Chez
News
Notre Dame School
of Manhattan
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Letter from the President
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The Road Home
by Stephen Paulus
Tell me, where is the road
I can call my own
That I left, that I lost
So long ago?
All these years I have wandered
Oh, when will I know
There's a way, there's a road
That will lead me home
After wind, after rain
When the dark is done
As I wake from a dream
In the gold of day
Through the air there's a calling
From far away
There's a voice I can hear
That will lead me home
Rise up, follow me
Come away, is the call
With the love in your heart
As the only song
There is no such beauty
As where you belong
Rise up, follow me
I will lead you home
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June 8, 2020
Dear Notre Dame,
This past week has been a whirlwind of activities for our Notre Dame community. While our isolation begins to be lifted little by little, our students and faculty are ending the school year without being at home,
Chez Nous
. They were not daunted, however, and are finishing the semester this week with strength and courage.
Last week, we honored our senior class with a virtual prayer service as well as a celebration for their achievements. Our music director Ms. Nicole Wakabayashi performed a beautiful rendition of the above song which I feel is fitting in our present circumstances. Despite the trials and tribulations of the recent months, the ND community consistently rises up, always searching for ways to stay connected to each other and their beloved school.
Our students have risen up in coping with the sadness of the pandemic and the impact on so many of our families. They have risen up to action and motivated their
Chez Nous
classmates to fight against the racial injustices so clearly evident in our city and in our country. And our seniors have risen up and ended the year with amazing college opportunities, finding new roads to travel as they depart Notre Dame. We are so proud of them and wish them much luck as they journey on. I want to make sure that they know that
Chez Nous
will always be their home, and I encourage them to come back to visit often.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank our entire
Chez Nous
family for their support of our Benefit last Saturday. Despite the fact that we could not meet in person, the virtual event was a tremendous success! We raised a record amount this year – much needed funds to be able to continue our mission of educating future ND girls. I am so grateful for all of you who participated and donated. Thank you!
Finally, I remind you that even though the school year is ending, the ND beat goes on. From June 29-July 23, our annual ND Summer Camp will take place. This year, it will be virtual allowing for girls from around the country to join in. I encourage you to pass on this information to your families and friends near and far. (Information on registering is in the last article below.)
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Dr. Virginia O'Brien, SU
President
Notre Dame School
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Part of the slide presentation in last week's S.T.A.N.D. forum.
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S.T.A.N.D.
(
Solidarity Throughout All of Notre Dame), the student-led social justice group at ND, held a powerful forum last week that brought together more than 160 students from nearly 20 schools. With the death of George Floyd and the subsequent protests, S.T.A.N.D realized that many students were looking for a place to connect with each other about what they were feeling, and thanks to the work of the club’s leaders, that space was ready for them!
S.T.A.N.D. student leaders kept in close contact with their peers about what they wanted from this space. They also wanted to empower their classmates who were strong voices in the classroom and on social media about the Black Lives Matter movement, so the committee invited some amazing guest collaborators to help: Alais Springer-Elkerson ‘23, Fanta Diop ’21, Amariah Elliott ’21, and Jillian Lewis ’20. In the days leading up to the forum, these students spent hours with S.T.A.N.D. club members, giving feedback on materials and adding their own slides to the PowerPoint presentation. Their insight and feedback were invaluable and added a great deal to the day.
In the planning of this event, one constant request from the students was that they wanted to make their voices heard. As a result, although student leaders spent hours creating a
PowerPoint
of information and resources, they made a decision to not present their research, but instead yielded the floor to their peers for the entire time of the meeting in the format of an Open Mic and small group discussions. The results were powerful with students sharing their personal stories, poetry, and concerns for all to hear. Subsequently, there were small breakout groups with both students and faculty. In those sessions, guiding questions helped promote a more focused dialogue. Participants were so enthusiastic about the forum that many stayed on for another hour after! All in all, it was a productive and enlightening session with practical action plans for next steps.
But S.T.A.N.D. is not stopping here! The club has scheduled a ND-only virtual meeting on the last day of school, June 12, to hear from students about how they want to stand up for social justice in the upcoming school year.
S.T.A.N.D. and the Notre Dame community as a whole is committed to continuing these dialogues and to create additional ways to eradicate racism from our society.
S.T.A.N.D.
Committee Members:
Jaileen Wales ’21, Shiyin Ge ‘21, Brigid McCabe ‘21, Cecilia Fiorindo ’21, Raven Williams ’22, Fiona McAllister ‘22, Annika Hegde ‘22, and Gwendolyn Clores ’22.
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ND's Benefit auctioneer, Duncan Schieb, as $300,000 goal is reached!
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The annual
Chez News
Benefit took place last Saturday, June 6, and what an exciting day it was! For the first time in the Benefit's 63-year history, the event was a virtual one. Due to the coronavirus, the festive lunch and auction could not take place at the beautiful Pier Sixty, as in the past. The volunteers on the Core Committee had worked tirelessly acquiring donations and putting together creative auction packages. Through the innovations of Beth Bixenman, ND's Director of Development, and Special Events Associate, Megan Gong '14, the auction items were made virtually available to all, and the results were incredible. Starting June 1, registered guests began bidding on more than 140 wonderful auction packages, from vacation homes, exotic trips, and spa treatments, to luxury handbags, special events, and even a dinner with ND's president, Dr. Virginia O'Brien, SU. One advantage to hosting a virtual event is that it allowed the Notre Dame School to cast a wider net and reach far more people than ever before. Registration was free so all were invited to participate and bid from the comforts of their own homes.
The week’s exciting online bidding culminated on Saturday, June 6, with a live streamed event hosted by auctioneer Duncan Schieb. The 90-minute program was a treasure to watch with over 20 guest speakers from within the ND community. Viewers had the pleasure to hear from faculty, staff, alumnae, Trustees, parents, and friends,
Chez Nous
. The highlight was hearing from
Britney Aparicio '20 and Gianela Campos '20 as they reflected back on their four years at ND.
The guest speakers gave personal insights as to the excellence of a Notre Dame education and the need to raise funds for scholarships. During this time, the school also honored the recipients of ND’s special awards. These included Talya Pinto Santillan ‘95, who received the Anne de Xainctonge Award; Thomas Lacorazza and Richard Battaglino P’18 & P’95, who received the
Chez Nous
Angel Award; and Deirdre Dunn Haddad P’18 & P’20 and Lori Schwebel P’20, who received the
Chez Nous
Parents Award.
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Gianela Campos '20 expressing her gratitude for her ND education.
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Justine Killion '91 credits her ND years for giving her confidence and motivation.
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In between the speakers, Duncan motivated the audience to donate, and did they ever! It was an exciting time when viewers could watch and as more and more people donated, their names would flash across the screen with the ever-increasing amount donated to Fund the Scholarship. At 1:20 pm, with ten minutes to go, he announced that ND was $5,000 away from the goal of $300,000. Not to be discouraged, Duncan encouraged last minute bidders. His motivation worked. By 1:30 pm, donations surpassed $306,000! What an outstanding accomplishment!
Notre Dame is deeply grateful for the generosity of the hundreds of people who participated in this event and gave from their hearts. Notre Dame is blessed to have parents, Trustees, alumnae and friends of the school who believe in ND’s mission. Such a show of support will allow our beloved
Chez Nous
to continue to provide the academic, moral, and spiritual education it has for more than a century.
THANK YOU!!
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Baby pictures of the Class of 2020 with their college choices
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Last Thursday, June 4, would have been the date of the Commencement Exercises for the Notre Dame Class of 2020. Of course that event, like so many this spring, has been put on hold. The senior class has shown an incredible amount or resilience and courage as they navigated a senior spring never before experienced. They seamlessly continued their classes via Zoom; and maintained their friendships, their extracurricular activities, and their leadership. For that, they deserve a great deal of praise.
To commemorate the day, the school created a virtual celebration, not to replace graduation, but to honor the achievements of this special class. The seniors and their families logged on to be a part of this virtual program. The Notre Dame faculty and staff gathered as well, and a wonderful program took place. The celebration began with Student Council President Danica Mercado sharing her words of wisdom to her classmates. Subsequently, Principal Jackie Brilliant and Vice Principal Karina Vargas expressed their pride and confidence in the Class of 2020. Several teachers gave emotional speeches as well, including Mr. McDonald, Mr. Vasey, and Ms. Littlefield. President, Dr. Virginia O'Brien, SU, delivered an inspiring send-off as well. To top it all off, musician and
Law and Order
actor Ice-T surprised the viewers with a guest appearance and words of advice. He spoke to the Class of 2020, telling them that ND had given them a solid education, and with that as a foundation, they will go out and find great success.
The students were then treated to a musical slide show with photo memories of their years,
Chez Nous
. Each senior’s picture was highlighted on the screen with their college choices, so that the entire audience could applaud and honor them.
Even though the community was not together in person, this event validated the strength of the Senior Class. The school was united in spirit and even remotely, the joy and celebration was palpable!!
Congratulations to the remarkable Class of 2020!
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Brigid McCabe '21 with Coach Johnson
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Daryn A. Johnson is the coach for Notre Dame’s cross country and outdoor track and field team. He works tirelessly with ND’s student athletes and is proud of the advances that the team has made this past year. Recently, he shared with the school news that one of ND’s top runners, Brigid McCabe ‘21, was featured on MileSplit, a national high school running website, as the most improved junior track and field recruit in the distance events in the country!
MileSplit is the premier network for track & field and cross country for high schools. This nationwide organization monitors top athletes, and helps advance the sport by providing in depth state-by-state coverage of cross country and track and field.
In last week’s edition of MileSplit National's Recruiting Rundown series, commentator Travis Miller breaks down why Notre Dame's Brigid McCabe is his pick for the nation's most improved junior track and field recruit in the distance events. He states that Brigid is a standout in the CHSAA. He contends that she is now one of the top distance runners, not only in NY but the entire country as well. She improved her status in the national rankings by over 100 places in the indoor season in three of her events. In addition, she improved her time by over 30 seconds in the 3K and 2-mile event, achievements that are remarkable for any athlete, according to Mr. Miller. He believes that the best is yet to be in coming seasons for Brigid. To listen to his entire commentary,
CLICK HERE.
In the midst of all that is going on, this is exciting news for Brigid as well as the team and the school is most proud of all of Notre Dame athletes. Go Dragons!
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Registration Open for ND's 2020 Summer Camp
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Since 2005, Notre Dame has offered an academic summer camp experience for girls entering 7th, 8th, and 9th grades. Historically, research has shown that middle school girls begin to lose interest in certain subjects, especially math and science (for an interesting article on this topic,
CLICK HERE.
)
But not so for students who attend the Notre Dame Summer Camp. This four-week program motivates and inspires these students in math and science as well as English and art. Through interactive projects and a collaborative approach, the faculty work with the students every day and help them develop critical thinking skills necessary for academic success.
This year for the first time, the camp will be virtual, with all classes online, allowing for girls from all around the country to participate. In addition, this year’s offerings include high school level courses as well. The classes are all taught by Notre Dame teachers, who make sure that their curriculum will be fun, engaging, and educational. Lessons will be designed to engage students based on their grade level, strengthening their academic foundation for the new school year.
The Summer Camp Program will run from June 29, 2020 through July 23, 2020. See further information below and
CLICK HERE
to register online!
For additional information and/or questions, please contact Mr. Kevin McDonald at ndsummercamp@cheznous.org.
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The Notre Dame community would like to keep in mind and pray for all of us, our extended families, relatives and friends. We have thought of a way to do that and invite you to make a prayer request by
CLICKING HERE
.
You will be asked for your name, the name of the persons you want to pray for, and to state in a few words what you want to say about the people whose names you write. We will keep this list going and pray for all those you recommend to us.
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Contact Information
Elizabeth Bixenman
Director of Development &
Alumnae Relations
(212) 620-5575, Ext. 317
bixenmane@cheznous.org
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ANCHORING LIVES
for
GENERATIONS
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