Mrs. Cindi Messina received the 2014-2015 Msgr. Gerald Lawrence Lewis Award for Excellence in Teaching. The photos are of the Annual Lewis Award Dinner, given in honor of Mrs. Messina and all previous Award Recipients. Photography by Nick Crettier.
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Mrs. Cindi Messina receives the 2014-2015 Lewis Award for Excellence in Teaching
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Bishop Michael Burbidge celebrated Mass at Saint Raphael Church, and Msgr. Lewis delivered the homily and concelebrated. Fr. Phil Hurley, Saint Raphael Pastor, concelebrated as well. The faithful included parents from both schools where Mrs. Messina teaches, as well as friends and family members of the award winner. School faculty and students shared in the event, too.
Msgr. Lewis, for whom the award is named, spoke in his homily about how Catholic schools are able to help students know God. “What we are doing here is trying to have a foundation,” he said to the students. “Mrs. Messina said that she wanted you … all the students in her art class … to see God’s creation and see the beauty of God. Mrs. Messina knows it’s a beautiful world because it’s God’s world.”
After Mass, Anne Stahel, chair of the Lewis Award Committee, spoke about her recent visit to Mrs. Messina’s classroom. “Oh my, did I ever observe skilled teaching the day I observed Mrs. Messina in her classroom,” she said. Mrs. Stahel discussed how the teacher, a former graphic designer originally from New Jersey, engages students with their work, connects with them personally and creates an environment of classroom banter that’s both polite and controlled.
Mrs. Messina, who has taught in the Diocese for 16 years, received a silver tray, plaque, monetary award and standing ovation. Saint Raphael School received a monetary award and the Lewis Award plaque, which the school may display for a year.
“Thank you so much,” Mrs. Messina said to those gathered. “I share this award with all of my student artists … [whose] hearts and minds are always open to new ideas and challenges.”
The Excellence in Teaching Award honors kindergarten through 12th grade teachers who have shown strong commitment to their communities and demonstrated skill in their profession. The Lewis Award began in 1992. Since its inception 23 teachers have received the Excellence in Teaching Award, and six educators have received the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Article and images by Richard Reece, Editor, NC Catholics
Mrs. Cynthia ‘Cindi’ Messina, K-8 Art Teacher at St. Raphael School in Raleigh, is the Recipient of the 2014-2015 Msgr. Gerald Lawrence Lewis Award for Excellence in Teaching[/caption]The Lewis Award Committee has announced that Mrs. Cynthia ‘Cindi’ Messina, K-8 Art Teacher at St. Raphael School in Raleigh, is the Recipient of the 2014-2015 Msgr. Gerald Lawrence Lewis Award for Excellence in Teaching. Mrs. Messina, who also teaches part time at Our Lady of Lourdes School, has taught for 16 years in the Schools in the Diocese of Raleigh, of which 14 have been at St. Raphael School.
In addition to her teaching, Mrs. Messina is very active in Diocesan projects, as Catholic Schools Live, Pinwheels for Peace, and as a speaker at Diocesan Conferences; in her Church and School communities; and has received a number of awards for her work in advertising, with HBO, and other organizations.
Asked what she hoped her students remembered most about her as a teacher, Mrs. Messina said she wanted “them to keep their eyes open to see the beauty in what God created and what they can create themselves”.
Mr. John Mihalyo, principal of St. Raphael School, said of Mrs. Messina, “She is one of the few teachers I have ever seen that has an impact on the overall school community in so many different aspects. She has been teaching at St. Raphael since 1999 and was the school’s first and only art teacher for all grades, K-8. In that time, Mrs. Messina has bought so much to St. Raphael’s through her ingenuity, leadership, and willingness to make the school a better place.”
Mrs. Messina received her education at William Paterson University earning a BA in Art Education and Graphic Design. The Lewis Award will be presented to Mrs. Messina at a Presentation Liturgy on April 22nd.
Mrs. Cynthia ‘Cindi’ Messina, K-8 Art Teacher at St. Raphael School in Raleigh, is the Recipient of the 2014-2015 Msgr. Gerald Lawrence Lewis Award for Excellence in Teaching
