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"The
need for this school is very great – the students
can go to school with their neighbors, they can all walk
to school, and their parents can easily access their teachers.
Before De Marillac, these students were all bused out
to different schools around San Francisco."
–
Catherine Ronan, Principal
Proud
members of the first sixth-grade class at De Marillac
Middle School in San Francisco pose in front of their
new school on Golden Gate Avenue, February 2002. The colors
for the school uniforms were chosen with the help of the
police department's Gang Task Force. "Uniforms also
take away the issue of economics," says Principal
Catherine Ronan, "because they all look the same,
and the students love their uniforms. The school underwrote
most of the cost of the uniforms, which was a help to
the families."
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January
7, 2001, San Francisco – Four eager girls in burgundy plaid uniforms,
sprinting up the newly carpeted stairway between the first and second
floors of De Marillac Middle School, stop short when they recognize
a visitor as one of the Christian Brothers on the school's new Board
of Trustees. Out of breath, but without hesitating, one girl asks, "Hey
Brother, would you like to be our P.E. teacher? We don't have one yet."
If this is any indication of students being "primary agents of
their own education" in the Lasallian tradition, then De Marillac
students will go far.
This
was the scene at the blessing of the newly renovated De Marillac Middle
School on San Francisco's Golden Gate Avenue just after the New Year:
The paint was so fresh on some doors that signs warned 'We really
mean it – it's WET!' There were new carpets, clean whiteboards,
a sky-lighted library waiting to be filled with books and computers,
and 19 very proud sixth-graders in new school uniforms guiding over
100 guests through every nook and cranny, from the fourth-floor library
to the Principal's office to the new restrooms to the color-coded classrooms
– the one with a green wall is the science room; red rooms are
for music and art; language arts classes are in the blue room, and purple
is for homeroom.
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On
the top floor of the old building, constructed in 1907 as Saint
Boniface School, arched windows offer views of downtown high-rises
a few blocks to the west and a large office building just across
the street. The Golden Gate Theatre, home to Broadway-caliber
musicals and dramas year-round, is only a two-block walk away
on Market Street – a likely destination for cultural field
trips. Next door to the school stands the imposing Saint Boniface
Church edifice, swathed in scaffolding while being restored to
its original beauty as the Catholic heart of the Tenderloin.
To
say that the scene outside the first-floor entrance of the school
is a stark contrast to the cheerful atmosphere inside is an understatement.
Yet this is the neighborhood the middle-schoolers call home.
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"We
will have a media center in our library with space for
ten to twelve computers. Our classes are generally between
nine to ten students, and teachers will be able to take
whole classes there, with a computer for every child.
We are hoping to get these computers donated."
– Catherine Ronan, Principal
De
Marillac Principal, Catherine Ronan, and students (l-r),
Daniel, Sha'Ran, Leslie, and George in the school library.
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A
Symbol of Optimism and Light
"De Marillac is San Francisco's newest middle school, and the only
sixth through eighth grade Catholic school in the city's history,"
reported San Francisco Chronicle City Columnist Ken Garcia on
January 25, 2002. "That alone might make it newsworthy, or that
it is the only tuition-free private school in town. But what really
sets De Marillac apart is neither its newness nor its cost," wrote
Garcia, an alumnus of Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep in San Francisco.
"It stands out because of its mission and its location, which happen
to be inseparable. The school is in the heart of some of the city's
worst drug dealing, violent crime, homelessness, and mental illness.
It's a place one would not normally associate with children and education,
yet the school has become a symbol of optimism and light."
Serious
education happens at De Marillac. The school day starts at nine and
ends at five. Five hours are spent on language arts, math, science,
and social studies, and forty-five minutes are set aside for silent
reading. Religious instruction and P.E. fill out the day, and music
lessons with Sister Lucia are a weekly highlight. "We quickly began
to see progress in our students, academically and socially," says
Principal Catherine Ronan, "and most importantly, they love coming
to school every day." Young Johana has already learned a great
secret of education: "At my old school, if you didn't want to study,
that was your problem. Here they make you understand what you are learning."
Before a class trip to CYO camp last October, Sha'ran had never hiked
in the woods. Mauricio was so shy he never raised his hand in class.
Today, he reaches to the sky with great vigor, saying, "Call on
me first!" And Bianca? Her new ambition is to be a nurse.
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In
September 2001, the school opened its doors to its first sixth-grade
class, and expects to expand to all three grade levels by Fall 2003.
De Marillac is a joint venture of the Daughters of Charity and the De
La Salle Christian Brothers – religious orders who have been educating
the young people of San Francisco since 1852 and 1868, respectively,
and for whom Christian education of the poor is paramount. De Marillac
is based on the belief that every child can learn, and every child is
capable of achieving success, given a challenging, nurturing, and safe
environment – no small feat in one of the toughest areas of San
Francisco.
Named
for Saint Louise de Marillac, who co-founded the Daughters of Charity
in France in 1633 with Saint Vincent de Paul, the school is one of seven
small alternative Catholic middle schools established in the United
States since 1993 by the De La Salle Christian Brothers, and known as
the San Miguel Schools, named for Brother Miguel Febres Cordero, FSC,
an Ecuadorian saint. These schools offer intensive three-year programs
that prepare students to succeed in high school and college-preparatory
curricula. "Most of these young people have never had anyone in
their families graduate from high school," says De Marillac faculty
member Serena Chu. Fellow teacher Anne Hotze adds, "These students
are not used to people saying 'I am here to help you succeed.'"
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"We'd
gotten a lot of pressure to tear down the old school building,
but something kept telling us it still had a purpose to
serve. There were two religious orders, the parish community
along with the Franciscans who operate the parish, and
the Archdiocese, which actually owns the building, all
trying to figure out a way to make this school happen.
That the Daughters and Brothers are committed to running
this school, tuition-free, well it's just unheard of.
It's a marvelous gift to this community."
– Father Louis Vitale, OFM, Pastor of St. Boniface
Parish
The
towers of St. Boniface Church, a downtown San Francisco
high-rise, and the arched windows of De Marillac Middle
School form a unique background behind Father Louis Vitale,
OFM, Franciscan Pastor of St. Boniface Parish, and De
Marillac students Mauricio (l) and Bianca (r).
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Beginnings
The
vision for De
Marillac
began in 1998 with two Catholic San Francisco businessmen, Lou Giraudo
and Norm Berryessa, and their concern for strong Catholic middle school
education for inner-city youngsters who might never make it to high
school or who drop out once there. The two men initiated discussions
with Brother Christopher Brady, FSC, then-Principal at the city's Sacred
Heart Cathedral Preparatory (SHCP), where Giraudo's children were students.
According to Brother Christopher, the seed was planted at a strategic
planning session at the high school, when Lou hooked up with another
attendee, Gery Short, Director of Education for the Brothers' District
of San Francisco, and asked about the possibility of founding a San
Miguel school in San Francisco.
Current
SHCP Principal John Scudder also recalls the impetus of the 1998 District
Convocation, when Brother Visitor, David Brennan, urged the schools
to connect more strongly with the Lasallian mission of service of the
poor: "We really began to focus on starting this middle school.
A group of representatives of the Brothers' leadership from De La Salle
Institute, Sister Joan Gibson, D.C., of the Daughters, Lou, Norm, SHCP
administrators, and others, met over the course of about a year trying
to figure out if this school was something that really could be done.
Eventually, Jim Day, an educator and former school administrator, was
hired as Project Coordinator."
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In
the next year and a half, Day laid the foundation for the school,
completing a feasibility study and developing and implementing the
critical first stages of the plan. The Tenderloin, one of the four
poorest areas in the city, had been settled on by the Brothers and
Daughters as the right place for the new middle school, because
it was the only area of the four without a Catholic school. "The
Daughters had originally wanted a school for younger children,"
says Sister Joan, "but we were told that if you don't catch
these youngsters especially around fifth grade, they are likely
to drop out, either before high school or in high school. The mayor's
office, corporations, individuals – there were so many people
who wanted to make this work." |
Day's
search for a site eventually led him to Saint Boniface School, empty
since its closing in 1961. There, Day met Franciscan Father Louis Vitale,
OFM, Saint Boniface's Pastor and an active member of the Saint Anthony
Foundation, which ministers to the people of the Tenderloin. Father
Louis describes the old school building as a "seismic disaster."
"Jim hoped to find a closed Catholic school that could be repainted
and reopened," says Father Louis. "That just wasn't possible
here, given the demands of seismic retrofitting in an historical building
in San Francisco. We'd gotten a lot of pressure to tear down the old
school building, but something kept telling us it still had a purpose
to serve. There were two religious orders, the parish community along
with the Franciscans who operate the parish, and the Archdiocese, which
actually owns the building, all trying to figure out a way to make this
school happen."
Father
Louis knows the tremendous need for a school like De Marillac. After
Saint Boniface closed, it wasn't until 1999 that the Tenderloin Community
School opened as the area's only elementary school. There are 3,500
school-age children in the Tenderloin. Most are bused to schools outside
the community. "I follow the lives and stories of these young people,"
says Father Louis, "and they just don't get the kind of mentoring
they need. One young girl I know struggles so hard to try and stay in
school, desperately reaching out for help. I see the lives of these
kids who drop out of school and end up dead-ended, or dead, right here
on the streets. That the Daughters and Brothers are committed to running
this school, tuition-free, well it's just unheard of. It's a marvelous
gift to this community." As Gery Short would later point out at
a January 2001 press conference, "Just a few minutes' walk from
here is one of the richest shopping areas in the world. Here in the
Tenderloin, we're in the same city, but this is certainly a different
world."
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Every
student has a private music lesson with Sister Lucia once
a week. Students learn music theory and how to read music,
as well as how to play one of three instruments –
guitar, piano, or violin. Sister Lucia feels music gives
the students a format to express themselves without using
words: "There are times in our lives when words are
not really the best form of communication. Music allows
them to express what is going on in their hearts."
Sr.
LuciaLam Nguyen shares the fine points of piano-playing
with Johana.
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A
Vision, A Commitment, A Building . . . and Faith
The
pieces began to come together. Gery Short recalls his first visit to
Saint Boniface School. "The building was the perfect size, in the
perfect location. But we walked out of the meeting feeling pretty low.
The District just didn't have the kind of money it would take to fix
the facility. Just as we stepped out onto the street, two teenagers
came around the corner, wearing sweatshirts with 'De La Salle' in big
letters across the chest. They'd come over from Concord to help out
at St. Anthony's soup kitchen. We knew then that it was all out of our
hands, that God had a hand in this. When you do things in the right
spirit, it is blessed." It was only a week or two later that the
Daughters' Provincial, Sister Margaret Keaveney, D.C., toured the building
and committed funds for the retrofit. Together, the Brothers and Daughters
pledged over $2 million for the project and the first year of operations.
Once
the building became possible, then everything else became possible,
according to Jim Day. After the Archdiocese approved the project, Day
began to fine-tune the academic program, visiting San Miguel schools
in the Midwest and confirming that academic success was directly related
to the schools' small size. Day completed a comprehensive strategic
plan for De Marillac before passing the baton to Catherine Ronan, an
administrator at SHCP, who was appointed Principal in December 2000.
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Opening
Doors Catherine refers to those next nine months as formidable,
hiring teachers and staff, recruiting students, and dealing with
construction issues. "We had to respond to the realities of
our situation and what the Holy Spirit brought to us, instead of
what we thought should happen," recalls Ronan. A case in point
is Lasallian Volunteer Anne Hotze, originally a teacher's aide and
office assistant. "When Catherine couldn't find a second teacher
who met the needs of our students, she asked me if I could teach,
and here I am the math and science teacher!" Faculty member
Serena Chu speaks Cantonese. Sister LuciaLam Nguyen, the school's
music teacher, is from Vietnam, and Genemarie Beegan, a Sister of
Mercy, volunteers as the art teacher. Sue Marston of the School
of Education at Saint Mary's College of California in Moraga assisted
with curriculum development and initial assessment of the school's
first students. "Our program needs to meet kids where they
are," stresses Catherine Ronan. "We need to know whether
or not we can actually serve a child before they come to school
here." |
Students
were recruited from among the Southeast Asian, African-American, and
Latino residents who make up the Tenderloin. Working with referrals
from Saint Boniface, the Tenderloin Community School, and other local
agencies, 19 students were enrolled. The Missionaries of Charity, Mother
Teresa's Sisters, do much outreach in the Tenderloin, and played a key
role in the recruitment process. The Sisters were trusted enough by
the community to be able to get into the apartment buildings where prospective
students lived, and to talk with parents and guardians about the new
school. "They helped get the message out that we really wanted
to get to the kids who need help," says Father Louis, "particularly
the Hispanic kids whose families are monolingual. The premise is that
if you aren't learning English and math by the fifth grade, you just
don't go on." The home interviews provided great insight into the
youngsters as learners, according to Catherine Ronan.
When
the school's first class was finally assembled, there were 12 girls
and 7 boys – 15 Latino, 2 Asian-American, and 2 African-American.
They are Catholic, Buddhist, and Protestant. The entire group posed
for their first class photo last fall, in front of the school building
still under renovation, donning hard hats and holding a big banner with
the school name.
When
the building renovation was not complete by the first day of classes
on September 4, 2001, SHCP pitched in to help. Principal John Scudder
downplays the high school's generosity. "To us, it was like helping
out a brother or sister who needed a place to stay. They are family.
You just make room." Scudder adds, "I was happy they were
here. When we saw the De Marillac kids around the high school, we could
see the reality of what we'd been talking about for so many years."
The students joined in school liturgies, and the high school's Lasallian
Youth group started a tutoring program that continues today. Fundraising
efforts continue at SHCP to ensure that every De Marillac student will
be able to continue their Lasallian/Vincentian education at Sacred Heart
Cathedral, and Saint Mary's College and the University of San Francisco
hope to support the youngsters into their college years. "Being
a part of the high school community gave the sixth-graders a sneak peek
into their futures," says teacher Serena Chu.
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"My
goals have been to make sure that the students can read
and write, that they are able to communicate clearly and
to think critically, and above that, I want them to be
people of compassion. In the classroom, we talk about
current events, morality, ethics, economic equality, but
no matter what we study, I focus on these goals. I gave
them a writing assignment about their goals in life. They
want to be doctors, astronauts, police officers, chefs,
teachers, and artists. This school is giving them an opportunity
to see their own potential in the future. The majority
of our students come from families who have never had
anyone graduate from high school."
– Serena
Chu, Teacher
Sister
Genemarie Beegan, volunteer art teacher at De Marillac,
demonstrates the magic that can be created with paper,
pen, and pencil.
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The
Greatest Miracle
An
inspirational adage of Saint John Baptist de La Salle speaks of miracles:
"This is the greatest miracle you can perform – to touch the
hearts of the students entrusted to your care." Many hearts, minds,
and bodies are at work caring for the young people in the green, red,
blue, and purple classrooms at the miracle called De Marillac.
Among
them is the school's Board of Trustees, charged with advancing the school's
mission, including its tuition-free status. A $30 monthly activity fee
is virtually the only income from the school's families. A solid development
program will be critical. The Cassin Educational Initiative Foundation,
an early benefactor of the new school, has provided a grant toward creation
of a development program so that the school can endow its future.
The
11- and 12-year-olds whose futures are now linked to the future of De
Marillac Middle School are confronted every day by things no child should
have to see. At school, they can just be kids. They learn that they
have choices in life other than what they see on the city's streets.
Chronicle
columnist Ken Garcia puts it well: "At the time the class picture
was taken [last fall], all they had was a classroom and a banner. Now
they've got a new school and a boundless future."
