Education
Sunday School
The Cathedral’s Sunday School program is the oldest in the DC-metropolitan area. Spanning generations, this program nurtures our most precious resource, our youth. Children raised in this program are taught the spiritual values of Greek Orthodoxy and the rich customs and traditions of the Greek culture.
Our Sunday School, equipped with the latest and best teaching aids, a sound yet flexible curriculum, and staff by qualified teachers, has the following three goals:
- To educate our children spiritually and morally, in accordance with the teachings of Jesus Christ and the faith and traditions of the Greek Orthodox Church
- To develop in our children the habit of attending church regularly, studying the Scriptures, and participating conscientiously in the worship and sacramental life of our church
- To cultivate in our children a Greek Orthodox conscience and devotion to our ideals and to prepare them so that they become faithful and devoted dynamic members of our church, our community, and our country
Today, our Sunday School has an enrollment of over 300 students and 15 classes. Please also see our community calendar or 2012-2013 tentative schedule for related dates and events.
To register for Sunday School, please contact the Cathedral office at 202-333-4730 or download the Sunday School registration form (PDF).
Classes
In their classes at school, the Sunday School has grouped its children according to age to maintain continuity across groups. The minimum enrollment age is three years old and runs through age 18. Of note, at age 14, the boys enter our altar boy program for one year.
Term
The Sunday School term runs from the fourth Sunday of September and extends through the third Sunday in May.
Hours
Students are required to be in the church building by 10:00 a.m. and remain until they have been dismissed by their teacher (usually around 11:50 a.m.).
Contributions
A $20.00 registration fee is paid per child at the beginning of the Sunday School year. In addition, students are encouraged to make weekly offerings to the donations tray, which is circulated throughout the classrooms. The registration fee and contributions help pay for our books, white boards, visual aids and other school supplies.
Classrooms
Sunday School classes are held in the Frosene Education Center which is connected to the Cathedral via the ground level.
Curriculum
The Cathedral’s Sunday School curriculum is tailored to meet children’s spiritual needs across various ages. For the younger children, the curriculum tends to focus on the child’s individual needs and deals with Christianity in general terms. The curriculum flexes to the children’s interests and desires making the learning process enjoyable and fun. For the older children, the curriculum becomes more systematic, but drives the students to voice their own thoughts and opinions. The subject matter is primarily centered on the religious traditions in the Greek Orthodox Church, but will frequently apply religious learning to real-world situations and events. The goal for our older children is to help them apply the fundamentals of Christianity in their life journey and everyday interactions.
Teen Talk
Teen Talk is a brand new ministry of Saint Sophia Cathedral that focuses on the teenagers (ages 13 to 18) of our parish. Father Dimitri meets with the students in the Youth Room for a relevant and pertinent discussion on faith, family, and the role of church in our lives.
The theme for 2013 is, “The person of Christ: from the perspective of Saint John the Evangelist.”
Teen Talk is a discussion based class that relies on input from all the students as well as their teachers. This is an open forum that provides our teenagers with a place to discuss difficult situations that are occurring within each of their lives.
To find out more about this exciting ministry please contact Fr. Dimitrios Lee at fr.dimitri.lee@gmail.com.
Saint Sophia Oratorical Club
The Cathedral’s teenagers are invited to join the Saint Sophia Oratorical Club to learn about speech writing and to prepare speeches for the annual Saint John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival. Open to all teenagers from 7th – 12th grade, the group will meet monthly to develop speeches, learn about what makes a powerful presentation and to critically evaluate their own opinions and the church’s stance on timely topics. The Saint Sophia team will compete against Sunday School students from across the archdiocese during three rounds of competition: our district level competition in D.C. in March, a regional level in New York or Connecticut in May and the final archdiocese level at rotating locations nationwide in June.
To join or learn more, please contact Amanda Lockhart at amanda.k.lockhart@gmail.com.
Oratorical Contest Topics 2013
Announcements
- Sunday School starts Sunday, September 16, 2012 at 10:00AM
- Letter from the Academic Dean and Administrator
- Saint Sophia Welcome Back Picnic
- Sunday School Letter from the Academic Dean(s) November-December 2012
Teaching Staff
The program is run by over 30 dedicated volunteer teachers and staff, many of whom are graduates of the program themselves. The staff bring a variety of backgrounds to further enrich the Sunday School program and include public and private school teachers, academics, professionals, and, of course, mothers and fathers of some of the children. This tight knit group extends back over 50 years with teachers touching generations of the cathedral’s youth.
Academic Dean: Diane Cerniglia (Upper School)
Academic Dean: Stracie Maniatis (Lower School)
Administrator: Vivian Kambanis 301-570-4432
Sunday School Staff 2011-2012
Nursery / Age 3: Diane Stratakos, Maria Spanos, Alicia Clark
Pre-Kindergarten / Age 4: Lynne Courtney, Mary Ann Nasou
Kindergarten / Age 5: Mary Cranford
1st Grade / Age 6: Carol Trigonoplos, Pam Glekas-Spring
2nd Grade / Age 7: Stracie Maniatis, Pam Lewton
3rd Grade / Age 8: Kelly Tanzi
4th Grade / Age 9: Eugenia Ufholz, Christina Ufholz
5th Grade / Age 10: Jacob Clark, Maria Rios
6th Grade / Age 11: Jim Polis
7th Grade / Age 12: Van Andros
8th Grade / Age 13: Joanne Kenny
9th Grade / Age 14: Margo Anderson
Altar Boys: Pete Sbily
10th Grade / Age 15: Jane Walsh
11th Grade / Age 16: Alexandra Heliotis
12th Grade / Age 17 – 18: Diane Cerniglia, Amanda Lockhart
Registering for Sunday School
To register for Sunday School, please contact the Cathedral office at 202-333-4730 or download the Sunday School registration form (PDF). There is a $20.00 per child registration fee.