Features

{mosimage}TORONTO - A silver lining to the troubles plaguing the Toronto Catholic District School Board over the past three years is that it has encouraged members of the Catholic community to stand for election or become more informed voters, says Ontario’s new education minister.

“I think it’s fair to say that what has unfolded at (the Toronto Catholic board) has required everyone to look at the role and function of school board trustees. I think that’s an important outcome,”  Education Minister Leona Dombrowsky told The Catholic Register.

{mosimage}TORONTO - Angelic voices fill the auditorium at St. Michael’s Choir School on an early Sunday morning.

At 8:30 a.m., Grade 5 and 6 students attend their weekly rehearsal for the 10 a.m. Sunday Mass at St. Michael’s Cathedral. Along with tuning up their pipes, students stand tall and practise the proper enunciation of “Christe” for the “Kyrie Eleison.”

On this day, junior choir conductor Caron Daley encourages the boys to keep their focus on their singing. With guests featuring police officers, firefighters and dignitaries such as Ontario’s Lieutenant Governor David Onley, the annual Police Mass could create some potential distractions for the young students.

{mosimage}TORONTO - One of the things that differentiates Catholic high school students from their public counterparts is participation in sacrament-based retreats.

Fraser Garteside, a teacher from Francis Libermann Catholic High School, is the school’s chaplaincy leader and has planned and led retreats for two years. 

“It’s vitally important that students have an awareness and engagement with their spiritual life,” Garteside said.

{mosimage}TORONTO - Sudbury’s Marymount Academy Catholic High School volleyball player Jordana Ealdama says sport has a spiritual connection.

“If you believe in yourself and let God in your life, you can achieve your greatest goals,”  Ealdama, 16, told The Catholic Register from Kenora, Ont., where the school’s senior volleyball team was playing at the Ontario championships.

Coach Tammy Jutilla said she’s tried to instill in her players the importance of having faith and trust in God’s plan, and knowing “where that strength is going to come from.” It’s not all about winning but also about dedication and playing as a team, she said. Jutilla said the team’s success this year has been due to its commitment to improving and working together.

{mosimage}TORONTO - St. Paul Elementary School student David Buitraeo of Burlington, Ont., says he was anxious about getting his head shaved in front of the whole school. But since it was to raise funds for the Haiti earthquake relief effort, Buitraeo volunteered to do so, along with some other students and teachers.

“Since we are in Grade 8, we thought we should be leaders in the school,” he said.

It’s these kinds of actions merging faith and Catholic social justice teachings that principal Lori Naar says reflects the Catholicity in a Catholic school.

{mosimage}TORONTO - He’s taught students about the dangers of bullying and domestic violence, played side-by-side with the boys’ soccer team, even baked muffins for a school awareness campaign.

He is Constable John-Paul DiCecca of the Toronto Police Service, one of 30 School Resource Officer’s assigned to Catholic and public high schools across the city.

What’s happening at Michael Power/St. Joseph highlights what some studies are indicating about the School Resource Officer program.

{mosimage}TORONTO - The one thing a high school student wants is a part-time job and many will work just about anywhere to earn a little extra money. But students need to put a little thought into where they work, for their own good.

Rob Ellis brought this to light when he spoke recently to Grade 12 students at Francis Libermann Catholic High School. That’s because in 1999, his son David went to work in a bakery. He never returned from his second day on the job, losing his life while cleaning a large mixer. David had not received proper on-the-job training.

{mosimage}TORONTO - After nearly 100 years, the stained glass windows that dazzle the St. Augustine’s Seminary chapel are showing their age.

As their 2013 centennial approaches, the seminary hopes to raise the $300,000 needed to have the chapel windows repaired before the frames and fills deteriorate completely.

{mosimage}A government that pins its economic recovery plans on sending more kids to colleges and universities is probably good news for Ontario's Catholic liberal arts colleges, but college administrators are worried about whether the government sees the value of philosophy, literary studies and history.

Ontario's Liberal government made post-secondary education the centrepiece of its March 8 throne speech, promising to increase the post-secondary education participation to 70 per cent, from a current 62 per cent, to create 20,000 new spaces at colleges and universities this year and to boost international students by 50 per cent over five years.

{mosimage}TORONTO - When Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare 2 entered her teenage son’s vocabulary this year, Mary hit the panic button. First, she didn’t like that “all his friends” were playing this game with a mature rating, and second, she worried about the impact a controversial terrorist mission within the game might have on his developing mind. The arguments began.

“I didn’t know what to do,” said Mary, who’s name has been changed for this story. “My son is a great kid, he does really well in school and he just wants to play the game to unwind.”