Three Saint Joseph Academy Students Honored by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation Principal Audrey Menard announced that seniors Megan Masella and Meredith McGuire were recently named National Merit Semifinalists through the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) in Evanston, IL. Each year the program names about 16,000 semi-finalists from the nearly 1.5 million participants who qualified by taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/ NMSQT). In addition, senior Madie Szaller was named a Commended Student by the NMSC. Mrs. Menard remarked, “We are proud of these outstanding young women. Their scholarly accomplishments as well as their extracurricular activities show that they have set a course for future success.” Megan Masella is the daughter of Anne and James Masella of Cleveland, Ohio and the
grandaughter of Elizabeth Canty Kennedy J’53. Megan graduated from Saint Patrick’s West Park grade school and is currently looking at The Ohio State University or Purdue University where she hopes to major in Electrical Engineering. Meredith McGuire is the daughter of Rosanne and Thomas McGuire of Strongsville, Ohio. Meredith graduated from Saints Joseph and John grade school in Strongsville. She is currently looking at St. Vincent’s College or Catholic University where she hopes to major in Biology or Chemistry. Madie Szaller is the daughter of Charlene and James Szaller of Westlake, Ohio and is a graduate of St. Raphael grade school. Madie was one of only 34,000 students from the
nearly 1.5 million participants who scored in the top 5% on the Preliminary SAT/ National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT). Madie plans on attending either the University of Michigan or University of Dayton to major in Education or School Psychology.
L-R: Megan Masella J’09 and Meredith McGuire J’09 National Merit Semifinalists for SJA
Saint Joseph Academy Celebrates the Charism of the Congregation of St. Joseph Celebrating the charism of our founding Sisters, the Congregation of St. Joseph, is a yearly tradition at Saint Joseph Academy. Fostering this spirituality of the charism within the Academy community is important, and helps both students and faculty alike to deepen their spirituality. The charism theme this year focuses on being one with creation, and it teaches the idea of loving and caring for the earth. In September, the school year began with a prayer service that honored the significance of water in our lives both at a spiritual level with the baptismal promises of Jesus Christ and at the physical level as one of the essential elements of earth and of life. The entire SJA community 8
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was given a BPA-free water bottle printed with the words “We are one with Creation,” and the SJA logo. The water bottles not only offer inspiration, but they also provide students with a visible opportunity to live out the charism. Students are encouraged to use the reusable water bottles during the school day, translating into fewer disposable water bottles in the trash. The students were also asked to help with a special project. For twenty-five years, civil war ravaged the nation of the Sudan, causing the deaths of over two million people and orphaning or displacing more than 27,000 boys who were separated from their families. With the help of aid organizations, several of the boys eventually settled in Cleveland. Sr. Mary Frances Harrington, CSJ, mentored these “Lost Boys”, including a young man named Isaac. Now grown, Isaac has traveled back to the Sudan to return to a village which has only one well for 41,000 people, leaving many to use contaminated waters from the river. Isaac, along with others have started a project called Isaac’s Wells. The project seeks to raise money to help build wells in Isaac’s village, so that the villagers have access to an adequate and safe water supply. The students began fundraising efforts for Isaac’s Wells which represents one of the many ways Saint Joseph Academy is manifesting the spirit of the charism. “Our celebration of water is rooted in being one with creation. This expression of the symbolism in our faith is exciting, profound and invigorating when we celebrate together as one community,” according to Dr. Darlene Khoury, Saint Joseph Academy Campus Minister.