Archive for Ursuline Update

A Message from the President – Gretchen Z. Kane

As it is the Lenten season, I thought I would share reflections from Sarah Stockton, a writer, writing teacher and spiritual director, whose articles have appeared in America, the Christian Science Monitor, The San Francisco Chronicle, and many other publications. She is the author of Restless in Christ: Answering the Call to Spiritual Commitment.

“We come together in Lent as a faith community to be a companion, witness, and disciple of Christ as he begins his long journey toward death and resurrection. How can we best be attentive to the spiritual journey during this time of grieving, introspection, seeking, and redemption? As Christians we are offered two significant pathways toward a closer communion with God, in Christ. First, we are invited into a community of fellow seekers. And second, we are invited into our own personal relationship with Christ, as we seek to find points of connection through his words, his story, his example, and his living spirit, to our own lives today.

Lenten Reflection
Lent comes each year laden with the memories, teachings, assumptions, and wisdom that each of us has accumulated over the years of our church experience. This can be both a blessing and a challenge. A blessing, in that we are reminded of the cycle of birth and resurrection. We are re-called, called again, to our connection with not only the liturgical calendar, but the cycle of life itself. In the familiarity of our rituals and celebrations we are re-connected to our faith and the family of God. The challenge of Lent is to find a way to make it a vital, living, immediate experience of the life of Christ and our connection to that life, in all that it both asks and promises. The writing exercises offered here invite you to explore both the blessings and challenges of this season.

The Blessings of Lent
Take a few minutes to think about what it is you truly look forward to in the Lenten season. This could range from daily events to more general feelings or awareness. Now go beyond what first comes to mind. Is there something that attracts you every year, when the season of Lent first begins its approach? What about it especially beckons you, what is it that draws you to want to be a part of this experience? Is it the change in seasons, the promise of spring? Is it the comfort of tradition? Is it some sense of a new start in your life, or a chance to go deeper into your prayer life? It may be all, or none of these things. Write about what the blessings of Lent are, for you, this day.

The Challenges of Lent
There are several challenges before us during Lent as well. How to stay the course of Christ’s journey without losing heart. How to not judge the way others are “doing Lent.” How to keep the incandescent reality of our faith alive in the midst of the harsh reality of daily life. In some Christian denominations, Lent has also traditionally been used as a time of giving up something we enjoy or rely on, in order to demonstrate our personal repentance and our allegiance to the suffering that Christ experienced. Yet the story of Christ is not just a story of suffering, but of a human being who lived in the complete fullness of God. Our challenge therefore is to learn to live in that same complete fullness, as best we can, through Christ’s example and his ever-present love. What is it that keeps us from full communion with Christ? What can we “give up” this Lenten season that has until now served as a barrier between us and Christ? Is it some behavior, some pattern, some way of thinking about ourselves or others? Or could it be some unrealistic desire that keeps us from the present moment? Or are we avoiding an unexplored dream that might fulfill us? Write about what you might “offer up” to God during this season as a way of acknowledging your desire to come closer to God. What door could you open, in what way could you stop hiding from God’s love?”

A Message from the High School Principal – John Gabriel

In an attempt to better serve the needs of our students, the High School Division of Ursuline Academy has recently embarked on a partnership with a group of educational consultants from Philadelphia called Sustaining Excellence. Sustaining Excellence attempts to help schools analyze data already available to schools (in the form of grades and standardized test scores), as well as to help schools generate additional data (in the form of surveys and questionnaires), so that schools might better identify how to fulfill the school’s mission. The data that is generated and then analyzed will tell us how well we’re doing – and what we need to do to improve.

In January, we sent our standardized test scores from the last five years to these consultants. This week, Sustaining Excellence will be training several of our teachers on how to observe classrooms for certain “indicators of learning” that should be occurring in each classroom. These observations are not intended to be used to evaluate teacher performance; rather, they are intended to generate data concerning what students learn in classes. After our trained teachers observe, they will then submit their findings to the consultants, who will compile this data and present it to the school later this year.

Another important source of data will be surveys that will be administered to various groups associated with the High School. Over the next couple of weeks, Sustaining Excellence will be administering a series of surveys to students, faculty, parents and alumnae that will ask these constituencies to rate Ursuline’s effectiveness as a school.   We in the Academy look forward to receiving this feedback, because we know it will help us become a better school. Should you be asked to participate in one of the surveys, we ask that you take the time and effort to complete the respective survey carefully. Your candor and honesty will be critical in this process of evaluating Ursuline.

After all of this data has been compiled and analyzed, Sustaining Excellence will present it to the Ursuline community in March and April. These consultants will meet with school leadership (including several members of the faculty) and start a dialogue intended to help Ursuline see itself more clearly. The data that has been generated and analyzed will serve as the impetus for all of us to see how we might better serve our students. Identifying “best practices” in teaching, and matching those “best practices” to what can help our students, will help us make a better Ursuline.

Again, our goal is simple: all of us want to serve the girls who attend Ursuline as effectively as possible. We in the High School are excited about this opportunity to work with our students, parents, alumnae and some nationally-known educational experts in making Ursuline even better. It is our hope that you join us in this process.

A Message from the Elementary School Principal – Kim Harper

Welcome back. I hope everyone had a fun and restful Mardi Gras break.  As we enter this Lenten season, we do so in hope that our hearts will be opened anew to each other and to God’s grace.

As most of our Ursuline community is aware of, we have lost a very dear parent of our children. Mr. John Ward, father of Charlotte and Isabelle Ward, and husband to Ursuline alumna Nathalie Ward, passed away during the break. Please join me in offering your prayers for the family.

I’d like to offer a very special thanks to our Dads’ Club for a super great Thoth Parade BBQ, which was held on Sunday, Feb. 14. The weather was beautiful, the Ursuline girls who marched looked terrific, the food was delicious, and the company of Ursuline families and friends was wonderful. This continues to be one of my favorite events. Also, thanks to the Castay’s for opening their home to all of us.   

The Cash Raffle will begin next Monday, March 1. We will be offering some really cool incentives for the students to get motivated to sell.  A separate e-mail, as well as a hard copy, will be going home this week. We very much count on and appreciate your support of this most important drive.   

We are well in to the second half of this 3rd quarter. As a parent myself, I am aware of the struggle to keep moving ahead with homework and nightly studying. Please support us by helping your children stay motivated. A consistent routine, organization, daily studying, and a positive attitude all make a huge impact on success. 

6th and 7th grade exams will be in two weeks: March 10 – 12.

A Message from the President – Gretchen Z. Kane

I don’t think I’ve really come down from Cloud 9 yet! The Saints DID win the Super Bowl, no? We couldn’t have asked for a better game, for a better display of fan support, or for better PR for the city of New Orleans. As the open letter to the NFL which appeared in this past Sunday’s Times-Picayune declared, “After 43 years of being treated as America’s experts on losing, we’re ready to become the new national role models for passion and perseverance.”

As my mind races ahead to imagining the future and the additional achievements it holds, I have to admit that I have to remind myself that “Rome wasn’t built in a day.” Patience is not one of my strengths and may not be a characteristic we find so much in society these days. So, I found myself reflecting on the future and thinking beyond dealing with those items requiring immediate attention.

What is the culture we’re going to be dealing with in the year 2020 and the impacts on that culture? Communications will become faster and more immediate. Space and time will expand and shrink, simultaneously. The search for intimacy, as evidenced by the increase in Internet dating, will most likely continue. I remember a line from a British play that says, “we live as we dream…alone.” I believe that this will be a part of the world we’re going to have – the part we’re going to struggle with in light of technological change. So, our students are going to need communication skills and interpersonal relation skills. They will need to have tools for decision making so that they can sort out the sources of information and judge the values of the larger society that are bombarding them. They have to know how to think. They have to realize the real world. It may not be MTV, but this is reality, and the more reality they submerge themselves into, the more human they become and the more adept they are at understanding themselves.

One of the greatest challenges facing society in general and education in particular, it seems to me, is recognizing technology for what it is and can be, and integrating it into the larger picture of human destiny. The question that occurs to me is: is the incredible speed with which current technology is enabling us to access information beginning to encroach on our willingness to invest time in reading and reflection? Reading and reflection have served the human enterprise well down to the present time. Immediacy has its place, but it can’t be the ultimate goal.

Ursuline Academy will face many challenges in the 21st century. But, know that, in the tradition of the Ursuline sisters who founded this great Academy over 282 years ago, we will strive to continually improve, not only as an educational institution, but as a center of culture and faith.

A Message from the High School Principal – John Gabriel

After the excitement of the Academy’s first state championship last November with our volleyball team, it is time to recognize the accomplishments of our winter sports teams.  In soccer, Head Coach Winston Lewis and Assistant Coach Aaron Walters have guided their girls to an undefeated district championship and a number four ranking in the state polls as the team enters the playoffs. The soccer team’s overall record as they enter the playoffs is thirteen wins, three losses, and three ties. The team’s number four ranking has provided the Lions with a first-round bye in the state playoffs. We wish our soccer team the very best as they prepare for this important quarterfinal action.

Coach Joey Favaloro’s basketball team, with a record of twenty-four wins and four defeats, is currently ranked seventh in the state’s AAAA classification system. The team, who defeated AAAAA Dominican last week, is currently undefeated in district play this season. The Lions enjoyed a key victory against district rival Cabrini last Friday night. After games at Pearl River on Wednesday night and at home against Salmen this Friday, the girls will enter the state playoffs. The basketball team looks forward to its second consecutive trip to the Final Four tournament in Hammond and an attempt to capture Ursuline’s first-ever state championship in basketball. As with the soccer team, we wish Coach Fav, Coach Roker, and the girls the best as they prepare for the playoffs.

The Carnival season is performance time for the cheerleaders and the Lionettes. Both groups participated in Cleopatra (on the West Bank) and Pontchartrain (in New Orleans) this past weekend. This coming Sunday, both groups will march in Thoth through Uptown New Orleans. Please come out and see our girls in action during their performance.

And, just in case you were wondering, spring sports begin this week. The softball team scrimmages Belle Chasse on Tuesday at JPRD before participating in the Fontainebleau Jamboree next Saturday, while the tennis team begins its season versus McGehee on Monday afternoon (at the UNO Tennis Center) and Dominican on Tuesday (also at UNO). Please come out and support our girls’ efforts!

A Message from the Elementary School Principal – Kim Harper

Who Dat!!! Good Morning! What a wonderful weekend it was! Congratulations to our Saints – World Champions! I hope everyone enjoyed the Saints Super Bowl holiday. With only two days left in this week before the Mardi Gras holidays, let’s try to give our class work and homework our very best efforts before the break. Progress reports will be mailed home this week.

The entire Ursuline faculty and staff enjoyed a wonderful retreat on Friday. We spent time together listening, sharing and reflecting on our call to be educators and role models in the likeness of
 St. Angela. The afternoon was spent in camaraderie and community building.

I wish to thank our Ursuline dance and cheer squads, as well as their parents and Mrs. Pusateri for the superb job they did marching in Cleopatra and Pontchartrain this past weekend. They were all real troopers, and they made Ursuline proud!

Happy Birthday to Mr. Lou, who celebrated his birthday on Monday, Feb. 8.

Kalee Banks will fill in for me on Thursday, Feb. 11 as “Principal for the Day.” Congratulations to Kalee, and good luck!

Friday, Feb. 12 is a big day here at Ursuline, because it is our annual Grandparents’ Day. We will begin the day, for grades 1st -7th, with Mass at 9:30 a.m. followed by a reception and then our famous toddler parade. Pre-K and Kindergarten will have Bingo at 9:30 a.m. in the gym followed by the toddler parade in the courtyard. The T-2 and T-3 classes will start with a reception in their classrooms at 10:30 a.m. followed by the parade in the courtyard at 11 a.m. I hope all of our special grandparents, grand friends, and/or parents can join us for a special morning.

Friday, Feb. 12 is a noon dismissal. No aftercare. Mardi Gras Holidays are Feb. 15 – 19. School resumes on Monday, Feb. 22.

Don’t forget about our annual Ursuline Thoth party on Sunday, Feb. 14. This great time is sponsored by our dynamite Dads’ Club! The dads and moms will set up the Ursuline tent and BBQ pits on the neutral ground at the corner of Napoleon and Magazine streets. The Ursuline HS and MS girls will be marching, and we need everyone to come out to cheer them on and enjoy a fun time with our Ursuline family!  

Mardi Gras Holidays are Feb. 15 – 19. School resumes on Monday, Feb. 22.

A Message from the President – Gretchen Z. Kane

We have so much to be proud of and to be thankful for at Ursuline. I have the great fortune to see our girls developing every day, growing intellectually, emotionally, spiritually and physically. Thank you for your support of our wonderful mission. A very special thanks to the Ursuline Academy Parents’ Club, and especially to Gina Brothers and Pam Dalgo, for the great work in organizing yesterday’s High School Mother-Daughter Luncheon at the Hilton Riverside.

If you haven’t sent in your registration for next year, it’s very important to do so right way. We are in the middle of our application process for new students, and, without having an accurate count of the number of families who will not be returning to the Academy next year, we are unable to offer some of our prospective students a place. The principals will be sending a reminder so that our current families have every opportunity to respond.

A Message from the High School Principal – John Gabriel

One of the great blessings we in education enjoy on a regular basis is the opportunity to discover talents and gifts that we haven’t seen before in the young people with whom we work. I was reminded of this phenomenon twice last week: first, while I saw a group of girls working at St. John the Baptist Community Center during the girls’ efforts on behalf of the community on the Feast of St. Angela; and second, during the one-act play competition in the auditorium on Saturday night. Both instances served as important reminders of what the Ursuline experience does for our young women.

At St. John the Baptist in Central City, our girls were working with students in the Center’s Head Start program. As impressive as the collective efforts of the Ursuline students were in reaching out to these pre-schoolers, I was most impressed with one young lady in particular. My contact with this student had been limited to exchanging pleasantries in the Front Circle before school and in the hallway. Nothing in my previous experiences prepared me for the enthusiasm and energy she displayed in working with these children. I saw her enthusiastically organize a game that included twenty-odd students and her own classmates. She revealed a sense of empathy that touched those children while demonstrating real leadership qualities. St. Angela’s feast day allowed me to see this young woman’s exceptional gifts.

My experience on St. Angela’s Feat Day was only a sampling of what our girls did throughout the greater New Orleans metropolitan area last Wednesday. During our celebration of Mass that afternoon, girls from more than two dozen sites presented symbols of their work on that day. Our thanks go out to Campus Ministers Kim Otto and Betsy Falk for their incredible work in organizing this outreach to our community.

Saturday night, I had a similar experience while watching the one-act play competition. Several times I was stunned to see exceptional performances by students who have (at least to me) hidden their considerable gifts as actresses. Making these performances even more impressive was the fact that several of the one-acts were directed not by Drama Moderator Dody Nolan, but by the students themselves. The poise, assurance and energy demonstrated by our Ursuline students on Saturday night was a revelation – and a humbling one, at that. I was reminded once again to never underestimate an Ursuline student. 

My point behind these anecdotes is to suggest that educating the whole person is central to the Ursuline experience. These types of programs offer our girls lessons that go far beyond the classroom and touch at the real meaning of Catholic education. Please encourage your daughters to participate in all activities sponsored by the Academy. One never knows what hidden talents might be unearthed.

A Message from the Elementary School Principal – Kim Harper

The Dads’ Club will hold a meeting on Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the cafeteria.

This Friday, Feb. 5 is a student holiday due to a faculty/staff retreat.

Monday, Feb. 8 is an Academy holiday in honor of the Saints going to the Super Bowl. WHO DAT!

Progress reports will be mailed home on Feb. 9. We are midway through the 3^rd quarter, and it is a good time to take stock of your child’s progress. Even though Saints fever has taken hold and Mardi Gras is kicking off, please continue to encourage your child to remain conscientious in her studies. Parents, remember to check take home folders and Ed-line reports, and always monitor your child’s study habits.

Parent/Teacher Conferences have been moved to Monday, Feb. 22 from 2:30 to 5 p.m.

Ursuline will be marching in Cleopatra on Friday, Feb. 5, Pontchartrain on Saturday, Feb.  6, and Thoth on Sunday, Feb. 14. 

Friday, Feb. 12 is Grandparents’ Day. We will celebrate with Mass at 9:30 a.m. for grades 1^st-7^th, followed by the toddler parade in the courtyard. Pre-K and Kindergarten will have Bingo in the morning followed by the toddler parade.  T2 and T3 will have the parade at 11 a.m. Dismissal for all students is at noon. There will be no aftercare on this day.  

Mardi Gras Holidays are Feb. 15 – 19. School resumes on Monday, Feb. 22.