continues caring tradition

(Editor's note: The Evangelist concludes its year-long series of monthly articles that have taken a look inside large institutions in the Albany Diocese, places you might have driven by and asked: "What goes on in there?" Our final installment: St. Anne's Institute in Albany.)

Crystal has an eye for fashion, from stylish dresses to comfortable bell-bottom pants.

After she gets ideas for her clothing creations by looking through magazines, she doesn't take any shortcuts in her work. She'll add buttons where she's sewn together sections of a dress strap or have a zipper in back to make slipping into her attractive evening gown easier.

This budding designer hasn't developed her skills in Paris or Milan; in fact, Crystal is a teenage student in Mrs. Laurel Daly's fabric design class at St. Anne Institute in Albany.

Serving girls

She is one of many girls between 12 and 18 who benefit from programs offered by the voluntary, not-for-profit, residential and preventive service agency, part of which is housed in a former convent of the Sisters of Good Shepherd that dates back to the late 1800s.

While most of the girls are referred to St. Anne's by family courts, a few are sent there by school district committees on special education. Their offenses include truancy, drug abuse, stealing and running away from home.

By providing a wide range of services to such girls, St. Anne's hopes "to give them a sense of worth, a sense of dignity, and an opportunity to make decisions based on other frames of reference than they had before," according to Ralph Fedullo, executive director.

Century of help

When four Sisters of the Good Shepherd opened the doors of their convent to troubled and homeless women in 1887, the home and school were known as the St. Anne School of Industry and Reformatory of the Good Shepherd. The sisters also operated a farm and laundry that complemented academic and spiritual programs for the women.

By 1947, when the name was changed to St. Anne Institute, most of the students were teenagers and more of an emphasis was placed upon academics than on preparation for the work world. A curriculum for grades 7 through 12 was initiated, and the school was affiliated with Vincentian Institute and accredited by the New York State Education Department.

The psychological needs of students also were addressed with the implementation of a social services department.

Growing up

In 1955, St. Anne's received its own Regents accreditation from the state Education Department and was certified as a six-year high school; a summer camp program was also initiated that year.

Programs continued to be added, including a work experience program in 1969 and a day treatment program in 1971. A group home was established in 1973, and St. Anne's was certified as a school for the emotionally disturbed in 1975.

The Sisters of Good Shepherd remained involved with St. Anne's until 1981, when a board of trustees comprised entirely of laypersons became the legal managers. A sex abuse prevention services department began in 1982; and with the establishment of a juvenile sex offender program in 1984, St. Anne's became the first agency in the state and the second in the United States to offer treatment services to youthful sex offenders and their families in a non-residential setting.

By 1988, the sisters had sold all their property and buildings, including their convent, for the ongoing operation of St. Anne Institute. Today, the school is overseen by a lay board of trustees, with 25 percent of its membership appointed by the bishop.

Inside view

St. Anne's has the look and feel of any junior-senior high school; but even with class sizes of six students, one teacher and one teacher's aide, the classrooms offer little extra room for anything other than desks and people.

Students in Sharon Wellman's commercial food trades class have the luxury of being in a kitchen for their lessons. She teaches them baking, cooking and crafts, and the students make good use of their talents. They made a gingerbread house that was featured in the recent Festival of Trees, for example, and also sell Christmas wreaths to benefit a family they've "adopted" and to raise money for trips.

Girls in Mrs. Daly's fabric design class enjoy sewing clothing -- and they're not shy about modeling some of their elegant or casual creations. Mrs. Daly offers encouragement and advice to her students; and after 12 years of teaching at St. Anne's, she doesn't recall any who weren't willing to learn. "I haven't met one girl I haven't liked," she said.

Creativity

Students' artwork is displayed in the hallway, and some have won statewide honors, according to Rick Riccio, assistant executive director. Painting, pottery and drawing can be therapeutic for students, and they also learn how to improve their self-esteem through their creativity, he noted.

"We are trying to give them projects so they can see a finished product and feel good about themselves," Mr. Riccio explained.

As St. Anne's has added programs and served the needs of emotionally disturbed or troubled girls during its 111-year history, staff members have created a loving, caring, protective atmosphere that makes a difference in the lives of these vulnerable young women, Mr. Fedullo pointed out.

"You have to care. These people are worth more than they think they are. They're worth more than a lot of people think they are. In the eyes of God, everybody's equal," he said.