'SUPERSTAR' STUDENTS

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August 19, 2021

For information on enrollment and registration at Notre Dame, please visit the admissions section of our website here.

Notre Dame rolls out the red carpet this week as it welcomed students to a new school year.

Notre Dame rolled out the red carpet (literally) this week as students were welcomed to their first day of classes on the school's Pontiac campus. On Wednesday, Aug. 18, lower school students and their parents got a chance to walk the red carpet on their way into the school building and have their photos taken by the local "paparazzi." On Thursday, Aug. 19, Notre Dame's middle and upper school students also walked the red carpet before their first day of classes.

Andy Guest, Notre Dame's head of school, said it was entirely appropriate to begin the new school year with a red carpet welcome.

"These kids have gone through so much in the last couple of school years with the pandemic and the disruptions it created for them," he said. "We thought that treating these kids like the superstars they actually are was the right thing to do. I am so proud of how our entire school community, including students, faculty, staff and our parents, have handled the various demands and protocols during our long bout with COVID."

Guest also said he realizes that the school — and the rest of the world — are not yet out of the woods.

"We begin this school year with a wary eye on COVID, especially the surging delta variant," he said. "Fortunately, in Michigan and especially in Oakland County, we're not seeing high numbers of infections compared with certain other parts of the country. We hope that continues, but we're ready to make any changes necessary to continue to ensure the health, safety and well-being of all in our school community."

Kim Anderson, who begins this semester as Notre Dame Prep's new principal, echoes Guest and his careful approach to the 2021-22 school year. 

"We've been meeting consistently throughout the summer with our administrative team to craft a return-to-school plan that will help ensure that we conduct our classes in a manner consistent with whatever environment we find ourselves in and that we're ready to adjust and adapt should conditions change," she said. "We learned a lot during the last two years and I'm confident we'll be in a good position no matter what the virus throws at us."

More "red carpet" photos are available here:

Lower School
Middle School
Upper School

For information on enrollment and registration at Notre Dame, please visit the admissions section of our website here.

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 schools 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 National Association of Independent Schools. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy, visit the school’s home page at www.ndpma.org.