The Feast Day of St. James the Less — the patron saint of St. James School and the Church of St. James the Less — was celebrated in grand style. The first Feast Day for the school was attended by staff, students and supporters.

The day began with an 11 am Mass in the church. Student of the week Tyrena joined Bob Brano, Aliina and Allison Ross in ringing the bells, which sounded wonderful thanks to the efforts of volunteer Richard Swayze. Guest organist Doug Tester sounded the church organ with a beautiful prelude marking the inaugural use of the organ for a school Mass.

The service was officiated by Reverends Marie Swayze and Sean Mullen, and a truly engaging homily was delivered by Father Mullen, challenging the students to embrace the humble awesomeness of their patron, St. James the Less. He asked what it could really mean to be the less of two men named James, and that perhaps whether it was because he was shorter, younger, or just another James, it didn’t make him a lesser man but maybe even a greater man even with such a nickname. He spoke directly to the students about his and others role of bringing life back to the campus of St. James the Less over the past several years, and how they are the first to create that new life for future classes and generations to come.

After the service, Mother Marie gathered those in attendance around new icons of St. James the Less, two of which were drawn by students Tyrena and Cordell. The third icon was recently shipped from Greece and written by a monk. It will be installed in a prominent location in the school house. The students gathered around the organ for the postlude, creating awe among the students as they heard their church organ in a way they never imagined. After Mass, the school hosted a lunch which was prepared and served by families of the students, led by Ms. Cunnigham. Students sat two to a table and shared their stories and energy with guests and family.

After lunch, the students broke into groups and canvassed the neighborhood for litter. The team with the most trash upon return would be crowned the winner of the Feast Day service challenge, and it went to Ms. Dimery’s group, who called themselves “The Mick Jaguars.”

Students are proud to be a part of St. James the Less and enjoyed making comparisons to things greater or less throughout the day.

[1] Provided by Wikipedia.org

After 9 weeks of learning and practice, the 5th grade class was finally ready to showcase their knowledge of dance.

Led by instructor Kristen DelMarcelle (a Philadelphia-based theatre artist and instructor for Dancing with the Students), the students seemingly had their first lesson down pat. See video from their first week lesson >

Dancing with the Students was delevoped by Susan Shea in 2005 as a way to teach manners, respect, and etiquette to children, while learning to Waltz, Tango, Swing and Merengue. Without any knowledge of dance, Sue (a special education teacher) did her research and made her way to Arthur Murray Dance Studio where she met Samantha Bellomo, who would become her friend and inspiration.

The students have really transformed in many ways during their 45-minute lessons once a week. Most notably, of course, is their skill in dance. They are quite suave out on the floor and showcase a real grasp of rhythm, timing and steps.

Parents, staff and friends of St. James School came out in numbers to watch this grand finale. Broken into two groups, they paired off with their partner and demonstrated a brief sampling of the dance music being played in the background on a small CD player. Each group was judged by the dance instructors and assistants, and then asked back for a second call.

Each student was awarded a medal of honor, and pairs were awarded for best in dance categories. Marquis and Ajia won top overall dancers, while Diamond and Kwymaje won best partnership.

St. James School was honored with a special visit from Japanese artist and dignitary Shu Kubo. Kubo-san has shown his artwork world-wide and at a recent cultural exchange program at Drexel University. Kubo was accompanied Yorie (his wife and translator) and Shushi Yakanoshi, Drexel University professor and artist who, herself, recently displayed her work at St. Mark’s Church and generously shared the proceeds of her art sales with St. James School.

Kubo is a renowned Kiri-e artist and special advisor for cultural exchange of the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs. He spent the morning with our students demonstrating the art of Kiri-e—a unique and lively form of Japanese paper cutting—and teaching the children to make their own creations.

The technique involves paper cutouts using handmade Japanese washi paper, which Kubo hand paints in a variety of colors. He manipulates the paper sheet by sheet, creating a piece of art by precisely cutting fine lines with a blade. He recently improved and expanded his technique by combining washi with Western paper materials, resulting in remarkable three dimensional pieces. By layering multiple layers of ultra-thin washi, he is able to change the depth and values of his colors and add texture and flair to the subject.

The highlight of the morning was the sumo-cutout wars that took place right on the art room table tops. Students cut and colored their sumo wrestlers and played paper sumo battles. The sumo that did not fall to the tapping of the table-tops was crowned the winner of the match!

After the visit, the children presented Mr. Kubo with a token gift to remind him of his visit to St. James and Philadelphia. Art Teacher Ms. Ball and Lead Teacher Mr. Martino had reviewed some of the cultural nuances and differences

to prepare the children for our special visit. They even greeted and thanked our visitors in Japanese!

In the latter part of the lesson, children were encouraged to employ and improvise (using only scissors!) the techniques taught by Kubo.  In addition to the photos of the workshop, here shown are the works of Jaleika and Anjae.

Arigatou gozimasu, Kubo-san!

The Reverend David “Romans” Serunjogi and his wife Sarah — founders of the Trinity Children’s Centre outside Kampala, Uganda — visited the 5th grade students, along with Mel Bonder of The ECHOES Foundation, to share stories and gifts.

Visiting from Africa for a few weeks, the Serunjogi’s are guests of The ECHOES Foundation and are being honored for their work in establishing the school in Uganda, alongside Father Sean Mullen and Dr. Audrey Evans as co-founders of St. James School. The special annual ECHOES event, titled “Reach, Teach, Believe!”, is scheduled for Friday, April 13, in Wayne, PA.

Coming from very humble beginnings, Trinity Children’s Centre was founded in the garage of the Serunjogi’s home, where Sarah was the sole teacher and their daughter one of the first of six students. After many hardships procuring land and buildings (along with the AIDS epedemic taking the lives of too many of their school’s parents) Trinity is today one of the top schools in Uganda. Romans and Sarah also helped to establish Centenary High School in 1998 and Double Cure Medical Centre in 2007 on the outskirts of town.

The couple have long been recipients of funding through The ECHOES Foundation, and 2012 marks the first year that ECHOES has given a portion of its proceeds to an American institution…St. James School. Read more about the partnership with ECHOES >

Though nursing a fractured leg, Romans was too excited to remain seated while visiting the students. He made his way to the head of the class to share some magic tricks that demonstrated how we are all equal in this world. He presented the students with gifts from Uganda, including a beautifully crafted wooden sculpture with St. James School and Trinity Children’s Centre in debossed lettering around the base, as well as a handmade wooden xylophone. The students in turn shared public speaking presentations and gave both Romans and Sarah a St. James School t-shirt. Romans loved the shirt so much, he didn’t hesitate to put it on immediately.

Romans and Sarah received a personal school and church tour from Executive Director David Kasievich. The couple were exceptionally impressed with the age of the architecture, and enjoyed pointing out the grave stones dating from the 1800s. They were in awe of the beautiful Church of St. James the Less and even took the opportunity to ring the church bells.

See the full story here at WHYY Newsworks

This week, the students of St. James School on W. Clearfield Street showed off their creative sides with a night of musical performances, printmaking, plastering demonstrations and a vibrant art exhibit.

For a majority of the fifth grade students at the school, this was their first year being exposed to art and music education. So, naturally, they treated this Wednesday’s Art and Music Showcase as a chance to celebrate.

Read more

The first St. James School Art & Music show was held for parents and special guests of the 5th graders. Showcasing the work of this very talented group of young scholars was no easy task. Thanks to Art Teacher Ms. Deena Ball, the evening went off without a hitch. Large art displays were placed throughout the school’s spacious gymnasium in preparation for the hanging of several projects, including: Van Gogh flower pastels, dragon heads made from assorted materials, personal graphic novels, group plaster cathedrals, Hopi wedding pots, and much more.

Guests were encouraged to make special note of pieces that really struck them, and to comment specifically. What a nice touch! Guests could also visit the Artsonia table where volunteers demonstrated the ability to buy online products (like mugs, mouse pads and more) with a student’s artwork transferred onto it.

Student-run demonstration tables were setup along the walls to show off to visitors their knowledge of print making and plastering.

Music Teacher Ms. Beth Dzwil filled in the evening art showcase with the musical talents of the students. Including three group songs, standout vocalist Ajia — recently accepted to the Philadelphia Girls Choir — sang her own personal song “Destiny” to a much deserved round of applause.

The evening ended with special thanks for Ms. Ball and Ms. Dzwil for their amazing accomplishments in pulling off such a wonderful event, and for helping to hone in on the musical and artistic talents of the 5th grade class.

In October, volunteers from the Four Counties Garden Club visited to show the students how to plant daffodil bulbs to grow heartily in the spring. Those daffodils have certainly sprung!

A beautiful array of yellow daffodils ordain the front of the school’s main entrance and under the chapel window. They brighten the day for students, staff and visitors alike.

See bulb planting story >

With Urban Blazers, the students at St. James School hit the slopes for their first time. The group of sixteen 5th graders began the day learning how to stop, make turns, and (most importantly for a first-time skier) how to get up after you fall.

As with any activity, some students picked up skiing quickly while others struggled to find their balance on the hill. All of the students demonstrated perseverance, and eventually everyone made at least one trip down the slope without falling.

Several students were given permission to ski from a more challenging section of the hill with Eric Dolaway, executive director of Urban Blazers. Before skiing down to join their classmates in the lodge about halfway down the mountain, 5th graders Marquise, Jamaal, Ezekiel and Cordell took a moment to take in the view. “Wow! It’s really beautiful up here,” they all agreed.

They had been working so hard learning to ski that they didn’t even notice that they were on the top of a mountain among the clouds.

Students took a trip to Montgomery County Community College to enjoy a performance by the famed Dance Theater of Harlem. The program began with a demonstration of how the dancers work, from small movements at the ballet bar to larger movements like leaps and lifts. The students could see how disciplined practice gave dancers the tools needed to perform beautiful dances that followed. One of the dances was performed to music by J.S. Bach, the composer students are currently learning about in music class. Afterward, students were able to meet and have pictures taken with two of the dancers.

Philadelphia French hornist, and St. James School friend, Angela Cordell Bilger talks about her experience with life, the school and it’s music program.

Read Angela’s full blog post about St. James School here

As I sit in my comfy rocker in the nursery with our seven-week-old Andreas, I have alot of time to think about what I would like for him in his life.  Of course, we all want our children to be happy and to have their needs not only met, but for them to flourish in every way.  I am no different. I think that more than anything, I want for Andreas to find something in his life – or many things in his life, but at least one thing – that feeds his spirit and nurtures his soul.  I want him to feel not just happy (which is a feeling that can come and go), but an underlying, enduring joy that doesn’t depend on the circumstances of the moment.  I wish for his life to be one that is filled with meaningful relationships and for him to have a feeling of integration into the world around him.  I want for him to have the sense that he can contribute something special, and to have something that fuels his imagination and energy.  I want for him to have a sense of possibility.

Read Angela’s full blog post about St. James School here