“Where the Sea Meets the Stars” themed prom took place on April 25, 2026, at Norlyn Manor in Batavia. The 2026 Women of the Court consisted of: Julia Bayer, Lauren Beiser, Josephine (Josie) Fortin, Grace McCafferty, Kathryn Moran, Delaney Rains, Addison Reineke, Ellen Robey, Emma Rosenbaum, Whitley Sway, Kennedy Trapp, and Annemarie Wolfer. The Men of the Court consisted of: Gary Collins, Ryan Dorr, Brady Edwards, Zarius Harvey, Zayden Harvey, Caleb Link, Steven Meltebrink, Fletcher Pyles, Louis Smith, Soloman Snyder, Nicholas Speigla, and Aidan Walsh. Josie Fortin, and Louis Smith were announced as Prom Queen and King for 2026, shortly after dinner, and took the first dance on the floor.
Q&A with Prom Queen Josie Fortin
Q: Describe what you were feeling in the moment when they announced your name as Queen.
A: When I heard my name announced the first thing I thought was, “oh my gosh, this is crazy.” I was just very grateful and happy and just felt very supported and loved in that moment.
Q: What do you consider to be your major achievement at McNick?
A: Everything I have done in theater just because it’s something I have really dedicated myself to and this year, with going to state and performing in the state show and being a lead in the musical, I think that’s probably one of my biggest achievements.
Q: What service have you done for McNick and the greater community?
A: Inside McNick, I’ve done a lot with ambassadors, open house, volunteered at theater summer camps and then just some miscellaneous little service things here and there at McNick. Then outside of McNick I helped organize a bake sale at Camboni Missionaries every year which is always one of my favorite things.
Q: What advice do you have for underclassmen about service to McNick and the greater community?
A: I think my advice would be that no service is too small and even if you’re nervous about going because you think it won’t make an impact, just do it anyways because you never know how much it could help someone.
Q: Looking ahead five or ten years, what “good” do you hope you left at McNicholas after graduation?
A: I hope to just leave a supportive school community. I feel like my four years here I’ve had someone in my corner, and I’ve always been very supported. So, I hope that through my work in theater and being on CREW leadership and such I’m able to leave behind a school community that is still supportive years after I’ve graduated.
Q: What are your plans after high school?
A: I will be attending Villanova University in Philadelphia in the fall and will be in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in exploratory art. So, I don’t have a declared major yet, but I will be figuring that out.
Q: How did you feel when Louis name was announced as king?
A: I was like, yes! He is just the most deserving person. I’ve known Louis since fourth grade and our moms are really good friends, so I was just very proud of him.
Q&A with Prom King Louis Smith
Q: Describe what you were feeling in the moment when they announced your name as King?
A: I was just really shocked. I went into this really surprised to even get on prom court and to be nominated as King was just a little overwhelming actually.
Q: What do you consider to be your major achievement at McNick?
A: One of my biggest achievements was the early IT (Information Technology) program. Alongside that, my journey through the Cyber Patriots team was a state qualifier, and we were number one in the state this year. It took three years to achieve that, but we got it.
Q: What advice do you have for underclassmen about service to McNick and the greater community?
A: Inside McNick, I volunteered at a lot of the concession stands because of my involvement in the band. Outside of McNick, I’ve been a server at Guardian Angels Parish for the past four years.
Q: What advice do you have for underclassmen about service to McNick and the greater community?
A: Just take any opportunity to do service that you can. It’s always really fun, I don’t think I’ve had a service experience that hasn’t been fun. The Schoology service opportunities group is a great resource for getting involved.
Q: Looking ahead five or ten years, what “good” do you hope you left at McNicholas after graduation?
A: I hope I’m remembered a little bit through the stuff I’ve done like my work for the Cyber Patriot team for the past three years. I was only in the theater community for a year, but I hope to have made a little impact.
Q: What are your plans after high school?
A: I am going to the University of Cincinnati as a second-year student due to the early IT program at McNick and will be majoring in information technology focusing on networking systems.
Q: How did you feel when Josie’s name was announced as Queen?
A: I Actually thought it was really funny because we were partners for this and Mardi Gras. Yeah, so that was really funny. And obviously she is very deserving of this honor.
Congratulations to Josie Fortin and Louis Smith for being named McNicholas High School’s 2026 Prom King and Queen, along with all the women and men of the court!
The McNicholas Milestone 