Classically Wayside - Summer 2023

classically WAYSIDE

OUR LADY OF THE WAYSIDE SUMMER 23

John Jalsevac (705) 749-3658

headmaster@olwayside.ca

MESSAGE FROM THE

HEADMASTER

Ifind it incredibly exciting to be serving as the new headmaster of Our Lady of the Wayside.

Our culture may be in trouble, but classical education is not. In fact, as discussed elsewhere in this newsletter, it’s exploding in popularity. Yes, the challenges of leading a private, Catholic school in Ontario are legion. But so are the opportunities.

What’s clear to me is that this is the moment for which Wayside was made.

For 27 years, Wayside has proven that there is a demand for joyfully Catholic, classical education in Peterborough. Now, however, the secret is getting out. More and more families are moving to Peterborough from all over Ontario because they want to send their children to Wayside. Enrollment is increasing sharply.

There’s a real possibility we’ll max out our capacity as early as next year. That’s exciting!

But, what then? That’s my question for you, our faithful supporters. What then? Will we simply accept our limitations? Or will we have the courage to set out into the deep, as Christ commanded his disciples to do?

Here’s what I think. I think we are being called to make Wayside a flagship for Catholic, classical education Canada. That means growth. Strategic planning. Construction projects. Capital campaigns. Hiring. Taking risks. A whole lot of hard work. And even more prayer.

So, again I ask you: what’s next? What do you think Our Lady is calling Wayside to become? And what will your role be in that process? Think about it. And once you have…let’s talk.

ON THE RISE

ENROLLMENT

As more and more families are finding out about Wayside, enrollment is already undergoing significant growth.

In the 2022-23 school year, 61 students were enrolled at Wayside. As of this writing, however, over 90 students have formally enrolled for the 2023-24 school year, with more families expressing their intention to register in coming weeks.

The stage has been set for growth thanks in part to the success of Wayside’s recent open house and organ concert. Equally important are the glowing recommendations from current families, and a growing awareness of the excellence of Wayside’s joyful, challenging, faith-centred classical curriculum.

“So many parents I’ve spoken to in recent months, both at our recent open house and during private tours, tell me how happy, even relieved, they are to find a school like Wayside,” says Headmaster John Jalsevac. “Many of these families are coming to us because they have

heard either through the grapevine or from current families about the amazing things happening at Wayside every day.”

My worry in the near future is that we might run out of space. However, that’s a great problem to have, and internally we are already discussing ways that we might be able to accommodate more students in the future.”

Clearly, more and more parents are looking for the kind of joyfully Catholic and rigorously classical education that Wayside provides.

Semper altius!

INTRODUCING HEADMASTER

JOHN JALSEVAC

After a lengthy search, Wayside’s board of directors has hired John Jalsevac as the new headmaster for the school.

Jalsevac is the proud father of seven. He received his bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Christendom College. More recently he earned his Master’s degree in theology from Regis College at the University of Toronto.

He is currently wrapping up a PhD in philosophy at the University of Toronto (Centre for Medieval Studies), with a dissertation on St. Thomas Aquinas’s philosophy of memory.

During his graduate studies, Jalsevac earned numerous scholarships and awards. This includes the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Arts and Science Top (FAST) fellowship, awarded to the top incoming student in each department each year. He subsequently won the prestigious Canada Graduate Scholarship (CGS-D), and the 2022 American Catholic Philosophical Quarterly’s “Rising Scholar” award.

Prior to his graduate studies, Jalsevac worked for ten years in the pro-life movement, firstly as journalist, then editor, and lastly in various management roles, including VP of marketing and managing director of LifeSiteNews.

Outside of academia, Jalsevac has numerous passions and interests, including music, drama, gardening, beekeeping, languages and fitness. He has served as a board member of the Peterborough Singers, directed the Peterborough Sacred Music Society, and has served as organist and cantor at St. Thomas More Catholic Church in Millbrook for the past decade.

Jalsevac is already busy putting his passion for classical education and commitment to organizational excellence to work in plotting an ambitious course for the future of Our Lady of the Wayside Catholic School.

Please pray for him as he undertakes this challenging role.

WHAT’S IN THE WATER

AT WAYSIDE?

Is there “something in the water” at Our Lady of the Wayside School? That’s what the organizers of the Lakefield Literary Festival’s Writing Contest recently wondered to our headmaster, after four of our students won first prize or honourable mentions in their contest.

With over 150 entries into the Lakefield Literary Festival contest, the top place finish by several Wayside students is a significant accomplishment.

Organizers of the festival were so impressed that they said they wanted to come by the school to learn more. And so early in June, Wayside hosted all the winning students for the official contest award ceremony.

Also present was journalist Brendan Burke, who interviewed two of our winning students for The Toronto Star and The Peterborough Examiner.

Naomi D

First Place in junior fiction; First Place in junior poetry

As Wayside student Naomi explained to Burke, the message of her prize-winning story “A Silent Sacrifice” is that, “actions speak louder than words.” “It’s about a girl who was born mute and she doesn’t feel like she can express her feelings as well as everyone else,” she explained.

Meanwhile, grade 4 Wayside student Arthur also made an appearance in The Peterborough Examiner in May after winning second place in the Peterborough Rotary Club spelling bee.

The winners of the writing contest received $200 cash, a plaque, free entry to the Lakefield Literary Festival, and publication in the contest e-book. Arthur’s win in the spelling bee earned Wayside a $500 literacy prize.

Clearly, Wayside’s classical model of education is yielding results.

WE’RE PROUD OF

Rachel P First Place in junior non-fiction

Lauren S

Honourable Mention in junior fiction

Arthur Z

Second place, junior division, Peterborough Rotary Club

Spelling Bee

Top Left | Organ Concert

Top Right | Sister XYZ

Bottom | Preforming Arts aXYZ

NEWS AROUND WAYSIDE

1

GRADUATION

At the end of June, Wayside celebrated the accomplishments of our three graduating grade 8 students. Congratulations to David C., Clare L., and John Paul P. as they move on to our excellent Chesterton Academy in September! The school also held a delightful graduation ceremony for our senior kindergartners, who will be making the big step to first grade in the fall. Congratulations Xavier, Henry, Gabriel, Siena, Lily and Michael!

God bless all our students on their academic journeys.

2

ORGAN CONCERT

In May, world-class organist Syd Birrell performed a free concert for the Wayside community. During the performance he played some of the greatest music ever composed for the organ, and explained many of the features of the “queen of the instruments.” The concert concluded with Birrell accompanying the Wayside choir as they sang several pieces, concluding with an emotional sing-along of O God Beyond All Praising. Thank you to Mr. Birrell for sharing his gifts with us!

3

PACKED HOUSE!

In early June, Wayside students entertained a packed house in the hall of St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church in Lakefield. Our Chesterton Academy high school students had audience members on the edge of their seats in their gripping rendition of 12 Angry Men. Grade 7 and 8 students had everyone in stitches as they performed the “play within a play” from Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The lower grades performed elaborate (and hilarious) renditions such as A Curse on the King by Janea Dahl and The Trojan Horse Story. Clearly, the performing arts are alive and well at Wayside!

4

DONOR DINNER

Thank you to all our faithful supporters who showed up to our St. Joseph’s donor appreciation dinner in May! Headmaster Jalsevac delivered an inspiring speech laying out an ambitious vision for the future of the school. Donors heard from board chair Frank Callaghan and enjoyed performances by talented students and staff! The school was presented with a signed copy of “Green Routes”, a new book on Peter Robinson settlers and descendants by local author Rosemary McConkey. We look forward to seeing you at next year’s dinner!

Top Left | CSN Fine Arts Preformance

Top Right | CSN Athletics Bottom | CSN Fine Arts

A CLASSICAL EDUCATION

RENAISSANCE

“Amid the Pandemic, a Classical Education Boom,” reads one recent headline in a major newspaper. “The Post-COVID ClassicalEducation Boom,” reads another. These are just two of the many articles published in recent months attesting to an encouraging fact: classical education is undergoing a major resurgence.

South of the border, millions of parents pulled their children from the public school system during and after Covid. Some are opting to homeschool. Others are flocking to the hundreds of classical schools that have set up shop over the past decade. Waiting lists at these schools are bursting at the seams. A similar trend is underway in Canada.

Many of these new classical schools are Chesterton Academies, part of the burgeoning Chesterton Schools Network (CSN). Although the Chesterton Schools Network only began ten years ago, as an offshoot of the original Chesterton Academy in Minneapolis, Minnesota, they expect to have seventy classical high schools in operation this year. The growth is exponential.

In founding Wayside as a classical school 27 years ago, Wayside’s founding families were ahead of the curve. They understood that during their precious school years, children should be immersed in “the best that has been thought and said” (as the poet Matthew Arnold once said of classical education).

However, Wayside incorporated its high school as a Chesterton Academy five years ago, joining forces with a movement that is changing the face of high school education not just in North America, but around the world.

In July, Wayside’s headmaster, John Jalsevac, and administrator, Joy Meehan, had the chance to witness this Chestertonian renaissance firsthand, when they attended the annual CSN conference in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

At the conference, hundreds of Chesterton Academy headmasters, teachers, board members and staff attended daily Mass, and sessions on everything from curriculum to marketing and fundraising.

Equally impressive as the sheer number of schools that CSN has brought into existence, is the joyful Catholic spirit that permeates everything they do, the high standards of academic excellence they have set, and the high degree of professionalism of all their support, training and resources.

Among the many benefits of belonging to CSN, is the opportunity for our grade 12 students to join their annual pilgrimage to Rome and Assisi.

Jalsevac and Meehan returned from the conference fired up to put the many things they learned at the conference into action this upcoming year. Please pray for them, and all our staff, as we prepare for the upcoming school year with a significantly increased student body.

Want to learn more about the Chesterton Schools Network? Join us April 13th for the Wayside Chesterton Conference. Sign up for our newsletter for more information at olwayside.ca/newsletter

HOW CAN

YOU

HELP?

DONATE To meet our current growth, Wayside is urgently in need of donations.

Funds will be used for such things as increasing bursary funds, making repairs and improvements to our building, hiring additional staff, and purchasing muchneeded books, sports equipment, and furniture, etc.

Please consider making as generous a donation as you are able today. “Monthly” donations are particularly needed, as they allow us to make ambitious plans for the future in the confidence of a reliable source of income.

VOLUNTEER We need volunteers to serve as part-time teachers, classroom helpers, sports coaches, club leaders, event planners, handymen, or committee members. To volunteer, please send an inquiry to volunteer@olwayside.ca.

SHARE Please spread the word. Do you know someone who is interested in classical or Catholic education? We would love to hear from them. Or better yet, send us their names and contact info, and we’ll reach out to them directly.

PRAY The foundation of every successful effort to build up the Kingdom of God is, and must be, prayer. We can only bear fruit if we are closely united to Christ, the vine.

Please remember our school and staff in your daily prayers.