The Unofficial
ND SURVIVAL GUIDE Everything students need to know before coming to Notre Dame By Students...For Students
NOT YOUR ORDINARY HANDBOOK This unofficial survival guide was created by Notre Dame students for new students to help with the transition to ND. In this handbook, you will find what is popular in the halls and the ins and outs of Notre Dame. Good luck and WELCOME TO NOTRE DAME!
TABLE OF CONTENTS
01-02 Uniforms
03 Schedules
04 Service
05 NDNJ.org and Wifi
06 School Supplies
07 Before & After School
08 Resources
09-11 Extracurricular Activities
12 Transfer Students
ALL ABOUT
01
GIRLS Skort vs Skirt The skort is a basic plaid print skirt with shorts built inside. This is the more popular option out of the two. You do not wear tights underneath. In the winter you may wear sweatpants under the skort when walking into school. The skirt must be worn with tights during any season. The skirt is worn more often in the winter when it is colder.
Pants Another option is to wear khaki pants. All are found on the Lands' End website.
BOYS The boys normally just wear the short sleeve or long sleeve polo with the khaki short option. If it is cold, some boys choose to wear long, khaki pants.
ALL CLOTHING MUST BE FROM LANDS' END.
ALL ABOUT
02
Shirts: Most students at the school choose to wear regular t-shirts as undershirts. Only blue or white undershirts are approved. Socks & Shoes: You can wear any socks you choose. There is no dress code for socks. Most kids wear regular white Nike crew socks but the choice is yours! For uniform shoes, students have to wear tan or brown boat shoes. Most students wear Sperry's. Dress Down Days: These are days when you do not have to wear the uniform. Most of the time, you donate $2, or clothes, to charity. On these days, you can wear whatever you want as long as it is in line with the dress code listed in the Official Student Handbook. Most students do choose to dress down. If you do not want to dress down, you can always wear your uniform. Gym: Notre Dame also has a gym uniform. Typically you do not change on the first day of your gym class. The uniform is just a basic shirt and shorts but you can wear sweatpants/ sweatshirts. Some students choose to carry their uniform and sneakers around with them in a bag. When it's cold outside: Students can wear ND Fleeces or Lands' End uniform sweaters over their polo shirts.
ALL ABOUT
03
ACTIVITY PERIOD Activity Period is a free period for students to do what they need to do, whether it be eating lunch, catching up on homework, or meeting with a teacher. Students have 40 minutes for themselves. Activity Period is between periods 4 and 5. During this time, you can do many things...hang out in the Student Center, Library, a teacher’s classroom, or go to a club meeting. A lot of students choose not to take a lunch period to fit more classes into their schedule so they eat during Activity Period. Freshmen during Activity Period: In the first semester, Freshmen are required to have a lunch period built into their schedule. This means that during Activity Period, you may not eat in the Student Center, however you can still buy any food you would like. Most freshmen will eat in the Gym, but when it is nice out they will spend their Activity Period outside in the bleachers.
DAY 1 / DAY 2 Notre Dame follows a Day 1/ Day 2 schedule. On Day 1, you follow Periods 1-8. On Day 2, you follow Periods 8-1. The schedule is just flipped so whatever you typically have in the mornings, you will have in the afternoons.
ALL ABOUT
04
SERVICE REQUIREMENTS Notre Dame requires every student to achieve a certain amount of service hours each year. Required hours increase over your four years. The hours are tracked on the X2Vol website. Your teachers will review how to plug in your service hours. If you have trouble with X2Vol, there are many resources on the NDNJ website and on the Service Instagram page that will show you step by step what to do. The School and Service Instagram will also post the opportunities you have to earn service hours.
ACTIVITY PERIOD During Activity Period, on most days, there is the opportunity to do some service in the Service Room. This can be anything from making cards or bracelets or packing books. This is almost always available if you just need some quick service hours.
ALL ABOUT
05
NDNJ.ORG NDNJ.org is our school website. It is a public website that gives information about ND. When you log in to the website, you will be able to see grades, assignments, schedules, class pages, announcements, groups, and more! This is also where the NDTV school announcements can be found in case you forget about an upcoming event. Tip: Turn on your notifications to receive texts or emails when teachers post an assignment or class comment. This can also allow you to receive notifications for extra curricular activities, like sports. Most students create a shortcut to the school website on their phones to make it easy to access.
WIFI Since Notre Dame does require students to have a device with them every day, wifi is required. The password is given to you by the Technology Office. The wifi can be tricky but, luckily, Notre Dame does have a tech room to help you with any troubles you might have with your device.
ALL ABOUT
06
SUPPLIES Everyone is given a locker you will keep for your time at ND. Some students choose to carry around all of their things, including their laptops, in their backpacks. Some materials are required for certain classes, like calculators. But don't buy anything until after the first day of class when you hear from your teachers.
BOOKS Required books to purchase can be found on the resource board in the summer when you log into myndnj.org. Free shipping is available beginning of August and saves a lot of money. Most teachers will print out copies or have online versions depending on the teacher. If you are asked to buy a textbook, most teachers will tell you on the first day if they feel you need to purchase it or if they have copies for you.
BYOD BYOD means "Bring Your Own Device". Students are required to have a laptop with them every day. If you forget to charge your laptop, a lot of teachers will let you charge it or borrow a laptop they have in their classroom.
ALL ABOUT
07
NOTRE DAME IS ALWAYS LIVELY NOT JUST DURING THE SCHOOL HOURS.
MORNING
Many kids choose to get to school early to meet up with their friends and maybe buy breakfast. Other students choose to study in the library or some might meet up with a teacher to discuss issues they might be having. Most students choose to arrive around 7:20 to 7:30. Don't show up too close to the bell at 7:50, there can be traffic in the parking lot.
AFTERNOON The afternoons at Notre Dame are just as lively as the morning. With many after-school activities there are always students here. Many students also hang out in the Student Center, get some food and talk to their friends or work on some homework. Some kids choose to go to the weight room after school or walk around the track. Notre Dame is right down the street from Dunkin Donuts and Varsity's Pizza so it’s not surprising to see a group of ND students walking down the street after school.
ALL ABOUT
08
THE LEPRECHAUN SHOP The Leprechaun Shop is where you can buy all of your Notre Dame spirit wear. The hours vary, but it is typically open from about 10:30 to 1:00 during the school day. This is where you buy your fleece as well. The Shop is also online, so you can order spirit wear online and pick it up at school. The Leprechaun Shop is located right outside of the gym and is a very popular place for incoming freshmen to get ND apparel and gear.
LIBRARY The library is always a place you can go if you have free time unless there is a club meeting going on. Of course, there are books you can use as a resource and the library is also a place where you can print for free.
STUDENT CENTER The Student Center, a.k.a. Cafeteria, is widely used by all the students at Notre Dame. You can spend mornings, lunches, Activity Period, and afternoons in the Student Center. Food can be purchased with cash/credit or, more commonly, your Student ID. This is the ID you will be given at orientation. Your parents can add money to the ID to be used in the Student Center. Note: The vending machines in the cafeteria cannot be used with your Student ID but you can use cash, credit card, and Apple Pay.
09
ABOUT There are Fall, Winter, and Spring sports at Notre Dame. Some teams have cuts, but there are always no-cut sport options. This lets all interested students participate in a sport. All practices are after school. Every sports team has an online team store. Coaches will let you know what apparel you need to buy .
WEIGHT ROOM
HOOLIGANS
The Weight Room is a place where a lot of students spend their time. Typically, there is a schedule put out every week. You do not have to play a sport to go down, as long as you get in contact with the athletic trainer or go during “open gym." Teams use the weight room in the off-season and during the season. You can find the schedules on Instagram: @ notredamehs_strength
Notre Dame has a school spirit group called “the Hooligans." The Head Hooligan will set themes for games and let you know when games are. Be sure to follow the Hooligans Instagram: @ notredamehs_hooligans. Schedules are also on the ND website. Many students go out and support our sports teams, especially when we are playing our rival, Allentown (RED BIRD SOUP).
10
MADRIGAL Madrigal is the choral group here at Notre Dame. This is a class that requires an audition before becoming a member. They sing at many school events including monthly mass, induction ceremonies, and even graduation.
DANCE
INSTRUMENTAL
Notre Dame offers three dance levels for school credit. The highlight is the Fusion performance in the Winter. The Intermediate Class and Dance Performance classes are by audition only.
There are several ways to be involved in the instrumental music program at ND: Concert Band, Jazz Band, String Ensemble and Chamber Orchestra.
THEATRE
ELECTIVES
Notre Dame is widely known for their impressive play productions every year. There are three productions per year normally in the Fall, the Winter Musical and Spring.
Be sure to speak with your school counselor if you are interested Music Electives like Digital Recording, Music Theory or Acting!
11
Notre Dame has an abundance of clubs to join. All Notre Dame students, including freshmen, will have the opportunity to see all the clubs offered and sign up for what they are interested in during Club Rush. This is typically at Activity Period during the first two weeks of school.
APPLICATION ONLY Along with the numerous clubs that can be joined on your own, there are also groups that you must apply for. These are Peer Leadership, Student Government, National Honors Society and Student Ambassadors. Some of these groups will not be available to you until the end of your freshman year or as an upperclassman. There will be many announcements about these groups when it is time to apply.
A LIST OF CLUBS AND MODERATORS CAN BE FOUND ON NDNJ.ORG UNDER STUDENT LIFE
ALL ABOUT
12
TAKE 2 This is a group run by students who previously transferred to Notre Dame. They meet regularly to help new transfer students get involved quickly, since you are not new to the high school experience. You will automatically be signed up for the club and will receive notifications about meetings.
STUDENT DRIVERS In the Notre Dame parking lot, there are front and back lots. If you choose to park in the back lot, be aware that parking can get very limited. Many drivers come anywhere between 7:10 and 7:30. Also, at the end of the day, students who park in the back lot cannot leave until after the buses do, which is around 2:30. If students are in a rush and they know they have to leave right at 2:15, they will typically park in the front lot which is a gravel lot near the exit. Students may never park in a bluelined spot.
W
O
M O C E L T E
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