 Jessa Scifo has always had a passion for the arts. As a student at St. John's, Jessa especially enjoyed the opportunity to take music classes and piano lessons. In the spring of 2020, Jessa was cast as Little Red Riding Hood in St. John's 5th through 8th grade production of Into the Woods. She was so excited to play such a fun character. Sadly, however, the show was never able to happen due to the COVID-19 shutdown in the spring of 2020. Although COVID-19 drastically changed Jessa's 7th and 8th grade experience, she did not let this deter her from pursuing her passions. When it came time to choose a high school, Jessa decided to attend an online high school academy. Although the path she's chosen for high school is different from most of her peers, Jessa states that it has been a great experience for her. Going to high school online has enabled her to take intensive ballet classes 4-5 times a week, and has also given her more time for art. Both art and ballet are her main passions, and Jessa is grateful for the opportunity to spend more time doing what she loves. Aside from participating in various art forms in high school, Jessa is also excited that she will graduate with a health certificate and could even obtain her Associates Degree through her high school program. She is able to take dual enrollment classes throughout high school, and is confident in achieving these goals because of the strong, Christian educational foundation she received at St. John's. Jessa believes that St. John's has prepared her for high school in a variety of ways. She has the ability and motivation to work at her own pace, and is able to better understand the materials she's assigned because the teachers at St. John's always presented lessons in a way that she could understand. When reflecting about her education at St. John's, Jessa says "the teachers taught me to work hard and to work with integrity. Even when I did not understand certain things, they presented the material in a different way until I fully understood it. They did not give up on me." Jessa is now seeing how much this perseverance has paid off as she is more than halfway through her freshman year of high school and is performing well! Although she's no longer a student at St. John's, Jessa still keeps in touch with the St. John's music teacher, Mrs. Jurica, and continues to take piano lessons from her. Jessa believes that piano has helped with her dancing since ballet is all about timing and counting. Taking weekly music lessons from Mrs. Jurica has given Jessa a solid foundation in music. When talking about her relationship with St. John's music teacher, Jessa states "Mrs. Jurica has been a mentor to me, and I love that we can continue our relationship even after graduating." With Mrs. Jurica's help, Jessa is starting to lead worship for her church youth group. When asked about her future, Jessa says she would love to continue to pursue ballet. Her dream is to become a professional dancer, but she can also see herself teaching ballet or even becoming a physical therapist for a ballet company. We are so proud of Jessa and her determination! We can't wait to see where God leads her!
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June 2022
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