Science Spotlight

What’s the secret to excellence in science at St. Mary’s School?

Committed, enthusiastic faculty: St. Mary’s science faculty have presented at NSTA conferences, been awarded grants for classroom research, received national recognition for their educational efforts (2007 Biodiversity Educator of the Year by Discover Life in America), and consistently produce students who excel in the area of scientific enquiry. For nine out of the past 11 years, St. Mary’s students have been awarded Grand Champion, Junior Division, at the regional Southern Appalachian Science and Engineering Fair.

Integrated science curriculum: Faculty at all grade levels collaborate to hone students’ writing and research skills as well as link science to math, art, language arts, and history. A project-based learning class for grades 6^th through 8^th was launched in 2008 to provide an interdisciplinary and hands-on approach to problem solving.

Access to resources: St. Mary’s location in the heart of Oak Ridge, home to the DOE’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory, brings science alive for our students. In addition to the wealth of scientific research expertise in town, the nearby Smoky Mountains also provide the ideal outdoor classroom, where middle school students participate in outdoor education research programs at Wesley Woods and research opportunities through the All-Taxa Biodiversity Inventory. (For more information on St. Mary’s Camp Wesley Woods program, go here .)

Partnership of faith and science: St. Mary’s students are taught to value the material universe in light of its creation by God and to appreciate the positive relationship between a living faith and genuine scientific enquiry.

“…there is friendship between science and faith, and through their vocation to the study of nature, scientists can take an authentic and fascinating path of holiness.”

Pope Benedict XVI