In the News

Winter 2010

Focus on Optics - Science Challenge Brings Kids from many schools.

This year's science challenge entertained 4th and 5th grade contestants from 14 schools.  It was an exciting two hours as they made kaleidoscopes, viewed science projects, looked at florescent materials, and tried to bounce a laser beam off a mirror and on to a target.  Some were successful, some not.  Our winners hit four out of four tries.  Good shooting!

 "Eagles Quill" recognized for excellence for fourth consecutive year.

St. Michael’s literary magazine, Eagle’s Quill, has once again (fourth year in a row) been named as a recipient of an “Excellent” rating by the National Council of Teachers of English. St. Michael’s, along with Cactus Shadows High School in Cave Creek, are the only two schools in the state of Arizona to be given this honor this year. We are very proud of our magazine, the advisors, Ann Hand and Alex Hawes, our teachers, and our many contributing student writers and artists ranging from kindergarten to eighth grade.

Softball and Soccer teams finish seasons with big wins.

St. Michael's Softball team places second in the league after losing a close 5-3 ball game vs Casa at Casa. The girls played well and even retired the side with the bases loaded but just couldn't pull it out.  Congratualtions on a great season.

The soccer team won it's first league championship in ten years with a 2-0 victory over Desert Christian.  After losing the championship to them last year in a close 1-0 battle, it felt really good to win the championship this year.  Congratulations to all, it was an exiting season with only one loss!

Fall 2009

Horton, our elephant, tops the scales at 5000+ pounds!

This year St. Michael's tied its canned food drive to animals.  The school adopted an African Elephant and tried to bring in enough cans and/or money (1 can = 1 pound = $1.00) to equal or surpass the weight of the elephant.  We did it!  Not only did the school select an animal but each grade chose an animal as well.  For example, the fifth grade chose the Galapagos Tortoise, a 475 lb. reptile.  They collected enough to not only represent the tortoise but there were a few hatchling to boot.  However, the third grade outdid everyone by contributing over 1000 pounds, equalling a Papa Bear, a Mama Bear, and a Baby Bear.  Every grade met their goal.  A lot of people will be less hungry because of the effort of our students.  Thanks, guys.

Grandparents Day Is A Huge Success!

More than 150 grandparents, aunts, uncles, and friends flocked to St. Michael's to spend the morning with their special child.  The grandparents shared a chapel experience, heard the debut of the newly formed St. Michael's choir and a special song for grandparents from the third grade, accompanied their children to class, and then partook in punch and cookies in the various courtyards.  A lovely time was had by all. 

WINTER 2009

St. Michael's Emerges Victorious at UHS Math Fair!

Middle School Students Celebrate Pi Day!

Whether it was finding circumferences, finding the area of the labyrinth, or finding the volume of a trash can or soccer ball, kids had fun measuring, computing with Pi, and finally eating some--pie that is!

Soccer Team Takes Second Place!

The St. Michael's soccer team captured second place in the Tucson Independent Athletic League, falling in the waning minutes of the championship game 1-0 to an undefeated Desert Christian squad.  The co-ed team had an exceptional year, with only one regular-season loss.  The championship game was well attended by students and teachers alike, all very proud of the team.  Congratulations on an outstanding season!

Softball Victory!

The St. Michael's Girls' Softball Team was victorious over Casas Christian on January 30 to win the TIAL Championship.  The teams had each beaten each other once during the regular season, but St. Michael's waltzed to a convincing win in the championship game, besting Casas by a score of 12 to 3.  Congratulations, ladies!

Go Ahead – Take the Credit!  You Deserve it.

Thank you to all 322 friends who designated their 2008 tax dollars to St. Michael’s.  The final numbers are not yet in, but our participation rate is up 5% over last year.  This is fabulous and greatly appreciated. Because of your support, our school will be able to offer scholarships to deserving children. We have awarded over 740 scholarships since this program began. None of this would be possible without your help.  Thank you again for another successful Tax Credit program.

FALL 2008

Science Fair Winner Shines Brightly

Megan Gleason, a St. Michael's seventh grader, was selected to participate in the 2008 Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge in Washington, D.C.  In October 2008, Megan participated in the competition by completing a variety of team-based, interactive challenges celebrating the theme "The Science of Space."  Megan also had to provide via live television a presentation on Newton's Law of Prisms.  As a result of her superb performance during the competition, Megan earned the honor to travel to New York City to meet the world-renowned theoretical physicist and Science Channel personality, Dr. Michio Kaku.  She will be a guest host on the Science Channel show "Brink," where she will interview a scientist for a segment on the show!

Megan earned the spot in the competition, as one of only nine others from around the country, as a result of her state award-winning science fair project, titled "What is the Shape of Solar-Heated Water in the Sonoran Desert?"  In her project, Megan tested the effectiveness of heating water using either a parabolic trough or a flat solar collector and concluded that the parabolic trough, which uses a parabolic-shaped reflector to harness energy from the sun, will heat water to a higher temperature.  The project also earned her recognition in another national competition as a semifinalist in the Society for Science & the Public's 2008 Middle School Program in September 2008.

SUMMER 2008

St. Michael’s Grad Makes Waves

St. Michael’s graduate Caitlin Leverenz (Class of 2005) amazed the U.S. swimming community at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Omaha, Nebraska, this summer. She finished third overall in the 200-meter breaststroke, fourth in the 200-meter Individual Medley, and fourth in the 400-meter Individual Medley. While bested by Katie Hoff’s world-record performance in the 400-meter IM final, Caitlin’s time in the event was nearly three-tenths of a second faster than Yana Klochkova’s gold-medal-winning time at the 2004 Olympics! Just 17 years old, Caitlin barely missed qualifying for the 2008 Summer Olympics—only the top two finishers in each event continued on to Beijing—but she has established herself as a swimmer to watch on the world stage in the years to come. She’s no slouch in the classroom either, having won the Headmaster’s Award at the end of her eighth-grade year at St. Michael’s. Congratulations, Caitlin! 

More News

For more St. Michael's news, you may request a copy of our school newsletter, The Eagle, by contacting the Development Director at (520) 722-8478 ext. 213, or by emailing development@stmichael.net.