Mercy High School - Did You Know

See the Mercy Advantage In Action!

Why An All-Girls School?

“We believe a school for girls is better than a school with girls.”

—National Coalition of Girls’ Schools It is a reality that young women today continue to be inundated with messages, both subtle and overt, that imply they may be less capable than their male counterparts. In an all-girls environment, we thrive on combating and replacing these messages for our students. In an all girls environment girls are empowered to take on any role they want, bringing to life the message that they are capable of anything and everything.

Why Mercy?

At Mercy our students are immersed in programs that are intentionally designed to support girls in finding their voices, gaining their confidence and becoming the best versions of themselves. The focus on encouraging and uplifting the young women of Mercy to exceed their own expectations is at the heart of all we do. At the start of this Admissions season, we asked prospective students to begin to envision, “Who will you become at Mercy?” We hope you will find in the following pages, example after example of who students can become when they find themselves known, challenged and transformed at Mercy.

e g a t n a v d A ’ ls r i G All-

Girls are more likely to thrive in an environment that offers increased positive reinforcement, support, and leadership opportunities. Recent research has concluded that graduates from all-girls’ schools have a clear edge over their coed peers in a number of key areas:

HIGHER Testing Scores

Single-gender schools tend to outscore their coed counterparts on the SAT.

STRONGER Academic Skills

Girls’ schools develop critical thinkers, with graduates confident in exploring topics independently and developing innovative solutions.

STRONG COMMUNITY Involvement

Students are active in volunteerism and demonstrate a desire to participate in environmental and community development programs.

INCREASED Self-Confidence & Leadership Skills 80% of girls’ school graduates report holding leadership positions after high school. Graduates of girls’ schools report higher self-confidence over their coed peers, and show initiative in holding leadership positions in college and careers.

SUPPORT FOR GIRLS’ Unique Learning Styles

Experience higher levels of support from classmates & teachers with more than 95% of girls' school students reporting high engagement by teachers.

STEM Success

(Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) Girls' school graduates are 6x more likely to consider STEM majors and 3x more likely to pursue engineering.

Learn more about current research at www.ncgs.org

’ ls ir G ll A e th s e k ta y c r e See how M .. l. e v e L t x e N e th to e g Advanta Mercy earned the College Board's AP® Computer Science Female Diversity Award for expanding young women's access to AP Computer Science A (CSA). This award acknowledges 1,020 schools for their work toward equal gender representation during the 2020-21 school year. Mercy is one of only 199 schools to be recognized for achieving this important result in AP CSA. Research shows that female students who take AP computer science are more likely to major in computer science in college compared to female students of similar background and academic preparation who didn't take AP computer science courses.

Nancy Astabie ’21

Lilly Mae ‘24 Mercy sophomore, is

is currently attending West Point. In her senior year at Mercy, she was a Commended Scholar by the National Merit Scholarship Program, recognized for her exceptional academic talent and promise. Nancy placed among the top 3.5% of more than 1.5 million students that took the PSAT.

a fifteen-year-old author, who began writing The Winds of Truth when she was nine years old and finished it at twelve. After two years of editing, she got her first publishing contract at fourteen.

She has been accepted into two precollegiate writing classes at Stanford University and received top honors in both English and literature.

Amalia Brawn ‘22, an extremely focused artist, currently serving as the President of the National Art Honor Society, Amalia’s portfolio explored anxiety through a Marine motif earning a perfect score on her AP 2D Art and Design Exam. Amalia was one of 152 students in the world to earn a perfect score. My Studio Art AP Exam was a really rewarding experience and it’s something that I will never forget. I was shocked and honored to have earned a perfect score. I am also very grateful that the Mercy VPA Department has really helped me to get this far. —Amalia Brawn ‘22

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Pamela Xiang ‘21

Kiana Dacanay ‘24

. .. m o o r s s la C e h t n I Several Mercy students were showcased at the Congressional Art Competition reception in June 2021. This included Isabella Hoffman ‘22, Claire Wagner ‘23, Kiana Dacanay ‘24, and Pamela Xiang ‘21, who won 3rd place! Pamela’s work remained on display in Congresswoman Jackie Speier’s Bay Area office for the year.

42

AP/Honors CLASSES

83%

Claire Wagner ‘23

This is a great accomplishment for a rookie team. This judged award acknowledges the removal of engineering obstacles through creative thinking. Students go from having no expertise to actual “hands on” experience with robot building. They gain skills in mechanical engineering and computer science through coding and AutoCAD. Mercy’s Robotics Team: Bharathi Arivazhagan ‘22 Nancy Astabie ’21 Amaelia Bringas ’22 Anna Dawes ’21 Niamh Dawes ’23 Natalie Dean ’22 Carolina Gutierrez Rodriguez ’22 Kelley Han ’21 Joanne Hui ’21 Anadi Mehar Purewal Legha ’22 Luna Zhou ’21

Isabella Hoffman ‘22

The Robotics Team took home the Think Award 2nd Prize at the FTC Tech Challenge 2021

Average AP

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Average AP

18

Average CLASS SIZE

CLASS SIZE

PASS RATE

. . . e c i v r e S & In Mission A cherished, timehonored tradition,

Mercy Week

celebrates our Sister of Mercy heritage and foundress Catherine McAuley who opened the first House of Mercy in Ireland in 1827. Every year our faculty and students plan events, activities, and a Mass to reflect on the Sisters’ charism that drives our community, including the Sisters of Mercy’s Critical Concerns.

Students visit St. Anthony’s in SF where they serve meals and sort through donated clothes as well as help guests find what they are looking for. It is a very rewarding day!

Mercy’s Service Learning program organized beach clean ups in Half Moon Bay, Pacifica, and San Francisco, giving students the opportunity to get fresh air while serving their communities.

Mercy’s Religion classes decorated our altar by the grotto with photos of loved ones for Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). It is a holiday rooted in Mexican culture that honors deceased family members.

. .. io d tu S e th in & e g ta On the S

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Creative

COURSES

. . . t r u o C & d l e i On the F 14

Sports

24 Teams

Varsity Volleyball’s consecutive wins helped to secure a spot in the CCS Tournament and in the CCS Championship game. We are incredibly proud of volleyball’s accomplishment of finishing as quarterfinalists in the state CIF Tournament.

Ari Montiel ’22 signed her letter of commitment to play Division I Softball at Howard University. Ari has started all three years at Mercy and is looking forward to her senior season this Spring. She is excited to continue her athletic career as a Howard University Bison!

Junior Varsity Volleyball brought home two trophies winning the Half Moon Bay Pumpkin Challenge and earning 2nd place at Spikefest.

Freshman Volleyball proved to be

a powerhouse as they took home the WBAL Championship title as well as the Half Moon Bay Tournament 1st place trophy!

Varsity Tennis held their own with

hard fought victories over a number of our strong local competitors!

Varsity Golf had another successful season, led by WBAL Golf Champion Brooke Barron ‘22, who shot a 37 at Sunnyvale Municipal Course. Brooke continued on to compete in the CCS Championship.

Last season Brooke finished first in the West Bay Athletic League (WBAL) Championship at Los Lagos in San Jose. Mercy participates in one of the premier private school golf leagues.

. . . y c r e M r e t f In Life A Our graduates have been accepted to colleges and universities across the United States and abroad.

Mercy’s Class of 2021 (116 students) were offered over $14.5 million in scholarships.

Seattle University University of Washington

University of Colorado Boulder

Gonzaga

Loyola University Chicago Purdue University Marquette University Xavier Ohio State University

University of Oregon Cal State Sacramento

Boston University Cornell University New York University Colgate University Syracuse University

UC Berkeley

Rochester Institute of Technology University of Hartford

Santa Clara Cal Poly

Villanova University

Loyola Marymount University

American University Johns Hopkins University

University of California Los Angeles

University of North Carolina San Diego State

University of Southern California Pepperdine University

University of Arizona

University of Nevada, Reno Arizona State University

University of Hawaii

Bowdoin College

Louisiana State University Baylor University

Davidson College Emory University

University of Alabama Texas State University

ACCEPTANCES ABROAD • University of British Columbia • University College Dublin • Kings College London • Queens University Belfast • Queens University Ontario • University of Edinburgh • University of Manchester • University of St. Andrews • Vancouver Island University • Ecole Polytechnique

Jenise Spiteri ’10

has qualified for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics in Snowboarding Halfpipe.

She is representing Malta as their first-ever Olympic snowboarder, as well as serving as their flag bearer in the opening ceremonies.

Estrellina Pacis Rius ‘97 NASA Ames Systems Engineer Ester works at NASA Ames in Mountain View as a Systems Engineer in the Intelligent Robotics Group.

WINTER OLYMPICS 2022

Amanda Odasz ‘13

graduated cum laude from Harvard Law School on May 27, 2021. She also received the Dean’s Award for Community Leadership. Amanda has moved to Washington, D.C., where she continues her career as an associate at Covington & Burling LLP.

Abbie Hui ’17 Catriona Fallon ‘88

Mercy graduate Catriona Fallon is a two-time U.S. Olympic crew team member in 1992 and 1996. She received her bachelor's degree from UCLA and her MBA from Harvard Business School.

Annie Breidinger ’17

Apple, Test Engineer Recently graduated from Purdue University with a BS in Mechanical Engineering. She is currently at Apple as a Test Engineer.

graduated from Brown, and will continue on in their 5th year Master’s program for Pathobiology as she prepares for the MCAT. Her ultimate goal is med school!

Toni Breidinger ’17 Race Car Driver Toni became the first Arab American female driver to participate in a NASCAR national series. She was honored and excited to be the first, and hopes that she can pave the way for future female Arab drivers as well.

PUBLIC SERVICE Congresswoman Jackie Speier ‘68 Member of Congress, US House of Representatives

BUSINESS - STEM Gina Rosaia Collins ‘99 Associate Director, Access Solutions Marketing, Genentech

JD, University of California, Hastings School of Law ‘76 BA, Political Science and Government, UC Davis

MBA, Marketing and International Business, USF ‘10 BA, Economics, Political Science, UCSB ‘02

STEM Michelle Bradley ‘11 Ph.D. Candidate, Biochemistry, UCLA MS, Biochemistry, UCLA ‘17 BA, Biochemistry, Colgate University ‘15

THEATRE AND FILM INDUSTRY Jill Dannis '09 Specialist, Academy Gold Mentorship and Alumni Programs Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

BUSINESS Jamila Sinlao Zanette '04, Ph.D. Director of Marketing & Business Development, Zanette Aviation Insurance

MEDIA/COMMUNICATION Paulina Campos '14 Account Coordinator at Archetype BA, Communications, Stanford University ‘18

Ph.D., Sociology, UC Santa Barbara ‘18 MA, Sociology, UC Santa Barbara '12 BA, Sociology, University of San Francisco ‘08

LAW & LEGAL SERVICES Lauren Suhl Rios ‘05 Principal at Law Office of Lauren Rios STEM Victoria Bradley ‘14 Outsourcing Associate, BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc.

J.D., Santa Clara University School of Law ‘14 B.S., Political Science, PreLaw, Public Sector Studies Santa Clara University ‘09

BA, Biochemistry, Colgate University ‘18

B.A., Sociology Loyola Marymount University ‘13

HEALTHCARE Vashti Sinigayan, MPA '99 Staff HR Operations Manager/HRBP, UCSF MPA, Emphasis in Human Resource Management Notre Dame de Namur University '09 BS, Health Science - Health Care Administration/Public Administration & Public Policy San Jose State University '04

LAW & LEGAL SERVICES Sepideh Mousakhani ‘04 Associate, Cooley LLP J.D., Santa Clara University School of Law ‘13 BA, Political Science, UC Berkeley ‘08

JOURNALISMMEDIA/ COMMUNICATION Stephanie Sierra '12 Investigative Reporter, ABC Bachelor of Journalism, Broadcast Journalism, University of MissouriColumbia ‘16 Received a

National Hearst award and honored with a regional Edward R. Murrow award in 2019.

EDUCATION Natalie Cirigliano Brosnan ‘02, Ed.D. Head of School, Mercy High School Ed.D., Catholic Educational Leadership, University of San Francisco ‘17 BA, Psychobiology, UCLA ‘06

d r a w r o f We look u o y o h w to seeing ! e m o c e b will

Mercy

MERCY HIGH SCHOOL 2750 Adeline Drive Burlingame, CA 94010 admissions@mercyhsb.com 650.762.1114 • www.mercyhsb.com FOLLOW US @mercyburlingame Mercy High School Burlingame Mercy High School, Burlingame is a sponsored ministry of the Institute of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas and is a member of Mercy Education.