Cardinal Wilton Gregory blessed the new La Reine Science and Innovation Center at Bishop McNamara High School during a March 18 grand opening celebration and ribbon cutting at the school in Forestville, Maryland.

The 20,000-square-foot state-of-the-art facility is named after the former nearby La Reine High School which closed more than 30 years ago.

“We bless and dedicate the La Reine Science and Innovation Center to the education of youth, to the progress of the sciences, and to learning,” Cardinal Gregory said. “Make it become a center where students and teachers, imbued with the words of truth, will search for the wisdom

that guides the Christian life and strive wholeheartedly to stand by Christ as their teacher.”

La Reine High School, an all-girls school sponsored by the Bernardine Franciscan sisters located in Suitland, Maryland, closed in 1991 due to low enrollment. The formerly all-boys Bishop McNamara High School, sponsored by the Brothers of Holy Cross, then opened its doors in 1992 to female students, becoming a coeducational high school.
 The La Reine Science and Innovation Center includes seven classrooms, five of which are science labs, including two chemistry labs and two physics labs. It also includes a cybersecurity lab, a multimedia studio, and an “entrepreneurship space” with an innovation lab outfitted with 3D printers, vinyl cutters, drill presses, and computer components.

“Today we ask God’s blessing on this center of seeking, learning, and teaching what is true,” Cardinal Gregory prayed, noting that all disciplines of teaching “must have as their final purpose to bring us to a knowledge of the truth and to the worship of the true God.”

In a statement released before the ceremony, McNamara officials said the new center “will be a hub for technology, collaboration, and discovery by offering new academic programs in science, technology, cybersecurity, engineering, and multimedia.” 

Dr. John Barnhardt, president and CEO of Bishop McNamara High School, said, “The La Reine Science and Innovation Center offers students the experiences needed to pursue college studies in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics.”

Barnhardt noted that more than 10 years ago, McNamara officials “reflected on the broken pipeline to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education” and created the new center “to ensure our students have the experience to access those (STEM) careers.”

“As a private high school … we knew if we could do this, we could be an inspiration to other schools in our region in prepping students for careers in technology not even known yet,” he said.

Father Robert Boxie III, Catholic chaplain at Howard University and a member of McNamara’s Board of Directors, offered the opening prayer at the celebration, and said the new science and innovation center would inspire “endless dreams and aspirations” of future students.

“We lift up our hearts in gratitude,” he said. “This moment reminds us of what we can do when we work together.”

Among those attending the March 18 grand opening celebration and ribbon cutting were state, county and local officials.

Dereck Davis – Maryland’s state treasurer and former member of the House of Delegates – said he and his wife chose Bishop McNamara High School for their daughter Nyla’s education because “I knew of the wonderful things going on here.”

Praising the school’s “nurturing environment and opportunities for spiritual growth and activities,” Davis called McNamara “a crown jewel in a community that needs it … I thank God for this place.”

Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks called the new center “a marvelous example of how God has blessed us.”

“This beautiful new center is a welcome addition to this school and this area,” she said. “It is exciting to think about the possibilities this new center will bring.”

She praised the school for “teaching students to think and live as Christ would … you are not only molding future leaders, you are molding future leaders who have the humility to be of service to others.”

Maryland State Sen. Melony Griffith, whose District 25 includes McNamara High School, called the school “a beacon of life on Marlboro Pike” and said “there is a sweet, sweet spirit in this place, and it spreads outside.”

“This phenomenal state-of-the-art science and innovation center will be an asset for people who are not yet born,” Sen. Griffith predicted.

McNamara senior Nyla Davis noted that “in addition to a great education and spiritual growth,” the new science and innovation center “is going to take our school and community to the next level.”

“We ask that those entrusted with the education of young people in the La Reine Science and Innovation Center may teach their students how to join the discoveries of human wisdom with the truth of the Gospel, so that they will be able to keep the true faith and to live up to it in their lives,” Cardinal Gregory prayed.

He also prayed that students there would be “enriched with both human and divine learning,

they will in turn be able and ready to enlighten and assist others.”