 The
Mount Michael open house drew in large crowds this past Sunday.
From 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., the doors of Mount Michael were open to all
those who were interested in coming, and there were many. This year
though, the crowd was a more diversified, drawing people from Omaha,
Gretna, and a wide variety of other places, most notably a larger
group from Lincoln. Besides being from a variety of different places,
there were more guests of different ethnicity and religious affiliation.
This would give the school a greater variety of cultures and a better
insight into the cultures of others.
Not only were there more people (around
80 families), but the guests seemed to have taken a genuine interest
in what the Mount has to offer.
"It seemed like the people I
talked to were very impressed," said Jim Clements, director
of admissions and marketing.
From the beginning at one o' clock,
there was a trickle of families coming in. The crowd slowly grew
larger over the hour, and at around two to three thirty the school
was packed with curious families taking a look into what their sons
would be going through.
There were also a lot of questions
being asked. "The people were full of questions. Their
moms asked more than the guys did."said sophomore Shane Hansen.
The results of the open house were
excellent, with almost thirty potential freshmen signing up for
shadowing. There have already been 30 - 40 shadows and not even
half of the year is over. Taking into consideration that other schools
such as Gross and Roncalli were having their open houses the same
day, the turn out was satisfying.
The tours given covered almost every
aspect of life at the Mount, from education to sports to life in
the dorms. The teachers gave very convincing introductions about
how Mount Michael is the choice for those seeking academics that
will take them where they want to go in life. Not only the teachers,
but our classmates who gave tours did a friendly and convincing
job of telling people to choose our school.
"The students were giving thorough,
in depth tours," said Eric Crawford, admissions counselor and
dean.
 The
tour started in the chapel where an introduction was given by one
of the monks, either Fr. Mike or Fr. Richard. After the introduction,
the families went into the reception area and were assigned a guide
to take them around the school. From there the people were led to
the sophomore dorms and shown what one of the rooms was like. Back
down the main hall they went, stopping to talk to several of the
teachers along the way, and to the computer lab where they were
shown the computer and science rooms. The freshman dorm was next
on the agenda and next year's freshmen were shown where they will
be sleeping. The library followed suit and then came the weight
room, art room, and dining room. After the band room which was the
last stop on the tour, the people were led to the armory parents
and family talked to the guest families one on one about choosing
Mount Michael.
"If the turnout of the
open house is any indicator, it looks like we should have a good
sized freshman class next year," said librarian Bro. Luke -
Article and photos by Kelson Hedderich
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