At last we rounded the corner to spring and anticipate new beginnings! Registration for the next academic school year is well underway, spring season sports are in session and planning continues for programs that will continue to enhance experiences for our Mercy girls.

 

Academic News

NHS Inductees: Last week over 75 students were inducted into Mercy's Mother Carmelita Manning Chapter of the National Honor Society. We are proud to have so many students meet the required standards of academic excellence along with demonstrated traits of Character, Scholarship, Leadership, and Service.  

 

Driver's Education:

Health and Safety

Drugs101: Last month freshwomen and sophomores attended a Drugs101 workshop in partnership with St. Joseph Mercy Hospital. We look forward to extending this educational awareness opportunity in April to our upper-classwomen. Topics covered will include the dangers of stimulants, inhalants and depressants; as well as the effects of alcohol and smoking, whether through traditional cigarettes or vaping. This interactive workshop generated much awareness with our younger students, and we are grateful to St Joseph Mercy for their willingness to continue this conversation for all of our students.

 

Prayer for Safe Schools: Our student body unified on March 14 to pray for safe schools, honor the victims of Parkland, FL and provide awareness for how to contact lawmakers to voice concerns for school safety should they choose to do so. We are proud of the leadership, respect and thoughtfulness shown by all of our students in planning and participating in this event. Through the day's activities, students raised $757 to send to Parkland victim fundraising efforts.

 

Willing to Wait: Our 10th grade Health class was not only enhanced this year with CPR training, but students recently completed the Willing to Wait health program facilitated by the Lennon Pregnancy Center. This Catholic based curriculum is comprised of 5 units teaching students to avoid sexual risk until marriage as a positive and realistic lifestyle, promoting self-control, respect, responsibility, and optimal health. This program provides an awareness of current sexual issues and gives teens the necessary skills for managing their sexual decisions responsibly.

 

Catholic Identity

Mercy Education System of Americas Update: Mercy High School is part of MESA (Mercy Education System of the Americas). This Mercy organization of 57 schools boasts members from the Philippines, Central America, South America and throughout the United States.

 

Each year this international organization sponsors leadership training opportunities, secondary school educational conferences, a leadership forum, a Stewardship Review and a new accreditation process based on Catholic Identity and Mercy Charism.

 

Earlier this month, Mercy High School presidents, principals and board chairs gathered in Atlanta, GA for the annual MESA Leadership forum. Dr. Cheryl Kreger, Board Chair Mrs. Nancy Auffenberg and I joined school leaders from all Mercy secondary school educational ministries. This was a wonderful opportunity to participate in conversations facilitated by the Sisters of Mercy leadership team focusing on Catholic Identity and best practices in making decisions based on the Gospel teachings of the Church and the charism of the Sisters of Mercy.

 

#lMakeLentReal: Our students and staff have many opportunities to support their spiritual Lenten journey. A traditional Lenten event at Mercy is Fasting Friday where soup and bread are sold to raise funds for Queen of All Saints Church, an Appalachian mission in Beattyville, Kentucky. This year, we raised $320 to help restock their food pantry which gets daily inquiries for supplies.

 

12 Mercy students are preparing for Alternative Spring Break in Madison and Clark Counties in Kentucky. These students will spend Easter vacation in outreach to others and will help to build a new house for a struggling family. Please keep these students and their chaperones in your prayers for a safe and spiritually fulfilling trip.

 

Heart of Mercy Mass: Our annual Heart of Mercy Mass is a beautiful celebration of the charism of Mercy, and an acknowledgement to those members of our family who truly inspire and make a difference through their kindness and spirituality. This year's Heart of Mercy recipients, Senior Annie Acho Tartoni and Math Department Chair Mrs. Vicky Kowalski are overwhelmingly deserving of this honor for their seamless sharing of the Mercy values each day.

 

We embrace various ways to engage our students at mass, and we were joined at the Heart of Mercy celebration by John Thorne the music minister at Sacred Heart in Detroit. Our talented students Elon Payne and Ghable Bell  joined in to complete the beautiful harmony.

 

As you can see, there are many reasons to be proud of our school. As our Mercy students remind us during daily announcements, "it's not what it is, but what it can become". Thank you for allowing us to support your daughter as she becomes a woman who makes a difference!

 

May the miracle of Easter bring you love, joy and happiness to last a lifetime,