Robert Penta has been appointed principal of St. Agnes School in Arlington. His appointment is effective July 1, 2010.

Penta, an East Boston native, is currently the principal of Pope John Paul II Academy’s Dorchester central campus. Previously, he has served as teacher or principal in Reading, Gloucester, and Arlington. He was principal of Brackett and Peirce Elementary Schools in Arlington, and served as director of Title I programs for the Arlington school district.

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Meyer Chambers, former director of the Archdiocese of Boston’s Office for Black Catholics, was honored on April 17 with a Catholic University of America Alumni Achievement Award. Chambers earned a masters’ degree from the school in 1994.

Chambers founded Boston’s Black Choir and is currently campus minister for liturgical arts at Boston College.

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Boston College High School recently awarded its 2010 St. Ignatius Awards, the highest honor bestowed to the school’s graduates, to John L. Mahoney (1945), Francis Furey (1952), and Norman Swain (1955). The St. Ignatius Award recognizes alumni who have exemplified the ideals of BC High through moral character and service to the community.

Mahoney was an English professor at BC for nearly 50 years. He is a member of Sacred Heart Parish in Lexington, where he has co-chaired the parish council and served on the Religious Education Commission.

Furey served as a teacher, counselor, or coach at Purdue University, BC, and the United States Military Academy. He also worked as a guidance counselor at several local high schools before moving to the corporate world for a career in personnel. Later, he returned to the educational setting at local high schools.

In a 40-year career at BC High, Swain served as teacher, coach, department chair, academic vice principal, and principal. Out of class, he mentored and tutored students and refereed intramural games. He has volunteered at the Hunter Golf Tournament and Hunter Basketball Tournament, which raise money for financial aid at BC High.

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Sacred Heart High School’s chapter of S.A.D.D. (Students Against Destructive Decisions) participated in a taping of the Oprah Show April 30. Fourteen members of the Kingston school’s S.A.D.D. chapter traveled to Boston University to participate in one of five rallies around the United States that day in support of an anti-distracted driving effort. For several months, Oprah Winfrey has been campaigning to stop the practice of using cell phones while driving.

Throughout the show, Oprah broadcast moments from each of the five rallies. Sacred Heart junior Erin O’Donnell was interviewed by a co-host at BU. She told the audience about her experience being in an accident caused by distracted driving.

Prior to the taping, Sacred Heart’s S.A.D.D. members distributed No Phone Zone pledges to parents and bumper stickers in the school parking lot.