Alumni Night 2010

Alumni Night - January 6th, 2010

St. Catherine’s Montessori hosted its sixth annual Alumni Night on Wednesday, January 6h. This special event gives our current parents the opportunity to hear our alumni students speak on their high school and college experiences and also to answer any questions our parents may have. It also showcases how well our alumni are doing with a Montessori foundation.

Alumni in Attendance

Alejandra Mangini - freshman at St. Agnes Academy
Kelsey Williams – freshman at St. Agnes Academy
Nicolas Toffoletto – sophomore at St. Thomas High School
Greg Katsaros – sophomore at St. Thomas High School
Patrick Deavers – junior at St. Thomas High School
Allison Porter – sophomore at St. Pius X High School
Marcella Lunn – senior at Awty International, accepted at John Hopkins University
Lindsey Calder – senior at Rhodes College, attended high school at Westbury Christian

The following are some of the questions that were asked of our alumni and their answers:

1.  How was the transition to high school from St. Catherine’s?

Marcella - The academics were easier than I thought because I was so prepared, but you were not as free to move around the classroom as at SCM.

Lindsey – College is more like Montessori where you have more freedom to pursue your academic interests.

Greg – There were more students in my class, but the work was easier because of SCM.

Patrick – the hardest part was figuring out how to work the locks on the lockers!

Kelsey – It was hard to get used to the size of the school and how to find your class, but the academics were easier than I expected.

Allison – The lockers are a problem also, and I liked having more people in my classes and making new friends.

Alejandra – I liked making new friends, but it was challenging changing classrooms and keeping track of how much there was to do.

2.  What skills did you learn at St. Catherine’s that have been helpful to you?

Nicolas – All of the papers that we wrote really helped with my ability to write papers in high school.

Allison –The humanities tests helped me prepare for the finals and I used the skills of making note cards and filling out the review sheet to help me.

Marcella – Going on the class trips to see what we were actually studying really helped me to understand the material in a different way.  I also learned to work for personal satisfaction and become motivated to do your best for yourself.

Kelsey – I learned how to work with people in our small environment and this made it easier for me to make new friends and to approach and talk with my teachers.

Alejandra and Allison – The daily planners that we used really helped with the time management that is necessary in high school. When the planners were handed out in high school we already knew how to use them!

Lindsey – I found my love of learning and what was interesting and intriguing to me and I became okay with pursuing what I wanted to do.

3.  How did the trips fit into the curriculum?

Marcella - The trips related directly to what we were learning in the classroom and made the subject more concrete.   We learned to live with others and their needs and to organize our time.

Lindsey – The trips helped me to learn to relate to people on a daily basis and to do it well. I enjoyed experiencing history as I am a kinesetic learner.

Nicolas –My 9th grade internship at the Shumla School taught me how to work with others and also gave me an idea for a career.

4.  What were some of the unique experiences that you had at St. Catherine’s?

Allison – Focus the Nation – a national learning symposium on climate control

Marcella – writing a musical

Kelsey – making the sustainability shack and the solar panels

Greg – The 9th grade internship as a graphic designer at the Office of Communications in the Medical center where I got to work with computers, photography, web design and illustration.  I even had one of my illustrations published in a medical school magazine.

5.  What was your greatest challenge?

The students responded with missing the trips and hands on aspect of Montessori and of having to leave the close knit group of friends and teachers.  They also spoke about the difficulty in staying grounded with so many grades for test, quizzes, papers and finals.

6. What are some of your favorite subjects in high school?

English, Spanish, Geometry, Physics, Chemistry and Biology

7. What are some of the extra-curricular activities you participate in?

Fencing, guitar, football, choir, orchestra, piano, musical theatre, culinary club, Model United Nations

8. What are your career goals?

Graphic designer, architect, archeologist, biochemical engineer, surgeon, cancer doctor, journalist, author