HFGS: Voted BEST PRIVATE SCHOOL in 2017 Best of Glendale

Fr. Jim Bevacqua (Pastor) and Dr. Fidela Suelto (GS Principal) accept with great honor and joy the accomplishment award from The Glendale News Press and the LA Times. 

The list of Glendale’s Best of 2017 will be published on December 3^rd, 2018! 

The school administration and members of the GS faculty are very grateful to ALL of you – our families, students, members of the Clergy, Staff, PTO and CSB Boards, HFCC, BVM Sisters, Department of Catholic Schools, and all the other communities surrounding the Glendale area for making Holy Family Grade School the best private school this year. This news is phenomenal!

Congratulations, Holy Family Grade School! Voted BEST PRIVATE SCHOOL the second time!

 “The votes are in and the readers of the Glendale News-Press have voted Holy Family Grade School as the Best of Glendale in 2017.”  By Daniel Cervantes, LA Times

 “The entire school faculty, office staff, assistants, students, Clergy, and parents are to be credited for us receiving this honorable distinguished award. Let’s make a 3^rd time in 2018.” By Dr. Steve Benedict, PTO Board Parliamentarian and Mr. Tony Makhoul, PTO Board President

 

Summer School 2018

Welcome to Holy Family Grade School’s Summer School program! Holy Family offers an academic enrichment program for boys and girls with a focus on Language Arts, Mathematics, Coding and Technology, and Physical Education. This program is open to all grades, TK (Transitional Kindergarten) – 8. This year we are introducing a program that offers up to six (6) weeks of instruction, fun and aftercare program, from 8:00 AM – 6:00 PM daily. This program runs June 18-July 27.

Please see [Summer School 2018] more information on our Holy Family Grade School Summer School program.  For further questions regarding our summer program of educational enrichment, please contact 818.243.9239 x110.

Registration for Holy Family Grade School’s Summer School program will open on February 15, 2018.

This year we are also introducing a partnership with Holy Family High School’s Summer Enrichment program. In addition to our high school’s morning programming for boys and girls Grades 9-12, there is an afternoon program for rising 6^th-8^thgrade students.  Please see [Summer Course Catalog 2018] for more information. In other words, students in 6^th-8^th grades can spend their days on both campuses to meet their programming needs. A student can spend their mornings at the grade school campus, have lunch, and then be escorted across the street to the high school campus for exciting course offerings on that campus. When finished, they would be walked back securely to the grade school campus for the after care program or pick-up.

We are excited to have you at Holy Family this summer!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Academic Decathlon / Cheer Champions – Holy Family Grade School Teams’ Great Success Stories in 2017!

Thank you for all your wonderful support, generous time, and positive energies. Congratulations on our team’s effort!

Super Quiz: HFGS-Glendale  – 4th PLACE

Social Studies: Lucas Pangilinan, 7th Grade – 2nd PLACE

Literature: Nicole Paja, 6th Grade – 3rd PLACE

Current Events: Catherine Alejo, 8th Grade – 7th PLACE

Fine Arts: Jeremy Reyes, 8th Grade – 8th PLACE

Fr. Jim, Parents, Coach Ofelia Ruta, Assistant Coaches Chris Alejo, Pierre Consebido, and Mrs. Kimberlee Thomas, and Faculty – Please know that you are very much appreciated for everything that you have done to impart knowledge, share God’s blessings, and exhibit that marvelous support to benefit our children. You have been amazing! Until next year and may God bless our AJHD Team always!

Mrs. Ruta – You are fabulous as always. The everyday training and love you gave each day to both our Decathletes and Alternates will be forever treasured. Many, many thanks!

 HFGS Cheerleading Champions

Congratulations to our Holy Family Grade School Bulldog Cheerleading Teams for a fantastic performance in the SHARP International Cheer Championships held in Hawaii!

Our Cheer Teams placed first in their respective divisions. The teams were presented with a championship trophy and a banner. Thanks to Mrs. Teri Nelson, Assistant Coaches Shainna Tolentino, Taryn Nelson, Malea Arriola, and our Cheer Parents. Go Bulldogs!

 

A Special Interview with Fr. Jim: Everything Is Awesome at HFGS!

by Katharine Monahan Huntley, 4^th Grade Teacher & Vice-Principal

“Everything is awesome! Everything is awesome, all of the time.”—The Lego Movie

Father James Bevacqua, pastor of the Holy Family Catholic Church community, is a man in black and a man with a plan. “I’m a visionary,” he states plainly and without vanity. “I want people to know who we are.” His favorite adjective just so happens to be “awesome.”

Acknowledging that Holy Family Grade School, established in 1925 by the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is a part of an increasing competitive landscape for Catholic education and “not in the most conspicuous location,” Fr. Jim fully intends for HFGS to outwit, outlast, and “outpray” its way to remaining a destination parish school.

And he is doing it from the inside out.

In 2008, Father Jim accepted his ambitious pastoral mission from the Los Angeles Archdiocese. Additional Masses, confessions, and managing a parish church, convent, high school, and grade school meant extra responsibilities and innovative thinking. The complexities of keeping the day-to-day business operations financially solvent, while saving for capital projects was, and remains, a daunting task.

Collaborating with HFGS principal, Dr. Fidela Suelto, internal changes have included establishing a faculty with California Teaching Credentials and Master’s Degrees, one-to-one iPad programs for all middle school students, emphasizing Catholic identity with parents, bringing nutrition, fitness, hygiene, and comfort to the fore with a heating, ventilation and air conditioning system, renovated restrooms, healthy “Happy Lunch” caterers, physical education uniforms, and an extensive sports program.

Granting that first impressions are often lasting, the school is in the process of a facelift. Vintage “pendant” street lamps illuminate the way to this historic school, whose rooms have been repainted and some of the floors replaced. The front office and lobby area are just recently modernized and welcoming to all who enter its double doors.

Father Jim is emphatic about not settling for mediocrity, instead he wishes to polish what Karen Compton, a staunch Catholic and design architect consultant for HFGS refers to as “a diamond in the rough.” Plans for the future, God willing, include exterior paint, wrought iron fencing, an updated faculty room, and a parish center for the entire Holy Family Community.

“Parents deserve a return on their investment,” asserts Father Jim, “and I intend to continue to enhance Holy Family Grade School as it continues to excel.”