Saint Mary’s Hall celebrated Founder’s Day on November 14, 2022. Since 1998, the SMH community has gathered on this special day to celebrate the history of the School and bestow the year’s Master Teacher Awards upon four of our faculty and staff members.
Board of Trustees Chair Rick Reyna opened the event with inspiring remarks and expressions of gratitude before Head of School Len Miller spoke to the audience about the importance of the day. “The story of our school is one of dedicated passion, of creativity and of innovation. It is a story of resilience, and a story of imagining what is possible in the future, and of dedicated unity of purpose to tackle the challenges of the moment.”
Our Chaplain, Dr. Fred Brock, offered blessings before Mr. Miller announced each of the four teachers recognized as distinguished winners of the SMH Master Teacher Award, sharing comments from nominations by students, parents, and colleagues.
Established in 2002, the Master Teacher Awards honor one faculty member from each division and one "at large" faculty member based on written nominations from the SMH community. At Saint Mary's Hall, a Master Teacher is defined as someone who has “distinguished themselves through exemplary service to the school community and extraordinary performance leading to the progress of their students.”
Before recognizing this year’s Master Teachers, Miller remarked, “Though we honor four teachers today, every teacher who has ever been recognized for excellence in teaching will be the first to say that good teaching is not possible without great colleagues, staff, and support.”
The following extraordinary educators were awarded the distinction of Master Teacher:
• Jane Viccellio (Lower School)
• Jennifer Cordova (Middle School)
• Nick Polito (Upper School)
• Jenny Graf (At-Large)
These beloved mentors were selected by the community to celebrate their inimitable impact on the lives of students and the SMH community as a whole.
Visit Sights and Sounds of SMH to view all pictures, or click HERE to view a recording of the event.