Mia Groeninger '27
After three months of summer break, the beginning of the school year comes with a plethora of emotions. Ninth graders are nervous but looking forward to beginning their high school experience. Sophomores are excited to reunite with their friends and see who changed the most in their first summer apart. Juniors hesitantly make their way up Heartbreak Hill, college-induced stress masked by the relief of seeing their peers once again. Seniors jump in headfirst, eager to take on their new leadership roles without full knowledge of what lies ahead.
From the moment you step onto the Mesa, you are thrown into a series of orientations, community-building activities, and welcoming events. There are no classes for several days, reinforcing the importance of community. As Mr. Williams points out, “To be truly ready for the expectations that accrue to all of us at Cate requires an understanding that the experience itself is more than scholarship, more than school.” Following the jam-packed days of orientation, students are sent into the wilderness for Outings Week, a Cate tradition meant to build connections and form relationships between students, teachers, and grades. Outings Week certainly puts many outside of their comfort zones, but in that way, is able to bring people closer together.
Once everyone has arrived on campus, the annual square dance takes place. A sea of cowboy hats, boots, and bandanas flood Senior Lawn. Country music blares from the speakers as the square dance caller addresses the haphazard lines of kids, trying to keep their toes safe from awkward steps. As the night goes on, some students get more and more into it, box-stepping and galloping around. Others stand on the outskirts enjoying cotton candy and laughing at the spectacle that is Cate square dancing.
This year, a new event was introduced: the drive-in movie and s’mores. Little campfires lined the walkway in the middle of Senior Lawn, and a projector was set up on the grass. Students dragged blankets and bean bags to watch the classic Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. As people’s interest in the movie waned, more and more gathered around the campfires, mingling and discussing the happenings of the first few days, apprehensive and excited for what was to come. Everyone returned to their dorms that night smelling strongly of burnt wood and charred marshmallows.
This year’s opening sunset ceremony marked the 25th and last for Head of School Ben Williams. While a special time of new beginnings, the sunset ceremony is always bittersweet. Proceeding Mr. Williams’ speech, the ninth through eleventh graders line up for hugs and words of wisdom from the seniors. The Sunset Ceremony will occur once more at the end of the year before graduation for Mr. Williams’ last closing and a final farewell to the class of 2023.
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