Freaky Friday: The Show Must Go Back On!

Excited to Be Back

April 13, 2021: Gross Catholic’s Dux Esto Drama Club was proud to present the Disney Musical “Freaky Friday” last weekend. After a year and a half of no live productions, students, staff and the community were excited to finally be back in the theater.

What we did at Christmas Time

At Christmas time, Drama made the decision to do a fully virtual performance. Everything was prerecorded, every musician sang alone, the sound was all compiled and then presented to the Gross Catholic community through a virtual performance streamed on You Tube. Ms. Jackson, Director of Theatre Arts and Vocal Music, stated “While we learned a lot, we really missed being in person and so we got the courage to attempt an in-person performance.” Consequently, when the Spring Musical came along, we were very exited to try it live.

Freaky Friday Adaptations

Adapting to the current situation, actors remained masked at all times during rehearsals and actors socially distanced as well. Everyone created “pods” within the production so that possible exposure could be contained. The cast wore clear masks when performing for audiences, but remained in cloth masks until the final dress rehearsal.

“The pandemic was an opportunity for us to use the Marianist Charism of Education for adaptation and change. The beauty of collaborative art is that we can always pursue a new way of creating and it is influenced by everyone in the room. Being able to create a live theatrical production after such a period of fasting from so many things that we love, I was reminded how much we need the arts and how grateful I am that we are able to start creating again.” Ms. Jackson

Academy Launch

Innovation at Its Best

Student looking at computer screenWe are proud to announce that Gross Catholic is moving forward with new and innovative opportunities for our students. In the fall of 2021-22, we are adding Academic Academies to our curriculum offerings. This program is unique because it builds upon our current course offerings and adds dual enrollment options along with a year-long field experience or capstone project.

Health Science Academy

Beginning with Nursing, this track will contain dual enrollment coursework along with a year-long field experience at a hospital. Be sure to check out the Healthcare Academy brochure.

STREAM (Science, Technology, Religion, Engineering, Art, Math)

The STREAM Academy will begin with Math and Computer Science. This track will contain dual enrollment with a year-long Capstone Project. These Academies have a complete plan for students with requirements starting in their freshman year and continuing through their senior year. Classes are offered at Gross Catholic with the added component of Dual Enrollment and either a year-long Field Experience or a year-long Capstone Project. Please know that these academies have limited space. See Mrs. McNamara to apply and also speak with her if you have any questions. Have you seen the STREAM Academy brochure?

Academy Students Selected

Students entering their Junior or Senior year at Gross Catholic in the fall 2021, submitted applications to either program, earlier this year. Accordingly, ten students are now selected for the Health Science Academy and six for the STREAM Academy.

One of the students selected for the Health Science Academy is Emily Fischer ’22. Opportunities for hands-on learning in the field is of great interest to Fischer. Fischer said, “I decided to apply because nursing has always been one of my dreams, as helping people has always been something I have been passionate about. I wanted to prove to myself that I could do anything I really tried to do and put my best effort into. I currently work in a nursing home and I love working alongside the residents and the med aids. The overall atmosphere just draws me in.”

Jesus Is a Robotics Pro

Led by Andrew Jesus, Genius Robotics Team Ranked Fourth in the World

Andrew JesusIt may be bold to call one of the Gross Catholic teams a “Genius Robotics Team,” but it is rather accurate. It takes genius engineering, knowhow, and skill to rank number four in the entire world. Hence, “genius” is a moniker that fits.

Andrew Jesus’ mom knew that he enjoyed taking things apart and putting them back together. So she signed up Andrew for a robotics camp at Gross Catholic when he was in 7th grade. Remarkably, on the first day of camp, Andrew called his mom and asked for money to attend the next camp. Six years later, his team, “Lochnut Monster” made it to the top five in the world.

World Rankings

Robotics TeamTeam Lochnut Monster consists of Andrew Jesus, Jeff Treu, Chris True, JP Jansen, and Keegan Shanahan. Andrew currently leads the group in designing, building, programming, and driving the robot. The team ranked as high as number four in January. The system that ranks robotics is also used in chess and other zero sum games to predict a player’s skill. The rankings constantly change because of the highly competitive nature of robotics. However, as of February 24th, Gross Catholic still has two teams in the top twenty. Additionally, Gross Catholic has five other rated teams.

Growth and Friendship

According to Mr. and Mrs. Jesus, “We have seen Andrew grow so much with robotics. Each year the game or challenge changes. The team has to build a new robot and document the journey in their engineering notebook. This has led to friendships across the country.”

When game rules are published each summer, Andrew immediately texts friends he made through robotics to brainstorm ideas. It’s important to realize that tournaments are designed to promote collaboration. Teams are randomly paired with another group and are required to compete together. Through teams’ communication, strategizing, and scouting each other, friendships naturally bloom.

Friendships Lead to Genius Robotics Alliance

Andrew Jesus and team at the museumWhile one might think Andrew enjoys most about robotics is the designing, building, or driving of the bot, it is quite the contrary. What Andrew enjoys most about robotics is meeting people around the world.

His experience making robotics friends globally began when Andrew was a freshman. At that time, the Gross Catholic team traveled to China and placed second at the world championships.

Relying on his robotics friends network, Andrew helped start, “Vortex Alliance,” a coalition is built from teams from around the world. Current members are from Texas, Canada, Montana, Minnesota, Nebraska, Iowa, Massachusetts, South Dakota, Wisconsin, China, Indiana, Missouri, Virginia, Maryland, and California.

Hard Work Leads to Success

In order for Andrew and his team to be successful, they all have committed themselves to excellence. Team Locknut Monster spends countless hours in the robotics lab building, refining and scrimmaging against each other. This persistent practice takes place almost every day after school and on weekends, not unlike a sports team practice schedule. The time and effort is evident when Gross Catholic competes in tournaments. This year, it isn’t uncommon that Gross has four teams in the semifinals. Also, quite often, teams from Gross compete against each other in the finals. “It is the strength of all of them that push them to be as good as they are today.” stated Mrs. Jesus.

The Future

Andrew will continue his education at Iowa State. His interest in robotics led him to decide to major in engineering at the university. His love of robotics will not be put on hold while Andrew is studying in college. He and his friends will compete in BattleBots. You may have seen the competition on TV. Teams build robots and compete head to head against each other in an exciting arena.

Robotics engineering in general is one of the fastest growing careers in the world. Robotics engineers such as Andrew and his team have a great opportunity to forge their path in that new world. The future looks bright. And Gross Catholic genius robotics team members definitely have a say in that future.

If you’re not already a Cougar, you should be one. Learn more about us and then let us know if you have any questions. We’d love for you to join our cougar family!

Behind the Scenes of Academic Decathlon

Demonstrating Excellence

Generally speaking, there are many wonderful academic competitions out there. Go prove you’re the best writer, or the best physicist, or the best speller. Academic Decathlon isn’t about any of that, though. It is not about demonstrating how good a student you already are. It’s about daring to push limits and to master college-level material. AcaDec is also a great way to practice skills, like public speaking, that might be wholly new. And it’s about the people met along the way.  Notably, the coaches who will mentor, the competitors who will challenge, and the teammates who will become lifelong friends.

Thoroughly Tested

1990 Academic Decathlon TeamOn the whole, decathletes study and test in seven areas: math, language and literature, science, music, art, economics, and social science. Additionally, students give two speeches (a prepared and an impromptu). They write an essay, and participate in an interview. In must be noted that Gross Catholic has been competing in Academic Decathlon for over 30 years, led by English Teacher, Mrs. Teresa Dorwart.

Adjusting to Covid

The Academic Decathlon team recently competed in the State Competition. In normal years, students travel to other schools for scrimmages, regionals and state competitions. This year, due to health precautions, students gave speeches and then completed interviews with judges via zoom. The following day they tested in 7 different categories. Students compete at 3 different levels of competition based on their previous 2 years GPA.

Levels of Competition

To clarify, the first competition level is referred to as, “Varsity”. Students in this category have a GPA from 0.00 to 3.19. The second level is called, “Scholastic”, with a GPA between 3.2 to 3.79. Furthermore, the final level is, “Honors”. Students in this category must have a GPA of 3.8 to 4.0.

Academic Decathlon State Champions

Significantly, the team ended the competition as State Champions for Class B. The top scorer from Gross Catholic is Amy Conner. Amazingly enough, Amy has been competing on the team since her Sophomore year. She decided to join the team because she loves to learn new things and is very competitive. To be sure, Academic Decathlon is the perfect combination for Amy. Truly, “The biggest thing I have learned during my time on the team is how to study effectively, as well as how to manage my time.”

Academic Decathlon Individual Medal Winners

  • WinnersAmy Conner: silver medal science, honors division
  • Quentin Hanzlik: gold medal in speech, gold medal in interview, scholastic division
  • Joe Kouba: gold medal in speech, honors division
  • Ripley Stansbury: gold medal in interview, silver medal in speech, varsity division
  • Connor McGarry: gold medal in music, silver medal in science, silver medal in literature, scholastic division
  • Owen Nolte: bronze medal in speech, scholastic division

Alternates

  • Audrey Swanson: bronze medals in hard sciences, soft sciences, and fine arts, scholastic
  • Arianna Serow: bronze medal in fine arts, honors division

Going forward, the team will now prepare for the online nationals competition that held in April.

Remote Snow Day Information

Online Class Schedule for Remote Snow Days

Snow buried houseIf the school declares a remote snow day, notifications are sent via social media, email, and text messages.

Furthermore, students are required to answer daily attendance questions and above all, attend each class virtually.

If a teacher is not meeting with a class during the assigned time, the teacher will post video instructions for students along with the assigned work for the day. Students are required to complete homework by the deadline assigned by each teacher.

Remote Day Schedule

  • 1st Period, 8:30-9
  • 2nd Period, 9:00 – 9:30
  • 3rd Period, 9:30 – 10:00
  • 4th Period, 10:00 – 10:30
  • 5th Period, 10:30 – 11:00
  • 6th Period, 11:00 – 11:30
  • 7th Period, 11:30 – 12:00
  • 8th Period, 12:00 – 12:30

Student Expectations

1. Each student is responsible for answering a daily attendance question in each of their classes, consequently proving to the teacher that you are present.
2. Follow the Remote Snow Day Learning Class Schedule.
3. Classes are in 30 minute increments starting at 8:30 am running through 12:30 pm.
4. Notify the teacher prior to the class if you are unable to attend, or you will be marked absent. Of course, attendance is required, just as if school were in session.
5. Each teacher holds a live zoom session for the class period, or in place of that, an instructional video in Google Classroom along with any assignments.

Choosing Gross Catholic after Public School

What Young People Need

Students walkingOmaha area Catholic school, or public school? Take a minute to think about all of the difficulties that youth face, during their teenage years. It’s a time when they begin to act independently and make choices that can impact the rest of their lives. When they look at the future, they’re often filled with hope and excitement along with some anxiety. They have questions about who they are and what they are called to be. Popular culture and our secular society are bombarding them with many “answers” to those questions each and every day. What young people need during their teenage years is a vibrant, faith-filled environment to teach them the knowledge and wisdom needed in an increasingly competitive and confusing world. We are a place that has an everyday impact.

The mission of Gross Catholic High School is to provide a faith-filled education built upon Catholic virtues and the life of Jesus Christ. We are a Catholic school and proud of it. However, you don’t have to be Catholic to attend Gross Catholic. We accept students of all faiths and accept and honor all faiths. Gross Catholic teaches moral values and decision making,  The difference is that we can talk about faith in our school. We can teach students how to make moral decisions based upon faith. We talk and learn about morals in a safe environment. Our students go out into the world to become productive, successful, and ethical citizens. While the majority of the students at Gross Catholic come from Archdiocesan Catholic grade schools, we also have a number students who have attended public schools.

We interviewed a few of our current families that made the decision to send their student to Gross Catholic High School, after attending a public grade school.

What guided your decision making switching from a public school, to a Catholic high school?

Chris Drake (Current Sophomore Parent)

It ultimately came down to the closeness of the Gross Catholic family. My son is baptized Catholic, but never had any previous Catholic education. We knew that Gross Catholic emphasized academics and that the small class sizes were far superior to what we had experienced with our daughter at a large public high school.

Judy Sauley (Current Sophomore Parent)

The primary influence that drove us to send our son to Gross Catholic began in 7th grade public school. He started hanging around kids we did not think were a very good influence on his character. In addition, he began saying things that we did not like. We saw him heading in a direction we did not want, so we chose to invest in our son’s future by ensuring a better environment.

What value do you see in sending your children to Gross Catholic High School as opposed to a public school?

Chris Drake

The value of having a small, close-knit group of students and families can’t be emphasized enough.

Judy Sauley

The primary value of sending our children to Gross High School turned out to be the same reason my mother sent my brothers and sister and myself to Gross High School 30 years earlier. She said the reason she sent to Catholic school because she felt she would have four more years of influence over us with our faith, academic, and personal development. All the teachers knew our entire family and different teachers mentored each of us kids in different ways.

Did your student have any input in choosing a high school?

Chris Drake

Yes. Gross Catholic is actually my son’s idea. He had played a couple of years of Junior Cougars sports and had become very close with a number of kids that were going to Gross Catholic.

Judy Sauley

Yes, so we developed a list of pros and cons. We explained our decision and why.  The primary argument that always came back to us on the con side (from them) was always the same. Their friends were going to a different high school. We explained that friends come and go, so that reason could not be the only argument against not going to Gross Catholic.

Tell us about the transition from public school to Catholic school for your student and family.

Chris Drake

My son has always been a solid and conscientious student. That said, there was a period of adjustment as he got used to the grading, homework load, and expectations. There was also some adjustment for us as a family made much easier by the Gross Catholic families that we had built relationships with.

Judy Sauley

A seamless transition quite frankly, because the small school size enabled our kids to get as involved as they wanted. It helped them excel where they would have been “lost” in the shuffle of public school.

What has your student gained from their experience at Gross Catholic High School?

Chris Drake

The academic and athletic experiences have been far greater than what he would have had at a public school. The relationships with friends, families, staff, and coaches is not something that he would have had the opportunity to form at a larger school.

Judy Sauley

Character development. Sending our kids to Gross Catholic instead of public school gave me firepower. We chose to invest in their future now when we could have chosen public school for free. So don’t ever say we do not care. They knew the teachers could make more money elsewhere.  However, the teachers chose to work Gross Catholic, because it is more than just about the money.  That is one of life’s most important lessons.

What advice would you have for public school families considering Gross Catholic High School?

Chris Drake

Don’t ever worry that your kid won’t be loved or valued at Gross.  Gross Catholic is an amazing place that embraces every person, regardless of faith. I doubt that you will feel more welcomed than you will at Gross Catholic.

Judy Sauley

Sending your kids to Catholic School instead of a public school is an investment in their future. It is about leading in every aspect of their lives – moral character, community service, academic development, critical thinking skills, ethical responsibility, and a faith-filled life. With the more personalized approach for students, they are more involved and excel in a safer, more supportive atmosphere.

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