Alumnae News

Congratulations to Nora Palka '08, winner of the Helen Hayes Award for "Outstanding Lead Performer in a Musical" for her role as Flora Conrad in the May 2019 production of "On Air" at the Creative Cauldron Theater in Falls Church, VA. Nora received the award during a virtual announcement ceremony on Monday, August 31, beating a broad Metro area-wide field. 

Nora writes: "Frank Conrad was a pioneer in radio development. He became the driving inspiration for the first ever mass broadcasting radio station in the 1920s. His wife, Flora, a suffragist, undoubtedly knew how important it was to keep the public informed on legislation being passed, like a woman's right to vote, and used her husband's talent to spread the word. This great American story is unknown to many, but changed the way we take in our media, listen to music and receive the news for the better. Now, more than ever, it is so important to honor the legacy of the Conrad's and all of their hard work. It makes me so proud to accept this award on their behalf and that it can represent a small part of their legacy."  

Helen Hayes attended the Holy Cross primary school (when it existed in Washington, DC) as a child.

Read more here. 

 

ABC7’s StormWatch7 meteorologist and Holy Cross alumnae Eileen Whelan ’05 recently received a Regional Emmy from the National Capital Chesapeake Bay Chapter of The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. The Regional Emmy® Awards are the premiere television production honor presented in various sectors of the television industry, including entertainment programming, news and documentary shows, and sports programming. Eileen received the award in the Discussion/Interview category as the host of “The Mother Side” that airs on WJLA 24/7 News. “The Mother Side” is a show that pulls back the current on the highs and lows of motherhood—from the exhilarating to the exhausting. It is a place of discussion to come together and connect over laugh out loud moments and lessons learned. 

Suzy Menser ’00 was recently named as one of the 2020 Top 100 Women in Maryland by The Daily Record.  The Top 100 Women recognition honors women who have achieved professional success as well as who are involved in mentoring and giving back to the community. Suzy was nominated by KPMG LLP where she is a partner in the Baltimore office. Her focus is in the financial services and not-for-profit industries, serving banks, broker-dealers, investment advisors, REITs, colleges and universities. Suzy is a Co-leader of the KPMG Network of Women (KNOW) Baltimore Chapter. In the past few years, Suzy has further advanced her support of women leaders beyond the KPMG office by becoming a founder and executive committee member of the Baltimore Women’s Advisory Board (BWAB). The BWAB aims to bring the ideals of KNOW to the City of Baltimore and is a professional group that looks to attract, retain, and promote diverse professionals in Baltimore. Suzy earned both her master’s and bachelor’s from Loyola University of Maryland, where she serves on the university accounting advisory board.

June 1, 2020

Dear Holy Cross Families,

The ultimate measure of a [person] is not where [they] stand in moments of comfort and convenience, but where [they] stand at times of challenge and controversy.

–Martin Luther King, Jr.

As a Catholic school committed to forming an inclusive community who believes that courageous, compassionate, and scholarly women can change the world, we are deeply saddened with the deadly violence inflicted upon George Floyd while in police custody as he begged, "I can't breathe."

Our mission statement boldly states that we are dedicated to educating women in a Christ-centered community which values diversity. It further declares that we are committed to developing women who responsibly embrace the social, spiritual and intellectual challenges of the world. Today's challenges are complex. These tragic events remind us that we still have much work to do to create an inclusive community and address the challenge of undoing the structural and sustained racism that exists today.

Our school serves as a gathering place for much more than education. It must serve as a place where we learn to appreciate and understand our differences and build a community that is safe and supportive for all. We recommit to helping our students learn about our country's long and continuing struggle to live our ideals of liberty and justice for all.

 As a Catholic community of faith, we reaffirm our conviction that racism has no place – anywhere. We need to acknowledge the sadness and pain of our families of color. Let us pray for comfort for the grieving families and friends of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor, for peace for a hurting community and to know our work is not done until justice prevails.

Sincerely,

Kathleen R. Prebble
President and CEO

Jesus Christ is our model in all things.  –Blessed Basil Moreau

We're highlighting each of our #EmpoweredGirls in the Class of 2020. Included are the answers our seniors gave to a recent College Counseling survey and a photo.

In addition to our social media, the posts are available here.

We are so proud of all the accomplishments of our seniors!