Posted May 20, 2010





By Christie L. Chicoine
CS&T Staff Writer

PHILADELPHIA – As newly named Neumann scholars, four members of the graduating class of Our Lady of Calvary School in Northeast Philadelphia will receive a full ride to the Catholic high school of their choice.

All four plan to attend Archbishop Ryan High School in Northeast Philadelphia.

And for three of the four – who have either one or both parents out of work – the timing could not be better. {{more}}

“I was so relieved,” said Sarah Murray, 14. “Since my parents lost their jobs, I might not have been able to go to a Catholic high school. Now, I can definitely go.”

Murray will have peace of mind as she studies, knowing her tuition will be paid. She also hopes to play softball and field hockey and join the stage crew.

The four Calvary students are among 42 eighth-graders who attend parish elementary schools across the Archdiocese being awarded Neumann scholarships for 2010 by the Connelly Foundation, a philanthropic organization headquartered in Conshohocken.

Neumann scholars receive four-year scholarships to a Catholic high school operated by the Philadelphia Archdiocese. For students attending 15 of the 17 archdiocesan high schools, it is a full scholarship. Neumann scholars who attend Bishop Shanahan High School in Downingtown and, opening this fall, Pope John Paul II High School in Royersford, will receive scholarships equivalent to 93 percent and 84 percent, respectively, of their schools’ tuition rates.

Murray’s parents are currently paying tuition for her three siblings: her twin sister, also an eighth-grader at Calvary who will attend Ryan next year, and two brothers, one of whom is a college sophomore, the other a senior at Holy Ghost Preparatory School in Bensalem who will also attend college next year.

Benjamin Kates, 13, is also thankful for the scholarship, as his father is currently unemployed, he said. “My parents were wondering how they were going to pay for high school, and now they don’t have to,” Kates said.

His parents are also paying tuition for his sister, who is a second-grader at Calvary.

A tuba and trombone player, Kates plans to play in the Ryan band.

Melissa Schweizer, 14, is grateful that her hard work has reaped such a reward.

The scholarship will be helpful to her parents, who are currently paying tuition for her two siblings – her sister is a college freshman and her brother is a junior at Ryan High.

“The Connelly Foundation has been a real help to my family,” she said.

At Ryan, Schweizer hopes to play field hockey and softball and join the environment club and Community Service Corps.

Robert Hutz, 14, is another happy Neumann scholar recipient.

The scholarship will give his parents a break – his mother recently lost her job – as they are paying tuition for three of his four older sisters, two in college, one a junior at Ryan.

Attending a Catholic high school is important to Hutz, he said. At Ryan, he hopes to play baseball and possibly track, and join the art and video game clubs. To underclassmen who will take the Neumann scholar exam next year, he advises, “Study hard.”

Calvary’s principal, Holy Family of Nazareth Sister Mildred Chesnavage, said having four Neumann scholars named from the school is an honor. “It’s a tribute to the work that all their teachers have done, the support and cooperation of the parents and the support of the pastor,” Father John P. Paul.

“It just blew us out of the water,” added Sister Mildred. “The competition is very stiff.”

This year, 1,086 students across the Archdiocese qualified for the scholarship. In January, 930 students sat for the Neumann scholastic examination. The scholarships were awarded to those who received the highest scores.

The Connelly Foundation’s Neumann scholars program is named after St. John Neumann, Philadelphia’s fourth bishop and first canonized saint, who helped establish the Catholic school system.

For more information, visit the web site www.connellyfdn.org.

CS&T Staff Writer Christie L. Chicoine may be reached at 215-587-2468 or cchicoin@adphila.org.



2010 NEUMANN SCHOLARS

Listed below are the names of the 42 eighth-graders who have been named Neumann Scholars for 2010, the parish elementary schools at which they are currently enrolled and the high schools they plan to attend in the fall.

Daniel Backer
St. Joseph School, Aston
Cardinal O’Hara High School

Rohan Basuthakur
Our Lady of Victory Regional School, East Norriton
Pope John Paul II High School

Neil Butler
St. Maximilian Kolbe School,
West Chester
Bishop Shanahan High School

Mary Campion
Presentation BVM School, Cheltenham
Little Flower Catholic High School

Craig Carr
St. Cecilia School, Philadelphia
Archbishop Ryan High School

Gerald Christians
Sacred Heart School, Oxford
Bishop Shanahan High School

Arianna Chua
Annunciation BVM School, Philadelphia
Ss. John Neumann/Maria Goretti Catholic High School

Michael Costello
Holy Child Catholic School, Philadelphia
Roman Catholic High School for Boys

Andrew Dehel
St. Cecilia School, Philadelphia
Roman Catholic High School for Boys

Ana DeJesus
St. Mary Interparochial School, Philadelphia
John W. Hallahan Catholic High School

Edward Dugan IV
St. Joseph School, Downingtown
Bishop Shanahan High School

Catherine Erwin
St. Aloysius School, Pottstown
Pope John Paul II High School

Lindsay Fitzpatrick
Sacred Heart School, Havertown
Cardinal O’Hara High School

John Garry
Holy Trinity School, Morrisville
Conwell-Egan Catholic High School

Natalie Gomez
St. Agnes School, West Chester
Bishop Shanahan High School

Joseph Greeby
St. Matthew School, Philadelphia
Roman Catholic High School for Boys

Nicholas Greeby
St. Matthew School, Philadelphia
Father Judge High School for Boys

Sean Hewitt
Sacred Heart of Jesus School, Philadelphia
Roman Catholic High School for Boys

Robert Hutz
Our Lady of Calvary School, Philadelphia
Archbishop Ryan High School

Benjamin Kates
Our Lady of Calvary School, Philadelphia
Archbishop Ryan High School

Robert King
St. Francis Xavier School, Philadelphia
West Philadelphia Catholic High School

Frederick Licsauer
St. Christopher School, Philadelphia
Roman Catholic High School for Boys

Lawrence Mangan
St. Martin of Tours School,
New Hope
Archbishop Wood High School

Katelyn R. Markley
St. Mary Magdalen School, Media
Cardinal O’Hara High School

Kerry McCans
Sacred Heart School, Havertown
Cardinal O’Hara High School

Sarah Murray
Our Lady of Calvary School, Philadelphia
Archbishop Ryan High School

Michael Nguyen
St. Laurence School, Upper Darby
Cardinal O’Hara High School

Daniel Parker
St. Titus School, Norristown
Pope John Paul II High School

Michael Patterson
St. Matthew School, Philadelphia
Father Judge High School for Boys

Nicholas Quiroz
St. Joseph School, Downingtown
Bishop Shanahan High School

Caitlin Rosica
Nativity of Our Lord School, Warminster
Archbishop Wood High School

Olivia Schaffer
Pope John Paul II Regional Catholic Elementary School, West Brandywine
Bishop Shanahan High School

Erin Schwab
St. Aloysius School, Pottstown
Pope John Paul II High School

Melissa Schweizer
Our Lady of Calvary School, Philadelphia
Archbishop Ryan High School

Evan Serratore
Nativity of Our Lord School, Warminster
Archbishop Wood High School

Felise Silva
Holy Redeemer School, Philadelphia
John W. Hallahan Catholic High School

John Stopyra
St. Jerome School, Philadelphia
Archbishop Ryan High School

Evan Studley
St. Jude School, Chalfont
Archbishop Wood High School

Paul Sweeney
St. Andrew School, Newtown
Archbishop Wood High School

Dang Khoa Tran
St. Stanislaus School, Lansdale
Lansdale Catholic High School

Maximillian Wengyn
St. Jude School, Chalfont
Lansdale Catholic High School

John Westhoff
St. Catherine of Siena School, Horsham
Archbishop Wood High School