6:30 a.m. A loud alarm sounds. A faint groan and a rustling of sheets fill the dark, quiet room. With wide-opened bright eyes, a grey skirt and polo are snatched from their laid-out position on the clean dresser. Oops, don’t forget the sweater, it’s dress uniform day.

The reflection in the mirror blinks back with curious eyes, unfamiliar to seeing this uniform. However, it feels comfortable like it was designed to fit perfectly.

Looking out the car window, anxiety and excitement consume every thought and idea. The car slows to turn into the parking lot. Ready eyes search the building. Carefully, the words “Notre Dame de Sion High School” catch the searching eyes. This is it. The first day of high school. “You have arrived at your destination” the GPS says. Welcome home. Welcome to Sion.

One hundred nine students filed into the gym doors Aug. 16, ready to begin their high school careers. With cheering and the rustling of poms from the cheer team filling their ears, the new students grabbed their schedules and continued into the gym. Speeches were given by numerous faculty members including High School Division Head Natalie McDonough and Campus Minister Stephanie Pino-Dressman. Members of student council then led the new students on tours around campus.

Next, the freshmen were able to run through their schedules and meet their teachers and classmates. Freshman Nina Trouvé said she is excited to begin high school and meet new friends.

“So far I’m really liking Sion. All the teachers are super nice and welcoming and so are all the other freshman,” Trouvé said. “I also really like the school because it’s so colorful and the freshman lockers look so good.”

After their final class the freshmen joined together again in the gym to meet with their peer ministry groups. This year, Pino-Dressman tried to match two or more seniors that were friends to lead the small groups. In the past, the peer ministers were paired up with someone they might not know too well, making the freshmen and seniors branch out. However, this new change could add a different dynamic to the peer ministry process.

“I hope that pairing groups of freshmen with seniors who know each other will help to make the group meetings less awkward – the focus will be completely on the freshmen and not ‘trying to figure out’ the senior sitting next to you,” Pino-Dressman said. “In addition, communication between meetings should improve since peer ministers are exchanging information with people who are already in their social media consciousness so to speak.”

6:30 am. A heavy arm reaches out from under the warm covers and hits the snooze button. A grey skirt is picked up off the floor and slipped into. Messy hair and a crinkled polo stare back through the mirror. This uniform is a habit now, part of everyday’s routine. The once unfamiliar hallways will be easily navigated without one noticing, even with 2020 vision.