2022 GRADUATE SPOTLIGHT
We are grateful to God for the gifts He has given the Class of 2022 graduates of Chesterton Academy of Buffalo.
As the Holy Spirit calls forth these graduates to evangelize a world in need, we also seek His blessing on each one of them for their future endeavors. Please transform each graduate in the challenges they will encounter as they transition from
high school to grow in the love of God and the service of all.
Mr. Samuel Elek Bohan
Villa Maria College, NY
Film
Mr. Elijah Grant Buttino
Franciscan University of Steubenville, OH
Mechanical Engineering
University Sports/Clubs: Soccer
Miss Katie Corra
University at Buffalo, NY
Computer Science (STEM)
Chesterton Advanced Studies: 3 college credits
Mr. Ian Michael Jaskolka
Chesterton Valedictorian
Franciscan University of Steubenville, OH
Chemistry
Advanced Studies: 3 college credits
Mr. Ryan Michael Kruszka
Franciscan University of Steubenville, OH
Clinical Psychology
Miss Valentina Moscato
Daemen University, NY
Childhood Education – Mathematics
Chesterton Advanced Studies: 3 college credits
Mr. Anthony Michael Peters
University at Buffalo, NY
Marketing
Miss Mary Grace Updike
Chesterton Salutatorian
Franciscan University of Steubenville, OH
Social Work or Biology, Minor in Exercise Science
University Sports/Clubs: Committed Volleyball
Advanced Studies: 3 college credits
Chesterton Network and Franciscan University Historic Alliance
On April 8, 2022, Dale Ahlquist, President of the Society of G.K. Chesterton and representing the Chesterton Schools Network (CSN), and Fr. Dave Pivonka, President of Franciscan University of Steubenville (FUS), entered into a historic partnership that will allow students at all 50 Chesterton Academies around the world to be concurrently enrolled at FUS and receive college credit upon successful completion of FUS courses.
What does this mean for the students attending a Chesterton Academy?
Juniors and Seniors who attend a CSN Academy can choose to concurrently enroll in a college level class at FUS with a similar scope and sequence.
This fall, Junior and Senior students will be eligible to enroll in twelve credit hours. These courses will be similar to the CSN Theology and Philosophy classes, and the agreement is open to growing to 36 credit hours. Although there is a charge per course, it is extremely cost effective for the older high school students who wish to earn college credits.
The Chesterton Academy school experience will not change as the students will enroll remotely with FUS. Juniors and Seniors will learn the material in their Chesterton Academy environment and with the CSN curriculum. But through these courses they will have the opportunity to complete college assessments. If the student passes the course, they will have an official FUS transcript.
“This partnership will be of great benefit to both the University and the Chesterton Schools Network,” said Dale Ahlquist, President of the Chesterton Society. “There is great excitement all around.”
Many thanks to Fr. Dave Pivonka, President, and Dr. James Mello, Executive Director of Institutional Effectiveness, Innovation & Extension, and Dr. Cory Maloney, Director of Online Programming, Andrew Youngblood, Director of Curriculum and Instruction for the CSN, Thomas Costello, FUS liaison to the CSN, and all those who helped bring about this collaboration with the Chesterton Schools Network.
The program begins this fall, 2022. Click Here for Chesterton Academy of Buffalo’s complete list of Advanced Studies opportunities.
ST. THOMAS MORE SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENT
Chesterton Academy of Buffalo is proud to recognize Chesterton Academy sophomore, Shannon Kersten, as this year’s St. Thomas More Guild Scholarship recipient. At the annual St. Thomas More Guild Luncheon on May 11, 2022 at the Buffalo Convention Center, Shannon received a $1500 scholarship for an essay she wrote relating to the life and example of St. Thomas More.
This is the second time that a student from Chesterton Academy has won this prestigious award from St. Thomas More Guild. In 2018, Adele Brewster (Class of 2019) was a scholarship recipient.
The St. Thomas More Guild is the association of Catholic lawyers in Western New York. The Guild is named for St. Thomas More, the patron saint of lawyers, who as a man of faith, gave up his life rather than abandon his Catholic faith by swearing an oath of loyalty to King Henry VIII of England.
Each year, the Guild sponsors an essay contest to which students at all Catholic grammar schools and high schools throughout the Diocese of Buffalo are invited to participate. A financial award is made for the best essay in the grammar school and high school categories. The many essays that are submitted are vigorously “blind judged” by a panel of experienced attorneys.
For this year’s essay, each contestant was asked to describe a person whom he or she considers to be a modern St. Thomas More.
Congratulations, Shannon!
“While the Auto Waits” By O. Henry
Our Spring Drama Production was held at the Theatre of Youth on May 12th. Thank you to Tracy Snyder, our drama instructor, the Chesterton actors and stage crew for a thought provoking and entertaining production!
Thank You for Attending the Walk by Faith…High School Eucharistic Youth Conference
Renew 716 Ministries, together with Our Lady of Victory Charities and SENT Ministries presented the “Walk by Faith, Not by Sight” Eucharistic High School Youth Conference on April 23rd. The conference was a tremendous success and the Holy Spirit was alive and leading youth from all over Western New York toward Christ. We are grateful to our generous sponsors, Burning Bush Ministries and to the countless priests who concelebrated Holy Mass, Adoration and heard Confessions. We are especially grateful for the The SENT (Student Evangelization Networking Teams) missionaries from Franciscan University of Steubenville, who led the retreat with great enthusiasm and love for our Lord. We are hosting the Middle School Summer Camp and Retreat on August 1st – 4th. Please click HERE for more details.
Fall and Winter Sports Highlights
We would like to sincerely thank our coaches and the parents of our athletes for their dedication and commitment to our Fall and Winter Knights Athletics program! Without you, our teams would not exist!
On April 26th, Chesterton hosted it’s Sports Banquet, where the following awards were given to our student athletes. Special thank you to our coaches, Anna Updike, Lindsey Martin, Chris Uhrich, Paul Updike and Steve Bohan for their assistance in organizing the event. The Cross Country team, because their season starts so late in the year, will be honored in next year’s banquet.
VOLLEYBALL
• MIP – Clare Grande
• MVP – Sidney Syracuse
• Spirit – Anna Reese
• Leadership – Mary Updike
SOCCER
• Most Improved Player – Francis D’Amato
• MVP – Elijah Buttino
• Spirit – Elias Powell
• Leadership – Samuel Bohan
FOOTBALL
• MIP – Dominic Lavalley
• MVP – Will Harmon
• Spirit – Cullin Atkins
• Leadership – Aiden Atkins
GIRLS BASKETBALL
• MIP – Anna Reese & Elaina Reese
• MVP – Mary Updike
• Spirit – Julia Riggs
• Leadership – Clare Grande
BOYS BASKETBALL
• MIP – Caleb Pratt
• MVP – Will Harmon
• Spirit – Jonah Kawado
• Leadership – Nate Scott-Avery
FEMALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR: Mary Updike
MALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR: Luke Updike
- Congratulations to our Men’s Basketball team for taking home the 2nd place trophy! Their grit and doggedness shined especially during the semi-final game. Our Knights suffered several devastating first string injuries throughout the season and all of our players rose up to claw our way to victory in our semi-finals. Our Knights showed great determination and perseverance but ultimately fell to Gilead in the Championship game. Great job boys!
- Congratulations to our Women’s Basketball team for a great first season as the Chesterton Knights! Our girls played all season with great drive, dedication and teamwork. Our women’s team finished third in the semi-final game after a hard loss to Cornerstone. Great job girls!
- Congratulations to our Flag Football team for taking home the league Championship on October 23rd! This was our Team’s 6th Championship out of 7 years! Our MVP for the season was Will Harmon, who led our offense as quaterback. He was a duel threat as a passer and runner. His leadership was invaluable this season. The Knights’ determination, commitment to regular practices and execution of their offensive and defensive strategies were key to their success. Great job boys!
- Our Girls Volleyball Team fought with great heart and perseverance against Christian Central Academy in their Quarter-Final Playoff game, but ultimately fell to their opponent. Congratulations to our seniors, Anna Reese, Clare Grande and Mary Udike. We are looking forward to seeing our 2022 lady Knights in action next Fall. Great season Knights!
- Congratulations on our Soccer team’s 2-0 victory on Saturday, November 6th, and finishing the season undefeated, and winning the NFCAA championship! “This has been the most enthusiastic and cohesive group I’ve coached so far. Thanks to everyone (players and families) for being a part of the team this season; I hope you all had a great time.” Coach Uhrich
