Juniors gathered in the auditorium during the first half of their lunch period for a meeting to set the tone for the year. Seniors had a similar meeting during the second half of lunch, and other classes will do the same throughout the week. In addition to some remarks from the grade level guidance counselor, prefect of discipline Mr. Lary Abshire, better known to students as “Top,” took the opportunity to review discipline policy and encourage students to be their best. Also pictured is Mr. Mike Begg, who is assisting Mr. Abshire with disciplinary issues.

Sophomore Braden Bent braves the first-week line for supplies at the Blue Jay Shop, which is open Monday – Friday before school, at lunch, and after school. During the first few days of classes, students receive their syllabi and course policy sheets outlining all the supplies they’ll need for a semester full of learning.

Senior student council leaders find an innovative way to cool down the newest Blue Jays after a high spirited pep rally in the auditorium. The New Student Orientation Day concludes with a pep rally held normally in the gym, but rainy conditions called for a location change. Seniors (from left) William Fine, Carl Hoefer, and Jacob Marshall should be pointing the leaf blower at themselves after their high-energy leadership getting new students charged with Blue Jay Spirit.

From aloha to camouflage, seniors displayed an amazing assortment of fashionable wear Tuesday morning at Book Day, including this trio, from left: Austin Ros, Eli Sisung, and John Brazio.

Sophomore Christopher Vuong is taking advantage of his summer vacation to brush up his skills on the organ in the Chapel of the North American Martyrs. Last school year Vuong was recognized as an all-state musician for his talent with the trumpet. In the not-too-distant future, the chapel will be brimming with students at the annual Mass of the Holy Spirit. The organ is a musical instrument perfect for use in the Catholic liturgy. As Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI said in 2006, the organ is “capable of echoing and expressing all the experiences of human life. The manifold possibilities of the organ in some way remind us of the immensity and the magnificence of God.”

Members of the President’s Advisory Council met at Manresa this week to share their expertise with Fr. McGinn, S.J. ’66 for the annual PAC retreat. The two-day retreat kicks off the year of monthly meetings to advise the president on various aspects of operations at Jesuit. Also joining the group was the future president of Jesuit, Fr. Christopher Fronk, S.J., whose presence at the retreat gave a foretaste of the passion for high school education he will bring to Jesuit at the end of the fall semester. Fr. Fronk said Mass and preached (with Fr. McGinn concelebrating) for the more than 25 PAC members present.

Good teachers never stop honing their craft. Five Jesuit teachers are beginning their school year in earnest by taking the four-day “Studying Skillful Teaching” course, the hallmark of Jesuit’s program for professional development for new teachers. “Studying Skillful Teaching” is a graduate level course that supports teachers by enhancing their instructional practices which lead students to higher levels of critical thinking and rigorous engagement. Jesuit has been a leader in exploring research-based improvement for classroom instruction and this year welcomes over 20 teachers from high schools across the metro area, including Archbishop Chapelle, Archbishop Hannan, Brother Martin, Cabrini, and Dominican.

The Blue Jay Band tour group poses for a photo outside the Palace of Versailles in France on their 17-day tour across Europe. The group of band members and their families (118 people total) continue on their multi-city adventure through Belgium, France, and Germany, including two concerts played in the German city of Bamberg. The trip is part of the Blue Jay Band exchange program, now in its 16th year, with Clavius Gymnasium of Bamburg, whose students will visit Jesuit in October.

Maintenance director Jimmy Huck, along with maintenance staff Brian Habisreitinger and Eddie Habisreitinger, carefully took down Oscar Rabensteiner’s (1936) iconic painting from the walls of St. Ignatius Hall this summer. The painting of St. Ignatius will be restored while the hall undergoes renovations. Improvements will include shades on the windows and an acoustical treatment. The updates are expected to be complete in the beginning of the school year.

Summer day campers watch in awe as Sally Farrell of “Wind in My Feathers” gives a live display of several non-releasable birds of prey. Farrell is a raptor (bird of prey – owl, falcon, hawk, vulture) rehabilitator and educator with state and federal permits for New Orleans and the surrounding area. Her hour-long presentation was supplemented with audio and visual aids, such as photography, taped bird calls, owl castings, feather displays, skulls, and owl feet.

Jesuit summer day campers celebrate the end of the first session with a field day on Will Clark Field. Campers kept cool in the summer heat with large inflatable water slides and field games. Jesuit offers a fun-filled summer day camp for boys ages 5-12. Jesuit Summer Day Camp runs two three-week sessions. The second session begins Monday and ends Friday, July 8.

A group of Philelectic Society and Blue Jay Band students, parents, and alumni were treated to a behind-the-scenes look at the National Broadway tour of the Tony Award winning musical Wicked. The group paused for a picture on the show deck at the Saenger theater while being guided around the set by the company manager and the production stage manager.

Blue Jay alumnus Brandt Quick ’99 leads members of the football team in agility and speed drills on Will Clark Field Thursday morning. Quick is president and CEO of BQuick Athletic Development, as well as the director and head speed and strength specialist at Sports Performance Academy in Mandeville. A three-year football letterwinner at Jesuit, he was instrumental in helping the Blue Jays to three state semifinal appearances. Quick rushed for 1,728 yards and 28 touchdowns as a senior. He also lettered in baseball while at Jesuit, batting .490 as a senior and driving in 86 runs. After graduating from Jesuit he went on to play football at Kansas State and Tulane University.

Lynn (center) and Winifred “Winnie” Worley (right) assist alumni director Mat Grau ’68 with items from the Jesuit archives. Spanning more than 165 years, the school’s vast archives boast everything from historic photos to newspaper clippings to original report cards to athletic and academic memorabilia. Lynn and Winnie have donated several items to the archives, including a nearly century-old class photo taken at the original campus on Baronne and Commons. Lynn and Winnie are the daughters of the late Andrew Worley (1919) and the sisters of Joseph Worley ’55, namesake of The Joseph Michael Worley Memorial Award — given to the senior who, by his unselfishness, sportsmanship, and spirit during his career at Jesuit, enhanced the athletic program either as a player, manager, trainer, or student.

Members of the Class of 2020 meet in the Traditions Courtyard prior to their departure on the Pre-Freshman Pilgrimage to San Antonio. Each year nearly 100 eighth graders make the 72-hour to and from the Catholic Missions of San Antonio. Along the way Blue Jays will also visit theme and water parks, the historic San Antonio River Walk, and the Novitiate of the Society of Jesus at Grand Coteau.

As the month of May nears its end, the statue of Mary in the Traditions Courtyard still wears the crown pre-freshman Christopher Charles placed on her head during the May 2 ceremony. Throughout the month of May Catholics honor the Blessed Virgin, who is the patroness of Jesuit High School.