Ethan Epley ’16

Last week the SJ community held a variety of traditional and new events for Spirit Week in anticipation of the Friday rivalry game between Strake Jesuit and St. Thomas High School. Spirit Week is one of the most important times at Jesuit with a focus on generating school pride and cohesion between new and returning students along with faculty and staff through spirit wear and a pep rally Friday morning to heighten the excitement going into the game.

Many freshmen and several dozen upperclassmen started the week anticipating life with a buzz cut–or an askew mohawk courtesy of their favorite senior(s)–for the coming weeks as part of an SJ Spirit Week tradition in preparation for Friday’s football game; Jesuit Dean of Students Mr. Dan Healey and a few other faculty and staff also took part in the offer of a free “haircut” to promote the communal spirit of the entire campus. The fight song replaced the bell over the school loudspeaker at the end of class periods each day, and students wore SJ green on Friday to show support.

Pierce Kotarski ’16, a Crusader Crew member of Xavier House and member of the newly established Spirit Club offered his opinion on Spirit Week:

“This week is about more than a game, it’s about the brotherhood and a certain pride at Jesuit. Something we hope to improve with the Spirit Club.”

Another member of Xavier House, Cooper Goetz ’16, had this to offer:

“The purpose of Spirit Week, in my mind, centers around creating the feeling of a brotherhood at SJ. Through the activities during the week, the community as a whole is brought closer together.”