After long hours of sitting in classrooms with the faint sound of construction in the background, Lancer faculty and students finally walked the hallowed halls of the new Eggers Innovation Center. Opening ceremonies, tours, and prayers reminded students that joining Saint Francis does not just mean joining a high school; it means joining a family.
When asked what three words they would use to describe the new Innovation Center, President Jason Curtis and Principal Katie Teekell (’00) both had the same answer: “Lead, Legacy, and Welcome.” The Innovation Center serves as a perfect place for students to inspire each other and step out of their comfort zones.
The educator welcome on January 9 featured activities from affinity groups. The Intersectional Feminist Student Association (IFSA), for example, led a workshop in traditionally feminine activities. Anika Bastin (’23), student leader of IFSA, explained, “It was a great opportunity to get acquainted with the space and all its possibilities. Getting the chance to meet with and teach many faculty members was really insightful as to how we could more efficiently create change on campus.”
The student welcome on January 10 offered additional student-led events, such as a thumbprint poster signing. As student leaders Ishan Pachauri (’24) and Kavya Peela (’24) described, the signing created a “lasting memory of the Opening Day, and everyone that was there.” The day also featured a signing of the glassrooms, as well as a paper airplane contest, hosted jointly by Ignite and LancerHacks.
After, students gathered in an assembly on January 20 to mark the grand opening of the center. During the event, Mrs. Teekell referenced all the Brothers of the Holy Cross and all the alumni who made this new building possible. Without the legacy of those who dedicated their lives to sacrifice and paved the way for current students, nothing anyone does on campus would be possible. Mrs. Teekell posed the question, “What did people do before us that allows us to have the opportunities we have now?”
From the start, everyone involved in this project knew that this new space needed to represent a place where all students, faculty, and people feel welcome. Mrs. Teekell stated, “That’s our vocation. That’s our call as a Holy Cross School that we are a space that is welcoming. This is who we are.” Furthering values that Saint Francis has embedded within us gives all members of this community the responsibility and duty to be hospitable people.
The Innovation Center is a place that “has a bunch of different elements in it that actually all come together, but all allow us to try something a little bit new,” according to Mr. Curtis. The beauty of the Innovation Center lies in its core; it refuses to be associated with a single department or discipline. Although innovation tends to be grouped with technology, it remains applicable to several different areas of study.
Mrs. Teekell has one desire for everyone who steps into the Innovation Center: “I hope that [students] step into a space where they can be fully themselves. They see opportunities where they can really push themselves and challenge themselves, and where they can teach other people.” The most rewarding part about the Innovation Center is the new realm of possibilities in classrooms. Increased collaboration, new forms of education, and more all come hand in hand with the new building.
