New England
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August 6, 2022
Friday was a day of “lasts” for the New England High School Summer Program, but everyone was determined to enjoy this final afternoon all together. After the last classes got out, students paid a visit to the Northfield Creamie, a local ice cream shop beloved by TAC students and faculty alike. Popular orders included scoops of Mass Mocha, hot fudge brownie sundaes, and cherry-dipped soft serve. Upon returning to campus, many of the women went back to Gould Hall to get ready for the night’s banquet and dance, while the men made a pit stop at the slip-and-slide.
When the students walked into Bl. Frassati Student Center for the banquet, they couldn’t believe their eyes. The kitchen staff had completely transformed the room, laying out beautifully arranged place settings on tables ornamented with flowers, complete with a pre-set appetizer salad. “The decorations look amazing!” exclaimed programmer Samantha W., gazing at the streamers hung from the balcony. Once all had arrived and said grace, groups were called up table by table to get their plates from the buffet line, which offered tender lemon-and-rosemary salmon, rice, and asparagus.
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Program Director Dr. Stephen Shivone then gave a talk summarizing the program, the interconnectedness of its various readings, and how they are intended to provoke further thought — even after the end of the program. Assistant Admissions Director John Jost next concluded the banquet by thanking the students, prefects, summer staff, and Admissions Department for helping the program to run so smoothly — and was met with a standing ovation.
After the banquet, students headed to Our Mother of Perpetual Help Chapel for a holy half-hour, highlighted by the Rosary, exposition and adoration, and the Sacrament of Reconciliation, offered by the College’s chaplains.
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Next up, there was a pre-dance talent show in Olivia Music Hall, featuring a few students who had performed at Open Mic Night, back for an encore! Max G. sang “Fly Me to the Moon” acapella, Albert H. played a piano sonata, and Mara C. performed a duet on cello with prefect John Metilly (’23) on piano. To finish off the entertainment, the prefects staged a skit in which they hyperbolized what the summer program had been like from their perspective — naps in study hall, dress-code violations, and of course, getting called for Euclidean propositions! The students roared with laughter as the scenes played out, remembering the events as the prefects dramatized them.
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At last, it was time for the dance! The emcee of the night, prefect Stephen Brown (’25), kicked off the dance with King Harvest’s “Dancing in the Moonlight,” one of TAC’s most popular swing songs. Then, a few songs in, he led the students in a “Cinderella dance,” where all the women removed one shoe and placed them in a pile in the middle of the floor, after which the men grabbed a random shoe and tried to find its owner, who would become his dance partner for the next song. The ice-breaker was a huge success, and the dance floor was full for the rest of the night.
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At 11:30, the dance ,ended, and students made their way back to Dolben Auditorium to watch a slideshow of pictures from throughout the program. The slideshow featured not one, but two original songs, one by prefect Norah O’Brien (’24) and the other by programmers Lucianna U. and Lucy B. As the pictures played, students cheered, excited to relive the memories of the last two weeks. “That was the most energetic reaction to a slideshow I think I've ever seen,” remarked Mr. Jost after the video finished — to another standing ovation.
With the dance over and curfew approaching, students went back to their residence halls to pack … and party! Prefects lit patio bonfires, and students roasted hot dogs and marshmallows over the flames. There was no lights-out for the night, so some students stayed up for hours talking to their friends, hoping that the morning would come just a little slower than usual.
Thus marks the end of the 2022 New England High School Summer Program, but not this blog! Come back this afternoon to read about the students’ departures and goodbyes!
