Villa Voice Summer 2019 VillaVoice Summer 2019 | Page 11

HIGHLIGHTS & HAPPENINGS
Faith
St. Ursula Villa Celebrates Our Ursuline Charism
St. Ursula Villa cherishes our rich Ursuline heritage, from our shared history with
Saint Ursula Academy to our present standing as a premiere independent Catholic
school in the Ursuline tradition. After becoming an independent school in the
early 1990's, the Villa entered into an affiliation agreement with the Ursulines of
Cincinnati to “ensure that the continuous integration of an educational mission is
aligned with the mission of Ursuline Sisters of Cincinnati.” Part of this agreement
established a Villa Board of Trustees-led Ursuline Identity Committee which
currently consists of the principal, Board members, Villa teachers, our Ursuline
Campus Minister, and committee volunteers. Also established was a process for
instituting a triennial review of our school with recommendations for keeping St.
Ursula Villa’s Ursuline charism strong and vibrant.
Previous years’ recommendations have included displaying images of Saint Angela
Merici in the classrooms, creating brochures and booklets about our Ursuline
heritage, and choosing a quote from Saint Angela as our annual school theme. Two
significant recommendations for the 2018-19 school year resulted in our inaugural
Ursuline Student of the Month program and an original song based on this year's
Ursuline theme “Live in harmony, united together all of one heart and one will”
which has become very popular with students, faculty, and parents alike.
Laura Riehle, Campus Minister, explains that the Ursuline Student of the Month
Program was developed “to make the Ursuline Characteristics more concrete by
recognizing students who are living examples of those characteristics.” A specific
characteristic of an Ursuline Education is featured in each of the nine months of
the academic year, with recognition criteria to be used by classroom and specialty
teachers at their monthly meetings. Teachers nominate and select a student from
Primary, Intermediate, and Junior High grades who have exhibited the featured
characteristic in the classroom. These students are then recognized at the school’s
monthly Mass and featured on the Ursuline Student of the Month bulletin board in
the Multi-Purpose Room.
The new program's
first Ursuline
Students of the
Month were
recognized for
demonstrating
January's
characteristic
“Living the Christ-
Centered Spirit of
St. Angela Merici.”
Honoree Hailey
Heidrich reflects,
“I think the
Ursuline Student
of the Month
program makes
St. Ursula Villa is unique as
the only Ursuline elementary
school in Cincinnati and
holds as its core values the
following Characteristics of
an Ursuline Education:
The Christ-centered spirit
of St. Angela Merici is a
guiding factor in the school
The recognition of the
dignity and gifts of all
students
An emphasis on
the development of the
whole person
Academic excellence
in all subjects
Commitment to
Christian service
An emphasis on diversity
within the school
Personal care for
the individual
A spirit of optimism
and openness
A strong family spirit
within the school
Principal Duplace recognized the first recipients of
our new Ursuline Students of the Month program:
Molly Heffernan, Hailey Heidrich, and Lucas Chlon.
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