Party Like it's 1999!

As a culminating activity in Mrs. Otis’s AP Computer Science study of our Internet unit, students watched a cheesy, but valuable video from 1999, “Warriors of the Internet.” Students ate popcorn, drank a popular soda from the nineties, and enjoyed candy of the time. We got a chance to see how things have changed, stayed the same, and how digital transport works.

Of course we ended the lesson by listening to Prince's classic song, “1999!” Through this fun experience, students reviewed all the important internet protocols as well as some fun tech history.

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Check out “Warriors of the Net” for yourself!

Touchdown, science!

Mr. Turner’s 6th grade science class is studying a unit on the basics of graphing. Students have been learning about how to draw a graph with proper labeling. To practice these skills, students participated in a fun and interactive lab. Each student took a turn flicking a foam football and then recording their measurements. They then calculated the average and graphed each student's average together on a bar graph. Touchdown, science!

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Dig It! 2021 Trojans Volleyball

by: Rachel Rice, senior

Rachel Rice, varsity volleyaball

The varsity volleyball season is in its peak right now! Saint James’s varsity team is number one in their area and will be hosting the area game at home. The Saint James volleyball team has made it to state many times and most recently won state in 2017. Because of this success, the varsity team is competing in the 6A area, as oppose to our normal 4A classification. Volleyball is a fall sport with practices starting in early July and goes until mid-October. Competitions begin in August and can continue into late October depending on how far the team advances in the state playoffs. Volleyball is a game that depends on teamwork and communication to succeed. In a game, there are 6 players on the court at once, and they usually have a setter and a libero. The libero is the main defensive player who wears a different colored jersey. The setter is the player who propels the second ball in a play and sets it to the front row hitters to try to get a point off their hit. Junior varsity games are played to the best of 2 out of 3 sets. Sets consist of 25 points and the JV teams have to win 2 sets to win the game. In varsity, games are played to the best of 3 out of 5 sets. This means that they have to win 3 sets to win the game.

I started playing volleyball in 8th grade and have played every school and club season every year since. I started playing it because I loved watching college volleyball on tv and had friends who played at school. The sport has taught me a lot about teamwork, competition, and communication. It has made a positive impact in my life and has given me many new friendships with teammates from other schools. I am so thankful for the leadership of our coach, Karen Lee, and for all of the time she dedicates to not only helping us grow as athletes, but as students and members of our community. I can’t wait to see what the rest of the season holds. Go Trojans!

The Hilinski’s Hope Foundation- Mental Health Advocacy for Athletes

The Hilinski’s Hope Foundation (H3H) was founded in 2018 by Mark and Kym Hilinski to honor the life of their son Tyler, who died by suicide in January of that year. At the time, Tyler was playing quarterback at Washington State and was leading a seemingly storybook life and never showed any signs of depression or struggle. The more Mark and Kym looked into the death of their son, the more they wondered what could have been done to prevent it. However, rather than find a “why” it happened, their work (spreading awareness and advocating for the mental health of student athletes) became a their reason to move forward.

Thanks to our sponsor, The Hughston Clinic, last night Saint James School was honored to have Mark and Kym to campus to share their story with our student athletes and parents. October 2-9 is College Football Mental Health Week. Over sixty colleges and universities nationwide will participate in breaking down stigma and offering quality resources to provide mental health support for student athletes.

#MentalHealthMatters

College Football Mental Health Week coincides with Mental Illness Awareness Week, October 3-9, culminating on World Mental Health Day on October 10. Saint James School is committed to the overall health and wellbeing of our students and we are incredibly thankful to Mark and Kym for sharing the story of Tyler and bringing Hillinski’s Hope to our school. https://www.hilinskishope.org/

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Tea Time

by: MaryEllis Killough, 8th grade

Last week in our advanced English class we had a tea party to celebrate finishing the novel Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. We watched the 2020 film adaptation of the book and discussed similarities and differences in the book versus the movie. We were treated with Chamomile tea, scones, and shortbread cookies during the movie to really go back in time to 1938 on the countryside of England. Our whole class enjoyed our little tea party and was very thankful to our wonderful English teacher, Ms. Ramsey, for making this happen!

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pinkies up!

Art Enriches

Our elementary enrichment teachers work together to weave comprehensive, co-curricular lessons throughout the year. All elementary students, Pre-K3 through 5th grade, attend at least one enrichment class per day. A favorite is art. Visual art is critical for not only self-expression, finding creativity, and inventiveness, but art encourages motor skills, language skills, social skills, and decision-making. Mrs. Patti Pelham, elementary art teacher, worked with our first graders this week as they completed portraits of pigs. These beautiful creations will hang on display for their upcoming play, “The Barnyard Moosical.”

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Art Critique

AP Art students began the year with a charcoal still-life to help see, understand, and hone in on their skills of observation while putting into practice the aspects of drawing. Their goal is to crop in on the still-life to create a composition that directs the viewers eye around the drawing while leading them to a point of emphasis that the artist thinks is important. After every final is completed the students participate in a thorough critique. The critique allows for students to respond, interpret, and make critical judgments on their work as well as the work of their peers. This is an important part of the art making process, because it allows the students to see how their work is perceived by others as well as getting input from their peers on the issues that they may not have noticed other own.

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At the Table

written by Anna Dickey, class of 2023

No day at Saint James School is ever really the same, but one variable still manages to remain constant: lunch. Each day at around 12:55 PM all the high school students flock to The Commons for a reprieve from classes and a chance to grab some food and talk with friends. This day-to-day assembly hundreds of hungry teenagers is where the beating heart of the high school can really be felt. There are dozens of tables positioned all around the Commons, and at each one there is a unique environment made up of all different types of people who participate in widely varying activities around the school. Personally, lunch is one of my favorite parts of each day for this exact reason. During lunch I get to see many friends who I don’t have any classes with, who I don’t see after school, and who I wouldn’t otherwise see if we didn’t meet for lunch each day. It can be hard to find time to meet with friends who participate in different activities and have different interests than I do, but lunch in the Commons always provides the perfect opportunity. The table I sit at everyday with five of my friends is a great example of this. We each take part in a wide range of varying hobbies and extracurriculars here at school. I myself participate in speech and debate, performing arts, choir, and youth in government. Like me, Lizzy Dickens participates in performing arts and choir, and Brooke Bender partakes in youth and government. But while some people at my table participate in the same activities as me, others do completely different ones. For example, Kaelyn Morgan is a sports superstar, playing on both the school’s soccer and basketball teams, while also representing the school in marching band. Then there are Selina Sun and Kelsey Shaffer, who, while both representing the school in math competitions and excelling in their academics, pursue the artistic ventures of music and visual arts, respectively. A day at our lunch table typically consists of hearing about Kaelyn’s grueling practice last week, cramming for tests with Kelsey’s help, Brooke hilariously rating the daily soup, Selina disagreeing with everything she says, and hearing Lizzy sing every type of song you can imagine under her breath. Some could describe our table as chaotic because of all the different things happening at once, but I like to think of it as a beautiful harmony. We may not all sing the same note or participate in all the same activities, but when we come together, we create a breathtaking melody. Due to COVID-19, last year that melody was stifled, but this year, with The Commons open to students again, the sound of people coming together can be heard all around campus. And during those precious forty-three minutes between 12:55 and 1:38 PM, there is no place I would rather be than at the table. 

Food for Thought

The High School Photography 2 class is studying the elements of art and how they relate to photography. Students practiced photographing food, candy, and objects with a light source adjusting the aperture, shutter speed, iso, and white balance to create the sense of form in an interesting composition. Mrs. Shoults brought donuts and fruit while two of our high school seniors brought a waffle iron and mix to add to the fun and photographing. It was a great day at STJ in high school photography.

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The STJ Commons: Lunch Reimagined

The sound of silverware clinking and excited chatter fills the over 14,000 square feet of the reopened STJ Commons. Due to the pandemic, we made the difficult decision to serve to-go only lunches during the entire 2020-21 academic year. We were thankful to have provided nutritious lunches to our students, but the dining experience was limited to eating in classrooms or outdoors. This year, with increased safety measures, we reopened the Commons for in-person dining. Students are able to socialize with friends and classmates while utilizing the dozens of options at lunch each day. Favorites like the salad bar, soup and sandwich station, and grab-and-go healthy snack station are now available to our students and employees. The dining choices have also expanded to include a daily international food station in addition to the existing brick oven selections (like hot sandwiches, pizza, calzones, and baked pastas) as well as the fresh fruits, vegetables, and protein offerings our STJ family knows and loves.

“We are teaching the kids to make good choices,” says Cristian Pintovidal, Director of Dining Services. “Students will have to make choices all of their lives. In college they will have even more choices to make, so empowering them with good decision making skills now will help them in the future.” Mr. Pintovidal is passionate about food, but what you will notice upon meeting him is his love for people. “Of course we make good food that tastes good and what people like to eat,” he says, “but the table is where we share about ourselves and make connections with others. That is what I see in this space every day.”

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We will continue to use the Commons as our dining facility, but the space also serves as the elementary school stage and performing arts area. It is also used as a gathering place for school assemblies, awards presentations, and faculty meetings. Later this fall, we are excited to collaborate with the STJ Community Garden to incorporate student-grown produce and herbs into our cuisine. The Commons is truly the heart of campus and we are thankful that it has helped bring our school family together.

“I enjoy creating new menus and food selections that make people excited to try new things. My goal for this year is to provide excellent customer service which creates great memories for all the students. ”

— Cristian Pintovidal, Director of Dining Services