The year was 1850. 

In the burgeoning town of Morristown, New Jersey, Assumption Catholic Parish had just celebrated its second anniversary. With no public school system yet in existence throughout the entire state, Father Bernard McQuaid, the parish priest, recognized the critical need for Catholic education. In response, he took a bold step: he opened a small school in the basement of the church, welcoming the first 25 students. Then the priest knew exactly what to do:

“He wrote to the Sisters of Charity and said, ‘Can you send me a couple of nuns?’ And we’ve been here ever since.”

Sister Merris Larkin recounted this history well with Mother Xavier sending two nuns to start. As current principal at the Blue-Ribbon school now celebrating 175 years this year, she has been carrying out the tenets of a solid Catholic-core curriculum for the last 45 years, 30 as principal. 

“Yes, I'm the last man standing,” Sister Merris joked speaking to the Register during an interview at the school marking Catholic Schools Week. She is literally the last Sister of Charity to be part of the Catholic school, carrying on an almost 2 centuries-old tradition. 

“School should be a place to laugh,” the religious nun said. “This was always my bulletin board when I taught: School should be a place to laugh, dance, sing, and have fun. And then my principal said, ‘What about learn?’ So I put learn: 

School should be a place to laugh, dance, sing, learn, and have fun.”

And Sister Merris still lives out that motto as principal. Visiting classrooms, she interacts with each student, all eager to share where the family went over the weekend, a new dog or cat, or how intent one little boy is to sing Elvis Presley at the upcoming talent show. As Sister Merris says, “It’s not about the grades, the teachers can worry about those, I want each and every one to be an A+ person. It’s about being a good person.” 

“They know I'm a little crazy,” the seasoned educator joked, “And you know what? It brings out the best in them. They're relaxed…’

And the joy is infectious. A viral video went around last Fall with the opening of the school. Students being dropped off with first-day jitters were greeted by a band playing music — Sister Merris and the school chaplain out dancing, inviting everyone in. “That's band — it’s just amazing — they’re all like 90 years old, but they call every year. They love to come.” 

Msgr. John Hart, rector at Assumption parish where the entire student body attends Mass on Fridays and on feast days, said despite Sister Merris’ humility and aversion to open interviews like the one the Register pried out of her, “They know that Sister loves them more. She knows them all by name.”

In this way, the school is more like a family especially as Sister Merris has taught generations of students at the school. “Kids would even tell you that it is like a family. We have this little one in the 4-year old program, she just started this year. She's adorable, and her father, I had him and the uncle, Uncle Johnny,” Sister Merris said. 

“And every day she'll say, ‘How was my father? Is it awful? Was Uncle Johnny better?’ I said, ‘Yes, Uncle Johnny was better than your father, but you're a good girl… It's just a joke every day.” 

This friendliness helped children flourish during the short stint the school was forced to close during the COVID pandemic as Msgr. Hart explained: 

“When we shut down, everything was virtual, and the teachers were teaching the children virtually. And Sister would pop in most of the time, but she would be wearing different costumes.”  

“Just to say hello and make them laugh,” Sister Merris added. Although her Catholic school like so many others were able to open quickly with social distancing in place, she still notices the impact. “Little ones, they're having a harder time now, phonics-wise, since children learn so much from the face.” 

The school straddles technology integration but also a real focus on writing including cursive, which for many schools is a dying art. “We've always been known for writing. Always been known as the writers even at the high school. Teachers say, ‘Sister, we know when your kids are there, they know grammar, they can do a term paper, they can do a research. So we've always emphasized being good writers.”

Answering the Call 

Msgr. Hart has a special place in his heart for Sister Merris and a fondness for religious sisters as his own vocation story started with one. “I was in the grammar school in CCD in Brooklyn, and the nun [at the school] said, ‘God is calling some of you to be priests or religious. And if God calls you, you should answer,’ so that planted the seed.”

For Sister Merris, being a teacher just came naturally from her own upbringing. 

“I went to St. Aloysius in Jersey City. Both grammar and high school was staffed by the Sisters of Charity. At that time, almost every teacher was a nun,” Sister Merris recollected. 

“Not that I was a stellar student by any means, I was not. They liked me because I used to take them shopping. I had to find something so I could pass!” the principal quipped. “Up until sixth grade — it didn't work — I loved it so much, I did it twice!” 

“But I got friendly with the sisters that way, especially when I got to high school and I could drive, I would pick them up and take them to appointments. So I was always involved with them and that's really how it happened.”

Passing on the Faith

Catholicism is such an integral part of Assumption’s framework that Sister Merris doesn’t see it as a separate class. Theology is taught and discovered in every subject. In fact, “Deacon Joe from the parish spoke to the 6^th and 8th grade science classes recently, all about how religion and science are really not that far apart.”

The school boasts countless annual events including a live Nativity and the school also marks the month of October with a Living Rosary. “The whole school comes down. The Hail Marys are in light blue. The Our Fathers are in the dark blue, and they sit on the floor in the shape of a rosary,” Sister Merris remembered. “The rest of the school is all around. So we all participate, but they lead it. So it was very impressive for the parents.”

But it’s Sister Merris’ indefatigable spirit and love that makes students at the school light up around her. “The reason for the success of the school is simply this: it's her leadership,” Msgr. Hart told the Register. 

“She knows all the teachers. She knows all the kids. She's here from the very beginning to the very end. She's in the lunchroom helping the kids have lunch and buy snacks. Sister is in front of the school every morning. So it's a matter of being impressed, but the success is thanks to Sister.”

Students With Hearts for Service 

Located in the heart of a large New Jersey city about an hour outside Manhattan, Sister Merris makes helping those in need top priority. Gearing up for Catholic Schools Week, the festivities kick off with Mission Monday, “a day of service for our kids,” Sister Merris shared. 

Throughout the year, the school does tremendous work with the city’s food pantry, an organization called Mary’s Hands, and Catholic Charities. “We did winter coats, Christmas toys, food. Whatever they need, they call me, and we put the word out to our school families, and everybody gets involved.”

Activities and sports happen year round including an Adventure Club with students going tubing over the winter. Chess Club is also a big hit, but the after-school forensic team draws the biggest buzz and the greatest accomplishments. 

“We've won all the forensics. Students compete giving speeches, dramatic readings. It's such an amazing program.”

It’s such a popular program, a Toastmasters’ Club was borne, “And we'll have them do something in the school for the rest of the school to watch them,” Sister Merris explained. 

Sage Advice From Sister Merris 

Sister Merris can only look back fondly with an enduring love for all the lives she’s touched throughout her entire tenure. And the best part is? 

“Just to see kids who started like this, and you say, ‘My God, are they ever gonna get anywhere?’ And then you don't give up on them. They make it. They come back now, as college kids, they'll stop in. You see, they did it. Look at me!” 

“Because I need to see the success. It's seeing the kids succeed and be happy.”

Understanding the source of that joy is critical to Sister Merris. Working steadfastly to instill within each student the roots of Christian hope, understanding the anxieties and fear that many students are more prone to these days, she knows her school is also a place of repair. 

“The teachers are nice with the kids. Do we have one or two bad days? Of course, we do. But the next day, we start all over again. Nothing's carried on. Yeah, we make a mistake. We all make mistakes. But then we start over. That's what you want them to learn.”