Student Spotlights

I started attending St. Augustine School in kindergarten, and I am now in the 7th grade. Here are some reasons I love St. Augustine school. I love the small classes because I get individual help and I feel more comfortable asking questions than if I was in a big class. I feel like St. Augustine School is my second home. Everyday I walk into this school, I feel welcomed and loved. This comes from my friends, teachers, and the staff. 

Over the years, I have created great friendships with all of my peers and with the staff too! Classes here can be challenging, but that is okay because all of the teachers are there to help you and it has taught me to never give up. A tradition is weekly Mass at St. Augustine Church. We walk down together and celebrate Mass together as a school. I like going to church because it gives me time to relax and build a better relationship with God. It’s also fun watching my friends participating in the Mass. There is a student choir, student lectors, and student altar servers. I am an altar server which is a great opportunity to serve the Church. 

I am not the only one who loves St. Augustine school. My grandmother taught here, my aunt teaches here now, and her three sisters were students here…including my mom! If you are considering St. Augustine School, you won't be disappointed. It is full of smart, kind, and considerate people and I love it!" 

–Kevin, Class of 2026
 

I have been at St. Augustine School for ten years and I wouldn’t change that for the world. Each year has been full of unforgettable memories, new knowledge, and an amazing and forever impact on me as a Christian. I love St. Augustine School because of the family-like community. Everyone treats each other with love and respect. I know that the friendships I make at St. Augustine’s can last forever because each family here shares morals and values similar to mine. As I have been at St. Augustine School, every single one of my teachers has been incredibly supportive and loving. They are so enthusiastic about teaching the students and are very motivated to help students excel.

Each day I am so excited to go to school and learn new things. That isn’t a popular opinion for most kids my age, but at St. Augustine School everyone is eager to learn because of the great teaching styles and amazing teachers. Weekly Masses are another great thing about St. Augustine School. They are an amazing opportunity to practice our faith in a church, especially for students who don’t normally attend Mass on Sundays. Even the youngest students attend mass. Once a month, the eighth graders walk their kindergarten buddies down to church, as well as the seventh graders and their nursery and preschool buddies. This is a great way for the younger children to learn about mass with guidance from their older buddies.

One of my favorite memories from St. Augustine School is being with my eighth grade buddy in kindergarten. We have a forever lasting friendship that is irreplaceable. This is a tradition that has been going on for many years and is a great bonding experience for the little ones and a great way to make everlasting memories. Another one of my favorite memories was from third grade during the pandemic. My teacher was Mrs. Calabro, who is still one of my favorite teachers. Even though we had been out of school for most of the year, at the end of the year, she arranged a day with the students and their families to come to her house. She was with her newborn baby and gave her students awards and heartwarming gifts from a six foot distance. This shows the love and care that you get from the teachers at our school, that you don’t get everywhere.

Being on the leadership team for middle school is an amazing opportunity for me as a young student. I get to help make a difference at school and in my community with a great group of kids who are just as passionate as me. We all inspire each other and bring new ideas to the table. We can participate in community services such as replacing flags on Veteran’s Day. On Veteran’s Day last year, I went to the cemetery close to our school and replaced worn, dirty, or damaged flags of veterans who had passed away. This was a great experience for me to show my appreciation and respect for veterans. We also have many donation opportunities at St. Augustine’s. As a school, we regularly donate to Lazarus House for different reasons such as food for families on Thanksgiving or to help mothers in need.

I love St. Augustine School so much and I look forward to new families joining us. Come to our open house to see what St. Augustine School has to offer. I can’t wait to meet you.

–Lily, Class of 2025
 

My name is Brielle, and I have attended St. Augustine School for 7 years. When I think about my school, I think about all the amazing people I have met. St. Augustine School follows three core values: truth, unity, and love. There’s no doubt in my mind that the core values are reflected at morning prayer, lunchtime, recess, and even at the end of the day. These core values couldn’t be spread without our school’s community, which supports us when it comes to planning events like our annual Walk-a-thon or our Auggies Give Back Day, where we help people in need.

The community is unique because we tend to plan events that help people in need like those in Lazarus House. This year, my grade and I went to Lazarus House and helped organize the food bins. As we helped out, we realized that most people don’t have the privileges or resources most people have, which is why we have our food drives. The food drives require students to bring in food so that we can deliver it to Lazarus House. The school community is super helpful, and without them the school wouldn’t be where it is today!

Something else that makes the school favorable is the extracurricular activities, since they usually keep students busy. From Campus Ministry to STREAM Team, nothing will fail to be fun! Most of these activities are usually to benefit the community or the school itself, and sometimes even make students have fun. For example, I participate in the school band. I played Ukulele for two years and I just recently started playing the flute. I love playing in the band since not only playing instruments is fun, but playing it with other people makes it even more enjoyable!

Not only are the activities fun, but doing it with other students is even more exceptional. My classmates are very boisterous and expressive, and our personalities are very colorful. Our homeroom teacher, Mrs. Poussard is an awesome science teacher and helps us whenever we need anything or if we have a problem. She manages to answer our off topic questions everyday and even when the students are misbehaving, she can still tell them to stop with a smile on her face. Mrs. Grasso is like that too, since she always manages to walk into the classroom everyday with a smile on her face. Mrs. Grasso also teaches math in a way that makes it more understandable and easy, and she also loves us a lot. Both of these 7th grade teachers are the best science and math teachers ever, and I really admire them and want to love other people like them.

St. Augustine is a great school and has great people. I love this school so much since when I was at my lowest, it had never failed to bring me to my best. Before I came to St. Augustine, I used to barely smile and talk to people. Ever since I came to the school, I managed to love, talk, and smile more than I ever have. St. Augustine School has changed my life greatly, and I love everyone there for making me who I am today. One of my favorite memories was probably last year when the sixth, seventh, and eighth graders all went to a theater to watch “A Christmas Carol”. I liked this a lot because it was one of my only times that I went as a whole middle school to spend some time with the older students as a sixth grader. The school is an excellent place, and I want other people to see how welcoming it is!

--Brielle, Class of 2026
 

I have been here at St. Augustine school since the first grade. Next year will be my tenth year here. I feel like my faith has grown in my years as a student here. I love working with my teachers and fellow students to keep up in my studies and build relationships with them, such as my homeroom teacher Mrs. Rex  and my religion teacher Mr. Walters.

I have participated in Campus Ministry since the sixth grade, and I do the school play, homework club, chess club, and the North Pole Express as well as other volunteering opportunities. I love going to church on Wednesday’s and reading and ushering. My favorite thing to learn about is our faith and social studies. I hope to one day serve in the armed forces and after that become an Augustian priest at St Augustines to give the kids the same experience that I had.  

My favorite memory is that we went to a horse farm, Ironstone Farm, this September during a day that we help the community called “Auggies Give Back Day." My class helped out a group of people that help veterans, people with disabilities, and seniors. We cleaned up a barn and we got to experience first-hand what our core values mean.

Our community is very important to me because I am around great people and surrounded by friends and colleagues as well as our teachers and the rest of the staff that make it possible to come to this great school which I love dearly. We have a great education and we have great opportunities with kids and adults.

I love this school because it is very fun to be here. I take Latin and we learn the language and history of ancient Rome. I feel very passionate about my school and classmates, my teachers and my whole school family. This school truly is my second home to me, and I love it so much. 

--Michael, Class of 2025

My name is Hanley and I have attended Saint Augustine's School since Nursery and am now in eighth grade. St. Augustine School is a school where everyone feels welcome. I enjoy all the different classes we have each day. The teachers challenge students to try new things and encourage them to learn more about things they are interested in. They are engaging and really help kids to enjoy learning. 

I love the buddy system at our school where the older students get to walk to church once a month and do fun activities with their Nursery, Pre-k, and Kindergarten buddies. As a school, grades 1-8 we go to weekly Masses every Wednesday at Saint Augustine Church. 

I'm a part of the Campus Ministry and the Leadership Team. I enjoy all the service projects I get to partake in as a member of both groups. It always amazes me how the whole school gets involved when we have food drives and clothing donation drives. The school community is so supportive and accepting. Our faith is what makes our school unique. It is a big part of every school day and is always part of everything we do. Our school has a lot of fun and interesting clubs and after school activities that you can join. 

As a member of the leadership team we are always working to improve the school. I always enjoy helping out and taking part in all school events. I truly love this school and its wonderful community. 

--Hanley, Class of 2025

 

I’ve attended St. Augustine School for 9 years, since Kindergarten. Our school has amazing and caring teachers, faculty and students. We have a terrific Principal, Mr. Bianco, and fabulous Assistant Principal, Mrs. Doherty. The community is great. It’s unique because I have made friends from so many different towns. I enjoy going to school each day because our teachers hold us to high expectations with what we are learning, the projects in the STREAM lab; plus all the new things we learn like Latin and Spanish classes, practicing the violin and performing at concerts twice a year.  My entire family gets involved, including my grandparents and cousins at the basketball games, church activities and events.

My faith is important, and I’m still learning about it at home, at school, and at our weekly masses on Wednesday. At school, we have morning, lunch, and end of the day prayer. I remember in 5th grade when I chose a saint that I was going to portray; I was St. Brendan. It was the best time of my life. I had so much fun learning about my saint, making and decorating my costume, and presenting it to the school at church with my fellow “saints”.

There are many opportunities to get involved at our school. We have so many extracurricular activities that I really like such as basketball, reading at mass, and Campus Ministry. I’ve been playing basketball for St. Augustine's since fifth grade. I love playing with my friends! As a school mass reader, I’ve been able to gain confidence reading in public. Also, our annual fundraiser, The North Pole Express, is such a cool event, and as a Santa Elf for two years, it’s so much fun to see everyone dressed up. Our whole-school Auggies Give Back Day in September kick-starts our school year, and last year as seventh graders, we collected and sorted food donations for Lazarus House. Being with my friends and classmates and giving back to the community made this a special day.

Finally, our school is a community with high expectations, opportunities to get involved, learn about yourself, continue to learn and grow academically, and to make friends for life. Come and see what our school has to offer at our Open House! 

--Brendan, Class of 2025

 

I have attended this school for about 5 years and I have loved every minute of it. I made the transition from public elementary school and that was a big change for me, but I would not want it any other way. I have made so many friendships and amazing memories over the years and I will forever be grateful for them.

This school has brought me so much joy over the last couple of years. It offers so many service opportunities that help to bring the students and staff closer together. Being a part of the National Junior Honor Society Program, I am so grateful to have the opportunity to stay after school every week to help the elementary students with their work. I love being able to tutor these kids and it brings me so much joy, especially because I am hoping to one day become an elementary school teacher.  This school has also helped me to grow my faith and become closer to God, especially in religion class with Mr. Walters, or weekly mass every Wednesday afternoon. The curriculum here is like no other, and is helping me to prepare for high school every single day. We are learning so much information and it is really helping me not only in the classroom, but outside as well. I think it is amazing that I am able to understand highschool curriculum right now, as I have seen on my shadow days and my older sister's homework. I am so happy to be getting such a good education, while also having an enjoyable time doing so.

The community at this school is incredible. I have amazing teachers that help me to succeed every day. I am always able to get help when I need it and enjoy a subject, even if I am not very interested in it. These teachers help to make the learning process easier and more fun. I am so grateful for the wonderful staff that have helped me for these 5 years. The students have also helped me to have an enjoyable and exciting time at this school as well. I have made so many friendships with people from so many different towns and backgrounds. I love being able to have friends that support me consistently at this school, especially the ones that I get to laugh with. The community of students is very welcoming and one of a kind. I have also been a member of the volleyball club for 2 years and I have loved working on my skills with my peers and two of my teachers, Mrs. Poussard and Mrs. Grasso.

The community of this school helps to make my experience better every day. It is so unique and has so many amazing aspects to it. I get to see the whole school community at church every Wednesday, not only getting closer to god, but closer to each other as well. I love being able to walk my adorable kindergarten buddies to church once a month, and they are always so excited to see me. I have made countless memories at this school that I will never forget, and I am so grateful to be a part of this community. Being an 8th grader, my time at this school will soon be over, although this makes me sad, I am excited to bring my knowledge and friendships elsewhere, and to continue my life with great gratitude that I had the opportunity to attend this school.

--Caroline, Class of 2025
 

I have been at St. Augustine School for 3 years. I first heard of St. Augustine from my neighbor who is a Pre-K teacher and her daughter who attends the school. She always described it as a warm place with a love to learn. At the time, I was being homeschooled and I had not attended school since 2nd grade. I was very nervous to go back to a school community and was unsure of the kids attending there. 

When I first arrived I was greeted with bright happy smiles. Everyone was treating me like I was a friend they have not seen in a long time. I was filled with happiness and found best friends right away. Coming from being homeschooled I was unsure about having other teachers, I had little knowledge of my faith and what the curriculum might be like. I was delighted to see the teachers coming and helping me with all my needs. They taught me the confidence to speak in front of others, to be a sharp student and to reach into my faith. I love St. Augustine School for the amazing teachers who care, the supportive community, and the friendships that will forever thrive here.

 --Zofia, Class of 2025

"My journey as an Auggie began nine years ago in Mrs Mears’ Nursery classroom. Each year since then, I have grown in knowledge, friendship, and experiences which I would now like to share with you. The challenging curriculum and the caring teachers have helped shape me into the person I am today. I have become a critical thinker, a problem solver, and a hard worker. 

The friendships I have made will last a lifetime. We have become one big family who supports each other. Together, we have experienced the joy of serving others through the many volunteering opportunities offered by the school. 

One of my favorite experiences was participating in Auggies Give Back Day. My classmates and I went to Lazarus House in Lawrence. There we helped organize the donated school supplies, canned goods, and clothing. My heart filled with compassion for those in need of our help. After doing all these things, it reminded me of how lucky I am to have a roof over my head, food on my plate, and clothes to keep me warm. Moreover, it feels really good to practice the golden rule though serving others. 

As our Mission Statement so clearly states, “The mission of St Augustine School is to form the next generation of saints and scholars in the catholic tradition. . . we are committed to the core values of Truth, Unity and Love.” The teachers, students, and experiences at St Augustine's School have enabled me to follow our core values and strive to be a saint and a scholar." 

– Penelope, Class of 2026
 

Hello! My name is Kiana, I am in seventh grade, and I have attended St. Augustine School for the last nine years; since nursery school. St. Augustine School is my second home, a place where I feel comfortable and safe. The community here at St. Augustine School consists of our teachers who are very supportive and diligent. Each and every one of the teachers has crucially played a role in my academic growth, and I am thankful for all their help. The students here at St. Augustine School are not only my classmates, but to me they are like my siblings. The majority of us have grown up together, and built powerful bonds with each other. Not only have we made memories with our classmates, but also with our Nursery, Pre-K, and Kindergarten buddies while walking down to church. We get the amazing opportunity to go down to church every week, but once a month we also bring our buddies, and share our faith in God!

Here at St. Augustine School, we have many extracurricular activities and opportunities for students to explore or pursue a diversity of interests. A few sports offered are basketball, cross country, and skiing. We don’t only include sports, we also have a chess club, a public speaking club, band, and Campus Ministry. I am also part of the leadership team here at SAS. I have been on the leadership team for two years now and it has helped me develop to the person I am today. I am now more confident in bringing new ideas to help the school become even better than it already is! I have formed new friendships with students in other grades, and work together with others to lead fun activities in school such as the turkey bowl. Not only do we help our school, but we also help people in need. We occasionally have food drives and donate it to places like Lazarus House or other places or people who need it.

I have made a lot of memories such as going to the school dances with my friends, or the Walk-A-Thons where we walk with each other or our buddies! I love St. Augustine school because I feel welcomed and at home. I like to say that we are all one big family. Feel free to come tour our school, and possibly get toured by myself, or other wonderful students and staff!" 

--Kiana, Class of 2026

"St. Augustine School is like a second home to me. I have been at this school for eleven years and I would never change it for anything. I am super lucky to have experienced a school like this one. When you first walk into the school, you make friends with everyone right away. I have made friendships here that will last a lifetime. You don't just build bonds with the students but also with the teachers.

This school stands out to so many people because the teachers are amazing and help students learn things they may never have understood before. My classes are always so fun because the teachers understand and care for the students to the point where I can call them my second family. 

I remember my first day of middle school. I was so nervous and confused because I had never switched classes before. I had no idea how the middle school was set up. When I showed up the first day, all the teachers helped me get to my next class. I was super grateful. This school has helped shape me into the catholic student I am today." 

-- Callie, Class of 2025