Win Big at Ellis Open House

16 May 2023Nick C, Rogers ‘23

The blackjack tables are set, the slot lights are glowing bright, and eager students are ready to put the chips down at Ellis’ famous Open House.

Ellis Open House is one of the eight “open houses” hosted throughout the year – one for each boarding house. At every open house, the hosting boarding house is converted into a party scene that hosts the entire school for a night.

Mosh pits, dorm room tours, and packed halls are frequent at these events, but Ellis is a more formal exception. While all the other open houses change their themes throughout the years, Ellis has always hosted a casino-themed open house. “Part of it is practicality; we always have the resources on hand which makes running an open house much easier at this busy time of year,” explains Mr Wismer, Ellis Houseparent. “The Casino Night has always been an exciting event that everyone looks forward to, so we never felt the need to change it.”

Of course, real cash gambling isn’t exactly ethical for a group of high school students, so Ellis gets creative and uses their own fake currency for the night. “At the end of the night, students can trade their winnings for snacks and other prizes.” says Tochukwu O, Ellis ‘23. “This way, there’s still prizes to be won but no one goes home with any less that they walked in with.”

Ellis’ consistent theme throughout the years has allowed the house to go all out when it comes to activities. Upstairs had a rowdy roulette table, multiple student-run blackjack tables, a slot machine, and even some liar’s dice hosted by Ellis Emeritus Houseparent Mr Dave McCarthy. Downstairs was dedicated to five tables of poker and the coveted High Rollers Room, a VIP experience that only allowed players who had won $100,000 or more to enter.

Ellis Open House is one of the most exciting nights of the year, and once again, they did not disappoint. “I spent most of my time at the blackjack tables and, after a few losses, started to win big” said David O, Whittall ‘23. “I ended up coming home with an entire box of pizza, so I would definitely consider the night a success!”

A special thank you to Mr Wismer along with the rest of the Ellis staff and students for putting on an amazing open house for Brentwood to enjoy. Whether students walked out with their hands full of pizza boxes or completely empty handed, they all left with a smile on their faces.

Nick C, Rogers ‘23

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