Dear Friars:
From May 7 through May 17, Servite High School joined other campuses across the country as they accommodated an AP Examination schedule. During that time, I was fortunate to serve as AP Examination proctor and had ample opportunity to meet and interact with numerous students and several members of the staff.
Though my wife serves the school on a daily basis, these 11 days were my first prolonged exposure to the Servite community. I admit, after my previous experiences with your campus I assumed that Servite’s Formation themes were merely another form of school charter or even mission statement – something every school has in place and, once recorded in some handbook or other, can be comfortably forgotten.
What I experienced during my time as AP proctor, however, has frankly pulled the jaded pall from my eyes and awakened me to the practical meaning of community and to the potential for character to manifest every minute of every day in a family of faith.
I want to extend my thanks and appreciation to all Servite staff members who went out of their way to make my job not only easier, but thoroughly enjoyable, and who made me feel like a welcome, if temporary, family member.
I’m grateful to Mike Clapp for jumping in to plug all the little holes. It’s been said that no strategy survives contact with the enemy, and no matter how well things were planned little problems were bound to crop up. Mr. Clapp made himself a solution to those little problems no matter how busy he was.
I’m grateful to Padraic Emparan for bringing Servite’s faith directly into the testing process by leading his students in prayer before their exam. That small gesture, simple and direct, illuminated Servite’s living faith for me.
I’m grateful to Jacqui Engelman for taking such great care of me, of the students, and of the library. I’d never have finished each day’s testing without the hundred little things Jacqui jumped in to do during the exam periods. Many students would have been lost without the procedures and advice she never lost patience in reminding them of. Finally, the entire testing schedule would have stalled without Jacqui’s careful arrangement of seats and tables to accommodate each group of students.
I’m grateful to Elsa Gibbs for participating in the, at times, difficult process of bringing technology into the testing environment. Every device added was another potential problem, but the Spanish students were prepared regarding their software, and we were prepared regarding necessary changes in exam security.
I’m grateful to Hilary Recknor for what was clearly a mountain of work performed before and after every exam. Counting, sorting, collating, stacking, noting, listing, copying, storing: the blissfully organized testing materials I received each morning were, each and every box, a testament to all the work she’d done before I arrived.
I’m grateful to Desiree Stubbs for her help in smoothing out the minutiae of managing each testing group. Each morning and afternoon, as we sorted out paperwork and names, she remained focused on simple solutions, minimum disruption, and teamwork.
I’m grateful to Tim Wekall for taking time out of his schedule to resolve what may have otherwise been a critical concern for the students who took the calculus exam. His prompt response to my query allowed us to resolve the issue without any disruption to the schedule.
There are certainly other staff members who helped this process, some of whom I interacted with and some of whom I never met. It’s my intention here to thank them all, and any fault in failing to name them must be understood to come from my failure of memory.
To the credit of Servite’s staff and parents, however, what truly impressed me about the school were the students I encountered. Though well over 150 students filed past me during the exam period, I’d be remiss if I didn’t recognize a few who stood out for the fine quality of their character. In this spirit I’d like to thank Adriano Bianchini for volunteering to help me manage testing materials. I’d like to thank Han Jang for his friendly but respectful demeanor and both him and Troy Monteleone for their patience with the quirks of uncooperative timers. I’d like to thank Michael Swartz for his absolutely unfailing courtesy and good-natured willingness to be helpful any way he could.
I feel that special recognition should go to Dominic Hattouni for the incredible Catholic leadership he displayed. Not only did Mr. Hattouni quickly step forward to lead his fellows in prayer when I called for a volunteer one morning, he also helped to manage exam materials. During our exam break I observed him counseling his peers regarding their morale and spirits, quietly moving from student to student and inquiring as to their mental and emotional states. This young man, with his quiet leadership, rang a deafening clarion in praise for the men of compassion, faith, and intelligence that Servite seeks to produce.
Lastly, I want to thank Mrs. Hofreiter for…well, everything.
Sincerely,
Jeff J Hofreiter
