Inside the Bruin Learning Center

This school year, St. Bede’s Academic Achievement office transformed into a learning resource center that has been an effective resource for any student seeking out assistance in homework, organization or studying.

The Bruin Learning Center – or BLC – has been keeping students on track in challenging courses or who are needing that extra help outside of class with assignments. The program has continued to grow and track increased success throughout its first semester.

Before the BLC, the Academic Achievement was only geared for students needing accommodations through a service plan or 504 plan.

BLC Director Abigail (Milus) Nambo ’12 said it’s been her goal to provide an effective learning environment where students feel comfortable asking for help, whether it be help advocating for themselves, studying, organization or just a comfortable space for them to be in.

“It has been exciting and promising watching the Bruin Learning Center evolve this year and the collaboration that has happened amongst the students within the room. Students have bonded and have willingly helped others without hesitation,” she said. 

Alongside Nambo is BLC tutor Pam Wright whose role is to create a better understanding of the material students have in their curriculums.

“Working in the BLC with students has been very rewarding. Every hour is different, with different challenges to face,” she said.

Wright also assists students with homework assignments, prepares them for quizzes and tests and teaches students to be more organized and efficient with their studies. For the 504 and ISP students, she administers tests and is a test proctor.

“The students are very respectful and willing to learn and grasp the information needed to accomplish their homework or to prepare for a test or quiz. They understand we are here to help them and they appreciate the help we do,” she said. “The students who come into the BLC create a comradery with each other and also try to help each other when possible. I have seen a big improvement in the students’ grades, as well as their attitude and self confidence from being more self-reliant.”

Wright and Nambo also work collaboratively with Social Worker Megan Theisinger, Academic Counselor Theresa Bernabei and Principal Nick McLaughlin while utilizing a tiered intervention program that provides students the necessary tools to be successful.

“We are able to bridge communication gaps, catch concerns early on and implement a plan for the student,” Nambo said, adding this sort of close collaboration is what sets St. Bede apart from other schools.

In its first semester, the team has witnessed several successes – big and small. One worth mentioning is the students who utilize the BLC regularly, which has resulted in them dropping off the eligibility report.

As the BLC continues to grow and fulfill needs of the students, Nambo is also working on a plan to extend the BLC’s peer tutoring program to local grade schools.

College outlook for our seniors

As we write this newsletter, the seniors are taking their last winter finals. There's only one more semester to go for them here at St. Bede. It's an exciting time, but there is still lots to do before they are ready to take the next step on to college.

It’s a busy season for Academic Counselor Theresa Bernabei who works one-on-one with students offering guidance while mapping out degree objectives and requirements for college.

Approximately half of this year’s senior class plans to attend a four-year college. Between 25-30% of seniors have plans to attend Illinois Valley Community College in Oglesby and about 10% have plans of going into a union trade.

Of those students going on to college, about 65% have reported they would like to go into a STEM-related field, 10% have reported they would like to go into business, criminal justice, social work, education, the arts or other and 15% are still undecided.

Most seniors who plan to go to college completed their applications before November 1 – we have many students who have already been accepted to 4-year colleges, including Youngstown State University in Ohio, Illinois State University, Iowa State University, University of Wisconsin Madison, University of Iowa, Augustana College, University of St. Francis, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and others.

Many students are now busily searching for scholarships to help offset tuition. Some students are still visiting colleges and comparing programs. In January, students will begin filling out the FAFSA for federal student aid, student loans and grants. Bernabei plans to host a FAFSA workshop on January 24th to assist students and parents.

After the FAFSA is submitted, in mid-late January, students will begin receiving financial aid packets and scholarship information from their colleges. Offers will then be compared, maybe a second visit to the college is made, before a final decision is given.

Students have until May 1 to accept a college offer and only one offer can be accepted.

Our students have applied to colleges all over the country. Here are just to name a few: Loyola University in Chicago, Boston University, Yale University, Michigan State University, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, University of Illinois Chicago, Bradley University in Peoria, Saint Mary’s, Norte Dame, IN, University of Syracuse, NY, Rochester Institute of Technology, NY and Stanford University.

St. Bede’s Academic Counselor Theresa Bernabei

Spotlight on SBA Wrestling

This month’s Athletics Spotlight Article has been contributed by Sam Bima, class of 2024.

In this month’s article, I would like to highlight a winter sport that doesn’t get a lot of recognition, Wrestling. Wrestling has been one sport that has been a part of my life since I could remember - whether it was my father showing me videos of Hulk Hogan lifting up Andre the Giant over his head or staying up late on Sunday nights in April watching WrestleMania.

One thing I realized quick during my time in high school is that WWE and SBA wrestling are polar opposites. Wrestling is a very interesting sport. You always need to keep your head on a swivel and be ready to make your next move at any time. In this article, I talk about the current state our wrestling team is in and I get the opportunity to sit down with Senior Captains Hunter Savage and Casey Shearer. We also get to hear from Freshman Gavin Gillan about differences between youth wrestling and high school and the ins and outs of being a freshman wrestler.

Mr. Sam Allen, who is in his seventh year of being the head coach of the wrestling program, had lost two four-year wrestlers in Michael Shaw ‘23 and Ryan Migliorini ’23 over the last year. He also lost a two-time sectional qualifying junior, Jake Migliorini ’25, since he had made the switch to play basketball for the Bruins. Even with the losses, he still has managed to maintain an experienced roster. The Bruins are headlined by Seniors Hunter Savage, Casey Shearer, Yigit Arslan and Evan Englehaupt, while Juniors Logan Pineda, Garrett Connelly, Marco Rizzi, Jack Maschmann, Jordan Conventry and Grady Gillan are tough opponents on opposing teams' radars. Only two underclassmen make the cut for the Bruins’ lineup in Sophomore Weston Heersink and Freshman Gavin Gillan.  I have first-hand experience of this team and I’ve seen the hard work that they have poured into this season and also seasons in the past. The individual records of the wrestlers are a piece of evidence that mental toughness and passion for the sport is evident with these young men.

Savage, a four-year varsity letterman for the Bruins, told me that wrestling is a sport that has taught him a lot about himself. He said, “It is a very mentally and physically demanding sport.” The Bruin Wrestling Program has developed to such a strong fraternity that past wrestlers under Coach Allen will come back to visit and workout with the team. Savage also stated the athletes before him changed him for the best “as a person and a wrestler.”

Shearer, a senior captain who transferred over in the middle of last season, said that wrestling seemed like a fit for him because he knew people that were on the team and his prior school didn’t offer wrestling unlike St. Bede. He also said that some of the life lessons that he had learned from this sport “will be with him for the rest of his life” and he will always have a “soft spot in his heart for wrestling”.

Savage and Shearer, alike, played football for the Bruins this past fall. Savage said, “Wrestling translates to football unlike other sports.”

He spoke highly about the different aspects of each sport that translates to each other. Shearer said, “without wrestling and football, I would not have made the friends that have made my time at St. Bede so special.”

Gillan, a freshman from Peru Catholic, made his first varsity appearance on the wrestling team this winter. He said there is a major difference in youth wrestling and high school wrestling. Gillan talked about the different moves that are taught in youth and high school.

He said, “the intensity of practices in high school don’t compare to youth wrestling.”

He is one of two underclassmen on the roster for the Bruins. He believes that with roster filled with juniors and seniors, “he has made his presence known” and they have taught him so much more about a sport that he thought he knew a lot about. Gillan has an older brother on the team, Grady, he said, “it is so much fun that I can share a love for a sport with my older brother” and also, “he has taught me a lot.”

“Coach Sam Allen has a wonderful group of young men that he gets to call his team. Wrestling is a sport that lasts with you forever and it shows that each and every one, that wrestles or has wrestled, has a dire mentality to win and out-work everyone. The alumni that I have talked to or met, carry this throughout their lives as well. I want to wish the SBA Wrestling team good luck on the rest of their season and seasons to come ahead,” - Sam Bima, class of 2024

Sam Bima, class of 2024

An eye on our social work

As Thanksgiving 2023 comes to a close, I continue to be grateful for St. Bede and all of the blessings it regularly brings me personally and professionally. I am especially grateful to report on the number of students who have benefited from this new position in such a short time.  

At the end of the day before Thanksgiving break, 89 students (36% of student body) have come to see me over the course of 194 visits, because they have needed to talk or just wanted someone to listen. 

There have been:

• 22 freshmen (37% of freshman class, 9% of student body.)

• 12 sophomores (17% of sophomore class, 5% of student body.)

• 24 juniors (34% of junior class, 10% of student body.)

• 31 seniors (48% of senior class, 13% of student body.)

More specifically, I have seen 19 males and 70 females. Students have been in for as few as five minutes and as many as 90 minutes, for an average of 22 minutes per social work visit depending on the situation. Not included in these numbers are those students who were administered our in-person social-emotional screening, pop in between classes to say hello, update me on a previously-discussed situation in passing, ask for a prayer and good thoughts before a test, borrow an anxiety-reducing tool or take a piece of candy. What a privilege it has been to watch this office take on such a life of its own! 

Having a social worker at school in a full-time capacity is new for many of our day students. In our rural community, more times than not, IF a social worker is available at their grade school, they are often shared by more than one building, more than one district, or they are spread over too many students! For those students who come from our local Catholic or other private grade schools, having a social worker at school is even more of a foreign concept. Of the 89 students who have been seen, 79 of them are day students (or 37% the day student population.) 

Mental health support and social-emotional support is even more of an unknown territory for our international students as this is not a service provided or encouraged in many of their home countries, especially in their schools. It is with this knowledge that I am especially pleased to report that 10 of the 89 students who have been in are international students or (30% of the international student population.) It is an honor to work with such a diverse population while also being culturally sensitive.

It’s been an exciting and busy first semester getting to know so many of our incredible students and being who they need when they need it for problems and situations of all sizes. Of the 194 times that a student has come in seeking or being referred for support, 118/194 (61%) of them have been self-directed by the students! I am so proud of our students for advocating for themselves and being open to a new adult guiding them. 

It is with a grateful heart that I look forward to continuing this important work as we end fall semester and prepare for spring semester! - Submitted by Megan (Considine) Theisinger '09, St. Bede Social Worker.

International students get a taste of Thanksgiving traditions

Over Thanksgiving break, members of our faculty and staff had the opportunity to share their holiday traditions with our international students. The students had expressed interest in experiencing an American Thanksgiving – from helping cook and prepare meals to joining in for all the good eats.

Julia Yaklich, St. Bede’s Director of Mission Advancement and Major Gifts, spent her Thanksgiving with Guatemalan students Luis Monroy, a sophomore, and Adriana Perez, a junior.  They spent the day at Julia’s son’s home, Jon Yaklich ’17, in Mahomet, IL. Julia said they had a nice ride down from St. Bede and spoke about their families and Guatemala. She went through what the typical Thanksgiving meal consists of and the students were especially excited for turkey. They had a great time carving it and did a fine job, Yaklich said. They enjoyed a traditional Thanksgiving meal with turkey, sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, pumpkin cheesecake and an attempt at a pecan pie on the grill, which didn’t turn out as well as they hope, but they all got a great laugh out of it.

Dan Fitzpatrick, St. Bede Science Teacher, took home Chinese students Viola Ren, a sophomore, and Gordon Chen, a junior, and Ukrainian student, Mark Rudenko, a sophomore. They took part in the Fitzpatrick traditions by helping carve turkey and cook side dishes, and also enjoyed enriching conversations. Following dinner, the students joined the family on their traditional walk on the farm where they took part in making cider.

Fitzpatrick said students were surprised by the abundance and diversity of foods in their household. At the Fitzpatrick household, Thanksgiving dinner featured wild foods, such as smoked venison, offering students unique flavors. The students said their favorite foods were turkey and Fitzpatrick’s mother’s meatballs.

Glenda Smith, St. Bede History Teacher, took home Vietnamese student Lin Lee, a junior, and Mexican student Beatriz Vasquez, a junior. Both girls enjoyed meeting the family cat, Stormi, and getting to know the Smith family. They watched the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on TV with the family while Glenda finished cooking dinner. They were part of the family’s 10-members at the dinner table.

The girls didn’t hesitate to try the dishes and even enjoyed pie for dessert.

“They were happy to participate in our celebration. I think I heard (from the kitchen) some of my family members asking them questions about holidays and traditions they have back home and how they celebrate them and they were happy to share,” Smith said. “They were really surprised about the number of rooms we have in our house … What surprised them the most was that we have an iguana who lives in the bathroom of the guest bathroom upstairs during the winter. I am not sure either of them had ever seen an iguana before.”