“I had a lot of fun,” said freshman Hannah Alvers, 14. “I think it was a good way for the students to get to know each other.”
Classmates agreed.
“Things like (the dodgeball tournament) are a smart idea,” said freshman Marisa Arredondo, 14. “It beats going straight into the classroom to begin the day.”
For their victory, the junior class students will receive championship T-shirts, a pizza party and, most importantly, a future free-dress day during the school year, allowing them to be free of their school uniform.
“It was a class bonding exercise,” Holy Trinity principal Robin Couvillon said. “We wanted to bring the students together and have them bond in each grade level.”
It’s important for students to get to know who their classmates are at a smaller school, Couvillon said. “They all eat lunch together, and they will be doing a number of other things together during the school year.”
For many of the teachers at Holy Trinity, Friday marked new beginnings.
“I wouldn’t say I’m nervous,” rookie English teacher Mary Susan McGarr said. “I’ve met a few of the students and have been in talks with other teachers, and administrators talked over the summer.
“I think I’m more excited than anything,” Ms. McGarr said. “I was doing a lot of preparation and reading over the summer to get ready - but I know once classes start, anything can happen.”
As for the early start to the school year, more than a week before most public school districts return for classes, Couvillon said Holy Trinity resumes around the same time every year.
“We always try to start in mid-August,” Couvillon said. “We’re always a week or two ahead of the pack.”
And, they always start on Fridays.
“I think we do the Friday thing because we want (students) getting acclimated to being back in school, with issues like waking up early and meeting their classmates,” Couvillon said. “We also have partial classes, so they get to spend a short amount of time meeting their teachers, and collecting their books.”
The first real day the students will have in their classrooms will be Monday.
“It doesn’t seem like we’re back that early,” said fine arts teacher Chris Mosmeyer, who added he thinks they’ve started a little earlier in the past.
“The summer does go by quick though, just like the students will tell you,” said Mosmeyer, who said he spent his summer teaching at Temple College, watching his kids’ youth baseball games, and welcoming a newborn. “The school year can go by just as fast, though. When you’re always busy doing things, in the blink of an eye, before you know it, it can be the end of the year.”
Senior John Pollack, 17, agreed. “The summer never seems like it’s long enough. It’s a little bit different coming back this early, but we do get more time off for breaks, and holidays than most students get at public schools,” he said.
Couvillon said the school typically has a picnic before the school year begins, but this year they scheduled their picnic to tie into the school’s first home football game, which will be played next SaturdayHoly Trinity, which fielded squads in the 2004 and 2005 seasons, reinstated its team for the upcoming year.
