Leadership & Spiritual Life

 

Holy Family offers many ways for students to become involved in leadership roles and grow in their faith throughout their years at HFK. Participation in these various groups and activities help to form the whole child, boosting self-confidence, advancing organizational skills, increasing self-expression, and developing loving and supportive relationships.

“Our life spreads light when it is given in service. The secret of joy is living to serve.” – Pope Francis

 

Advisory

Our middle school advisory program is a service-oriented program made up of seven advisory houses. These houses, named after seven saints, are made up of students in grades 6-8 and are led by a faculty advisor. Working together, students devise ways to serve both our school community and the greater global community. Within these houses, students feel connected to a small group of peers within our larger school community, providing a safe space for them to reflect and share. Each advisor works to build a unique advisory culture so that the members of their house feel a sense of belonging to something special. Each advisory house is also paired with a younger class for the weekly school Masses.

Classroom Buddies

At HFK we provide many ways for our grades to cross-interact with each other. This contributes to a positive, caring, and safe school culture, provides opportunities for peer tutoring, teaches important social skills, and develops responsibility, confidence, and empathy in students. This modeling and mentoring reinforces the information being taught for our older students and provides our younger students with an older student to look up to. A few examples of these partnerships are: fourth graders are reading buddies with the preschoolers, seventh grade are science buddies with kindergartners, fifth graders buddy with preschoolers for Halloween and Ester activities, and seventh graders buddy with first graders for tech projects.

Prayer Buddies

In eighth grade, students are organized into small groups which are then paired with a lower grade. Each week the eighth graders work together to prepare an age-appropriate religion focused mini-lesson and activity to present to their buddy grade. Prayer Buddies have presented lessons on various topics that focus on various Catholic subjects such as Church Sacramental Bingo, Advent service project, understanding and praying the Rosary, Lady of Guadalupe, and others. It is wonderful to see the eighth graders’ kindness, confidence and leadership abilities shine through as they interact with our younger students.

Weekly Mass

Holy Family students in grades 1-8 attend Mass each Wednesday of the month. The kindergarten class attends the first Wednesday of each month. Grades 3-8 take turns leading each Mass. Students alter serve and read the liturgical readings and intentions, and our honor choir performs the music. Our Advisory Houses sit intermixed with their younger partner classes modeling behavior and participation.

Library Service Club

Library Service Club is open to all interested fifth graders. This enterprising and organized group serves as volunteers in the library once a week helping to keep the library organized by checking in and shelving books as well as other library duties.

Spirit Days

Our school leaders, the eighth-grade class, plan and lead the students and staff in special spirit days throughout the year.