Newton Country Day Begins its 142nd Academic Year
Signs and cheers from the front driveway warmly welcomed students and their families on Wednesday, September 8 for the Opening Day of the 2020-21 school year. Excitement filled the air as students reunited with friends, met their classmates and teachers, and explored classrooms ahead of their first day of classes on September 9. This year’s student body, representing over 50 cities and towns in Massachusetts, will focus as a community on Sacred Heart Goal IV: the building of community as a Christian value.
On Tuesday, September 14, the all-school Mass of the Holy Spirit was held in the Sunken Garden. The annual Mass is an opportunity to gather the entire school community in celebrating Sacred Heart Goal IV and to ask God to send the Spirit to animate, inspire, and sustain us in the year ahead.
In his homily, Fr. Terry Devino, SJ said, “The Spirit of God is all around us, we only need to pause. I know that you are called to build community. You are called to build up this Spirit this year just as you are called to do this every day. Let yourselves be amazed by the gift of the age old, but ever new words, ‘Receive the Spirit.’ Pause often. Notice the gifts of one another. Look at who is sitting next to you and pray that you may receive that gift of recognition and notice the Spirit alive in the person next to you.” Fr. Devino, SJ then shared the Irish proverb “It is in the shelter of each other that people live.”
“Let this proverb stir deep within you,” he continued. “May we each continue to discover its profound and rich meaning; one that is for everyone irrespective of language, place, or race. Receive the Holy Spirit. Be the shelter so that others may live.”
Beginning Wednesday, September 15, the Upper School will participate in grade-level community building and on-campus service projects to further facilitate Goal IV. Grade 9 will focus on the formation of their class community and the Five Goals of a Sacred Heart education; Grade 10 will visit Boundless Adventures for an outdoor community-building experience, followed by a service day of building desks and bookcases for under-resourced organizations and schools; Grade 11 will learn about the importance of access to fresh and healthy food by preparing meals to be donated to an organization supporting those in need, in addition to also visiting Boundless Adventures; Grade 12 will take part in a “Love in Action” day of leadership programming, continue their role as Senior Mentors for the Classes of 2024 and 2025, and join Grade 11 in their service project.
For their community-building, the Middle School is engaging in a "catch a classmate in kindness" activity. Each student drew the name of a classmate in their homeroom to then "catch" that person being kind over the rest of the week - showing patience, making a new friend, being helpful, etc. On Friday they will share the kind things their classmates did
On Tuesday, September 14, the all-school Mass of the Holy Spirit was held in the Sunken Garden. The annual Mass is an opportunity to gather the entire school community in celebrating Sacred Heart Goal IV and to ask God to send the Spirit to animate, inspire, and sustain us in the year ahead.
In his homily, Fr. Terry Devino, SJ said, “The Spirit of God is all around us, we only need to pause. I know that you are called to build community. You are called to build up this Spirit this year just as you are called to do this every day. Let yourselves be amazed by the gift of the age old, but ever new words, ‘Receive the Spirit.’ Pause often. Notice the gifts of one another. Look at who is sitting next to you and pray that you may receive that gift of recognition and notice the Spirit alive in the person next to you.” Fr. Devino, SJ then shared the Irish proverb “It is in the shelter of each other that people live.”
“Let this proverb stir deep within you,” he continued. “May we each continue to discover its profound and rich meaning; one that is for everyone irrespective of language, place, or race. Receive the Holy Spirit. Be the shelter so that others may live.”
Beginning Wednesday, September 15, the Upper School will participate in grade-level community building and on-campus service projects to further facilitate Goal IV. Grade 9 will focus on the formation of their class community and the Five Goals of a Sacred Heart education; Grade 10 will visit Boundless Adventures for an outdoor community-building experience, followed by a service day of building desks and bookcases for under-resourced organizations and schools; Grade 11 will learn about the importance of access to fresh and healthy food by preparing meals to be donated to an organization supporting those in need, in addition to also visiting Boundless Adventures; Grade 12 will take part in a “Love in Action” day of leadership programming, continue their role as Senior Mentors for the Classes of 2024 and 2025, and join Grade 11 in their service project.For their community-building, the Middle School is engaging in a "catch a classmate in kindness" activity. Each student drew the name of a classmate in their homeroom to then "catch" that person being kind over the rest of the week - showing patience, making a new friend, being helpful, etc. On Friday they will share the kind things their classmates did