Monthly Newspaper • DIOCESE OF BRIDGEPORT

Danbury, CT – Immaculate High School named Erin Calamari of New Fairfield its new Director of Advancement effective July 1. Calamari brings 13 years of extensive experience to the school in fundraising, capital campaign management and communications while working for various colleges and private sector organizations.

Before joining Immaculate as the Assistant Director of Advancement, her previous positions include Assistant Director of Annual Giving and Alumni Relations at St. John’s University, Associate Director of Annual Fund Programs at Columbia University and Director of Development, Annual Programs and Alumni Relations at Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

She joins Immaculate during an exciting time, as it’s celebrating the school’s 60th anniversary and its “Empowering our Legacy Beyond Today” capital campaign.

“I was immediately attracted to the spirit and close knit community at Immaculate,” Calamari said. “I look forward to continuing to build on the school’s incredible legacy so we can position it to excel into the future as well.”

Calamari replaces Debbie Basile of Bethel, who has worked at Immaculate for 11 years, most recently as the Director of Advancement. Basile’s children graduated from Immaculate and she has played an integral role in getting the school to where it is today. She will be spending her retirement with family and traveling.

“I will miss all my incredible colleagues at Immaculate, the alumni, parents and students that have helped support our community and fundraising efforts over the years,” Basile said. “I know that our mission to secure Immaculate’s future is in good hands and I will definitely be back to visit!”

Immaculate’s $4 million capital campaign improvements include replacing the aging turf and track complex for student-athletes, where ground was broken June 6. It also includes other campus improvements and the establishment of a Robert E. Gerwien Sr. Scholarship Endowment Fund. Gerwien was a long time principal at Immaculate.

About Immaculate High School

Immaculate High School is a private, non-profit Catholic college-preparatory institution serving students from 28 communities in Connecticut and New York. A continued commitment to our 60-year tradition of being a value-based, student-centric, outcomes focused Catholic high school, has driven our rising trajectory as evidenced by our exemplary Niche ratings.

The following is a letter written by Dr. Steven F. Cheeseman, Superintendent of Schools for the Diocese of Bridgeport:

Editor’s note: This essay won third prize in the annual Fairfield University Martin Luther King Jr. essay contest open to Bridgeport middle-school students.

Social justice. Social justice can mean lots of things to many people. It could mean a law or policy being changed and reworded, an apology, or someone finally owning, correcting or facing consequences for their actions. So what is social justice? The concept of social justice is when each person can exercise their rights within a society. What happens when that right is violated? Injustice, homophobia, racism, sexual harassment, and many other problems fall under social injustice. Vanessa Guillen is just one of many examples that if these problems are left untreated will hurt people.

Pictured: Student Winners of the 2023 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Essay Contest, left to right: Olivia Hewitt, second prize, St. Augustine Academy; Jaiden Cook, first prize, St. Ann Academy; Isobel Joergensen, honorable mention, St. Ann Academy; and Nayeli Blandon, third prize, Interdistrict Discovery Magnet School.
Contributed photo / Owen Bonaventura, Fairfield University., Photographer / Owen Bonaventura

A great issue in our society is sexual violence. Sexual violence can affect people of different ages, sexes and races. More than half of women and almost one in three men have experienced sexual violence involving physical contact during their lifetimes. Experts know the number is underestimated in this issue because numerous cases go unreported because survivors might feel ashamed or frightened to talk about what happened to them. When people experience this issue, with or without the right support, they can leave people with a lifetime of trauma that could take years of self-work to overcome, and without justice even more. Leaving this issue alone isn’t fair or reasonable. People need to show awareness and bring more attention to this issue.

More people need to teach their kids that this is never OK to do this to a person or to stay quiet if they know someone who has done it. The “Me Too” movement, made to show awareness, as well as the “I am Vanessa Guillen” movement, which was created after the disappearance and murder of Vanessa Guillen at Fort Hood after she reported sexual harassment against her commanding officers, show exactly why this a much bigger issue than some people make them out to be and how we as the people can combine our powers and make a change. In fact, the family of Vanessa Guillen have arranged protests, made speeches, met President Trump, and has gone as far to make an act under her name to change the way sexual harassment is dealt with in the military, allowing it to be reported outside of the chain of command. On Dec. 15, 2021, the “I am Vanessa Guillen Act of 2021” passed on its second try and the family plans to go back to the originally worded act to see if they can get more leverage for the survivors of sexual violence in the military. This alone is referred to as “making history.” Imagine what the people could do if more people participated in protesting, teaching and learning about this topic; how much change would there be?

To conclude, activism and change is no easy task, however, if there was a chance that we could make a better place for the kids, the little people of the future. If there was a chance, we could make safer places for them to grow and learn; would it be a hard choice? Everyone needs help, change can be a one man job, but it would be easier as a team. No one is alone.

Nayeli Blandon is an eighth-grader at Interdistrict Discovery Magnet School.

Credit: Nayeli Blandon @ ctpost.com

DANBURY, CT – Immaculate High School is proud to announce that two students achieved perfect scores on the math portion of the SAT exam in December. Both Jie Du ‘23 of Danbury and Yipeng “Simon” Zhao ‘24 of Sandy Hook scored an 800 on the math section. SAT scores are used to determine college admissions and merit-based scholarships.

Principal Wendy Neil praised faculty and staff for their dedication to supporting students. “We have an amazing faculty, counseling team and support staff who all play a role in our students’ success,” said Neil. “Congratulations to Jie and Yipeng for working hard to achieve this tremendous honor.”

About Immaculate

As a college preparatory high school, Immaculate’s college readiness program enables all students to create a successful, personalized academic profile. With an 11 to 1 student-to-faculty ratio, students receive individual academic support. Each counselor is assigned 125 students compared to the reported American School Counselor Association’s 2020-21 national average report of 415 students per counselor. This means Immaculate has three times the number of counselors per student than the United States average.

Immaculate High School is a private, non-profit Catholic college-preparatory institution serving students from 28 communities in Connecticut and New York. A continued commitment to our 60-year tradition of being a value-based, student-centric, outcomes focused Catholic high school, has driven our rising trajectory as evidenced by the 2022 Niche A+, Best Schools ranking.

Immaculate High School is proud to celebrate its Boys Cross Country Team for winning the Class S State Championship this weekend. The team competed in the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC) at Wickham Park in Manchester, Connecticut on Saturday, October 29.

Congratulations to the team and to the medal winners who earned All-State honors: Seamus Reidy ‘23 who placed second, Lorenzo Lopes ‘26 who placed seventh, Ben Gasparrini ‘23 who placed eighth and Trevor Fuller ‘25 who placed eleventh. On the Immaculate Girls Cross Country Team, Keelin Bremner ‘23 placed fifth to earn All-State.

Immaculate High School is a private, non-profit Catholic college-preparatory institution serving students from 28 communities in Connecticut and New York. A continued commitment to our 60-year tradition of being a value-based, student-centric, outcomes focused Catholic high school, has driven our rising trajectory as evidenced by the 2022 Niche A+, Best Schools ranking.

FAIRFIELD– Notre Dame girls soccer coach Wayne Mones has reached a milestone in his decades-long career. With Tuesday night’s 4-0 victory against Immaculate, Mones earned his 200th win coaching soccer at the high school level.

Athletic Director John Johnson commented, “The Notre Dame athletic community congratulates Coach Mones on his landmark victory. His win total is a testament to his long-term devotion to his players and the game of soccer. More impressive even is the high character student-athletes produced in his program.”

Mones’s coaching resume includes 86 wins with the Central Catholic boys, 114 wins with the Notre Dame girls, and an additional 212 wins with the Western CT State University men. With a record of 200-86-37 at the high school level and 212-89-34 as a college coach, Wayne Mones has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to excellence on the pitch.

“Players make the coach look good”, Mones said. “I’ve been lucky enough to have had many great players over the years.”

For more information, please contact John Johnson at jjohnson@notredame.org.

TRUMBULL—St. Joseph High School recently hosted a service day for their students on July 14, 2022. During the event, 30 SJ students packed nearly 100 backpacks for the children at the Sterling House and Mercy Learning Center.

“There is nothing like a brand new backpack and school supplies to start the school year,” remarked Jessica Costa, director of marketing & enrollment management at St. Joseph High School. “Community service is an integral part of the curriculum at St. Joe’s and during this Back 2 School Supply Pack, students worked diligently alongside their peers to carefully prepare backpacks for children ages 5-14”. Participants also donated items to contribute to each backpack. Each student also included a handwritten note for the backpack’s recipient with well wishes for a great new school year.

The Mercy Learning Center, located in Bridgeport, provides basic literacy and life skills training to women with low income using a holistic approach within a compassionate, supportive environment. All women are welcome without regard for race, religion, color, creed, sexual orientation or national origin. The Sterling House is an organization that is ever-responsive to the needs of the Stratford community—when they see a need, they fill it. St. Joseph High School is proud to serve as a partner with both The Sterling House and Mercy Learning Center and to support their missions as they prepare to support clients for a successful school year ahead.

In addition, prior to the start of the backpack drive, students heard from Michael Rosati, director of youth development at Sterling House, and alumni of St. Joseph High School on the importance of community need awareness and servic­­­­­e.

The school hopes to make this an annual event each summer.

There are plenty of issues occupying our hearts and minds these days. A school choice movement in Connecticut – providing parents in underperforming public school systems with vouchers and education savings accounts for better educational choices – should be among them, which could significantly impact the education of future generations.

The recent Supreme Court decision in Carson v. Makin supports the school choice movement by removing an obstacle to public funding that makes access to parochial schools a choice for more families in more states.

The issue in a nutshell

Many public school systems often in inner cities, are underperforming, if not failing. Parents of children in these schools have few other public options. Yes, there are magnet and charter schools that are public, receive state funds and charge no tuition, but admission is determined by lottery, the luck of the draw. This can and should change, as is happening on the topic of school choice in other states.

There is a better way

School choice brings accountability to all parties involved, saves taxpayer dol1ars and affords parents critical educational choices for their children. In Bridgeport, for example, it costs almost $17,000 to educate each student. At parochial schools, the cost to educate students is significantly less and the outcomes achieved are far superior. At the Catholic Academy of Bridgeport, which educates approximately 900 pre-K through grade 8 students on four campuses, the cost of a child’s education is only about $7,000. More than 85 percent of Catholic Academy students cannot afford the annual tuition of $5,150 and thus qualify for need-based financial assistance. Many families attend for as little as $100 a month.

The Catholic Academy of Bridgeport raises over $2.2 million each year, provided by generous private donors and foundations to cover scholarship funding for those families in need. The academy welcomes students of all faiths; 40 percent of an students are non-Catholic. Importantly, teachers’ pay is based on a merit system, where one of the factors in a teacher’s compensation is the outcomes or success that their work brings to students.

Connecticut does not provide school choice programs like vouchers and education savings accounts to help parents with educational options and the funding to select a better alternative for their child, like Catholic Academy of Bridgeport.

School choice momentum in other states

Other states are catching on, particularly post-COVID. According to the Wall Street Journal, more than 30 states have introduced bills to establish or expand educational choice programs, including strongholds like Virginia and New Jersey that have traditionally opposed school choice. Providing parents a choice and helping to save taxpayer dollars have helped to remove other longstanding policy barriers.

One of these barriers is teachers unions, who naturally oppose school choice programs, claiming that funds to expand choice are taken from public schools. Yet this claim is not valid. In Indiana, legislators have funded voucher programs, yet 93 percent of all education funding still goes to public schools – not a drain at all. State legislators are stepping up to reject the idea that teachers unions should have a monopoly over how K-12 education dollars are spent. These states are leading the way in establishing education systems that give parents more choice, with better outcomes for their children and more productive use of city and state education dollars.

So why not in Connecticut?

Like many policy issues, change comes from building a coalition of support and leadership on topics that taxpayers care about. According to the Friedman Foundation for Education Choice, as of May 2016, Connecticut provides no financial assistance (either in the form of vouchers or tax credits) to parents wishing to send their children to private schools in place of public schools. This must change.

Parochial schools, like the Catholic Academy of Bridgeport, provide better outcomes for students with fewer dollars than their public school counterparts, while saving taxpayer dollars. In Bridgeport alone, where the education budget is funded mostly at the state government level, choice programs would save all state taxpayers significantly. Most importantly, as parents are able to choose the educational model that best fits their children, student success would improve across the board. Thus, the prospects for Bridgeport as a whole improves, bringing further cost savings to Connecticut.

Vouchers should be adopted in Connecticut to give all parents, especially those in inner cities like Bridgeport, equal opportunities to educate their children at the best school of their choice while saving taxpayer dollars. We must demand this of our state legislators. The future of our children trapped in the state’s underperforming public schools depends on it.

John J. Kennedy is on the board of Catholic Academy of Bridgeport

FAIRFIELD — If you are tuning into ESPN programming for the NFL, chances are you will see Dan Orlovsky among those analysts debating anything about the sport.

With training camps opening soon, news is ramping up in the NFL. So Orlovsky, the Shelton native and former UConn and NFL quarterback, will be on air to speak plenty about the upcoming season.

On Thursday morning, Orlovsky discussed his ESPN role — among other things — as the guest speaker at The Patterson Club for “Kolbe Conversations Edition No. 3: Let’s Talk Football.” It was a fundraiser for Kolbe Cathedral High School, a private school in Bridgeport.

“I don’t want to ever get into the media world of being somebody who thinks they can say anything that they want since they are on television,” Orlovsky said. “You’ve got to say what you’re convicted about. Saying something gets you into trouble. … I think a lot of people get into this industry and they are scared to be wrong, especially in the social media world because when you are wrong in the social media world, it spreads quickly. I think if you are scared to be wrong, you’ll never be convicted to be right. I want to be one of those people that (people say about), ‘That dude wasn’t scared to be wrong.’”

The trip to Patterson is a short one for Orlovsky from his home in Westport, where he is husband to Tiffany and father to four, including triplets. That and a full schedule at ESPN keeps him busy.

He had to get home right away on Thursday to expand more about quarterback Baker Mayfield being traded from the Cleveland Browns to the Carolina Panthers. He has a setup in his office to do remote TV work.

Orlovsky, 38, also does color for a college football game each Saturday. And soon, the network will officially announce what has been reported for months: Orlovsky will be a part of a backup Monday Night Football team broadcasting a handful of games this fall, then five per season beginning in 2023.

“This is the greatest accomplishment in this part of my career,” Orlovsky said. He said it will be No. 3 overall, behind being drafted in the fifth round by the Detroit Lions in 2005 and leading UConn to its first Division I bowl victory at the 2004 Motor City Bowl.

Orlovsky said he looked at other broadcasting options this past spring, speaking with FOX, CBS, Amazon and “a bunch of the big gambling entities” before deciding to stay with Bristol-based ESPN.

“I had conversations with everybody. I was sitting there going, ‘OK, we are going to tap into everybody and see what grabs my attention the most and what really do I want to do the next couple years and the next step, 10 years from now?’” Orlovsky said.

Orlovsky spent his first four NFL seasons and last two with the Lions. His career-high starts was seven in 2008. In between, he played for Houston, Indianapolis and Tampa Bay. Orlovsky retired following the 2016 season.

Those days in film study for the opposition have served Orlovsky well in his current occupation. During the season, he is picked up for a drive to ESPN’s New York City studio for “Get Up” appearances or to Bristol for other shows. On those rides, and in his spare time, he is constantly reviewing NFL game films from the last weekend.

As he noted on Thursday, that all started watching film as Shelton High’s starting quarterback. He led the Gaels to the 2000 Class LL state championship his senior season, defeating Greenwich 22-8 at West Haven High.

He can still recall the weather on that championship Saturday almost 22 years ago (“it was 2 degrees”) and he remembers who he threw touchdown passes to. And of course, there’s the satisfaction following the hurt from finishing 9-1 as a junior and not making the postseason.

FAIRFIELD– Notre Dame High School has announced a leadership change in its athletics department.

John Johnson has been appointed as athletic director for Notre Dame in Fairfield, Conn. Prior to this role, Johnson spent the past twenty-two years teaching in Trumbull and will be starting his fifth season as Notre Dame’s head football coach this fall.

“I am extremely honored to be named the next athletic director at Notre Dame. The school has a strong reputation of both academic and athletic excellence, and I look forward to building on that solid foundation as we continue to grow and innovate our programs,” Johnson said.

Last season, Johnson led the Notre Dame football team to the state quarterfinals with a record of 8-2. He was also recognized as the 2022 National Football Foundation SWC Coach of the Year.

In a statement about the new hire, Principal Chris Cipriano commented, “It is with pleasure that I welcome John to the staff at Notre Dame. As we’ve seen during his tenure as football coach, his commitment to success and to support each student-athlete is extremely strong. I look forward to his work with all of our athletic programs and all of our athletes. There is no doubt that he will help to continue to advance the mission of our school and our athletic program.”

Notre Dame Catholic High School is a coeducational diocesan Catholic high school located in Fairfield that provides a college preparatory education to approximately 500 students coming from 35 different cities and towns.

TRUMBULL—St. Joseph High School, striving to be southern Connecticut’s premier college preparatory school, was proud to host a service day for its students on Monday, July 11, 2022. During the event, SJ students packed 177 snack bags for the clients at The Thomas Merton Center (Bridgeport) as well as 62 Food4Kids Weekend bags for children at The Sterling House Community Center (Stratford).

“These are two incredibly important organizations within the community,” remarked Jessica Costa, director of marketing & enrollment management at St. Joseph High School. “Sterling House provides multiple opportunities and events to feed those in need throughout the year, and the Merton Center serves an average of 400 meals per day. At St. Joseph High School, we believe that community service and a life in service to others is a core part of our educational foundation. We are so proud of the students who will be generously volunteering their time to give back to those in need.”

35 SJ students (from grades 9-12) participated in the Meal Pack Service Day. The school hopes to make this an annual event each summer in addition to the athletic camps and academic programs offered.

What an awesome first year in the CAS Grows Garden! Check out our recap of all the fun our classes had this Spring!🌱

Special thanks to our “Garden Lady” Danielle Jahn for all of her hard work and dedication throughout the year!

DANBURY—Immaculate High School 2022 Commencement ceremony was held on Saturday, June 4 at the O’Neill center, Western State Connecticut University.

The Honorable Dean Esposito, Mayor of Danbury, addressed the students and complimented them on their exemplary academic achievements despite the challenges created by the pandemic. Stacie Stueber, Diocese of Bridgeport Deputy Superintendent reminded students to choose their words carefully and to be true to themselves followed by Board Chairperson and ‘86 alumnus David Cappiello who quoted baseball coach, Jimmy Dugan, played by Tom Hanks in the movie A League of Their Own: “It’s supposed to be hard.  If it wasn’t hard, everyone would do it. Hard work is what makes it great.” He told students “that the growth and accomplishments you achieve through your hard work, struggles and pure determination are what you will remember most fondly and will define who you are as a person.”

The 117 students of the Class of 2022 were awarded $33.5 million in college scholarships and grants. School President Mary Maloney thanked the parents and faculty for helping the students achieve their full potential. She encouraged the graduates “to continue to use their talents and embrace discourse with the intent to make compassionate differences that will become infectious. Always remember that seeking the truth is to seek God through your whole heart, mind, spirit and soul.”

Although there were many pandemic restrictions implemented by organizations in the Danbury area, the graduating class completed 22,931 hours of community service. In her address, Principal Wendy Neil praised their exceptional dedication to caring for others and encouraged them to be proactive in diminishing decisions that have a negative impact on humanity and world peace.

Immaculate High School is a top-rated A+ private, non-profit Catholic college-preparatory institution serving students from 28 communities in Connecticut and New York. Founded in 1962, Immaculate High School also allows students to focus on academic excellence, spiritual development, service to others, and personal goals.  Located in Danbury, CT, Immaculate High School is part of the Diocese of Bridgeport’s school system

DANBURY—At its Baccalaureate Mass celebrated by pastor Msgr. Robert Weiss, Deacon Jeff Font, Deacon Richard Lawlor, Deacon Mike Ronan and Father Jim Cole at St. Rose of Lima Church, Newtown, Immaculate High School announced its top ten students of the Class of 2022. 

Julong Williams of Redding is the Class of 2022’s Valedictorian and Matthew Reeves of New Milford is the Salutatorian. Of the 117 members of the Class of 2022, 100 percent applied and were accepted to colleges and universities and 95 percent were awarded college scholarships and grants totaling $33.5 million. The top ten percent of students achieved an SAT score average of 1407. 

Valedictorian Julong Williams (Redding) will attend the University of Virginia where she will study English. An AP scholar, Julong is a four-year Distinguished Honors student, a recipient of the 2021 Cornell Book Club award for academic excellence, recipient of the four-year Presidential Merit Award Scholarship, a member of the National Honor Society, English National Honor Society and Math National Honor Society. A prolific writer and artist, Julong has written original young adult fiction and poetry and received the school’s Excellence in Art award. Her high school athletic career includes four years as a  cross country, indoor track and outdoor track runner. 

Salutatorian Matthew Reeves (New Milford ) will attend Lehigh University where he will study Chemistry. An AP scholar, Matthew is a four-year Distinguished Honors student, the recipient of the Isabelle Farrington Academic Scholarship, recipient of the SW Conference Academic Team, a member of the Math Club, Math and Science National Honor Societies, X-country 5K distance runner and indoor/outdoor track runner and served as team captain for both teams in his senior year. A parishioner of St. John’s Episcopal Church in New Milford, Matthew was a dedicated volunteer with more than 100 hours at the Rudy L. Ruggles Biomedical Research Institute. 

Completing the Top Ten graduating senior list are Stephanie Antonios (Danbury) University of Connecticut; Caitlin Doherty (Danbury) Trinity College; William Doran (Danbury), Georgetown University; Sara MacKinnon (Danbury), Providence College; Kennedi Muller (Ridgefield), University of Notre Dame; Magdalena Swierczek (Danbury), University of Connecticut; Caroline Tucker (Danbury), Georgia Institute of Technology; and Zifeng Zhan (Guangzhou, China) University of California, Santa Barbara. 

Kayla Ondy (Newtown) was named Immaculate High School’s Student of the Year. Kayla earned this honor for consistently demonstrating strength of character and faith in action through kindness to others, a passion for learning and going beyond what is expected. 

Immaculate High School is an independent private, non-profit Catholic college-preparatory institution serving students from 28 communities in Connecticut and New York. Founded in 1962, Immaculate High School also allows students to focus on academic excellence, spiritual development, service to others and personal goals. Located in Danbury, CT, Immaculate High School is part of the Diocese of Bridgeport’s school system. 

FAIRFIELD—Notre Dame High School in Fairfield held its 63rd graduation ceremony on Friday, June 3 at 6 pm at the school. The Class of 2022 is comprised of 103 graduates, representing 21 cities and towns, as well as several international students. The class has co-valedictorians: Shauna Contreras of Bridgeport and Sophia Porzio of Easton. The exact amount of college scholarships and grants received by the class was announced at the graduation ceremony. The media was invited to attend the graduation ceremonies. Please contact Principal Chris Cipriano with any questions at ccipriano@notredame.org or (203) 372-6521.

Photos by Amy Mortensen