The College Counseling department hosted Career Day on Monday, April 22, where juniors and seniors were able to select an industry that most interested them and gained valuable insight into potential future career paths. Nick Bischoff '02, Laura Colontrelle Radocaj '03, Gary Kitchell (former SES parent), Sgt. Dwayne Hoilett and Sgt. Chris Rodriguez, Charles Caffray '95, Tiffany Starr, Esq. '97, Dr. Collin Kitchell '04, Maddy Blakeman '12 and Andrea Scridon '15 spoke about their professions, whether in person or via Zoom. Thank you to our guests for volunteering their time to speak with SES students! Click "read more" to learn more about our visiting professionals.

The Science Fair and Research Showcase, held on Tuesday, April 23, was a huge success. This event showcased fourth and fifth-grade students' science projects, middle and upper-school science fair projects, and projects from the marine and environmental sciences program. Parents and special guests were impressed with our young scientists and blown away by the middle and upper school projects. Students and adults observed the progression of skills, research endeavors and scientific opportunities available at SES. A special thank you goes out to all the students who participated and the teachers who supported this endeavor. You can click on this link to see our young scientists in action.

Led by Dr. Martin and Mrs. Slattery, 12 students were recently inducted into the Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica, an honor society sponsored by the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese. Seven seniors and one junior were also awarded the Global Seal of Biliteracy. The ceremony ended with a Hispanic-style lunch and fellowship among faculty, students and families. We are very proud of these scholars and look forward to watching them continue to study the language and promote Hispanic cultures. Please click read more for a full list of inductees and Global Seal of Biliteracy recipients, and click here for an album of photos.

Marine science students demonstrated their dedication to environmental stewardship within our community for Earth Day. Students worked together with ORCA scientists to place large 50-pound cement oyster reef balls at Riverside Park as part of their Living Shorelines Restoration Project to protect the shoreline from erosion, restore vital estuarine oyster habitat and improve water quality in the Indian River Lagoon estuary. We are proud of their hard work and dedication to improving our lagoon ecosystem!

How the Project Works and Helps the IRL:
The oyster reef balls offer a substrate for oyster growth, which in turn offers habitat for fishes, shrimps, crabs and birds who feed on these organisms. They improve water quality because one oyster filters 50 gallons of water a day, and it reduces wave energy and turbidity in the water. The reduction in wave energy then reduces erosion of the land there, which occurs when the waves hit the shore. The eroded sediment from the land covers the seagrass beds, so reducing this sediment going into the water supports seagrass growth.

Click here to view highlights from the afternoon at Riverside Park, and be sure to join ORCA on April 30 to check out the new living shoreline.

Senior Luke Damiani spoke to his middle and upper school peers on Thursday, April 18. The title of his sermon was Choices. He began his speech by sharing an interesting realization: he had reached a point in life where younger students looked up to him and strived to be like him when they got older. With this in mind, he explained to the assembly of students and faculty that everyday you make choices, and as you get older, these choices get more and more challenging. He makes his choices by setting goals and committing to a routine. He emphasized the challenge of figuring out who you are and what you want in life, but highlighted the importance of reflecting on your time and thinking about what you want to do differently every day. Luke wrapped up his speech with inspiring advice, "Be grateful for what makes you unique and be grateful for what makes you who you are."

Thank you, Luke, for sharing with the SES community, and good luck to you in all of your future endeavors.

In the spring, juniors are given an assignment to brainstorm, write and deliver a speech that will showcase their ability to produce laughter among a crowd. At the same time, freshmen are tasked with a similar project. They must craft a speech that persuades the audience on a chosen opinion. After many rounds in the classroom, finalists were chosen to present their speeches in front of the entire Upper School. Congratulations to the finalists: juniors Patrick MacMullan, Sommer Soderman, Keegan Nyman, Max Plotkin and Rushil Sura and freshmen Isabella Peter, Lily Browning and Tullia Knight.

From topics among juniors such as "What Is the Real South?" and topics from freshmen such as "Why Barbie Is an Empowering Role Model," it was a tough job for the faculty to decide upon the winners of the Humorous Speeches and the Persuasive Speeches. In the end, Max Plotkin and Rushil Sura and Lily Browning were the respective winners of the Humorous Speeches and the Persuasive Speeches. Congratulations to Max and Rushil for successfully preparing speeches that were written eloquently, delivered confidently and received humorously among students and faculty, and congratulations for Lily for successfully arguing for a passionate issue.

This year, the upper school classes gathered together after school hours and completed individual Community Service Projects. On January 25, freshmen volunteers participated in a local beach clean up. Sophomore volunteers traveled to St. Francis Manor on February 29 to help clean up their grounds and buildings. Juniors volunteered to spend two Saturdays in March and April constructing homes with Habitat for Humanity. Senior volunteers spent their Saturday on April 13 at Shining Light Garden, a non-profit organization that has been growing fresh vegetables for over 10 years to help feed the homeless, hungry and forgotten. Thank you to all of the student, faculty and staff volunteers who helped organize these projects and offer their time to help give back to the community. Check out this album of downloadable photos from all of the Community Service Projects.

Ecology students investigated pine flatwoods at the Saint Sebastian River Preserve. Park specialist Pam Hiler met with the students to introduce them to the beautiful 22,000 acres of protected land and the work done to restore the natural communities and red-cockaded woodpecker population. Students observed native vegetation and learned about the fire-dependent processes within these Florida uplands.

Marine science students are studying temporal growth rates among two bivalve species, the sunray venus clam Macrocallista nimbosa and the eastern oyster Crassostrea virginica, that are thriving within our flow-through aquaculture system on campus. Students tag oysters to track their own specific oyster groups, utilize metric calipers to measure bi-weekly growth, and investigate the numerous biotic and abiotic variables related to the survivability and growth of these native species within an estuarine ecosystem.

Another treasured tradition was celebrated on campus Wednesday. First graders marched down to the Senior Patio and spent their Valentine's Day with their upper school pals. The buddies exchanged heartfelt cards, and a popcorn bar filled with sweet treats greeted them as they arrived on the patio. Their time spent together was filled with big hugs, lots of laughs and friendship bracelet assembly. Seniors and their buddies are truly "butter" together! 🍿

On Tuesday, February 13, the Middle and Upper Schools brought Louisiana to the front circle and celebrated Mardi Gras. Shrimp was boiled, beads were distributed and the band played on as students, teachers, staff and guests enjoyed the beautiful weather and lively atmosphere. Artwork from students was also on display, featuring the "floats" of Mardi Gras. Click here to view a downloadable album of photos from Mardi Gras 2024.

40 band directors from the surrounding four counties, including Mr. Hengen, registered students for the event.
18 Saint Edward's musicians were accepted into one of the Four County Honor Bands. 
5 world-renowned clinicians from as far away as Buffalo, NY, served as directors and mentors for the event. After
10 hours of grueling rehearsals, students performed a concert with
1 Band, 1 Sound.

Please click "read more" or on the headline for a full list of student musicians accepted.

Clear your calendars now for lunchtime on February 13. It may be the day before Valentine's all over the country, but in Louisiana and our campus, it's Mardi Gras! For the third year in a row, we'll be boiling shrimp and all the fixin's, FLIK will be cooking up some jambalaya and our resident artists are going to be celebrating properly with music and art installations. The event is free and open to all of our families -- just pull up a lawn chair and be a part of the fun.

For the first time in any of Saint Edward's science programs, senior girls Chase Nelson, Emmy Dichter, Kiley Donovan, Millicent Critchfield and Selma Memet were accepted to the Indian River Lagoon Symposium. The students partnered with the Indian River County Conservation Lands Division and Inwater Research Group as part of an Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program funded grant to sample the shoreline biodiversity in the newly-formed salt marsh of the Jones’ Pier Conservation Area. Cast and seine nets were utilized to collect fishes and aquatic invertebrates. Their collections will continue to potentially describe spatial and temporal changes in species inhabiting the salt marsh. The young scientists will present their research poster at the symposium on Feb 22.