Like they have done every day for years, students at Mount St. Mary's Academy unfurled and raised the American flag to mark the start of a new day at the school.

Monday, however, was an historic day that marked the beginning of the 150th year for one of the oldest continually operated Catholic schools in the West.

Tradition trumped change Monday as young women in tartan skirts and young men in khaki shorts began the day as they have for decades.

With the flag raised, students gathered in the polished wooden hallways outside their classrooms for a moment of reflection and inspirational messages on this, a day that only comes every century and a half.

Principal Edee Wood began by introducing each teacher and reciting the names of each of the new students from memory, as nervous children clapped and cheered with each student's introduction.

“Without you in the hallways, this place isn't the same,” Wood said to the 108 K-8 students beginning school Monday. In addition to the Pledge of Allegiance, the students began the day, seemingly appropriately, with a Biblical verse from the book of Genesis.

They ended the meeting in the hall with The Lord's Prayer and verses from the contemporary Christian hit, “Our God is an Awesome God.”

For the students, the first day of school offers a chance to renew old friendships and make new ones.

“I think it's really cool,” said Bryana Sobrakse, a seventh-grader with a perfect grade-point average. “When we see new kids, it's exciting to see the school grow this year.”

“It feels like I have to be a good example for the younger kids,” said 8th-grader Sam Reese.

After several years of declining enrollment, Mount St. Mary's Academy is enjoying a boomlet in students this year. At the start of the last school year, Mount St. Mary's, which was founded as an orphanage and convent by the Sisters of Mercy, had 73 students. This year's 108 students represents a more than 25 percent jump in enrollment.

That it costs around $3,000 yearly to enroll a child in a school during a time of deep recession in Nevada County might seem counterintuitive.

But Wood said parents may be seeking comfort in a school that values parental involvement, community service for its students and a spiritual connection during these times.

“I think that people are looking to be part of something,” Wood said of the school overseen by St. Patrick's Catholic Church across the street. “I think when times are tough, people start re-examining what's important. Both children and adults may be looking for a spirituality boost, and we're here to embrace them,” she said.

Those themes have been a constant for a sesquicentennial, since the Sisters of Mercy opened an orphanage for the children of miners who came here to seek fortune in gold and might not have been able to care for their progeny.

Parent Chris Rossitto's daughter Maddy is starting fifth grade this year, and he said his daughter could barely contain her excitement to come through the old wooden doors to class. Chris had a smile on his face, too.

“My daughter was excited and I'm amazed at that,” he said, as he left her classroom.

“I don't know if you noticed,” he said, gesturing to a passerby, “but there are a lot of happy parents here, too.”