A most refreshing sight adorned the hallways at Marquette Catholic High School Friday: students.

For the first time since March, Blazers logged onto their iPads inside the Scholl Center Finance Lab, ordered a hot dog from the Snack Shack, and conversed with teachers.

A year ago, these would be unremarkable events. Nevertheless, the Great Pause has imparted us with perspective.

Friday's Freshman/New Student Orientation represented a soft opening to the 2020-2021 academic year for Marquette and its newest students.

Freshmen and transfer students opened the day by being introduced to administrators and staff before embarking on a scavenger hunt/tour of campus. Students were then issued iPads and granted access to email, Renweb, and other school applications. 

Following lunch, Marquette conducted a condensed school day. From noon until just before 3:00 pm, students spent 15 minutes in each of their nine class periods, meeting their new teachers and learning how to navigate the main building.

Orientation concluded with a transportation/final Q&A session led by Mr. Casey Martin in a socially-distanced Scholl Center Commons.

Marquette face coverings masked the many smiles around campus Friday, but the happiness was visible.