On September 9, 2010, Saint Mark's will travel to Milford to take on the Buccaneers in the First Annual DFRC Blue-Gold Kick Off Classic. Sponsored by the DFRC (Delaware Foundation Reaching Citizens with Intellectual disABILITIES) and DIFCA (Delaware Interscholastic Football Coaches Association), the Kick Off Classic is designed to spread awareness about the DFRC's mission to help enrich the lives of individuals who are intellectually challenged as well as to celebrate the start of the state's high school football season.

Senior Justyna Kwiecinska has been awarded a Silver Medal in the 2010 National Scholastic Art & Writing Awards competition for her drawing "Dark Hallway." Her work is among 1,400 pieces selected from the more than 10,000 submissions to receive national honors.

For the second year in a row, a St. Mark's student has received the prestigious "Honors-in-Music" Award from the Delaware Music Educators Association (DMEA). Caitlin Redding '10 was awarded the highest honor that the DMEA bestows upon a student musician for her continued excellence in vocal performance. Students must meet rigorous guidelines to be considered for the award, including first position in an All-State music organization as well as outstanding academic achievement.  Click here to listen to an interview with Caitlin on WDEL 1150AM (Amy Cherry reporting).

On April 28, Saint Mark's seniors Carrisa Carlson, Derek Cox, Jenny Fei, Alexandra Joyce, Denée McKoy, Joel Mey, Michael Morsches, Caitlin Redding, Cullen Worsh and Pamela Zhang were honored by Bishop Francis Malooly with the St. Francis de Sales Award medal during a ceremony at Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Church. 

Members of the Blue-Gold Club at St. Mark's High School raised $17,600 to benefit the Delaware Foundation Reaching Citizens with cognitive disABILITIES (DFRC). The money was raised through a variety of activities, including a fashion show, dance, sporting events and t-shirt sales. Approximately 250 students were actively involved in Blue-Gold activities this year.

Student officers of this service club presented the check to Mary Lenhoff, 2010 Chair of the DFRC Blue-Gold All-Star Football Game committee.

Anne Marie Eanes and Linda Grieco, faculty members of St. Mark's High School and co-advisers of "Markings," the school's literary magazine, were awarded first place in the "faculty adviser of student publication" category in the Delaware Press Association Annual Communications Contest. Eanes and Grieco were honored for their achievement at the Delaware Press Association Annual Meeting and Contest Awards Banquet held on April 29, 2010, at the University & Whist Club in Wilmington, Del.

Former St. Mark's Head Wrestling Coach Steve Bastianelli and standout Spartan running back Frank Cephous '80 will both be a part of the 35th class of Delawareans to be inducted into the Delaware Sports Hall of Fame.

Brian Gonzalez '10 has been named a finalist in the 55th annual National Merit Scholarship Program. He is among an elite group of approximately 15,000 finalists who were selected from the more than 1.5 million juniors who took the 2008 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®).

Alisa Spitelle '11 has been accepted to attend the Global Young Leaders Conference (GYLC), to take place in Washington, D.C. and New York this summer. A leadership development program that brings together outstanding young people from more than 100 countries, the GYLC offers scholars the opportunity to explore the diplomatic, social and economic lessons of the past, debate the policies of the present, and participate in simulations that challenge students to look at world issues from varying points of view.

Brendan McDermott '12 was awarded second place in the Delaware Branch of the English-Speaking Union (ESU) National Shakespeare Competition for his performance of "Sonnet 35" and the "Saint Crispin's Day Speech" from "Henry V." The competition, held last Sunday at the University of Delaware's Roselle Center for the Arts, featured monologues performed by students from a number of Delaware high schools, with the first-place winner going on to compete at the national level in New York.

"Our girls saw an overwhelming need, and they quickly organized to help in any way possible," said St. Mark's College Placement Counselor and Z Club Moderator Yvette Drazich of the immediate and enthusiastic response by the service organization's members to the devastation in Haiti.

Starting on January 25, Z Club sponsored a week of awareness, encouraging students, faculty, staff and parents to donate much needed funds toward the relief effort while also reminding the community of the impactful power of prayer. Working together with Director of Information Resources Linda Fischer, her television production students and Mission and Ministry Director Fran Corrigan, the club designed a brief prayer service and conducted interviews that were played over Spartan Morning News, a daily student-produced news broadcast.  

On Thursday, January 28 at the University of Delaware Rust Arena, Saint Mark's faced off against Salesianum in the 2nd Annual Hockey for a Cause, selling approximately 1,200 tickets and raising $5,000 to benefit the DFRC, a Delaware foundation dedicated to raising consciousness in support of programs that enrich the lives of Delawareans with intellectual disabilities.

Chaz Malewski '10 has been named a co-winner of the 2009 Michael DeLucia Memorial Sportsmanship Award. In its 38th year, this award is given annually to senior football players from Delaware Catholic high schools who exhibit outstanding performance, attitude and character, both on and off the field.

Malewski was also named all-state first-team for the 2009 season.

Members of the Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD)/Youth to Eliminate Loss of Life (YELL) Club held a bake sale to raise money for "Steps for Steph," a teen suicide prevention program. Club members presented a check on November 12, 2009, in the amount of $175 to Dr. Patricia Tillotson, board member of the Mental Health Association in Delaware. 

A total of 90 St. Mark's students were inducted into the Optimi Chapter of the National Honor Society at a ceremony held in the school theatre this fall.  Chapter President Pamela Zhang, a member of the class of 2010 who was inducted during her junior year, opened the evening with the official call to order.

Saint Mark's Z Club collected 290 jars of peanut butter and 204 cans of yams during their annual canned food drive. All proceeds from the drive, which ran from Tuesday, November 3 to Friday, November, 6, benefited the Food Bank of Delaware. This Thanksgiving, the Food Bank will put together baskets for 2,362 families.

Z Club, a chapter of Zonta International, is an all girls' service organization moderated by guidance counselors Yvette Drazich and Patti Lee.

St. Mark's students, faculty and staff rallied together to make this year's Fall blood drive the most successful to date. 100 units of blood were donated during the event, which was held on November 12, 2009. 

On Friday, October 30, SMART (Saint Mark's Angel Response Team), moderated by Donna DiUbaldo, cooked Spanish rice for The Emmanuel Dining Room, a facility that provides daily nutritious meals for the hungry.

On Wednesday, November 11, eight Saint Mark's athletes officially accepted offers from seven different colleges and universities.

Twenty-seven enthusiastic New Castle County students representing area high schools have been selected to serve on the Delaware Community Foundation’s Youth Philanthropy Board (YPB) for 2009-2010. The Board, along with their advisors and guests, convened at the Community Service Building on Wednesday, October 14.

Saint Mark's is saddened to announce the death of Bishop Emeritus Michael Saltarelli.

Saint Mark's High School is pleased to announce that three seniors have been named as Commended Students in the 2010 National Merit Scholarship Program. They are among an elite group of students throughout the nation who are being recognized for their exceptional academic promise.