Cincinnati, OH – October 6, 2015 – With more than 60 clubs and organizations on campus, every student at Saint Ursula Academy (SUA) can easily find a group that shares her passion for nature, music, leadership, politics, literature, history, or any other subject in which she may be interested. Each student at SUA is encouraged to reflect on her personal strengths and empowered to take responsibility for nurturing her own talents, interests, and skills.
To take it one step further, if a student is passionate about a particular cause or subject and there isn’t already a formal “group” on campus, she has the option of creating a new, student-led and school-sponsored club. The student must formally propose the group to school administration, find a few members, and ask a staff member to facilitate the meetings, which are held during a specified “club time” during the school day.
One such new club this year at Saint Ursula Academy is the Competitive Crafting Club. Inspired by television shows such as “Chopped” or “Craft Wars”, students are given a set of materials and a project to complete in an allotted time frame. After the time has passed, selected faculty and staff members determine a “winner” of the day’s contest. The winner is presented with a trophy.
Freshman Keegan Younger of Hyde Park was the big winner for the first club meeting, which challenged students to create a Saint Ursula Academy themed coffee mug. The next event will feature pumpkin decorating and will be followed by other student-driven craft ideas.
Junior LeeLee Caudill, also of Hyde Park, along with juniors Margot Koenig of Mt. Lookout and Sophie Besl of Hyde Park are the founding members of the club, which now has 70 members. Said LeeLee when asked about the reason for starting the club, “We wanted to start this because we love being crafty and we love competition. There is no club like ours at SUA and we wanted to put our creative side to work. This club is designed for any type of individual at SUA. Participating in this club allows everyone to express their personality and own creative side.”
Other new clubs for the 2015-2016 school year include Robotics, Science Olympiad, Knitting, Film Club, Coding Club, and the Good Samaritan Club. Each of these clubs, along with the many other offerings, allow all students at Saint Ursula Academy to pursue her passions and interests in a variety of ways.
St. Ursula Academy is a Catholic, college-preparatory, secondary school for young women known for academic excellence and rich tradition. St. Ursula welcomes students from more than 70 grade schools in the Greater Cincinnati area. In 2002 the Academy was recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as a Blue Ribbon School. The campus, located at 1339 E. McMillan Street in East Walnut Hills has been the home of St. Ursula Academy and Convent since 1910. The Class of 2015 earned college scholarships totaling more than $19-million.
Photo Caption: Freshman Keegan Younger of Hyde Park was the big winner of the inaugural Competitive Crafting Club Contest. Featured with her are faculty members who judged the competition and the founders of the club.
top R-L:SUA Assistant Principal of Student Affairs Kate Durso, Educational Services Teacher Courtney Arling, Freshman Keegan Younger, English Teacher Samantha Jones, Theatre Teacher Allison Pemberton; bottom R-L: Juniors Margot Koenig of Mt. Lookout, Leelee Caudill of Hyde Park, and Sophie Besl of Hyde Park