Admission Events

Each year officials of the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC®) recognize Commended Scholars in the 2023 National Merit® Scholarship Program. Commended Scholars placed among the top 50,000 students who entered the 2023 National Merit® Scholarship Program by taking the 2021 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®).

These students earned academic honors that can be included on college and scholarship applications and connect them with universities across the country, helping them stand out during the admissions process and allowing them to apply for additional college scholarships.

The following two Seniors were selected as Commended Scholars in the 2023 National Merit® Scholarship Competition: Kailey Aldrich and Theresa Kratt.

Congratulations, ladies on your hard work! The Saint Joseph Academy community is so proud of you!

On Wednesday, the entire school community gathered for a Commissioning Mass at which 27 members of the Class of 2023 were ordained as Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion. As part of their commissioning, these Seniors were blessed by Father Joseph Robinson of St. Columbkille Parish. As Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, these students had the opportunity to distribute Holy Communion for the first time to their family members who were in attendance to witness this special occasion. 

To view pictures, click here. 

On Sunday and Monday, 16 Seniors attended the Towpath Retreat, one of many retreat options they could choose to attend. While at the retreat, students biked through the Cuyahoga Valley National Park along the scenic Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath. As students traveled along the towpath, they reflected on their journeys over the last four years at the Academy, learned about the ancient concept of pilgrimage, and most importantly, took time to listen to God and be one with one another and the created world around us. 

Kate Boland ‘23 shared this reflection, “Throughout the course of the retreat, we were constantly told by our teachers to "enjoy the journey" whenever a student would ask about how long activities would take, how many miles we had left, and what the rest of our plans were for the day. As you can guess, that was not the response any of us were anticipating nor happy to hear. However, that small statement taught me so much. So often, especially as Seniors, we are so eager to know what is next or expect answers to be at our fingertips. Through this retreat, I learned to enjoy where I am in life now, and not fixate all my focus on what lies ahead of me. The journey builds who you are, rather than simply arriving at the destination."

Article written by CORE Ministry member and Theology teacher Mrs. Kristen Busa, edited by Mrs. Cheryl Arnold 

The Performing Arts Department is excited to announce the As She Likes It cast. 

The Jaguar Jackpot is well underway! Encourage your daughter to sell all her tickets soon so she can qualify for our daily drawings for Target gift cards. Plus, when your daughter sells her 30 ticket quota, she will be entered in a drawing for a $2,000 tuition credit for the 2022-2023 school year. Next week, more raffle prizes will be given away for each student who has sold her quota!

Selling more than her quota is awarded as well. As a special thank you, she will receive an extra ticket in this drawing for every additional 30 tickets sold.

The $20,000 Grand Prize drawing will take place on Wednesday, October 19. Click here to purchase your tickets! Only Ohio residents may purchase online tickets through Sunday, October 16, 11:59 p.m. EST. Please contact Development Director Mrs. Melissa Murphy with any questions.

READ MORE

Wednesday, October 12 is an All-School Test Day at Saint Joseph Academy. Students in grades 9, 10, and 11 will take standardized assessments (outlined below), while the Seniors will use this day for college planning.

Freshmen will be taking the PreACT. The new PreACT simulates the ACT testing experience. The PreACT score and predicted ACT score ranges align with the ACT 1-36 scale. Subjects include English, math, reading and science. The test also includes an Interest Inventory. The results of the Interest Inventory will give students a personalized view of interests with college and career alignment. 

READ MORE

The Academy Parents’ Association invites you to attend the First Friday Prayer Hour in the Holy Family Chapel located in the Academy building on Friday, October 7, 12 p.m. Participate in person or virtually via Zoom. 

Please register for in-person attendance here by Thursday, September 29 or join by Zoom here. 

Accomplishments: Stephanie is mentor for new volunteers with ENGin, a tutoring program that connects Ukrainian students to “buddies” around the world. “The main goal (of ENGin) is intercultural connectedness and improving the conversational English of Ukrainian students,” Stephanie shared. Prior to becoming a mentor for new volunteers, she tutored English to two girls living in Ukraine. As a mentor, Stephanie connects with the tutors through check-ins and provides advice on how to most effectively develop the conversational English skills of their “buddies.” “I am a Ukrainian-American so connecting with these girls overseas and hearing their stories and life goals means so much,” Stephanie said. 

In addition to volunteering with ENGin, Stephanie began a pilot program in 2020 for student volunteers with the Christ Child Society of Cleveland. The Christ Child Society of Cleveland is a non-profit organization that serves “the growing needs of children in the Greater Cleveland community.” During the pilot program, Stephanie, along with Alexia Wenzel ’23 and Annie Dubecky ’23, created layette packages for newborns, packed “My Stuff Bags” for children in shelters and stocked inventory. 

The pilot program was just the beginning of Stephanie’s volunteer work with the Christ Child Society of Cleveland. While participating in the pilot program. Stephanie learned about the Christ Child Society of Cleveland’s resale shop, Showcase in Lakewood and contacted the shop manager about volunteer opportunities for high school students. At the time, Showcase did not have any high school volunteers. Stephanie became the first high school volunteer at Showcase in the fall of 2021. 

This led to Stephanie working with Showcase to develop a summer high school volunteer program. Now, many Saint Joseph Academy students are able to volunteer here to 'serve the dear neighbor.'  

Activities and interests: At Saint Joseph Academy, Stephanie is a member of the Global Scholars Program and on its leadership team and a member of the Indoor & Outdoor Track and Field teams. Outside of the Academy, Stephanie sails competitively for the Foundry and is a Junior Member of Women in Aviation International.

Future career interests: Stephanie plans to pursue a career where she may serve others whether through law, education or the military. Over the summer, she attended the FBI summer program called Future Agents in Training (FIAT). This week-long program of 40 rising seniors from across Ohio gave students the opportunity to learn more about the FBI through instructions, demonstrations and mock investigations. 

Saint Joseph Academy defeated Notre Dame Cathedral Latin in five sets (25-14, 20-25, 25-23, 18-25, 15-4) on Saturday (September 17).

The Jaguars were led by Mia Sunahara ’23 with 14 kills, 10 digs and two aces while teammate Olivia Castelluccio ’24 followed suit with 28 assists, three aces and six digs.

Other noteworthy performances came from Juliette Chandler ’24 with 11 kills and two blocks; Hannah Alvarez ’24 with 11 kills, 10 digs and four aces; Belle Groomes ’25 with 10 kills, 20 assists, eight digs, two blocks and one ace and Reilly Wadden ’23 with 12 digs and one ace.

READ MORE

Article written by Assistant Athletic Director Ms. Erin Hoffert, edited by Mrs. Cheryl Arnold 

The Jaguar tennis team traveled to Olmsted Falls and swept the Bulldogs today by a 5-0 score. Tyler Schuerlein ’23 won a two-plus hour battle at first singles, rallying after dropping the first set in a tiebreaker to pull out a 6-7, 6-1, 11-9 victory. Ella Kowalski ’26 and Sophia Mrosko ’23 added straight sets wins at second and third singles. At doubles, the Jaguar duos of Margot Rechin ’23/Rafi Catacutan ’25 and Geneva Uhlenbrock ’24/Zari Newell ’26 were victorious, dropping only four games total between the two courts.

READ MORE

Article written by Head Coach Mr. Dan Mitoff