by Beacon Staff Posted in Call for entries, Drivel from the Home Office | No Comments »
All of us here at Beacon Bits wish you a wonderful and relaxing summer. We will be back in the Fall looking for a new crew of great writers to provide our readers with all the fun and news from STA. If you are interested in joining the Beacon Bits Staff, contact Mr. Christie when school resumes in the fall, or listen for announcements about our first meetings.
by Beacon Staff Posted in Teacher Features | No Comments »
Mrs. Pike attended St. Thomas long with her six brothers and sisters, and she graduated in 1971. When Mrs. Pike attended STA, things were quite different (a strict schedule and mostly sisters and priests for teachers). She loved English and Social Studies; in fact, one of her favorite teachers was Mr. Beliveau, who was her Modern European history teacher. Mrs. Pike also went to a Catholic elementary school and loved being able to return to STA in the fall of 1982. Not only did Mrs. Pike leave the school with an excellent education and lots of good memories, but she also met and began dating her future husband John (1971). Over the years, St. Thomas has changed in many ways, there are so many programs and activities that the students can take part of and there are now more students in a classroom, but the important things have remained constant-wonderful people to work with, a strong sense of community who reflect in their actions the mission of the school, and a special, personal connection between students and teachers. The school continues to provide an excellent education, a sense of community and cooperative work. As a teacher at St. Thomas, Mrs. Pike has experienced fairness and respect that is shown among the entire community. She lives in Dover with her husband and has two children, Justin(1999) and Jillian (2003). In closing, she feels that St. Thomas is a wonderful place to work and a great place for students to get a strong education and be prepared for the future!
by Beacon Staff Posted in Teacher Features | No Comments »
Mrs. Parker graduated from St. Thomas in 1966. She remembers that the school was very strict and there were only sisters and priests teaching. The students had to walk in single file lines to every class, there were no backpacks, and no questions were allowed. The school has changed quite a lot. Today the dress code is very relaxed compared to when she was a student. She had to wear pleated wool skirts and a sports jacket all year long. Her favorite subject was math. She found it relaxing. She came back to the school because of her two boys Brian who is now 33 and Philip who is now 35. She loves that St. Thomas has a firm structure and provides strong guidance for its students. The environment and teachers are very family friendly. Mrs. Parker works in our school store, The Lux, is the Support Services Coordinator and helps in the guidance office. She lives in Dover.
by Beacon Staff Posted in Teacher Features | No Comments »
Ms. Flanigan is living in Eliot, Maine. She graduated from St. Thomas in the class of 1986, which consisted of only 86 graduates. Her brother and sister both graduated from St. Thomas. Her brother Brian graduated in 1988 and sister Shaine graduated in 1995. When Ms. Flanigan attended St. Thomas the dress code was more strict. Her favorite teacher was Mr. Beliveau, and her favorite subjects were French, History and English. Ms. Flanigan was inspired to become a teacher by the enthusiasm of her teachers and her love of languages. What better place to teach than her own high school?
She graduated from Tufts University in 1990 with a degree in International Relations and Political Science. She decided to pursue a career in teaching at the same time that St. Thomas was looking for a French and Spanish teacher. Ms. Flanigan taught for 6 years before deciding to stay home to raise her young children. Ms. Flanigan values the strong sense of community at St. Thomas. Five years after she had stopped working at St. Thomas, her mother passed away. She still remembers how touched she was by the outpouring of love and support she received from her St. Thomas family. When Ms. Flanigan made the decision to return to teaching a couple of years ago, St. Thomas was coincidently once again looking for a Spanish teacher. She is happy for the opportunity to be back in the classroom. Ms. Flanigan has two children, Connor who is 9 and Kiernan who will turn 7 this month. She hopes both her children will attend St. Thomas.
by Beacon Staff Posted in Teacher Features | No Comments »
Everyone at St. Thomas knows Mr. Finley or at least everyone knows of Mr. Finley. He is a warm welcoming man who can almost always be found in the Admissions Office, on the soccer field or maybe even in his 5th period Public Speaking class. Not everyone knows that Mr. Finely is a St. Thomas graduate. After graduating from St. Patrick’s, St. Thomas seemed like the logical choice. Mr. Finley notes that the school is much bigger now then when he was here. There were hardly more than 100 students in his graduating class of 1992. Today, there are many more activities and opportunities. But the important things are still the same. The heart of the school hasn’t changed. The students are still the strength of the school. Mr. Finley feels very at home at St. Thomas. Even the café and boys’ locker room smell the same. Mr. Finley recalls his baggy pants falling down while on stage during Fiddler on the Roof. He remembers his first baseball practice with Mr. Holtz and the special handshakes he had with his friends. He remembers the prom, Last Blast, and even asking his future wife out for the first time. But most importantly, Mr. Finley remembers growing as a person from the shy freshman to the senior with lots of confidence and friends.
Not only did Mr. Finley graduate with confidence and friends but he met the love of his life at St. Thomas, his beautiful wife, Heidi, who transferred to St. Thomas as a junior. Mr. Finley was not the only Finley to come to St. Thomas. His sister, Nancy, and his brother, Tom, are also graduates of St. Thomas, and hopefully, won’t be the last. Mr. Finley and his wife, Heidi, have three children, Grace (6 ½), Caroline (4 ½) and Fin (Gary III) (11 months). Mr. Finley would love for his children, who have brought so much joy into his life and who have kept things very busy around the Finley household, to come to St. Thomas. During his time at St. Thomas, Mr. Finley really got to see how teachers could inspire their students and be an important figure in their lives, such as Mr. Finley’s teachers Mrs. Collins and Mr. Holtz has done for him. Mr. Finley wanted to be that kind of teacher; he knew it was what he wanted to do with the rest of his life. Mr. Finley went St. Anselm College. Mr. Finley got a call from the then principal of St. Thomas, Mr. Brian Newhall, at 10:00AM in his college dorm asking him if he wanted to student teach at St. Thomas the following year. Mr. Finley is still taking graduate courses at the University of Southern Maine. Mr. Finley has taught English at every level for nine years.
A few years ago, Mr. Quinn offered him the position as Admissions Director. He viewed this offer as a chance for a new experience and a chance to see the school from different sides. He loves talking to people about the school. Mr. Finley has been the Admissions Director for three years now and couldn’t love the school more.
by Beacon Staff Posted in Teacher Features | No Comments »
Mr. Rainville graduated in 1983. At that time the school was much smaller and wasn’t as strong in spirit as it is today. Mr. Rainville really enjoyed his History, English, and Spanish classes. Some of his favorite teachers were Mr.Beliveau, Mrs. Anderson, and Sister Georganne. It was through some of his high school teachers that he was inspired to become a teacher. Mr. Rainville attended Colby College and Cornell. After graduating he spent 20 years in New York before deciding that he wanted to come back to St. Thomas. Although the school is much larger then it was when Mr. Rainville and the athletic and music programs are stronger then they used to be, St. Thomas still has the same beliefs and rules as it did when Mr. Rainville attended St. Thomas. Not only has the school grown bigger in size it has also grown in community. As a teacher at St. Thomas he remembers one of his students stealing his giant chili pepper that he kept in his class room…overall he’s really glad to be back! Mr. Rainville is currently residing in Rochester New Hampshire.
by Beacon Staff Posted in Teacher Features | No Comments »
Mrs. Mann graduated from St. Thomas in 2001 and began teaching at St. Thomas in 2007. Mrs. Mann and her sister Ashley both attended St. Thomas. She recalls Mrs. Duprat’s Winterterm as one of her favorite memories as a student at St. Thomas. Mrs. Mann came back to the school for the great administration, fine memories, and some of the old teachers. When asked how St. Thomas has changed since you were a student she responds, “I’m older so I get to sit in the nice chairs now. I get to leave early at assemblies. Seriously, this place hasn’t changed much.” One of Mrs. Mann’s more cherished memories as a teacher at St. Thomas was having a former teacher tell her that she was doing things right as a teacher.
by Beacon Staff Posted in Teacher Features | No Comments »
Mrs. Karwowski graduated in the class of 1991. Her brother John White, graduated in 1989. Her two favorite teachers were Mrs. Pike and Mr. Holtz. Mrs. Pike was a great mentor for Mrs. Karwowski and her other students. Mrs. Pike was not only a great teacher, but she modeled how to be a genuine good person for the students. Mr. Holtz was also a great inspiration to Mrs. Karwowski. To this day, the only notebook she has from her high school and college career is the one from Mr. Holtz’s biology course! Mrs. Karwowski decided she wanted to be a guidance counselor because she’s always loved working with teenagers. She loves her job because she’s been able to work with the same group of juniors and seniors and she has developed a great relationship with all of them. She came back to work at the school because she truly believes in it and wanted to be a part of this community again. St. Thomas has grown a lot since the time Mrs. Karwowski graduated. Mrs. Karwowski noted that she would have loved to participate in the athletic program that exists today. Although the school has grown in many ways, it is still very much a caring community. Mrs. Karwowski lives less than 2 miles away from the school, a very short commute. She has two children; Jack is six years old and Charlie is five. She and her husband, (Tim who graduated in 1990) already have it planned for their boys to attend St. Thomas!
by Beacon Staff Posted in Teacher Features | No Comments »
Mrs. Finan is a proud graduate of the class of 1977. Back in the day, St Thomas was a very different environment than it is now. Today St. Thomas offers more academic diversity and first rate extracurricular activities. Two things the Seventies St Thomas has in common with the 21st century version is the quality of teachers and Sister Georganne. Some of Mrs Finan’s favorite teachers included English teacher Mrs. Nossif and Biology teacher Mr. Maskwa. Following graduation, Mrs. Finan attended Trinity College where her love of science and kids lead her down the path of teaching. After completing her student teaching at Wells High School, a freshman science teacher position at St Thomas became available and the rest is history (or science in Mrs Finan’s case). Mrs. Finan currently resides with her husband Sean in North Hampton, New Hampshire.
by Beacon Staff Posted in Teacher Features | No Comments »
After graduating from St. Thomas in 1990, Mrs. Duprat went on to Villanova University where she earned her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. She did graduate work at UNH where she received her teacher certification in Secondary Social Studies Education. While at UNH, Mrs. Duprat had the opportunity to do her student teaching at St. Thomas. Mrs. Duprat also became very involved with the athletic program at St. Thomas. She coached numerous teams. Following a successful year of student teaching, Mrs. Duprat was then offered a full time teaching job at St. Thomas in the Social Studies Department in 1996.
As a student, Mrs. Duprat recalls the process of viewing St. Thomas when she was in the 8th grade at Rochester Catholic School (now St. Elizabeth Seton). With St. Thomas’ excellent reputation, solid academics, and community spirit, it was the perfect choice for her.
Much has changed since Mrs. Duprat attended St. Thomas, but also a lot has stayed the same. Some of her former teachers are still teaching here at St. Thomas and the sense of community has not changed in 18 years. However, the school has definitely grown in size. Mrs. Duprat’s graduating class had just over 80 students in it. Today, there are about 180 students in each graduating class. There are also many more opportunities available to students. There are more courses and also more athletic and extra-curricular offerings.
Eighteen years ago, Notre Dame had not yet been converted into classroom space and guidance offices. There were no Smart Boards or laptop computers. Mrs. Duprat has many wonderful memories of her four years at St. Thomas. She recalls Sister Catherine teaching her how to type on typewriters. She also remembers Sister Georganne teaching her Social Justice. She looks back on her senior year spent in Mr. Beliveau’s AP Modern European History class with a special fondness. “Maybe that’s what inspired me to be a history teacher”.
Mrs. Duprat is the oldest of five children, all of whom attended St. Thomas. She has two sisters and two brothers. Mrs. Duprat now lives in Milton, New Hampshire and would love for all three of her daughters Olivia (4), and twins Emily and Alison (3) to attend her old high school. She believes that St. Thomas has wonderful educational opportunities and a safe educational environment for all types of learning. Mrs. Duprat also believes that the Catholic teachings bring a great sense of community and service to our school.