INNOVATION STATIONS
New educational developments abound at local schools
MANY Catholic schools have long histories, but that doesn’t mean they’re not buzzing with new developments, and schools in the NYC area are showing they’ve got more than a storied past.
A groundbreaking course to “keep the memory of the Holocaust alive” launched this year at Xavier HS in Union Square. The multidisciplinary Holocaust Studies Program includes domestic and international educational experiences.
Students in the current program will read and discuss “Night” by Elie Wiesel and view and discuss “Conspiracy,” HBO’s 2001 dramatization of the Wannsee Conference. They also take an overnight trip to Washington, DC, to visit the US Holocaust Memorial Museum. Other domestic components include lectures and various cultural experiences in New York City.
Then, in March, students will travel to Poland to visit Warsaw and Kraków, culminating with a tour of the former concentration and extermination camp at AuschwitzBirkenau. (The school is exploring extending future trips to Prague and Germany.)
The eye-opening course is open to applications from all sophomores and juniors at Xavier, as well as freshmen in Xavier’s honors program, Ignatian Scholars. This year, about 15 students will travel internationally, and over 50 more will participate in the domestic syllabus.
The fully funded program was the brainchild of an Xavier alum, Tom Maher, and his wife, Nancy.
“The Mahers were motivated by a number of factors, including the war in Ukraine, growing antisemitism, and the desire to keep the memory of the Holocaust alive — not just to learn from history, but to deepen our own humanity, to enable us to confront evil in our time, and to work toward a hope-filled future,” said Xavier’s President Jack Raslowsky.
Last year also brought the arrival of several revamped spaces to this school for boys, including the Lynch Building’s remodeled fifth floor. The impressive space features a “super classroom” complete with wall-mounted monitors and mobile desks; a lab with 3D printers, state-of-the-art computers, drones, high-end sensors and programmable microcontrollers; two expanded and rejuvenated art studios; a new student common space; and an office for student counseling.
Over at Saint Anthony’s HS, a co-ed high school in South Huntington, LI, they’ve just unveiled Intro to Robotics.
The class includes designing mechanisms using computeraided design Fusion 360 software and programming algorithms in Java using Android Studio. Fabrication techniques using computer numerical control machining, laser cutting and 3D printing will also be incorporated for building and designing custom robot parts.
Also at Saint Anthony’s, there’s a cutting-edge path for students interested in health-care careers. The Medical Education Program comprises full honors level anatomy and physiology classes, in which students can earn up to eight college credits.
Mark Capodanno, a chiropractor, took on the newly created role of director of the education program last September, and said the course is a “thriving pathway for students interested in eventually entering the health-care curriculum and workforce.”
The school’s affiliation with Catholic Health brings in guest speakers, and the program also includes field trips, internships and shadowing opportunities with physicians and therapists.
“Saint Anthony’s High School continues to grow and improve each year,” said Principal Brother David Migliorino. “Whether through new academic classes or improvements to our facilities, we continue to ensure our students receive an excellent education.”
This past September, Iona Prep, the private pre-K-12 Catholic school for boys in Westchester, unveiled a pretty spectacular offering for high schoolers. The new elective broadcast journalism introduces students to the fundamentals of journalism, with subjects like beat reporting, advertising, interviewing and playby-play commentary for Iona Prep sporting events (which are streamed on LocalLive.TV).
Guest lecturers have included Spotify podcaster and personality John Jastremski, and Fox Sports and SNY analyst Vin Parise.
Another debut is the new business learning center. The space is outfitted with a stock ticker, where students learn trading skills. They also get the chance to develop their own stock trading portfolio using the digital tool Personal Finance Lab.
The class currently enrolls 35 seniors and regularly brings in guest alumni speakers from the financial industry. Pupils also take a daylong trip to the New York Stock Exchange to see their studies play out in the real world.