Most Precious Blood School in Walden opened its doors this school year under new leadership, but the face was a familiar one to students and families. Patricia Luzar has stepped into the role of principal after serving as the 8th grade homeroom teacher and having taught 6th, 7th, and 8th grade English Language Arts and social studies for nearly a decade. Luzar is a graduate of SUNY New Paltz, earning her bachelor’s in childhood education and a masters in literacy.

“I’m new to the principal position, but I’m not new to the school, so I know the kids and the families. It’s a real community here,” shared an eager Luzar.

Currently, Most Precious Blood has 165 students enrolled for the 2022-2023 school year and Luzar is hoping to transition back to a more normal school year for students and families on the heels of Covid. Safety and building back a sense of community are important goals as the year commences. “I think safety is always a top priority in schools, but also we need to focus on teaching about our Catholic faith. I also want to bring back the sense of community here,” explained Luzar.

Luzar expressed that Covid was detrimental to the community aspect of school life at Most Precious Blood as it was for other schools across the country.

“One of my goals for this year is really to get the parents and families back into the building. When Covid happened we needed to limit access, but I’m hoping to bring back that sense of community. Socialization is very important after Covid,” said Luzar.

Luzar said she’s hoping that students will have the opportunity to learn values outside of the traditional educational experience. She shared, “I want our students to be lifelong learners and our teachers too; that’s important. This year I’m hoping we can bring students back out into the community to give back. I want them to develop values and morals that will carry them through the rest of their years.”