritual Care Guild at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, and creator of the blog Charity Matters, Heidi has made helping others a priority in her life, and loves inspiring others to do the same.

Heidi > I received this email from my son today…

Hunter… he’s my 17 year old son, who is taking finals, with bets going on with us about grades, lots of talk about goals, and he emailed me this quote this morning from Henry David Thoreau – a rare moment as a mother, I started to cry: “What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.”

I thought to myself, maybe I should put this on my blog.

Sometimes you pour out your soul to the world and wonder if anyone is listening! And then you sit staring at the computer not thinking of a word to say! And then “Poof!” something pops into my mind, like this quote…

MJS > So what you’re doing in your life is not only having an effect on others, it’s having an effect on your family members too!

Well, you get what you give, and it does come back.

It comes back so much more.

My first memory with a charitable cause is going to Regis House with my mom and the Sisters of Social Service, and my second one is of the service days at MJS. And I think going with my mom to Regis House, and doing the service days early on in school really had an effect on me.

Obviously the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, and when you have generations of role models like I did at Mayfield, my aunt Sheila, all seven of my aunts and uncles, etc., they are super philanthropic…in fact my grandmother was giving communion to the elderly when SHE herself was 94!

MJS > It’s been ten years since your mom passed away – that was a defining moment for you….do you think that was a big part of why you started Spiritual Care Guild?

We all do what we can do…but for me, when my mom died, it was my rebirth — you know Dr. Phil’s “Five defining moments in a person’s life?” Well that was definitely one of them. It reminded me of how short life really is and how you just can’t plan for it, and we have so little time here, to make a difference. I knew I needed to do something. My sisters and I all had received angels when she died, that we wore. Ten years ago there were ten of us who had gathered at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles for a tour led by Father John Sigler. During the tour, a woman came up to us and asked, “Do you know what this man did for me and my family? My son was run over in the carpool line and was not supposed to live. Father John sat with me for 8 hours and held my hand, and then visited us every single day!”

So you see, Fr. John was like an angel who was there to give her this emotional life-line – and when she saw him during the tour she came running up and said, “Fr. John Fr. John he’s coming home Thanksgiving Day!” It was like a lightening bolt hit me. So when we decided to pick the logo [for the Spiritual Care Guild], the angel became the symbol of this cause. It reaffirmed that we were on the right path. It gets you so out of your pity-party and your grieving to do something good for someone else.

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“ The thing is, there are 1.9 million non-profits in the US and most are not the Red Cross — they are tiny little entities and they all need a voice. So I talked to one of the women I had met at the Expo, and she suggested that I get busy blogging, or post on Facebook — so I just jumped into the deep end of the pool.”

In ten years we’ve raised over one million dollars, we’re building a new chapel at the hospital and we have spiritual care available 24/7 at the hospital.

MJS > So tell us more about the Spiritual Care Guild?

Today there is a full-time priest and chaplain available 24/7 and we are an accredited training department. Anyone who comes here as a clinical pastoral educator to the hospital takes five students…. there are approximately 20 of these students available 24/7 — and they cover all faith traditions. And in those moments of crisis, you don’t care, it doesn’t matter what you believe, it’s just that someone’s there and they’re there to get you through it.

MJS > What moves you to stay involved… what motivates you to keep going?

It’s the feedback. I sat here on Christmas Day posting on LinkedIn, Facebook, and then spoke with a CFO of a company back east, a very nice guy. He said to me, “Heidi I can’t tell you how much I enjoy reading your blog, Charity Matters. It’s my only slice of humanity in my week.”

So here’s this successful, buttoned-up guy who’s working in this corporate jungle, and there’s no humanity. I posted the other day about Kelly Lang’s (MJS ’88, MSS ’92) story, and got some responses from people with health issues. They told me the story gave them inspiration…. those emails and those comments make it all worth it.

MJS > How did you start your blog Charity Matters?

Well I launched it on July 18, 2011. I had not really wanted to do a blog, but after starting Spiritual Care Guild, I knew there was a time that I would need to step away.

The Guild isn’t about me, it’s about so many people, so many dedicated volunteers. I knew that because I

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loved it that I needed to step away at some point and let it go into the hands of [others] who loved it just like me.

Recently I was involved with the Women’s LTD Expo here in Pasadena working to secure corporate sponsors and I met all these inspirational women. One night I couldn’t sleep and had this dream about a TV show… so I got up and started writing, and I ended up writing a pilot for a TV show! Hilarious! My head was on fire — I couldn’t get to a computer fast enough! It gave me inspiration.

Who could I pitch this to? Am I crazy? The thing is, there are 1.9 million non-profits in the US and most are not the Red Cross — they are tiny little entities and they all need a voice. So I talked to one of the women I had met at the Expo, and she suggested that I get busy blogging, or post on Facebook — so I just jumped into the deep end of the pool. I could barely cut and paste… but I learned to blog, Facebook, LinkedIn, all that, and I just decided to do it.

I now have a couple thousand followers.

MJS > Do you try to highlight different non-profits?

Depends on what comes my way — I really like the smaller ones. I still love the story of Susan G. Komen — everyone knows who Susan G. Komen is — but no one knows who Nancy Brinker is — Susan’s sister, and when Susan was on her deathbed she said to Nancy, if anyone can do this, you can — if anyone can find a cure, you can! Do this for me — those were her dying words. Those are the stories I like to tell…. I mean, you don’t just wake up one day and say, I’m going to start a non-profit for breast cancer. You have to have had some kind of personal experience that moved you to do it. People have a choice when they are faced with a lot of bad stuff — and there is a defining moment for some that tells them which way they are going to go with it… those are the moments I treasure and that I like to share. There is a young Chicago couple whose child was born with a congenital heart malfunction. The circumstances sent them to an attorney to discuss litigation however as they were leaving the attorney’s office it struck them, what are we doing? How are we honoring our daughter with this? We need to help do research on this, and we need to make a difference. So they started “Saving Tiny Hearts.”

MJS > You’ve profiled a lot of small non-profits… how do you find them?

I used to be more organized. Like February is “Heart” month so I would only write about that. I’ve rarely had a day that I didn’t have anything to say…. except for one day… I thought, Oh my gosh! I have nothing to say! I’ve nothing for Wednesday! And at that exact moment I got an email from my friend Tina who told me about her friend in Colorado who started a small non-profit and would I mind giving

her a call. Call it spirit, call it whatever you want, but now people come to me and tell me about stories they’ve heard, or non-profits that are making a difference. To me the smaller the better — they need the voice — everything they’re doing is just to fund the cause – they’re not sitting there doing social media and dealing with the press… so that’s who I always like to profile.

“ Call it spirit, call it whatever you want, but now people come to me and tell me about stories they’ve heard, or non-profits that are making a difference. To me the smaller the better — they need the voice — everything they’re doing is just to fund the cause — they’re not sitting there doing social media and dealing with the press… so that’s who I always like to profile. “

to offer. So I helped launch a junior ambassador program at the hospital. Henry leaves at 5:30 in the morning every day for weight training for football. So he decided to throw touchdowns for the hospital. He raised $5000 for the hospital in one year! [My youngest] Ford is on student council at school where they [have adopted] 112 th street elementary. They organize a back to school supply drive and a healthy snack drive each year.

MJS > So it’s trickled down to your kids.

What does your husband Ron say about all this?

He’s very supportive and he’s very proud. I couldn’t do half the things I do if it wasn’t for Ron — he’s great and I’m very blessed.

MJS > What would you say to MJS students about “philanthropy” or charitable giving — what would you want them to remember?

I do speak at a lot of schools and was at Immaculate Heart before Christmas — and spoke to the seniors — I told them my journey and my message was really that you have to listen to yourself and at the end of the day you get so much more than you give.

MJS > What do your boys say about you?

I think any time you give a sliver of yourself, no matter what, there’s no greater feeling than you helped another person, and perhaps changed someone else’s life… very empowering for a child… When kids realize that they can change someone’s life, then they realize they can change their own, and they can change the world.

Depends on the day and the moment!

MJS > What about your TV pilot?

MJS > Do you rope them into things?

There is so much material! I’ve talked to some people in the business. I kind of take my own advice and listen to myself and what if I pitched this, and it got picked up? I have an 11 year old and two high school kids! It isn’t the right time, just yet — I’m close, but I’m not there yet and the time will come and it’ll be great. I’m excited that my website is getting revamped and I think a magazine should be next — I’ll have a little more experience under my belt and then who knows?

Boys lend such an interesting piece of the puzzle. People ask me how I got involved with Verbum Dei High School.

My neighbors across the street are involved in Urban Compass, which is an after-school program in Watts that is run on Verbum Dei’s campus, for elementary school kids who live in the area and walk there after school. I told Hunter, my eldest, you need to go down there. He spent the summer there, and fell in love with these kids. And he still goes there three days a week after school. My middle son, Henry is a junior ambassador at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. You know, there are so many great things for girls. And I saw how much Hunter was enjoying his work at Verbum Dei and I told CHLA that they are missing the cycle of giving with boys — because these kids have so much

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Michael Mennis ’02 On Friday, January 11 the faculty and staff took a break from the students and daily schedule to participate in a day of service. Before heading out in groups to various local organizations, everyone gathered in the Patricia Susan Clifford Chapel to begin the day in prayer and reflection.

This year MJS alum Michael Mennis ’02 was the guest speaker.

Passionate and grateful for the opportunities in his life, Michael shared his experiences as a young volunteer and member of the Jesuit Volunteer Corps.

Thank you for asking me here today. I am grateful for the opportunity to return and reaffirm the importance and impact your service program has had on my life and the lives of your students.

I, like many students here, came from a privileged background: a home with no violence, food on the table, clothes to keep me warm and a roof over my head.

I was aware there were individuals and families less fortunate or privileged than my own, yet it was less of a reality, something I couldn’t see, touch or hear. Mayfield introduced me to this world outside my protected, privileged walls. It showed me that it is not about us serving them but [all of us] serving each other as one body in Christ.

All this and more were planted as seeds that would take many years and experiences to foster. Yet here is where the garden began and weeds uprooted before they got too deep. I learned about simplicity, social justice, and how to work with others while fostering an ever-budding faith.

My first great introduction to simplicity came in the 4th grade at the literal hands of a young autistic boy. Mrs. Hermanson had taken my homeroom to Villa Esperanza in Pasadena, a private school and organization that aids those with developmental disabilities, to play with the children.

We were there to role model good social interaction for the children. I walked over to a sand box with a few children sitting around it. I sat and became aware of the boy sitting across from me. He was just picking up sand and letting it run through his fingers. He was unaware of all else around him other than the feeling and sound of sand rushing 34

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through his fingers back into the sand box. I was struck by the attention inspired by something so simple and copied him till I too was enthralled with the sand. I remember coming home that day and telling my mom about that experience, and how I was so struck by how I had not paid attention to something so beautiful inside of something so simple. We were sent out to be the role models and yet that young boy role modeled a life virtue that [to this day] I’ve never forgotten.

In the same way my eyes were opened to the issue of domestic violence. In 8th grade, Mrs. Holtsnider brought in a speaker from Good Shepherd Shelter to talk to us about their services. Good Shepherd Shelter is a medium to long term domestic violence shelter for women and children, which provides safe shelter, schooling for the families, as well as job skills training for the mothers. At that time I had been vaguely aware that in some families husbands were violent to their wives and/or children, but I knew nothing of the true nature or scope of domestic violence.

We did a toy drive for Good Shepherd Shelter. As part of the toy drive each of our student families were given a Good Shepherd family with the ages of the children and what they wanted for Christmas. We did what we could to follow the desires of the family. Many places would have just given toys to be handed out, yet as part of our giving, we asked and worked with the women to provide for their families. To use a Jesuit catch phrase, we were “working with and for others” rather then just doing something for them. That subtle distinction I didn’t understand then and is important.

After graduating in 2002 from Mayfield I went on to Loyola High School. Service opportunities were part of Loyola’s culture as well. During my time there I aided in founding the community service leadership team under the supervision of the head of community service, Mr. Thomas Zeko. Mr. Zeko once told a story to my mother about the founding of the group. He had asked around the room where we all went to Junior High. He told her how the large proportion of men who responded that they had come from Mayfield struck him.

At Loyola there is a unique tradition that men go through during their senior year. Every year in January all seniors do not report to school but take three weeks to work full time at a service placement site. When I was discussing my site at the time with Mr. Zeko, he began talking to me about Good Shepherd Shelter. I recalled the name and some of the presentations from Mrs. Holtsnider’s class, interviewed, and was placed as a tutor and role model. I saw first hand the ingenuity, determination and power of the women [at Good Shepherd] and was truly inspired by them.

In 2006, I graduated from Loyola and went to Loyola College Maryland, which is now Loyola University Maryland. There service was integrated into my working

life. I worked at my college radio station, WLOY Loyola Radio, where I took part in helping start and produce a children’s radio show that promoted reading to elementary and junior high kids. We did this by having them write endings to original stories and recording them to be played on the radio. From my upbringing it seemed only natural that the focus of our station was on service and outreach to the community, and in supporting the local community we could benefit both the station and our neighbors.

In 2010, I graduated with a Bachelors of Arts in Psychology and joined the Jesuit Volunteer Corps or JVC. I went to Oakland, California where I lived by the core values of social justice, simple living, community and spirituality, values first introduced to me and planted at Mayfield. I served as a domestic violence crisis and legal support advocate, aiding women and men who were experiencing domestic violence, gain access to resources and obtain a protective order. As the JV motto goes, I was “ruined for life.” Mayfield’s motto of “actions not words” came back ringing in my ears as I explored my faith through action as I struggled with what I saw as the challenge of the gospel. The challenge of standing with those on the margin, who through systematic oppression of many forms may scream loudly, but are never heard.

We must work with and for those whom society wishes to forget, in any way large or small, to remind us what true human dignity is. Through this, we walk with each other and with God and no matter how dark or horrifying the situation we are never alone.

I mention we are never alone because while working for justice or teaching justice the issues appear many times insurmountable. We are driven to wonder: can we change anything or influence anything at all? The organizations I worked with swore by the fact we could end domestic violence. That was sometimes hard to believe yet it is possible, especially since God is with us even in the darkest moments. I heard many women tell me some of the worst moments of their lives and a few have stuck with me. I had a phone call from one woman. She told me that while she was very pregnant her boyfriend/baby daddy was beating her while she was on the couch. His cousin was in the room cheering him on while the boyfriend called her names and pummeled her with his fists. He stopped at one point, walked into the kitchen and came back with a knife. He threatened to kill her and began to move toward her with the knife. The cousin stopped him stating “Dude, she’s not worth it” and the boyfriend backed off enough to give her room to escape out the front door and to safety. I see God’s intervention in that darkest of moments where the mother and child’s life were in the balance. I see God working through the cousin to speak up (even if we all disagree how) so that they were saved. If God is able to work through the cousin to speak those few words to save a life, what isn’t possible? We see God there in true darkness

so maybe, just maybe, our little actions put forward in kindness and love will have an effect. Maybe, just maybe, we will make a difference.

“ Through your living service I was taught, inspired and called to live out the values you taught me. So I have come back to say, thank you.”

After Oakland, I signed up for another year of service, this time with Jesuit Volunteer Corps Northwest. I served in Juneau, Alaska as a co-facilitator for the Juneau Batterers Accountability Program (JBAP) and a legal advocate at AWARE Inc., a domestic violence shelter. Working with JBAP wasn’t easy. After wanting to demonize men who harmed those they claimed to love, I was now working to promote victim safety through re-education courses. We worked both in the community and in prison, mainly with the worst offenders. I was taught at Mayfield the Christian values of loving the forgotten, loving thy enemy and the gospel passage where we are called to cloth, feed and visit in prison the forgotten, unknown, in need and thus do the same for Christ. One man I worked with had violently beat, kidnaped and raped his former wife. He was serving 20 or more years in prison for his crime. I did his intake for the program and heard in detail his crime and how he told it. Many abusers find ways to justify their actions to themselves in order to keep their view of themselves as good men. This is not unique to them as we all do this for things we are not proud. I was sickened and haunted for a few days by what I heard and had trouble not thinking of him as a monster. Yet as he came to class each week and took notes, participated and was showing effort to learn, change and challenge his own assumptions, I realized my prejudice against him. How I wanted to view him as something other then human, yet he is another person full of dreams, hopes, loves, and dignity deserving such. Christ is working through him and in him constantly inviting him to live a just life and no matter what he did or how horrible his crimes; he can be redeemed and deserves our service.

I have come back to Mayfield to speak out of gratitude, to hopefully show you what has grown from the seeds you’ve planted. I applaud how you do not just teach service or talk about justice, but embody it; how you choose to go out and work in the community serving others and the earth; how you choose to take class time to show us that our privilege is a call to aid others without shaming us; how you loved each of us so as to foster love we could share with others. Through your living service I was taught, inspired and called to live out the values you taught me. So I have come back to say, thank you.

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Andrew Vogelbach ‘97 Andrew Vogelbach might be one of the nicest guys on the planet. Friendly and easy-going, as a doctor’s son, he observed early on the importance of helping others. Life experiences, whether as a hospital volunteer or in a service project as an Eagle Scout, showed him that giving his time in support of a good cause was also very fulfilling. Today this belief provides some insight and compassion in his career in family law and keeps him involved - hoping to make a difference.

MJS > What is your earliest remembrance of being involved in philanthropy?

Well, as my dad is a doctor, the nature of his business was helping people. So that really was always at the forefront of our family life. He’s the one who really started me off in getting involved with the community. And my dad loves his job, he loves helping people, so I guess it’s just always been in my life. Besides being a doctor, he was always doing things for others, so he was definitely a positive example in my life. My mom, too, was very involved.

Needless to say, I was a lucky kid.

MJS > What impact did it have on you?

I think that because of my parents, I was involved in a lot of things in my childhood. I was an Eagle Scout and that certainly taught me a lot about volunteerism. I remember building a retaining wall at Eaton Canyon for my Eagle Project. I guess it shows what a young man can do. I also volunteered at St. Luke’s Hospital before it closed and now I am involved in alumni projects at La Salle High School.

MJS > Was your family involved in charitable giving?

My parents were very involved, especially in my schools and at Arcadia Methodist. My dad is like a celebrity at the hospital, he has a lot of energy and is a catalyst for many fundraisers. He currently sits on the Arcadia Methodist Foundation Board so he’s super busy with many good causes.

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“ I do family law, so I sometimes feel that my profession is also service work. It’s really hard some days working with the difficult things that come into the office. I really feel badly for people. There’s a lot of sadness out there, so I feel that I am doing good things in my profession, at least I hope I am !”

MJS > What moves you to be involved in philanthropic causes?

It’s fun! Right now I am involved in Club 300, which is a group of young professionals who rally in support of Arcadia Methodist. It was just formed three years ago and it has taken off…Next year I will be chair, and I really have fun being a part of it. I’m also still involved with the La Salle Alumni Board, which has been really great too, so my plate is pretty full.

MJS > What do you hope to accomplish in the years ahead? What are your goals?

Well, I hope to build my law practice, for one thing, alongside my philanthropic work. I do family law, so I sometimes feel that my profession is also service work.

It’s really hard some days working with the difficult things that come into the office. I really feel badly for people.

There’s a lot of sadness out there, so I feel that I am doing good things in my profession, at least I hope I am! It’s very gratifying helping people save their livelihoods.

MJS > So what would you tell MJS students today about philanthropic giving?

Keep studying and work hard. Success is based on hard work and doors will open for you if you stay focused on your goals. It feels good, too, to do well for others, and it’s important to make something of your life that is more than just a successful career.

extraordinary. I am blessed to work at Mayfield Junior School.

KAT H Y

‘‘

Giving enriches the student experience by giving ‘‘ Annual teachers the resources to elevate the ordinary to the

H O LT S N I D E R

Middle School Religion and Math

A Partnership for

Excellence

Join those who have already made a gift to the 2012 -13 Annual Giving Campaign.

Make your gift today. www.mayfieldjs.org/giving

annual giving 2012 - 2013

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Announcing the

2013 Alumni Matching Gift Challenge Alumni Giving Challenge

An anonymous alumni donor will match

ALL NEW* ALUMNI GIFTS until June 30, 2013 ! [*gifts from alumni who have not given in the past three years]

DOUBLE DOUBLE your Annual Giving dollars today!

We will announce the classes with

“Most Participation” and “Most Dollars Raised” Visit www.mayfieldjs.org/giving

DOUBLE your Annual Giving Gift with a gift made by June 30 !

or mail your gift to Mayfield Junior School 405 South Euclid Avenue Pasadena, California 91101

Thank you

for your support of the

2012-13 Alumni Annual Giving Matching Gift Challenge

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In Memoriam Mayfield Junior School extends its deepest sympathy to those members of our community who have recently lost loved ones. The following individuals have their names inscribed in the Mayfield Junior School Chapel Memorial Book and will be perpetually remembered in the prayers of the Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus.

Ralph Alfieri, grandfather of Alexis Alfieri ’06, Austin Alfieri ’10, Avery Alfieri ’12 and Winston Alfieri ’14, and former father-in-law of Melissa Winston Alfieri ’79 Earl Bane, grandfather of Samantha Bane Bainter ’97 and Sarah Bane ’02

Michael Patrick Kelly, grandfather of Courtney Kelly ’10 and Michael Kelly ’13 Edward Kalunian, grandfather of Cameron Kalunian ’95 and Collyn Kalunian ’00 Joe Kincaid, uncle of Katie Clifford ’98, Michael Clifford ’00 and Brian Clifford ’04 Ron Kinder, father of Elizabeth Kinder ’78 Pier Kooistra, grandfather of Hayden Eaves ’16 and Hayley Eaves ’16

Margery Benso, mother of MJS faculty member, David Hemak

Janet Lindsey, aunt of Paul Anderson ’78 and Douglas Anderson ’81 and great aunt of Henry Anderson ’07 and Charlotte Anderson ’08

Esther Berg, grandmother of MJS faculty member, Lisa Byrne

Irma Ochoa de Ledon, mother of MJS staff member, Victor Ledon

Bobbi Bilich, grandmother of Erin Simpson ’98 and Brian Simpson ’04

Betty Legreid, grandmother of Anneke Osterkamp Greco ’95, Marissa Osterkamp Bell ’99 and Emily Osterkamp ’02

Kannen Blevens, son of Kendall Blevens ’96, and grandson of Daryn Martin Magee ’76

Julia Loo, mother of MJS staff member, Roy Chavez

Megan Boken, cousin of Brendan Boken ’08, Connell Boken ’11 and Eryn Boken ’14

Richard Lynch, grandfather of Camilla Nelson ’17

Larkin Brogan ’01, sister of Chase Brogan ’99, John Brogan ’00 and Abigail Brogan ’05 Bob Clancy, father of Katie Clancy ’07, Megan Clancy ’13 and Siobhan Clancy ’18 Kelly Langs Clark ’88 Marjorie Davidson, grandmother of Sophie True ’14 Mary Eisele, grandmother of Samuel Eisele ’15 Paul Erskine, father of Eugenia Erskine Jesberg ’73 Laird Facey, grandfather of Madeleine Watkins ’09, Charlotte Watkins ’12 and Ellie Watkins ’15 Dorothy Fox, grandmother of Samuel Symington ’19 Virginia Godfrey, grandmother of Dennis Clougherty ’89, Vince Clougherty ’90, Tara Clougherty Martin ’91, Paul Clougherty ’94 and great grandmother to Jack Clougherty ’17 and Will Clougherty ’17 Richard Harcharick, uncle of Karen Halpin Dolan ’76 and Kristina Halpin ’78 Emily Hawkinson, grandmother of Clare Hawkinson ’18 George Jidoun, father of Grace Jidoun ’84 Lloyd Johnson, grandfather of Matthew Johnson ’10, Natalie Johnson ’10, Sarah Johnson ’12 and David Johnson ’14 Francis Kelly, grandfather of Will Mennis ’99, Michael Mennis ’02 and Jessica Mennis ’04 42

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Murray Lougheed, father of Sarah Gill Bob Markese, father of Emily Markese ’10 and Katie Markese ’12 Thomas Riley, grandfather of Thomas Riley III ’12, Alexxandra Riley ’15 and Nicolle Riley ’20 Edward Ryan, grandfather of Sarah Ryan ’17 and Peter Ryan ’20 Estelle Schlueter, mother of Virginia Schlueter Jones ’60, Eugenie M. Schlueter ’64, Philip Schlueter ’66, Francesca Schlueter ’70 and Robert Schlueter ’78 and grandmother of Alison Jones Gamble ’83, Ashley Jones ’85, Thomas Jones ’89, Pablo Corey ’97, Olivia Corey ’99, Michela Maletis ’05, Emma Schlueter ’06 and Anna Schlueter ’09, Alexander Maletis ’12, and great grandmother of Matthew Gamble ’18 and Grace Gamble ’20 Beatrice Stathatos, grandmother of Mary Stathatos Cole ’98, Damon Stathatos ’00 and James Stathatos ’03, mother-in-law to Lisa Sparks Stathatos ’68 Charles Tighe, grandfather of Katherine Tighe ’12 and Julianne Tighe ’15 Ivan Uribe, grandfather of Aidan Hedman ’18 and Tyler Hedman ’21 Sue Viola, great grandmother of Kevin Finnegan ’06, Brendan Finnegan ’09, Brian Finnegan ’10 and Caroline Finnegan ’15 Mary Louise Workman, mother of MJS staff member, Mary Hatton Carleton Wright, grandfather to Kathleen LeRoy Majcher ’86, Kelley LeRoy Burnett ’89, Lisa LeRoy Pearson ’91 and Amanda LeRoy Welch ’95

Planning for the Future

THE EUCLID SOCIETY The Euclid Society was established in 2007 to recognize and honor current parents, parents of alumni, alumni and friends who have remembered Mayfield Junior School of the Holy Child Jesus in their estate or financial plans. Planned Gifts to Mayfield Junior School enable the school to prepare for its future and ensure that a Holy Child education will be possible for many generations to come. Planned Gifts received by the school are directed to the endowment, where interest each year supports such things as financial aid, operations, and faculty professional development opportunities.

Mr. and Mrs. Bruce Anderson Mr. and Mrs. Paul Anderson ’78 Mr. and Mrs. Geoffrey Bland Mr. and Mrs. Edward Chen Mr. and Mrs. William Clark Mr. and Mrs. Robert Griffin Mr. Donald E. Hall

Mr. and Mrs. Britton McConnell Mr. and Mrs. Steve Robinson Mr. and Mrs. Nicholas Saggese Mr. and Mrs. Roland Simpson Mr. Thomas E. Smith Hon. Kim M. Wardlaw and Mr. William Wardlaw

If you are interested in making a legacy gift to Mayfield Junior School, please contact your personal financial advisor and Mayfield Junior School’s Director of Development, Anne-Marie Bulawka, at 626.229.2105.

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Mustang Sports The Mustangs are having an incredible year! Boys A teams in football, soccer and basketball, all go undefeated to earn banners as League Champions. Girls A teams continued the winning streak as undefeated champions in volleyball and achieve first place following a strong 5-0-2 season in soccer. The B teams weren’t far behind with undefeated seasons in boys football and basketball, and girls volleyball. Looking forward to an exciting final season! Go Mustangs!

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Maypoll | 2012-2013 Editorial and Design Staff Tina Halpin ‘78 Director of Communications Deborah Fath Director of Publications Contributing Staff Anne-Marie Bulawka Director of Development Mary Hatton Assistant Director of Development, Alumni Relations Bonnie Onken Development Coordinator Contributing Writers Emma Baker ‘14, Sarah Lougheed-Gill, Tatiana Guyer, Kathy Holtsnider Photography Deborah Fath, Tina Halpin Printing The Castle Press Headmaster Joseph J. Gill Lower School Director Laura Kennedy Middle School Director Bridget Kelley-Lossada

The Maypoll is published two times annually for the community and friends of Mayfield Junior School.

We welcome your suggestions and comments. Every effort is made to avoid errors, misspellings and omissions.

Please direct any questions, comments or corrections to: Tina Halpin, Director of Communications at thalpin@mayfieldjs.org. Mayfield Junior School, 405 South Euclid Avenue, Pasadena, CA 91101 Mayfield Junior School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin or gender in the administration, educational policies, admissions, hiring policies, financial aid program, athletic program or other school administered programs.

Mayfield Junior School is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges [WASC], Western Catholic Education Association [WCEA] and the California Association of Independent Schools [CAIS], and is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools [NAIS].

Mayfield Junior School of the Holy Child Jesus

Non-Profit

405 South Euclid Avenue

U.S. Postage

Pasadena, California 91101 - 3199

PA I D

www.mayfieldjs.org

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address service requested

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Parents of Alumni Please forward this publication. If your son or daughter no longer maintains a permanent address at your home, please notify the Alumni Office of his or her new mailing address at 626.229.2117 or alumni@mayfieldjs.org

MAYPOLL MAYFIELD JUNIOR SCHOOL OF THE HOLY CHILD JESUS