St. Aloysius School in Sauk City held its traditional Chili Cookoff on January 30 in conjunction with Catholic Schools Week.
Tag: teacher
Jesus is main teacher at Catholic schools
In 1974, Catholic Schools Week was established as the annual celebration of Catholic education in the United States.
This year it occurs from January 26 to February 1. Catholic schools celebrate with Masses, open houses, and other activities for students, families, parishioners, and community members.
Educate whole person
Jesus is the main teacher in Catholic schools, where students learn about Jesus and his teachings. His message is not just a set of intellectual propositions or truths, but a way of life.
Sr. Kathleen Loughrin, OP, dies
Sr. Kathleen Loughrin, OP, died April 29, 2019, at St. Dominic Villa, Hazel Green, Wis. Her religious name was Sister Janetta.
Sr. Elaine Robbins, OP, dies
Sr. Elaine Robbins, OP, died April 5, 2019, at St. Dominic Villa, Hazel Green, Wis. Her religious name was Sister Genevieve.
Sr. Marielle Schmitt, OP, dies
Sr. Marielle Schmitt, OP, died January 15, 2019, at St. Dominic Villa.
Sr. Marie Amanda Allard, OP, dies
Sr. Marie Amanda Allard, OP, died October 7, 2018, at St. Dominic Villa.
Teacher celebrates 40 years in Catholic education
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| St. John the Baptist School in Jefferson teacher Margie Schels, middle, stands with eighth graders Josie Peterson, left, and Karsen Powell, right, during a recent celebration honoring Schels’ 40 years as a Catholic school teacher and more than 20 years teaching at St. John the Baptist. (Catholic Herald photo/Kevin Wondrash) |
JEFFERSON — As the annual observance of Catholic Schools Week came to a close at St. John the Baptist School in Jefferson, Principal Susan Loof made a bold, but appropriate statement to a teacher sitting in the front row of church.
“You are Catholic education . . . Today is your day to be appreciated in a very public way.”
The teacher was Margie Schels, who was being recognized in that public way for her 40 years as a Catholic school teacher.
Schels teaches religion and math to seventh and eighth graders and is the eighth grade homeroom teacher.
“She touched so many lives,” said eighth grader Josie Peterson. “She cares for other students and she’s very kind and she helps people grow a lot in their faith.”
“She has so many amazing features about herself and she’s just a really amazing person,” said eighth grader Karsen Powell. “I look up to her — she’s just a great teacher.”
Appreciating teachers in Catholic schools
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In 1974, National Catholic Schools Week was established as the annual celebration of Catholic education. In 2017, Catholic Schools Week begins on January 29 and ends on February 4. Its 2017 theme is “Catholic Schools: Communities of Faith, Knowledge, and Service.”
During this special week, Masses, open houses, and other activities for students, families, parishioners, and others are offered. Through these events, Catholic schools call attention to contributions Catholic education provides for youth, church, community, and country.
Since I was a Catholic school- teacher for 22 years, in this article I will focus upon appreciating the value of Catholic schoolteachers.
Fort Atkinson teacher retires after 42 years
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| Pat Bries, fifth grade teacher at St. Joseph School in Fort Atkinson, hands out Turkish Delights to some of her students. Bries is retiring after 42 years at the school. (Catholic Herald photo/Kevin Wondrash) |
FORT ATKINSON — As Pat Bries completed her fourth, and final, decade teaching fifth graders — bringing the total to more than 600 — her classroom displayed her career, both the past and the present.
A Smartboard has long replaced the chalkboard, but signs with the cursive alphabet still adorned the classroom.
Bries said the handwriting style is still needed in the real world, “I don’t think it’s on the way out yet.”
Her desk displayed small school pictures of every student she taught since the school started having the photos taken more than 20 years ago, while her current students listened to her read to them from an eBook reader.
The book was Long Way from Chicago by Richard Peck, a book she has read to all of her classes toward the end of the school year.
Bries reads it because one of the book’s main characters has a “strong sense of right and wrong” and her soon-to-be-departing fifth graders are “going into middle school now and they realize that life is not all black and white — there are a lot of shades of gray.”
Despite the school year and a teaching career of 42 years coming to an end, it was just a normal day in Pat Bries’ classroom located at the end of the hallway at St. Joseph School in Fort Atkinson.
Sr. Catherine Rita Palmisano, OP, dies
Sr. Catherine Rita Palmisano, OP, died April 17, 2016 at the Dominican Motherhouse. Her religious name was Sr. Thomasina.