Holy Angels Students Enter National Business Honor Society

Holy Angels students who excel in the Academy’s business education program were inducted into the National Business Honor Society on March 19. Eligible students are required to maintain an average of 3.5 or higher in their business courses.

Inductees include Molly Brooks of Bardonia, New York; Laura Carbo of Ridgefield; JaeMin Chu and Madison Oaten of Tenafly; Ciara Donegan of Westwood; Claire Dodds and Hannah Kim of Cresskill; Kaitlyn Grifonetti of Old Tappan; Samantha Han and Tamara Kim of Demarest; Eliza Hoover and Isabella Marino of Mahwah; Deirdre James of West Nyack, New York; Julia Labita of Norwood; Cameryn Lindsay of Englewood; Rebecca Lovatt of Wood-Ridge; Georgina Paredes of Bergenfield; Isabela Presti of Hasbrouck Heights; Areanna Pumayugra of West New York; Camille Rivas of Guttenberg; and Anqi Zhang of Hillsdale.

AHA’s business and technology teacher Krystal Hermanns established AHA’s NBHS chapter three years ago. The first induction ceremony, which honored seven Angels, was held in the spring of 2019. Last year, COVID-19 preempted the induction, so Hermanns recognized 2020 honorees Rivas, Oaten, Lovatt, and Zhang, at this year’s ceremony.

The hybrid 2021 induction allowed some students to participate in person and others online. Students wrote their own prayer for the event. The Angels expressed their desire to make ethical and moral business decisions, and lead by example in male-dominated careers.

“Women are making strides, making a lasting impact, and moving up in large companies we know in our everyday lives,” Hermanns noted. She acknowledged the inductees’ accomplishments, including top three and top 10 finishes in statewide competition. She added that the AHA students who participated in DECA’s 2021 virtual statewide tournament were among just 3,000 state qualifiers in all of New Jersey.

During 2018-19, AHA’s first year of participation in DECA, the Academy’s team reached the state-level competition. AHA has qualified for DECA’s statewide event for each of the past three years. The Academy’s DECA membership has also grown from 13 members in 2018-19 to 56 in 2019-20, and 71 in 2020-21.

AHA students are encouraged to take part in the Angels School of Business, which allows business savvy Angels to earn a “mini-MBA” at graduation. In order to receive a mini-MBA, a student must complete an internship through Angels Advantage, AHA’s alumnae-led mentoring program; take five business related academic courses, such as financial management, statistics, economics, and international studies; and participate in a relevant extracurricular activity, including DECA or Angels in Business, AHA’s stock market club. The mini-MBA program is currently on hold since pandemic restrictions have curtailed internship opportunities.

Founded by the School Sisters of Notre Dame in 1879, the Academy of the Holy Angels is the oldest private girls’ school in Bergen County. While AHA is steeped in Catholic tradition, this prestigious high school serves young women from a broad spectrum of cultural and religious backgrounds. Over time, thousands of women have passed through AHA’s portals. Many go on to study at some of the nation’s best universities, earning high-ranking positions in medicine, government, law, education, public service, business, arts, and athletics. The Academy’s current leaders continue to further the SSND mission to provide each student with the tools she needs to reach the fullness of her potential—spiritually, intellectually, socially, and physically, by offering a first-rate education in a nurturing environment where equal importance is placed on academic excellence, character development, moral integrity, and service to others.