"Spending this summer at the Brookview House was such an incredible opportunity. Looking at the negative effects poverty can have on families has made me realize how great this injustice is, and has made me want to make a difference in our world. The Brookview House allows children to experience activities that they otherwise would not be able to, and I am so grateful that I experienced these things with them."

Marisa Adams '12 

"Looking back on my experience at Brookview House, I have found that the growth and progress of the kids affected me profoundly. Over the seven weeks that Marisa and I were there, the kids learned to be leaders, share with others, treat everyone with more respect, appreciate what they are given, and keep a positive attitude when something bad happens. In addition, they learned the importance of education and staying in school. At the end of the program when all of the kids got awards for their unique and personal growths, I realized that all these kids needed was a constant helping hand to guide them along the right path. This got them out of the negative mindset that most of them developed from being in an unstable environment.  Being able to directly help someone who is in a difficult situation like this gives me a feeling like no other. This internship was a life-enriching experience that opened my eyes to the tragedy that is caused by poverty yet it also gave me the opportunity to give the kids a chance to find that light at the end of the tunnel."

- Lauren Haley '12     

In the photo above Marisa Adams '12 enjoys helping a young art student from the Brookview House in Dorchester. 

Parents filled the cafeteria in mid-October for the annual Parents Guild meeting, and they left the meeting informed and engaged.  The topic this year was Bullying Prevention, and Meghan McCoy from the Massachusetts Aggression Reduction Center (MARC) gave a riveting and lively presentation on the subject, providing parents with many concrete tips on how to prevent and address bullying and cyber-bullying among teenagers.  Ms. McCoy had conducted a similar workshop earlier this year for members of the Learning Community, and will be working with the whole Fontbonne community this year.

Parents also were encouraged to volunteer for one of the four Parents Guild Committees:  Admissions Ambassadors, Dancing with the Fontbonne Stars, Evening of Stars, and Hospitality. 

The Hospitality Committee had provided a wonderful display of desserts, encouraging parents to linger after the meeting to nibble and socialize. 

MARC speaker Meghan McCoy poses with Mrs. Cerasuolo after her presentation.

Parents Guild Leaders John Moran P'13, Clare Mazza P'10, P'13, and Jim Shriver P' 12 attended the event.

The Guidance Department has been very busy, ensuring that each senior has the opportunity to meet with representatives from a wide range of colleges and universities.  Above senior classmates Kyra Freedman and Jackie Zahn show off the brochures they accumulated at the second College Mini-Fair on October 4. 

International Festival

Chuck Hogan, renowned author of the book Prince of Thieves, which was made into the movie The Town, was at Fontbonne Academy on Monday, October 24.  He addressed the senior class who had recently read Prince of Thieves.  Mr. Jim Carta of the Fontbonne Academy English Department, Mr. Hogan's former English teacher at Canton High School, arranged the talk.  (Coincidentally the author's mother is an alumna of Fontbonne Academy, from the Class of 1961.)  As the seniors sat casually in the foyer eating their lunch, Mr. Hogan entertained them with stories about his entire writing career from high school to college to the present. He explained his writing and researching process and what it takes for him to write a novel.  Students and Learning Community members alike enjoyed the presentation and participated in a lively question and answer period. The seniors were thrilled to learn that Mr. Hogan had commented on his visit to Fontbonne on Twitter.

Mr. Hogan with Fontbonne's English teacher, Jim Carta.  Mr. Carta taught Mr. Hogan when he was at Canton High School. 

Model UN Moderator Ms. Pilla with speaker Dr. Hai Van Ha, a former UN delegate, his niece, Tammy Chen '13, Model United Nations leadership: Julia Butts '13, Maretta Morovitz '13, Emily Devane '13, Faith Ogbewe '13, Rheannon Swire '13, and KJ Moran '13.  

Monday, October 24, was designated as United Nations Day. To celebrate, the Model UN at Fontbonne Academy organized a week of events. Each day at homeroom time, members of the club shared fun facts about the UN. On Tuesday October 25, Dr. Hai Van Ha, a former delegate of the United States to the UN for the Geneva Human Rights Commission in 2004, addressed members of the club and other interested students and adults. Dr. Ha, uncle of junior Tammy Chen, spoke of his life as a refugee, fleeing war-torn Vietnam, and his achievements as a resident and citizen of the United States. Congratulations to moderator, Ms. Pilla, and the student leaders of Model UN for the professionally organized lecture.

Service Club members Adanda Timothy '14, Lauren Haley '12, Christine Stuver '14, and Nathalie Jean '14 hold a box of food that will be delivered to families in need this Thanksgiving season.  Lauren Haley is also the President of the Service Club.

Our annual Thanksgiving Food Drive was once again organized by the Service Club. The food drive ran from Monday, October 31, to Monday, November 14, 2011. The organizations who received our donations this year were Casserly House in Roslindale, St. Matthew's in Dorchester, St. Patrick's in Roxbury, Germantown Neighborhood Center Food Pantry in Quincy, and the Milton Food Pantry on Blue Hill Avenue.  Thank you to all who participated.  

Fontbonne Academy senior Amanda Brandi has been commended in the National Merit Scholarship Program. She is being recognized for her exceptional academic promise by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, by placing in the top five percent of more than 1.5 million students who took the 2010 Preliminary SAT (PSAT).

Amanda is not only in many AP courses this year, but is extremely active in the Fontbonne community. She is a member of Fontbonne's Select Chorus, one of the Chief Editors of Fontbonne's literary magazine, "Stylus," a Peer Educator and a tutor in Math, English and History (she tutors up to four afternoons per week). She is a member of The Good Fountain Players, the drama troupe at Fontbonne, and will be playing the bumbling Detective Fix in the fall production of "Around the World in Eighty Days." Outside of school, Amanda has been a volunteer for the Blue Hills Trailside Museum in Milton for a number of years, and is an advocate for animal rights and understanding.

One of Amanda's more unusual accomplishments is that she is an Assistant Teacher for grade nine Global History classes, teaching once per cycle.   She was recognized at the end of her ninth grade by Social Studies Chairperson Liz Pilla because her essays were so highly analytical, and because her passion for the subject was undeniable. Amanda began assistant teaching when she was in tenth grade to leverage her knowledge and enthusiasm. She worked with the History teachers to help write the History curriculum for ninth grade. Amanda has loved it, and continues to assistant teach her senior year.

During the summer of 2010, before junior year, Amanda was a participant in the Bard College at Simon's Rock Writing Program.  She had also been accepted by the Kenyon College Young Writers Program, another prestigious and competitive pre-college program. As a result of the quality of her work and participation, Amanda was extended the unique opportunity to attend Bard College beginning at the end of her junior year in high school, an honor which she chose to decline so that she could complete her secondary studies at Fontbonne.

Throughout high school, Amanda has chosen to consistently challenge herself. She has taken numerous online honors courses in literature and writing, and has earned the respect of many teachers. Rick Bagby, one of her online English teachers from Ohio, had this to say: "Ms. Brandi has proven herself to be one of the brightest, most creative, most dedicated students whom I have ever had, either in the physical or the online classroom. (She is) one of those rare students who not only has a drive to write, but also has the gift of writing within her."

As she looks forward to college next year, the one thing she knows for certain is that she will major in Literature, a topic in which she has an insatiable interest. The list of schools she is considering both within the U.S. and abroad is lengthy, and the one she ultimately chooses to attend will be very fortunate to have her.

Natalie Devine signs her letter of intent with High Point University.  She will play lacrosse there next year.  

Fontbonne Academy Senior, Natalie Devine, of Walpole, signed a letter of intent with High Point University in North Carolina on November 9.  She will be playing midfield for their lacrosse team next year.  Natalie signed the formal papers while her proud parents, Jim and Marie Elena Devine, her sister Madison Devine (also a student at Fontbonne, class of 2014), Fontbonne's Head of School Mary Ellen Barnes, and Athletic Director Ellen Sullivan looked on in the Fontbonne foyer.   

"Natalie was recruited by many colleges as a junior, and she decided in January to attend High Point.  They have a very strong lacrosse program and an academic program that will serve her well," said Athletic Director Ellen Sullivan.  Natalie was the Varsity Captain of the team last year and plans to study Exercise Science/Premed while attending High Point University.

Last year Fontbonne Academy had four athletes who were recruited to play college-level sports at various colleges and universities.  Ms. Devine is the first recruiting announcement for Fontbonne's Class of 2012, and the first lacrosse recruit for Fontbonne Academy whose lacrosse program is just two years old.

The winners of the dance competition of the first ever Dancing with The Fontbonne Stars.  Rita Senier P'13 won First Prize for the best Solo dance, Ellen Sullivan won for the Best Waltz, and Maureen Conlon '86 won the top prize in the competition, Grand Champion. 

Dancing with the Fontbonne Stars was held on Saturday, November 12, at the Sons of Italy Hall in Braintree.  It was an evening filled with music, dance and excitement as five contestants took to the floor to compete in this first-ever competition.  Congratulations and thank you to the dancers: Maureen Conlon '86, Irene Desharnais '58, Jim Falco P'10, P'12, Rita Senier P'13, and Ellen Sullivan our very own Athletic Director.  They filled the room and engaged the audience with their talent and enthusiasm.  Thank you to Jackie Ross McKenna '83 in the Advancement Office and to the Advancement Team for a memorable evening.  The event raised over $30,000, a portion of which will go toward wellness programs at Fontbonne.   

Be sure to view the slideshow from the evening, by clicking here.