Seiker Award

NOMINATIONS OPEN FOR 2025 AWARD

The Sheridan Road Alumni Association annually presents the Sr. Catherine I. Seiker, RSCJ Award during Alumni Weekend to an RSCJ, Sheridan Road alumna/us, or alumna/us from any Sacred Heart Network school whose life exemplifies, to an extraordinary degree, the values and standards that Sacred Heart Schools represents.

Alumni may nominate Seiker Award recipients here. Nominations for the 2025 award are due by April 30, 2025.

ABOUT SR. CATHERINE I. SEIKER, RSCJ

Catherine Seiker, RSCJ became a  Sacred Heart Schools teacher in 1945. Later, she worked with school volunteers and served as Business Manager. An avid proponent of the Network's nationwide alumni community, she produced the first Sacred Heart Alumni Directory and paved the way for the Schools' archives. Her love of people brought out the best in them and her collaborative nature supported many projects. Sr. Seiker died in 2016.

2024 Seiker Award Recipient: Marie Buonato, RSCJ

Marie Buonato served as Director of Schools and Principal of the High School at Sheridan Road from 1985-1992. She led the school at a challenging but successful time, winning the community’s love, respect and trust. Her commitment to the students, families and educators never wavered. She believed Sacred Heart alumni would change the world.

Jane Steinfels ASH’92 recalls when Sr. Buonato led the implementation of the 1990 Goals & Criteria at Sheridan Road. “She communicated strongly that the Goals & Criteria should guide our lives. When we came up with concrete ways to live them, she supported our proposals and provided resources for their implementation. She let us fail and learn from it. She always loved us.”

Sr. Buonato graduated from Overbrook, the Academy of the Sacred Heart in Philadelphia (now Bryn Mawr), in 1952. She taught almost every grade level across many Sacred Heart Network schools, also serving as a guidance counselor, principal, and Head of School. After “retiring” from her work in schools, she served the retired RSCJs in Albany, NY.