New fifth graders and dozens of new students and teachers were welcomed as Monmouth, Lendenwood, Cottingham and Massey members in the Elder Performing Arts Center (EPAC), one of our most popular events for Middle School students each year.
During the highly anticipated event, new members of the Lausanne Middle School are sorted into one of the four houses at Lausanne. It signifies the start of their new journey through Middle School while helping the students build relationships with peers and teachers. Lausanne was the first school to develop and implement a house system on its campus when the program began 15 years ago.
As students file into EPAC, they are greeted with music and a party-like atmosphere as they join the rest of their house members in separate seating areas. While they wait for the ceremony to begin, chants break out within the houses as the atmosphere reaches a fever pitch. As the ceremony begins and the names are announced, students are presented special gifts signifying their house. This year, “growl towels” waved through the air as the students cheered to show their house spirit and to celebrate new members.
“I am so looking forward to working through the challenges this year will bring, but also ensuring that the students have something fun to look forward to every week as it pertains to house activities,” House System Director and 6th Grade Individuals and Societies Teacher Kyle Lawrence said. “This is truly something we want to use to do three things; Help our students with their social-emotional learning, connect our students and parents to the school, and build camaraderie throughout the grade levels.”