#1StudentNWI: Bishop Noll Institute starts to wrap things up for the seniors

#1StudentNWI: Bishop Noll Institute starts to wrap things up for the seniors

What’s recently happened?

Bishop Noll Institute had its annual Graduates with Distinction banquet, and it was a success.

Bishop Noll Institute had a total of 24 Graduates of Distinction for the Class of 2023.

Most of the graduates came from Catholic schools such as St. Casimir School in Hammond, St Stanislaus School in East Chicago, St. John Bosco School in Hammond, St. John the Baptist Catholic School in Whiting, St. Thomas More School in Munster, St. Mary Catholic School in Griffith, and Annunciata School in Chicago.

The graduates had to write a speech to present and had to pick a teacher that has been inspiring to them and has helped them throughout their journey in high school.

The Graduates with Distinction got to enjoy a nice dinner with their teacher and parents.

The dinner took place in the school cafeteria which had been turned into a magical place.

After the dinner, the speeches were presented. Each student had a speech, and everyone had tears in their eyes.

The parents looked very proud of their students, and teachers were beaming with joy when their students spoke.

The speeches were about their journeys throughout high school and the struggles that they overcame.

In the speeches, they did not just give thanks to the teachers but the parents as well.

The final speech was given by Valedictorian Ayanna Wash. 

Wash was happy and proud when she got announced as Bishop Noll Institute’s valedictorian.

She has felt that her friends and family were what were able to get her through all her four years at Bishop Noll Institute.

“Something that has helped me get through my four years is my family and friends. Without their constant support and help, I would not be where I am today. Another thing that has helped me in my four years is theatre. Theatre helps me destress, and I genuinely love being a part of our Drama Club,” said Wash.

Like the other Graduates with Distinction, Wash felt the need to thank her mother for supporting her and being a good role model in her life.

Wash’s teacher was Kayla Konkle, the head of the theatre department.

She picked Konkle because Konkle has been a positive role model for her and has helped her grow in many different ways.

Wash plans to go to Marian University in Indianapolis. She is going to major in biology and wants to go to medical school so she can become a surgeon.

Everyone is proud of all the Graduates with Distinction, and they have worked hard for their accomplishments!

What’s coming up?

The beautiful tradition of graduation is upon Bishop Noll Institute, and the seniors are soaking it all in.

Bishop Noll Institute’s Class of 2023 was the class whose freshman year was cut short because of COVID-19. They may have only experienced one semester of high school before getting shut down, but they did not let this stop them.

The now seniors are taking senior year to their whole advantage and have planned many extra curricular activities to help the fun grow.

They have had their senior sunrise on the first day of senior year. They plan to have their senior sunset on the last day of senior year before graduation.

The class as a whole decided to plan their field day after their graduation practice.

On the day of graduation practice, they will run through graduation without the diplomas and see who got what for Senior Superlatives.

After this, they will have a field day with special surprises from the staff as well. They are able to play games with their classmates one more time and make the last of their high school memories.

There are about 104 seniors graduating this year, and graduation is special to all of them.

Senior Genesis Medina is one of those who is excited for graduation.

“I am excited for graduation because it symbolizes the end of a chapter in my life, and although this does make me sad, I’m also happy and anxious to see what comes next in my life,” she said.

Even though the seniors are excited about graduation, they have not stopped pursuing their academics during the end of the school year.

About all of the seniors have applied to a college that they were interested in.

The Bishop Noll Institute Class of 2023 has also collected about $23 million dollars from college scholarships. This is almost twice the amount of money from last year's class.

Overall, Bishop Noll Institute’s Class of 2023 did not have a full normal year of high school until their senior year, but they enjoyed it, and it’s a year that they are going to remember forever.

Staff spotlight:

One of Bishop Noll Institute's most known teachers has been Samantha Chapleau, who teaches Junior English and ACP English for Seniors.

Chapleau went to Marian Catholic High School in Chicago Heights and later went to Saint Xavier University in Chicago for her undergrad degree.

She decided to further her education and go to Middlebury College in Vermont for graduate school.

Chapleau also spent time at St. John's College in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and at Lincoln College/Oxford University in the UK through that same graduate program.

Her biggest inspiration to become a teacher was her junior year AP English teacher's passion for literature. For many years, he became her colleague when she worked at Marian. This allowed her to love sharing what she has learned with others.

She teaches the College Prep and Foundations levels of English 11 for juniors and as well as the dual credit senior classes (W131: Reading, Writing, and Inquiry 1 / L202: Introduction to Literary Interpretation). This gives students the potential to earn college credit through Indiana University. In the past, she has also taught Spanish 1.

Chapleau's favorite moment is when the lightbulb goes off in students.

“I really love when the lightbulb goes off for students – when I see them actually talking about the literature and getting excited for their own interpretations,” she said. “When I can, I love getting students on their feet, so I think some of my favorite activities involve using drama and improv to teach content. Seeing former students go on to become teachers is pretty cool, too!

A struggle that Chapleau had to face was finding a good balance between work and life. What helped her was lots of time management in terms of grading and knowing how to practice self care and take breaks.

Through everything, Chapleau still finds a way to teach kids lessons. 

“Very rarely do the lessons we want to pass on actually have to do with curriculum,” she said. “I want my students to learn to be passionate about something – whatever that something might be – and, to paraphrase St. Mother Teresa, to do small things with great love. Or, for my fellow sci-fi fans, to quote the Twelfth Doctor: ‘Never be cruel. Never be cowardly. Hate is always foolish. Love is always wise. Always try to be nice, but never fail to be kind.’

Student spotlight:

Senior Aranza Toral-Arellano has been influenced by the community at Bishop Noll Institute to help continue her journey to college.

Toral-Arellano was born in Veracruz, Mexico, and she grew up there until she was 7 years old. Toral-Arellano came to the United States so she could better her education and be with her family. She went to Nativity of our Savior Catholic School in Portage Indiana, from third to eighth grade. She later decided to go to Bishop Noll Institute for high school.

”I picked Bishop Noll Institute because you could tell that they cared about their education and that they are also advanced in technology as well as education,” Toral-Arellano said.

Toral-Arellano has been a member of Drama Club since her freshman year. Along with that she has been in multiple productions in all of her four years there. 

She has also played tennis for Bishop Noll Institute.

She has been influenced by many people at Bishop Noll Institute, but the main one has been Konkle.

Konkle has helped Toral-Arellano get comfortable with public speaking and helped her learn how to be confident.

Toral-Arellano likes to help the freshman adjust into the new setting of high school.

She helps them participate and join different clubs. She believes that this will help them make new friends and gain many memories with them.

Overall, Toral-Arellano believes that education is important.

“I believe that education is important because it is what is going to help us later in life as education doesn’t only teach us how to be academically smart but we learn life lessons along the way. You learn how to manage time, make friends, deal with obstacles and many more things that you might not notice,” she said.

Toral-Arellano plans to continue her education and go to Valparaiso University this upcoming fall to major in criminology. She will use that degree to be a crime scene investigator.