From Columbus, Ohio to Greenwich, Connecticut, Mrs. Patrice Morley comes to Sacred Heart in the role of Upper School French Teacher. Mrs. Morley joined the Sacred Heart community November 5 to teach French III Honors, French IV, and French V.
Mrs. Morley graduated from John Carroll University with a Masters in Foreign Language Education. She also earned a Master of Arts and Sciences in French Literature and Film from Ohio University and a Bachelor of Arts in French Pedagogy from Miami University.
Mrs. Morley expressed her gratitude towards the Sacred Heart community for greeting her in such a welcoming and friendly way. The kindness she received from students and faculty made the transition easier for her as a teacher in a new environment.
“My favorite aspect of Sacred Heart is […] the strong sense of community as well as the kindness and support that I experience myself and witness around me every day that I’m here,” Mrs. Morley said.
Prior to joining Sacred Heart, Mrs. Morley taught at two co-ed college preparatory schools. She taught all levels of French at The Wellington School, an independent school in Columbus, Ohio that serves students from preschool to high school. She also taught all levels of French at the Bishop Watterson High School in Columbus, Ohio. Teaching at an all-girls, independent Catholic school is a new experience for her, thus, she is still assimilating to her new environment.
“Before I came to Sacred Heart, I was sending my last child off to college and getting to know my new home [in] Greenwich, Connecticut after living in Paris, France,” Mrs. Morley said. “[T]he most compelling thing about Sacred Heart is the strong sense of community among the students, teachers, staff, administration, [and] parents.”
Ashley, a French IV student, commented on her love for Mrs. Morley’s class and expressed her appreciation for Mrs. Morley’s effective teaching styles which make learning the language fun and interactive. She described how learning French with her is not only educational, but also exciting.
“Mrs. Morley has helped me so much progress in French by allowing my classmates and I to master our French foundations and continue to build on our skills through class collaboration and exercises,” Ashley said. “I love Mrs. Morley’s class because it enables my classmates and me to understand French and learn the language in a way that is creative, fun, and effective.”
Mrs. Morley’s goal this year is to deepen her students’ love for the French language by teaching the girls skills to become more proficient in speaking the language outside of the classroom.
“This year, after working with my students to solidify their current knowledge of the French language, my main goals for them are to further their understanding of and build confidence in their French communicative abilities. I also want to continue to nurture their love for the beautiful French language,” Mrs. Morley said. “I am most looking forward to teaching my students not only French language skills but strategies to becoming excellent students overall.”
– Christine Guido, News Editor
Featured Image courtesy of Mary O’Connor ‘21