Principal's Weekly Newsletter

St. Mary of the Assumption School has been selected as a finalist in THREE categories of this year's Boston Parents' Family Favorite including: Best Faith-Based Preschool, Best Faith-Based Elementary School, and Best Faith-Based Middle School!

We need your help in the voting the process! In order for us to advance to the next round, please vote for St. Mary's in each of these categories using the link below!

Voting closes June 22nd!

On Friday, we hosted our International Family Festival! It was a wonderful celebration of the rich diversity that makes our school community so special. More than 30 countries were represented by families who generously shared traditional foods, cultural crafts, and customs with students, families, alumni, board members and staff. It was inspiring to see families proudly share their heritage and to watch students explore and appreciate the many traditions represented.

A special thank you to Ithwa and Laura for serving as chairs of this event and dedicating so many hours to planning and organizing every detail. We are also deeply grateful to all of the families who spent so much time cooking, preparing, and sharing food and activities. Their generosity, hard work, and enthusiasm made this celebration possible and helped create a truly memorable experience for our entire school community.

After beginning his St. Mary’s journey in K1 and K2 with Ms. Annie and Ms. McAuliffe, leaving for a time, and then returning for 8th grade, Amdwin came back to a community that quickly felt like home. During his time at St. Mary’s, he ran for Student Council and contributed through community service efforts, including helping with a bake sale fundraiser for the East Hill Farm School field trip. Next year, he will attend Malden Catholic and is already thinking far ahead: while he is excited to graduate and step into new territory, he also has big goals, including someday attending Harvard Law. One of his favorite St. Mary’s memories from when he was little is seeing his Mom come help at school during playground time, something that made school feel extra special. What he will miss most are the people and friends who made St. Mary’s such a kind and welcoming place. He is especially grateful for Mr. Pritchett for his support in math, Ms. Kfoury for always being someone he could talk to and lean on through social challenges, and Ms. Nis for helping guide important decisions and always being there for him. His advice for younger students is simple but powerful: “enjoy it…life keeps moving, and both the good and the bad eventually pass. Go with the flow, because this too shall pass.”

After joining St. Mary’s in 7th grade, Nella quickly became a valued part of our school community. Outside of school, she enjoys playing soccer and boxing, and next year she will continue her journey at The Newman School. Nella is excited for the more rigorous curriculum that high school will bring, along with reconnecting with old friends and exploring subjects like biology! She is also looking forward to participating in soccer and track. One of her favorite St. Mary’s memories was the ice-skating field trips, where she enjoyed seeing teachers outside of the classroom and getting the chance to connect with them in a different way. What Nella will miss most is seeing her classmates every day and the friendships she built along the way. She is especially grateful for Mr. Pritchett, who helped her gain confidence in math and transformed it into a subject she could enjoy…instead of fear! One of the most important lessons she is taking with her is how valuable friendships are and how quickly time passes. Her advice to future middle school students is simple: “Enjoy it while it lasts…it’s going to be over in an instant!”

Jayden joined St. Mary’s at the start of grade 7. During his time here, he has participated in multiple activities including Quiz Bowl and cross country. Being part of the cross country team was one of his favorites because loves running. His favorite memory at St. Mary’s is participating in Quiz Bowl and going to the competition because his teammates were really encouraging and motivating, it was exciting to have the opportunity to answer questions about a variety of topics, and his St. Mary’s team did really well in the competition! He will miss his friends and teachers the most at St. Mary’s, especially Mr. Pritchett, who really made an impact on him during his time here by encouraging him to push through challenges. Jayden loved learning math with Mr. Pritchett’s sense of humor. During his time at St. Mary’s, Jayden says he learned a lot from his teachers, especially learning from the S.T.A.R.S. values to be honest and show respect. In high school, Jayden looks forward to continuing to play the drums and expanding his knowledge in science, math, and technology. His advice for incoming middle school students is to participate in the events and clubs to get to know more people in the school community.

Esi began her education at St. Mary’s for part of her seventh grade year. She was excited to return for the full year in Grade 8! This year, Esi joined her teammates in playing on the St. Mary’s basketball team. She enjoyed trying a new sport, and she performed very well, with many of her classmates recognizing her as most athletic. She feels that during her time at St. Mary’s she has grown as a person both physically and mentally. A teacher who has made an impact on Esi’s experience at St. Mary’s was Mr. Holmes, our PE teacher. She shared that he created a welcoming environment and always played fair. She will be continuing her education at Cathedral High School next year. She is looking forward to the new experiences that high school will have to offer, especially the art classes and girls flag football team! A word of advice that Esi would give to incoming middle school students is: “Enjoy the experience, you will miss middle school once it is done.”

Following the excitement of last Friday’s Spring Concert Showcase, students continued celebrating the performing arts this week through two wonderful events that highlighted their creativity, confidence, and hard work.

On Tuesday, students in Grades 3-5 presented Go Fish the musical, a fun story about a shark that just wanted to make some new friends. The students rocked their performance with props and fun songs that some of us might still have stuck in our heads, I know I do... After their performance, middle school students brought the biblical story of David and Goliath to life through a dramatic stage production. Both performances showcased the students’ dedication, ensemble work, and growing skills in music and theater. It was amazing to watch these young performers share their talents and tell a meaningful story.

On Thursday, K1, K2, and 1st Grade students enjoyed a special musical learning experience presented by student musicians from the New England Conservatory. Through a live string quartet performance, students were introduced to several classical composers while learning about musical vocabulary, techniques, and the unique sounds of string instruments. The interactive presentation encouraged active listening, movement, conducting the performers themselves, and finding a deeper appreciation for classical music.

Our Paul Effman Band students in Grades K2 through Grade 8 under the direction of Mrs. Jen Hawes, Mr. Tom Carlisle, and Mr. Andrew Hickman, presented a selection of songs yesterday for their Band Concert. The K2 Ukulele musicians, who worked tirelessly this first year in band, performed "Row Row Row Your Boat," "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star," Itsy Bitsy Spider," "Happy Birthday," and "If You're Happy and You Know It." Their faces beamed with pride as the audience joined in on the final song. The violin musicians performed six songs next, showing how they could pluck the strings of the violins and expertly and use the bow to make beautiful music. The Band played next! Student musicians played a variety of woodwind, brass, and percussion instruments including the flute, trumpet, clarinet, alto saxophone, trombone, bells, and drums. Musicians played classics like Star Wars, and more current songs such as "Steve’s Lava Chicken Dance." The audience was also treated to a very special “Junkyard Jam” performance with buckets featuring some of our Honor Band Drummers: Kennedy, Jayden, Jacob, Alexandra, Grace and Sami. A very special thank you to all the families who supported their student at home practicing! Well done, musicians!

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