Christmas Eve Mass in the Church of St. James the Less |
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Highlights of the Advent Season at St. James |
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During Advent — the four weeks leading up to Christmas Day — our school community prepares for Christ’s arrival among us with special church services and events. The Rev. Andrew Kellner, our Chaplain and religious studies teacher, reminds us that God’s coming into our midst not only happened in the past, but remains a recurring possibility here and now.
At the Lessons and Carols Mass on December 12th, congregants heard the story of God and God's people from Genesis to Jesus’s birth, and listened to an eclectic and extraordinary array of choral and instrumental music led by Director of Choral Music and Music Education Javvieaus Stewart. She shared, “We had Anglican chants, contemporary Christian hymns, Gospel, and traditional carols. Some pieces were accompanied by organ, French horn, or piano, while others were a cappella. Our 6th graders Anthony and Darius debuted on clarinet and brought the magic of Advent to life!”
Servant Year member and sacristan Tyler Regnier reflected: “It was beautiful seeing so many people from different parts of our community — students and their families, neighbors, staff, and Sunday-night parishioners — gather by candlelight to worship in preparation for God’s coming into the world.”
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Churchyard decorated with thick boughs of greenery and white lights |
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An Advent party for each class added to the season's excitement. Students and their family guests sipped hot chocolate, munched assorted treats, made holiday crafts, and played board games. Each student received a wrapped book, chosen especially for them, from the Church of St. Asaph.
Fourth grader Naasir commented, “It was a good time to have joy, like Fr. Kellner said. My favorite thing was drinking that hot cocoa!” Jamillah, another 4th grader, said, “I liked that we were getting and giving things to each other. I liked seeing what everyone got!”
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Nick Gurol playing Connect Four with 6th graders Anthony and Cedrick |
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At a Santa's Workshop event hosted by The Welcome Table, families received gift cards and picked from a variety of gifts, including toys, stocking stuffers, games, and more.
Advent culminated in Christmas Eve Mass, which featured Fr. Kellner's call to find joy in our lives despite our struggles, and music by Kimpedro’s Nu Gruv Network Jazz ensemble. Neighbor and Welcome Table volunteer Regina Murray remarked, “Father Andrew gave us a lot to think about. I felt like he was talking right to me. And I loved the music — I thought I was on an Episcopal Caribbean cruise!”
Head of School Dave Kasievich reflected, “At the end of mass, as the congregation concluded singing Silent Night in the candlelight, there was a beautiful, silent pause, when you could see tears in many eyes.”
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Many thanks to our church partners and friends who helped make Advent so bright for our students, their families, and our neighbors. |
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- Church of the Ascension, Gaithersburg, MD
- Church of St. Alban, Roxborough
- Church of the Good Samaritan, Paoli
- Church of St. Asaph, Bala Cynwyd
- Church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, Chestnut Hill
- Einstein Hospital
- The Episcopal Academy
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- Saint Mark's Church, Locust Street
- St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, Newtown Square
- St. George's Episcopal Church, Ardmore
- St. David's Episcopal Church, Radnor
- St. Mary's Episcopal Church, Ardmore
- St. Peter's Church in the Great Valley
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And many other friends and individuals! |
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Graduate Support Updates and a Word with… Megan Young |
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Megan Young joined the St. James Graduate Support team in October 2021 as an Associate. Her focus is our high-school-age graduates and assisting them with the college process.
Where were you before St. James and what is your educational background?
I worked in residential foster care, specifically with trafficked youth and youth who are pregnant and parenting. I received my bachelor’s degree in social work from Lancaster Bible College and my master’s degree in social work from the University of Pennsylvania.
What brought you to St. James?
During graduate school, I worked at a research center that focused on finding better outcomes for at-risk youth, disadvantaged youth, and youth in foster care. I also studied how to keep students in college for all four years, and worked on the Fostering Independence Tuition Waiver Program, which enables foster students to attend college for free. I wanted to continue working with students who want to go to college, which brought me to my role at St. James.
What are your day-to-day responsibilities?
I take graduates on college tours, help them complete their FAFSA and college applications, plan educational workshops about college, and make sure their needs are met, whether that means buying them body wash or talking them through something that happened at school.
What is the most rewarding part of your job?
Seeing students realize their full potential. For example, our graduates getting accepted to a school they didn’t think they’d get into.
What do you do in your free time?
I love to take trips — I’ve been to nine countries! I also enjoy crochet, spending time with my two cats, and reading. I’m currently reading The Night Circus by Erin Morganstern.
Please share some Graduate Support updates.
I mostly work with the St. James Class of 2018. Fun facts: Every graduate in that class either has applied to college or has a concrete plan to apply in the future. This class has done the most college visits out of any of our previous classes. Ursinus College is the most-visited school. One graduate applied to schools in California and Florida.
It's early in the acceptance process but we already have some rewarding success stories. Jerome has been accepted to six of the 10 colleges he applied to. Anaya was accepted to Ursinus, her dream school, with almost a full ride. Nia received generous scholarship offers from Temple University and Ursinus.
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One Way You Can Help: Facebook Fundraisers! |
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Facebook Fundraisers are a great way to help spread the word about St. James School to your social networks. Join us this year in creating a fundraiser on Facebook, whether for your birthday or for a program you love here on campus. Here are a few steps to create a fundraiser.
If you need help or want to be reminded to create a fundraiser when your birthday is approaching, please email Maggie Sanborn at msanborn@stjamesphila.org.
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The fundraiser is ready to go, but feel free to edit your goal, why you are raising money, and more. Simply click Create and Share! |
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Good News! Thank you for supporting our students and families through every chapter!
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From current 7th grader Tineef, to graduates Tyjiere and Tynae in high school and college, to mom Tyshea pursuing adult education, the Drain-Jackson family is proud to share their accomplishments as they exemplify our community’s educational journeys through every chapter at St. James School. Thank you for generously making an impact on our students’ and families’ lives by supporting our Year End appeal! With help from all members of our community — including donors, Board members, committees, volunteers, partners, students, staff, families, neighbors, and new friends — we were able to exceed our Year End goal and continue increasing educational equity in Allegheny West. |
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Exceeded
$60,000 matching challenge
from Howley Foundation
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90 new donors
joined the St. James family
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Gifts came from
27
states/provinces
(Oh Canada! Top states: 1. PA 2. NJ 3. VA)
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More than 50
individuals, including Board and committee members, staff, volunteers, and students (with parents), helped write personal notes for every year-end mailing piece and/or made personal phone calls.
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Five St. James families joined members of Church of the Good Shepherd, Rosemont, for our last Family & Community Service Day of 2021 by helping to clean and beautify our campus spaces!
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We officially broke ground on our new campus building in September 2021. The new building, scheduled to open at the beginning of the 2022-23 school year, will include an elevator, a new accessible entrance, a spacious lobby, an expanded area to serve graduates, and three new classrooms. Enjoy a glimpse at our progress over the first four months of construction! |
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Before (September 2021): The site of our new building: a grassy field to the east of the School House.
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October: Digging completed! Students check out the progress.
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Now: A strong foundation for the ground floor of our new building, which will house the new Huskies Hangout (Graduate Support Center).
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St. James School is a faith-based Philadelphia middle school in the Episcopal tradition, committed to educating students from an under-resourced neighborhood within a nurturing environment. The school is a community that provides a challenging academic program and encourages the development of the moral, spiritual, intellectual, physical and creative gifts in its students. |
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