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Feb. 3, 2016

Three seniors at Seton Catholic discuss the value of their Catholic education

'I love this school'

Catholic Schools

By Shawn Ryan
Staff writer

Plattsburgh - With Catholic Schools Week upon us, three seniors at Seton Catholic Central reflected on what it means to attend a Catholic school, as opposed to one of the many public schools in the area.

Across the board, the consensus is that the focus on Catholic and Christian values learned throughout their academic career at Seton Academy, and later Seton Catholic, has helped set the stage for success in college and beyond. Small class size and the ability and willingness of teachers to truly get to know and care about their students, is the other factor that sets Seton apart from public schools.

Walking Seton’s hallways, it quickly becomes apparent that there is a comradery not just amongst the rather small senior class, but among all the students at the school regardless of class. Everybody knows his or her classmates, and they get along in a manner not regularly seen in public schools. And the teachers are able to know each of their students. The biggest disciplinary issue of the day: possibly a skipped homework assignment or an un-tucked shirttail.

We spoke with college-bound seniors, Sam Bashaw and sisters Emily and Olivia Nachbauer. All three have been in the Seton system (and St. John’s before the Academy was formed) since third grade. Without hesitation, the trio agreed that they would definitely recommend a Catholic School education to any students considering the possibility.

Olivia Nachbauer
“Just being at a school centered around Christian values, it’s a better sense of morals and a better environment.

“People are nice, and helpful, and teachers are willing to help you out. “People are friendlier. You know all your classmates.

“When we were in Middle School you worried a little bit about not being cool, but as you get older you start to think about your education and getting into a good college. Being at a private school as opposed to a public school, you have a better chance because of the attention that is given to the individual student.

“Your education is greater here because it’s a close knit community of people. If you want to play sports it’s easier, and there are clubs and activities that you can try out. You just get to be yourself. It’s just easier. Plus there’s a great diversity of people here - different races and different religions.”

Emily Nachbauer
“Having religion classes brings attention to the faith that we all have. If we didn’t have religion classes we wouldn’t be as deeply thinking about our faith as we do here. Since Seton is a small school, this brings us closer to each other, and helps bring us closer to our faith because we are able to practice it in our daily lives.

“Teachers here at Seton care more about us because they know us better [than they would in a public school]. I think that we are taught more about what we will need for college than at a public school.

“Our workload is a lot more than you would have in a public school. It will make it much easier to transition into college and keep up with the work.

“As for Seton versus a public school, I would just say that a lot of people who thought of leaving and didn’t, really ended up loving it here. It’s just a better place to go because everyone here cares about the students. The teachers care, the principal cares; everyone cares.”

Samantha Bashaw
“I think there’s really a community environment here. With the small size of the school, the relationships form better with the teachers and your classmates. You get the space to grow, and find out who you are here.
“We see more of what is right in school, as opposed to what is wrong. Seton has a reputation to uphold, and we try to live that out to the best of our abilities.

“Our work ethic here is a huge thing for us. Our class has a hugely competitive nature and work ethic, and a lot of that comes from teacher involvement and the faith component. What we’ve learned here will definitely help us in college and in our future lives.

“We’ve had people transfer to the public schools for a year and then return to Seton. It just shows the impact the school has on the students.

“I love this school. For me it’s the people. People might not really realize that it’s the faith aspect of Seton that sets it apart. That’s one thing that is very important for me.”

 

Catholic Schools: building a bright future

Catholic School week

By Sister Ellen Rose Coughlin, SSJ
Superintendent of Schools

There are certain events that mark the passage of each school year. One of these is the annual celebration of Catholic Schools Week. This year’s theme is Catholic Schools:  Communities of Faith, Knowledge and Service.
Our Catholic schools offer quality academic programs, but quality academic programs are available in public schools as well.  Our schools’ programs address the whole person, but more and more public schools are addressing components of the whole person, the most notable addition being their acknowledged commitment to character education and ethical behavior. 

Our Catholic schools are often close knit “communities” where a safe, secure and orderly environment support student learning.  Many of the public school districts where our schools are located are relatively small and offer the same benefits. 

Thus, the question becomes. How is a Catholic school unique? What does it offer that is distinct from public education?

Christ is the gift that students encounter in our Catholic schools. And from this gift comes so much more, namely a supernatural vision of life,  an awareness of the dignity of the human person, the experience of a faith community, a curriculum which acknowledges the relationship between faith and culture and  the personal witness of teachers and administrators.

Our Catholic schools see education as a process which forms the whole child not only for this world but also for eternal life. The specific purpose of Catholic education is the formation of students who, animated by the Gospel, will be good citizens of this world and of the world to come. It is neither for this life only that God created us, nor for this life only that our students require an outstanding education. Our students have been created for eternal life. This is the supernatural vision offered in a Catholic school. 

The eternal destiny of our students is accompanied by a profound respect for their dignity as human persons, made in the image and likeness of God and called to life in Christ. Catholic schools have their foundation in Christ.  The words and deeds of Jesus are central to a school’s program and environment. Christ is not an afterthought or an add-on to the foundational principles of a Catholic school.  His words and deeds are the living memory imparted to the students. He is the one who gives meaning to human life.  The mystery of the human person becomes clear only in the mystery of Christ, the Word made flesh.

The human person does not develop in isolation from others. The person has been created as a social being whose fulfillment is achieved in relationship with others. Thus, community is an essential component in a person’s development. Catholic schools are communities of faith, extensions of the first and essential community of the family and the extended family of the parish. In the school community of faith the student experiences relationships based on the Gospel and the teachings of the Church. These experiences foster good habits or virtues that instill, maintain and cultivate an environment in which the social nature of the human person can develop and flourish.

An integral education seeks to develop gradually and systematically every capability of the human person: intellectual, moral, physical, psychological and spiritual. In pursuit of this, a Catholic school fosters the love for wisdom, for the true and the beautiful, and integrates the Catholic faith with the life and culture of its students.  The Catholic school seeks to create the climate in which the student’s faith will gradually mature and the relationship between faith, culture and life are brought into harmony.

Every academic institution imparts values - ideals for which a student is prepared to pursue and eventually achieve. The ideal that provides the foundation for our Catholic schools is a person, Catholic Schools weekJesus Christ. From Him students discover a supernatural vision of life, the full dignity of the human person,the importance of community and the recognition of the relationship between faith and culture. Christ is thesupreme gift that is offered to the students in our Catholic schools. He is the one who leads our students into a bright future in this world and, eventually, in eternal life.

Let me take this opportunity to thank the parents who have chosen a Catholic school for their children. I realize that in many instances this choice brings with it a financial sacrifice. This sacrifice, however, is an investment in your child’s future that will result in benefits for your child, the Church and society.

Likewise, I want to thank the administrators and teachers in our Catholic schools. I am most appreciative for their commitment to our Catholic schools which more often than not is accompanied by a personal financial sacrifice. The Second Vatican Council said it so well.  “. . . Let teachers recognize that the Catholic school depends upon them almost entirely for the accomplishment of its goals and programs” (Decree on Catholic Education, #8).  Theirs is a supernatural calling and not simply the exercise of a profession.  “The nobility of the task to which teachers are called demands that, in imitation of Christ, the only Teacher, they reveal the Christian message not only by word but also by every gesture of their behavior. (The Catholic School, #43)  We are indeed blessed to have administrators and teachers who are willing to assume this noble task.

 

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