7th Grade Open House on April 19th
STMA invites all 7th grade students (rising 8th graders) to our 7th Grade OPEN HOUSE on Thursday, April 19th from 6:00-7:30pm. Parents and students are encouraged to attend this event. In addition to the OPEN HOUSE, “shadowing” is encouraged for all students wishing to experience STMA first hand. Please call 919-878-7640 or email at admissions@stmacademy.org with questions or to schedule a visit.
Applications Being Accepted NOW for the Class of 2016
St. Thomas More Academy is now accepting online applications for the Class of 2016. In fact, we already have applications for more than half of the incoming freshmen class!
Application packets do not need to be complete at the time of application. However, we must receive a completed Application for Admission along with a $250.00 application fee to begin the admissions process. Other documents can be submitted as you obtain them. All application documents must be submitted to the school by February 29, 2012.
The admissions test must be taken on one of the remaining dates in December or February (or at another school offering the ISEE on other dates) for consideration in the admissions process. The May test date is for late applicants assuming there are spaces still available at that time.
We are expecting an increased number of applications again this year, and will most likely have another waiting list. For this reason we are encouraging interested families to apply early.
Siblings of current students or graduates will be given priority in acceptance.
Tuition for the 2012-2013 academic year is $6500.
Acceptance letters will be mailed out in the first week of March, 2012 and Commitment Letters will be due back to the school two weeks later.
Open Houses are scheduled from 2-4pm on Sunday, December 4; and Sunday, February 5. Private tours are available, as are opportunites to have your child “shadow” a current student for a half school day. For more information, or to schedule a tour or “shadow,” please email Mrs. Ann Cureton at ann.cureton@stmacademy.org
All pertinent information and documents related to admissions at STMA can be found at the following link:
http://stmacademy.org/admissions/
If we can be of any assistence in the admissions process, please feel free to contact us. Know of our prayers!
STMA Summer Reading List 2011
Warm greetings to all!
The Academy has every year required several summer readings by grade level. Please find the texts for 2011-12 below.
Incoming freshmen
Mortimer Adler: How to Read a Book
Gerard Wegemer: Thomas More: A Portrait of Courage
Rising sophomores
Thomas Woods: How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization
Rising juniors
Richard Brookhiser: Rediscovering George Washington, Founding Father
Rising seniors
Alvin Plantinga: Advice to Christian Philosophers, at http://www.calvin.edu/academic/philosophy/virtual_library/plantinga_alvin.htm
Note that these are the only required summer readings. Students are expected the complete the work(s) assigned to their grade. Accountability will be measured via a short essay/book review on the particular work in designated courses.
Please let us know if you’ve any questions. Meantime I hope everyone has a good and restful summer!
God’s blessings,
Dr. Kirkpatrick
Wesley Kirkpatrick, Ph.D.
Dean of Studies
St. Thomas More Academy
wesley.kirkpatrick@stmacademy.org
STMA Announces New Faculty
There are exciting announcements to share about new STMA faculty! We happily welcome to our full-time crew Miss Nancy Bryant. Nancy studied at the University of the South, a distinguished liberal arts college perched atop one of the prettiest mountains in Tennessee. Perhaps the beauties of the place provoked her choice of a major in art history. We’re lucky there, because she will be offering an elective this coming fall on her primary love, the Italian Renaissance. Besides “Images of the Sacred,” Nancy will be teaching western history and beginning Latin. Just as we’re excited to see a new face, we’re equally excited to see a familiar one! This fall we welcome back one of our alumni as a full-time teacher. Lee Shields, nee Riley, finished her prep studies at STMA in 2006. Carrying the senior leadership award with her, she went off to major in philosophy at Catholic University. While there we hear she learned a lot about philosophy, but also met a physicist, Michael Shields. The rest is history! Lee will be teaching a number of subjects in the Trivium and Theology. Rumor is she might even team-teach a senior class with her former teacher, Dr. K–but we’ll stay mum on that for now. Welcome Miss Bryant and Mrs. Shields!
From Miss Bryant:
”As I prepare to leave the Episcopal High School to head to St. Thomas More, I am filled with joy at the prospect of bringing my enthusiasm, knowledge and passion for teaching to a new school home that so prizes a sound mind and courageous soul in each of its students. As I use my summer to prepare for my classes in History, Art History and Latin I (along with the move to Raleigh!), I wish you all the very best for a restful, sun-filled summer. ‘In all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose’.”
From Mrs. Shields:
I am very excited to begin sharing with my new students my love of St. Thomas More Academy and of the truly excellent Catholic education it offers! I return to Raleigh from the vast state of Texas with my dearest friend and husband, Micheal Shields, and we are both thrilled to join the STMA community! May God bless you all and fill you with His joy this summer and always.
STMA Announces New Headmaster
The Academy’s founder and board chairman Robert Luddy announced Deacon Watkins’s appointment to headmaster on June 10, 2011.
Deacon Watkins studied graphic design and art at North Carolina State’s renowned College of Design. After graduating he founded the Antfarm, an artists studio in downtown Raleigh, and later finished his M.F.A. at the University of North Carolina. He taught painting and drawing for a time both there and at the College of Design. He has won several significant art awards and shown his work in major galleries and museums.
Deacon Watkins taught art for seven years at Cardinal Gibbons High School, where he also founded and ran the Frassati Society, a youth group serving students from both Gibbons and St. Thomas More. He was then privileged to work for the Most Reverend Michael F. Burbidge, Bishop of Raleigh, as his Administrative Secretary and Assistant Director of Vocations. Last summer he was ordained a Permanent Deacon for the Diocese of Raleigh. He is now assigned in that capacity to St. Catherine of Siena parish. Deacon Watkins lives in Wake Forest with his wife Chantal and their five children Liliane, Therese, Isaac, Samuel, and Mary Frances.
Mr. Luddy also announced the appointment of Dr. Wesley Kirkpatrick as the Academy’s Dean of Studies. Besides continuing to instruct a variety of courses, Dr. Kirkpatrick now assumes responsibilities for the Academy’s faculty and academic programs.
Dr. Kirkpatrick is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, where he was a student of the distinguished philosopher Alvin Plantinga. Since coming to the Academy in 2004 Dr. Kirkpatrick has won national-level awards from the Japan Fulbright Memorial Fund and the National Endowment for the Humanities and established a reputation as a dedicated teacher and mentor. He lives in Chapel Hill with his wife Kate and their four children Karol, Maria, Margaret, and Chava.
Noting that this “outstanding Catholic preparatory school [is] poised for ever greater achievement as it enters its second decade,” Mr. Luddy has charged the new administration to form “the gold standard of Catholic preparatory education.” “There’s a wonderful feeling in the air,” Dr. Kirkpatrick said, “a sharp, bold sense of our commission to educate top-notch Christian leaders.” “St. Thomas More is a great gift to Raleigh and the state of North Carolina,” Deacon Watkins said. “We mean to lead it into its bright future as an educational powerhouse known for its joyful learning environment, strong commitment to Catholic formation, and genuine academic excellence.”
Senior Class Trip to the US National Whitewater Center
On Tuesday, May 10, the seniors travelled to Charlotte for the annual Class Trip. This year the senior class chose to visit the United States National Whitewater Center, a US Olympic Training Site for the national kayak team.
All seventeen seniors, along with Mr. Blessing, Ms. DeMaria, and Deacon Watkins, had a fantastic day and took advantage of the many outdoor experiences offered at the USNWC. Mountain biking, flatwater kayaking, obstacle courses, the “big jump”, high ropes courses, rock climbing, and zip lines were among the activities available to the group. However, the highlight of the day was whitewater rafting. The USNWC has an entirely man made “river” that ranges in difficulty of rapids from Class 2 to Class 4. Working in groups of six, students spent an hour and half making 4-6 runs down the two different courses. Raft guides were both entertaining and professional. One lucky group had the legendary “Capt’n Dan”, who never ceased to thrill and amuse. The senior class can proudly say they had no “swimmers” amongst them (term for people who fall out of the raft). Special thanks to senior Justin Cyrus for organizing the trip!
Freshmen Class Trip To Duke University
On Friday May 6th, the entire freshmen class took a field trip to the Duke Chapel, Gardens, and Lemur Center with Miss DeMaria, the Biology teacher, and Deacon Brad Watkins. The first activity was to explore the Chapel, and upon entering, the students reverently spent a few moments kneeling in prayer, admired the steep gothic architecture, and explored the crypt downstairs.
Located only a few minutes away was the Duke Gardens, wherein the students broke into groups and embarked on a botanical scavenger hunt throughout the NC native plant gardens. The students could readily identify some of the vegetation there, a reward of their studies thus far in biology. Then they picnicked in the Asiatic arboretum by the pond.
After lunch they traveled to the Lemur Center, and awaiting them there were half of the world’s prosimian primate population currently in captivity. As the students previously studied, some of the world’s most exciting prosimian research is conducted there on topics such as primate intelligence and social skills.
Overall, it was a fun-filled and educational day at Duke and the students enjoyed it thoroughly.
Spring Play a Great Success!
By Benjamin Goldman, Class of 2013
Seminarian Philip Johnson Speaks at STMA (Video)
On Friday, February 4, 2011, Seminarian Philip Johnson, a seminarian of the Diocese of Raleigh, spoke to the student body of STMA about his conversion, his vocation, being diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor, and the gift of redemptive suffering. Below is the 30 minute video of his inspiring talk and heroic witness to our faith.
Seminarian Philip Johnson from Deacon Watkins on Vimeo.
7th Grade Open House
St. Thomas More Academy will be hosting an Open House for 7th Grade students (rising 8th graders) on Wednesday, April 13, 2011 from 6:00pm to 7:30pm. This will be an opportunity for families to tour the school and meet faculty, students and parents. Through presentations by faculty and interactions with students, families will be able to learn about the STMA experience – a rich Catholic environment with excellence in classical, college preparatory education.
There is no need to sign-up for the Open House. If you have questions about the 7th Grade Open House, please contact Deacon Brad Watkins, Director of Admissions, at admissions@stmacademy.org