Messages from the President
News from the Hill - Friday, October 24, 2025
Dear East Catholic Family,
The fall athletic regular season is coming to a close in some sports, and CCC league tournaments and CIAC state tournaments are kicking into gear. Please check out the athletics section below to follow who is playing, when, and where. Please come out and support our teams!
Our fall open house was a tremendous success. Over 145 families attended, and everyone I spoke to was impressed with our school, our students, and all that they learned about East. Many thanks to all involved: student ambassadors, faculty, staff, and parents! Entrance exams begin this weekend, and applications are already coming in. It is hard to believe that next year’s freshmen will be the class of 2030! I feel old.
The admissions office has also been busy hosting prospective students for shadow days through our Eagle for a Day program. Some students set up individual visits, but our Catholic feeder schools send their entire 8th grade for a day. Many students talk about their shadow experience as being instrumental in choosing East Catholic. To date, we have had over 120 shadows, which is ahead of last year’s number at this time. Many thanks to our student ambassadors for hosting!
Last Friday, when the students had the day off, the faculty and staff had a retreat day. This day is an opportunity for the adults who work at East Catholic to come together without students to get to know each other better and to spend time together, often away from the school building. This year we all met at the trailhead of Talcott Mountain in Simsbury. The day started with a reading from the Gospel of Luke 24:13-35, the Road to Emmaus, followed by a reflection by AJ Rocco, one of our campus ministers. We then hiked up the Talcott Mountain trail to the summit. At the top is the Heublein Tower, a seven-story home/museum that rises into the sky and includes a top floor that is all windows and provides a 360-degree view. It is spectacular! We had a great day.
Next week is the end of quarter one!
Should you have any questions, concerns, or celebrations, please be in touch.
Peace,
Sean P. Brennan ‘85
Chief Administrator
News from the Hill - Friday, October 10, 2025
Dear East Catholic Family,
As the fall colors begin to emerge, our East Catholic Eagles continue to do great work in the classrooms, on the athletic fields, and on the stage. The faculty report that the new cell phone rule is making students more focused and engaged in the classroom, which is great news.
I would like to thank our safety committee, headed up by Dean Reilly, for their change to morning drop off procedures. It seems to be working very well, as there is much less congestion at the school’s entrance. Please remain alert as you drive through the parking lot, keeping an eye out for students walking from their cars as well as students parking in their spots.
We had a great tailgate before the football team’s first home game. It was a beautiful day, and it was nice to see so many families. Many thanks to the Parents’ Association, Club Med, the Students of Color Union, girls’ basketball, and other faculty and staff who had tables set up with food and beverage. We are hoping to do more of these in the future.
On Thursday, October 2 we celebrated mass with fourteen Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, the founding order for East Catholic High School. When the school opened in 1961 there were seven sisters working here. Over the next 60 years, a total of 71 sisters worked at East. We are fortunate to have one sister still working here, and Sister Peggy is an institution at East, now in her 58th year! Following the mass, we officially dedicated the grotto around the statue of Mary that we salvaged from the Convent Chapel. Father Daniel blessed the grotto and Sister Peggy said a few words with the whole school wrapped around the beautiful space.
On Wednesday, October 8 we inducted the latest group of National Honor Society members. There were 38 total inductees (7 from the Class of 2026 and 31 from the Class of 2027). The NHS officers confidently led the ceremony. Many thanks to Derek Macaluso, Kathleen DePasquale, Lucy DeCorleto, and Renee Carras for their leadership. It was, as usual, a lovely ceremony with many families in attendance to celebrate their child’s accomplishment.
Next week we will have our fall open house on Thursday, October 16. This is always a well-attended event. Please spread the word to friends who might be interested in sending their children to East Catholic.
Three weeks until the end of quarter one!
Should you have any questions, concerns, or celebrations, please be in touch.
Peace,
Sean P. Brennan ‘85
Chief Administrator
News from the Hill - Friday, September 26, 2025
Dear East Catholic Family,
Everyone seems to be hitting their stride for the 2025–26 school year. It was great to see so many parents on campus for back to school night. The night went well, and many parents commented on how impressed they were with our teachers. We are blessed to have so many excellent mentors for your children.
We also had great turnout for our first Parents’ Association meeting of the year. The dates for all future meetings are listed below. Please try to come and join in learning about ways to get involved. If nights are not good for you, please consider coming to a Coffee and Conversation meeting with me and other administrators throughout the year. Those dates are also listed below. Hope to see you at one or the other!
One month into the fall sports season, we are off to a great start. Here are the records for our teams as of September 25, 2025:
- Girls Soccer: 7-0-0 (currently ranked #1 in the state for Class L)
- Boys Soccer: 5-2-2 (currently ranked #12 in the state for Class S)
- Field Hockey: 0-5-2
- Football: 1-1
- Volleyball: 6-2 (currently ranked #15 in the state for Class S)
- Girls Swimming: 3-1
- Cross Country: The team has 35 co-ed runners. A big squad!
Girls and boys soccer teams are both playing at Trinity Health Stadium in Hartford this afternoon and evening. Both teams are playing Manchester High School. The girls’ game begins at 4:00 p.m., and the boys will follow at 6:15 p.m. Please come out and support. On Saturday, the football team has their first home game against Branford at noon. Please join in on the tailgate happening in the senior lot beginning at 10:00 a.m.
On Thursday, we had an all-school assembly with the Manchester Police Department to do some active shooter training. While we hate to have to cover such a difficult topic, we want to do all we can to make our school as safe, but also prepared, as we can. The students were very attentive, and we would like to thank Lt. Monge and Sgt. Williams for their time and excellent presentation.
We also had our annual club fair on Thursday afternoon. 17 clubs set up tables in the cafeteria, so students could learn more about the various club opportunities offered here at East. I would like to thank the moderators and club members for their work in preparing for the fair. Please encourage your sons or daughters to get involved.
Should you have any questions, concerns, or celebrations, please be in touch.
Peace,
Sean P. Brennan ‘85
Chief Administrator
News from the Hill - Friday, September 12, 2025
Dear East Catholic Family,
The 2025–26 school year is off to a great start! After a week of orientation days, we started classes after Labor Day. There is a palpable difference throughout the school, however, due to the change in cell phone policy. After lengthy discussions, we have decided that cell phones will not be accessed throughout the school day. I had no idea how students would respond, but they have been incredibly compliant. Now when students are eating lunch they are actually talking with each other. In the hallways between classes everyone is greeting each other and giving high fives. The teachers are seeing more engagement in class discussions. Eliminating the distraction of their phones has made our wonderful learning environment even more vibrant. Clearly, the decision was a good one.
This year’s theme is accountability, and we wrapped up the first week of classes with our first all-school mass and convocation. This year’s speaker was Cheryl Sharp, deputy director of the Connecticut Human Rights and Opportunities organization. Ms. Sharp discussed her successful career as a lawyer and human rights advocate. She spoke of the importance of mercy and grace in a challenging world. We were blessed to hear from her.
On Thursday of this week, many parents joined us for back to school night. It was great to see many familiar faces and some new faces as well. It was clear that the parents are fully on board with no cell phones during the school day as the auditorium erupted in applause when I mentioned the new policy and the positive results.
We wrapped up week two with another speaker, John Halligan, who spoke of his son Ryan’s tragic death following years of bullying. Mr. Halligan poignantly spoke of the horrible pain and suffering that bullying causes. While we do not have a terrible problem with bullying here at East Catholic, we are not immune from it, and we are making it a priority this year and future years to address any unkind acts. We will be keeping the topic at the forefront and have made it clear that there is a zero-tolerance approach going forward.
It has been great to see our fall sports teams in action and doing so well. Stage East rehearsals are in full swing as well. There are so many activities going on, and I encourage all of our students to get involved! Looking forward to a great year!
Should you have any questions, concerns, or celebrations, please be in touch.
Peace,
Sean P. Brennan ‘85
Chief Administrator