June 6, 2025

Dear Parents,

Our last day of school ended happily and peacefully yesterday, with our Honor Roll assembly and several classes participating in outdoor activities (great weather, fortunately). Our students are so polite and well behaved. I am thankful every day for such great students at OLC.

Our eighth grade graduation was held on Wednesday night. It was wonderful to have Auxiliary Bishop John Siemianowski presiding at the Mass, together with our pastor, Fr. Waldemar. Bishop Siemianowski is a 1974 graduate of OLC. He grew up on 59th Avenue, and also taught science at OLC for one year. He brought an incredible collection of artifacts from his own OLC graduation to show the 8th graders, and he told them how when he was a student at Charity, he never would have believed that one day he would be celebrating a graduation Mass there as a bishop. He discussed academics and lifelong friendships from his days at our school. Bishop Siemianowski made our 79th annual commencement exercises very special.

Next year we will have a new art class! Students in grades kindergarten to 8th grade will have an art class once a week with a new art teacher. Art class is not just a "fun" or "extra" subject—it's a core part of a well-rounded education that nurtures the whole child. This includes “specials” such as art, music, P.E., and world language studies (“foreign language”).

After 21 years at OLC, we are sad to say goodbye to middle school math and science teacher Mrs. Margaret (Peg) Sweeney. Mrs. Sweeney was truly a model of Christian excellence for the children, and I always admired her calm and unflappable personality. No matter what was happening, she would always maintain a bright and optimistic attitude, which I personally appreciated on many occasions. We wish her much joy and happiness.

As we bid a fond farewell to Mrs. Sweeney following her retirement, and after a search of several months, we are excited to welcome Ms. Karina Bañuelos as her successor. Mrs. Sweeney’s dedication and impact on our school community have been remarkable, and while she will be missed, we are confident that Ms. Bañuelos will carry on her legacy with enthusiasm. Ms. Bañuelos previously taught chemistry at Rauner College Prep in Chicago, and was a math teacher with the ACERO charter schools network. Her bachelor’s degree is from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is a graduate of Fenwick High School in Oak Park and St. Richard Catholic School in Chicago. Ms. Bañuelos will be teaching math and science at OLC, and she will be making great use of our new STEM lab in the former computer lab, room 202. Her homeroom will be 6th grade; Ms. Unzueta will be the 8th grade teacher.

We’re excited to share that the new STEM lab is up and running. This space is designed to spark curiosity and support hands-on learning in science, technology, engineering, and math. Students will have access to computers, tablets, design software, an interactive whiteboard, 3D printers, robotics kits, and VR/AR tools—all aimed at fostering creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving. To help sustain and support the lab—as well as cover other educational materials like textbooks—we will be introducing a $100 curriculum fee per student for the upcoming school year. As you know, we’ve made every effort to keep overall tuition unchanged, and this fee is in line with what many schools charge to support similar programs. If you’d like to see the lab for yourself, I invite you to visit this summer. Just give us a call to schedule a time.

Our schoolwide PK-8th grade yearbook was a surprising hit this spring. If you would like to see a copy, visit the school office during our summer hours, Mon-Thurs, from 8AM-noon. You can still order a copy: call the school office for details.

I wish you all a very blessed summer.

Yours in Christ,

Frank S. Zarate, Jr., Ed.D.

Principal

(708) 652-0262

fzarate@olc-school.org