Lifelong Lessons at Girls State

By: Lily Everett, senior

Lily pictured with Judge Anna Manasco, STJ class of 98.

Sponsored by the American Legion Auxiliary (ALA), Alabama Girls State is a week-long premier youth leadership program which offers a one-of-a-kind experience for its delegates.

It was such a humbling experience to represent Saint James School this summer at the 2024 Girl's State Program. Admittedly, I was a little nervous about going away for a week with 371 other young women from the state, but it wasn't long until I realized that this was going to be the most amazing week of my life!  The program teaches us about being good citizens, role-models, encouragers, and about how to be involved in our local and state governments.  It was truly a week of us all building each other up through compelling speakers, team time, olympic trial games, a "Red, White, and Boots" dance, and even a formal inaugural dinner! 

I met so many great female leaders from around our state including Governor Kay Ivey, Senator Kate Britt, Congresswoman Terri Sewell, and Judge Anna Manasco, who is an STJ Alumna!  I want to thank Saint James for this experience and I plan on working every day to put into practice the lessons I learned at Girl's State."

“I plan on working every day to put into practice the lessons I learned at Girl’s State.”
— Lily Everett, Saint James Girls State Delegate

Alabama Youth in Government- My Favorite Time of Year!

by: Ava Donaldson, class of 2024

The 2023-24 Youth Judicial “Top Team” Award- STJ!

2024 Scholarship Recipients. I was honored to be presented with the Bill Barringer Memorial Scholarship.

One of my favorite things that I have had the privilege to be a part of in my many years at Saint James is ALYIG. Alabama Youth in Government is a program run through the YMCA where students from all across the state participate in mock trials and debate legislation. I initially got involved with the program in seventh grade with their Junior Youth Legislator, little did I know that it would become my favorite time of the year. Flash forward to my freshman year where I joined a team of seven other freshmen where we competed in a mock trial on zoom for the first time. Although we did not win any of our three rounds of debate, fellow senior Will Alexander and I promised we would qualify for nationals by our senior year. This first year on a glitchy zoom call is where I first met some of the people I would soon call my best friends. Throughout the next four years I made sure I was at every youth in government event. Youth Judicial in November, Youth Legislator in February, and Youth in the City in April, I was at all of them! Year after year my public speaking skills improved tremendously and I became incredibly outgoing. These conferences were what I looked forward to every year because I got to see all of my friends and we could reminisce about all of our terrible speeches and the many times “decorum!” was yelled through the speakers. Aside from all of the unserious and funny moments of these conferences, my ever-changing Youth Judicial team became one to beat at state. In my final year myself along with seniors Will Alexander, Alex Ruona, Carter Miller, Jordan Rossell, Jaden Rossell, Madison Walton, and sophomore Micheal Phan we finally achieved what we had worked so hard for: nationals. This upcoming July we will take on the National Youth Judicial competition in Minnesota. I am so incredibly grateful to my teachers that have helped me throughout my years and all of my friends I made along the way. #wearesaintjamesschool

Cabaret! Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

by: Nicole Jung, class of 2025

STJ Cabaret 2024

Elementary “Rising Starts”

Cabaret 2024

STJ Cabaret is an annual performance that showcases students dancing and singing. Not only do elementary to high school students perform on stage, they can work as backstage staff as well. Usually, I participate as a performer but this year, I just went to watch my friends. Seeing them at the concessions or on the stage gave me so much joy and inspiration.

Every year, Cabaret has a theme that all the songs are based off of. This year it was Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Songs like “Sweet Dreams” by The Eurythmics and “I Feel for You” by Chaka Khan introduce new music and good oldies to me. The ride back home is when I listen to the newfound songs blissfully! The sparkly outfits the performers wear are dazzling especially when they are matching for small group performances. Speaking of small groups, the dance ensemble does impressive dances that showcase their amazing talent! Other small groups have only singing in which they serenade the audience with their vocals or instruments.

Cabaret is performed for 3 nights and on the last night, it is tradition for the sophomores and juniors to make a speech for the graduating seniors. This touching occasion fills me with warmth and many of the performers shed tears for their last performance with their loved upperclassmen. It was amazing to see how much effort and dedication went into creating such a production. For next year‘s Cabaret, make sure to grab a ticket and enjoy the show!

Nicole has been a Trojan since the 2nd grade. She is a member of the STJ choir, youth legislature and youth judicial, SGA, and cheerleading. Nicole also serves as a Student Ambassador.

#wearesaintjamesschool

The National Merit Process: Months in the Making

The National Merit banner at the front entrance of the STJ campus.

My sister, Emilee, a sophomore at STJ, and my family have been very supportive during this process.

by: Will Alexander, senior

Every school year during the fall, it comes time to take the PSAT, and every year, grades 9 through 11 dread the thought of taking another four-hour standardized test. But for the juniors, those four hours have the potential to mean a lot more. When I was a junior, I knew that the PSAT was used to determine National Merit Semifinalists, but I didn’t really conceive just how big that was. After a long four hours of what felt like mind numbing testing, I walked out of the room thinking I was done with Pre-SAT forever and that was it. But to my surprise, the fall of this school year I got called into my counselor, Mr. Clinton's, office one random day. While a lot of different possibilities of why I was in there ran around in my head, not all good either, he told me I had done well enough to be a National Merit Semifinalist. With a bunch of excitement and joy, I went home that night with a letter explaining how the whole process would work from there on. After they calmed down and were able to collect their breath, my parents helped me to finish getting an application together for the next step. I had to get letters of recommendation, ACT/SAT scores, my transcript, and a bunch of other information together in order to be a candidate for National Merit Finalist. I turned in my forms, listed my expected college information, and waited. And waited. And waited. The banners and praise were very gratifying, but those months between Semifinalist and Finalist announcement felt like forever. I went from not even thinking about National Merit to it consuming my thoughts everyday all the way to one February day. In the middle of lunch, Mrs. Poplin called me up onto the stage and in that moment it felt surreal. Many colleges offer some smaller scholarships for being a Semifinalist. But being a Finalist, that’s where things really ramp up. Just like that it felt gratifying and relieving to know the whole college admission process just became that much less stressful. Now as graduation nears and I get ready to go to Auburn for my next four years, I look back on the whole National Merit Process and smile, knowing how exciting, nerve racking, and incredible it was, and just how important it is, even if it doesn’t seem like it when you’re taking the PSAT. #wearesaintjamesschool

Candygrams for a Cause!

by: Ella Reid Rodgers, senior

The STJ high school SGA

by: Ella Reid Rodgers, senior

At Saint James, our Student Government Association is extremely involved in creating exciting fundraisers that benefit our school. This year the SGA is led by Mrs. Kathryn Hughes, President Gracie Sommer, and Vice President, Logan Hartson, and includes many other members from grades 9-12. For 3 years now, the high school SGA created candy grams for Valentine’s Day. These candy grams were $1 each, and could be sent to any high school

Ella Reid passing out treats to STJ PreK students

student, as well as all faculty and staff. Each candy gram could be anonymous or include a name, and had the option to write a note to the person receiving the candy. When buying the candy gram, you were to select between hershey kisses, starbursts, and fun dip. The SGA gave all of high school 2 weeks to purchase these candy grams. During these 2 weeks, members of the SGA worked hard on purchasing the candy, writing the given notes, and wrapping up the bags of candy to distribute to students and staff. On Valentine’s Day, all of SGA handed out the candy grams to those who received one at lunch. A big number of students purchased candy grams for several of their friends, and some teachers purchased them for their students. Not only this, but seniors were able to give their kindergarten buddies candy as well. This year, the SGA raised a total of $610, which was a new record! Mrs. Hughes said, ““The SGA worked extremely hard this year creating over 600 candy grams that were distributed to the high school on Valentine’s day!” The proceeds from this fundraiser go towards the Trojan Scholarship that is given to one 9-11th grader. The Trojan Scholarship is a $1000 scholarship that is rewarded to a student and goes towards their tuition for the following year. This SGA fundraiser proved to be successful once again!

Ella Reid has been a Trojan since PreK4. She is a member of the National Honor Society, SGA, yearbook staff, Trojan Cheerleading, and serves as a Student Ambassador. #wearesaintjameschool

Thirteen Schools that Led Me to STJ

by: Cora Wojak, class of 2024

Age 3, saying goodbye before my dad deployed to Afghanistan

Being a military child is what defines me; it is all I have ever known. My dad was sent off to Air Force Dive School five weeks after I was born and still actively serves to this day. I have lived in ten different military bases in the United States, Japan, and Europe. My education has been spread out over thirteen different schools, so change is all I experience. Every two years, my family has to pack up our lives and move to either a different state, country, or continent with only a few months' notice. At every duty station at the end of a family’s tour, it’s calculated how long the veteran in the family was away. For my dad, whether he was deployed to Djibouti, the Philippines, or Afghanistan for the third time, he was gone 60% of the time that we lived somewhere. However, these changes that have defined me have given me a unique perspective on life and taught me lessons I will forever work to remember. 

Edinburgh, Scotland- Age 10

Okinawa, Japan- Age 9

A trait that military children are practically born with is adaptability. I have been to thirteen different schools in my twelve years of education, but I have never had a problem of being able to adapt to an unfamiliar environment. Walking into a new school over and over again was nerve-wracking because I never knew who I was going to meet. From first grade to freshman year, I went to military schools, so all the kids were in the same boat as me. We knew to never get too close because the goodbyes that were sure to come would break us. So, we kept to ourselves and refrained from opening up. 

Berchtesgaden, Germany- Age 11

But then came sophomore year when we got stationed in Montgomery, Alabama. Being a military family means you live in a small world, and coincidentally the Wright family, who we knew in England, lived here. We reached out to them and immediately began talking about school and they had only amazing things to say about Saint James. My parents toured STJ and sent me an application within minutes. Next thing I knew, I was taking my entrance exam, getting accepted, and choosing my class schedule. The second I moved here, I began cheer practices and met some of the sweetest girls in my entire life.

They welcomed me with open arms and helped me through my transition to Saint James. The staff understood my situation and helped me through any difficulties I had while starting out. Saint James is the school that almost every military family chooses and it is easy to see why. 

First day of senior year at STJ.

Now I am in the first semester of my senior year, I am beyond excited for what is to come, but I will forever miss this school and the opportunities it gave me. I’ve accomplished so many things academically that I never thought I would, like becoming an AP Scholar and receiving my biliteracy certification in Spanish. I am so proud to say that I get to graduate from Saint James and I will always cherish the experiences and lessons I was taught while being a Trojan. #wearesaintjamesschool

“These changes that have defined me have given me a unique perspective on life and taught me lessons I will forever work to remember. ”
— Cora Wojak

"Where do you Call Home?" Reflections from a Military Kid

by: Campbell Wright, class of 2025

April is a month dedicated to celebrating military children. Being a military kid myself, I understand the sacrifice and dedication of all military families. Whether it is worrying about a loved one or getting used to living in a new place, all military families must sacrifice. That sacrifice includes leaving behind extended family, losing loved ones, and missing parents as they take on missions far away. My journey as a military kid has taught me so many things, but the most important is how to make the best out of difficult situations. These difficult situations include moving to foreign countries, trying to fit in at new schools, and even adapting to new environments around me. 

Brussels, Belgium Age 8

Heidelberg, Germany Age 10

London, England Age 10

After England, we were sent to what we now know as our final destination in Montgomery, Alabama. Our whole family was a little hesitant when we got the orders because it was such a new place for us. Due to the amount of recommendations we received for Saint James, we decided to apply. Once we were accepted, it was time for the first day of school. We were all so nervous to come to a new school and try to  make friends, but as soon as we showed up for the first day, Saint James became our new home. From the moment we walked into the doors, we were welcomed with open arms. I never felt the anxiety of being the “new kid” like at every other school we attended. For what was only supposed to be a year, we are now in the place we call “home.” 

In September 2022, my dad retired from the United States Air Force. I am so thankful to stay in Montgomery and graduate from Saint James. All throughout my life I have been asked questions like “where are you from?” or “what place do you call home?” and now I can confidently answer that my home is here in Montgomery, Alabama at Saint James School. 

Mildenhall, England Age 11

I have faced all of these challenges through my journey of leaving every three to four years to find a new place called “home”. I was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico and moved a couple years later at the age of two. After Albuquerque, the military brought me to my next “home,” Woodbridge, Virginia. Here, I made some of my first real friendships. Leaving these friends behind was incredibly difficult, but even today, my family and I are still close with them.

Inverness, Scotland Age 8

After Virginia, my family faced one of the most difficult transitions and we were sent to Mildenhall, England. Not only was it challenging to leave our new family in Virginia, but moving all the way across the world was tough. In England, our family had to get used to the time change, the cultural differences, and the lack of Chick-Fil-A. Even in this difficult transition, we made the best of the situation and ended up with friends we now consider family. Not only did we make friends in this new place, we were able to travel to countries all over Europe that I had never heard of before. Traveling allowed me to experience the world and opened my eyes to new cultures as we went from country to country.

Montgomery, AL 10th grade

#wearesaintjamesschool

Military Families: "Pride and Honor"

by: AJ Kavlick, class of 2023

AJ with his parents at age 4

Veterans Day is about honoring the sacrifices of those who have served in the United States military. Being part of a military family requires sacrifices as well, such as moving around often and acclimating to new environments. Both of my parents served as colonels in the United States Air Force, as well as my grandfather, and my great grandfather, who served in WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. Saint James not only has a significant military community, but much of our student body is made up of military “brats.”

living in Greece, age 9

These are students who have had to jump from school-to-school, state-to-state, and even between countries after their parents’ reassignments. Many students at Saint James have had the privilege of staying in one city and going to one school kindergarten through graduation. Military children don’t have this type of stability. I, for one, can speak from experience. I first came to Saint James in the 3rd grade, having previously lived in Washington D.C. Before I could establish myself in this school, I moved abroad to Greece. In Greece, my dad served as the Air Attaché in the Embassy, representing the U.S. Air Force overseas. Living in a foreign country came as a shock for me, and it was not long before I missed my life in the U.S. However, I learned some valuable lessons while in Greece.

living in Azerbaijan, age 12

visiting Dubai, age 12

First and foremost, I learned how to adapt to new environments, even though I knew that my time there was limited. But more importantly, I gained a newfound appreciation of my country, which many of us might take for granted. I was glad to have returned to Saint James, which offered me some sense of stability after an exciting, but turbulent year. Even though I had begun to develop roots in Montgomery, I took up the offer to live another year overseas, this time in Azerbaijan. I could have stayed in Alabama,

“Being part of a military family was no longer a mere inconvenience, but a source of pride and honor.”
— AJ Kavlick, STJ junior

where I would not have to risk starting from scratch again. Even to this day, I ask myself whether I should have stayed behind. Yet, I was honored to be an “ambassador” for America in a country that most Americans cannot find on a map. This time, my father was representing the entire military as the Defense Attaché. This gave me a sense of responsibility, since my classmates’ impression of me would inevitably be their impression of the United States. From that moment on, I sought to better understand the United States’ relations in the world. Through my experience with Azerbaijani culture, I learned how to refine my own. By the time I arrived back home, I was changed for good. Being part of a military family was no longer a mere inconvenience, but a source of pride and honor. The next time you thank members of our military, also take the time to thank a military “brat” for the sacrifices they’ve had to make. You could even learn a thing or two about their unique experience. After all, it takes a team for the military to protect the freedoms we know and love.

#WeAreSaintJamesSchool

AJ serves as a student ambassador, runs on the Trojans cross country team and track team, is a member of Latin club, is a member of the National Honor Society as well as Mu Alpha Theta. AJ also takes numerous AP, honors, and advanced classes at Saint James School. After graduation, he plans to plan to attend college out of state, major in aerospace engineering and possibly follow in his parents’ footsteps and pursue a military career. No matter where his adventures take him, he will always be an excellent representation of Saint James School.

The Next Steps: My College Search

by: Lauren Taylor, senior

Lauren Taylor, class of ‘21, is an STJ Ambassador, member of Spanish Club, Interact Club, IPPRYL, and serves as the senior class treasurer.

Lauren Taylor, class of ‘21, is an STJ Ambassador, member of Spanish Club, Interact Club, IPPRYL, and serves as the senior class treasurer.

Lauren on a college visit to the University of Washington.

Lauren on a college visit to the University of Washington.

Being a student at Saint James means being surrounded by a large amount of people who do nothing but support you. The teachers, counselors and other students push you to be the best version of yourself, as well as supporting the dreams that you have. The counselors at Saint James are incredible. They help you throughout the college application process, as well as being a support system for you. When students are in their junior and senior years, they are allowed college visit days, that allow them to go and look at prospective colleges and learn more about them. These college visits help us students get an idea of what college is like, let us scope out the area, and see if it is a right fit for us. We are also able to meet other students at the colleges, as well as the staff there. The administration is extremely supportive of the students as well, allowing them to go on these visits and make up any work that they may miss while they are out. Saint James also has a variety of schools come to speak to us. Typically, all the interested students meet in the college rep room and talk with the representative from the college. This gives us an opportunity to ask any questions that we may have and learn more about that specific school. This also helps us get an idea of what to expect during the college application process, and eases the nerves that we have about college. Personally, I would not have been able to get through this experience without the help of my counselor and teachers. They have helped me apply for scholarships, to colleges, and have even helped me decide what major to choose to prepare me for my future. I am extremely grateful for all of the help I have received, as it has made a lasting impact on me.

Lauren on a college tour of Seattle University.

Lauren on a college tour of Seattle University.

1200px-Seattle_University_seal.svg.png

During my own personal college search, I toured many colleges in Washington including the University of Washington, Seattle University, and Western Washington University. When I stepped foot on Seattle University’s campus I knew it was the school for me. I was able to look at the classrooms, meet teachers, and meet other prospective students. Once I committed to the school, I was able to meet with a counselor over zoom and talk about what major would benefit me best for my career goals. I plan to take the MCAT to get into medical school, so we found the major that is going to best prepare me for that test and my career. I will be majoring in biology and minoring in psychology! Go Redhawks!