We Invite You to Join Us for an Upcoming Admissions Event
Meet our esteemed faculty, explore our campus, observe classes in session, and experience firsthand whether Hawthorn is the ideal fit for your child.

Catholic Families & the Arts: A Long & Living Tradition

How have Catholic families over the centuries nurtured the practice and flourishing of beautiful artwork within their homes and more broadly in their societies?  Drawing from her research into the history of Catholicism and her lifelong interest in both the practice and history of the visual arts, McShea will weave together little-known stories from medieval to modern times about faithfully Catholic artists and patrons of the arts, highlighting ways their family members supported their important work in critical ways.  She will show how parents, spouses, children, and even members of spiritual families -- such as religious sisters in convents -- contributed directly to artists' projects for local churches, patrons' homes, and other spaces, considering also how their faith inspired such work and how their beautiful creations spiritually and culturally enriched the lives of others. 

Dr. Bronwen McShea is based in New York City and is a historian of Catholicism from medieval to modern times. She is the author of three books, including, most recently, Women of the Church: What Every Catholic Should Know (Ignatius Press, 2024). Her writings have also appeared in a variety of scholarly and popular forums, the latter including The Wall Street Journal, America Magazine, First Things, and The Pillar, where she is a columnist. McShea has held teaching and research positions at Columbia University, Princeton University, Loyola University Chicago, and several other institutions. She holds a Ph.D. in Early Modern History from Yale University and both a masters in the History of Christianity and B.A. in Intellectual History from Harvard University.  McShea also enjoys painting and drawing and has a lifelong interest in art history independent of her academic career.

We Invite You to Join Us for an Upcoming Admissions Event
Meet our esteemed faculty, explore our campus, observe classes in session, and experience firsthand whether Hawthorn is the ideal fit for your child.

Enjoy a community-building afternoon of festivities, delicious appetizers, sweet treats, and caroling!

No School

We Invite You to Join Us for an Upcoming Admissions Event
Meet our esteemed faculty, explore our campus, observe classes in session, and experience firsthand whether Hawthorn is the ideal fit for your child.

We Invite You to Join Us for an Upcoming Admissions Event
Meet our esteemed faculty, explore our campus, observe classes in session, and experience firsthand whether Hawthorn is the ideal fit for your child.

All parents of Hawthorn Girls are invited to join us for this weekday morning mass at St. Patrick’s Church.  Right after mass, Hawthorn girls who will be receiving First Communion on 5/31, will receive the Sacrament of First Confession.  Coffee and treats to follow!

All parents of Hawthorn Boys are invited to join us for this weekday morning mass at St. Patrick’s Church.  Right after mass, Hawthorn boys who will be receiving First Communion on 5/31, will receive the Sacrament of First Confession.  Coffee and treats to follow!

No School

All First Communicants are required to attend this rehearsal, led by Pauline MacDonald.  Please plan to pick up your child from school and bring them over to St. Patrick’s church, where all logistics for the First Communion Mass will be communicated.  We ask that you remain at the rehearsal with your child to support their preparedness.

Feel free to invite your family and friends to attend Hawthorn’s First Communion Mass.  Following Mass, all are invited to a reception at The Hawthorn School.

Field Day with Early Dismissal 12pm