Mrs. Michelle Klus
Senior School Principal
mklus@smamb.ca

Mrs. Carol-Ann Swayzie
Junior School Principal
caswayzie@smamb.ca

Mr. Lorne Hess
Dean of Educational Studies
lhess@smamb.ca

We have been so fortunate to behold the sense of community that has grown throughout the year. We have witnessed our students respond to our theme “Where Do I Belong?” and how true our scripture passage has proven to be: “Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.” Matthew 18:20. The daily interactions and connections amongst our students, staff and families are a valued gift that we appreciate.

As we bask in the warmer weather and witness rebirth in nature, it is hard to believe we are approaching the end of another school year. Our students are fully immersed in their courses, with final projects in process and exams on the horizon. This is the time of year that we watch our graduates shift their focus to their upcoming post-secondary paths, with so many possibilities ahead of them. At the same time, we are also ready to greet the newest members of the SMA community at our Welcome to SMA event. Indeed, this month does present a full circle of our students’ journeys in action!

Looking ahead to the next academic year, we are extending our Bring Your Own Device policy to our grade 9 students, building upon the successful implementation in grades 7 and 8 last year. This incremental approach allows us to progressively integrate digital technology into our teaching and learning environment, fostering innovation with intention and guidance. Through this initiative, we are evolving from mere consumption of technology to purposeful utilization, encouraging application, collaboration, and the creation of new content.

Your steadfast support and dedication to your daughter's education and our SMA community are deeply valued. We are truly blessed to journey together in this enriching educational environment.

During Spring Break, 49 of our grade 11 and 12 students, along with Mrs. Klus, Mrs. Davedow, Mrs. Falconer, Ms. McGlenen, and Mr. Villa, embarked on a journey to Germany and Switzerland. This STEM-themed adventure took them through Berlin, Freiberg, and Lucerne. While immersed in local cultures, the group experienced leading-edge facilities like the Futurium Museum and the Freiberg Innovation Academy. They also explored the stunning Freiburg Minster Cathedral and Lucerne Jesuit Church, as well as experiencing the Entlebuch Biosphere, Mount Titlis, an urban farm, and more. The trip was a lively blend of learning and exploration that sparked our students’ imaginations and broadened their perspectives. The group is most appreciative for this incredible journey and extends thanks to all who had a hand in making this trip possible!

Grade 8 students delved into a Marian cross-curricular project that united Religion and Human Ecology during their experiential week. Students reflected on their year-long journey with scripture and created beautiful tapestries of Mary and Jesus that are now on display in Holy Names Chapel and around the school. 

Mrs. Kendra Lê

Guest speaker Ahmet Nur

On March 13, 2024, our Grade 8 English Language Arts classes welcomed guest speaker Mr. Ahmet Nur, as part of their novel study on "A Long Walk to Water." The session provided an invaluable real-world perspective on the refugee experience and the Lost Boys of South Sudan, enriching their understanding beyond the pages of the book. Our students were deeply engaged and asked insightful questions. Our sincere thanks to Mr. Nur for sharing his time and expertise with our grade 8 classes.

Mr. Alex Mandrick

In regions like northern Honduras, environmental defenders face severe threats—from criminalization to violence—due to their efforts to protect their land and water. Our students gained a deeper understanding of these grave issues during a compelling presentation on World Water Day, March 22, 2024, by Mr. Jason Cegayle from Development and Peace. The talk, titled "Stand for the Land, Honduras," highlighted the struggles faced by the communities of Guapinol and the San Pedro sector following the detrimental impact of an iron ore mine in Carlos Escaleras National Park. This mine has severely polluted local river waters, leaving over 42,000 residents without clean drinking water.

Mr. Cegayle also shed light on the broader issues of Indigenous rights and the critical role of activism in safeguarding our global environment. We extend our heartfelt thanks to Mr. Cegayle and Development and Peace for this session, and commend our Human Rights Team students for their dedication in organizing this important event.

On March 8, 2024, International Women’s Day, we hosted Grade 10 Career Speakers. We had the privilege of welcoming three alumnae who shared their inspiring educational and professional journeys with our Grade 10 students: Heather Wallace ‘94, a Civil Engineer; Raphael DiCosimo ’97, a Probation Officer; and Dr. Jennifer Griffin ’99, a Pediatric Gastroenterologist. A heartfelt thank you to each of them for their invaluable insights and encouragement.

from left to right: Raphael DiCosimo ’97, Heather Wallace ‘94, and Dr. Jennifer Griffin ’99

Panelists

On April 17, 2024, we were thrilled to host Panel Interviews, a key component of our Career and Mentorship Program. This event provided grade 11 and 12 students with a fantastic opportunity to enhance their interview and career readiness skills with individualized feedback from panelists. Panelists included 20 talented alumnae and community members who generously volunteered their time and expertise. This was a robust learning experience for our students, who are now better equipped to face the opportunities and challenges ahead of them.

SMA expresses our deepest appreciation to each panelist. We also applaud our students for their active participation and eagerness to learn.

Asian Heritage Month Student Committee

This May, we celebrate the rich and diverse cultures of Asia through a month-long series of learning initiatives and events, organized by our dedicated student-led Asian Heritage Month leadership committee that is over 20 members strong. Some activities the committee and its members are hosting include a language learning session, a mochi making workshop with special guest Ms. Yin Choi, and a talent show, all designed to deepen our understanding and appreciation of Asian cultures, traditions, and contributions. 

Mother's Day Plants Activity

Mochi Making Activity with Ms. Yin Choi

Talent Show

Congratulations to grade 12 student Marissa Magsino for her successful participation in the Manitoba Schools Science Symposium (MSSS) held at the Manitoba Museum from April 26-28 where over 300 projects competed. Marissa received a Gold Medal for her project: “Manipulating Tenebrio molitor with novel chemical solutions to maximize the biodegradation of polystyrene.” She also received the Sani Marc Special Award and the highest prize, Best Overall Project (Senior Level). With this honor, Marissa will represent Manitoba in person at the Canada Wide Science Fair in Ottawa from May 26 to 31.

Marissa has spent the past six years dedicated to independent scientific research with a strong commitment to the research community, and this is her fourth consecutive invitation to represent MSSS at the Canada Wide Science Fair. Starting in grade 8, Marissa began her journey investigating the unique biological ability of mealworms to consume polystyrene. Every year, the exciting research looked at various variables that would change mealworm behavior and increase their feeding rate. Over the years, various triggers were tested such as oats, orange peel, and tea bags; she tested the impact of heat, light and humidity; in another phase, natural oils and extracts were tested. And last year, the isolated chemical compounds from the oils and extracts were used as the dependent variables. SMA was also the site of a proof-of-concept recycling station for Marissa’s research. The culmination of multi-year research is capped off in this 6th phase, focussed on an innovative and patentable chemical mixture of linalool, limonene, β-caryophyllene. It is Marissa’s hope that one day soon, this amazing biological feat of nature can make its way into the mainstream so that we can reduce Styrofoam in our landfills.

Mrs. Sylvia Falconer (Bator ‘01)

Over the past 8 months, 35 grade 11 and 12 students have been participating in the SHArK North! Solar Energy Materials Outreach (SHArK) program through the faculty of chemistry at the University of Manitoba. SHArk introduces students to materials science and renewable energy research. The program provides experience in hands on research in combinatorial solid-state mixed metal oxide construction and electrochemical evaluation of light-driven water oxidation in order to look for ways to utilize solar energy more effectively. The program cumulated with students presenting to a group of over 150 of their peers as well as presenting their findings at the Manitoba Institute of Materials Conference alongside graduate students and professors in various science and engineering fields.

SMA is delighted to invite you to our Spring Concert on Sunday, May 26 at 3 PM in Alumnae Hall. This vibrant showcase will feature performances from Con Spiritu, our Liturgical Choir, Con Fuoco, our Performance Choir, as well as the Glee Club, Grade 8 Choir, and Grade 7 Choir. The concert will be directed by Ms. Bénédicte LeMaître, featuring guest artist Fr. Geoffrey Angeles on the piano, and Paolo Camus on the violin. Light refreshments will be served following the concert. Admission is free and we will be hosting a silver collection to support the Rossbrook House Music Program. All are welcome.

Ms. Laura Davey ’05

This has been a busy spring at SMA! Our Grade 7 students finished up individual speeches and microphone use, formal scene presentations and are beginning work on their final project, Fractured Fairy-tales (always a favourite!) Our Grade 9 students successfully performed scenes from the play, The Diary of Anne Frank, in March, and have been working on individual performance pieces since then. Our Grade 10s performed their hilarious murder mystery, Ax of Murder, by Pat Cook on April 24, and have been working on their last unit, Musical Theatre, including a guest workshop with Laura Kolisnyk, a Winnipeg-based performer. Finally, our Grades 11/12 students thrilled audiences with their final production, Alice @ Wonderland - a story following Alice in a more modern world, complete with Wi-Fi issues and a cell phone desperately in need of charging.

Our students from all grades have been working hard all year learning about all aspects of theatre – from set & costume design, directing, and prop creation, to tech and production. Thank you for your support of our program this year! We look forward to welcoming audiences back to Alumnae Hall in November to see Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical!

Grade 10 students performing Ax of Murder by Pat Cook

Grades 11 & 12 students performing Alice @ Wonderland

Ms. Allie Logan ’06

Tatiana von Kuster ’27 takes a photo of her contest entry for "Diverse Minds"

Grade 8 students create water activism stickers to raise awareness about water issues and inspire change

Serena Soc ’24 (front) is joined by Hillary Agbodan ’25 (back) while she creates custom tote bags

Spring is in the air and the Tartan Technology and Innovation Centre (Tech Centre) has been bustling with creativity! Here are some incredible projects we’d like to highlight in this edition:

Tatiana von Kuster ’27 wanted to explore illustrating children's stories, so she joined a writing contest hosted by B’nai Brith Canada called “Diverse Minds” where high school students are invited to create children's books for kids in Kindergarten to Grade 5. To enter the contest, Tatiana had to convert her paintings into a digital format. She used the Tech Centre to take pictures of her drawings and then adjust the colors to match the originals. She then used software to organize the text and images for each page before submission. Tatiana enjoyed this project and found illustrating and storyboarding the most rewarding.

Mrs. Lê, our 8th-grade English teacher connected her novel study of "A Long Walk to Water" by Linda Sue Park with an activity that gave students agency and authentic audience. The goal was to raise awareness about water issues and inspire change. The students used literary devices to create water activism stickers to suggest solutions based on knowledge they learned from Science class. After brainstorming images and slogans, they collaborated with the Tech Centre to create the stickers out of their digital or traditional art which were then displayed for the community

SMA students Serena Soc ’24, Sianna Kaur ’24, Jiyoo Noh ’25, Daniella Enaboifo ’26, and Tatiana Tratch ’26, members of the Junior Achievement Manitoba Club, learned how to run a business. They chose to design and sell custom tote bags. One student cut materials, two pressed designs, and two managed the inventory. They made 200 bags which were sold locally and at venues including Kildonan Place, St. Vital Centre, and a Manitoba Moose hockey game. Serena found operating a business tough but valued the experience, noting, "It was hard, but I'm glad I learned here. Making bags was fun in the Junior Achievement Club."

As we look back on our second year, we continue to be inspired by this community to make each year better than before! We look forward to an exciting new year in September!

Sabrina Batla ’25

The 2023-2024 school year has been a year filled with lots of fun for SMA’s STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) club. After facing limitations in recent years due to the pandemic, this school year many students had the chance to experience STEM club to its full extent. We were ecstatic to see the amount of engagement from students across the school throughout the various activities we held!

Club members had the opportunity to participate in two design challenges. Our first challenge was building catapults. Students activated their engineering brains as they thoughtfully chose their materials during the materials auction, developed blueprints for how they would go about building their creations, and spent weeks with their partners to carry out their designs, which were then tested in the gym. Our second challenge saw students having the chance to work with hydraulic claws. Students were tasked with assembling the many parts of the hydraulic claws, and once they were built, they were challenged with trying to pick up specific items using their creations. These design challenges provided a hands-on learning experience for students, as well as allowing them to visualize their scientific processes.

In addition to exploring physics and engineering through design challenges, students were able to explore chemistry through experiments like making slime, lava lamps, and elephant toothpaste, and explore biology through activities like heart dissection. We also believe it is important to familiarize our students with technology as it is an increasingly relevant topic in STEM and life in general, so we worked with equipment in the Tech Centre like drones and 3D printers, discussed topics like AI in STEM, and more.

Additionally, STEM Club ran its first ever campaign: Women in STEM week. This was a week full of fun, from activities outside of the cafeteria, interesting facts shared on our social media, and more. We were fortunate to have Dr. Barbara Triggs-Raine, a professor of biochemistry and medical genetics at the U of M, come in to talk about her journey in STEM, and how she overcame struggles as a woman in the field. As an all-girls school, uplifting and empowering young girls to pursue their passions and interests in STEM is one of the core values of our club.

It is evident that we have a lot of fun within the club, but what some people are not aware of is that STEM club prepares students to participate and even compete in activities outside of school. For instance, we hold math contest practices where students can prepare for upcoming math contests or just increase their math abilities by going through past contests with the support of our executive team. Students are also able to use lab equipment for science fair projects, and we frequently have club members compete and judge at local science fairs, such as the Bison Regional Science Fair this past April.

This year was filled with opportunities for club members to explore their interests within the areas of science, technology, engineering, and math, and we cannot wait to see what next year has in store for the club!

STEM club members design and build catapults

Students explore chemistry through experiments such as slime-making

Ms. Emma Domke (left) and the STEM club with Dr. Barbara Triggs-Raine (middle).

STEM club Math practice activity booth

Mrs. Cheryl Gilleshammer

For families who chose Plan C for 2024-2025 tuition payments, please remember that your first monthly payment will be withdrawn from your account on or after July 1, 2024.

For families who chose Plan A or Plan B, your next payment will be withdrawn on or after September 1, 2024.

Any families wishing to change their 2024-2025 payment plan or method of payment are asked to contact Mrs. Cheryl Gilleshammer in the Accounting Office by June 15, 2024. cgilleshammer@smamb.ca or 204-478-6042

International Day, hosted by our Parents’ Guild, took place on April 21, 2024. Hundreds of volunteers came together in a spirit of kinship to put on Mass, Pavilions serving ethnic food, Entertainment, Raffles, and a 50/50 Draw. The event was a beautiful demonstration of the cultural diversity of our community.

SMA extends a special thank you to our remarkable Parents’ Guild who worked selflessly and tirelessly to make International Day a reality. Thank you to each member of the Guild who helped with extra special thanks to Jen Melo, International Day Convenor, Jen Thiessen, Nicky Louizos, and each member of the International Day Committee. Thank you! Our community burns brighter and more beautiful because of each of you.

Our Parents’ Guild is excited to host their fourth annual golf tournament on Tuesday, June 4, 2024 at Southwood Golf & Country Club, 80 Rue des Ruines du Monastere. This tournament is a fun day of community building that raises funds for the Guild. Funds raised go towards enhancing the student experience at SMA. The Guild invites people to participate as golfers (teams and individuals), please click the link to signup.  

Founded in 2004 by Sister Lesley Sacouman, SNJM, Holy Names House of Peace (HOP) stands as an intercultural sanctuary in the heart of Winnipeg. This vital refuge provides newcomer women—a group often fleeing the horrors of war, sexual exploitation, and other profound abuses—with a safe, nurturing environment. At HOP, the journey to healing begins with the provision of a safe and secure home for two years, filled with love and support.

In February 2024, Sister Lesley retired from her role as Executive Director. We are pleased to share that Rosalinda Amato, a dedicated executive member of our Parents’ Guild and a long-standing volunteer at SMA, has taken over the leadership. Rosalinda has been an active part of our community since 2015 and is a mother to two SMA alumnae, with her youngest daughter currently attending our school.

Rosalinda shared her enthusiasm for her new position, saying, “The life-giving work at House of Peace truly lives up to its name. Having volunteered here for many years, I've witnessed firsthand the profound transformation as our residents (neighbours) begin their healing journey. I warmly invite my SMA family to visit, meet some of the remarkable women who call HOP home, and see the peace and hope that flourish within these walls.”

SMA and HOP continue to embody the social justice and advocacy spirit of the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, furthering Mother Marie Rose Durocher’s vision of education and support for the marginalized. To learn more about HOP, please visit www.houseofpeace.ca.

We look forward to the continued growth and success of HOP under Rosalinda’s leadership and extend our deepest gratitude to Sister Lesley for her foundational and transformative work.

Rosalinda Amato, far right, with HOP neighbours