Young 8th grade students roamed around the halls of Jesuit with their families, popping in and out of rooms showcasing the different clubs, sports, and activities that Jesuit offers. These potential Jesuit students milled around the different parts of the campus, attending lectures and simply experiencing the Jesuit culture. For three hours, they learned about a variety of things, ranging from the admissions process to everyday life as a Jesuit Student.
This was the scene at Jesuit on Sunday, November 8 from 1:00 to 4:00 when Jesuit hosted an open house for students interested in joining next year’s freshman class. According to Mr. Tim Host, the director of admissions, Preview Day is usually very well attended: “We typically get several hundred visitors — usually 600-800.” The entire faculty participated in the event in a myriad of ways: classroom sessions, academic information sessions, tours, activity fairs, athletic fairs, band performance, robotics demonstrations, and drawing and ceramics demonstrations. The day truly showcased everything Jesuit has to offer, from academics to athletics to extracurriculars!
Preview Day began with President Earsing and Principal Garrison speaking to the parents and middle schoolers about what it means to come to Jesuit during an assembly in the Terry Center. Afterwards, faculty and staff spoke to the group about the philosophy of the school and the traits of a Jesuit student. Finally, after prayer, the crowd of families broke up to visit with different faculty and staff around the school.
Each of the academic departments gave presentations to explain some of the curriculum and classroom environments students would experience here. The attendees were able to listen to lectures and see what a class is like at Jesuit.
After watching the class presentations, students headed over to the cafeteria to see of the clubs represented at Jesuit. Each club was given a booth where representatives distributed information and explained what their club was all about. Dominic Iannelli, the RoundUp editor-in-chief, remarked that “This was my first year working at Preview Day, and it was a huge success!” He went on to say that he “was able to talk to a bunch of prospective students… and it was a great experience for everyone.”
Additionally, the students received information about Jesuit’s athletics. Coaches and representatives talk to interested students and gave them insight into Jesuit’s athletic programs. Students were able to gather more information in order to prepare for the large transition to high school sports.
This year was a great success for both interested students and Jesuit. Principal Garrison commented, “This seemed to be one of the best attended years we have had; the Terry Center was filled.” He also noted that the group this year was very “energetic” and that he hoped that that the students saw that “Jesuit has a lot to offer each individual student.”
Preview day exceeds expectations every year and is definitely an event to come to for all curious eighth graders!
