Dear Xavier Family,
Once again we arrive at the month of May, a month dedicated to Mary, a time to focus on mental health awareness, and a time to celebrate our seniors as they become our newest alumni. There is so much to acknowledge with the Class of 2023 – it’s going to be difficult to capture everything that makes them a generational group in just one letter.
Let me start with this – they’re a funny bunch. Last week, I was talking to some seniors during lunch and they were discussing their lack of motivation as the calendar approached May. I mentioned that senioritis is a real thing, but then one of the guys suggested “Mr. Mauthe, 4 terms is too much to expect. When we were freshmen, we stayed home for the last term. We aren’t trained for this kind of a marathon.” Interesting. The seniors are not afraid to offer creative ideas, usually related to such priorities as game themes and why we need a casual day. In class, I can always count on some sort of outlandish story from the weekend, from the drive to school, or from the attempt to park in the lot. The seniors have a remarkable way of making me laugh and enjoy their company while also recognizing how hard they work to avoid us staying on topic according to the lesson plan.
Next, we should take a moment to consider how talented they are. We have won a lot of conference, regional and state championships since this class walked in the doors. Our theatre program, choir, band and orchestra have all been sustained by the enthralling performances of these young people. They do so many incredible things outside of school that we seldom even know – from competitive dance to engine repair, from welding to painting murals. It is almost impossible to think of the myriad of ways this group will improve our world as they go forth. God has blessed them with so many skills and talents.
Finally, this is a group of pilgrims on the journey of faith. Under their leadership, teams and clubs sponsored morning Mass. They are often the first to volunteer to do service, especially when a person in need reaches out in a pinch. The seniors ask great questions to know God better, reflect on the role their faith will play in college and beyond, and provide an example to the rest of the students of the life of faith. I have been inspired all year by the “senior stories” which prepare us for all-school Mass. These are young people who honor their parishes and the Church by the way they approach the faith journey. They have blessed us daily.
For the rest of my life, I will remember the Class of 2023 for the devotion to Mr. Hurula during his illness, their loving patience with him as he returned to the classroom, their constant prayer for him during his illness and even now for his eternal life. On the day Mr. Hurula passed, two seniors used their free period to go to his house to shovel for the family. At the funeral, more than half of the senior class was in attendance for a man who taught them for less than a month. Just last week, on Xavier Day, the seniors made their own initiative to collect money to donate in honor of Mr. Hurula.
Every year, we graduate a group of young people and send them into the world with our full confidence, support and love. This year, as I look at our “profile of a graduate at graduation,” I know that our seniors are who we hoped they would become. They’re scholars, friends and leaders. I speak for the faculty, staff and their fellow students when I say that their legacy at Xavier is well-established. They are leaving their school a better place than it was when they started. Join me in celebrating them this month.
For God’s Greater Glory,
Mike Mauthe Principal
Senior Celebrations and Events
SENIOR AWARDS CEREMONY- Senior Awards will be held on Sunday, May 21 from 7PM in the Xavier Theatre. Students are asked to dress up for this formal event. We will present academic and extra-curricular awards as well as several community scholarships. All seniors and their families are welcome to attend, but award recipients will be notifies ahead of the event.
Academic pins and letters, as well as graduation cords for highest honors and honor society members, will be presented at an assembly during the school day on Friday, May 5. More details will come in the weekly e-mail. Parents are welcome to join us. Seniors who do not attend the ceremony should see Mrs. Carpenter to pick up their cord(s) prior to their last day of school on May 26th.
BACCALAUREATE MASS - Baccalaureate Mass will take place on Tuesday, May 23 at 10:50 a.m. inthe theatre Seniors will wear the graduation gowns (but not caps). Family members are welcome to attend.
SENIOR EXAMS - Senior exams will take place on Thursday, May 25 and Friday, May 26. Thursday is a full day of school. Seniors will go to their morning classes and then take their third and fourth block exams. On Friday, seniors will take their blocks one and two exams and be finished by 11:35.
GRADUATION PRACTICE -
Which is mandatory for all seniors, will take place at 1:00 p.m. on Wednesday, May at the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center. Seniors are asked to enter through the valet parking entrance at the PAC (these are the doors to the right of the main entrance on the corner of Division and College). Practice usually lasts about an hour. Seniors should make sure they are not scheduled to work at this time.
GRADUATION -
Takes place on Wednesday, May 31 at7:00 p.m. (doors open at 6 p.m.) at the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center.
From the Business/ Attendance Office
Lunch Accounts: All lunchaccounts are expected to have an available balance at all times. Funds remaining in an account at the end of the school year will carry over to 20232-243. We will refund account balances to families of seniors who have neither outstanding financial obligations nor younger siblings in the system.
Attendance: Your cooperation in reporting absentees is sincerely appreciated. If you are planning a vacation that does not coincide with the vacation that is scheduled in our school calendar, it is your responsibility to notify school, stating the days your student will be missing. It is also your responsibility to contact your student’s teachers. See the school web site for an “Anticipated Absence Request Form”, this form is then turned to the Attendance office. You are reminded that although the absence is considered excused, the number of days missed is counted as part of the maximum of five days allowed per term.
Senior Final Transcripts
Attention Seniors! Final transcripts will be sent to your selected college or university after grades for term 4 are posted. This typically happens during the last week or so of June. Your school may ask for one to be sent or you may be asked to provide one at a student orientation day, but we cannot provide a final transcript until grades are posted. We appreciate your patience! If you have any questions, please contact Mrs. Carpenter in the Counseling Suite.
Junior Transcript Requests
Attention Juniors! Please do not make any transcript requests for colleges you are applying to over the summer. The counselors will meet with you during the first week of school and will accept transcript requests at that time. Remember to use the Junior Timeline as a guide!
ACT Test Prep
ACT Test Prep is a 4 night test-prep boot camp to prepare students for the ACT Test assessment. We begin with a practice test, and then have dedicated instruction within each domain of the test. Strategies and best practices will be shared, along with additional resources not available online. We will be offering a class prior to the June 10th national ACT test. More information regarding the classes can be found on our website: www.act-testprep.com. Class is held at Xavier High School during the afternoon because school will not be in session. To sign up for a class or to get more information, go to www.act-testprep.com or you can contact Mrs. Monica Jones via email mjones@act-testprep.com or phone (920) 475-6567.
Junior Timeline 2023
February-July: ACT & SAT Testing
Register for one of the ACT Tests: www.actstudent.org HS code: 500-063
April 15 test Deadline March 10
June 10 test Deadline May 5 (finals are June 1 &2)
July 15 test Deadline June 16
Fee Waivers available - see your counselor
Testing accommodations - see Mr. Neiswender
Sending score reports, writing portion, subtests
Register for an ACT prep class if desired
ACT Test Prep: Act-testprep.com
WI ACT Test Prep: email wiactprep@gmail.com for info
ACT: act.org/prep
Take the SAT Test if needed. Register at www.collegeboard.com
March 11 Deadline February 10
May 6 Deadline April 7
June 3 Deadline May 5
SAT school day - April 25 - sign up at school - register by March 24 with Mr. Parish
February
Complete Career lesson with counselor in class (or in 4th term, depending on your schedule)
March
Begin researching college
Xavier College Fair: March 14 (https://tinyurl.com/CollegeFairXHS)
Visit colleges during spring break (March 4-12)
April
Enter list of “Colleges I’m Thinking About” in Naviance Student Make sure you know what the ‘colleges you are thinking about’ require for admission Consider general admit vs. direct admit programs
May
Line up letters of recommendation for next year (some teachers work on them over the summer; bosses, coaches, community members...)
AP Tests
Summer
Work on college essay
Consider a pre-college enrichment experience
Visit preliminary colleges (visit final list while students are on campus, if possible)
Wisconsin Private Colleges week is July 11-15, 2023
Refine your list of “Colleges I’m Thinking About”
Create a draft resume of activities, leadership, work, and volunteering
Consider a summer job or volunteer experience to earn money or learn more about yourself or an occupation that might interest you
Students will receive an unofficial transcript via email in mid-late June to use if visiting colleges over summer
September
Earliest application deadline is November 1
Counselors visit seniors in classes within the first two weeks of school
Appointments begin to be scheduled for senior one-on-one visits with their counselors
PLEASE NOTE: Transcript requests will NOT be processed until we are back in school (Sep 1)
Campus Ministry
Service Hours are due May 20!
Service hours for this school year are DUE MAY 20! Participation in spring sports, musical, extra curriculars, graduation, et al may be in jeopardy if this requirement is not met.
Every Tuesday, students receive a “SPIRIT Stuff” email update with new service opportunities.
It is up to students to follow up on any pending (not-yet-approved) hours.
With any questions, please contact Mrs. Geenen.
Final All-School Masses for the Year
Our final all-school gatherings for liturgy this school year will be our Baccalaureate Mass - Tuesday, May 23 at 10:45am in the theatre.
All-School Retreat Day - April 21!
Students had the opportunity to participate in an all-school retreat day on Friday, April 21…all kinds of faith and fun!
Weekday Mass Opportunities
Join us for Mass during X on Tuesdays and Fridays at 7:15am.
“Duncan Donuts”
Join us from 7:20-7:40am Thursday mornings in Room 131 to share a faith moment from your week. Informal. Free doughnuts. All are welcome.
Bible Study
Students are invited to join Ms. Wesolek in Room 134 Wednesday morning at 7:25 for a bible excerpt and reflection.
Individual Reconciliation
Fr. Patrick is available during X on Thursdays for confessions in the chapel sacristy. Watch for Fr. Patrick’s ‘Chaplain Chat’ email to sign up.
Forensics
The team competed at the WFCA State Tournament. With 60 schools and over 750 entries, the competition is very intense.
Special Congratulations goes to -
JJ Vander Loop - tied for 7th in Extemporaneous Speaking
Grace Woelfel & Isabelle Bestul - 2nd in Duo Interpretation
Chess Club 2023 -
There was enough interest from some Freshmen to revive the Xavier Chess Club. Students have been meeting Wednesdays at X period in Room 400(Ms. Milbach's room). The informal club is open to all students who play or want to learn to play the game. We have 4 chess sets and some students bring their own. We are waiting to see Luke Tretinyak's 4 player board in action yet this year!
Survey of theArts
Ms. Milbach and Mrs. VanEperen have been keeping the Survey of the Arts (Life and the Arts) students actively engaged in the arts in their class. The first photo is a cup tapping rhythm exercise that has students learning to read music, count, move their arms, and speak at the same time. What a highly coordinated group! Their next step was to play bucket drums where they showed incredible musical energy and potential. The second picture was from the day the class helped to paint the mural in the commons which was an awesome transition from the Music Unit to the Visual Arts Unit.
Art Department: Student of the Month
April and May 2023
Lukas Verbrick and Violet Hyde are named April and May 2023 Art Department’s student’s of the month. Violet is a Sophomore currently taking Introduction to Art and Lukus a Junior currently taking Drawing. Both are dedicated art students who put great effort into each assignment.
Violet’s dedication to her art work is demonstrated in the detailed works she puts into each of her sketch book assignments. Her attention to the small details throughout the creative process leads to very successful outcomes in each of her projects. Violet was able to develop a beautiful composition in her pastel drawing and experiments with various textures using the oil pastels. Violet takes instruction well and is able to build, grow and apply the skills she has learned from one project to the next. She sets high standards for herself and is willing to work to achieve her desired result.
Lukas demonstrates care into the subtle details of his drawings. His lines are very clean and purposeful. In his distorted grid drawing Lukas strategically planned the placement of his altered grid lines to achieve the desired effect he envisioned. He was able to push the values within his work to add contrast within the shadows of the face as well as the highlights in the hair. His blending was smooth giving a very lifelike effect. Lukas supports his classmates in a very positive and uplifting manner. His positivity and deduction to his work is what makes him stand out. He enjoys drawing outside of the art room. He enjoys drawing figures and characters from his favorite movies. Both Lukas and Violet’s dedication to exploring through the creative process is what makes their work stand out from their fellow classmates. They are able to refine their craft and grow as artists.
