Mayfield Senior School

It is our last week of classes! And yesterday Mayfield celebrated with our annual Car Parade! Seniors decorated their rides with the names of the universities and colleges they are bound to next. There were sweet treats, there was music, there were signs, there was waving and cheering and some outright whooping! We are so proud of this amazing Class of 2021, and can't wait for what they will do next. Watch out world, here come the Cubs! #CarParade #MayfieldLove #ClassOf2021 #ForeverCubs

We’ve been having some amazing farewell fun with our beloved #Classof2021 at #500Bellefontaine this week! Very soon, our Seniors will gather on the North Lawn in their white gowns for graduationbut this week, it was all about the PJs and sweats for our outdoor Senior Movie Night and Sunrise Breakfast! What a treat to be able to spend time with this incredible group of amazing students, athletes, artists, leaders and all-around awesome human beings. It has been such a gift to watch their talents and passions come alive over the past four years and we can’t wait to celebrate their accomplishments on June 6! #seniorshoutout #mayfieldclassof2021 #weourseniors

#TeacherTuesday We recently caught up with Mr. Abdallah's Freshman Physics class, hula-hooping on the North Lawn! "We are studying rotations, specifically with respect to the three types of rotational axes, which are the longitudinal, transverse and medial axes," he explained. "We're performing demonstrations with hula hoops where the students themselves are acting as the three axes." The students were giggling behind their face masks. Sarah R. '24 said she enjoyed the virtua...l labs this year, but "it was definitely nicer to be at school and have hands-on experience and do labs at school." Penelope N. '24 agreed, "It's very fun and I'm getting the information," adding, "it sticks to your brain more." Lena W. '24 has been enjoying all of the in-person labs too, including the Hot Wheels experiments displaying energy transfer. But with a sunny day like this? She says,"It's nice to get out of the classroom!" #CubsInTheSun #HulaHoops #STEMGirlsRock See more

You're our Mayfield heroes! Yesterday, you donated more than $64,500 on our annual Be Our Heroes giving daythank you from the bottom of our hearts! We cannot express how grateful we are for your faith in our Holy Child missionand your love full of action for our school. We also offer a special prayer of thanks to the Class of 2021 family who doubled your donations yesterday with their $50,000 matching gift to bring our one-day fundraising total to over $114,500.... (And a special shout-out to our amazing Class of 1966 heroes for winning the alum participation challenge!) If you didn’t have a chance to participate yesterday, you can still celebrate your hero and make a gift before midnight tonight at https://www.boostmyschool.com/BeOurHeroes2021. We also want to say thank you for the heartfelt way you shared your heroes with us. It’s a privilege to read about the people who have inspired, nurtured and challenged you. In our final #HolyChildHeroes shout-out video, Devon Belter ’09 talks about how her recent volunteer experience with Mayfield’s Loaves and Fishes service program and why she's honoring our Campus Ministry team and CMC student leaders as heroes. What an honor to belong to a community of people who are connected and driven by our Actions Not Words motto!

The countdown to graduation has begun! In just 30 days, our #classof2021 Seniors will officially become Mayfield alums (we miss them already!)but until then, we're taking every chance we can get to celebrate this group of amazing students, athletes, artists, leaders and all-around awesome human beings! Please show some #seniorlove for this group of extraordinary womenit has been such a gift to watch their talents and passions come alive over the past four years. #seniorshoutout #mayfieldclassof2021 #weourseniors

Wow! We can't wait for you to hear how Melanie Ahn '21, our Arts Council Co-Head, describes the #HolyChildHero she has chosen to honor today. (Hint: He's an acclaimed artist whose work has appeared at LACMA and The Broad.) Your gifts help forge these kind of life-changing connections between Mayfield students and their mentors! Remember, your donation has double the impact today thanks to a $50,000 matching gift from a generous Class of 2021 family, so please give online at https://boostmyschool.com/BeOurHeroes2021.

Mayfield's Student Arts Council created an innovative assembly yesterday, dedicated to "Activism through the Arts." They focused on six areas of "artivism"--sustainability, body positivity, racial justice, ethical consumption, economic justice and women's rights. It was an ambitious presentation, covering incredible artists across the disciplines. Arts Council Co-Head Melanie A. '21 mentioned that the council chose this topic because it was "thought-provoking" and says they "...really want people to step away from this experience is that art isn’t just for aesthetics or entertainment. Art has the capacity to send important messages and catalyze important changes." There were more artists than there was time to discuss them all, so all students walked away with PDFs of the artists profiled, with even more resources to delve into later. Check out the full list of artists to explore yourself! Elizabeth Catlett, Kara Walker, Haruka Sakaguchi, Emily Raboteau, Paul McCartney, Klaus Wittmann, Mary Mattingly, Judy Chicago, Ana Mendieta, Paloma Elsesser, Frances Cannon, Chris Jordan, Barbara Kruger, Shawn Kolodny, Janis Joplin, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Joakim Eskildsen

It is Faculty and Staff Appreciation Week! From teachers, to administrators, to our facilities teamMayfield is blessed with so many dedicated and talented individuals who have been weathering this challenging year with grit and grace. Every day this week they've been receiving treats, tokens, and all manner of thank you's. And Tuesday, they enjoyed a delicious box lunch, with several homemade baked goods from Mayfield's generous Parent Board. Thank you Mayfield family for everything you do! Go Cubs Go! #MayfieldTeachersRock #SnackAttack #ThankYou

We're so inspired by hearing about the #HolyChildHeroes who have changed your life, from the classroom to the boardroom. Watch this video to see who Kelly Nelson Nakasone '93, our Board of Trustees Chair, has chosen to honor today. (Hint: it's a fellow alum and trustee.) Here’s what Kelly has to say about her Mayfield hero: We have been so fortunate to have her wise, kind and patient perspective to help guide our decisions. She is always present for us in a way that gives us faith-based courage to forge ahead in service of our studentsShe is a treasure and a hero. There’s still time to celebrate your #HolyChildHero and help us reach our $50,000 matching gift goal! Give online and post your hero shout-out message at https://boostmyschool.com/BeOurHeroes2021.

Yesterday was our Mother Daughter Mass and Brunch. There were some COVID adaptations, of course. Masks were worn unless speaking at the mic, taking a picture or receiving Holy Communion. Seating arrangements were designed to accommodate social distance between different families. Brunch was boxed up to be eaten at home. But with a liturgy focused on "Reassuring Guidance," mothers and daughters got a special moment to celebrate their loving bond after a year of trials. And students who had mothers and/or grandmothers who are Mayfield alums received a special pin to celebrate their individual family's connection inside the larger Mayfield family. #motherdaughtermoments #CubLove #liturgy

We've been so thrilled to have some of our amazing alums back home at #500Bellefontaine over the past few weeks, including Leah Carter '08, M.D. Take a look at this short video to see which Mayfield hero Leah has chosen to honor today! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts to everyone who has already made a gift to support our students today. Our $50,000 matching gift instantly doubles your donation, so please Be Our Heroes and give what you can today at https://www.boostmyschool.com/BeOurHeroes2021! (P.S. Calling all alums! It’s time to start rallying your classmates to win the participation challengeevery single gift counts, no matter the size. Which class will have a tree planted on campus in their honor? See who's out in front at https://www.boostmyschool.com/BeOurHeroes2021/leaderboards.)

Talk about about a #feelgoodFriday! Yesterday, The Ellen Show surprised Mayfield alum Abeni Carr ’02 twicefirst by putting her on air and then by presenting her with not one but TWO oversized checks to support her incredible work as an educator and activist! Abeni, who is the principal of College Bridge Academy in Compton, shared her dedication to her students (aka her babies!) with guest host and black-ish star Anthony Anderson. Every student that I deal with is like my ...child, says Abeni. They can come to me with anything. Her passion for supporting young people resonated deeply with Anderson, who says he was born and raised in Comptonhe (and his mom!) personally chipped in with a donation to support Haven’s House Youth Services, the nonprofit that Abeni founded in 2019 to help young people experiencing homelessness. We send huge love and congratulations to Abeni, our 2017 Cornelian Award honoree for Alum of the Year, on being recognized for her ongoing commitment to living with #ActionsNotWords! See more

Here’s a #TeacherTuesday shout-out to alum Christina Lara ‘14, who is giving Mayfield’s first wave of Engineering Design and Analysis students a totally different way of learning, says Sheryl C. ’23. How? By teaching them to experiment and think like engineers. I told them it’s okay to failwhether or not their project workswho cares? Engineers fail all the time, says Ms. Lara. In this *highly* hands-on new class, conducted in conjunction with the The University of Texas... at Austin, students are designing, building, reverse-engineering, and optimizing prototypesall from home, using household items and Ms. Lara’s expert encouragement. She supports us by giving us the basic information and understanding we need to complete a project, but we as students have to figure out what works or not, adds Sheryl. Assignments are grounded in scientific fundamentalslike using centuries-old technology to construct a cardboard camera obscuraand filtered through the lens of modern-day, real-world engineering challengeslike coming up with a better design for the CDC’s no-sew face mask. Students learn from their missteps by tracking their trials and errors in engineering notebooks, just like career engineers. Mayfield is one of just a handful of schools in SoCal to offer UT-Austin’s innovative #EngineerYourWorld curriculum, which is designed with more than just mechanics in mind. It’s meant to help students build problem-solving skills to make our world better place. One thing Karissa H. ’21 has learned? There is still so much room for diversity of thought and creativity and compassion in such mathematical and scientific fields. #EngineersMakeLifeBetter #STEM #WomenInSTEM See more

Thank you, St. Francis Center, for letting us join you in #ServingHopewe’re looking forward to the day when we can be back and serving breakfast again! #ActionsNotWords

The Christmas elves have been busy at #500Bellefontaine! We’re getting ready to load up Santa’s sleigh to deliver these toys (and more!) to the families at South Central LAMP, our sister Holy Child ministry. There’s still time to make Christmas morning magical for the children at LAMPyou can drop off new and unwrapped gifts at our remaining contactless drive-through events on Saturday, Dec. 12 from 8-10 a.m. and Wednesday, Dec. 16 from 8 a.m. to 12 noon. Just drive throu...gh the Bellefontaine gates, and our masked Mayfield elves will retrieve the toys from your trunk! Check out LAMP’s Amazon wish list for inspiration at https://amzn.to/3luBpRz. (Please note that LAMP has been experiencing some delivery issues because of their campus closureif you can, please have the item delivered to your home and drop it off to us on campus instead of sending directly to LAMP.) Thank you to everyone who has already contributed a gift (just look at all these amazing toys!) and to our Campus Ministry Council for coordinating this effort. We're so excited to share the spirit of the season with the families who rely on LAMP’s support. #ActionsNotWords See more

AP Statistics teacher Emily Baratta Goodell ’99 is talking about parallel dot plots with her class, and she wants her students to compare two different graphs. The term is textbook, the actual assignment a little less so. Because this activity is all about Beyoncé. Students are using statistical analysis to determine if the person who wrote the Destiny's Child's discography was the same person who wrote the hit song Crazy in Love. Their conclusion? It’s complicated. But, ...one thing is certainMrs. Goodell definitely knows how to keep her students engaged on Zoom. And, living through a pandemic is putting statistics front and center in students’ lives as well. AP Stats has definitely gotten me to critically think about what’s going on in the news about the coronavirus and its vaccines, says Avalon D. ’22. This was not only relevant in today’s world but very interesting to learn about overall. Bingo! Ultimately, Mrs. Goodell says this humanities-based math coursethe only Mayfield STEM class with both English and history prerequisites!helps students think critically about the way information is shared with them. Once I switched from approaching this class like a math class to approaching it as an English class, I became a lot more confident in my reasoning and analysis of problems, says Elise D. ’21. It also helps that Mrs. Goodell is a great teacher! Read the full story at https://bit.ly/APStats-Beyonce. #TeacherTuesday #WomeninSTEM #STEMLove #GoCubsGo See more

We’re excited to meet middle school families today at our Virtual Open Houseand we just can’t wait to show you around our extraordinary campus in person one day! Join our tour guides, Mariana T. ’21, Drew V. ’22, Maria D. ’22, Adrianna G. ’21 and Lily F. ’22, to see why we love our #500Bellefontaine homeand our Mayfield family.