November 19, 2020| We have the great pleasure to announce that our students, Leyu and Mirelia, won 1st and 2nd place at the 2020 Annual Diocesan Speech Contest. Way to go, ladies! Our winners had the honor to appear on the Bishop’s Radio Hour with Bob Dunning. Please play the link above to listen to Leyu and Mirelia present their speeches.
Moved by the words of Pope Francis, this year the Catholic School Department invited students to prepare a reflection on the following theme:
“Life nowadays tells us that it is much easier to concentrate on what divides us, what keeps us apart. People try to make us believe that being closed in on ourselves is the best way to keep safe from harm. Today, we adults need you to teach us, as you are doing today, how to live in diversity, in dialogue, to experience multiculturalism, not as a threat but an opportunity. You are an opportunity for the future.”
July 30, 2016. (World Youth Day, Krakow, Vigil)
Traditionally, the contest is hosted in the parish center of St. James School (Davis, CA). However, this unprecedented year marks the first time that the contest was conducted over Zoom, where speech competitors could be seen and heard safely, by a panel of judges.
Unfazed by the potential obstacles posed by their computer-mediated speech competition, Leyu and Mirelia earned deserved recognition for their God-given talents in rhetoric and oration. For the many hours of guidance and support offered by their dedicated coaches, Mrs. Gutierrez and Mrs. Speno, we are grateful. CONGRATULATIONS, competitors and coaches, on your accomplishments!
We are continually inspired to be part of a new generation of educators and learners borne from the pandemic and the adoption of technology as a quintessential component of communication and knowledge-sharing. St. Elizabeth Ann Seton School is proud to cultivate the potential of each student to use their gifts to walk in the light of Christ, and to positively impact the world in doing so.