PRESS RELEASE
Armenian Sisters Academy
440 Upper Gulph Road
Radnor, PA 19087
Contact: Susan Pogharian
Tel: 610-757-7090
Fax: 610-687-2450
E-mail: HYPERLINK "mailto:SPogharian@asaphila.org"
SPoghar ian@asaphila.org
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Armenian Sisters Academy Receives $50,000 Grant from Connelly Foundation

The Armenian Sisters Academy of Radnor, PA was recently awarded a
$50,000 grant for an ongoing renovation project for its convent. The
convent is the mansion, called the Hovnanian Building, which is attached
to the original school. Although the original school building was built
in 1975, the mansion itself is over 100 years old. The Academy Board of
Directors has been overseeing a project initiative to repair and
renovate key sections of the mansion, the old school building, and the
campus. A proposal was sent to the Connelly Foundation for assistance
in funding this project. The Connelly Foundation is a Conshohocken, PA
based organization that evaluates proposals from many non-profit
entities in the Greater Philadelphia area in the spirit of its founders,
the late John & Josephine Connelly. Based on the Academy’s proposal
submission and a subsequent site evaluation conducted by the
Foundation’s officers, funding was granted for the convent (mansion)
renovation in order to optimize underutilized space and improve the
living quarters of the Sisters who reside there. Aside from the
Sisters’ residence, the mansion also houses the Accounting Department,
meeting rooms for various committees, and the operations center for the
Academy’s largest annual fundraiser. The three Sisters who currently
reside at the Academy were touched by the Connelly Foundation’s grant
of generosity and how it will help improve the quality of their daily
life. Upon receiving the uplifting news, Principal Sr. Louisa
Kassarjian remarked, `It’s reassuring and comforting that an
experienced philanthropic organization such as the Connelly Foundation
cares enough for our Academy and the Sisters’ mission to invest their
time to visit us, provide suggestions for our project, and ultimately
help fund it!’
The Armenian Sisters Academy is a private Pre-K through eighth
grade school that was founded 43 years ago when three energetic nuns
arrived in Philadelphia from Rome for the purpose of educating the
community’s Armenian youth. The curriculum perpetuates the Armenian
identity through the study of its language, culture and history while
providing an excellent American education. The Academy’s nurturing
Christian environment, small class size, and solid Montessori program
has attracted many non-Armenians over the years, as well.