By Brian Zanzonico
was admittedly unsure why his parish was chosen to have a Mass celebrated last Sunday by the Most Rev. John Dunne, the Auxiliary Bishop of the Diocese of Rockville Centre.
"I don't exactly know why we're being given the privilege," Groenewold said.
Diocese of Rockville Centre spokesman Sean Dolan said given the occasion - the kickoff the Catholic Schools Week- the reason was simple. The school is excelling.
"Bishop [William] Murphy asked him [Dunne] to celebrate at St. Catherine of Siena to support and encourage the great work of the new principal," Dolan said.
Dunne celebrated the 11 a.m. last Sunday in the Sienna Center, followed by an open house in the school, which Principal Scott Conway said encourages parents of children approaching school age to visit consider enrolling their children for the upcoming school year. It's also a way for parents of current students to see the work being done by their children, Conway said.
"It lets parents take a look at the building, to see the school with students in and to get a feel of everything," Conway said.
Last year, Murphy announced the church parish and the Marianist Community, a Roman Catholic religious order of priests and brothers founded in 1817 to run Catholic schools, would jointly manage St. Catherine of Sienna School. The Marianists operate Chaminade and Kellenberg high schools. Longtime Principal Diane Staudinger was to be replaced by Kellenberg teacher Bryan Finn, who was to be supervised by Kellenberg Principal Brother Kenneth Hoagland.
The union between the Marianists and St. Catherine's, however, did not last. Soon after the announcement, the parish went in another direction, and hired Conway, a longtime teacher at St. Dominic's High School in Oyster Bay.
Conway's already may his imprint on the school, replacing the entire technological infrastructure, replacing phone lines and computer servers, and revamping the Web site.
"It was all pretty outdated," he said.
Catholic Schools Week runs from Jan. 28 - Feb 3.
Comments about this story? FSeditor@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 240.
