St. Marys Ryken Teacher, John Olon Receives Golden Apple Award from the Archdiocese of Washington
During a surprise presentation before a schoolwide Mass in April, Mr. John Olon was presented the Golden Apple award for excellence and dedication to Catholic education from the Archdiocese of Washington. The ADW presented a total of 10 Golden Apple awards, and two were selected from St. Mary’s County schools.
Mr. Olon has been teaching at St. Mary’s Ryken since 2002. He has a master’s degree from St. John’s College and teaches through a Socratic style. Mr. Olon has taught history and English at SMR, and currently teaches full time in the Theology Department (Social Justice and Morality at the junior level). He also started a philosophy class and created the curriculum to fulfill the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops standards. He continues to teach the senior- level philosophy course, which is very popular with our students, shown by an increased number of sections each year.
Mr. Olon is a faith-driven teacher at St. Mary’s Ryken. His passion for his Catholic faith is transferred to the students through his theology teaching. Mr. Olon is very influential and active in the Spiritual Direction program he began at SMR. In working with our school chaplain and many priests in the area, Mr. Olon now has over 25 percent of the student body and 10 local priests involved in providing spiritual direction to our students and staff. In the past three years, seven students have taken the path for a religious vocation. Each one of the former students credits Mr. Olon as a large influence in discerning a religious life.
Mr. Olon is a devout Catholic and an active member at St. John’s Parish in Hollywood, Maryland. Mr. Olon is very well versed on the Catholic doctrine, and this is at the forefront of how he lives his life. He regularly takes students to college lecture series and started a scholar development club. He is a member of our Faculty Faith Formation committee, which promotes events to strengthen the faith life in faculty and staff at SMR.
“John Olon is a much-loved and highly respected teacher,” said Joan Stevens, Theology Department chair. “He challenges his students to think more than they want to, and as a result, they leave his class well prepared for college and able to defend their faith. John is well liked by the students and is admirably mentioned every year in the graduation speech.”
Mr. Olon is a blessing to the SMR community through his commitment and support of the athletic, academic and faith life of the school.
St. Mary’s Ryken is a Catholic, coeducational, college preparatory high school community operated under the Xaverian Brothers’ sponsorship dedicated to academic excellence and individualized student growth. Students come from many different counties across the region including Anne Arundel, Calvert, Charles, King George, Prince George’s and St. Mary’s. Each year, approximately 99% of graduates go to college, and the Class of 2015 earned $17 million in college scholarships. To learn more, visit smrhs.org.
