Open House, 2018!

These are my notes for welcoming prospective parents and students to our annual open house--St. Michael,  October 18, 2018.

Good evening, and welcome! 

We hope tonight will be fun for you—that you’ll ask a lot of questions of me, the teachers, and the student ambassadors who will show you around in a few minutes—and that you’ll go home tonight more at ease about sending your son or daughter to high school, more confident about who we are and what we do. 

But before we tell you what we do,  I want to focus on why we do it.  

What is the purpose of St Michael Catholic High School? 

In everything that we say and do—academic program, athletics, the arts, clubs, in our hallways— We want kids to hear this message: 

Never, ever settle for anything less than the excellence that God’s grace makes possible in your life. You’ll fail along the way; we all do. But don’t lower the bar of expectation. Get up, dust yourself off, seek reconciliation—never, ever settle for anything less than the heroism for which you were born. God has a unique plan for your life—something just for you—and your life long happiness will depend on finding this plan and following it, with courage and conviction.  

That thinking is what's underneath our mission statement, which says we’re aiming to build SCHOLARS (not just students), LEADERS (and not just followers) and DISCIPLES (not just some guy or girl sitting in the pew on Sundays). 

Unfortunately, our kids are growing up in a culture that is profoundly pessimistic about what teenagers are capable of achieving. It tells them they are not capable of scholarship (so schools inflate grades), that they are not capable of chastity (so we teach them safe sex), that they aren’t even capable of handling the truth that some kids are better at things than they are (so everyone gets a trophy). The worst part? They begin to believe these things about themselves. They begin to believe they’re not capable of more. 

We want them to believe the opposite! 

As parents, we love our kids, but we know they're not perfect!  We know that here, too! They're going to need help to get them where God wants them to be. It's a process! They need caring teachers who set achievable goals, who help them build confidence, who affirm them when they need it, and challenge them a bit when they slough off. 

So that's our "why!" Here's our "how" :

First, our academic program:

• Fantastic teachers, first rate professionals. We are blessed by them. 
• 8 classes/semester, gives students built in flexibility to engage in multiple pursuits
• Honors program (morphs into A.P. program as students get older. Students can take up to 8 A.P classes before graduating) and College Preparatory program. Placement based on previous grades, work ethic and placement test. 
• Four days/week, teachers are available to give kids extra help, 3:15-3:50 each day. 
• Aegis class, one period, available for students with documented learning disabilities. 
• Constant updates on academic progress—through progress reports every 4 weeks, through quarter report cards, by making every grade your child earns available to you on line via black baud. 

Second, we have an active life of faith here:  Weekly mass, every Wednesday, prayer before school starts, before ball games, in locker rooms before games, sometimes in what I tell them during weekly assemblies, their theology classes.  They’re going to be told over and over that our belief in their potential to be great is not founded on a polly-annish, naive optimism, but because of—as the song says, the  “overwhelming, never ending, reckless love of God” in their life, which transforms and re-creates them each day. 

Third, we have a Renaissance emphasis for kids—we believe the human person thrives when all facets of their personalities are developed. We don’t want kids to be specialists—“I’m just a football player.” or “I’m a scholar, without time for anything else,” or “All I care about is my music—“ The time for specialization is later. High school is a time for kids to explore possibilities, new things, to walk through open doors and walk around in new rooms. Time for closing doors is later—maybe college, when they’re choosing a life long vocation. We emphasize "both-and," not "either-or."  So how, practically, do we do that? 

• 2 years of foreign language for all students (may take up to 4 years)
• 2 years of the Arts, begin in chorus or band, then either take a 2nd year or option to move into Studio Art in sophomore year. Capable of taking 4 years
• Athletic PE for athletes, each of their 4 years, so they can get bigger, faster and stronger, but because they can take that as one of 8 classes, it doesn't require them to come after school or before school for weight-lifting. This allows them to continue to participate in other things, like band, alongside a sport. Two games ago, we had the team captain of the football team meet at the 50 yard line for the opening coin flip,  then, walk to the sideline and play the trumpet with the band for national anthem to start the game. This is an example of our "Renaissance emphasis." 
• Our after school practices don’t start until 4 p.m. so as not to conflict with tutorials for kids needing help. Doing well academically should not conflict with commitments to excelling on the field!

Fourth, we have fun here, too:

• House system: New student orientation, students will be sorted into one of four houses, each named after one of the early bishops of Mobile: Portier, Quinlan, O’Sullivan or Allen.  This becomes part of their identity here, part of their social life, competitions for House Cup, awarded to the House with the most points in late April. 
• Every Friday, we have a school assembly, led by the president of the student government and the House Council. We play games, have pep rallies,  sponsor contests between houses, etc. There is a lot of joy in our hallways!
• We compete at the 3A level, as full members of the AHSAA (first year), with teams in 10 different sports. Just finishing up football, volleyball and cross country seasons, basketball teams have begun practicing,  cheerleading is on-going, bowling team and tennis teams are new to the school this year. Soccer, baseball in the spring.  In a small school, kids have the opportunity to play, contribute, be part of something larger than themselves. Helps make high school memorable! 

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Enjoy the evening! Ask a lot of questions tonight! Students on tours, teachers, students  and coaches available at the end to talk about clubs and athletic teams. 

When we reassemble in the gym, we're going to give you admissions information, tell you about priority admissions.

We think it's important to apply before Christmas to secure a spot--last year, we were full before Christmas and could only accept few kids in the spring after some of the early applicants told us they weren't coming.