BROOKLYN – On Saturday, September 14, at the famed Greek School of Plato in Brooklyn, Fr. Nicholas Petropoulakos conducted the blessing ceremony for the start of the new school year.

Fr. Nicholas blessed all the members of the school community – students, teachers, and parents – and wished for a blessed and creative school year, full of progress, knowledge, and joy.

The Principal, Leonidas Papoulias, sent the following greeting to students of the Greek-American community at large through The National Herald: “I wish all students a good and productive year filled with inspiration and high goals.”

He then addressed his institution: “this year, we hope that with the new curricula at the historic Plato school, which has been operating for 47 years, each class will be a workshop where students will learn the Greek language and culture and recognize their global value. I wish our teachers, Naouma Angelakakis, Katerina Bliatza, Angela Mousouroulis, Nancy Panagopoulou, Marianna Karageorgiou, Panagiota Kokkoros, Katerina Koulianou, Apostolis Papadatos, Orestis Petridis, Sofie Pitsillidou, Dimitra Tsafos success and strength in their work. I wish the parents a harmonious collaboration throughout the year.”

Classes are held every Saturday from 9 AM to 1:30 PM, and the afternoon school is every Tuesday and Thursday from 4 PM to 6:30 PM, with classes from preschool to 9th grade.

The vice president of the Board of Directors Kostas Karkas, stated, “another school year begins with many promises and prospects. We always strive for the best and are pleased that we have raised our school to high standards. We start with a new director, excellent teaching staff, as well as new modern teaching methods, and we are optimistic about a great school year.”

The president of the Parents’ Association, Maria Koukoulis, wished the teachers a productive year, the parents patience and strength, and the students to strive for their best, with the association always standing by them with many extracurricular activities and ready to address any problems.

The president of the Federation of Hellenic American Educators, Stella Kokolis, mentioned that the Plato school, which she served as director, has thrived since its founding and has produced remarkable and valuable members of society.

“The school is the pillar of our culture and language, of our ideas and values. Have a great school year. Long live Greece and Hellenism in America,” she exclaimed.

(Some names have been transliterated from Greek to English)