The Saint Nectaire Community Greek Afternoon School, located in the Boston suburb of Roslindale, has in recent years become a modern and dynamic incubator for the culture and promotion of the Greek language and heritage.
In an interview with the National Herald, the school’s principal for three years, Maria Kyriakantonáki-Bakola, said: “The COVID-19 pandemic has brought many changes to the world, including the way of teaching and to learn. Our school has faced these challenges with optimism and innovation. It remained owned by a few students during the pandemic, and classes were delivered electronically, remotely.
And today, three years later, the miracle of reconstruction has taken place. Kyriakantonáki-Bakola said: “Currently, our school has almost 70 students from kindergarten to sixth grade, and recently a new class was created for children aged 1 to 3, called “Ma mother and me.” I teach the course myself in collaboration with the Vice President of the Parents Association, Ms. Maria Chala.
She explained: “We meet once a month with a different themed unit where parents play with their children. This group offers a program combining songs, fairy tales, crafts and puppet theater, all in Greek, providing a unique opportunity to learn Greek language and culture from an early age. It’s a new unit that was adopted from the start by our little friends’ families.
She spoke with respect of the fifty years of history of the School and of the long and valuable contribution and teaching of those who preceded her. She also congratulated the current professors and collaborators of the School, including the parish leaders, Fr. Odysseus Drosos, president of the parish council, Kostas Vazakas, and Ioannis Katsaros, director of the Greek Language Proficiency Examination Center , “Ellinomatheia”.
Students who attend the school come not only from Roslindale and the surrounding areas, but also from distant towns such as Westborough, Marlborough, Medfield, Millis, Sharon, Canton, Norwood and Lexington. Kyriakantonáki-Bakola said that “the love for the Greek language and culture is so strong that parents even ignore long distances,” emphasizing that “this fact is an indication of the school’s success.”
RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, The Greek Islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations, Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek Tourism Report
Photo source: pixabay.com
