St. Margaret’s Episcopal School received unanimous approval from the San Juan Capistrano City Council on Tuesday evening for its campus master development plan. Before the vote at the City Council meeting, council members praised St. Margaret’s administrators for their friendly, collaborative and responsive approach to the City’s process and for the important contributions the school makes to the San Juan community.
“We are elated. The unanimous support and praise from our City Council was more than we expected. These plans are very important to the future of our school and pave …

Kenley Farace, a seventh grader at St. Margaret’s Episcopal School, won the Orange County Spelling Bee and will compete in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., in early June, an event televised by ESPN.

Kenley competed against 70 other local students, the largest field in Orange County history, and triumphed in round 13 with the word “secessionist” first to edge out the remaining contender and then with “evulsion,” meaning to pull out or to extract, to capture the trophy.

This week, a St. Margaret’s Upper School guitar ensemble performed at the 2010 State of the City Breakfast. The students were invited to perform by the Mayor, the Honorable Dr. Londres Uso.
The Tartan musicians received enthusiastic applause from the community members in attendance, and in his welcoming address, President of the San Juan Capistrano Chamber Board Larry Thomas thanked each of the student performers by name. He remarked that the City was thankful for their performance, especially because he knew how hard the students worked to prepare.
Members of the Upper …

St. Margaret’s students apply traditional and modern techniques to exercise their creativity and technical skills in a range of creative arts courses. In the clay lab, students create, glaze and finish coiled vessels; in photography courses, students experiment with digital and film cameras; and in the art classrooms, charcoal, paint, and nontraditional media are used to express artistic inspiration. Through March, student work is exhibited on the second floor of the Gateway Building, in the K–12 Student Art Show.
“The K-12 exhibition provides a learning opportunity for students of all grade …

The annual Coffee House Cabaret showcases performing arts, and every year, this is an event not to miss. This year was no exception, as students displayed their artistic talent amid a Parisian coffee house setting, for two sold-out shows in Sillers Hall. As guests sipped specialty coffee and enjoyed savory treats, they were carried away by the talent that surrounded them made possible by St. Margaret’s dedication to education and encouragement of the arts.

In recent years, the St. Margaret’s community of parents, administrators, faculty and staff has come together at Tartan Talks to discuss our school and curriculum, and the value of a St. Margaret’s education. In this week’s Tartan Talk, the “Tartans talked”—three groups of students, plus panelists, offered thoughts about the value of their educational experience. In a real-life expression of the St. Margaret’s mission, students presented their unscripted ideas and research in the categories of Learning, Leadership, and Service.
As Headmaster Marcus D. Hurlbut greeted attendees, he stressed that through this …

Last week, students in the Middle and Upper School students experienced the rich heritage of the Inca and Aymara cultures through Latin American music and dance. These Cultural Arts assemblies sponsored by the Parent Teacher Fellowship featured Bolivian musical and dance performances by Alturas Music. St. Margaret’s PTF Arts Alliance Upper School Cultural Arts Chair Carol Kelly, says, “The goal of these assemblies is to being music from other countries to the students.” This group in particular was well-suited to do so, as Mrs. Kelly elaborates: “They make their own …

Headmaster Marcus D. Hurlbut and Head Coach Rod Baltau were presented with a Certificate of Recognition from the City of San Juan Capistrano by the Mayor of San Juan Capistrano, the Honorable Dr. Londres Uso on Tuesday, during a meeting of the San Juan Capistrano City Council.
The certificate was presented in recognition of the Tartan football team’s four back-to-back CIF Championships (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009); the longest winning streak in Orange County history, 44-0 (2006-2009); and because of their “drive, talent, and sportsmanship.” After the presentation, Mayor Uso and the …

This Wednesday, Lower School students congregated in Sillers Hall for the Icky Yucky Gross Bug Show, presented by the Parent Teacher Fellowship Arts Alliance. There were gasps of amazement when educational performance artist David Herbelin presented the assembly with the Madagascar hissing cockroach, oohs and aahs as the introduction of the bug-eating blue-tongued skink, and wide-eyed stares at the Chilean rose-haired tarantula. Throughout the performance, the children saw, touched, and learned about these animals, their habitats, and the reasons for their appearance and behavior.
Reasons for animals’ behavior, as the Lower …

Last week, seven St. Margaret’s seniors attended the 10th annual Harvard Model Congress simulation in San Francisco. Harvard Model Congress San Francisco has long carried a proud tradition of teaching youths about the intricacies of American government through hands-on simulations and debates. Beginning last September with the student’s request for roles, these seven students worked hard to prepare themselves for these four days of intense government simulation, in which they excelled.