Hello everyone! Hope you all had a great Easter celebration and well-deserved break! Since coming back from a quick trip home, life at Holy Cross has been busier than ever, and it is hard to believe it is mid-April and we only have three weeks left of the academic year!
Firstly, the Holy Cross Dance Ensemble wrapped up its final set of performances a few weeks ago during its Spring Show, where existing, new and class choreographers put together an extraordinary assortment of dances, varying in style from Irish Step to musical theatre and everything in between! While I am sad that I won’t be dancing onstage until the fall, I am so so thankful for the community I’ve found within the dance ensemble and the new experiences and friends it has brought me (including our amazing seniors!). I’ve included the link to the playlist of all performances, including but not limited to the 5 min musical theatre performance of Mean Girls, here!
Speaking of next fall, the majority of my time this month has been spent preparing for what I’ll be up to for the rest of the year! With the help of the Career Center, I’ve applied for a wide variety of summer internships, but prior to the start of internships, I’ll be participating in the Paris Maymester program through the Holy Cross Office of Study Abroad! The Maymester is a study abroad program that takes place during the end of the academic year, where a small group of Holy Cross students and professors spend a month in a foreign city (Paris, Rome, London, etc.) and take one Holy Cross course. This is something that I am so so excited for, as I am looking forward to the experience of immersing myself in the history and culture of a new city. The Maymester is a great option for students who want to take advantage of study abroad opportunities at Holy Cross but either can’t because of academic or athletic commitments, or simply don’t want to commit to an entire semester or year away from campus (like me!). Stay tuned – I will do my best to blog the experience while in Paris, if not shortly after!
These past few weeks, students have also prepared for the upcoming fall semester through class enrollment and housing selection. Every semester, I work with my advisor to arrange my class schedule in a way that best fits the requirements needed for my common area classes as well as my fields of study. I am pleased to report that I was able to enroll in all the classes I wanted and am very excited for my class schedule next fall!
Additionally, I am excited to announce that my best friend and I will be living in Ciampi, the residence hall dedicated to cultivating student wellness, next year! While Ciampi is a residence hall, which houses a group of about 70 students, the ground floor is open to all students. This “wellness living learning community” offers a wide variety of resources to improve one’s physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual wellness (among others). This past week, the Office of Residence Life & Housing hosted a Ciampi Meet & Greet for all members of the incoming cohort to get to know each other and begin to think about what wellness looks like for each of us! I found it to be a great preview of the year ahead and the community I will be living in.
Another highlight from these past few weeks has been the celebration of the 100th Anniversary of St. Joseph’s Chapel! On Sunday, students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members all piled into the chapel to celebrate 100 years of faith flourishing in the “spiritual heart of Holy Cross.” With such great attendance, triumphant organ music accompanied by the voices of the Chapel, College & Chamber Choirs, and touching and impactful readings, the mass was a beautiful tribute to all the Chapel has worked to create and celebrate, as well as an inspiring promise to continue its mission for another 100 years. I’ve attached the link to the livestream here!
Finally, I was able to help out during Holy Cross’ Accepted Students Day as a tour guide, introducing families to what makes Holy Cross so wonderful and (hopefully) convincing them to commit! To the class of 2028: we are SO excited for you to arrive in the fall and already so thankful for the gift of your presence on campus! Best of luck with the completion of your senior year – Holy Cross can’t wait to meet you!
