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

It started as a chat.

Director of Mission Martha Saurine and former Social Studies teacher, Matt Normile, were discussing ways to enhance Patriot student experiences on campus. Normile, who had completed his student teaching work at Archbishop Moeller High School, had been exposed to a House System that the school had implemented. Seeing that this could be something that would benefit Patriot students, the idea of Carroll’s House System started to take form. When Normile and Saurine presented the idea to Principal Matt Sableski ‘91, he first responded with skepticism.

“I thought it was kind of a neat concept, but… I felt like we do a lot already,” recalled Sableski, “I wanted to make sure that the benefits for our students and community as a whole would outweigh the work effort that might have to go into this change.”

I knew Carroll was a special place that had special faculty and staff that could make it work. It just fits so beautifully into the philosophy of not only a Catholic school, but Carroll.

-House System Co-director Mrs. Martha Saurine

Though Sableski had concerns, he gave the green light to Normile and Saurine to create a research and development committee that would observe high schools who implemented similar systems in order to see if this was truly something that would benefit Patriot students. For the next year, teachers in teams of three spent time talking with and witnessing the administration, staff, and students in three specific high school House Systems closest to Dayton: Archbishop Moeller High School in Cincinnati, Ohio; Bishop Hartley High School in Columbus, Ohio; and Trinity High School in Louisville, Kentucky. After the school visits, teachers met to discuss their observations, the benefits of the structure, and the challenges that come with a house system. Though originally met with skepticism, Normile and Saurine were persistent. The benefits of this type of formation were too good to pass up at Carroll.

“The primary philosophy was that every kid belonged,” said Saurine, and she felt that this system only strengthened the Patriot family that Carroll already provides.  “I knew Carroll was a special place that had special faculty and staff that could make it work. It just fits so beautifully into the philosophy of not only a Catholic school, but Carroll.”

Sableski credits Normile and Saurine’s persistence and the principal from Bishop Hartley with his change of heart and ultimate approval of the House System implementation at Carroll. Said Sableski, “Bishop Hartley is a school that is very, very similar to Carroll, and he had a lot of really positive things to say about it, encouraged me to be patient, and told me to give it four years.” With the approval to begin the development stage, many teachers from the research and development team decided to take on the role of Deans of the various Houses. They, along with others who volunteered to become Deans, gathered at Indian Lake for a development and branding retreat. The center at Indian Lake provided a place for the team to focus on the rollout of the House System. It was here that the names of the Houses came to be as well. The team would quickly discover that Bishop Hartley’s principal was correct about being patient: the implementation of the House System was challenging and difficult.

“It’s a tremendous amount of work,” said Saurine, as she recalled all of the little details - student leadership roles, crests, colors, and more - that went into the development and implementation of those early years of the House System. “I don’t think we’ve done a year, two years in a row, (where) we’ve done exactly the same thing, but I like that. It’s a dynamic system.”

Added Sableski, “People should know how valuable our teachers and staff members have been throughout this process. Even though it’s student-led, the teachers and staff really had to come out of their comfort zones to embrace this and to help get this thing going. People wanted to see the value in this and wanted to make it work.” Because of that dedication, this system has evolved into something truly special. Saurine recalled that the first year of House competitions, students only cheered for their particular House. In more recent competitions, students cheer for each other, regardless of House affiliation. Said Saurine, “That gave me goosebumps, that they’re able to compete and celebrate each other at the same time.”

Though dynamic, the house system is rooted in three pillars: faith, academics, and community.

“We’re a Catholic educational institution, and so everything we do should be in the light of faith,” said Saurine. “So if we do those rigorous academics, it’s in the light of faith. And so, when we build community, it’s in the light of faith. We’re in the light of being a Catholic school.”

It’s in moments of community that both Saurine and Sableski see the biggest impact. In recent years, a couple of students have had parents pass away. At each of the viewings held, Carroll students’ Family Rooms went together to support the student at their time of need. While walking through the receiving line for one of the students, Sableski recalls that he heard the student call out “‘Hey, everybody, this is my family. This is my family.”

He then recalls that the student proudly explained to others at the viewing that these are people who she’s with every day at school. Sableski remembers that she then said, “They’re in my Family Room and I love them.”

What started out as a chat has become something that has become a unique part of the Patriot experience at Archbishop Carroll High School that will be talked about for years to come. “Even if we have people come in and want to know about House, it cannot be duplicated exactly in any other school because no other school is exactly Carroll,” states Saurine, “We have Deans and Family Room mentors who are so committed to making this place better and helping our students and service to our students, and the House System is just conducive to helping us serve our students better.”