News

DOMINICAN SISTERS TO STAFF NEW CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL

The Dominican Sisters currently serving at St. Thomas Aquinas Regional School include 4 th grade teacher Sister Mary Clare, O.P., 7 th grade teacher Sister Jane Frances, O.P., Aquinas Principal Sister Maria Christi, O.P., and 2 nd grade teacher Sister Anna Christi, O.P. They are shown here with Father Sebastian, O.P. and Father Mazur, O.P. of the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, D.C. following a school Mass for the Feast of St. Thomas Aquinas.

2 nd grade teacher Sister Anna Christi, O.P., Aquinas Principal Sister Maria Christi, O.P., 7 th grade teacher Sister Jane Frances, O.P., and 4 th grade teacher Sister Mary Clare, O.P. gather for a special photograph with the students of St. Thomas Aquinas Regional School.

Arlington Diocese Bishop Paul S. Loverde announced on December 14, 2006, that the newest Catholic high school in the diocese will be partially staffed by the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia Congregation from Nashville, TN. A Dominican Sister will also serve as the new high school’s principal.

“Welcoming the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia to our new Catholic high school brings me great joy, as I anticipate the special relationship these Sisters will form with our community, and most importantly, with the students who will pass through the school doors,” said Bishop Loverde.

“We are enthusiastic about assisting in the formation of the minds and hearts of young people in the faith and in the teachings of the Church. Preparing students for the future that will have unique social, moral, and bioethical challenges is exciting. The initial plans regarding curriculum and direction of the school reflect great vision, and we are humbled to be part of this endeavor,” said Mother Ann Marie Karlovic, O.P., Prioress General of the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia. Further information on the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia Congregation and the schools served throughout the United States by the Dominican Sisters is available at www.nashvilledominican.org.

The Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia also teach at St. Thomas Aquinas Regional School in Woodbridge, VA, since the school was established in 1977. Sister Maria Christi, O.P., Aquinas Principal, stated, “We are honored to accept this invitation and to continue our mission of Catholic education in the Diocese of Arlington.”

The new Catholic high school is currently under construction in the Harbor Station community in eastern Prince William County, located along the Potomac River and north of Quantico in Dumfries, VA. The new Catholic high school, scheduled to open for the 2008/2009 school year, will feature a four-year bioethics curriculum which will provide students with a solid, integrated foundation in Catholic moral teaching and the sciences of biotechnology. Construction updates are available at www.newcatholichighschool.org. The new Catholic high school website can also be accessed via the Diocese of Arlington website button located on the homepage of our Aquinas website.

Back to News