Dear Shrine Catholic Schools Families,

This week we embrace the start of the 2022-2023 school year at Shrine. Our High School and Academy students begin their journey a week before the Grade School and two weeks before our youngest learners in the ECC. It is a season filled with anticipation and hope. Transitioning back to campus or coming to Shrine for the first time calls each student into community life. At Shrine, we are united in faith and our deeply held belief that education is a collaborative endeavor. We value our parents and the support of our parish. We value our long standing traditions and relationships. Most importantly, we value the gifts and talents bestowed upon each member of the school community.

As a school, Shrine stands out for the variety of opportunities available for our students. Students concurrently excel in Academics, Performing Arts, and Athletics. Coaches and mentors coordinate practice schedules to allow for success on multiple platforms. Our collective work is to balance expectations alongside our students' limitless potential.

Our preparations for the 2022-2023 school year began last January. Our faculty spent time reflecting upon their teaching practices. Faculty on both campuses will continue to work together in Professional Learning Communities, PLC’s, throughout the year. In addition, both campuses will engage in a self-study protocol in anticipation of our accreditation visit in the fall of 2023. In the Academy and the High School, we have shifted our schedule to begin each day in “advisory”. Advisory allows our students and faculty a non-academic connection. It is a time to connect, check in and create a small community. An advisor serves as a touch point and resource to better serve our students.

Throughout the summer we have worked diligently to restore and expand our learning spaces. The challenge of being good stewards is balancing the essential work of teaching and learning with protecting and maintaining our physical plant. Our campuses have provided safe spaces for generations of students. They have heard and seen Shrine students evolve over the years. It was time to bestow some gratitude and much needed restoration.  

Beginning this month we join our greater parish community in celebrating our patroness St. Therese with monthly themes which reflect on her life and how we can make big differences in little ways. Certainly all the following ‘little’ improvements this summer make a big difference in our school community.  

Grade School 

• New public address system
• We received a generous donation for new south entry doors and panels, as well as our main entrance security vestibule.
• New Chromebooks and iPads
• Kitchen equipment upgraded; new oven, mixer, and dishwasher. This project was completed using a federal grant.
• Woodward parking lot upgraded and repaired 
• Fresh coats of paint applied to all interiors (including ECC classrooms) as well as the grade school gym 
• New mural was added to the ECC connector hallway to the grade school. 

High School and Academy

• Two new classrooms were constructed which will be used for STEM
• Front steps repaired and re-bricked
• We received a generous donation of desks and chairs from the Royal Oak School system which saved shrine schools $75,000. 
• New branding in field house. Floor freshly painted. 
• Auditorium painted with Shrine color branding
• Student cafe, hallway and conference room rebranded

A special thank you to our maintenance staff, building and grounds committee, and beautification committee who worked diligently to help implement all these improvements to our campuses. We could not have accomplished so much in so little time without their dedicated commitment.  

Please join me in praying for all our students, faculty and staff for a great school year. St. Therese, pray for us. 

God Bless,

Joanne Swan Jones

Head of Schools