Curley Notre Dame hires fundraiser

By Florida Catholic staff - Florida Catholic

MIAMI � Archbishop Curley Notre Dame 6 to 12 Prep has hired Maria Kesti as its new director of advancement.

Kesti brings to Curley Notre Dame a wealth of experience in the areas of development, marketing, admissions, and public relations. She was former development director and VIP concierge at the University of Miami � International Medicine Institute and also worked at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida, Palmetto Subacute Care Center, and Hospice Care of South Florida.

During her 10 years with the Archdiocese of Miami, she worked in the Mariel Program, Services to the Elderly, South Dade Catholic Nursing Home (now renamed St. Anne�s), and the Genesis Program next to Mercy Hospital.

�I am very excited to be back at Archbishop Curley Notre Dame Prep campus, in the place where I first started my career upon graduating from Florida State University in 1980,� Kesti said.

The school is among the first in Miami to fully integrate iPads and e Texts for each student in grades 6 through 12. The school has also received a grant to install a campus-wide WiFi network.

Continuing to find community support is Kesti�s goal. �As director of advancement, I plan to increase funding, community involvement, and recognition for the school,� she said. �The community surrounding the school has numerous new businesses that we could partner with to showcase the uniqueness of this campus.�

Kesti is married with 3 daughters; the oldest two graduated from St. Brendan High School in Miami and the youngest just graduated from Our Lady of Lourdes Academy in Miami. Kesti and her family are members of Holy Rosary � St. Richard�s parish in Palmetto Bay. Actively involved in the community, she and her husband are members and past presidents of the Rotary Club of Perrine-Cutler Ridge/Palmetto Bay.

In other Curley Notre Dame news:

Math teacher Terri D. Williams has been appointed the new dean of students. Williams has worked at both Catholic and charter schools in New York and Miami. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Education from Xavier University of Louisiana and a Master in Educational Computing and Technology from Barry University.

U.S. history teacher David Monaco spent July 9-13 in George Washington�s Mount Vernon, in Mount Vernon, Va., attending a seminar on �The Era of George Washington.� Led by renowned historian Gordon S. Wood of Brown University, seminar participants included K�12 teachers, library educators, and National Park Service interpreters who were selected by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History in a competitive process.

Kimberley Lumpkin, language arts teacher and reading specialist, also was selected by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History to participate in an intensive summer seminar entitled, "Rhetoric and American Democracy." Lumpkin was one of only 29 teachers from around the country selected to participate, and traveled July 22 to Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass., for the weeklong seminar.

In 2010, both Lumpkin and Monaco received the prestigious Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History Scholarly Fellowship. Granted to only 10 American history scholars each year, the fellowship gives teachers the opportunity to conduct summer research within the archival holdings of several institutions and universities. The Institute looks for applicants who demonstrate a strong interest in American history, a commitment to growth and progress in the profession, and an ability to translate new knowledge and new materials into effective classroom teaching.

Students DiStephano Accilien and Lorie Tranchant were honored with the 2012 Bill Carr Youth Recognition Program Award. The award recognizes exemplary students of any grade level (K-12) who have accomplished outstanding deeds and reside in North Miami or attend a school within the North Miami city limits. The award is named in honor of the late North Miami Councilman Bill Carr.

Accilien, an incoming senior, is an honors student, maintaining a 4.5 grade point average. He is the captain of the Curley Knights� soccer team and an active member in �La Sainte Famille� Youth Group at St. James Church in North Miami.  He came from Haiti to the United States in 2007.  Although learning English was a challenge, he now excels in all academic areas, enjoys science, and plans to become a pediatrician.

Tranchant, entering ninth grade this year, was an eighth-grade scholar at Curley Notre Dame�s Brother Rice Honors Academy (middle school.)  She was elected by her peers as the �mediator� for the academy, assisting students to resolve any difficulties arising between classmates. She plays the trumpet in the school band and enjoys singing at the Church of the Full Gospel Assembly.

Alumni Erik Frischholz, class of 2012, received the prestigious Eagle Scout award, the highest rank attainable in the Boy Scouts of America. Requirements include earning at least 21 merit badges and demonstrating Scout Spirit through the Boy Scout Oath and Law, service, and leadership. This includes an extensive service project that the Scout plans, organizes, leads, and manages.

Frischholz has been in Boy Scouts since the age of six.  His most recent service project was to oversee the revitalization of the Grandparent�s Reading Garden at St. Rose of Lima Church in Miami Shores. He contributed 400 hours of service to this project.

Jessica Blanchard, also a 2012 graduate, received the Outstanding Student Award from the Greater Miami Shores Chamber of Commerce. Blanchard received a full scholarship from the University of Pennsylvania where she plans to study pediatrics.

Both Blanchard and Frischholz graduated from St. Rose of Lima in 2008.