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Jesuit Academy celebrated Black History Month on Wednesday, February 26, with a school-wide celebration aimed at honoring and promoting the historical contributions of African-Americans. Prior to the school-wide assembly, the eighth grade class presented the Living History Museum. Each eighth grade student assumed the identity of a prominent African-American individual from history. After completing research on the individual, each student presented his findings via a presentation board. To share the information with the school, booths were set up in the gym. Fellow Jesuit Academy students and families in attendance for the school-wide celebration were invited to interact with the eighth graders. Notable historical figures in attendance included Nat Turner, William Still, Frederick Douglass, and Henry Box Brown. Following the Living History Museum, the Jesuit Academy community came together to continue the celebration. The assembly featured a presentation by each grade. Fourth grade kicked off the event with a class-wide recitation of Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have A Dream speech. Each student was responsible for a portion of the speech. Following the presentation, the fifth grade class presented The Greensboro Four, the story of four African-American college students who, in 1960, defied segregation by sitting at a whites-only lunch counter at Woolworth’s in Greensboro, North Carolina. Their actions spurred sit-ins throughout the country and have been recognized as a major desegregation movement. The seventh grade then presented on famous African-American Olympians. Each student researched and created a presentation slide, highlighting important facts of each Olympian’s life and contributions to their sport. Olympians featured included John Baxter Taylor, Jesse Owens, Dominique Dawes, and Shani Davis. In total, eleven African-American Olympic athletes were celebrated. The ceremony continued with several eighth graders elaborating on their earlier presentations from the Living History Museum. They spoke to the crowd as their featured historical feature, engaging the crowd with stories of their lives and their fight for freedom. The event concluded with the sixth grade presenting a Jesuit Academy favorite, the tenth edition of the Lost In Time movie series, which is produced each year by sixth grade teacher Mr. Mansour. This year’s movie was a retrospect of the previous nine years of Lost In Time movies and showcased the acting talents of this year’s sixth grade class. It was thoroughly enjoyed by the crowd and has become a feature of each year’s celebration.
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The Creighton University Department of Physical Therapy visited Jesuit Academy’s seventh grade class on Monday, February 24, 2014, to provide the students with insight into the profession. Creighton professors Kelly Nelson and Kirk Peck accompanied seven Creighton physical therapy students to the school for a visit arranged by Mr. Mansour, 7th grade science teacher. Mr. Mansour’s science class recently covered the muscular and skeletal systems of the human body, so the visit from the physical therapy students and professors provided a strong application of Jesuit’s curriculum. This was the fourth year the Creighton University Physical Therapy program has visited Jesuit Academy. A Creighton physical therapy student opened the visit with a presentation about the profession, asking Jesuit Academy students if they had any family members that have had experience with physical therapy. Many of the Jesuit students responded with personal experiences of parents and grandparents who have needed the services of a physical therapist. The student presenter also covered the types of classes that physical therapy students take, in addition to the types of healthcare professionals and patient populations physical therapists work with. The Creighton students then shared with the group their reasons for entering the profession, which ranged from being personally affected by injuries as a result of athletic participation, to parents and grandparents needing services. The students shared that the profession allows them to positively affect the lives of those in need by building personal relationships with their patients. Following the presentation, the 7th graders were split into two groups and participated in station work with the Creighton students. One group focused on the core concept of balance. Utilizing a variety of apparatuses, Jesuit Academy students attempted to maintain their balance while tossing a stability ball to one another. This proved to be even more difficult once students were instructed to stand on one leg. The second station focused on muscle strength. Students were challenged with testing their hand strength utilizing a hand grip dynamometer, quickly turning the exercise into a competition amongst students to see who was strongest. Jesuit students also had the opportunity to experience an electrical stimulation unit. After placing electrodes on their bicep, a Creighton University physical therapy student administered electrical impulses on the Jesuit student. The goal of this exercise was to demonstrate the way the impulses communicate to the muscle, much like the brain communicates to the muscle. Spending nearly an hour and a half at the school, Creighton University physical therapy students were able to connect with the Jesuit students about favorite classes, where the students plan to attend high school, and what their plans are for college. The day was a wonderful opportunity for Jesuit Academy students to connect with Creighton University students pursuing a professional degree in a subject area recently studied. Jesuit Academy thanks the Creighton University Physical Therapy program for their support!  Students are the reason that Jesuit Academy exists! We think it's important that you meet them and learn about the things Jesuit students are accomplishing in the classroom and in their communities. Look forward to a student feature each month.
This month, we introduce you to 5th grader Shanden. Shanden is in his first year at Jesuit Academy. He enjoys being at Jesuit because the school day is longer and he is receiving a good education. Shanden is involved in a freestyle dance program hosted in the North Omaha community. He started in the fall and participated for a few months prior to basketball season starting. When the season ends in March, Shanden will return to the dance program. His favorite thing about dance is the feeling he gets when he figures out a difficult combination. He participates in class on Saturday afternoons and is looking forward to an upcoming competition he will participate in. Keep dancing, Shanden!  Jesuit Academy is pleased to announce that two outstanding eighth graders have received scholarships to attend Roncalli Catholic High School in the 2014-2015 academic year. Tarik Smith has been awarded the Pride Award for Leadership, valued at $1,000. Alejandro Rodriguez has been awarded the AGA Roncalli Scholarship for $1,000, and the Pride Award for Leadership for $1,000. Roncalli staff members visited Jesuit Academy to award Tarik and Alejandro with their scholarships in front of the entire student body. Tarik and Alejandro will join eight other Jesuit Academy students currently attending Roncalli.
Additionally, four Jesuit Academy eighth graders have received acceptance to attend Creighton Prep for the 2014-2015 academic year. The four students will join nine other Jesuit Academy alumni currently attending Creighton Prep. Mr. Tony Connelly, VP of Student Affairs, has been honored with Gregg Young Chevrolet's Going the Extra Mile For Education Award. Currently in his 10th year at Jesuit Academy, Mr. Connelly facilitates the recruitment and assessment of new students at Jesuit, in addition to maintaining the Graduate Support Program, which assists Jesuit Academy graduates during their high school careers. Way to go Mr. Connelly! Congratulations on a well deserved honor! Jesuit Academy participated in the 40th annual National Catholic Schools Week January 27-31 to celebrate Catholic education. The theme for the week was “Catholic Schools: Communities of Faith, Knowledge and Service.” Throughout the week, students participated in activities ranging from community service events to an all-school field trip. On Tuesday, Jesuit 8th grade students visited Creighton University as guests of the University’s EDGE program, which serves to provide Creighton students with a holistic approach to academic advising, the pursuit of advanced studies in graduate/professional school, and career planning. The Creighton EDGE program has teamed up with Jesuit Academy to provide Jesuit Academy students with insight into post-secondary education. Also on Tuesday, Jesuit 7th grade students visited the Heart Ministry Center to assist with organizing the food pantry. In place of Wednesday’s prayer service, the 7th grade class performed a play entitled “The Life of St. Ignatius,” written by Damian Torres-Botello, nSJ, a novice currently working at Creighton University. Dan Kennedy, nSJ, directed the students. Mr. Kennedy is a novice currently working at Jesuit Academy. The play was enjoyed by the entire school and presented the story of St. Ignatius, founder of the Jesuits. On Thursday, Jesuit 8th graders attended Mass at St. Cecilia Cathedral, alongside 1,200 other 8th grade Catholic students from around the city. Archbishop George Lucas celebrated the Mass. The Jesuit Academy Spelling Bee took place Thursday afternoon, with both a team and individual winner. Two teams of five students, one from each grade, competed against one another in a competition facilitated by 7th grade teacher Mr. Franklin and 8th grade teacher Mr. Lindley. The Sharks and Tigers went head-to-head, with the Tigers being named the team winner, reaching 25 correctly spelled words before the Sharks. The individual honors went to 6th grader Carl. Friday morning the 4th graders and all new students participated in dental exams provided by the team of Dr. Hoover, Dr. Hoover, and Nancy. Students were treated to goodie bags of floss, toothpaste, and a toothbrush following their visit. The 4th graders then received a pizza party lunch for winning the week-long competition of collecting toothbrushes and toothpaste for the Heart Ministry Center. The class collected nearly 200 items. On Friday afternoon, nearly all of the students and staff celebrated the week by going bowling. Taking over almost half the bowling alley, students were divided into teams, with an 8th grader student serving as captain on each lane. Several students proved to be pretty strong bowlers, with a competition ensuing between some of the staff and several 8th graders. Everyone enjoyed almost two hours of bowling before returning back to school for dismissal. Please enjoy the pictures below highlighting Jesuit Academy and Catholic Schools Week. |
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