St. Stephen's Armenian Elementary School Honored in Massachusetts

On April 15, 2011 at the 96th Anniversary Commemoration of the Armenian Genocide at the Massachusetts State House, the Massachusetts House of Representatives and the State Senate honored the St. Stephen’s Armenian Elementary School of Watertown and the Armenian Sisters’ Academy of Lexington with a Joint House and Senate Resolution recognizing the contribution of both schools in perpetuating the Armenian culture, history and language.

The day’s program was titled “Honoring the Truth by Educating the Next Generation.”

The students performing the national anthem
 at the Massachussetts State House

Gov. Deval Patrick attended the program, as he has done every year since his election, and shook hands with the survivors, as well as the excited students who surrounded him.

The ceremony, headed by State Rep. Jonathan Hecht, focused on the lives built after the events of 1915 in a new country. “It is through educating future generations that we maintain the truth of the Armenian Genocide,” he added. 

State Sen. Steven Tolman presented the principals of both schools with the Joint House and Senate Resolutions commending them for their work.

In her acceptance speech, St. Stephen's School Principal Houry Boyamian noted that her father’s experience escaping the Genocide as a child and later becoming an educator inspired her to go into education. Here are some excerpts:

"My father, Karnig Panian, was an educator and a survivor of the Armenian Genocide. At the tender age of 5, he witnessed the death of his mother, baby sister and 2-year-old brother during the forced marches through the Syrian desert. After these traumatic events, he experienced further atrocities at the Turkish Orphanage in Antoura, Lebanon. The orphanage was opened for the sole purpose of Turkifying the Armenian orphans, stripping them of their native language and culture. In his memoirs my father wrote that from a young age he realized the only way for the Armenian people to avoid total annihilation was to keep the language and culture alive through education. My father fulfilled his dream by becoming the principal of a prestigious Armenian school in Lebanon. He dedicated himself to the education of the survivors’ children and grandchildren for more than 40 years. My father is my hero, and I have tried to follow in his footsteps by continuing his mission here at St. Stephen’s.

From the early days of St. Stephen’s Armenian Elementary School , we were aware of the many challenges we would face in establishing a first rate Armenian American educational institution in a region that is home to some of the best academic establishments in the nation. An Armenian school would have to offer an excellent education in order to thrive and meet the demands of a modern American society, while maintaining the Armenian language, culture and heritage.

Over the past 27 years, St. Stephen’s has become a vital institution in the Armenian American Community of Greater Boston with a diverse student body representing a cross section of our various churches and towns across the region.  We have succeeded in offering an excellent bilingual learning experience by combining the best of American education with a strong foundation in Armenian language and culture. Our students’ test scores further evidence the school’s educational accomplishments.  Every year, our students take the Comprehensive Test of Basic Skills and routinely score in the top 10 to 15% nationwide in Math, Reading and Language Arts. 

Our goal at St. Stephen’s is to educate the coming generations of Armenian Americans in this great Commonwealth to be good citizens, to be tolerant and respectful learners and to develop skills that are critical to their academic, personal and professional success."

The keynote speaker was Dr. Tom Samuelian, Dean, American University of Armenia, Law Department.