New Student Support Team Excited to Serve

Barb Dawson • September 8, 2023

With the Goal of Supporting Student Success

Montini Catholic enthusiastically announced earlier this summer the addition of several new members to their newly titled Student Support Team (SST) (formerly known as their Human Services Committee). Under Principal Chris Tiritilli's leadership, the team is made up of a group of professional educators whose sole objective is to maximize student success by supporting their psychological, academic and social development.

"We meet weekly to review the needs of our students who may need additional support and interventions to promote their academic, social/emotional, attendance and disciplinary success," informed Mr. Tiritilli. "Our new Interim Assistant Principal for Student Services/Social Worker Ms. Rachel Weiss is uniquely equipped and skilled to lead this team forward and support their use of data-driven decision making and continual adoption of best practices to ensure we exhaust every resource and opportunity available to support our students."

Ms. Weiss is serving the students of Montini Catholic in a blended position - titled Interim Assistant Principal of Student Services/Social Worker. "Ms. Weiss brings a wide range of experiences with her to meet the diversity of this role," said Principal Tiritilli in his letter to the Montini community. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and earned her Masters Degree in Social Work from Aurora University with concentrations in child welfare and school social work. She later earned her Masters Degree in Educational Leadership & Administration from Concordia University. "She is a strong believer in working proactively with students, with a focus on strengthening “emotional intelligence” and social emotional learning (SEL) skills."

In addition to Ms. Weiss, Mrs. Stephanie Holcomb will act as the college preparatory high school's General School Counselor and Counseling Department Chair. Mrs. Holcomb joined the Montini community during the 2022-2023 school year as a long-term substitute. "She quickly demonstrated that she shared our Lasallian values and did a wonderful job supporting our students in her role," said Principal Tiritilli. "We are happy and excited to bring Mrs. Holcomb on board as a full time General School Counselor, where she will continue to support our students, staff and school." Mrs. Holcomb will utilize her years of experience as a high school counselor while providing leadership and direction to Montini's Counseling Department as the Department Chair.

Also new to the Student Support Team this year is Ms. Kaitlin Aylward, who is serving as Montini's General School Counselor. Ms. Aylward formerly served as assistant to the President and has also passionately devoted her time to Montini as an assistant Girls’ Basketball coach for the past several years. She will be completing her counseling internship and earning her Master’s Degree at the conclusion of the school year.

Rounding out the team is Mr. Kevin Bab who has served as Montini's college counselor since 2018.

In addition to this core Student Support Team, Montini's deans, Resource Coordinator and Signum Fidei Director will also assist in ensuring a healthy and successful year for Montini Catholic students.

"We are confident and excited about the forward progress of this important support team under the leadership of Ms. Weiss," says Principal Tiritilli. "Ultimately, our students will be the greatest benefactor of this group and their efforts!"

Image above: Montini Catholic's Student Support Team l to r: Kaitlyn Aylward, Rachel Weiss, Stephanie Holcomb and Kevin Bab

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Montini Welcomes DeAndre McCamey as Head Coach for Boys Varsity Basketball

By Barb Dawson • April 2, 2025

Montini Catholic is proud to announce the addition of DeAndre McCamey to their award winning coaching staff. The former Assistant Basketball Coach at Montini Catholic has been selected as the new Head Coach of the Boys Varsity Basketball Team. Coach McCamey played an integral role this past season in coaching the team to their 20-win plateau and their 4th consecutive regional championship. (The announcement followed that of former Head Coach Adam DeMong stating that he was going to be stepping away from High School basketball to pursue greater opportunities in his professional career.) "We set out to find the best individual who can build upon our recent success and continue to grow and move our program forward," said Athletic Director, Brian Casey. "We knew we wanted to find a high character individual who can not only teach the game of basketball, but can positively impact the lives of our young people. After a number of conversations with area 'basketball people', college coaches, opposing basketball coaches, school administration, faculty and staff and many of our current Montini players & families, it was very clear that our next coach was already in our building." Coach McCamey's promotion comes after serving as an Assistant Coach at Montini for the last four seasons. Prior to Montini, Coach McCamey served as an Assistant Coach at St. Joseph High School in Westchester, under the tutelage of legendary basketball coach, Gene Pingatore. Coach McCamey has also coached at Glenbard East High School, as well as on the AAU Circuit with the Illinois Wolves. "DeAndre will bring a passionate, enthusiastic energy and a vision to enhance and grow the program for even more success in future seasons," added Casey. "Being a full-time member of our Math Department, Coach McCamey will have full access to the student-athletes in our program, year round, to ensure their day-to-day development in the classroom, on the court, and in their lives. I am excited to watch Coach turn his vision into a reality!" Coach McCamey has made it evident in the way he coaches and teaches that he is passionate about building a program at Montini Catholic that instills character, teamwork and resilience. "I am genuinely thrilled about this opportunity and the chance to work with our kids. I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to Montini students, faculty and staff for their congratulations and support as I step into the role of Head Varsity Boys Basketball Coach. Building a basketball program has always been a dream of mine. As I step into this role, I am filled with excitement and passion for the journey ahead. My goal is to not only build and develop the skills of our young athletes on the court but also to instill values that will serve them well in life beyond basketball. I believe that through hard work, dedication, and teamwork, we can build not just great players, but great young men. I firmly believe that a strong program is defined by the continued involvement and support of its community, including former players and their families." Image above: Coach DeAndre McCamey and Montini Athletic Director Brian Casey

World Language Inductees Celebrated

By Barb Dawson • March 27, 2025

Montini Catholic in Lombard congratulated the newest inductees into their Spanish, Chinese and French Honor Societies. This year's ceremony was held on Wednesday, March 26th in the lLasallian college preparatory high school's auditorium. Members and families were welcomed by Montini's Foreign Language Department Chair, Mrs. Jennifer Block along with French teacher, Mrs. Beth DiMarco, Chinese teacher Mrs. Sumin Xu and Spanish teacher, Mrs. Makenzie Long. The ceremony began with select language students reciting the 'Hail Mary' prayer in Chinese, French, and Spanish. "Tonight, we recognize an extraordinary group of students - young scholars who have demonstrated not only academic excellence but also perseverance, curiosity, and a deep commitment to language learning," said Mrs. Block. "Over the past three or four years, they have risen to the challenges of mastering a new language all while navigating its complexities with determination and enthusiasm. More than just excelling in their studies, they have embraced the beauty of communication across cultures: fostering connections that extend far beyond the classroom. Their dedication to linguistic and cultural understanding is both inspiring and commendable, and we are so proud to celebrate their achievements tonight. We as their teachers get to see them taking risks every day in class, and putting in the hard work to excel- we are so glad that they are being celebrated this evening." French Honor Society: The French Honor Society is a nationally recognized organization that honors students who have excelled not only in their French courses but in all of their courses at Montini. Additionally, these students must take French 4 or 4H next year to finish out their four years of French, or be a graduating senior who elected to take level 3 their senior year. They must be members of our French club and have an average GPA of 3.5 or higher in their French courses over the course of three years. Chinese Honor Society: The National Chinese Honor Society (NCHS) was established in 1993 to recognize those accomplished high school students who study Chinese as a world language. To be eligible for induction, students must maintain an average of 93 or higher and commit to pursuing language study throughout their four years at Montini. Eligibility requires that students have a cumulative 3.5 GPA, including a 4.0 GPA in their specific language, as well as a commitment to taking the foreign language all four years at Montini. This year 18 students were inducted into their respective language honor society. Spanish Honor Society: The Spanish Honor Society was founded by the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese in 1953, for the students of North American secondary schools; The name of Montini Catholic's chapter is San Juan Butista de la Salle with the motto, “Todos a una”, “All together.” Students must maintain a 95 or higher in three prior semesters for Spanish to be eligible for Honor Society status. Congratulations to: Chinese Honor Society Inductees Michael May '26 Thomas Healy '26 French Honor Society Inductees Julia Ciaccio '26 Harry (Harold) Hall '26 Aubrey Podojil '26 Sophia Torres '26 Spanish Honor Society Inductees Sofia Flores '26 Savannah Gutierrez '26 Blake Heyer '26 Karissa Jones '26 Jonathan Kosinski '26 Ashlynn Lindt '26 Nicole Navarro '26 Yeon (Seoyeon) Park '26 Gabby (Mary Gabrielle) Paulino '26 Valentina Serna '25 Jackson Simek '25 Mia (Maria) Torres '26 Image above: Spanish Honor Society Inductees l to r: Sofia Flores, Savannah Gutierrez, Blake Heyer, Karissa Jones, Jonathan Kosinski, Ashlynn Lindt, Nicole Navarro, Gabby Paulino, Valentina Serna and Mia Torres;

Spring Musical Leaves Audiences Amazed!

By Barb Dawson • March 26, 2025

Montini Catholic High School drama students are basking in the glow of their rave reviews after the success of the Spring Musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Andrew Lloyd Webber's sung-through musical, directed by Ms. Jackie Martin, absolutely captivated audiences with a total of five performances from March 13 through the 17th (Opening Night - Friday, March 14th). "The production process for this show involved over sixty students all coming together to create a very special experience for our audience," said Ms. Martin who is enjoying her 6th play as director and her 3rd year directing Montini Catholic theatre. "Their dedication and enthusiasm shined as brightly as Joseph's coat! " The students were thrilled to be able to participate in a special Faculty/Staff performance on March 13th as well as a performance for grade school students from St. Pius X Parish School and St. Mary of Gostyn School (Friday, November 14th) followed by a 'talkback' - answering questions and describing what it takes to bring a musical production to life. "The kids really rose to the challenge," added Music Director Donnie Glowinski. "You could tell from the table read, they were invested and prepared to make this one of the best productions in Montini Theater history. I was so happy with their performances. They worked very hard to convey the story through music and pulled it off! Every year, they seem to take the goals and expectations that we have and completely blow them out of the water!" In addition to her talented cast and crew, Ms. Martin was grateful to be able to lean on the expertise of Montini's Music Director and Fine Arts Chair, Mr. Donnie Glowinski and costume designer (and teacher) Mrs. Beth DiMarco. She also thanked set designers, Mr. Charlie Brewick and Mr. Jeff Nowicki. Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's retelling of the biblical story of Joseph reminds us that dreams can shape our destiny, and kindness and forgiveness triumph over hardship.