Celebrate CNA’s First Day of School

Celebrate CNA’s First Day of School

Friends,
The Board of Directors, faculty, staff, and I are thrilled that on Tuesday, September 5, Cardinal Newman Academy will open its doors to our pioneering ninth graders! Each of you – through your interest, feedback, encouragement, prayers, and financial support – have made this possible. While this is an incredibly exciting milestone, this is only the beginning!

Now, we invite you to come and see Cardinal Newman Academy in full swing! All are welcome to join us at Cardinal Newman Academy at 9:30am on Tuesday, September 5th to pray the Rosary and dedicate our school year to the patronage of Mary, Seat of Wisdom.

Also, please mark your calendars for Thursday, September 21 at 7:00pm when Mr. Michael Kelleher will be giving a presentation on teaching virtue in the teen years.

Thank you for your support and prayers, which helped us get to this wonderful moment! On behalf of the entire Cardinal Newman Academy community we invite you to come and see, and be inspired!

Partnership with Greater Richmond School of Music

Partnership with Greater Richmond School of Music

Friends,
I am excited to announce that Cardinal Newman Academy has partnered with the Greater Richmond School of Music to provide high-quality instruction in a variety of musical instruments and performance disciplines to interested CNA students.

This partnership will enable us to offer private instruction to students at Cardinal Newman Academy, as well as allow interested students a chance to be part of a choir or instrumental ensemble composed of CNA students and musicians from other schools or homeschools.

The CNA/GRSM partnership is an exciting milestone and will allow us to offer our students outstanding fine arts opportunities without prohibitive cost. We are proud to offer this to our students and to partner with such a great organization!

If you are interested in learning more about the the classes and lessons offered through this partnership, please contact us!

Faculty Planning Meeting

Faculty Planning Meeting

Friends,
On Monday, one month prior to our opening for the 2017-2018 school year, our founding faculty gathered for lunch, prayer, and planning.

While we discussed the practical aspects of teaching such as textbooks, dress code, and grading, we also talked about our vision for the unique learning environment at CNA: where joy and wonder animate the classroom and discussion, and where our students learn the sense of accomplishment that comes with a hard-earned grade and the pursuit of wisdom.

Mrs. Peppiatt, Mrs. Pyle, Mr. Tito, and I look forward to welcoming our students on September 5th to an academic culture that builds confidence rather than anxiety, and fosters wonder instead of malaise.

We can’t wait !

Introducing CNA’s New Faculty

Introducing CNA’s New Faculty

This week, I am proud to introduce two more outstanding individuals who have joined the faculty at Cardinal Newman Academy: Stephanie Pyle and Mary Ann Peppiatt.

Stephanie Pyle
Theatre Arts

Stephanie received her B.A. in Communications with concentrations in theatre and broadcasting, and a minor in history and literature from Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania. Prior to teaching, Stephanie had a long career in radio broadcasting, including producing and hosting a live storytelling and music show.

In 1997 she began her teaching career in the 5th grade at Saint Andrew’s Episcopal School in Oregon Hill, then Saint Benedict Catholic School, and Luther Memorial School. She returned to Saint Benedict School in 2010 and began the Salt and Light Theatre Company, an afterschool drama program, and The Knuckleheads, a puppet troupe.

Stephanie and her husband, Charles, have one son and are parishioners at Saint Benedict Catholic Church, where she has served on the pastoral council and as a lector and catechist. Her interests include Shakespeare and ancient and medieval English history.

Mary Ann Peppiatt
Mathematics

Mary Ann Peppiatt graduated from the College of William and Mary with a B.A. in History, and from the University of Chicago with an MBA specializing in Finance and Accounting. In 2016 she graduated from the University of Richmond Teacher Licensure Program where she received a teaching license with an endorsement in Social Studies.

Mary Ann worked as a systems designer and manager at AT&T, assisted in teaching a technology class at DePaul University, taught Math, Accounting, and Databases at J. Sargent Reynolds Community College, and most recently worked at the New Community School. Mary Ann has also been a docent at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts since 2000. Mary Ann says she “is delighted to be teaching at Cardinal Newman Academy because I value the opportunity to teach in an environment that will allow me both to share my faith and grow in faith, and I believe in the mission of the school to provide an affordable, coeducational college preparatory option in the Richmond area.”

Mary Ann and her husband Brian, have three children and are parishioners at St. Bridget Catholic Church.

We are so thrilled to have Stephanie and Mary Ann join our team at CNA!

Summer Math Enrichment at CNA

Summer Math Enrichment at CNA

Since our Open House in early May, when we opened our school for our supporters and future families to see, we have been busy. As we have described in prior emails, we have found excellent and knowledgeable faculty dedicated to our educational philosophy to teach our first students. We have ensured that our students will be able to begin participating in a variety of extracurricular activities. But what has been truly gratifying for me: we have been offering a summer math enrichment program.

Each Monday and Wednesday for the last four weeks, I have been meeting with our students for math enrichment. We start with a simple problem that reviews basic math skills and build upon it, reaching questions that require the students to find and recognize patterns, draw diagrams, or make tables to solve them. It has been fun to teach them and watch their confidence and enjoyment grow, but it has been wonderful, in the relaxed atmosphere of the summer classroom, to see, the students get to know each other, share inside jokes and nicknames – in short, to become friends.

Cardinal Newman Academy has a bright future.