1. What is the goal of The Grade?

To help high school students prepare themselves to take on responsibility.  The more ready they are, the more responsibility they will get, and the more exciting their lives will be.

The underlying idea is that what matters in life is not material possessions, athletic ability, good looks, intellectual ability, etc.  What matters is character.  Character allows men to take on responsibility and makes them great.  Character endures after these other things are long gone.

2. Why the name “The Grade”?

The path of responsibility is usually uphill – along a grade. To walk it requires personal struggle.  The seminar encourages and coaches these students to want to be responsible men of character. To have character is “to make the grade” in life.

3. Isn’t it too early for freshmen or sophomores to worry about things like college and career?

Not at all. The seminar is not meant to create stress about getting into the “best” college or having the “best” job.  But high school students should be looking ahead to where they are going in life so that they begin now to develop the skills and attitudes needed for the great tasks of their lives: forming a family, serving society through their work, and developing friendships with colleagues, neighbors, and (most of all) God. Between the ages 14 and 19, habits are formed, friends are made, ideas and ideals are internalized.  Young men need to see their high school years in the light of their entire life.

4. Can a student sign up for the course even though he cannot attend every session?

Yes, but we strongly encourage attendance to every session.

5. Why do Southmont and Overlook entrust the Christian orientation of their activities to Opus Dei?

Southmont and Overlook’s activities are based on a Christian view of life that recognizes the dignity of the human person, the inherent goodness of the created world, the value of human work, and the God-given moral law.  In both professional activities such as The Grade and spiritual activities like retreats, recollections, and doctrine classes, Opus Dei ensures that a true Christian spirit is present. Opus Dei is an institution of the Catholic Church whose mission is to help people find God in and through the circumstances of their ordinary life.

6. Should I let my friends know about The Grade?

Yes.  We encourage you to inform other people about The Grade.  When friends attend the program together, they establish a means of reinforcement extending well beyond the classroom.   If you would like a brief presentation of the program for you and your friends, please contact us to make arrangements.