News

Students in seventh grade recently completed their studies on cells and the human body with a series of experiments related to the five senses. Each student had to come up with their own experiment for each of the five senses.Students tested their fellow classmates, recorded results, and then wrote their experiment in scientific method to share their results with fellow classmate scientists. They enjoyed going from station to station participating in the different experiments. In the end students had a better understanding of the complexities of each of our senses.

What a busy day! Thank goodness that Mrs. Shumny had extra help with three assistant Principals – Miss B, Mr. D and Miss G. ACS has been giving chances to students every time they and their parents fill out one of their AdvancEd Surveys. We use this data to gather information for our Catholic School re-accreditation which will be up for renewal the next school year. Today, was a day to celebrate our winners – 8 students received free ice cream, 7 free lunch and the most exciting part is that the acting Principals for the day gave a free dress down day to all the students and teachers. It was a win and Mrs. Shumny appreciated all the help in the office.

With Holy Week and Easter just around the corner, students of Assumption Catholic School in Perth Amboy, NJ are immersing themselves in a variety of spiritual activities and service projects denoting the Lenten season. Recently the seventh and eighth grade students of ACS, welcomed the seventh and eighth grade students, teachers, principals and pastors from St. Nicholas School, Minersville, PA and St. Nicholas School, Passaic, NJ for a day of retreat presented by Very Rev. Robert Hitchens, Rector of St. Josaphat Ukrainian Catholic Seminary of the Ukrainian Archeparchy of Philadelphia. The event was filled with a great reflections of the great speaker Fr. Robert, spiritual time and making a craft. This retreat was a great opportunity for students from different schools to focus on their spiritual life, develop their faith and get to know new friends. “It exceeded our expectations” was a comment heard again and again from the participants who were impressed both by the beauty of the church and functionality of the school and the wonderful hospitality they received from the ACS staff.

Youth Day on Saturday, June 8th, 2019 at the Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral in Philadelphia, as part of “From Heart to Heart” Enthronement of our new Metropolitan Archbishop Borys Gudziak.
The three Catholic schools of Philadelphia Archeparchy, the Assumption Catholic School, Perth Amboy, NJ, St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic School, Minersville, PA and St.Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic School, Passaic, NJ are asking youth from the Philadelphia Archeparchy as well as those in neighboring eparchies to come for a day of prayer and fun.
Program for the Day.
Saturday, June 8: Archieparchial Youth Day, “Heart to Heart”
Субота, 8 червня: Архиєпархіальний День Молоді – “Серце до Серця”
9:00 AM Matins / Утреня
10:00 AM Divine Liturgy / Божественна Літургія
12:30 PM Heart to Heart programs: presentations and interactive activities for children
Програма “Серце до Серця”: презентації та зайняття для дітей
2:00 PM Healing Service (for adults) / Відправа Зцілення (для дорослих)
3:00 PM Procession / Процесія
6:00 PM Concert and Evangelization program / Концерт та Євангелізаційна програма
9:00 PM Pentecost Vigil service / Нічні чування.

Our second Paint and Sip was a huge success! Our Art teacher for the night, Ms. Vivian, was excellent at guiding us in creating a beautiful sunset and palm tree scene. The event was sponsored by Investors Bank in Perth Amboy and we thank Mr. Weinstein, the Branch Manager for coordinating this event. Thank you to all our parents, our FSA, and friends who supported the event.

In celebration of finishing the Magic School Bus book Sink or Swim, Mrs. Lawrence’s second graders had an afternoon in Hawaii. Without leaving the classroom they learned about the many islands that comprise Hawaii, the distance from the contiguous United States, and made leis. By far the highlight of the experience was having pineapple and coconut. Now – where to next second graders? Also, the first three second grade students to reach their first reward in a long term reading project picked their prizes – a book! Well done! Yet the project continues and everyone will be a winner when each goal is achieved. We are so proud of them!

This past week in Math, the middle school created brochures for analyzing data using different types of charts including circle graphs, factoring polynomials, working with percents and proportions in the real world and being able to make educated predictions on real world trends. If followed, these brochures can be used as guides to solve all types of mathematical problems. The students enjoyed showing their work and sharing expertise on the subject!

On Monday, February 18th, 2019, the Vatican Information Service announced that the Holy Father has appointed Most Rev. Borys Gudziak as Archbishop of Philadelphia for Ukrainians and Metropolitan for the Ukrainian Catholic Church in USA and thus concurring with the recommendation of the appointment offered by the Synod of Ukrainian Catholic Bishops, which met in September of 2018 in Lviv, Ukraine.

The Archeparchy of Philadelphia was declared by Pope Francis as “sede vacante” following the resignation of Most Rev. Stefan Soroka on April 16, 2018. Most Rev. Andriy Rabiy was named by Pope Francis as the Apostolic Administrator of the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia until the appointment of the new Metropolitan-Archbishop.

At the present time Most Rev. Borys Gudziak serves as the eparch of St. Volodymyr the Great Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy, which includes France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxemburg and Switzerland. He is the founder and president of the Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv, Ukraine. In addition, Archbishop Borys is the head of Department of External Church Relations of the Ukrainian Catholic Church.

Bishop Andriy Rabiy, Apostolic Administrator, Bishop John Bura, Auxiliary Bishop, clergy, monastic orders and faithful of the Archeparchy of Philadelphia wholeheartedly and joyfully welcome the news and invite everyone to the installation of Most Rev. Borys Gudziak as the seventh Metropolitan-Archbishop for the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia, which will take place on Tuesday, June 4, 2019, at the Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Philadelphia, PA

Biography of Most Rev. Borys Gudziak, the  new Metropolitan-Archbishop of the Ukrainian Archeparchy of Philadelphia.

• Eparch (Bishop) of the Paris Eparchy (Diocese) of St. Volodymyr the Great for France, Switzerland and Benelux (Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church), member of the Conference of French Catholic Bishops (La Conférence des évêques de France)
• Head of the Department of External Church Relations and Member of the Permanent Synod of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church
• President of the Ukrainian Catholic University, Lviv, Ukraine

Borys Gudziak was born in 1960 in Syracuse, New York, the son of immigrants from Ukraine. He earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and biology from Syracuse University in 1980 and then studied in Rome, in the circle of Patriarch Josyf Slipyj. He received a STB degree in theology from the Pontifical Urban University in 1983 and then returned to America to pursue a doctorate in Slavic and Byzantine Cultural History at Harvard University, which he successfully defended in 1992. In 1995 he earned a licentiate in Eastern Christian studies from the Pontifical Oriental Institute.  

In 1992, he moved to Lviv where he founded and directed (1992-2002) the Institute of Church History. In 1993, he was appointed Chairman of the Commission for the Renewal of the Lviv Theological Academy. From 1995 until 2000, he served as Vice Rector of the Lviv Theological Academy, then as Rector from 2000 to 2002. In that year, Gudziak became Rector of the Ukrainian Catholic University (founded on the basis of the Academy), and in 2013 its President.

Borys Gudziak was ordained as a priest  on November 26, 1998.

In 2012 he was appointed Bishop of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxemburg and Switzerland. Bishop Borys also serves as a member of the Permanent Synod of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and as a head of the Department of External Church Relations. In 2016, with the help of American consultants with experience in church administration as well as business, Bishop Borys launched a program of strategic pastoral planning to create an eparchial vision for its future activity and growth, increased the number of priests and parishes, established a new financial model for the eparchy’s sustainability, and widely engaged the laity.

During the 2013-2014 Maidan movement for human dignity, Bishop Borys was an active supporter and appeared regularly on leading global TV channels and media providing expert commentary.  

Bishop Borys has received numerous awards and distinctions. In 2015 he became a Cavalier of the Order of Legion of Honor (Chevalier de l’Ordre national de la Légion d’honneur), the highest decoration in France. In 2016 he was awarded the Jan Nowak-Jeziorański Award in Wroclaw, Poland, in recognition for his work in shaping civil society in Central and Eastern Europe. In 2018 he received an honorary doctorate from his alma mater, Syracuse University, and a literary award from the Ukrainian chapter of PEN International. He travels globally with lectures and talks on theology, history, spirituality, education, society, and current challenges in Ukraine.

He speaks English, Ukrainian, Italian, Polish, French, Russian, and German. Bishop Gudziak is the author of a number of scholarly works, among them a doctoral dissertation on sixteenth-century church history, published as Crisis and Reform: The Kyivan Metropolitanate, the Patriarchate of Constantinople, and the Genesis of the Union of Brest (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1998), as well as numerous articles in European and North American academic journals. He has also penned articles in popular magazines, newspapers, commentary on political, cultural, and religious affairs, position papers on academic curricula and educational reform, and introductions to scholarly and spiritual publications. Bishop Borys is among the authors of A Pope Francis Lexicon,edited by Cindy Wooden and Joshua J McElwee (Collegeville, Minn.: Liturgical Press, 2017) and a collection of essays about the future of Europe. 

He continues to be an active member of the “Plast” Ukrainian Scouting Organization and the head of its supervisory board. Bishop Borys Gudziak is an honorary citizen of Lviv.

On any given Thursday afternoon when most students are on their way home, there is a small group of dedicated students busily working on recently started STREAM related projects. Members of ACS STREAM Club spent the first half of the year completing various activities that encouraged them to think outside of the box. After a slow start to the new year they have once again begun to pick up steam.

Students have come up with their own ideas about contributing positively to the world around them. They are currently either working in a small group or on their own making something they are interested in. Their projects range from making a new kind of slime to a prototype of a suitcase that will make travel much easier.The Club hopes to get their school community involved in a Maker Faire later this year.