Service & Leadership

Our Lady of Guadalupe School works in partnership with each student’s family to create a nurturing environment in which students are challenged and supported to grow intellectually and spiritually, in service and leadership. As a ministry of the Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish, we share a commitment to social justice, community service, environmental education and stewardship. Thus, it is within this context that OLG places a strong emphasis in service, rooted in faith and tied to Catholic Social Teaching.

Catholic teaching views leadership as a calling or charism whereby leadership is a gift to serve God and humanity, and not for personal gain. It involves treating all those around us equally, as well as serving everyone, while collaborating with others for a common good.

At OLG, service learning and the notion of community are naturally incorporated into almost every activity from PreSchool up to Eight Grade. Through age-appropriate service projects, our students can connect service learning in the classroom with real-world experiences in the community. This emphasis in service nurtures students who are genuinely engaged in their local communities, allows them to gain practical skills, develop their career and personal interests as they move into Middle School, and grow and mature as more engaged citizens. Our students, from a very young age, enthusiastically look for opportunities to serve others and make a difference in the lives of those around them.

Once they reach Middle School, OLG students, and particularly our future graduates, thrive when given a chance to lead and be of service to others. They learn and understand the importance of what they are doing and enthusiastically respond to the respect and responsibility given to them. Such opportunities can play a big part in affirming self-esteem and self-confidence. Thus, our OLG 8th Graders are recognized for their ability to demonstrate the characteristics of leadership, empathy, listening, respect, stewardship and commitment towards service.

Leadership in Action: Family Groups

Compassion and empathy are synonymous with personal responsibility. Young leaders need to understand their responsibility to younger students and their own peers. Our future graduates have the opportunity to be inspirational role models to younger children through our Family Groups. As students learn elementary levels of responsibility they can be entrusted with greater responsibilities. First, students learn how to be responsible for themselves; then they learn how to be responsible for things; and finally they learn how to be responsible for people. The school understands that learning responsibility takes time and there will be mistakes. But thanks to their enriching educational journey at OLG, leadership flourishes naturally in our students and this is why our 8th Graders are also entrusted to be Catholic teaching role models and lead Faith Family Groups, being responsible for creating themed activities and leading multi-grade level groups in prayer, liturgy and stewardship over the course of the year.

Service in Action:

Our school established a Service Stewardship Program in 2001. The goal was simple; to make giving back to the community a life long activity. From PreSchool through Eighth Grade, all classes have an age-appropriate activity, that goes from learning about the Child Life program at Seattle Children’s Hospital, to collecting books to learn or maintaining the Fauntleroy Creek watershed. This way, students learn about the underlying social or environmental issues, connect with local organizations, and reflect on their experiences. Typically, family members have opportunities to participate as well.

As students continue their OLG journey and education, once in Eight Grade, they complete their final Service Project through a partnership with Silver Kite, an organization that specializes in facilitating research-based site specific intergenerational programs. Thus, together with Providence Mount St. Vincent (aka “The Mount) our students participate in intergenerational learning and form meaningful irreplaceable relationships with others. One connection at a time, they strive to make a difference in others’ lives, promote joy, build relationships, and strengthen communities. Through this Class Service Project, they get to enhance their understanding of Catholic Social Teaching and one of its key themes: Life and Dignity of the Human Person. This invaluable experience truly allows our future graduates to embrace the rich treasure of wisdom of Catholic Social Teaching about building a just society and living lives of holiness amidst the challenges of modern society.

It is our goal to leave students with a lasting impression that it is their duty and responsibility to “give back.” Children must grow in awareness that they are part of a whole. The blessings and benefits they enjoy in life have been generated by others. Gratitude must follow, and to whatever degree possible, young teens should learn to demonstrate their gratitude.

Missionary Discipleship

At OLG, students learn that Jesus reached out to people on the margins of society and are invite and encouraged to do the same. The Missionary Discipleship Institute (MDI) consists of three classroom units to provide a framework and process for students to encounter, recognize, and appreciate the presence of God’s love in their lives, grow together in understanding of that love in relationship with Jesus Christ, and discern and respond to the implications of that love as a community of missionary disciples. The MDI is part of the core 7th Grade Religion curriculum and in their final year at OLG, our future graduates incorporate the spirit of missionary discipleship in their Juan Diego Service Project by identifying challenges that our modern world faces and then plan an action to make a difference. We invite you to learn more about the Missionary Discipleship Institute at OLG.