The Crusader Times NEWS FROM THE ATONEMENT ACADEMY Volume 2017-2018, Issue 27 Feb. 14th, 2018 Catholic Education Matters!!! Have you Registered for the 2018-2019 School Year? Returning Students Upcoming Events Wed. Feb. 14 Ash Wednesday (Lent Begins) Fri. Feb. 16 Stations of the Cross (2:15pm) Mon. Feb. 19 Federal Holiday (no classes) Thurs. Feb. 22 Class Ring Ceremony (9:10 am) Fri. Feb. 23 Stations of the Cross (2:15pm) Sat. Feb. 24 Annual Gala (6:30-11:30pm) Wed. Feb. 28 New Students LS Birthday Celebrations (2:15pm) Headmaster s Highlights Dear Atonement Families, The Upper School Robotics Team is well on their way towards completing their project for the competition during the first week of April. We appreciate the work of our students and their parents in helping make this possible, and wish to especially thank Mrs. Carmen Cruz for volunteering to serve as the facilitator for the team this year. A reminder that President's Day is next Monday, Feb 19, is President's Day, and school will be closed. Also taking place next on Thursday is the Ring Ceremony for our junior class the 9:10 am Mass. Please join us if you can on this the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter as our juniors begin to prepare for their transition to become the student leaders of our school next year. May you have a blessed and holy season of Lent. Thank you, Mr. John Markovetz 15415 Red Robin Road San Antonio TX 78255 210-695-2240 www.atonementonline.com Marketing@AtonementOnline.com
CATHOLIC EDUCATION AT THE ATONEMENT ACADEMY Choosing your children s education When it comes to our children's education, we get one chance at it. This isn't a dress rehearsal. Not every family has access to a solid, truly Catholic school, but where there is one, the Church strongly encourages parents to enroll their children, so that the Church and the family can be cooperators in this most important endeavor. Sometimes there is a temptation to entrust children to a charter school rather than a good Catholic school. The reasoning of some parents is, "Well, it's free, and they say they give a classical education." Actually, it's not free -- they're paid for by tax dollars. Why? Because charter schools are public schools, with all the baggage that entails. The advertisements give an optimistic picture, and in many ways they are often (not always) better than a regular public school down the street, but the bottom line is, they are public schools. Teachers cannot speak of God, or the saints, or our faith, or anything else that is barred from public schools, nor can the teachers and students ever pray together. One of our teachers said it very effectively: "I thought about the difference a true Catholic School can make in the life of a child...parents might not know how much of the day is interwoven with theology. They might only think their child is missing one 30 minute religion class a day and Mass if they leave and go to a non-catholic school. This is a great deal to miss out on from my view point, but perhaps not from theirs...in a school which can t speak of Jesus Christ as Savior and Mary as Our Blessed Mother, there is a limit to what can be shared about Truth, Goodness, and Beauty To talk about truth, goodness, and beauty is wonderful, but when those lofty and essential things are divorced from their divine source they are diminished. We all want the best for our children, and a solid, truly Catholic education is exactly that - the best. Nota Bene / Note Well: OPEN ENROLLMENT: We are now accepting applications for the 2018-2019 school year. If you are a returning student and have not yet registered, please take 15 minutes to Re-Enroll here. Spots are filling up quickly, so don t delay. CARDNIAL NEWMAN SOCIETY: The Atonement Academy was awarded the Catholic Education Honor Roll from the Cardinal Newman society. We were one of only nine schools in the nation and the only school in Texas to receive the award for commitment to the principles of Catholic identity in education. STATIONS OF THE CROSS: Lent begins today, which means we will continue our tradition of having the Stations of the Cross every Friday at 2:15 pm & 7:00 pm. We invite all families and friends to attend this special Lenten devotion.
Atonement Athletics Coaches Corner Dear Atonement Sports Parents, In the championship game, the b team girls showed why they made it all the way to the finals. Their grit and determination was evident all the way to the end. Although they started slow, they played hard until the very last second of the game, closing the gap in the score as much as they could. There is no doubt with hard work, this group of girls will be seeing St. George in the finals again next year. As for the TCAL tournament, Middle School Girls seem to have a strong group going into this competition. Defense is always first with this group, which helps us get into the open court for fastbreak layups. Finishing the easy layups in transition, after forcing turnovers with our hard working defense, will be important in our success for this tournament. Our high school ladies hope to make a roar in this TCAL tournament. This new program has achieved high expectations going into the season. Consisting of freshmen and seniors, we were in search of our identity as unit which in turn helped us overcome an exciting over time win this season. This new group of girls have been figuring it out along the way, and hopefully in this TCAL tournament they bring the intensity on the defensive end of the ball to show everyone what being a crusader is all about. Visit our Sports website at: Atonement sports.org Coach Katherine Skeens ~ Basketball Coach Upcoming Games Thur. Feb. 15 State Tournament - Woodlands (TBA) Men s Varsity Soccer (Away) Women s Varsity Soccer (Away) Fri. Feb. 16 State Tournament - Woodlands (TBA) Men s Varsity Soccer (Away) Sat. Feb. 17 State Tournament - Woodlands (TBA) Men s Varsity Soccer (Away) Wed. Feb. 21 Thur. Feb. 22 TCAL Tournament - (TBA) Men s Varsity Basketball SACS (TBA) Women s Varsity Track and Field Men s Varsity Track and Field Fri. Feb. 23 TCAL Regional Qualifiers (TBA) Men s Varsity Basketball
Upper School Corner Subject: College Counseling Grade: Upper School Teacher: Mrs. Karen Robertson College Application Process "There are many questions upper scholars ask as they prepare for their next chapter in life graduating high school and going to college, including how do I apply to college. The Atonement Academy has in place classes for juniors and seniors to help them understand and complete their college application process. During the fall semester, I visited with the seniors as they completed their college and scholarship applications. This spring, I visit with the juniors and help them with their personal essays for Common App and Apply Texas, update their resumes, work on Khan Academy SAT practice, make sure they are signed-up for a spring SAT or ACT exam, and more. Additionally, students visit with me about their college planning and I continue to update them on scholarships through email. Lastly, we had college admission counselors visit with the juniors and seniors during class time in the fall and continue to have university and college admission counselors visit our upper scholars during their lunch periods this spring. Our goal is to give your student the best opportunity for success in completing, applying to, and being accepted to their college of choice." Featured Teacher of the Week This is my first year teaching at The Atonement Academy. I teach Latin, English, Government, and Economics to 6 th, 7 th, 9 th, and 12 th graders. I lived in 5 states and 2 countries before the age of 6, but I grew up in San Antonio, Texas, and graduated from The Atonement Academy in 2012, where I graduated as the valedictorian of the Atonement Academy graduating class of 2012. I received a strong classical education at The Atonement Academy, even giving my valedictory speech in Latin. After my time learning at Atonement, I moved to the frozen north to go to Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Michigan. I participated in a few local and national political campaigns through my college clubs, and graduated with a BA in Politics. After receiving my degree, I moved onto political work in and around the Dallas/Ft. Worth area and worked at the Capitol in Austin before moving back to San Antonio to teach at the Academy. While I definitely enjoyed my political work, I have definitively found my true calling in teaching. I thoroughly enjoy interacting with and teaching my students, and I look forward to every day here at The Atonement Academy. I try to bring some real-life lessons to the classroom by asking myself What do I wish I had learned in school? which has resulted in interesting lessons and assignments such as doing a fake set of taxes or giving a speech modeled off of classical Greek rhetoric. It definitely is different walking these halls without a student s uniform on, but I am thank God every day for the opportunity to do so! Virtus tentamine gaudet. Mr. Austin Prochko Upper School Teacher
Middle School Corner Subject: Science Grade: 7th Grade Teacher: Miss Jennifer Gray Vertebrates & Invertebrates The 7 th grade life science class has done many exciting labs in the past couple of weeks in our quest to explore the world of invertebrates and vertebrates. Labs are an essential component of science classes and help bring the information from our book to life. This is especially true concerning dissections. Recently we dissected many invertebrates including: octopi, shrimp and clams, all of which have to be small since they lack a backbone for support. This past week we also dissected a tilapia, an important vertebrate. By dissecting the 7 th grade gets to more fully appreciate the glory of God s creation! Highlighting Award Winners Britney Clingan Delaney Gutierrez Britney won the Christopher Columbus essay contest for the Alamo chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. They also announced at the luncheon that she won the state chapter essay contest and will be continuing on, representing Texas, at the national chapter essay contest in Washington, DC. The Veterans of Foreign Wars has an annual essay contest for middle scholars. This year s essay theme was, America s Gift to My Generation. 7 th grader Delaney Gutierrez received Second Place with a $200 cash prize. We are proud of her and all the winners of the Patriots pen award. Great Job Girls!
Lower School Corner Subject: Music Grade: 4th & 5th Grade Boys Teacher: Mr. Jesus De Hoyos Catholic Music teaching method The students begin every lesson by reviewing and building their musical knowledge. In this class the students learn to read, conduct, and improvise music, as well as some basics of composing. We follow the Ward Method, a strictly Catholic music teaching method that is unique in how it exposes children to Gregorian Chant from the very beginning of their training. The 4 th and 5 th Grade Boys choir is preparing for the next time they sing at Mass on February 27 th where a select few will sing a solo during the Communion Anthem. Today we held the first day of tryouts as many of the boys are excited for the opportunity to sing a solo in front of their peers. Please join us for school Mass on February 27 th to hear the 4 th and 5 th Grade Boys Choir! Our Lady of the Atonement Parish Life OLA - Young Adult Group The Atonement has a young adult group! We exist to build community, spirituality and fellowship. The core team has planned some social activities and will soon start a Venerable Archbishop Fulton Sheen study, which will guide us through the Catechism of the Catholic Church. If you are a young adult between the ages of 18-39 and interested in joining us, please contact Ademola Elliotte at 210.273.7755 or aelliotte@live.com for more information. We look forward to growing in faith and community with you.
The Atonement Academy Penny War Starts Ash Wednesday, February 14 th Ends Friday before Holy Week, March 23 rd Please bring your pennies to help your class win. Every penny you place in your container will be a point for your class. Bring your nickels, dimes, quarters and dollars to sabotage the other classes. For example, if you bring a quarter and put it in a container, then that class, administrator, or coach will have 25 pennies deducted from their weekly count. 1 st place class receives a pizza and ice-cream party 2 nd place class receives a pizza party 3 rd place class receives an ice cream party Proceeds from the Penny War will go to our sister Catholic school in the Holy Land. Pennies will be sold in St. Anthony Hall every Wednesday and Week #5, March 12 16.
Crusader Scene 1. 1. 1. 2. 3. 4. 2. 3. 5. 6. PLEASE VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT: www.atonementonline.com Pictured Above 1. Afternoon Carline. 2. Upper School Girls at their Lockers. 3. Louise Picha at Academic showcase 4. Last Week s Father Daughter Dance 5. Conrad Obeng & Juan Pedro at Robotics. 6. Ava Sanchez & Madison Matthews in class Share photos of your children around campus. Please send them to: Marketing@AtonementOnline.com