ROTC cadets meet outside the Chapel of the North American Martyrs for a jambalaya lunch to welcome students to the new school year. From left, freshman Donald Barrett, sophomore John Crowson, and pre-freshman Evan Ehrensing each pick up a bowl of piping hot jambalaya served by MGySgt. J.R. Piseno.

Freshman Aiden Roberts talks with Fr. Don Saunders, S.J. under the shade of a tree in Traditions Courtyard during lunch on opening day of the 2014 – 2015 academic year.

After effortlessly sailing through Book Day, a group of sophomores beat the heat and relax in the Traditions Courtyard with some snoballs. Led by Sophomore Class President William Fine, the student council class officers organized the cold, refreshing treat for the entire Class of 2017. Pictured from left are: Robert Illg, Blake Parenton, Joshua Harper, and Brett Balser.

English teachers Anne Bryant-Breaux and Denise Dupuis admire a second floor classroom under renovation. The rooms are being outfitted with new carpeting, shades, cabinets, lighting, and technology. View more renovation photos.

The Wild Photographer was pleasantly surprised when four relatives of Oscar Rabensteiner ’36 showed up to see some of his iconic artwork. Rabensteiner painted the massive school seal that hangs prominently at the Carrollton and Banks entrance to the school and the painting of St. Ignatius Loyola, S.J., which graces the back wall of St. Ignatius Hall. Pictured in front of the St. Ignatius painting are Rhonda Rabensteiner, Oscar’s daughter-in-law, and sons Erik, William, and Fred. Their brother, Chris Rabensteiner, joins Jesuit as a freshman in the fall.

Wearing a Blue and White “J” shirt, sophomore William Fine helps load luggage into a trailer as the Blue Jay Band and Jayettes gather in Traditions Courtyard to depart for their annual marching band camp. The band and squad will learn new performance routines in this annual week-long camp at Nicholls State University in Thibodaux, La.

Members of the Philelectic Society paused for a picture while setting up the new sound board for the auditorium. The new digital board replaced the older analog board that had been in use in the auditorium for the last 15 years. The new board will be used by the students to mix sound for various events in the auditorium, including Philelectic Society productions, band concerts, student and parent meetings, and summer rentals. Pictured from left to right are rising freshman Cameron DiMaggio, rising senior Bryan Jones, Mr. Danny “Ace” Ward ’77, rising senior Bailey Graffagnini, Mr. D.J. Galiano ’07, and rising junior Zachary Huck.

Incoming student council president and rising junior Joseph Dupré (foreground) engages the group of student council executive board and faculty/staff members gathered at the 5th annual leadership workshop. Sponsored by Jesuit’s offices of institutional advancement and student activities, the event provided a formation piece for the upcoming school year’s student leaders. The morning sessions were designed to inform and inspire the Executive Board of the 2015 student council. To help the student leaders “see” into the student life of the past, alumni J. Keefe Hecker ’64, Paul Varisco ’89, and Stephen Capella ’11 told stories of effective leadership among students and faculty during their years at Jesuit. The afternoon was dedicated to a presentation by student activities director Matt Orillion ’98 on Virtuous Leadership. The workshop ended with a brainstorming session focused on Jesuit’s strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for growth during the 2014 – 2015 school year.

Students in Ms. Yvonne Leger’s summer PSAT test prep course camp out, literally, outside their classroom while waiting for the start of class. The group pitched a tent, “roasted” marshmallows over their “campfire,” and even sang campfire songs to the amusement of passers-by in the school’s second floor hallway.

In Jesuit’s first-ever Robotics Summer Camp, more than a dozen boys and girls going into 6th-8th grades get hands-on experience with LEGO® Mindstorms® EV3 Robots. Camp director Kyle White, who teaches physics at Jesuit and moderates the school’s robotics club, grouped the 16 campers into small teams. Each team designed, built, and programmed autonomous robots which attempted to complete a set of missions in a competition on the final day of camp attended by an audience of family and friends.

The Urban Farming Club gathered their herb and vegetable harvest from the club’s garden, located adjacent to the Alumni Service Corps house on the corner of Banks and South Solomon streets. The spring garden consists of basil, parsley, thyme, tomatoes, onions, green peppers, squash, and nasturtium (an edible flower). Flowers are used as insecticide. The club meets on Saturdays and is currently in the process of building garden boxes to bring to a local Catholic elementary school that has no green space.

Jonathan Legier holds an umbrella to shield two young Blue Jay campers from the torrential downpour that coincided with the start of Friday’s Summer Camp at Jesuit High School. Legier, a rising senior, is one of the many camp counselors at Carrollton and Banks who found an umbrella to protect their charges as parents dropped them off in the Traditions Courtyard. This pair of campers takes the rain in stride, especially the little one, who seems excited about either being caught in a heavy shower or having a personal escort into the dry Student Commons, or both. Unfortunately, the all-day rain washed out a much-anticipated trip to an alligator farm. Fortunately, the alternate plan kicked in with campers enjoying the dry cool comfort of a local movie theater.

Workers carefully remove a section of stained glass from the dome in Holy Name Chapel as part of the “100-year renovation” of Jesuit’s small chapel. The glass is being painstakingly removed one section at a time and will be transported to the studio at Pearl River Glass, one of the nation’s leading stained glass studios. Located in Jackson, Miss., Pearl River Glass will employ some of the same techniques and craftsmanship used when the century-old windows were originally created. Watch a video detailing how Jesuit’s stained glass windows will be repaired and restored.

Cadets in the MCJROTC program depart for a week-long leadership camp at Naval Air Station Pensacola. Cadets will develop their leadership skills by partaking in various Naval training tours, flight-line operations demonstrations, and squad competitions.

Faculty members meet in Room 329 to participate in an iPad training session. These Jesuit teachers will be incorporating iPads as a teaching tool beginning in the 2014-2015 school year. The training session gave faculty members advice and options on how to incorporate interactive textbooks, creative tools, and educational apps to help customize students’ learning experience.

Rising junior Tyrus Norcise and his mother, Iona, participate in an interview with algebra teacher Andrea Mika to assess his progress toward realizing the goal of “The Profile of a Jesuit Graduate at the Time of Graduation.” The guidance department conducts these annual interviews in the summer between the students’ sophomore and junior years, so that Blue Jays may reflect on their time at Jesuit and to think forward about their plans and goals for their final two years.