Montgomery Catholic Student Summits Mount Kilimanjaro

Summer vacation is always a great time to make new memories by traveling to new and exotic places. One Montgomery Catholic Preparatory School student took this to the literal extreme and hiked to the top of the world and summited Mount Kilimanjaro, 19,341 feet above sea level.

Montgomery Catholic senior Grace Scott packed a rucksack and traveled to Tanzania, East Africa, with youth mountaineering group, Moondance Adventures. An experienced mountaineer herself, Grace has hiked throughout the Blue Ridge Mountains, Yosemite National Park, and the Pyrenees Mountains between France and Spain, and has summited Mount Shasta in California and Mont Blanc in France. Her avid interest in the outdoors and love of serving others led her to join the Moondance trek to Kilimanjaro.

After landing in Tanzania, the Moondance group spent a week at the Mungere School near the city of
Arusha. They worked with the Red Sweater Project, a charity organization that aims make education accessible to the poorest children in the most rural areas of Africa. The school grows its own food to feed the students, and Grace’s group helped by tilling soil and clearing land for the vegetable gardens.

“It was really rewarding getting to help these kids,” Grace said about her time at the Mungere School. “I became very close to them, and I’ve even become penpals with Nate, an 11-year old student.”

After their week at the school, the Moondance group started their trek up Mt. Kilimanjaro. The hike took a little over a week as each step up the mountain became more difficult with the increased altitude, decreased oxygen, and plummeting temperatures.

“The thin air from high altitudes is very hard on your body,” said Grace. “There was one point where, while just sitting down and resting at base camp, I felt completely out of breath. Of course we had to also pack extra layers of clothing for the dramatic changes in temperature, but I don’t think any of us were prepared for how cold it truly was close to the summit.”

While almost all of the hikers made it safely to the summit, the dangers of their trip were made apparent when one of the students took ill halfway through the climb and required emergency evacuation from the mountain. The temperatures transition from hot and humid at the base to freezing at the summit and the low oxygen in the higher altitudes makes recovering from illness and injury difficult, even for people in the best of health.

One of the more remarkable aspects of this trip is that electronic devices, like cell phones and tablets, are not permitted, so the group members needed to make strong personal connections with one another. They spent 24 hours a day together and relied on each other for company and entertainment.

“I enjoy making real, human connections with other people,” said Grace. “I think that nowadays we are too attached to electronic devices, so even when you’re with friends, there is always a distraction.”

Although her travels have taken Grace to different parts of the world, her next bucket list items are a little closer to home. “I’d like to do Mount McKinley (Denali) next, then Mount Ranier, and all of the mountain ranges in the United States,” she said. “After that, I want to hike through Patagonia in South America.”

Grace aspires to study nutrition science at college and is looking at the University of Memphis or
Sewanee: The University of the South. She intends to continue mountaineering and hopes to serve as a leader for other young people seeking outdoor adventures.

“I would love to lead a group of kids on trips like these,” she said. “I encourage everyone to get outside.”

As for other students wanting to get into the outdoors, she had some advice to pass along. “Just get outside, start with some short hikes and work up from there. Camping can be challenging at first because you have to do everything yourself, but it’s worth it, and it’s so much fun. Getting involved with a program like Moondance is also a great way to get started if you don’t know where to start.”

Montgomery Catholic Freshman Attends Naval Academy Summer Program

Many students get to travel to interesting places during the summer, and for one Montgomery Catholic Preparatory School student, her trip to Maryland included a little science, engineering, technology, and mathematics.

Freshman Evy Bosko was selected for a unique opportunity to attend The United States Naval Academy Summer STEM Program in Annapolis, Md. For six days, Evy lived at the Naval Academy where she learned, built, and explored in a world-class laboratory and experienced real-world applications of STEM principles.

“It was an amazing experience,” said Evy about her week in Annapolis. “I am definitely planning on going back again next year.”

This annual USNA STEM camp encourages young men and women to explore the different aspects of STEM and demonstrates the practical applications of each field. Using the state-of-the-art facilities and equipment available on campus, students were engaged in different thought-provoking exercises and experiments. Activities included calculating the optimal route for a rescue aircraft using a limited amount of fuel, constructing model buildings to withstand different wind intensities, building robots and programming them to perform different tasks, testing the strength of different grades of steel in various conditions, and exploring the epidemiology of infectious diseases and how easily they can spread out of control. And although STEM-based activities were the focus of the program, campers also got to enjoy intramural sports, social events, and a trip to the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C.

Campers came from all over the United States, and the highly selective process only accepted about
18% of all who applied. The process combed through each applicant’s coursework, grades, standardized test scores, and club memberships, and only the highest achievers were invited to attend. Although it was a relatively small group of students, the friendships and memories that they made with one another will last for a lifetime.

“I got to meet people from all over the country, and we still keep in touch,” said Evy. “It’s really cool to be among a group of young people who all have an interest in STEM.”

Although she has only just started high school, Evy has already begun to plan her career trajectory after she graduates. Stacking her class schedule with advanced courses in math and the sciences, she intends to use all that she learns to help people by solving crimes.

“I’d love to go into a law enforcement field where I also get to use science,” she said. “I’m looking at forensic science, maybe in an agency like the FBI.”

Montgomery Catholic Students Work as Pages in the State House

When planning for summer break, most high school students will pull out swimsuits and beach towels. For two Montgomery Catholic Preparatory School students, blazers, ties, and dress shoes were required as they spent some time working in the Alabama State House during the legislative session. Junior Ellie Pool paged for Representative Reed Ingram and senior Ja’Michael Washington paged for Senator David Burkette.

Pages play an important role for legislators by helping them to set up the chambers for the day’s events, making and distributing copies of documents, and performing general clerical duties. Pages also facilitate communication by delivering messages between legislators in the House or Senate chambers with people who are outside of the chambers. And while pages are assigned to specific representatives and senators, many pages run errands for multiple members of the legislature.

“It was a lot of work, but it was also a lot of fun,” said Ellie about her week in the State House. “It was really interesting to see the legislature in session and to see how much goes into the writing and passing of bills.”

Ja’Michael echoed Ellie’s sentiments and said that his experience helped him to understand the inner
workings of government better. “I was not aware of how involved the legislative process was,” he said. “I got to see how much work and preparation goes into the defense of each bill.”

In addition to normal page duties, Ja’Michael also got to lead the entire Senate in the Pledge of Allegiance. “They asked for a volunteer to lead, and I stepped up,” he said. “I was a little nervous about messing it up, but it went just fine.”

When asked about the most interesting aspects of the experience, both students said that the discussion of bills on the House and Senate floors was fascinating.

“I learned so much by watching the debates,” said Ellie. “The discussion could get a little heated while the representatives were going back and forth on the issues on the floor, and everyone was very passionate about the legislation they were trying to pass. There was once an entire day dedicated to discussing education bills.”

Ja’Michael admitted that his week as a page has influenced his outlook on government. “I didn’t have as much of an interest in politics before working as a page, but now I know that it is important to be involved in the political process. It is crucial to vote for those who will be representing your district.”

While Ellie said that she has yet to decide whether a career in government is in her future, she did make some connections during her time in the State House. “I really enjoyed getting to meet the other pages,” she said. “I connected with so many cool people from all over the state.”

The Alabama House of Representatives and Senate Page Programs offer young men and women a rare glimpse of the House and Senate chambers when the legislature is in session. Pages get to meet their state legislators, watch parliamentary procedure in action, and observe committee meetings. In addition to interacting with the legislators, students also have an opportunity to network with their peers who have traveled to Montgomery from all over the state of Alabama.

Montgomery Catholic Preparatory School Celebrates the Dedication of New Athletic Facility

The afternoon of Sunday, August 11 marked the public unveiling of the first phase of Montgomery Catholic’s capital campaign, Building on Faith, Family & Tradition. It was standing room only as faculty, students, families, alumni, and supporters of Montgomery Catholic Preparatory School gathered inside the new gym facility for the first time. While the temperatures outside approached 100 degrees, the first impression the crowds received of the building was the blast of cold air as they entered.

“This is marvelous, this is wonderful, and our students are very fortunate,” said Gwendolyn P. Byrd, Executive Director, Department of Catholic Education, and Superintendent of Schools of the Archdiocese of Mobile. “All I can say is that everyone will treasure this facility. God made this happen.”

The 33,000 square foot athletics facility replaces the Father Pat Delahunty Memorial Gymnasium, a building that has hosted countless ball games, pep rallies, and other school events in its 51-year history. And while the Fr. Delahunty Gym has faithfully served the school during this time, Montgomery Catholic has outgrown its capacity for the gym to house the various athletics teams and the fans who come to support them.

At the heart of the new building is the Partners In Catholic Education (PICE) Knights Arena, which features two regulation-sized basketball courts and seating for over 850 spectators. The large arena floorplan will allow for practices for multiple teams and sports to be held concurrently. There are locker rooms for both boys and girls, a state-of-the-art weight training and conditioning center, an on-site athletic training room, and a fully-equipped concession stand. Additionally, the building features offices for coaching staff, a multi-purpose area for reviewing sports film, a large meeting room, and hosting space for various school events.

In her opening remarks, Montgomery Catholic President Anne Ceasar acknowledged that the school had needed a larger facility for a long time. In 2014, strategic planning led by the Institute of School and Parish Development confirmed this need, plus the need to grow the arts programs. After initiating a capital campaign in 2016, groundbreaking for the new gym took place on October 10, 2017.
“Thank you for allowing the Holy Spirit to work through you,” said Mrs. Ceasar, addressing all in attendance. She credited the prayers and financial support of the entire community for bringing the dream to reality, and expressed her gratitude for the help of a few key people in the building project, especially MCPS Project Director Nap Barranco.

“Many worked hard to bring this dream to fruition, but none harder than Nap Barranco.” She then said, addressing him directly, “Your knowledge, attention to detail, and dedication is priceless.”
Most Reverend Thomas J. Rodi, Archbishop of Mobile, led the dedication and blessed the new building. In a moving ceremony, he reiterated that the building was made possible through the prayers and generosity of the entire Montgomery Catholic community.

“I would like to only add one more name to the list of names that were already mentioned, and that is Mrs. Anne Ceasar,” said Archbishop Rodi. In an emotional moment, he presented her with a plaque stating, “In grateful appreciation to Anne Ceasar, President of Montgomery Catholic, for her vision and leadership in the building of this facility.”

Distinguished guests from the Archdiocese of Mobile included The Most Reverend Thomas J. Rodi, Archbishop of Mobile; Gwendolyn P. Byrd, Executive Director, Department of Catholic Education, and Superintendent of Schools; Michele Manry, Executive Director Financial Services; and Reverend Monsignor Bill Skoneki, Vicar General. Clergy guests of the dedication were Reverend Fathers Wayne Youngman, Mateusz Rudzik, Patrick Gilbreath, Victor Ingalls, Nicholas Napolitano, and Reverend Monsignor Charles Troncale. Many former members of the faculty came to celebrate the dedication included Dean Delongchamp, Montgomery Catholic’s first athletic director, and longtime teachers and coaches Joe Arban and Bernie Frye.

“This project would have been impossible without the help of everyone in the community,” said Athletic Director Daniel Veres. “I don’t think we’ve ever had this many people gathered in one place at one time.”

Building on Faith, Family & Tradition raised over $3.5 million in the eleven months after the campaign began. The second phase sees the conversion of the Fr. Delahunty Gym into a climate-controlled fine and performing arts building that will house the band, choral, and drama departments. The renovated building will have classrooms for band and chorus, individual practice rooms, instrument storage, and offices for staff. There will also be a student center which will serve as a gathering space to facilitate club meetings and other activities. Renovation on this new space is ongoing; completion is estimated to be winter of 2019.

Founded in 1873, by the Sisters of Loretto Montgomery Catholic Preparatory school celebrates 146 years of Catholic education in Montgomery this year. Founded as an all girl’s school, St. Mary of Loretto became co-educational in 1929. The high school moved to its current location in 1965. The last expansion at the campus was in 2007 with the addition of the Dolly Barranco Student Activity Center and Cafeteria. Today, Montgomery Catholic Preparatory School is a K4-12 college preparatory program across four campuses in Montgomery.