Letter from the Board of Directors Chairman

In visual arts, our 2D and 3D art students nurtured observational art techniques using pastel, watercolor, acrylic and oil paint or recreated famous works of art with items around the house, including kitchen gadgets, pets and siblings. Four seniors were invited to exhibit with the Pima County Public Library and the University of Arizona Museum of Art. Five seniors created theme-based portfolios submitted for College Board Advanced Placement credit.

Salpointe’s nationally accredited STEM program once again participated in Racing the Sun, a state-wide competition sponsored by SARSEF. This year, Salpointe’s standard kart, constructed on a pre-fabricated chassis, won the Grand Challenge Award, the most prestigious honor in the competition, and placed 2nd in Speed and Efficiency. Salpointe’s maker kart, constructed from scratch, won 1st place in Efficiency and 2nd place in Speed and Endurance. Lancer programming students were awarded Emerging Technology micro credentials badges from IBM and our Engineering students participated in Arizona’s State University’s College of Engineering COVID-19 Challenge.

Our Campus Ministry Department provided the capstone Kairos retreat for over 200 seniors during five retreats this spring semester. These God-centered, four-day retreats focus on spirituality and selflessness while stressing the importance of a meaningful encounter with Christ. By having retreats on campus, both leaders and retreatants learned that Kairos is not about the place, but about the experience of sharing their struggles and successes, and about building lasting relationships. One retreatant noted: “Kairos gave me community, shoulders to lean on, teachers to look up to, and bonds that will last a lifetime.”

The Carmelite fathers and Salpointe’s leadership are grateful to our highly engaged Board of Directors who guide the school to fulfill its mission. Under the able leadership of Pat P. Lopez III, class of 1974, the Board and its Academic, Advancement, Athletic, Facilities, Finance, Governance, Investment and Strategic Planning committees provide invaluable oversight to all areas of the school.

Finally, we extend gratitude to the Salpointe Catholic Education Foundation board and Salpointe Parent Association board for once again serving the needs of the Lancers. The SCEF works to maintain excellence in education and SPA builds community by hosting welcoming events for our Lancer parents and past parents. We are grateful for their welcoming hospitality and unfailing support!

It is always a great day to be a Lancer and we invite you to join in our pride! You, our Lancer family, are an integral part of Salpointe’s past, present and future.

Gratefully,

Kay Sullivan, President

A Letter from the Board Chair

Dear Salpointe Community,

I suspect that, like me, many of you are looking forward to the future. The past has taught us that it is impossible to know what the future might hold, so we should all cherish the present. I want to share with you some of those things that we can all cherish about Salpointe right now.

Thanks to many generous donors, we completed construction of the improvements promised by the Aspire campaign. Aspire focused on improving existing spaces and creating new spaces for arts, academics, and athletics. Those facilities will be waiting for our students when they return to campus in August.

Navigating the pandemic has been challenging, but the administration faculty, staff, students and families rose to the occasion. Through a hybrid learning model, Salpointe accommodated both distance-learning and oncampus learning, and we continued to provide students with that unique Salpointe experience. This past school year, we made campus-wide technical improvements to accommodate distance-learning; we implemented health protocols to protect our students, faculty and staff; and during this pandemic, seven Salpointe athletic teams won state championships.

We look forward to the return of all our students to campus this coming academic year. For their safety and the safety of others, we encourage all who can to be vaccinated. Please be aware that vaccination is consistent with Catholic doctrine. If you are interested in learning more about Catholic teachings on vaccination, I urge you to read Moral Considerations Regarding the New COVID-19 Vaccines, which was published by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and authored by the US Bishops who are the chairs of the Committee on Doctrine and the Committee On Pro-Life Activities.

Thank you for your support of Salpointe!

Sincerely,

Pat Lopez III ’74 Board Chair