List of 13 items.

• What is a House System?

  A house system is a way to make a large high school feel smaller and increase the level of mentoring and pastoral care provided to students while increasing the number of student leadership opportunities.

• What is the benefit of a House System?

  Father Ryan’s House System will foster a caring and supportive environment where students from all grades will have more opportunities to lead, collaborate and contribute. This model allows for more peer-to-peer mentoring, leadership opportunities, and spiritual development.
  
  An anchor of the House System is the student-faculty relationship. Over the course of four years, students will interact with a mentor who will foster social and emotional intelligence. These soft skills are difficult to teach in a traditional setting.

• Is there any correlation between a house system and academic performance?

  Studies show that academic performance is positively impacted when there’s an atmosphere of care and connection. With Father Ryan’s House System, student care and connectedness will be amplified like never before! The house system model will address a student’s social and emotional learning, which is a vital educational component. Those so-called “soft skills,” like cooperation and communication, are imperative for college and career success, but their development is often lacking in our tech-focused world. The house system model is designed to fill this void.

• Father Ryan is already an amazing school. Why make this change?

  It is true that Father Ryan is already a place where students are known and loved for who they are.  The House System enables that promise to be lived out in more tangible ways each day.  As students meet in a mentor group of mixed grade levels and develop an ongoing relationship with a faculty or staff mentor over four years, the Father Ryan experience can be deepened by helping students find a sense of belonging and value in a supportive community. 

• When will the House System go into effect?

  Father Ryan's new house system will be in place for the 2020-2021 school year.

• UPDATED: What will the House System look like?

  The House System divides students, faculty and staff into six houses. Each of these smaller communities will have a faculty leader and a school counselor. Houses will then be separated into smaller mentor groups, led by a mentor teacher. These mentor groups meet daily and stay together through graduation, all while allowing students more chances to discover their talents, lead their peers, and celebrate successes in a supportive community.

• NEW: How will the school day be affected?

  The school day will look much the same with slight variation in timing. There will still be an alternating block schedule with A days and B days for a total of eight classes (four per day).  In addition, every day will still include a morning break. The new addition to the schedule will be a mentor group, which will meet daily. 

• NEW: How many Houses will there be?

  Father Ryan’s House System will have six houses.

• How will students be assigned to a house?

  Students will be randomly placed into a house with others from each grade level. Siblings will be assigned to the same house.

• Will there be opportunities for student leadership?

  One of the advantages of a Father Ryan High School education is the opportunity to gain valuable leadership experience while on campus. With the House System, even more leadership opportunities will be available to our Irish! Each house will have its own student-led “government,” and there will be ample time for peer-to-peer mentoring as well.

• Father Ryan is built on a foundation of tradition. Will these traditions change with a house system?

  Father Ryan has a storied history built on a tradition of faith, knowledge, and service. We believe that the house system will only enrich and deepen this experience, while also providing students more opportunities to help build new traditions for each individual house.

• Will we still cheer for the Irish or for XYZ House?

  We will always cheer for the Irish first. As the Father Ryan House System develops, friendly competitions will be held between houses.

• Will we still have a class (freshman, sophomore, etc.) identity with the House System?

  Absolutely! Class-level camaraderie is an important part of high school. Students will still identify with their freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior classmates. The Father Ryan House System just provides additional opportunities to get to know and learn from students in other grades. Placement in a house isn’t a replacement for one’s grade level – it’s a bonus! Within the house structure, students will be able to interact with a diverse cross-section of the student body.