Searching for School Spirit

St. Peter Claver Cristo Rey Catholic High School needs an injection of enthusiasm.

This morning my education class went on our last school visit for the semester. We visited St. Peter Claver Cristo Rey Catholic High School. Only in its fourth year in Omaha, St. Peter Claver caters to low-income students. Their 200 or so students attend class four days a week, and on the fifth day, they work at companies around the city to earn money to pay for their tuition. It was an interesting concept that I had heard of before but had never witnessed. The students seemed to have mixed feelings about this way of operating a school. Some are forced to attend the school by their parents, and because St. Peter Claver places them in jobs, they have little say over where they work. These jobs also make for long days in the middle of the week. None of the students seemed to really hate this system, though.

I had a hard time getting a feel for St. Peter Claver. This is quite possibly because the school is so small — because it is only four years old, maybe it just hasn’t found its voice. I hope it does so soon, however, because none of the students acted overjoyed to be there. Additionally, they did not seem to have the enthusiasm or passion I witnessed in other schools, such as Omaha South Magnet High School. Hopefully this will improve with time and with its growing student population. I suppose school spirit cannot develop overnight.