SEPTEMBER 2006
2nd –New Student
Orientation
During the weekend before
school began, the Xavier family welcomed the 41 new freshmen
to Xavier. Everyone met in the study hall and the faculty
and staff introduced themselves. Then all the freshmen
were separated into groups and given tours around the
campus. The older students led some ice-breaker activities,
including a scavenger hunt, and cooked a big barbeque.
The day was a great success, especially in helping reassure
the shy and nervous freshmen.
5th – First Day
of Classes
The first day of school
was exciting for many people at Xavier. The Freshmen were
nervous and shy in their new surroundings, the older students
were curious about their new teachers and subjects, and
the new Xavier faculty were nervous teaching their first
classes. This year the schedule has been changed and the
periods are now 50 minutes long. Instead of 2 study periods
at the end of school, one has been moved to after lunch.
As such, classes finish at 4:00pm instead of 3:00pm. Many
students really noticed the longer periods. Some liked
the new schedule and others preferred the old one. The
Freshmen found the busy classes and large workloads hard,
but have also found the older students very supportive
and helpful. All the Seniors have already paired up with
a Freshmen and are encouraging and supporting their Xavier
‘brothers’ and ‘sisters’.
16th – Girl’s
Sponsors Orientation
Following a similar format
to the freshmen orientation, this day helped introduce
the Chuukese sponsor families and make them feel welcome
and appreciated. Thank you to Dali (girl’s moderator)
for organizing the day. (see article)
22nd – Worker’s
Prayer Day
On Friday all the Chuukese
workers at Xavier went downtown to Blue Lagoon for a picnic
and prayer day. The day was led and organized by Fr Ken
U, SJ. This was Xavier’s way of saying thank you
for all the hard work they do for the students. Unfortunately,
rain spoiled the picnic. However, they enjoyed going “Friday
cruising” in the new Xavier bus.
29th – Freshmen
entertainment
All the students and staff
were very excited leading up to Freshmen entertainment
on Friday afternoon. The older students had been practicing
two weeks before the event, determined to make their skit
the best. The Senior class decorated the gym and served
the Freshmen food, drinks, candy, ice cream and cake,
treating them like royalty as they watched the performances
on stage. Performances included hula dances, the ‘Bus
Stop Tango’ (Sophomores) and a fast-tempo Spanish
dance (Juniors). The Chuukese students did a skit impersonating
various freshmen, the Marshallese did some break-dancing,
the Juniors performed a romantic candle dance and the
Yapese did their famous ‘Midget show’. The
boys particularly showed a liking to dressing up as girls,
and at least 10 boys wore dresses, skirts, balloons and
wigs to try to be the sexiest girl on stage. The grand
finale was the fire stick dance by the Pohnpeians. The
Freshmen loved the day and it helped make them feel even
more comfortable and welcome at Xavier.
OCTOBER 2006
1st – Chuuk State
Constitution Day
To celebrate Chuuk State
Constitution Day, Xavier students split into groups and
traveled around every corner of Weno Island picking up
trash on Monday 2nd October. The day was a great success,
and many trash bags were filled. The activity was important
for the Xavier students to contribute something to the
Chuukese community and to be men and women for others.
(see article)
6th – 8th Junior
CSP
27th – 29th Sophomore
CSP
The Junior CSP at Tonoas
and the Sophomore CSP at Parem were both great successes.
The new Campus Ministry team, led by Dali, did an excellent
job organizing and running the class retreats. The retreats
gave the students time to work hard for other people,
get to know Chuukese families and the local community,
and most importantly, grow and learn more about each other.
On Tonoas, all the students stayed at the local parish,
working to clear the side of a hill where a landslide
had occurred. On Parem, the students slept with sponsor
families, cleaning houses and the local church, gathering
firewood, and clearing weeds and taro patches. On both
retreats the CM team cooked the food, organized the activities,
and led small groups in sharing and reflection exercises.
19th October – 1st
Quarter Ends
20th October – Leadership
Institute
This year, the Leadership
Institute was led by Fr Arthur. The students have a whole
day to discuss what a leader is and how to be a leader.
Fr Arthur used the film ‘Whale Rider’ to help
emphasize leadership in a Pacific Island context.
20th – 22nd Faculty
Retreat
The faculty retreat was
held on Onei, Tol over the weekend. The faculty enjoyed
escaping their grades and marking, in order to relax and
regenerate for the next quarter ahead.
26th - Honors Assembly
NOVEMBER
1st – 3rd No classes
The first week of November
was full of fun and relaxation for the students. On the
1st there was no class because of All Saints Day. The
girls stayed downtown and the boys attended a small service
in the school chapel. The next day the students traveled
to Pisiwi Is. for the annual school picnic. A group of
senior boys had already cleaned and prepared the island
by the time the overcrowded boat full of excited Xavierites
arrived. Students swam, ate, slept and played volleyball.
Fortunately, the weather was glorious. On Friday there
was no class because it was FSM Independence Day.
10th – 11th Girls
Gathering
Each year the girls are
given an opportunity to live on Xavier campus for a night.
All the girls were bubbling with excitement on Friday,
their bags full with pillows, sheets, teddy bears and
lots of candy. The boys were not allowed to venture into
the main building on Friday night and the girls all slept
in the media room. The Senior girls and Island Representatives
organized activities throughout the night, including games
like ‘Truth or Dare’. From 5pm on Friday until
5am on Saturday, wild screams could be heard continuously
from the main building. The screams kept many of the boys
awake all night. The girls then took a bus on Saturday
morning to Blue Lagoon Resort for a picnic. All the girls
loved their one night at Xavier. Not only did they get
to spend time with each other, but they also got to tease
the boys for a whole night.
28th Oct ACT test
4th Nov SAT test
18th Nov TOEFL test
Over the last two
months, Juniors and Seniors have been busy taking various
tests in order to apply to colleges outside Micronesia.
These tests are optional for all Uppers, but are essential
if you want to apply to a college in America. The SAT
test was particularly long and hard, with students having
to complete two 2 ½ hour exams. The TOEFL test,
a basic English test, was much easier for the students.
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