New Haven Register (Sunday) (New Haven, CT)
Catholic Schools
brate “everything it means to be a Catholic school,” according to Head of School Rebecca Steck.
“Our Catholic schools are the heart of the community, so it makes sense to celebrate all we have done, what we are currently doing, and our impact on the future,” she said.
During Catholic Schools Week at Fairfield Prep, students, faculty, and staff celebrate the institution’s heritage as a Jesuit Catholic school of excellence, Dean of Mission & Ministry Elliott Gualtiere said.
“This week allows us to celebrate what makes our school community unique in what we offer our students in regard to a faith-based education,” he added. “We realize that our great school is part of a bigger enterprise, (and Catholic Schools Week) connects our school to the larger church.”
Each school organizes different activities in observance of Catholic Schools Week.
In 2021, Mercy High provided face masks and care packages to frontline workers and wrote cards to COVID-19 patients. In 2022, the school community shared notes of appreciation with first responders and sponsored “coffee breaks” so they could enjoy a cup of joe on the job.
This year at Greenwich Catholic, students will participate in class challenges, the Kids Heart Challenge, and a school-wide mass. The sixthand eighth-grade classes will hold a special STEM Fair, and newcomers can attend an open house on Sunday, Jan. 29. For more information, visit
www.gcsct.org.
Daily prayer at Fairfield Prep will reflect the 2023 theme of Catholic Schools Week: faith, excellence, and service.
“We will also be offering our weekly Friday morning mass for this occasion and hold a weekly opportunity for confessions and Eucharistic adoration on Wednesdays after school,” Gualtiere said.
Upperclassmen will attend a Kairos Retreat from Jan. 24-27 to explore their relationships with themselves, others, and God in a communal, reflective setting. Shortly after Catholic Schools Week, select students will attend a weeklong service immersion in Jamaica with Mustard Seed Communities. The nonprofit provides residential care to children and adults with a range of developmental and physical disabilities.
Ultimately, the activities and events hosted during Catholic Schools Week help students become “stewards of their faith,” Steck said.
“We know that they’re making a positive societal impact while attending our schools and for their entire lives,” she added. “We are so proud of the saints and scholars we are forming!”
For more information about Catholic Schools Week, visit www.ncea.org/csw.