Mother of Sorrows in Murrysville prepares for covid-safe Catholic Schools Week
Catholic Schools Week, which begins Sunday, is going to look a little different this year at Mother of Sorrows School in Murrysville.
But the fact that it’s happening at all — with a Jan. 31 appointment-only open house — is a testament to the ways the staff and the families of its 309 students have been able to adapt under rapidly shifting circumstances, according to Principal Theresa Szmed.
“We bought technology for every single student in the building,” Szmed said. “The teachers have been amazing. They really strive to keep kids engaged, but also to make sure everyone is accountable for the learning that needs to take place.”
About 16% of Mother of Sorrows students are learning from home, Szmed said, having purchased the same Schoology education system that the Franklin Regional School District bought for its students over the summer.
“Our high schools have used it for years,” Szmed said. “And our new assistant principal Karen Kolenik is very tech-savvy, so she took the lead on that was able to troubleshoot with our teachers if they were having challenges.”
She said it’s been a challenge not just to accommodate students in the classroom and at home, but also to give students who have to quarantine an easy way to transition from the classroom to home.
“Right before Thanksgiving, I had a lot of community spread coming into the building,” she said. “(Sports) teams and other extracurricular activities, places where kids mix together and then go back to their schools, that’s the only issue we’ve seen.”
What at first seemed overwhelming has settled into a manageable way of delivering education while limiting students’ interaction with one another.
“It’s been interesting,” Szmed said. “I don’t know if anyone knows what has gone into this entire school year. When we talk about dedicated teachers, we’re certainly talking about the bunch I have in this building.”
For more on the Mother of Sorrows Catholic Schools Week open house, see MOSschool.org.
Patrick Varine is a TribLive reporter covering Delmont, Export and Murrysville. He is a Western Pennsylvania native and joined the Trib in 2010 after working as a reporter and editor with the former Dover Post Co. in Delaware. He can be reached at pvarine@triblive.com.
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