Bonds are formed at Fourth and Breck
Caroline Cooper
Presentation Academy is a place like no other. As soon as you walk through the doors, you are surrounded by history and girls who will soon become your sisters. There is an overwhelming feeling of support from faculty and staff and you become confident that if you need help with anything at all, it is accessible.
Presentation is the perfect place for young women who are looking to achieve their goals. Whether these goals are academic or athletic, they are always in reach. Even if there are times when you feel down, you know that there are people cheering for you and wishing you well.
Presentation is also a great place for young women who are looking to strengthen their leadership skills. At Pres, there are so many opportunities to get involved. From hosting shadows, to running our seventh- and eighth- grade leadership forums, to being a part of a sports team, there is always something to keep you busy.
Part of what makes Pres so unique is the abundance of tradition. From your first day of freshman year to your last day of senior year, there is always an event that marks your accomplishments. Another thing about Pres is its downtown location, or what we like to call, our “downtown advantage.” We are in the middle of it all. We have the opportunity to walk next door and take classes at Spalding University, walk down to Fourth Street Live! on our walk-a-thon day, or walk to the Muhammad Ali Center for a fun field trip with our classmates. The location is not only convenient, it is also a huge part of what makes Pres stand out.
The bonds formed on the corner of Fourth and Breck are strong enough to last a lifetime. You start out as complete strangers and walk out as a family. It is a place that allows and encourages you to be yourself. With our central downtown location, it’s possible to meet young women from all over Louisville and southern Indiana. Diversity is part of what makes Pres so special. You are not just another number, you are an essential member of a loving community.
Presentation was the right choice
Andrea Martinez
Enjoying the present moment has always been something she enjoyed, so she took advantage of every activity during her last year in middle school. She was involved in school activities, she had friends she thought she was going to spend the rest of her life with, but most importantly she was happy to live her life in her small town in Shepherdsville, Ky.
However, living in the present moment, although fun, is not realistic when growing up. She was given the option of staying at her homeschool, or she could shadow Catholic all-girl high schools to broaden her horizon.
She took a leap of faith when she shadowed those schools. She was scared, but she felt confident in her decision when she entered the front doors of a small school in Louisville.
She saw a building booming with intelligent women, and she was in awe at how jovial students were to be in such a small building. Girls at Presentation Academy were proud to be “Pres Girls” and at that moment she knew she had made the right choice.
During her first day at orientation, she felt alone because all the other girls seemed to already know each other. For the first time since her shadow visit, she thought she might have made the wrong choice. Within a few hours, that feeling of loneliness flew out the window. She was thriving again and she felt her wings begin to grow. Walking through the hallways at Presentation Academy, she gravitated toward the forbidden senior steps and she felt them speak to her, from that moment forward she waited for her turn to walk down the navy blue carpet that wrapped around the school ever so elegantly.
She also dreaded the last day of senior year.
Andrea dreaded the last day of senior year because she knew it would not be like any other break, because she would not get a chance to return to see her Pres sisters for the next four years while in college.
Four years later she has been given the chance to walk down the senior stairs. She has been given the chance to make friends that, regardless of distance and time zones, she knows she will still talk to.
After four short years of different levels of theology classes and countless service hours, she is only days away from the day she has dreaded since she was 13 years old when she walked through the doors on Breckinridge Street.
Although living in the present moment has not always been something she has been able to achieve throughout her high school experience, she is finally returning to her 13-year-old self when she was taking advantage of all her eighth-grade events.
Andrea has been part of educational justice, senior board, adventure club, eighth-grade leadership, freshman retreat and most importantly she has been given the privilege of being part of the class of 2022 at Presentation Academy.
Presentation leaves a mark
Molly Sharber
Presentation Academy: a school, a home and a family. Walking through the halls, always smiling, always talking and always waving. Walking up the front steps and through the main doors with a group of young and excited girls. Walking down the front steps and out of the main doors with a group of sisters.
Pres instills sisterhood. Pres instills confidence. Pres instills the strength to grow. At Pres there is a feeling of comfortability that you cannot get anywhere else. Going from class to class and teacher to teacher, the feeling of success and purpose is overwhelming.
The educators at Pres are not just there for work but to actually make a difference in someone’s life. Teachers at Pres enjoy learning and sharing knowledge. With any hand raised or question asked, judgment is never presented, rather encouragement prevails.
There is constant activity and bustling commotion through the halls and classrooms. Whether it is performing Shakespeare skits, working with Bunsen burners, singing in choir or drawing murals on the whiteboard, there is never a dull moment at Pres. Field trips to areas of our downtown landscape are always fun and brimming with adventure. Inside jokes and laughter fill up the building. Joy and the feeling of support and comfort is all around.
To be a part of the Presentation Academy community is to be a part of something great. Instant friends are gained and a wonderful education follows. The life-long friends gained will always be hypewomen, supportive shoulders or advice-givers. The education received will prepare students for any career and any life circumstance. Pres is something to be proud of and grateful for.
Pres molds leaders, presidents, CEOs, entrepreneurs, doctors, fashion designers, actors and many more. At Pres our choices are limitless. Pres girls can be anything or anyone in this vast world. Pres presents the opportunities necessary to go further within professional life.
What Pres is known for is leaving a mark. A mark so deep, impactful and withstanding that it cannot possibly be forgotten. Pres cultivates girls into women, peers into sisters and dreamers into doers. Leadership is ingrained as a way of life, not as an option. Leadership is easy to practice at Pres because of the many willing role models and large number of alumnae. We are given the lifelong tools to not only be leaders but to also have intelligence, emotional maturity and the calling to serve others.
From the moment girls walk through the stained glass doors on 4th Street, life changes. Even the walk up to the doors, on the sidewalk, compliments are given and all the faculty and staff cheer students on. From the start, Presentation Academy has given so much to not only one woman but thousands of women who have come before.
