Once the overhead lights are turned off, the floor instantly comes to life with dynamic graphics, animations and sound, whether that’s parents of student-athletes introducing their children before a volleyball game, the national anthem being sung by Whitney Houston, or vintage footage of the 1982 boys basketball team winning the Class A state title.
The system has been showcased at volleyball and basketball games and wrestling matches and the response from Fenwick students, fans, even opposing fans, has been “wow,” said Steve Strathmann, the school’s principal.
Designed specifically for athletic venues, the technology allows Fenwick to illustrate its motto, “We Are Fenwick,” team logo, player introductions, hype videos and interactive visuals, creating an atmosphere typically reserved for collegiate and professional sporting events.
The Luxedo Court 4K projection system cost $65,000, what Strathmann called the “best money we ever spent.”
Actually, the system was purchased through a donation from Chester and Stephanie Yeager, a Madison Twp. couple who have two children at Fenwick.
Three years ago, the Yeagers donated $2 million — the largest donation in school history — to install synthetic turf and make other upgrades to the athletic field, named in their honor.
While this donation was much smaller, Yeager said its impact could have a lasting impression at Fenwick. After watching a demo of the projector system, he immediately told Strathmann he financially supported the plan.
Fenwick “needed a win” and the system created “a ball of energy,” Yeager said.
There are five known similar projector systems operating in Ohio high schools: Lakota East, Lakota West, Centerville, Versailles, and Fenwick, the only Catholic school, said Kyle Longworth, Fenwick’s athletic director.
The system, he said, “enhances the game day experience” and it has been used at athletic events, pep rallies, open houses and admission events.
Strathmann said the boys basketball video was designed by a Fenwick student, and he expects more students to use their graphic skills in the future.
Strathmann, hired as the school’s first president 14 months ago, said he was surprised after talking to parents of eighth-graders, possible future Fenwick students, to learn it was the students, and not their parents, deciding what high school to attend.
He called the 13-year-olds “the decision-makers.”
All local Catholic high schools provide “a great education,” so it’s important for Fenwick to separate itself from the competition, he said.
“It’s all about student experience,” he said. “Who has the best experience.”
Fenwick expects the projector system to add to that experience.
“This helps bring the kids here,” said Longworth, who called the system “the shiny, cool thing.”
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