SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2020
FEBRUARY 28, 2020 The National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) is offering a day of workshops and guest speakers that our teachers will be attending on February 28, 2020, as a Professional Development Day. Therefore, February 28 will now be a school holiday for the students.
SUPERHERO BREAKFAST Gwynedd's Mercy Effect is hosting the "Superhero Breakfast" on Saturday, February 8. This event is open to the public. For more details and registration, visit gmahs.org/superheroes!
DR. KEN GINSBURG Dr. Ken Ginsburg will be at Gwynedd this Thursday, February 6 at 6PM. Dr. Ginburg's seminar, "Building Resilience in Teens", is free and open to the public. Please share this great opportunity with family and friends!
2020 FASHION SHOW Thank you to our spectacular Mothers' Club 2020 Fashion Show committee chaired by Caren Cline Johnston '85, P'17, '20 and Kelly Palazzo, P'20, '22. This talented and dedicated group of volunteers hosted a wonderful luncheon and fashion show on Sunday, January 26 at Presidential Caterers.
Our "Roaring 2020's" fashion show showcased 28 senior models and 3 talented speakers for 340 mothers, daughters, family members and friends. Our models graced the runway in prom fashions from Country Bride and Gent and Lilly Pulitzer - Suburban Square, thanks to Erin McMahon P'23. For more photos, visit our Fashion Show Gallery.
MERCY-MESTER During Mercy-mester, one group of Gwynedd Girls, led by Ms. Caitlin Fasano, was hard at work creating a short documentary highlighting all of the exciting sessions and speakers. To watch their documentary, visit the link below! days until McAuley's Pub Night! NOTABLE DATES
FEB. 6
FEB. 8
FEB. 12 Mothers' Club Book Meeting, 7PM
FEB. 14 George Valentine Day
FEB. 17 No Classes, President's Day
FEB. 19 Monarch Morning
FEB. 20 100 Day Celebration for the Class of 2020
FEB. 21 Progress Reports Posted
FEB. 26 Ash Wednesday Liturgy
FEB. 28 No classes, Professional Development Day
FEB. 29
MAR. 1 Spring Sports Open
MAR. 6 Mercy Mania/Mercy Mingle, 6:30PM
MAR. 9 Mission Week
MAR. 11 - Blood Drive - Mothers' Club Craft Night, 7PM
Please join us in welcoming two new faculty members who will join the Gwynedd team. Beginning Monday, Feb. 3, Mrs. Kathleen Gould, M. Ed., will begin serving as Director of the Catherine Learning Program.
Also arriving tomorrow is Mrs. Laura Scully Lane '99, M.S., joining Gwynedd's Mathematics department. Mrs. Lane is pleased to return to her alma mater, this time as a member of the faculty. She will take over for Ms. Sher, who will embark on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land! However, this is not the last time we will be seeing Ms. Sher. Following her journey, she will return to Gwynedd to assist in the Testing Center.
MISSION & MINISTRY
We are excited to announce that we will be offering two summer service trips – (1) a trip to Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Reservation, South Dakota through the organization Simply Smiles which runs from Saturday, July 11 – Saturday, July 18 and costs $1,650 and (2) a trip to Panama City, FL to aid coastal regions affected by Hurricane Harvey through the organization Mission850 which runs from Monday, July 20 – Friday, July 24 and costs $900. More information about the organizations can be found here:
From February 12-14, the Ministry & Service Office will be hosting it's biggest annual fundraiser of the year, the George Valentine Auction & Raffle. This year we are donating our proceeds to Convoy of Hope, an organization helping with the relief efforts in Australia, and CLINIC, an organization helping to fight and "promotes the dignity and protects the rights of immigrants in partnership with a dedicated network of Catholic and community legal immigration programs."
All items will be put into a raffle or auction. From February 12-14, students as well as faculty and staff will have the opportunity to buy raffle tickets and bid on items in a live and silent auction. To donate items, please use the for, below.
LEADERSHIP DEPARTMENT
As you know, we have been working very hard on our Strategic Plan. We are pleased to share with you our new Summer Externship Program. The Student Leadership team has been working very hard on developing this new opportunity for students. We invite all rising sophomores, juniors, and seniors to participate in this program. The purpose of this program is to help students explore various career paths. Students will partner with a local company that will provide a solid overview of the industry and introductions to key colleagues who can provide the "Big Picture" of their field. This new program will help educate students when it comes to choosing a major or college. To start the process, please fill out the form below. You can email Mrs. Jennifer Guarnaccia at jguarnaccia@gmahs.org if you wish to schedule a few minutes to talk.
Dates: June 29th - August 14th Attention all rising Juniors or Seniors with little or no computer science experience, but may have an interest in learning more! Girls Who Code invites you to their summer immersion programs! Interested in learning more? Click for more info!
Keep your eyes open for the GMA Opportunity Board located outside of the Advancement office. Local job openings, internships, externships, and more will be posted there!
ACADEMICS
Gwynedd Mercy Academy High School has earned the College Board's Dual AP Computer Science Female Diversity Award, which recognizes schools that are closing the gender gap and engaging more female students in computer science coursework in AP Computer Science Principles and AP Computer Science. Out of more than 20,000 secondary schools worldwide that offer AP courses, only 818 achieve this award. In 2019, Gwynedd was one of only 36 to be recognized for closing the gender gap in both AP Computer Science courses.
ART Congratulations to Teresa Mitchell '22 who has been accepted to the Frances M. Maguire Pre-College Program at PAFA (Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts).This program offers high school students tuition-free college-level studio art instruction.
SCIENCE On 1/30/2020, 13 Gwynedd students visited Jefferson Institute of Bioprocessing in Springhouse, PA. This campus is an exciting new venture for Jefferson University where graduate students from across the country gather as a team of innovators, using their diverse undergraduate degrees in biology, microbiology, chemistry, biochemistry, environmental studies, technology, and business to research, design, and implement the functionality of cells to produce medicines. This is the most valuable industry of the future, biologicals (vs. pharmaceuticals), genetic engineering, and stem cell therapies. It is a global industry with collaborative partners around the world. A poignant message our students heard was, "Be remarkably bold! What will your path be?"
ADVANCEMENT
MCAULEY'S PUB NIGHT Pot of Gold Raffle tickets are selling fast! Don't miss out on the opportunity for the chance to win $2,500 in cash or $5,000 off next year's tuition. Only 200 tickets will be sold. You need not be present to win, so purchase today!
McAuley's Pub Night decorating committee chair, Lori O'Connell, P'22, is looking for moms and dads to help paint and assemble decorations. Please join her and other volunteers on Friday, February 7 at 6PM at Visitation BVM's Art Room. She is also looking for a few parents with pickup trucks to help move the decorations to Gwynedd on Sunday, February 9th, TBD. Please contact Lori if you can help, lo25@drexel.edu or 267-718-7047. There will be additional opportunities for parents to lend a hand as we prepare for our spring fundraiser. The committee will publish dates and times as soon as soon as they are set. Check for dates here and on the Parent Relations page of the website.
Due to weather conditions on January 18, the father daughter ice skating outing was re-scheduled for Saturday, February 15. Please use our signup link to update your plans to join us. Our February 12th Book Talk meeting will be lead by Megan Haley Keaton '88, P'21. The book selected for the talk is "Ordinary Grace" by William Kent Krueger. We will meet in Classroom 21 at 7PM. Wine and cheese will be served. Any questions, contact Megan Keaton at megankeaton@verizon.net.
ATHLETICS
SWIMMING & DIVING On Thursday, January 30, Gwynedd Swimming and Diving won their meet against Merion Mercy!
POSITIVE COACHING ALLIANCE On Wednesday, 01/29, a group of Gwynedd student-athletes attended the "Triple-Impact Competitor" seminar. Our league, the "AACA", has partnered with the "Positive Coaching Alliance" group to help players, coaches and parents become better athletes, better people.
WINTER SPORTS SEASON The winter sports season is now in full swing! Be sure to check the school calendar for updates, dates and times! |