MISSION MATTERS

April 30, 2020 (updated May 2, 2020)

On campus since the second grade, Meghan Kozole no longer takes her Notre Dame experience for granted.

On the last day of classes before Irish Week last month, the coronavirus was not top of mind for Notre Dame Prep senior Meghan Kozole. And she certainly didn't think her last few months on campus would end up being so disrupted either. 

"At that time, I was not concerned too much about the coronavirus, and I for sure didn’t think that Thursday was going to be my last day of high school in the building," she said. "Ultimately, I became sad because pretty soon I came to realize how much I was taking my school experience for granted."

Since then Kozole has accepted the new reality and says that she adapted well to the online learning environment. 

"The faculty has been super understanding and it’s nice knowing that the teachers and even the staff — a shoutout to campus ministry, counseling and the office staff — care about the students even when we aren’t in a structured school environment," she said.

A Notre Dame student since she was in second grade, Kozole has experienced much in this school environment. 

"I’ve done and seen a lot — from building a town made out of recycled items in second grade, watching someone set off a color bomb in the art room in seventh grade, eating a massive amount of marshmallows in econ class during sophomore year, getting a greenhouse, winning states for ski during my junior and senior year — to experiencing online learning my senior year," she said. "Although I did complain about school like any other teenager, I truly loved my experience at NDPMA. The faculty and staff are what makes this school one without compare. Everyone really does go out of their way for students and if it took a global pandemic for students to realize it, well they must be blind."

Without a doubt, the last few months of a senior year in high school are the best time for a student and there's no doubt Kozole was raring to experience them. 

"Since I began attending Notre Dame, I've watched seniors year after year being celebrated at all-school Mass, saw their BBQs in the parking lot, watched them win Irish Week," Kozole said. "The fashion show, senior spring break, Kairos, prom, graduation, etc. I looked forward to participating in all those things that make senior year what it is and I’m devastated that I won’t get to experience them the same way."

Now that classes have ended at NDP,  Kozole is looking forward to heading to Boulder, Colorado, in the fall to attend the University of Colorado. 

"I’m so unbelievably excited to move out west for college," she said. "I love the campus, which is surrounded by mountains, and it offers lots of outdoor activities. I’m also very excited to branch out and meet new people."

She says she chose the University of Colorado for many reasons, chief among them is the fact that Boulder feels like a second home for her. An avid skier, Kozole looks forward to the slopes the Boulder area offers. Another reason might be the fact that her sister, Katelyn NDP'18, is a current student there.

"It will be nice having a friendly face on campus. Plus, after witnessing the positive growth I've seen in my sister since she got to U-C, it convinced me that Boulder was the best place for me, too."

Her sister's college career also led to her choosing the same major, molecular cellular developmental biology, which she hopes will lead her to a career in health research. However, she said, it's still early and that is subject to change.

What's not subject to change for Kozole is that her time at NDPMA taught her what's really important for students of any age.

"The school mission has been engraved on my brain since I was a wee seven year old," she said. "The school has taught me that before anything else I should be a good person. It doesn’t matter what grades I get, it matters only what person I am or have become, and I think that's an important lesson for people of all ages, not just high schoolers. At NDP, specifically, it’s no surprise that students care a lot about their grades, but the mission truly kept the academic part in perspective in order to make sure that our character, our faith were most important for us, not our grades."

Comments or questions? mkelly@ndpma.org

Follow Notre Dame on Twitter at @NDPMA.

About Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy
Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. Notre Dame Preparatory School enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame's middle and lower schools enroll students in pre-kindergarten through grade eight. All three school are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDPMA is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy, visit the school’s home page at www.ndpma.org.