Two Hurricanes Two Triumphs

Peter Kernion ’90, who was instrumental in the school's recovery after Hurricane Katrina, reflects on the aftermath of Hurricane Ida.

As we approached the 16-year anniversary of Hurricane

Katrina this past August, I doubt many of us expected to evacuate for an extended period yet again. However, Hurricane Ida had different plans for our city and our school community. Thankfully, Ida did not create the massive issues that came with Katrina, but many still found themselves dealing with major damage to their homes and businesses.

Jesuit High School fortunately sustained limited damage, but the campus was left without power along with almost all of the metropolitan area. Initial reports were grim as we were led to believe that the school, as well as most of our homes, would be without power for up to six weeks. Obviously even distance learning would be an issue with the power outage. We began to receive phone calls from parents letting us know that they were searching for other schools outside of the city and state in which to enroll their sons.

This was starting to sound familiar, and I’m sure many of our administrators and faculty members found themselves recalling our Katrina night schools at Strake Jesuit in Houston and at St. Martin’s in Metairie. Through the valiant efforts of the members of our school community during that time, we were able to continue to educate our students, to resurrect student life, to continue with service through our Thanksgiving drive, and even to continue our annual football rivalry game with Holy Cross.

Would we be facing some of the same hurdles again? I knew our school community was praying that we would not, and thankfully the projected six weeks without power quickly became two weeks. We were able to return to campus, recovering our instructional time with just a few calendar adjustments.

I am reminded of Fr. McGinn’s address to the student body when we finally returned to campus after Katrina. He referred to the timeless quote from the Aeneid now inscribed above the Hurricane Katrina waterline in our first-floor hallway: “forsan et haec olim meminisse juvabit.”

We will be able to look back on this too and smile because once again we came together as a school community, united behind the goal of fulfilling our mission to help our students develop the competence, conscience, and compassion that will enable them to be men of faith and men for others. 

Peter Kernion ’90 Principal

Letters from Tenacious Teachers

While displaced from Hurricane Ida, faculty members sent letters of support and encouragement to their students. Included here are letters from Wade Trosclair ’07, a social studies teacher, and Kate Arthurs-Goldberg, a speech teacher and the director of the Philelectic Society.

We’re in our third hotel! So far we’ve been to Meridian, Birmingham, and Memphis, visiting every dog park along the way as we inch ever closer to home. (In Memphis, our dogs were trying to play with the dogs in the mirrors in the closet of the hotel room; they were so confused!) Please stay safe, be men for others when the opportunity presents itself, and live your A+M+D+G during this storm and its aftermath. Stay well! Stay kind! Stay safe! See you all soon! Hey, Guys, — Ms. A

Jesuit High School 4133 Banks Street New Orleans, La 70119

(From faculty member Kate Arthurs-Goldberg)

THE GREAT JAY MIGRATION

On the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Ida displaced Jesuit families at the outset of the 2021-22 academic year. From coast to coast, students and parents found themselves awaiting the return of critical services to New Orleans for the chance to inspect their homes and begin cleanup and repairs.

In the interim, countless members of the Jesuit community sought out opportunities to help those in need through service of various kinds. Before returning to campus, dozens of service projects were organized in which the school’s mission came alive. 