The Crusader - Summer 2020 - 8

CONSTITUTION

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quinas was founded in 1977 under the
direction of Bishop Thomas J. Welsh
and at the request of parents seeking a
Catholic education for their children. Bishop
Welsh invited the Dominican Sisters of St.
Cecilia to establish a new regional school
serving several parishes in Woodbridge. Over
the next 40 years, the school saw numerous
changes and adapted and grew as it continued
to serve the community. As a regional school
Aquinas has a unique governance structure
that differs from that of a parish school. In
recent years as governance questions have
arisen, the need for a formal Constitution for
the school became evident. A review of over
40 years of historical documents showed that
the question of a Constitution had arisen in
the past but in prior attempts to create such
a document, roadblocks were encountered
at key moments and the document stalled.

Sister Mary Sheila and the Advisory Council
committed in September of 2019 to a year-long
collaborative effort with the end goal of having
a finalized, formal Constitution for the school
by June of 2020. Throughout the process of
drafting the Constitution, God's presence was
felt as He provided in so many unique ways.
Certainly no one imagined that the final Advisory
Council meetings to edit and then approve
the Constitution would take place using
Zoom, a platform that became critical during
quarantine but prior to that, had been little
known. On June 15, 2020 Sister Mary Sheila
was grateful to receive the news that Bishop
Burbidge had signed the St. Thomas Aquinas
Regional School Constitution making it an
official document. Thank you to the diocese of
Arlington for their strong support throughout this
process and to the members of the Aquinas
Advisory Council for their tireless commitment.

Aquinas Advisory Council:
Dr. Vorbach, Superintendent of
Catholic Schools
Sister Mary Sheila Maksim, O.P., Principal
Father O'Keefe, pastor of Our Lady
of Angels
Father Bazan, pastor of Sacred Heart
Father Bashista, pastor of Saint Elizabeth
Ann Seton
Mrs. Lenz, Sacred Heart (alumni parent)
Mrs. Doty, Sacred Heart (alumni parent)
Mrs. Tillotson, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton
(current parent)
Mrs. Willis, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton
(current parent)
Mr. McCann, Our Lady of Angels
(current parent)

DFE

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s we began the new school year at
Aquinas, we also embarked on our year
long process of self-study and goal
setting as a part of the Design for Excellence
(DFE) program. This year long process
culminates in a visit from the DFE visiting
team to review all provided information. The
DFE is an accreditation process sponsored by
the Virginia Catholic Education AssociationDiocese of Arlington, approved by the Virginia
Council for Private Education, and recognized
by the Virginia Department of Education.
"This Design for Excellence process is the
program each [Catholic] elementary school
undertakes in order to demonstrate evidence of:
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Compliance with the state of Virginia's
and the Virginia Council for Private
Education's expectations;
Implementation of the Office of Catholic
School's curriculum requirements;
The quality and effectiveness of teaching
and learning; and
Those components of the school's
program that include Mission and
Catholic Identity, Governance and
Leadership, Academic Excellence, and
Operational Vitality.

THE CRUSADER | SUMMER 2020

The process is based upon documentation of
a critical self-review of curriculum and teaching
practice at the school level. This exercise has
as its basis a commitment to the belief that the
Catholic school must fulfill its own educational
goals by blending human culture with the
message of salvation into its coordinated
school programs. Education experts from
other schools (and school systems) comprise
the DFE's Visiting Team that assesses the
self-study. The Visiting Team's final report
contains specific commendations and
recommendations on all aspects of the school.
The report is finally reviewed and approved
by the Executive Committee of the Virginia
Catholic Education Association."*

Ferguson along with Mrs. Beda chaired the
DFE Steering Committee and it was their ability
to organize and keep everyone on task that
ensured the school was ready. Supporting
them all the way were their team members:
Sister Mary Sheila, Mrs. Fitzgerald, Miss Peller,
Mrs. Mendell, Mrs. M. McNamara, Mrs. Reale,
and Mrs. Perroots.

The Aquinas faculty and staff spent countless
hours completing the self-assessment and
preparing for the DFE Visiting Team. Mrs.

*Excerpt from an introductory letter written by
Dr. Jennifer Bigelow, former Superintendent of
Catholic Schools for the Diocese of Arlington

Unfortunately, due to Coronavirus we were not
able to complete the DFE process this year as
our visiting team was scheduled to arrive the
final week of April which was, of course, after
our doors were closed due to the pandemic.
We anticipate hosting the DFE Visiting Team
this school year in October. The good news,
we are ready!
The Crusader - Summer 2020

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