Some new blood has arrived at Good Shepherd Catholic School, helping boost spirits in Perryville, Md.
The school restarted its preschool this year, and it has added 3-year-olds. Previously, the program was limited to 4-year-old boys and girls.
“We have nine students enrolled, and we have space for a few more. It’s been really nice to bring a little energy into the school,” said Marie-Pier Ingraham, the principal. “Part of my reasoning for bringing the preschool back in was to add the 3-year-olds so that it would broaden the age range, and we can have a greater population. And this is where it starts, a love of learning and a love of your faith.”
The young ones are paired with buddies in eighth-grade “so that every morning they have an extra-familiar face to kind of help them along,” Ingraham said.
Most of the nine preschool students this year are the younger age, she said. They have done icebreaker exercises, and they will be regular attendees at church to learn about the faith and about Good Shepherd Parish. That goes along with their classroom work.
“We’re kind of setting high expectations that the 3-year-olds will see how much they can grasp this year,” Ingraham said.
Ingraham is encouraged by the increase in enrollment overall this year at Good Shepherd. The school has 66 students this year, compared with 58 a year ago.
Plumbing issues forced an early dismissal during the last week of August, and Ingraham said that wasn’t a popular decision.
“We had a lot of kids who were crying because they didn’t want to go home. They wanted to stay,” she said.
The school is holding two events in September that the public is invited to attend. The first is a golf tournament on Sept. 20 at Furnace Bay Golf Course in Perryville. The cost is $125, which includes golf, snacks and drinks, lunch and more. Sponsorship opportunities also are available. Contests for the longest drive and closest to the pin will be held.
The other is a family bingo night at Great Wolf Lodge, also in Perryville. That will take place on Sept. 26 from 6-8 p.m. The cost is $40 for those 16 and over; $35 for ages 6-15; and $20 for anyone between the ages of 3-5. It includes dinner and bingo. Those who want to stay at the lodge to enjoy its other amenities can book a room, with Good Shepherd receiving a portion of the proceeds. For more information or tickets, contact the school at gsoffice@goodshepherdschool.net.
