Voices Ringing Blog /

Editor's Note: This story originally appeared in the Fall 2025 edition of Reflections.  Click here to read more stories from this issue.

Three Genesis Captains from the Class of 2017 serve today’s Carroll students as full-time faculty and staff members. They shared their memories of building the House System’s foundation, its evolution, and how their time as student leaders prepared them for careers in Catholic education.

Brooke Butler '17, Charity Genesis Captain and current Trinity House Member

Brooke Butler had no reservations about stepping into a leadership role, even one that was evolving with each new day.  With leadership positions as a section leader for the Marching Patriots, editing the Yearbook, and serving as an officer on Class Council and in National Honor Society, she felt prepared to help establish the House System as a Charity House Captain.

“I was comfortable in positions where I was expected to do more,” Butler said.  “I still feel like they put a lot of faith in us.” 

That investment of faith has paid off as Carroll enters the tenth year of the House System.  Butler and the other Captains spent much of the first year as ambassadors for the new program and defining what it meant to be a House Captain. With strong examples to follow, today’s Captains are able to focus on character and leadership development that helps the House System continue its growth.

“I’m really big on helping new people come in, and when old people leave, making sure the organization and its quality keep going,” Butler said.

That approach to leadership made Butler’s transition back to Carroll as the Assistant Director of Bands a smooth one.  As an alumna of both the Carroll music program and House System, she draws on her experience connecting with diverse groups of people to serve her students.

“The House System taught me about planning and being comfortable speaking with people who don’t necessarily share my interests.  It’s easy to be a leader in an organization where you share the same interests.  In this situation, you’re not bound by interests, you’re bound by fate.  It taught me how to connect with people who don’t share.”

Dana Koesters '17, Baltimore Genesis Captain and current Mercy House Member

Each group of House Captains is full of leaders, but the Class of 2017 were trailblazers.  Dana Koesters remembers that first year as one full of unknowns and learning.

“We were the guinea pigs.  We had no idea what was going on.”

All Captains learn leadership skills in real time because of the emphasis on planning ahead needed to succeed as the head of a Family Room. The responsibility of managing a classroom, adapting, and responding to unforeseen changes gave Koesters a headstart on her career in education. Thanks to her service as a Captain and total experience as a Carroll student, Koesters felt more prepared for college life at the University of Dayton than the other members of her cohort.  Koesters continues building new branches of community through the House System, now as a member of Mercy House when she returned to Carroll as a Spanish teacher in the 2023-24 academic year. She draws on her experience as a Genesis Captain with no previous examples to help new Captains find their footing at the start of each new year.

“It brings a better sense of community and inclusion to our school.  It gives seniors and juniors a chance to mentor the freshmen.”

Watching the House System grow into a vital part of the day for all students and witnessing students create their own legacy of leadership has been a rewarding experience for this Genesis Captain who embraced the unknown challenges of building its foundation.

Mitch Weitz '17, Baltimore House

Fostering an environment rooted in family values at Carroll was nothing new for Mitch Weitz.  The grandson of longtime English teacher Jim Hemmert and son of Bookstore Manager and Freedom Players Director Toni (Hemmert) Weitz ‘86 says he grew up at Carroll and jumped at the opportunity to write a new chapter in Carroll history.  Weitz led Baltimore Family Room 113 with fellow Captain Dana Koesters, another Genesis Captain whose vocation would bring her back to Carroll. Connecting familiar faces with their unfamiliar voices still stands out as Weitz’s favorite part of the House System’s inaugural year.

“I didn’t know most of the kids in my Family Room, but I was always outgoing and able to talk to people,” Weitz said.  “I still talk to people today that I was in a Family Room with, just because of those experiences.”

Today, Weitz takes care of our home at Carroll as a member of the facilities team and is still a proud member of Family Room 113 with its original adult mentors, Mr. Todd Tayloe and his mother, Toni.  He draws on his experience as one of the first Captains to foster relationships with current students.

“I get to see how these new Captains take over and help if they have any questions.  I can definitely tell when I show up that they’re excited. They grab me and pull me in, and I get to talk to everybody.  I’ve taken on a lot of roles in adulthood. In each one, I’ve found myself as a leader or somebody that can take charge, and it’s mostly because of the House System.”