Senior Showcase 2020: Camden Catholic

As the 2019-20 school year came to a close, The Catholic Star Herald spent time with seniors – now graduates — from diocesan and independent Catholic high schools in the Diocese of Camden. COVID-19, social distancing and remote learning aside, we wanted to know what they value most about their high school experience. We asked them what makes their schools unique, how prepared they feel for college, how they worked with and served others, and what advice they would give to someone just starting high school. 

The graduation edition of the Catholic Star Herald featured an overview of our conversations and a look at experiences students had because they were willing to try new things in high school.

Today, this last installment shares more from: Camden Catholic High School, Cherry Hill

Ask Camden Catholic’s recent graduates what one of the most unique features of the high school is, what sets them apart, and they will probably tell you a few things: the Catholic faith.  The academics. 

For Harrison Keller, it’s the Nazareth House, a dorm for the school’s international students.  Faith and diversity blend in this Cherry Hill institution.

“I value the relationships I’ve made with teachers, and with students from all over the world,” he says.

“I have friends from China, Japan, and Brazil.  What I’ve learned from being around these difficult cultures…helped form into the person I am today.”

It’s the school’s emphasis on guiding students to not only discovering others’ gifts, but their own, that Mya Whiles values.

“Camden Catholic is a safe place to explore, figure out who you are; the opportunities (at the school) are endless.”

“There’s so much value” to working with others, Mya continues.  She was a founding member and president of the school’s T.H.E. (Together Honoring Everyone) Council, which celebrated the students’ cultural backgrounds and unity as one Catholic school family.

Harrison also commented on seeing a spirit of unity at the school; for him, it was on the school stage, as a singer and actor.

“It’s a team effort,” from the actors, stage director, art director, musicians, he says.

“Just seeing us all come together (in success) made it all worth it.”

When he started high school, he envisioned himself having success as an athlete.  Soon, though, he discovered the “arts and music side of me that I never saw before.  It turned into something I want” to keep doing.

Lauren Owens found herself “transformed” by the Catholic faith she was exposed to on the school campus, in and out of its classrooms, through schoolwork, liturgies, retreats, and service projects.

“I went to public school before this, and only had a ‘textbook’ religion; I knew my faith, but not how to apply it to my life,” she explains.

“The priests completely changed my faith life. Now I can apply it to service, and in all my conversations, I see God, and see him in my surroundings.”

Lauren will take the “work ethic and responsibility” gleaned from Camden’s Catholics educators, to Camden County College in the fall.

“I’ve learned to make my faith and academics a priority.”

A homework assignment for Zachary Toles soon turned into a lifelong commitment that continues today.

“The teacher told me before I go to sleep, to reflect:’ what did I do today?  What could I have done today to make myself better?’ Taking this route, has put me on a better path.”

The same with his fellow graduates, Zachary appreciated the different perspectives he encountered at the school.

As a member of the Model UN team, he was able to roleplay as a country’s ambassador and delegate, devising strategies and solutions with other countries.

“When you sit down and have a civil conversation (with someone from a different background and worldview), you can almost always understand them better, and come to some conclusion,” he says.

Previous Senior Showcase 2020 entries: Paul VI; Bishop Eustace; Wildwood Catholic; Saint Augustine Prep; Gloucester Catholic; Saint Joseph; Holy Spirit; Our Lady of Mercy Academy