MAYFIELD — Although the class is two short of a dozen, the graduating seniors of St. Rose Academy can still change the world.
 

That’s the message Ruth Connolly, Ed.D., wants to impart to the 10 students tonight when she gives the commencement address at the school on Old Plank Road.

“It comes from the feeding of the multitudes,” said Dr. Connolly, referring to the biblical account of Jesus dividing five loaves of bread and two fish among 5,000 people who had come to hear him speak.

“The message is that they don’t have to be part of the multitudes to make a difference,” she said.

“I’m also going to use nanotechnology as something they can relate to.”

Nanotechnology is defined as anything smaller than microtechnology and encompasses everything from stain-repellant clothing to computer components.

“There are contact lenses out there that can read your blood pressure and sugar,” she explained.

Something does not have to be big to make a big difference.

“Nanotechnology has a tremendous effect on the multitudes,” Dr. Connolly said.

Dr. Connolly, who has worked in education for 38 years, now serves as the federal grant administrator for the Employment Opportunity and Training Center in Scranton.

The former superintendent of the Scranton Diocese schools was invited to speak by the St. Rose board of trustees and director Charles Barlow.

Mr. Barlow and John Risboskin, school president, could not be reached for comment.

St. Rose Academy began two years ago after the diocese closed Sacred Heart High School during a round of parochial school downsizing. A group of parents formed St. Rose, which bills itself as a school in the Catholic tradition, because it is not acknowledged by diocesan officials.

The school completed the purchase of the Lackawanna Heritage Valley Authority building in May, with plans to expand facilities and boost enrollment.

“I’m passionate about education, and I’m passionate about my faith,” she said.

Contact the writer: jroselle@timesshamrock.com