At Sacred Heart, Kids ‘Play Hard, Pray Hard, Study Hard’

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Sacred Heart School, located in the West Brighton section of Staten Island, had 262 students in pre-k through eighth grade on its roster as of Sept. 4.

The pre-k program has a total of 54 students, configured to 18 students in each of three classrooms.

“Sacred Heart School is honored to be a part of the historic collaboration between the Archdiocese of New York and the NYC Department of Education to implement full-day UPK programs in our schools,” said Sacred Heart’s principal, Evelyn M. Lacagnino.

She added the school is fortunate to this year expand from one half-day universal pre-k class to three full-day universal pre-k classes to meet the needs of children and families.

“I am very proud of the outstanding UPK program offered at Sacred Heart School,” continued the principal, as the provision “develops and supports student thinking and learning so that every child has an educational advantage and foundation upon which to build future learning.”

Sacred Heart’s pastor, Father Louis Jerome, said the UPK program proves working collaboratively can be “a good thing for the Church and the city.” It’s “a win-win for everybody.”

“We’re off to a good start,” Father Jerome said of the presence of both the cardinal and the mayor on the first day of the new academic year. “It’s really a shot in the arm for the parish and the school.”

At the family-friendly Sacred Heart, “the kids play hard, pray hard and study hard,” added the pastor.

Before Mayor Bill de Blasio arrived at the school Sept. 4 for the scheduled press conference with Cardinal Dolan detailing the expansion of universal pre-k in New York, the cardinal visited parents who had dropped their children off at school and toured two non-pre-k classrooms—the second grade, taught by Patricia McKee and kindergarten, taught by Andrea Murphy.

The kindergartners were all over their finger-painting project, and the fingerpaints were likewise literally all over them. “She has blue hands—you better call the nurse,” the cardinal joked as a girl amusingly took her turn among her classmates in alerting the cardinal of the paint remnants.